Endangered Species Act celebrates 50 years of protecting animals, plants
(WWAY) — Thursday marks 50 years since the Endangered Species Act was signed into law.
President Richard Nixon signed the bill on December 28, 1973, helping to protect plants and animals from extinction.
Since it began, 99-percent of species listed in the act have avoided extinction, according to the World Wildlife Fund.
The law allows individuals and organizations to petition to have a species listed as endangered or threatened. These listing petitions undergo scientific evaluation and public review before a final decision is made on whether a species should be protected.
Populations are then monitored over time to determine whether a given species is recovering. When species are considered recovered, they are removed from the list.
The North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher focuses conservation work on three species listed on the Endangered Species Act — sand tiger sharks, sea turtles and Carolina gopher frogs.
