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Reexamining What We Stand To Lose: A Look At Reinitiated Consultation Under The Endangered Species Act, Catherine E. Kanatas, Maxwell C. Smith

Pace Environmental Law Review

This article first examines the role reinitiated consultation plays within Congress's statutory framework and concludes that in many ways, reinitiated consultation is the glue that holds the Endangered Species Act's protective scheme together. While the ESA generally prohibits any injury to an endangered species, Congress has authorized the Service to permit such injuries under certain circumstances. But these authorizations must be accompanied by a limit that will trigger reinitiated consultation if exceeded. Thus, without reinitiated consultation, these preauthorized injuries or “takes” would prove gaping leaks in Congress's “Ark,” leaving little or no safety for endangered species. Moreover, reinitiated consultation has …