Endangered Species Act (ESA)
Answer the following questions related to the ESA (handout provided in class). Reference relevant portions of the act when answering (e.g., "Section 4.101 states that ...").
(1) What is the purpose of Section 2? What legal weight does it hold?
(2) What is the scientific standard that the Secretary must follow when designating a species "endangered" or "threatened"? What are the potential problems with this standard?
(3) How does this ESA interplay with state regulation? Is state law preempted?
(4) What is the general flow/procedure for the "Interagency Cooperation" outlined in Section 7? What types of acts trigger the requirement to follow Section 7?
(5) What are the potential penalties for violating the ESA?
(6) Describe the property that you chose, and explain why you chose it
(7) Provide a screenshot or excerpt showing the zoning map around the chosen property (8) What zone is the property located in? Describe (in your own words) what the purpose and limits are of that zone.
(9) Explain whether you think the property currently meets the zoning, or whether it is a variance or non-conforming use.
(10)Single-dwelling zones are often labeled as "R#", where # is a number, such as 20 or 5. What significance does that number have?
(11)What are the prevailing zones that you see on either side of the river?
(12)There have been multiple efforts in the past (and currently) to redevelop the Central Eastside district into a mixed-use (commercial/residential) area, much like the Pearl District. Would that be possible under the current zoning? What would be a potential policy reason for not rezoning the area to allow the redevelopment?