Trump Administration is Pursuing Exempting Gulf Oil and Gas Program from Endangered Species Protections

WASHINGTON, D.C.  — The Trump administration announced today it will convene the Endangered Species Committee, or so-called “God Squad,” a rarely used committee that has the power to condemn an endangered species to extinction, in an attempt to permanently exempt the federal Gulf oil and gas program from crucial Endangered Species Act protections. Exempting the program would put federally listed species, including the nearly extinct Rice's whale and five species of sea turtles at immediate risk of irreversible harm. 

Following is a statement from Andrew Wetzler, senior vice president of Nature at NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council):

“This convening of the God Squad for the first time in 30 years is about giving oil and gas companies a free pass to drive incredible wildlife to extinction in the name of billionaire profits. Big Oil CEOs should not be able to determine a species’ existence on this planet simply because they could make more money if they didn’t have to comply with the law as it stands. There are fewer than 100 Rice’s whales left. The Kemp's ridley sea turtle has clawed back from the brink for decades. The administration is now asking a committee to say none of that matters.

“This is a direct assault on some of the world’s most threatened species. It is a signal that the future of cherished wildlife is negotiable when some of the wealthiest companies on Earth ask for a favor. But the  broad exemption suggested by this notice has no basis in the law.”

The Committee, which was created by Congress in 1978 and has been convened only a handful of times in its history, has the power to authorize specific actions that cannot otherwise move forward in compliance with the ESA. While the vague notice suggests a sweeping exemption that could spell disaster for imperiled species in the Gulf, the powers of the committee are limited to narrow circumstances.

NOAA identifies several ESA-listed species that are likely to be adversely affected by the oil and gas program's operations. They include:

• Rice’s whale: the only large whale to live in the Gulf year-round, with an estimated population of just 51 animals. NMFS (National Marine Fisheries Service) concluded that the program is likely to jeopardize the continued existence of the species due to vessel strike risk, and required speed restrictions as a condition of compliance.
• Sperm whale: listed as endangered, exposed to vessel strikes, entanglement, seismic surveys, and oil spill risk across Gulf waters.
• Five species of sea turtles: hawksbill, Kemp’s ridley, leatherback, loggerhead, and green sea turtle, all listed as threatened or endangered, are exposed to vessel strikes, seismic surveys, entanglement, and oil spills throughout the Gulf.
• Gulf sturgeon: a threatened species whose populations use the Gulf's nearshore coastal waters, where oil spill exposure poses a documented risk.

The Rice’s whale is the only large whale species that lives in the Gulf of Mexico year-round. The species faces ongoing threats from vessel strikes, seismic surveys, and oil spills. Over two dozen marine and coastal species in the Gulf are listed as endangered or threatened under the ESA.

The Endangered Species Committee is composed of six Cabinet-level officials and is chaired by Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, who called the March 31 meeting. 

NRDC has active litigation challenging the federal government’s management of Gulf oil and gas activities under the Endangered Species Act.

NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 3 million members and online activists. Established in 1970, NRDC uses science, policy, law and people power to confront the climate crisis, protect public health and safeguard nature. NRDC has offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Beijing and Delhi (an office of NRDC India Pvt. Ltd).