About this episode
The episode discusses the Eleventh Circuit's consideration of state liability under the Endangered Species Act in relation to the anti-commandeering doctrine.
In Bear Warriors United v. Secretary, Florida Department of Environmental Protection the Eleventh Circuit is considering the question of whether the Endangered Species Act can hold states responsible for the harms of regulated private parties without running afoul of the Constitution's anti-commandeering doctrine. The Endangered Species Act prohibits anyone, including a state, from harming an endangered or threatened species. But threats to species are often driven by many small harms, which makes enforcement difficult. In Florida, manatee habitat is degraded by nitrogen released from septic tanks, none of which contributes substantially to the problem on their own. Bear Warriors United, an environmental group, sued Florida's Department of Environmental Protection alleging that it is liable for these harms as the regulator of septic tanks. A Florida district court agreed, ordering the state to prohibit new septic tanks in the watershed, to implement various conservation programs, and to maintain these policies unless and until a federal agency authorizes the state to change them. The anti-commandeering doctrine prohibits the federal government from "seeking to control or…
Topics covered
- Endangered Species Act
- anti-commandeering doctrine
- environmental regulation
- state liability
- court cases
- conservation efforts
Keywords
- Endangered Species Act
- Eleventh Circuit
- Florida Department of Environmental Protection
- Bear Warriors United
- anti-commandeering doctrine
- environmental conservation
- septic tanks
- manatee habitat
- court ruling
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Bear Warriors United, Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Eleventh Circuit, Endangered Species Act
Places: Florida, manatee habitat, watershed
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