The Interior Dept. announced yesterday that the polar bear would be designated as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act. But as the New York Times’ Felicity Barringer explains, it’s not all good news for the polar bear or the environmental groups that have pushed for its protection.

Interior Dept. Secretary Dirk Kempthorne said that even though melting sea ice is the reason for the bear’s endangerment, it would be “wholly inappropriate” to use the ruling to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Instead, the ruling explicitly calls for development, and oil and gas exploration, to continue in the arctic region. There is talk that Dick Cheney, already a foe of keeping alive the right whale, may have helped in watering down the final ruling. Read Barringer here. MB

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