Under the Endangered Species Act, a critical habitat designation establishes a geographic area that is important for the conservation of a threatened or endangered species and contains habitat features that may require special management consideration. However, a designation does not set up a preserve or refuge, nor does it affect the activities of citizens engaged in private activities on their land. Rather, its sole impact is that Federal agencies must consult with the Service on activities they take, authorize or fund that might affect critical habitat. Activities on private or state lands that do not require Federal permits or funding do not require consultation.
"This proposal to designate critical habitat in Alaska highlights the fact that all species require healthy habitat to survive," said David B. Allen, the Services regional director for Alaska. "As with the recent designation of critical habitat for the spectacled eider, we do not expect this will affect the lives or livelihoods of rural and Native Alaskans. A designation does not affect ownership or change the rights of private landowners. What it does do is require that the Service be consulted about projects funded, permitted or carried out by the Federal government in areas designated as critical habitat.
In the majority of cases where Federal agencies are required to consult with the Service on critical habitat, the activities go forward with little or no modification, Allen said.
Todays proposal covers about 15,800 square miles of breeding habitat on the North Slope and 1,200 square miles on Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. About 8,500 square miles of marine waters are proposed, over half of which are located in Kuskokwim Bay. These marine waters occur along 9,000 miles of coastline, from Nunivak Island, to the eastern Aleutians, along the northern and southern shores of the Alaska Peninsula, and east to Kachemak Bay in Lower Cook Inlet and the Kodiak Archipelago. Biologists believe the areas proposed for designation encompass the primary breeding, molting, wintering, and migration staging areas of the Stellers eiders that breed in Alaska.
More than 60 percent of the lands proposed to be designated as critical habitat for the Stellers eider also is proposed as critical habitat for the spectacled eider.
The Stellers eider is the smallest of four eider species. The adult male has a white head with a greenish tuft and a small black eye patch, a black back, white shoulders and a chestnut breast and belly with a black spot on each side. Adult females and juveniles are mottled dark brown. Both adult sexes have a blue patch on the upper wing with a prominent white border on the anterior and posterior edges.
There are three populations of Stellers eiders. Two breed in Russia and one breeds in Alaska. Only the Alaska-breeding population is listed as threatened. One of the populations of Stellers eiders that nests in Russia migrates to the shallow marine waters of south coastal Alaska during the molt and winter periods. This abundant population is not affected by today s proposal.
The historical population size and distribution of Alaska-breeding Stellers eiders are not well known, but biologists suspect both the population s breeding range and abundance have decreased significantly due to unknown causes. They estimate a few hundred to a few thousand birds now occupy the North Slope breeding grounds. Because only six nests have been found on the Yukon-Kuskokwim in recent decades, they believe the population is very small there.
While the Service is proposing more than 24,000 square miles of critical habitat, not all the areas within those broad boundaries are significant enough to the eider to require Federal agencies to consult with the Service. The Service will require consultations only in those areas that contain the physical and biological features necessary for the species survival. Existing towns and villages, roads, oil platforms and uplands within the boundaries are not considered critical habitat.
The proposal comes in response to an out-of-court settlement stemming from a lawsuit filed by the Southwest Center for Biological Diversity (now known as the Center for Biological Diversity) and Christians Caring for Creation. The Service did not designate critical habitat for the species when it was originally listed as threatened in 1997 because at that time it was believed that designation of critical habitat would not result in additional benefits to the species not already provided by the listing.
The Service published its proposal in todays Federal Register. The public may provide written comments on the proposal until May 11, 2000. Comments should be submitted to Ted Swem, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Ecological Services Fairbanks, 101 12th Avenue, Box 19, Room 110, Fairbanks, AK 99701.
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 93-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System which encompasses more than 520 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 66 national fish hatcheries, 64 fish and wildlife management assistance offices, 64 Fishery Resource Offices and 78 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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