By Brian Peck, US Fish & Wildlife Service
By June 23, 2002, the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) will have made a final decision on whether or not to list southwestern Washington / Columbia River coastal cutthroat trout as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The FWS and National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) initially proposed coastal cutthroat trout for listing on April 5, 1999.
On August 28, 2001 the FWS reached a settlement agreement with the Center for Biological Diversity, and other groups, to enable the FWS to complete work on 29 species proposed for listing. These 29 species occur across the country, with four, including coastal cutthroat trout, occurring in Washington State. More information on the ruling can be found at the Center for Biological Diversity website at: www.sw-center.org/swcbd/activist/ESA/settlement.html.
Why are cutthroat trout being considered for listing?
Recently, there have been dramatic declines in populations of coastal cutthroat trout leading to near extinctions in two rivers. Reasons for these declines and continued threats to wild cutthroat populations include habitat loss and incidental harvesting. The loss of habitat includes fine sediment from dirt roads that chokes suitable spawning gravels, warmer water temperatures from loss of riparian trees, passage barriers from culverts and dams, low instream flow conditions from agricultural, residential, and industrial diversions, and many other factors. Incidental harvest of non-targeted cutthroat trout reduces the population of adult spawning size fish.
What areas would be affected by a listing?
The final listing decision for southwestern Washington / Columbia River coastal cutthroat trout will include all areas within the Grays Harbor, Willapa Bay, and lower Columbia River Basins. This includes cutthroat trout downstream of passage barriers. Prior to the final listing, the FWS will examine the relationship of cutthroat trout populations upstream of passage barriers to assess whether any of these populations also warrant listing. Therefore, all lakes, reservoirs, rivers, and streams that eventually flow into Grays Harbor could be included under the listing action.
How will the final listing decision be made?
When coastal cutthroat trout were initially proposed for listing in 1999, FWS and NMFS biologists had conducted an extensive review of all scientific and commercial data, looking at habitat condition, population size, age classes, trends, and hatchery/wild stock interaction. At that time it was determined that the cutthroat trout population had declined dramatically from past levels and that the species was at risk of further declines and possible extinction. By June of 2002, FWS biologists will have updated the scientific and commercial data review, incorporating the most recent cutthroat trout data into the final decision.
How might this affect life (human) in the Chehalis Basin?
If cutthroat trout are found not to warrant listing, then the proposed action to list would be withdrawn. Cutthroat trout would then be considered a species of concern, sort of a "watch list,", and could be proposed for listing again only if significant new data is obtained on the declining status of the species. There would be no new regulations or restrictions put in place protecting cutthroat trout. However, this would be an opportunity for local governments, conservation groups, and individual landowners to implement projects and practices that may help protect cutthroat populations and avoid future possible actions.
If cutthroat trout are listed as threatened, then all protections within the ESA would be extended to coastal cutthroat trout. It would be unlawful for any person to "take" (harass, harm, pursue, kill, etc.) cutthroat trout or significantly alter trout habitat without a permit. Protections would be put in place to try and minimize, and reverse, some of the habitat and harvest degradations listed above. All federal agencies would ensure that their actions do not jeopardize the continued existence of cutthroat trout. However, the Chehalis Basin is comprised mostly of state and private lands and activities. In these areas the FWS, through the Chehalis Fisheries Restoration Program, will continue to provide technical and financial assistance to landowners to help implement projects that benefit cutthroat trout. The FWS has other programs, policies, and incentives to protect private landowners' interests while encouraging them to manage their lands in ways that benefit endangered species.
The ultimate goal of the ESA is to cooperatively recover a species and its habitat to a point where it can be removed from the endangered species list. More ESA information can be found at: endangered.fws.gov/whatwedo.html#pdf (then click on ESA Basics).
Contact Brian Peck, coordinator of the US Fish and Wildlife Service's Chehalis Fisheries Restoration Program, at 360-753-8084 or brian_peck@fws.gov
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Department of Ecology News Release - Oct. 30, 2001
OLYMPIA - Dairy farms in Grant, Grays Harbor, Lewis, Snohomish and Yakima counties will be recognized with "Contribution to Clean Water" awards this year. The Department of Ecology (Ecology) is honoring the dairies for their efforts and success at keeping manure and contaminated dairy runoff out of waterways. "I respect and admire the extra efforts the award-winning operators give every day to help our environment and protect water quality," said Ecology Director Tom Fitzsimmons.
During the next couple of months, Ecology will give the dairies their awards at local conservation-district meetings.
The winners are:
Andrew and Linda Styger Dairy - located in Chehalis in Lewis County. The herd of 100 cows is a family-owned operation that has been in business since 1919. One of the farm's innovative protection measures involves moving the fences in response to the changing flows in the Chehalis River. The owners move the fences to ensure an adequate buffer is between the farm and the river when the flows in the river increase.
Callahan Dairy - located in Royal City in Grant County. The herd of 650 cows is a family-owned operation that has been in business since 1998. The farm's innovative and voluntary management practices make it an award-winning dairy.
Olympic View Dairy - located in Montesano in Grays Harbor. The herd of 325 cows is a family-owned operation that has been in business since the 1920s. The dairy asked Ecology for an inspection to ensure it was doing all the right things to manage dairy manure. The department found the dairy in top working order. This year, the owners added 65 acres to safely spread treated manure.
Pride & Joy Dairy - located in Granger in Yakima County. The herd of 200 cows is a family-owned operation that has been in business since 1978. The farm is unique in the modern age of dairy farming because it puts its cows in pastures versus a confined area and it does not apply commercial fertilizers to its pastures.
Youngren Farms - located in Stanwood in Snohomish County. The herd of more than 1,100 cows is a family- owned operation that has been in business since 1950. Due to the recent increase in herd size, the farm constructed a second manure storage pond to properly manage waste water and to better protect the quality of surface and underground waters.
Ecology started the dairy-award program in 1999 to recognize farmers who take extra care to keep pollution out of streams and underground water.
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By Terry Willis
The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife is partnering with local landowners and various state, federal and county agencies to conduct a floodplain restoration project on the lower reach of the Satsop River in Grays Harbor County, WA. The proposed site restoration involves two adjacent parcels on the east side of the Satsop River, a WDFW public access boat launch and at least one parcel on the west side.
The parcel on the west side of the river owned by Greg and Terry Willis, shows massive erosion taking place while the WDFW public access site has an unstable boat ramp (located just south of the Hwy. 12 bridge).
Each year more fertile farm land is eroded into the river system and each year WDFW does extensive repairs to their boat launch. Studies show that decades of man-made hardened banks and dikes have eliminated the river's ability to naturally meander or adequately utilize its floodplain.
The general concept of the project is to reduce some of the river's impacts by restoring the natural floodplain function of the Satsop river wherever possible. A series of monthly meetings at the Olympic View Grange in Brady organized by WDFW have resulted in a co-operative effort to study all aspects of the damage now occurring and possible solutions to remedy it. These could include possible repairs, removing or breaching the existing rip rapped banks, breaching or removing the perimeter dikes surrounding the ponds, removal of gravel from overdeveloped gravel bars and bank stabilization bioengineering to discourage soil erosion. Additional enhancement actions are also being considered to improve the ponds and river to create beneficial salmon habitat.
Currently, the US Army Corps of Engineers is conducting a channel migration study on the Satsop river through funding received by WDFW from the USACOE Section 206 Floodplain Management Services. The information gathered from the channel migration study will be utilized in the development of the floodplain restoration project design. WDFW is also reapplying for the USACOE Section 206 Ecosystem and Restoration funding to implement the restoration actions. WDFW has been in close communication with the Corps and the Section 206 funding is very likely for the upcoming federal 2002 fiscal year.
Anyone with an interest in this project is encouraged to attend the monthly meetings held at the Olympic View Grange in Brady, generally on the second Thursday of each month at 7:00 p.m. For further information contact Sue Patnude at WDFW at 360-249-1227 during business hours.
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By Kirk Hanson, Department of Natural Resources
In September of this year, DNR's Small Forest Landowner Office began enrolling the first landowners in its Forestry Riparian Easement Program. The program was created as a provision within the Salmon Recovery Act of 1999 to ease the economic impact of new forest practices rules that limit timber harvest in riparian areas. Recognizing that further restricting timber harvest on private lands would have a disproportionate impact on smaller landowners, the easement program was created to partially compensate affected landowners for the timber they are no longer allowed to harvest.
The Forestry Riparian Easement Program represents the first program of its kind in the nation that compensates landowners for complying with laws that protect public resources. When landowners request a permit from the state to harvest timber, they are given the option to enroll in the program. Although by law the landowner must leave a certain volume of trees unharvested in the riparian area, the compensation program is voluntary. In exchange for being compensated for the timber, the landowner enrolls the trees in a 50-year easement. In essence, the State leases the trees from the landowner and the landowner agrees to protect the trees and their associated riparian function for the duration of the easement.
On the north Kitsap Peninsula one of the first Forestry Riparian Easements in the state exemplifies how this program can address a public resource protection issue without compromising the economic viability of a small private forest. On a 60-acre parcel of private timberland near the headwaters of the Big Beef River, an easement was established around several water bodies including a pond, two wetlands and a type-3 stream (stream channel greater than 2-feet) that provides seasonal coho salmon and cutthroat trout spawning habitat.
In attempting to set up a 20-acre harvest unit, the landowner was faced with two major challenges. First, according to state forest practices rules, the abundance of sensitive aquatic sites required protective forested buffers approximately 150 feet in width; second, due to the arrangement of the aquatic sites on the property, the buffers often overlapped or left only thin slivers of timber between them that could be harvested. Of the 20-acre harvest unit, the state's new rules restricted timber harvest on seven acres and consequently reduced the potential income from the sale of the timber by as much as 20%.
By enrolling in the Forestry Riparian Easement Program, the landowner was compensated for his role in protecting such public resources as water quality and salmonid habitat. Although the landowner already maintained a high stewardship ethic in the methods he chose to harvest his timber and was inclined to protect the aquatic sites on his property, he also relied on income from the timber to supplement his annual income. The compensation program signals the first time the public has acknowledged the significant role small private forest land owners play in protecting wildlife habitat and water quality. Although the program is not a true incentive program as it only compensates landowners for what the law already requires them to do, it does allow the public to share some of the cost of protecting the resources that the public values.
By coincidence, the wetlands and streams now protected on this private parcel flow directly into a 200-acre marsh recently acquired by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife as a wildlife refuge. The extensive wildlife corridor created by these two state-sponsored conservation efforts will provide important connectivity for the fish, birds and other wildlife species that utilize the riparian area for habitat. Although the land enrolled in the Forestry Riparian Easement Program remains under the ownership of the landowner, the trees leased by the state will remain a part of the riparian ecosystem for at least 50 years, providing an enduring legacy of wildlife habitat values. This partnership between private landowners and a public agency exemplifies one approach to finding a balance between private conservation efforts of public natural resources.
For more information on the Forestry Riparian Easement Program or other assistance provided by the Small Forest Landowner Office, please call: 360-902-1389, or e-mail: sflo@wadnr.gov, or visit their website at:
www.wa.gov/dnr/sflo.
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By Jean Takekawa, Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge
Great progress continues to be made in acquiring parcels to add to the Black River Unit of Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge. Several parcels have been closed on in recent months from willing sellers, including the purchase of a large portion of the Weiks Dairy from The Nature Conservancy, who stepped in and purchased the property to prevent its development.
Community and Congressional support for this new Refuge has been very strong, evidenced by the $1 million Land and Water Conservation Funds in this year's budget, which has been approved by both Houses of Congress. These funds can be used for acquisition at either Black River or Nisqually, although the current acquisition program at Black River is more active at this time.
However, Nisqually NWR is going through a public planning process which will include the consideration of Refuge expansion at Nisqually, which was described in a Planning Update released in July, and is also available on the Refuge's webpage. If you are interested, please call or write the Refuge to request a copy of the Planning Update and to get on the mailing list for this planning effort (360-7534-9467, Nisqually NWR, 100 Brown Farm Rd, Olympia, WA, 98516).
More willing sellers continue to contact the Refuge, both inside and outside the approved Black River Refuge boundary. Sellers along the southern half of the Black River corridor fall outside the current approved boundary, and so the Refuge is unable to directly purchase these lands. However, through a growing partnership, including the Refuge, NRCS, WDFW, TNC, Capitol Land Trust, and several other entities and non-profit organizations, we are working to help provide creative options for landowners interested in selling for conservation purposes.
The Nature Conservancy recently was able to purchase Rainbow Valley, a 42-acre site on the Black River and across the river from Thurston County's 1,020-acre Glacial Heritage Preserve. Funding for this purchase came from state salmon recovery funds.
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By Jenny Coffing, Thurston Conservation District
The 27,423-acre Scatter Creek Watershed lies within the Chehalis River basin. Scatter Creek flows for 20 miles from its headwater streams northeast of the City of Tenino to its mouth at the Chehalis River. It drains an area with various land uses, ranging from forestry in the headwaters to prairies modified for rural residential and agricultural uses in the lower watershed. There is currently a community effort to develop a Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) in the Scatter Creek area.
How The Habitat Conservation Plan Effort Began
Landowners along Scatter Creek contacted the Thurston Conservation District in 1998, concerned about the future viability of Scatter Creek as a spawning area and habitat for salmon and as habitat for wildlife in general. The watershed is no longer performing the habitat functions required for many of the species that live there, and, if this continues over time, many species will be lost. Several of the species living in the watershed have population levels that are in decline, and listings under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) are anticipated. Generally speaking, listing a species results in restrictions in land management activities.
To date, there has not been any comprehensive planning effort within the watershed which integrates the conservation of species and habitats, the natural processes in the ecosystem, and the ongoing land use activities. The Scatter Creek Watershed Habitat Conservation Plan is a grass-roots effort to address these issues.
After a series of public meetings to discuss the watershed and resource issues, local landowners decided that developing a Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) was the best course of action. An HCP is a long-term land management agreement developed in response to the Endangered Species Act to conserve threatened and endangered species. Because of its voluntary and cooperative method of development, its technical input and review processes, and long-term nature, its probability of success after development in terms of species protection is very high.
An HCP describes the anticipated effect of proposed "taking" (harming the species or its habitat) on the affected species, and how that "take" will be minimized and mitigated. The HCP will provide a workable framework for the management of these habitats in a manner that will allow varied land uses to continue and provide long-term species conservation.
Landowner and Agency Involvement: Who is at the table?
A Habitat Conservation Plan is an agreement between the participating landowners in the Scatter Creek Watershed and the Services (the National Marine Fisheries Service and the US Fish and Wildlife Service). It is developed through discussion and negotiation until fish and wildlife goals are agreed upon. The primary people involved in the development of a Habitat Conservation Plan are:
Typically a team of consultants is used to prepare the extensive documents needed. Technical advisory groups, consultants and partnerships are an important part of the HCP development process. They are integral to planning in terms of ensuring the best scientific knowledge available is used, knowledge of the current regulatory environment, expertise regarding technical issues, and first-hand knowledge of land uses, water, fish and wildlife, in order to negotiate through complex problems to find effective and workable solutions.
Over 70 landowners who live in the Scatter Creek area are currently in support of an HCP concept. A 17 member Steering Committee comprised of a partnership between local landowners and government and community group representatives holds regular bi-monthly meetings to work on developing the HCP. Technical Advisory Groups provide technical information about species and wildlife in the area. These groups have given presentations to the Steering Committee to increase understanding of the issues involved. Research is ongoing to provide an accurate biological and physical evaluation of the watershed.
The Steering Committee meetings are open to the public and items developed are available. Meeting minutes from each meeting are posted on the Thurston Conservation District website: www.thurstoncd.com.
Species, Activities, and Conservation Measures
The species and activities that will be covered in the HCP are negotiated through discussion with the Services. Each species that will be covered in the HCP will have specific habitat requirements. Once a species is decided upon, and the management activities selected that will be covered, then conservation measures will be negotiated.
No one can predict what the HCP will look like in the end. All HCPs that have been developed in the past are very different.
Perhaps the most difficult part of developing the HCP is the discussion of conservation measures. These are the on-the-ground "restrictions" that are agreed upon by the Steering Committee and the Services. What the conservation measures in the HCP will be will depend on what a species requires, and what is negotiated by the committee. The range of species selected for coverage is based on the regulatory certainty desired by the landowners, the information known about the species and their needs, the likelihood of species occurrence in the area now and in the future, the potential for listing (if not already listed), the potential for meaningful conservation measures to be built into the Habitat Conservation Plan to avoid species impacts, the likelihood of activities affecting species in the future, and if participating landowners have habitat for these species on their properties now or in the future. All of these factors will be considered by the Steering Committee.
It is important to emphasize that the Scatter Creek Habitat Conservation Plan will only involve those parcels of land where the landowner has expressed an interest in participating. If a landowner is not participating, the Plan will not affect their land. Besides the biological benefits, this proposal will help maintain the rural character of the watershed and the associated way of life, which are under direct threat from unplanned development. Throughout the HCP development and implementation, it is anticipated that more and more landowners will engage in the process, sustainable parameters for growth will be established that minimize the overall impact on the community; watershed functions will be protected and enhanced; the working landscape will be maintained; and local recreation opportunities, such as hunting, fishing, and bird watching, will increase.
Goals of the Scatter Creek Habitat Conservation Plan
Goal 1: Predictability/Certainty
Ensure long term regulatory certainty and economic opportunity for landowners in the covered area.
ESA regulations affecting property use could change over time. The HCP would allow a landowner who has agreed to the provisions of the HCP, to legally proceed with activities that would otherwise result in illegal take of a listed species. The HCP gives the landowner certainty about the kinds of activities that can be legally conducted on his or her land now, and in the future (provisions will not change over the term of the HCP). This will give a landowner the opportunity to determine how they can best use their property given the negotiated restrictions that are delineated in the HCP. These will describe what, where and how you can legally proceed with covered activities over the life of the HCP. USFWS and NMFS cannot guarantee what other agencies will do with regulations that are not ESA-related. The Steering Committee is attempting to engage state and local jurisdictions to come to the table to participate in HCP development in order to increase predictability.
Goal 2: The voluntary nature of the HCP
Voluntarily protect and improve the health and uniqueness of the Scatter Creek watershed.
Development of the HCP is a voluntary process. Seeking regulatory coverage under the HCP (or participating in the HCP) is also an optional, voluntary action by each landowner. Since the HCP will result in measures that maintain and improve the natural condition of the Scatter Creek watershed, landowners who implement HCP measures on their property (participate in the HCP) willingly improve the health of the creek system. Because Scatter Creek watershed is recognized as having unique features, as its health improves, so too will its uniqueness.
Goal 3: The human experience
Acknowledge the natural experience associated with the covered area.
The Scatter Creek watershed provides many different benefits and plays different roles in the lives of the different people and wildlife which use it. As well as providing vital habitat for many animals and fish, it provides a place to recreate (e.g. swimming, fishing, walking), a peaceful place for quiet reflection, a place to study nature, a place to live near and enjoy, and so on. This goal recognizes that the Scatter Creek watershed provides human experience benefits that may be difficult to describe and may not be measurable, but exist.
Goal 4: The habitat
Provide properly functioning and sustainable habitat for covered species.
In order to maintain habitat for the long term survival of the covered species, habitat-forming processes (which are the naturally occurring processes in the watershed) must be sustained over time. These processes must be maintained or the habitat which is currently present will degrade or continue to degrade over time. Proper functioning condition is a requirement of the HCP. The HCP will delineate what is necessary to achieve this.
Thurston Conservation District has recently been awarded a $300,000 grant for development of the Scatter Creek Habitat Conservation Plan from the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS).
More information: Jenny Coffing, Thurston Conservation District at 754-3588, Ext 119.
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By Leslie Kaye, US Army Corps of Engineers
Upon first glance during the fall season it may be hard to imagine the force and rage of a swollen Chehalis River.
Four people casual acquaintances drove the back woods of Lewis County to the head waters of the Chehalis River on a crisp and sunny day in early October. It was more than just a drive in the country.
For several hours they made frequent stops to observe the water levels and evaluate the geologic formations of the river and surrounding countryside of the upper basin. What they saw told the story of a vital community issue: environmental restoration.
Basin citizens John Penberth and J. Roach took Seattle District, Army Corps of Engineers project managers Lori Morris and Beth Coffey on a site tour of the Chehalis River that provided eye-opening information of the environmental problems the area struggles with yearly. "The headwaters of the Chehalis River are beautiful, restive and relatively undisturbed," says Morris. With a closer look though the evidence can be found etched in the earth and faded on the water level high marks of the trees.
Chehalis Basin Ecosystem Restoration Study project manager Morris says, "The Corps has pledged to do a better job of defining the differences between the Centralia Flood Damage Reduction Project and the Chehalis Basin Ecosystem Restoration Study, and keeping the citizens within the Basin informed of the progress of each project."
A way to distinguish between the two is to know that one is a study and one is a project. The four year feasibility study will determine existing and historical conditions of the Chehalis River Basin. The study being conducted by the Seattle District, Army Corps of Engineers with local sponsorship provided by Grays Harbor County will determine the realistic possibility of restoring natural processes to the Basin.
The conditions to be improved through the information determined in this study will be fish and wildlife habitat, water quality and flooding frequency. Thirty different project alternatives may be selected to achieve these goals.
The Corps team will identify projects currently ready for construction that can be implemented the most quickly through local, state and/or federal funding. This will provide early positive results for the overall ecosystem health. The Centralia Flood Damage Reduction Project benefits will include reduction of flooding for Centralia and Chehalis, protection of I 5 and railways, and environmental restoration. The project is in its third year. The Corps project delivery team in conjunction with local sponsor Lewis County is finalizing current conditions and beginning the alternative selection process. The current focus of the Centralia FDR project is to complete two important documents: The General Reevaluation Report (GRR) and the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Water Resources Development Act 2002. These will be prepared to evaluate the alternatives.
Centralia FDR project manager Beth Coffey says, "In (fiscal year) 2002 the team will select an alternative, complete and finalize the GRR and EIS. The current alternatives encompass among other things levees, flow bypass with an over bank excavation, modifications to the Skookumchuck Dam and nonstructural actions." Both project managers say the research from the study will dovetail with the work of the project at some point in the future. A recommended project configuration will result; one will benefit the other.
John Penberth's lifelong personal experience of the area provided important detail on this eye-opening back woods drive of Lewis County. Discussions among the group ranged from the possibility of constructing detention facilities in some of the steep-sided bedrock canyons of the river, to how beaver act as nature's engineers in creating these diversions. There is Corps interest in a possible partnership with Weyerhaeuser to preserve and enhance the area.
After extensive touring of the Chehalis River site, the group took side trips to the City of Pe Ell's water withdrawal facility and sewage treatment plant. Project Managers Morris and Coffey report learning a great deal about existing wildlife and use of the river by salmonids for spawning and rearing.
Just a day in the country? Perhaps a little more. And like many country drives, the trip concluded with a consensus decision: Let's eat! (At Evey's Café.)
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By Brian Peck
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