However, because of the strength of this law it has been constantly under attack by private interest groups and lobbyists for the timber, mining and building industries. The recovery of the identified 1,177 endangered species, and many more not yet listed, are currently threatened by not only a lack of enforcement of the Endangered Species Act by U.S. Secretary Babbitt and the Fish and Wildlife Service, but by a loophole in the law that was part of the 1984 amendment . Under the Clinton Administration, and at the direction of Secretary Bruce Babbitt, the Fish and Wildlife Service have issued over 200 Incidental Take Permits with approximately another 250 permits proposed. These permits to kill effect over 400 endangered species including the American Bald Eagle, Grizzly Bear, Grey Wolf, Red-cockaded Woodpecker, Northern Spotted Owl and Southern California's coastal gnatcatcher, a small songbird that depends upon the sage habitats for it's survival. What is so dangerous about these changes to the Endangered Species Act is that our government is conceding to the desires of private interest groups and disregarding their public trust duties.
Nature is full of surprises.
There are many variables to be considered regarding the conservation of endangered species. Such varying needs require adaptive management. So the government recognizing that the paint plant was in compliance gave the owner a guarantee along with their operational permit that there would be nothing more that the manufacturer would have to do over the next 30 to 100 years in order to comply with environmental laws. But there is still hope for these species and their recovery. Their fate and that of over 18 million acres of habitat is not only in each and every one of our hands to take action, but also in the hands of our Congressional Representatives.