A coalition of conservation, environmental and wildlife organizations held a briefing featuring E.O. Wilson, PhD, a renowned scientist and environmentalists, on the benefits of biodiversity and the Endangered Species Act (ESA) on Wednesday, May 18 at 1:30 p.m. on Capitol Hill. The briefing focused on the benefits biodiversity provides in agricultural production, ecosystem services, clean air and water, medicine, and climate regulation.

Despite the importance of the ESA and its broad support, it has come under frequent attacks in the current Congress. In the 114th Congress, members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives have introduced 103 legislative measures, including three species-specific riders in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would undermine the ESA. This is an unprecedented assault on a wildly popular and effective conservation law. For more than 40 years, this landmark conservation law has successfully prevented the extinction of nearly 99 percent of all listed animal and plant species.