| Efforts to protect biodiversity in the United States have been directed to species at the brink of extinction. Although the Endangered Species Act is considered a landmark piece of legislation, its degree of success as well as its focus have been questioned. As an alternative to the species-by-species approach embedded in the Act, management at the ecosystem level is being favored by conservationists, scientists and policymakers. This work discusses the way in which the Endangered Species Act is implemented along with the main obstacles found in the past. It also shows that it is not feasible, at this point in time, to make ecosystem units the center of conservation policy and legislation at the federal level. The ultimate goal of protecting ecosystems can be achieved using elements from ecosystem ecology in the protection of species on a case-by-case basis at the local level. |
