During January, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will hold 18 public information meetings and nine public hearings in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Montana to answer questions and receive comments for the record about its proposal to designate critical habitat and its draft recovery plan for bull trout, a threatened species protected under the Federal Endangered Species Act.
The Service is proposing to designate critical habitat for bull trout in the Columbia and Klamath river basins. The draft recovery plan contains recommendations for recovering bull trout in the Columbia and Klamath river basins and in the St. Mary-Belly River Basin in Montana.
The public information meetings will include a presentation by Service representatives, opportunities for questions and answers, information materials and a drop-off box for written comments. The public hearings are a formal opportunity to submit oral comments that will be recorded and transcribed by a court reporter.
The critical habitat proposal for bull trout in the Columbia and Klamath river basins calls for a total of 18,471 miles of streams in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Montana to be designated as critical bull trout habitat, along with 532,721 acres of lakes and reservoirs in those four states. The designations would apply only to the waterways. Adjacent lands would not be included.
By state, the proposal includes:
Oregon: 3,687 miles of streams and 78,609 acres of lakes and reservoirs.
Washington: 2,507 miles of streams and 30,896 acres of lakes and reservoirs.
Idaho: 8,958 miles of streams and 205,639 acres of lakes and reservoirs.
Montana: 3,319 miles of streams and 217,577 acres of lakes and reservoirs.
Critical habitat designates areas that contain habitat essential for the conservation of a threatened or endangered species and which may require special management considerations. These areas do not have to be occupied by the species at the time of designation. A designation does not set up a preserve or refuge or signal any intent by the Federal government to acquire or control lands or waters. It does not close an area to human access or use, such as fishing or boating.
A critical habitat designation requires Federal agencies to ensure that any activity they fund, carry out or authorize is not likely to destroy or adversely modify a protected species
