Environmental

Recent Posts

Northern Long Eared Bat To Be Designated as Threatened, not Endangered – Litigation Immediately Begins
Posted on 18 May 2015 by Steptoe & Johnson PLLC

On April 2, 2015, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) announced that it would be listing the northern long-eared bat as threatened , rather than endangered, as it had originally proposed in October of 2013. The listing gives the bat new protections... Read More

USFWS Snubs State Natural Resources Agencies: Northern Long Eared Bat ESA Listing Proposal
Posted on 14 May 2014 by Steptoe & Johnson PLLC

By Kathy G. Beckett There is a growing concern about USFWS action relative to the Northern Long-Eared Bat (NLEB) that speaks to the common dilemma, state versus federal. It was the state natural resource professionals who identified the impacts... Read More

Northern Long-Eared Bat Update
Posted on 5 Jun 2014 by Steptoe & Johnson PLLC

By Kathy G. Beckett Since the October 2, 2013 proposed listing of the Northern Long Eared Bat (NLEB) as endangered or threatened, over thirty-seven thousand comments, letters of concern and support have been filed with the agency. (78 Fed. Reg.... Read More

Failed Federal Collaboration: United States Fish and Wildlife Service State Relations
Posted on 27 Oct 2014 by Steptoe & Johnson PLLC

By Kathy G. Beckett The supplemental comment period for the USFWS proposal to list as endangered the Northern Long Eared Bat (“NLEB”) and to not list the Eastern Small Footed Bat closed on August 29, 2014. (79 Fed. Reg. 36698, June 30... Read More

USFWS WV Field Office Guidance on Bat Conservation Plans – Proceed Cautiously
Posted on 26 Aug 2015 by Steptoe & Johnson PLLC

The US Fish and Wildlife Service has released the “Guidance on Developing and Implementing a Myotid Bat Conservation Plan. http://www.fws.gov/westvirginiafieldoffice/PDF/WVFO_IBCP.pdf . Key teaching points about this guidance are raised in the following... Read More