settlement reached in American pika case

February 18, 2009 | By PACIFIC LEGAL FOUNDATION

The Christian Science Monitor's Bright Green Blog reports that a settlement has been reached between the Center for Biological Diversity and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service concerning CBD's suit over the American pika's status under the Endangered Species Act. The settlement binds FWS to a timeline to complete the listing consideration. The Bright Green Blog notes that "[i]f listed, the pika would be the first animal outside Alaska, and the only mammal other than the polar bear, to be afforded protection because of global warming."

Also, at the end of the blog post, the BGB discusses the new Section 7 consultation regs and states that "[t]his rule change, which went into effect nine days before Barack Obama’s inauguration, is expected to take many months, if not years, to reverse."  This implies that the Obama administration has in fact decided to reverse the regulations, but we are aware of no such decision.