U.S. could exempt oil industry from protecting Gulf animals, for ‘national

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, citing “reasons of national security,” has triggered a meeting this week that could exempt the oil and gas industry in the Gulf of Mexico from requirements of the Endangered Species Act, a move that would lift protections for endangered whales, turtles and other animals threatened with extinction.

The news, revealed in court filings last week, astonished environmental lawyers, who were already shocked after the Department of the Interior announced two weeks ago that a meeting to discuss an exemption would take place on March 31.

A gathering of the six-person committee, nicknamed the “God Squad” for its power to make life-or-death decisions about endangered animals, has only happened before after extensive prior consultation with environmental agencies and months of public notice. Just three meetings have happened over the past 50 years and only once did an exemption take effect.

“Not only is a God Squad convening as rare as hen’s teeth in the first instance, but this snap announcement that came a week and a half ago is so vague that the public doesn’t even really know what the committee is supposed to consider,” said Jane Davenport, a senior attorney at Defenders of Wildlife, a conservation nonprofit. “So it’s just completely baffling, but it is on brand for this administration.”

In May, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration recommended oil and gas companies adopt basic measures to protect Gulf species, like discarding trash into the Gulf and suspending their use of loud technology when they spot whales, among other requests. It is unclear whether the committee will vote on Tuesday to let agencies stop enforcing those standards.

The Center for Biological Diversity sued U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum in federal court March 18, saying the government violated the law by not taking the proper steps before calling a committee meeting and owed the public more information.

In its response to that lawsuit, filed Wednesday night, the Trump administration said Hegseth was the one who asked the Interior Department to call the committee meeting. The Endangered Species Act includes a provision requiring the committee to “grant an exemption for any agency action if the Secretary of Defense finds that such exemption is necessary for reasons of national security.”

A federal judge last week declined to delay the meeting, which the Interior Department plans to stream on YouTube.

The Interior Department did not respond to NPR’s request to explain the national security implications of oil exploration and production in the Gulf. A representative from the Department of Defense said the agency could not comment because of pending litigation.