In one of his first moves upon taking office, President Obama has ordered a freeze on all new or pending regulations from the Bush administration. The bold action could delay, and possibly even prevent, the removal of gray wolves from endangered species lists in more than a dozen states.

In a memorandum released by Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, Obama has informed all department and agency heads that “…no proposed or final regulation should be sent to the Office of Federal Register for publication unless and until it has been reviewed and approved by a department or agency head appointed or designated by the President after noon on January 20, 2009.”

According to Michael Robinson of the Center for Biological Diversity, the hiatus will give President Obama and new Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar the chance to reconsider the Bush administration’s plans to remove wolves from the endangered species list.

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With a background as an art activist that cares deeply for endangered species, I am pleased to present this darling poster from the US Fish and Wildlife Service, which illustrates some of our planet’s most threatened species. Now you can educate your children, in the classroom and out, about modern day extinction and what we can do to prevent it. Entitled What’s Weird, Wonderful, and Needs Help? this educational illustration asks questions such as: “What does a Black Warrior Waterdog look like?” How about a Spectacled Eider? Ever see a Running Buffalo Clover, or something like it in a field?

This new endangered species poster is for kids and the young at heart alike.

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Targeting the ESA’s consultation process, the policy changes boil down to this: only when a federal agency feels their intended actions could bring about harm must they consult an outside agency like the Fish and Wildlife Service. Currently,  all of these decisions are subject to an independent scientific review.

If the ambiguity of that policy makes you uncomfortable then please raise your hand because it scares the crap out of me.

First off, our current administration has been, if anything, consistent in its attempt to sidestep environmental policy over the past seven years. Consider this, Bush’s administration has only added about 60 species to the endangered species list. That is about 10-percent of what was listed under the Clinton administration, and only about 3-percent of what the Reagan administration listed. Even George Bush’s dad added around 200 species to the list!

Wait, it gets better. This whole process is incredibly sneaky. These suggested changes are not even subject to Congressional approval. Outside of that, the Interior Department is only allowing comments on the proposal for 30 days, and in an attempt to reduce public outcry they are not accepting any comments via email - snail mail only!

If this sounds sketch, it should. With the proposed changes, for example, agencies won’t even be required to assess how their projects will contribute to global warming, or the effect of those emissions on species and habitat. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Of course, we won’t have many of those around if these changes are allowed.

Fact is, this proposal is obscene and another wicked example of the Bush administration circumventing the law. And don’t let them fool you…the consequences are grand, such that we ourselves might might make the endangered list.

Take Action:

Comment Online via the NRDC

Related Posts:

Where Issues Intertwine: Why Animals Matter
Should All Arctic Species be Listed as Endangered?
Alaska Sues to End the Polar Bear

Image source: Voices at Flickr