US states sue Trump over weakening of endangered species protections

Democratic attorneys general from 20 states and Washington, DC, say government has illegally rolled back landmark protections.

US President Donald Trump speaks to reporters before boarding Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on September 9, 2026 [Brendan Smialowski/AFP]

A group of attorneys general in the United States have sued President Donald Trump’s administration for weakening protections for endangered species .

The group of 20 Democratic-led states, plus the District of Columbia, filed two lawsuits on Wednesday.

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The complaints come less than two months after the Department of Interior and Department of Commerce announced final rules that could make it easier for companies to develop sensitive lands that are home to endangered species.

“The Trump administration is trying to undermine the law, the will of Congress and the will of the people who overwhelmingly support protections for endangered species,” Washington state Attorney General Nick Brown said at a news conference.

“Instead of stewardship, this administration’s approach to our land, to our water, is one of exploitation.”

One of the two lawsuits argues that the government has unlawfully narrowed the definition of “harm” in the 1973 Endangered Species Act, a landmark piece of legislation to protect animals and plants at risk of extinction.

“Harm”, under the law, has long been interpreted to include threats to those species’ habitats.

But the Trump administration’s new rule marks a “reversal of staggering proportions”, the states argued.

It would open the door to activities such as mining and oil drilling in sensitive habitats so long as they are not “directed immediately and intentionally” at particular animals.

Environmental groups have also sued over the change.

The second lawsuit filed on Wednesday challenges two new rules. One eliminates wide protections for newly-threatened species unless the US Fish and Wildlife Service creates species-specific regulations.

The second rule requires the government to consider objections from private companies before declaring areas “critical habitats”.

The lawsuit argues that such changes leave endangered species with fewer safeguards than what Congress had outlined in its law.

The 1973 law has been credited with helping restore the populations of animals such as condors, grizzly bears and humpback whales. It is seen as a keystone achievement of US conservation efforts.

But the Trump administration has pledged to roll back environmental protections in favour of prioritising economic growth.

“Drill, baby, drill” was a popular slogan during Trump’s 2024 re-election campaign, as he promised to open protected lands to greater oil exploration and private development.

Critics of Trump’s regulation-slashing fear he may trigger irreversible changes, pushing species to extinction.

“Caring for our wildlife and our environment is part of caring for our future,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement. “Yet President Trump seems to care only for himself and his industry friends.”

But the Trump administration has argued that environmental protections have gone too far.

It accused Wednesday’s lawsuits of seeking to defend “regulatory overreach” that went beyond what Congress had intended.

“The role of federal agencies is to faithfully implement the Endangered Species Act as written, not to expand its reach through interpretations favoured by advocacy organizations,” an Interior Department spokesperson said, according to the Reuters news agency.

来自 20 个州和华盛顿特区的民主党籍总检察长表示，政府非法撤销了具有里程碑意义的保护措施。

2026年9月9日，美国总统唐纳德·特朗普在马里兰州安德鲁斯联合基地登上空军一号前向记者发表讲话。[Brendan Smialowski/AFP]

美国一些州检察长起诉唐纳德·特朗普总统的政府，指控其削弱了对濒危物种的保护。

由 20 个民主党领导的州以及哥伦比亚特区组成的联盟于周三提起了两项诉讼。

美国豁免墨西哥湾石油钻探者遵守濒危物种保护规定的清单（共3份） 1

特朗普威胁加拿大，因野火烟雾将加征更高关税（共3条，此为第2条）

特朗普政府旨在终止保护大片森林土地规定的三项举措之三

就在内政部和商务部宣布最终规则，可能使公司更容易开发濒危物种栖息地的敏感土地不到两个月后，就出现了这些投诉。

“特朗普政府正试图破坏法律、国会的意愿以及绝大多数支持保护濒危物种的人民的意愿，”华盛顿州总检察长尼克·布朗在新闻发布会上说。

“本届政府对待我们的土地和水资源，不是善待，而是剥削。”

其中一起诉讼认为，政府非法缩小了 1973 年《濒危物种法》中“伤害”的定义，该法是一项具有里程碑意义的立法，旨在保护濒临灭绝的动植物。

根据法律，“伤害”一词长期以来被解释为包括对这些物种栖息地的威胁。

但各州辩称，特朗普政府的新规标志着“规模惊人的逆转”。

只要不是“直接且有意地”针对特定动物，那么在敏感栖息地进行采矿和石油钻探等活动就可以打开大门。

环保组织也已就此变更提起诉讼。

周三提起的第二起诉讼对两项新规提出质疑。其中一项规定，除非美国鱼类及野生动物管理局制定针对特定物种的法规，否则将取消对新近受威胁物种的广泛保护。

第二条规定要求政府在宣布某个地区为“重要栖息地”之前，必须考虑私营公司的反对意见。

诉讼认为，这样的改变使得濒危物种得到的保护措施比国会在其法律中规定的要少。

1973年的这项法律被认为有助于恢复秃鹰、灰熊和座头鲸等动物的数量，被视为美国自然保护工作的一项关键成就。

但特朗普政府已承诺将放松环境保护，优先考虑经济增长。

“钻探，宝贝，钻探”是特朗普 2024 年竞选连任期间的一句流行口号，因为他承诺开放受保护的土地，以进行更多的石油勘探和私人开发。

批评特朗普削减监管政策的人担心，他可能会引发不可逆转的变化，导致物种灭绝。

加州总检察长罗伯·邦塔在一份声明中表示：“保护野生动物和环境就是保护我们的未来。然而，特朗普总统似乎只关心他自己和他的行业朋友们。”

但特朗普政府认为环境保护措施矫枉过正。

它指责周三提起的诉讼是为了捍卫“监管过度”，这种过度监管超出了国会的意图。

据路透社报道，内政部发言人表示：“联邦机构的职责是忠实地执行《濒危物种法》的条文，而不是通过倡导组织支持的解释来扩大其适用范围。”