The listing of endangered species of plants and animals in the United States is to be revived, following an agreement between the government and environmental groups.

For the past year, most of the government's budget for listing newly endangered species has been used to fight litigation from environmental groups aimed at forcing it to designate habitat needed for the recovery of species already listed.

In October 2000 the US Fish and Wildlife Service said that such legal work would probably consume its entire $6-million listing budget for 2001, leaving nothing for the field assessment and listing of new species. Since then, only a few new species have been listed, mostly in response to court orders or to prevent litigation.

Faced with this, several environmental groups that were suing the service have been negotiating with it instead. Under an agreement announced on 29 August, the groups will allow the government more time to comply with court orders requiring it to designate habitat for eight protected species. The government will in turn expedite the listing process for 29 of the more than 200 species under consideration.

The 29 include three species whose protection is considered an emergency, such as the pygmy rabbit, Brachylagus idahoensis, in Washington state, which has a population of less than 50. “It's a common-sense solution to the bad situation we found ourselves in this year,” says Gary Frazer, assistant director for endangered species with the service.

Species were chosen according to such factors as their degree of risk and whether necessary protection measures are known, according to Kieran Suckling, head of the Center for Biological Diversity, based in Tucson, Arizona, one of the groups involved.

“We're biting off the tiniest tip of the iceberg,” says Suckling. “To address the problem adequately, the Fish and Wildlife Service has to have a budget that is up to the task.” The proposed budget for 2002 includes $8.5 million for listing species, although the service's officials say it needs $120 million to meet all of its legal liabilities under the endangered species act.