Service approves first Safe Harbor agreement
along Sacramento River

July 10, 2006

View Safe Harbor agreement
Overview map of Del Rio preserve
Del Rio project map
(all pdf documents)

More on Safe Harbor agreements

Valley elderberry longhorn beetle/ FWS photo

Susan Efseaff, teacher at Chico Country Day School, and student plant a tree at Del Rio Wildland Preserve/Dan Efseaff photo

Contacts:
Al Donner (Fish and Wildlife Service) 916/414-6566
Jim Nickles (FWS) 916/414-6572
Dan Efseaff (River Partners) 530/894-5401 ext. 21
Susan Kester (Sustainable Conservation) 415/977-0380 ext. 323

Landowner partners with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
on floodplain habitat restoration

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has approved an agreement that provides the owner of 259 acres of flood-prone land along the Sacramento River in Glenn County, CA, with incentives to conserve and enhance a rich riverside habitat, including a major new stand of plants to house the threatened valley elderberry longhorn beetle.

The new Safe Harbor Agreement covers a lowland area known as the Del Rio Wildland Preserve, which is owned by River Partners, a non-profit organization based in Chico, CA., that protects and restores wildlife habitat. The preserve is located in the southeastern corner of Glenn County, CA, just south of the Llano Seco Rancho, about five miles north of Butte City and a mile east of the Sacramento River. The habitat is divided into 27 acres of existing riparian, or riverside, habitat and 232 acres of current and proposed restoration projects.

Safe Harbor agreements are voluntary arrangements between the Fish and Wildlife Service and private or other non-federal landowners. They are intended to enhance habitat for listed species, while giving assurances to landowners that no future regulatory restrictions will be imposed under the Endangered Species Act. This Safe Harbor agreement will be in place for at least 20 years.

The Fish and Wildlife Service believes it is crucial to partner with private landowners, because so many species and their habitats are on private land, said Susan Moore, acting field supervisor for the Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office.

“We hope the River Partners Safe Harbor Agreement leads the way for many more cooperative agreements that work for private landowners and help restore viable populations of native plants and animals,” she said.

“Our organization is about developing practical solutions for people and wildlife,” said Dan Efseaff, restoration ecologist for River Partners. “By entering into this Safe Harbor agreement, River Partners hopes to provide a model for other Sacramento Valley landowners to follow.”

The preserve is located in the southeastern corner of Glenn County, CA, just south of the Llano Seco Rancho, about five miles north of Butte City and a mile east of the Sacramento River. The habitat is divided into 27 acres of existing riparian, or riverside, habitat and 232 acres of current and proposed restoration projects.

The agreement calls for measures to enhance habitat for the valley elderberry longhorn beetle, a federally-protected threatened species that is dependent on elderberry shrubs. Among other things, the landowner will:

• Plant more than 1,500 elderberry plants in a matrix of native vegetation that will benefit a variety of species, including the beetle.
• Complete restoration of 231 acres of agricultural land into riparian habitat with a diverse native plant community.
• Control invasive weeds.
• And increase the connectivity of riverside forest areas within the preserve and along the Sacramento River.

“The Del Rio Wildland Preserve agreement is another example of how collaborative, voluntary partnerships can meet the needs of people and wildlife, avoid potentially burdensome regulation and be a big ‘win' for everyone,” said Susan Kester, project manager for Sustainable Conservation, a California non-profit organization that helped craft the Safe Harbor agreement. “This paves the way for more landowners to provide healthy habitat for California 's wildlife.”

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System which encompasses 544 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 63 fishery resource offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to State fish and wildlife agencies.

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