Over 250 species were listed as endangered between 1994 and 1997, and the Fish and Wildlife Service never designated critical habitat without being hauled into court-even though it is required for the government to determine critical habitat. The ESA has two basic tenants. One, you can not jeopardize a species' survival. Two, you can not destroy their critical habitat. It is not very clear and leaves room for interpretation.
Critical habitat is different, it is easy to tell if habitat is being illegally destroyed.
For us here at the Southwest Center, it is about getting the government to enforce the law. Its about making sure that species receive the full protection they deserve and that their homes are not destroyed. Easier said than done in our age of rampant environmental destruction. Where we need your help right now is making it loud and clear to our congressional representatives that we will not sit by and let our most fundamental environmental law be driven into the ground. For anyone skeptical enough to think this was not politically motivated, just two days before the Senators tried to introduce their rider, the Southwest Center filed a lawsuit to designate 4.8 million acres of critical habitat for the Mexican spotted owl-a move that would not only protect the spotted owl, but also have great impact on the logging of old growth forests throughout the Southwest.