WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge has thrown out a host of actions by the Trump administration to roll back protections for endangered or threatened species.
This comes a year after the Biden administration said it was moving to strengthen those species protections.
U.S. District Judge Jon Tigar in Northern California eliminated the Trump-era rules even as two wildlife agencies under President Joe Biden are reviewing or rescinding the Trump-era regulations.
The decision restores some protections under the Endangered Species Act while the reviews are completed.
Environmental groups hailed the decision, which they said speeded up needed protections and designation of critical habitat designations for threatened species, including salmon species in the Pacific Northwest.
With the ruling, the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service will review five Endangered Species Act regulations finalized during Trump's presidency.
Those included critical habitat designations and rules that required them to talk with other federal agencies before taking action on threatened or endangered species.
The so-called "blanket rule" will be reinstated, the Fish and Wildlife agency said.
It was removed under Trump.
It would grant additional protections to species that are newly classified as threatened.