Robert Kahn

In the following viewpoint, Robert Kahn argues that the Endangered Species Act (ESA) has forced people to view other species as important to human survival and has saved many endangered species from extinction. He maintains that government actions like the ban on DDT that saved the peregrine falcon were imposed in conjunction with the ESA and that other efforts like local habitat conservation plans succeeded due to the requirements of the act. Kahn is an editor for the San Diego North County Times.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to Kahn, what species did the DDT ban save?
2. Why won’t biological monitors at building sites report illegal activities, according to the author?
3. What happens to the moths, according to the author, when all the jimson weed is killed"

The impact...