Conservationists: Habitat add-on not enough to help bull trout

Critical habitat - A Bush administration final rule covers one-fifth the area of federal biologists' original proposal

Saturday, September 24, 2005
JOE ROJAS-BURKE
The Oregonian

The Bush administration, facing a legal challenge by conservation groups, expanded the reach of rivers and lakes protected as critical habitat for threatened bull trout in Oregon and across the Northwest.

Even with the added stream miles and lakes, the final selections total about one-fifth of the habitat federal biologists originally proposed in 2002. Conservation groups remained harshly critical of the government's decision, saying bull trout would be harmed by a lack of protection from logging, hydropower dams and development.

The fight is at the center of a national conflict over the habitat requirements of the federal Endangered Species Act. Critical habitat designations require managers of federal lands to consult with wildlife biologists on projects such as timber sales or livestock grazing plans that could harm protected species or their habitat.

Bush officials contend that the critical habitat process accomplishes little for threatened wildlife while drawing money and staff time that would be better spent on planning for recovery, conducting conservation work in the field and assessing threats to species that are in trouble but not yet federally protected. Critics say that White House officials are relaxing habitat rules to lessen the burden on industries.

Bull trout have taken center stage in the debate because the historic range of the species is vast, extending into Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Montana. The species' need for exceptionally clean and cold-running rivers makes it more vulnerable than many fish to habitat degradation.

Three years ago, federal biologists proposed designating as critical habitat 18,450 miles of rivers and streams and 532,700 acres of lakes and reservoirs in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Montana. Last year, federal officials issued a final rule providing about 10 percent of that: 1,749 miles of streams and 61,235 acres of lakes and reservoirs. Exemptions from coverage included the entire state of Montana.

Assistant Interior Secretary Craig Manson said at the time that bull trout benefit from protections already in place for salmon and other wildlife. He contended the government does not need to expand critical habitat for species if existing measures supply needed protections or if the costs outweigh the benefits.

The Alliance for the Wild Rockies and Friends of the Wild Swan sued the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, alleging that officials ignored legal requirements and agency scientists' recommendations. Bush officials then voluntarily withdrew the critical habitat rule.

Additions in Oregon

The final rule announced Friday specifies 3,780 stream miles and 110,364 acres of lakes. Among the previously exempted lands that are now protected are more than 1,000 miles of rivers in Montana and about 200 miles of rivers in Oregon.

Federal officials had previously exempted Montana based on the protections offered by a state conservation plan. After reconsidering the plan, federal officials decided "it wasn't quite at the point that it provided the level of assurance that we needed," said Joan Jewett, a Fish and Wildlife spokeswoman. In Oregon, the service added back stretches of the Willamette, Malheur, and Crooked rivers that had been exempted because the Interior Department deemed the cost greater than the benefit. Federal officials dropped the exemptions after Oregon officials informed them that the federal cost estimates were overstated because they included expenditures already incurred to protect salmon and steelhead.

Vast exclusions remain in the rule for rivers and lakes covered by various conservation agreements and management plans. Among the exclusions: land covered by the Northwest Forest Plan, Washington Forest Practices Rule and certain conservation agreements with Native American tribes and private landowners.

Bush administration officials also exempted the Columbia and Snake rivers where federal hydropower dams operate, concluding that measures already in place for salmon and steelhead provide enough protection for bull trout habitat.

Documentation required

The final rule also excludes any bull trout streams where the fish have not been documented in recent years. "It was determined that there was just not enough information to support a conclusion that those areas were essential for the conservation of the species," Jewett said.

Conservationists said the exemptions perpetuate the reduced and fragmented range of bull trout that has pushed the fish toward extinction.

"Even if a little bit were added back here and there, the scale of the removal remains unjustified, and if allowed to stand would be an absolute deathblow to recovery," said Mike Bader, a consultant working for Alliance for the Wild Rockies.

Critical habitat maps and other details are posted on the Fish and Wildlife Service's Web site: http://pacific.fws.gov/bulltrout.

Joe Rojas-Burke: 503-412-7073, joerojas@news.oregonian.com

©2005ÀThe Oregonian