Keeping Science in the Driver's Seat

Nobody argues with the goals of the Natural Communities Conservation Planning program- to protect habitat before it becomes so degraded that the species living there become endangered and, at the same time, to plan for compatible development. However, to attain the process must not short circuit the safety net of the Endangered Species Act, the federal law that protects these habitats. Specifically, the Natural Resources Defense Council opposes using the NCCP as a substitute for the listing of threatened and endangered species under ESA. NCCP's consensus-building approach should not replace science as the basis for the construction of the reserve system.