Center for Biological Diversity

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Endangered Earth

No. 1257, Aug. 8, 2024

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Win Helps Protect Millions of Acres From Pesticides
The Center for Biological Diversity and allies just won a lawsuit [[link removed]] against a federal program allowing insecticide spraying on millions of acres in 17 western states.
Overseen and funded by a secretive U.S. Department of Agriculture agency, the program was created to kill grasshoppers and crickets who compete with livestock for forage. Among other things, a judge ruled, the program failed to consider how its toxic chemicals can also kill insects who support a rich diversity of western wildlife — including iconic and declining species like greater sage grouse. Now the agency has to fully consider the environmental harms of pesticides it wants to spray (and consider less harmful alternatives).
“For decades the Department of Agriculture has drenched millions of acres of western ecosystems with deadly insecticides,” said the Center’s Environmental Health Director Lori Ann Burd. “Bees, butterflies, sage grouse, and other critters are joining us in celebrating this.”


New Suit Filed Over Weak Endangered Species Rules
The Center and allies have once again filed suit [[link removed]] over damage done to the Endangered Species Act in 2019 that still hasn’t been fully fixed. In response to our previous legal action, in April the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and NOAA Fisheries tried to restore the Act’s strength with some new rules — but they left many harmful others intact. As the rules stand now, species from wolverines to walruses won’t get enough protection to survive.
“It’s really disappointing to see the Fish and Wildlife Service put forward regulations that fundamentally undercut its own ability to do what’s necessary to save plants and animals from extinction,” said Noah Greenwald, the Center’s endangered species director.
Help our work to restore the Act with a gift to the Center’s Saving Life on Earth Fund . [[link removed]]


Plastic in Paris: Gold-Medal Greenwashing?
The Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games don’t let spectators bring in single-use plastic bottles — supposedly an effort to cut down on waste and greenhouse gases. But they are letting Coca-Cola, a sponsor and the world’s largest corporate plastic polluter, sell millions of drinks from them.
The Paris games have been applauded for recognizing the plastic pollution problem but questioned on how they’ve carried it out.
Coke told Politico [[link removed]] the best it can do is serve “more than half” its Olympics beverages without single-use plastic. That leaves about 6.4 million drinks served from single-use plastic bottles — or poured from them into “reusable” cups [[link removed]] . (Much better optics, right?)
We're pushing Coke to stop its plastic greenwashing across the globe.
Join us: Tell the company to bring back refillable bottles and support plastic-bottle-banning legislation. [[link removed]]


Agencies Must Let Mexican Gray Wolves Live Free
Along with more than 20 other conservation groups, the Center is urging federal and state agencies not to remove a family of endangered Mexican gray wolves from just south of Grand Canyon National Park. The agencies plan to capture the pack and relocate it.
“Wildlife agencies need to halt their plan to move the Kendrick Peak pack and let these wild wolves live in peace and contribute to the natural balance of the Grand Canyon ecosystem,” said the Center’s Michael Robinson.

Good News for Horseshoe Crabs
After years of advocacy by the Center and allies — plus more than 21,000 comments from our supporters — the U.S. Pharmacopeia has announced new national guidance [[link removed]] supporting the use of synthetic alternatives to horseshoe crab blood for medical safety testing.
American horseshoe crabs are ancient, body-armored arthropods with 10 eyes and a long, spiked tail. Over the past three decades, populations have plummeted in their largest stronghold, the Delaware Bay. That’s partly due to biomedical companies harvesting horseshoe crabs and draining their blue blood, which is used to find toxins in drugs and medical devices. Although Europe has started embracing synthetic alternatives, U.S. companies have been slow to switch.
Now that could change — and you helped. Thank you.
Waxy-leaved plant with reddish-orange fruits [[link removed]]
The Revelator: Hope Blooms
Could a single Franciscan manzanita plant nicknamed Francie, the last of its kind from the wild, help the whole species make a comeback?
Find out in The Revelator . [[link removed]] And if you don’t already, subscribe to the free weekly Revelator e-newsletter for more wildlife and conservation news [[link removed]] .


That's Wild: How to Get Beat Up by a Shrimp
Striker-type mantis shrimp have an incredible knockout blow: With “raptorial appendages” that can punch the arm right off a crab and vaporize water, these fascinating marine crustaceans — whose eyes are rumored to be able to detect cancer [[link removed]] — make one of the fastest biological movements on the planet.
See one in action on YouTube. [[link removed]]

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Center for Biological Diversity
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