Narrator: The late 60s and early 70s was a time of renewed passion to protect the environment.
The Cuyahoga River in Ohio caught fire because it was so polluted.
Rachel Carson's Silent Spring brought attention to the effects of unregulated pesticides on
both human and wildlife health.
Carson: Public reaction to Silent Spring was reflected first in a tidal wave of letters.
Letters to Congressmen...
Narrator: People also were aware that our activities were causing irreversible harm
to wildlife and plants.
Wildlife across the world were disappearing from the landscape.
The passenger pigeon, Carolina parakeet, and Xerces butterfly had already vanished.
Other animals like the American peregrine falcon and whooping crane were heading down
the same path.
Lawmakers and citizens alike recognized the need to create a law to protect species and
prevent them from going extinct.
On December 28, 1973 the Endangered Species Act was signed into law.
It provided for the protection of species, their ecosystems, and the enforcement of all
treaties related to wildlife preservation.
Through the ESA, our country declared that all species have value and deserve protection,
setting the stage for the inevitable struggles to reconcile the reality of finite resources
with the needs of species and the needs of people.
The strength of this commitment has made the ESA one of the most highly regarded conservation
laws in history.
The Endangered Species Act has saved hundreds of imperiled species from extinction.
It is a safety net for more than 1,400 domestic and 600 foreign species of fish, wildlife,
and plants that it protects.
The bald eagle, our national symbol, hit at all-time population low of 417 pairs in the
lower 48 states in 1963, mostly from illegal hunting and the detrimental effects of the
pesticide DDT.
With the protections afforded by the ESA, and the banning of DDT, the bald eagle soared
off the endangered species list in 2007 after its population rebounded to record of nearly
10,000 pairs.
Like the bald eagle, the black-footed ferret once teetered on the brink of extinction.
The population of ferrets declined as prairie dogs -- their main food source -- were displaced
by farming.
As a last resort to save the species from extinction, the last 18 ferrets in the wild
were captured and brought into captivity, starting one of the most intense and successful
breeding programs for an endangered species.
Today, there are more than 1,000 ferrets in the total wild population.
During the last 40 years, plants and animals have continued to face a barrage of threats
- habitat loss, invasive species, pollution and climate change - but the vision of the
Endangered Species Act remains constant: an unwavering commitment to prevent another passenger
pigeon or Carolina parakeet from entering the history books.
As we prepare for the next 40 years, we'll work with our partners to conserve habitat
and provide meaningful conservation benefits to a myriad of species, and, at the same time,
improve the ESA to provide flexibility for landowners.
It is our job, as ambassadors of this law, to protect our nation's species for future
generations and to create a sense of pride in our natural and national history.
On Screen text: "What a country chooses to save is what a country says about itself."
Mollie Beattie, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director 1993-1996