After the muckraking about the Clean Water Act's revision is over, the Republicans have now turned to the long-besieged Endangered Species Act (ESA), which seeks to protect wildlife habitats and frames strict regulations on developing forest areas and wetlands development, known to be the homeground of rare and exotic species. Critics from the paper and timber industries and the land developers' lobby have branded it as a blunt instrument that "ignores human economic needs in favour of absolute protection for often obscure creatures and plants".

Republican senator Slade Gorton introduced a bill in the House of Representatives which, while shielding the endangered species from "harmful" human activities, would allow drastic habitat alteration catering to developmental needs.

An expert panel convened by the National Academy of Sciences in 1992, at the request of Congress, concluded on May 24 in a report that the current law is based on "sound scientific principles".