Union of Concerned Scientists Lead Effort to Support Endangered Species Act

From the Union of Concerned Scientists
5,738 Scientists Decry Attempts to Weaken Endangered Species Act: Leading Biologists Release Sign-On Letter

Leading scientists have released a letter signed by 5,738 biologists across the United States urging the Senate to stand by scientific principles that are crucial to species conservation in the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The letter--representing scientists from all 50 states and more than 900 institutions--asks Congress to stop efforts to weaken the ESA.

"Thanks to a strong scientific foundation, for 30 years the Endangered Species Act has protected wildlife, fish and plants on the brink of extinction," said Dr. Stuart Pimm, Doris Duke Chair of Conservation Biology, Duke University. "We should protect biodiversity by strengthening and fully funding the ESA, rather than attacking it."
Read the letter and view the signers
Read the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (as amended through December 2004) : prepared for the use of the Committee on Resources of the U.S. House of Representatives, One Hundred Ninth Congress, first session