Federal judge upholds decision listing polar bears as threatened

[JURIST] A judge for the US District Court for the District of Columbia [official website] on Thursday upheld [opinion, PDF] a 2008 decision by the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) [official website] to list polar bears as "threatened" on the endangered species list because of melting polar ice caps caused by global warming [JURIST news archive]. Environmental groups and the state of Alaska were in conflict as to the proper way to address the bears’ protection, with environmental groups wanting…