Section 7(a)(1) of the "New" Endangered Species Act: Rediscovering and Redefining the Untapped Power of Federal Agencies' Duty to Conserve Species

Authors

J.B. Ruhl, Vanderbilt University Law School

Document Type

Article

Publication Title

Environmental Law

Publication Date

1995

ISSN

1075-8453

Page Number

1107

Keywords

endangered species, conservation, duty to conserve

Disciplines

Environmental Law | Law

Abstract

This article probes the history, meaning, and potential applications of section 7(a)(1) of the Endangered Species Act, which by its terms imposes a "duty to conserve" on all federal agencies. The article examines how agencies and courts have watered down this potentially forceful species conservation directive and suggests that, by linking it with the recovery planning function of section 4(f) of the Act, the duty to conserve could help us gain traction on species recovery.

Recommended Citation

J.B. Ruhl, Section 7(a)(1) of the "New" Endangered Species Act: Rediscovering and Redefining the Untapped Power of Federal Agencies' Duty to Conserve Species, 25 Environmental Law. 1107 (1995)
Available at: https://scholarship.law.vanderbilt.edu/faculty-publications/503