U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Jennifer Norris, Field Supervisor

Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office

September 24, 2014

“Working with others to conserve, protect, and enhance fish, wildlife, plants, and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people.”.”

Our Mission

Today’s Goals

1. Introduce myself

2. Review the key elements of the Endangered Species Act

3. Discuss some current activities in California.

4. Answer your questions

Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office

Responsibilities

Endangered Species Act

Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act

National Environmental Policy Act

Clean Water Act

Oil Pollution Act

Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (Superfund Law)

Federal Power Act

Central Valley Project Improvement Act

Jurisdiction spans 30 counties from Bakersfield to Shasta, the Sierras to the Pacific.

fSFWOGeographic

Divisions

The Endangered Species Act (1973)

‘species of fish, wildlife, and plants are of esthetic, ecological, educational, historical, recreational and scientific value to the Nation and the people’

The purposes of the Act are to

‘provide a means whereby the ecosystems upon which endangered species and threatened species depend may be conserved and

to provide a program for the conservation of such species

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Listing

Recovery

Interagency Consultation

Conservation Planning

Elements of the ESA

Based on best available scientific information

Threats-based

Threatened or endangered

Critical habitat

Listing

• Description of site-specific management actions

• Objective measurable criteria

• Timeline to recovery

Recovery Plans

Recovery Implementation

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• Research

• Restoration

• Cooperative Conservation

• Landowner agreements

Requires Federal agencies to:

• conduct programs to conserve endangered and threatened

species

• insure federal actions are not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of listed species or adversely modify critical habitat

Interagency Consultation (Section 7)

HCPs and Conservation Strategies

Local control

Certainty in project planning

Assurances

Funding opportunities

Ecosystem/Landscape approach

Streamlining

Public input

Regional HCPs

• Historically abundant across much of the higher elevations within the Sierra Nevada.

• Currently restricted to publicly managed lands at high elevations.

• Threats: - Habitat degradation and

fragmentation - predation and disease, - changes in temperature and

precipitation- inadequate regulatory protections.

3 Sierra Amphibians

• Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frog (endangered)

• Northern DPS of the mountain yellow-legged frog (endangered)

• Yosemite toad (threatened)

• Effective date June 30, 2014

Listing

Mountain yellow-legged

frog

3 Sierra Amphibians

3 Sierra Amphibians

Critical Habitat – Proposed (April 2013)

• 1,831,820 acres across 17 counties

• Mostly on federally managed land

• Multiple comments periods, public meetings, draft Economic Analysis

• Currently reviewing public and peer comments and revising rule

• Publication expected early 2015

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Proposed Critical Habitat for 3 Sierra Amphibians

• Programmatically addresses over 10,000 projects on Forest Service managed lands

• Will streamline activities and consultation

• Projects were batched from 9 National Forests and include vegetation, recreation, timber harvest, grazing, road and trail management as well as mining and special use activities.

• Draft under review

3 Sierra Amphibians

Programmatic Biological Opinion

• Service has already issued biological opinions to the National Park Service for projects at Yosemite National Park and Sequoia-Kings Canyon National Park

• The National Park Service is also working with the Service on a Programmatic BO for activities on the public lands they administer.

3 Sierra Amphibians

1. Finalize programmatic consultations with the U.S. Forest Service and the National Park Service.

2. Work with private and other non-federal groups to conserve species.

3. Review comments and revise critical habitat designation.

4. Critical habitat final rule is expected to publish to the Federal Register early 2015.

3 Sierra Amphibians

Next Steps

Yellow-billed Cuckoo

Threats:

• Habitat Loss• Dams and River Flow Management

• Stream channelization & stabilization

• Land Conversion & Groundwater

pumping

• Wildfire & Invasive plant species

• Vulnerability to random extinction

• Pesticides on wintering and breeding

grounds

• Proposed for listing October 2013

546,335 acres proposed in 9 states

193,347 proposed for exclusion –tribal and conservation agreements

YBC - Proposed Critical Habitat

YBC - Proposed Critical Habitat

States Units Acres Exclusion (Acres)

Arizona 39 245,000 149,067

Utah 10 39,000

New Mexico 8 92,000 13,095

California 8 77,000 6,563

Colorado 7 37,000 18,407

Idaho 4 24,000 3,424

Nevada 4 18,000

Wyoming 2 17,000

Texas 2 9,000

Open Comment Period

Peer Review

Final Decisions (September 2014 and August 2015)

Next Steps

DRECP

Collaboration between CA, BLM, FWS

22 million acres for solar, wind, geothermal projects

Draft plan issued September 23, 2014

Public comment period ends January 9, 2015

Recorded webinar at: www.drecp.org

Public meetings planned for late October early November

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Jennifer Norris

Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office

916-414-6700

http://www.fws.gov/sacramento/

Questions?