Overview

Environmental lawyer and activist Lowell E. Baier has been involved in many of the environmental battles of the past 50 years, going back to the passage of the landmark Endangered Species Act (ESA), a bipartisan law passed by Congress and signed by President Richard Nixon more than 50 years ago. In this book, he looks back at a lifetime of environmental advocacy and tackles one of the leading challenges of today, the unprecedented decline in species due to climate change. Baier argues that as global temperatures rise and already worrisome extinction trends accelerate, we should be utilizing the ESA, which functions like an emergency room for the planet. Drawing from his extensive experience as a negotiator and activist, Baier argues that the ESA is flexible enough to ameliorate the biodiversity crisis while still respecting landowners, states, and industries.

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9781538194133

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Reviews

"From the foreword: ""Lowell Baier writes in this impassioned book of critical care and collaborative actions on behalf of threatened and endangered species. This is a call to action of the obligations to ourselves, our families, and society for making extinction, biodiversity, and the Endangered Species Act a national priority again. We can and we must. We are living in the Sixth Extinction. This is not just a political crisis, or even an ecological crisis, it is a spiritual one."" --Terry Tempest Williams Earth's flora and fauna are increasingly imperiled by climate change, habitat destruction, and pollution. More than 1,600 species in the U.S. are currently designated as threatened. Already, populations of pollinators (bees, birds, butterflies) are precipitously declining. Conservationist and attorney Baier reviews the history and impact of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) passed in 1973. Comprehensive and at times controversial, this law provides protections for jeopardized animals and plants. Baier likens the ESA to an ""emergency room"" in that it allows species to sufficiently recover and increase their numbers. He presents examples of the ESA's many successes and cites a study showing that this law has thwarted the extinction of almost 300 species. He details difficulties arising from the ESA, including state government versus federal government disputes, costs and sources of funding, and balancing the regulation of species and land management. Personalities, partisanship, and policy matters associated with the ESA are well-covered. Ecological and biodiversity crises are intensifying. If we fail to act wisely, the wildlife of our planet is going to require even more than an emergency room. They'll need an intensive care unit. -- ""Booklist"" ""As we confront an unprecedented global biodiversity crisis, it's never been more important to understand the full history of the Endangered Species Act. With Earth's Emergency Room, Lowell Baier takes us on an epic half-century journey that explores both the awe-inspiring successes to prevent extinction and the unfulfilled promise to recover imperiled listed species. Understanding this full complexity - and the many solutions at our fingertips - is critical to ensuring that the full diversity of wildlife and plants thrive for future generations."" --Collin O'Mara, President and CEO, National Wildlife Federation; Secretary of Natural Resources and Environmental Control for Delaware (2009-2014)"

"""As we confront an unprecedented global biodiversity crisis, it's never been more important to understand the full history of the Endangered Species Act. With Earth's Emergency Room, Lowell Baier takes us on an epic half-century journey that explores both the awe-inspiring successes to prevent extinction and the unfulfilled promise to recover imperiled listed species. Understanding this full complexity - and the many solutions at our fingertips - is critical to ensuring that the full diversity of wildlife and plants thrive for future generations."" --Collin O'Mara, President and CEO, National Wildlife Federation; Secretary of Natural Resources and Environmental Control for Delaware (2009-2014) ""Lowell Baier writes in this impassioned book of critical care and collaborative actions on behalf of threatened and endangered species. This is a call to action of the obligations to ourselves, our families, and society for making extinction, biodiversity, and the Endangered Species Act a national priority again. We can and we must. We are living in the Sixth Extinction. This is not just a political crisis, or even an ecological crisis, it is a spiritual one."" --Terry Tempest Williams"

Author Information

"Lowell E. Baier is an attorney as well as a legal and environmental historian and author. He has worked in Washington, D.C., throughout his 60-year career as a tireless advocate for natural resources and wildlife conservation. He holds five doctorate degrees. Baier was recognized as the Conservationist of the Year by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation in 2008, by Outdoor Life Magazine in 2010, and by the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies in 2013. In 2016, the National Wildlife Federation awarded him their highest honor, the Jay N. ""Ding"" Darling Conservation Award for a lifetime of conservation service."

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