Plan expands habitat
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Thursday proposed to vastly expand its critical habitat designation for the threatened Canada lynx.
The announcement vastly revises an earlier habitat designation found to be tainted by political influence.
The agency proposes designating 42,753 square miles of lynx habitat in Northwest Montana, northeastern Idaho, the Greater Yellowstone area, Minnesota and northern Maine.
In 2006, the Service designated just 1,841 square miles of critical habitat nationwide. But that designation and seven other endangered species actions came under scrutiny amid allegations of improper influence by then-Interior Department Deputy Secretary Julie MacDonald.
Last May, an Interior Inspector General's report concluded that MacDonald coerced decisions that ran counter to scientific findings of the service's field staff.
Conservationists considered the 2006 lynx designation completely inadequate because it basically applied to lands that already have the best protections for the forest cat.
In Montana, Glacier National Park was included but all industrial forest lands and national forest lands were excluded.
The latest proposal would apply to about 11,304 square miles in the Northern Rockies, including lands in Boundary County, Idaho, as well as Flathead, Glacier, Granite, Lake, Lewis and Clark, Lincoln, Missoula, Pondera, Powell and Teton counties in Montana.
The proposal is a "big improvement" but still has problems, said Arlene Montgomery, program director for Friends of the Wild Swan.
The proposal applies to areas currently considered "occupied" by lynx under a definition established by a team of biologists but later narrowed by MacDonald, said Montgomery, citing a memorandum from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service regional director.
"Because lynx can move large distances, expand into new habitat and can be difficult to detect, the narrow definition may result in adverse effects or take of lynx occurring in lands no longer considered to be occupied," that memo states.
A major problem with the definition, Montgomery contends, is that it considers lands where lynx have not been detected since 1999 to be unoccupied.
And that arbitrary date doesn't necessarily hold up to scientific scrutiny, she said.
But the agency doesn't come to that conclusion.
"The Service has determined that currently occupied habitat is sufficient to conserve the Canada lynx and that designation of critical habitat in unoccupied habitat is not required," according to an agency press release on Thursday. "Areas considered for critical habitat designation were therefore required to have recent evidence of lynx presence and reproduction."
Under the new proposal, about 58 percent of the areas considered for designation are federal lands and about 30 percent are private lands, according to the release. The remaining areas fall under state or tribal management.
According to the agency, "the designation of critical habitat does not affect land ownership or establish a refuge and has no impact on private landowners taking actions on their land that do not require federal funding or permits."
In situations where a "federal nexus" exists with funding or permitting, agencies involved are required to formally consult with the Fish and Wildlife Service to determine if there will be any adverse effects.
Public comments on the proposed designation will be accepted until April 28, with the input to be considered in developing a final designation. Public hearings may be scheduled.
"The Service is particularly seeking input regarding the inclusion of certain lands in the designation and on the appropriateness of excluding lands from a designation that are covered by management plans that provide for the conservation of the lynx," the press release stated.
Comments and information can be mailed to: the Division of Policy and Directives Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Suite 222, Arlington, VA 22203.
Comments also may be submitted on the Internet at: http://www.regulations.gov.