ABSTRACT
The Endangered Species Act is part of a system of federal environmental protection statutes, executive orders, and associated regulations in the United States that is tightly interconnected. Concern over the possible environmental effects of federal actions prompted enactment of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) in 1969. Concern over air and water pollution prompted enactment of the Clean Air Act in 1970 and Clean Water Act in 1972. The scope of NEPA also extends to ecological issues not within the purview of the Endangered Species Act, including effects on animal and plant species and habitats not listed as threatened or endangered or as critical habitat. The statutory language of NEPA reflects the desire to provide for comprehensive consideration of the environmental ramifications of federal actions at a time when a “space age” society contemplated ever more ambitious efforts to subjugate and manipulate the environment.
