Billy Berler, billy.berler@sierraclub.org
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the Department of the Interior to consider removing or reducing Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves and Mexican wolves.
The wolf directives were included in a broader order announced Friday aimed at the cattle industry. The order comes just nine days after Trump temporarily increased lower-tariff beef imports in an effort to bring down record-high beef prices.
In response, Sierra Club National Wildlife Campaign Manager Ben Greuel released the following statement:
“Trump is putting gray wolves and Mexican wolves in the crosshairs to placate the backlash caused by his own beef import policies. Turning wolf protections into political damage control will do nothing to lower grocery bills or help families struggling with the cost of living. The Endangered Species Act has stood between these animals and extinction for decades, and the Sierra Club will continue to defend the safeguards that have allowed them to survive.”
The order gives the Interior secretary 90 days to determine whether either species meets the criteria for delisting or downlisting. It also directs the department to prepare a legislative proposal and consider loosening federal standards for the lethal removal of wolves. The order does not immediately change either species’ legal status.
Trump’s order targeting wolves is the latest in a series of attacks on the Endangered Species Act. In July, his administration announced that it finalized a rule removing the longstanding definition of “harm,” which protected listed species from habitat destruction that kills or injures them. One week later, the administration eliminated automatic protections for newly listed threatened species and made it easier to exclude areas from critical habitat based on economic or national security considerations. Sierra Club and its conservation partners are suing the Trump administration to block both sets of rollbacks and defend the Endangered Species Act.
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.