Biden Administration Defends Trump’s Removal of Wolf Protections

The Biden administration is defending a Trump-era decision to remove federal protections for the imperiled gray wolf found in the Northern Rockies and Great Lakes regions, according to a court filing Friday.

It requested summary judgment in a lawsuit filed by environmental groups after the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service last year declared the wolf no longer merits listing as either threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act, and that enough state-level protections exist for the wolf to recover.

“The Court should decline Plaintiffs’ invitation to usurp the Service’s authority by dictating how the Service should administer the ESA ...