Appeals Court: Animals Can Be Listed as Threatened Based on Climate Change Risk

A U.S. appeals court ruled that federal agencies can list species as threatened based on projections of how climate change will impact their habitats.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Oil companies and Alaska natives had challenged the National Marine Fisheries Service’s decision to list a seal species as threatened because of sea ice loss, but the court upheld the decision.

“The service need not wait until a species’ habitat is destroyed to determine that habitat loss may facilitate extinction,” Judge Richard A. Paez wrote.

5 Endangered Species Dependent on Public Lands for Survival https://t.co/SToJhf1JAV @World_Wildlife @Natures_Voice

— EcoWatch (@EcoWatch) October 14, 2016

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