By Susan Milius
The Obama administration is not overturning the hotly debated Bush-era rule that limits provisions to protect the polar bear, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced May 8 at a press briefing.
So the status quo based on rule 4(d) will continue: Power plants, factories and other generators of greenhouse gases will not have to consider legal requirements for protecting polar bears under the Endangered Species Act.
Polar bears are listed in the “threatened” category under the ESA because climate change brought about by increases in greenhouse gas emissions is shrinking the bear’s habitat.