Transcript Central Oregon Habitat Conservation Plan “The Regulator’s

Central Oregon
Habitat Conservation Plan
“The Regulator’s Perspective”
Overview
• Brief Overview of ESA
• HCP Structure and Process
• Upper Deschutes Basin HCP
Our mission is “to conserve, protect, and
enhance fish, wildlife, plants, and their
habitats for the continuing benefit of the
American people.”
The purposes of the ESA are grand:
“to provide a means whereby the
ecosystems upon which endangered
species and threatened species depend
may be conserved”
“to provide a program for the conservation
of such endangered species and
threatened species”
The Endangered Species Act
• Section 2: Findings and Purposes
• Section 3: Definitions
• Section 4: Listing, Critical Habitat Designation,
Recovery, Monitoring
• Section 5: Land Acquisition
• Section 6: Financial Assistance to States and Territories
• Section 7: The Role of Federal Agencies
• Section 8: International Cooperation
• Section 8A: Convention Implementation
• Section 9: Unlawful Activities
• Section 10: Exceptions, including Permits
• Section 11: Penalties and Enforcement
Gives joint authority to Fish and Wildlife Service and NOAA–Fisheries
The ESA requires the following actions:
1.
Status reviews of at-risk species
2.
Identify & list species and designate critical habitat
3.
Apply “take” protective regulations for threatened
species: Section 4(d)
4.
Regulate activities that would “take” species
5.
Consult on federal actions: Section 7 consultations
6.
Ensure that Federal actions do not jeopardize the
species
7.
Issue “incidental take” permits:(Section10 e.g. HCP)
8.
Plan and implement recovery plans
9.
Delist
Habitat Conservation Plans
Section 10(a)(1)(B)
• Provides a mechanism for authorizing take
incidental to otherwise lawful non-federal
activities.
• Ensures that the conservation
needs of listed species are
considered when non-Federal
actions are likely to result in
take
Contents of an HCP
•
•
•
•
Assessment of impacts
Measures permittee will take
Funding to implement such measures
Procedures to deal with changed
circumstances
• Alternative actions
• Additional measures that FWS may
require
HCP Process
Applicant is responsible for:
• Development of the HCP
• Complete Application Package
– Application form, HCP, Implementation
agreement, Draft NEPA document
• FWS Responsibilities
– Technical assistance, NEPA compliance,
prepare biological opinion, prepare findings
and incidental take permit.
HCP Planning Assistance, Recovery
& Land Acquisition Grants:
•
Financial assistance for habitat conservation planning
to support baseline surveys and inventories,
document preparation, outreach, and similar planning
activities
•
Funding is provided to States to acquire land or water,
or interests therein from willing sellers
•
Used to support actions in approved recovery plans
Regulatory Assurance
• No surprises
regulation
• If unforeseen
circumstances arise
the FWS will not
require additional
commitments.
ESA Issuance Criteria
Section 10(a)(2)(B)
• The taking will be incidental
• The applicant will, to the maximum
extent practicable, minimize and
mitigate the impacts of such taking
• The applicant will ensure that adequate funding for the
plan will be provided
• The taking will not appreciably reduce the likelihood of
the survival and recovery of the species in the wild
• Other measures required by the Secretary
Other Laws to Consider
•
National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA)
•
Migratory Bird Treaty Act
(MBTA)
•
National Historic
Preservation Act (NHPA)
•
•
Administrative
Procedures Act (APA)
Bald Eagle and Golden
Eagle Protection Act
(BGEPA)
•
Federal Advisory
Committee Act (FACA)
•
Marine Mammal Protection
Act (MMPA)
•
Freedom of Information
Act (FOIA)
•
Clean Water Act (CWA)
•
Marine Sanctuaries Act
•
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery
Conservation and
Management Act
•
Privacy Act
•
Coastal Zone
Management Act
(CZMA)
Secretarial Order on Native Americans
and the Endangered Species Act #3206
– 1997
(Tribal Secretarial Order)
- Clarifies responsibilities of Federal agencies
for actions taken under the ESA that may
affect Indian lands, tribal trust resources, or
the exercise of American Indian tribal rights.
Section 10 - Five Point Policy
•
Biological goals and objectives
•
Monitoring
•
Adaptive management
•
Permit duration
•
Public participation
Five Point Policy (cont.)
Biological goals and objectives:
• Defines the expected biological outcome for
each species, ecosystem or habitat;
• Consistent with recovery;
• Promotes effective monitoring.
• Rationale for mitigation strategies;
• Should be proportionate to the expected impacts
of the proposed action.
Five Point Policy
Monitoring:
• Required by regulation
• Compliance monitoring
• Effects monitoring
• Effectiveness monitoring
Five Point Policy
(cont.)
Adaptive Management:
• Method for addressing uncertainty;
• HCP outlines agreed-upon
responses to change;
• Involves monitoring and feedback
to biological goals and objectives.
Five Point Policy
(cont.)
Permit duration:
• Duration of proposed activities
• Time to implement and achieve
benefits to species (biological
goals & objectives)
• Biological uncertainty
Section 10(j) Experimental Population
• FWS/NMFS can designate
reintroduced populations established
outside the species’ current range but
within its historic range as
experimental populations
• Non-essential experimental population
are deemed not essential to the
continued existence of the species.
10(j) Experimental Population
Designation
• Identify the experimental population
• Determine if the population is essential to
the continued existence of the species
• Provide geographic boundaries
• Provide take prohibitions as necessary and
appropriate
Effect of 10(j) Designation
• If Secretary determines that the
experimental population is non-essential,
then:
• May provide limits on take liability
• Treated as proposed for listing
• Section 7(a)(2) consultation not required
• Section 7(a)(4) conference required
• No critical habitat designation
Scope and Scale of HCP
Information Needs
• Description of proposed covered activities
and permit area
• Information on species occurrence and/or
habitat (based on surveys, vegetation
map, or habitat model)
• Information on species stressors, threats,
and conservation needs
Permit Area
(covered area)
• Area where covered activities will occur
• Mitigation/conservation area(s)
• Geographic area(s) of
“direct control” by applicant
Determining Covered Species
•
Understand what information is needed
to develop the covered species list
•
Understand what species can and should
be included as covered species
•
Understand requirements for issuing a
permit for a covered species
Considerations for Proposed Covered
Species List
•
What is cost and time needed to collect
biological information?
•
What is cost to implement minimization,
mitigation, and monitoring measures
versus the risk of take?
•
What is the duration of the covered
activities and the permit?
HCPs are:
• planning documents required as part of the
incidental take permit process
HCPs are also
• an effective tool providing for multiple
partnerships with Federal and non-Federal
parties to conserve listed and unlisted
species and resolve resource issues
Thank you
Contact Information:
Nancy Gilbert
541 383-7146
[email protected]