Anyone can fall behind at work. There's always some new problem that demands your attention right now, and that not-quite-as-important project can be pushed to the back burner, right? It'll get taken care of sometime in the next ... eight years or so?
A federal judge ruled on March 12, 2025, that a delay of almost a decade on biological opinions by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) was too long. With the risk posed to endangered species by pesticides at stake, a deadline of three years for the completion of the environmental reviews was set. Monarch butterflies may not be able to clap, but the decision encouraged environmental advocates fighting on their behalf.
Let Me Get Back to You on That
As the name suggests, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service manages nature reserves, pollinators, fish hatcheries, issues concerning flora and fauna, and other nature-related concerns. They work with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on some issues that affect both departments.
Groups can bring environmental concerns to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to have the agency assess the situation under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Following a formal consultation, which may take up to 90 days, the FWS is supposed to provide a biological opinion on the impact of the issue in question on endangered species within 45 days. There are over 1,800 plants and animals that currently have endangered status.
The Center for Biological Diversity, plaintiffs in the lawsuit, requested an ESA Section 7 Consultation in 2017 after viewing an EPA report showing that two pesticides, chlorpyrifos and diazinon, were harming wildlife.
Having not received a response from FWS, the Center for Biological Diversity filed a lawsuit in 2022 alleging violation of the Administrative Procedure Act. It later amended the complaint to include four other pesticides tested by the EPA in the interim: diazinon, carbaryl, atrazine, simazine, and methomyl.
Under the findings of the EPA, the six chemicals submitted for the Consultation ranged from affecting 55% to 97% of endangered species. Chlorpyrifos, a pesticide used on crops and the chemical with the highest danger rate, has been banned from use on foods in California, New York, Hawaii, Maryland, and Oregon. It's also linked to developmental problems in children.
Atrazine is the most commonly used pesticide on the EPA list. Affecting 56% of endangered species, it's linked to birth and hormonal defects. Europe banned its use more than a decade ago.
Hurry Up Already
In his ruling, U.S. District Judge John C. Hinderaker agreed with the Center for Biological Diversity's claim that FWS took far too long to supply the biological opinions. He wasn't swayed by FWS's arguments that changing EPA guidance, updated data, and limited staffing excused their tardiness.
Judge Hinderaker thought the Center for Biological Diversity's requested timeline of six months for completion of the remaining five pesticides (FWS completed the biological opinion for methomyl in December 2024) was too restrictive. The pending biological opinions were given timelines spread over the next three years, with carbaryl due by the end of March 2025.
FWS may continue to struggle to meet their biological opinion deadlines, particularly in light of the reduction in workforce. Hundreds of employees were laid off at the agency in February.
Related Resources
- Conversationists Sue To Save Chinnok Salmon Populations (FindLaw's Law and Daily Life)
- Summary of the Endangered Species Act (FindLaw's Law Library)
- Can You Sue Government Officials? (FindLaw's Law and Daily Life)
