U.S. Delaying Protection of Endangered Coral

SAN FRANCISCO (CN) The Center for Biological Diversity claims that National Marine Fisheries Service failed to publish a finding on whether 82 coral species should be listed as endangered by the mandatory twelve-month deadline established under the Endangered Species Act.

In a complaint filed in the Northern District of California, the non-profit center asserts that the findings were due October 10, 2010, but the NMFS has yet to issue them.

The centre also contends that by violating the deadline, the agency prevented it from taking protective measures to conserve and promote the recovery of the coral species.

The 82 coral species at issue are the most "imperiled in U.S. waters, including the Caribbean, Hawaii and Indo-Pacific regions," the center says.

The increase in global warming and carbon dioxide pollution only exacerbates the decline, it added.

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