" size=The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing that portions of rivers and streams, totaling some 544 miles in Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Virginia, and Kentucky, be designated as critical habitat for five federally-listed freshwater mussels. All five were listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act, on Jan. 10, 1997. At that time, the Service determined that critical habitat was not prudent, and therefore did not designate it for these mussels.
The Service is making this proposal in response to an order by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District Court of Tennessee to submit for publication a proposed critical habitat determination by May 19, 2003. The Service is currently seeking public comments on this proposed designation until Sept. 3, 2003.
The five mussel species in question are the endangered , , and rough http://cookeville.fws.gov/">.
Critical habitat is a term in the Endangered Species Act identifying geographic areas that are essential for the conservation of a threatened or endangered species and may require special management considerations. The designation of critical habitat does not affect land ownership or establish a refuge, wilderness, reserve, preserve, or other conservation area conservation area
A conservation area is a type of national wildlife refuge that consists primarily or entirely of conservation easements on private lands. These conservation easements support private landowner efforts to protect important habitat for fish and wildlife and major migration corridors while helping to keep agricultural lands in production.
Learn more about conservation area . It does not allow government or public access to private lands.
This critical habitat designation was completed in response to a lawsuit filed by the Southern Appalachian Biodiversity Project.
In 30 years of implementing the Endangered Species Act, the Service has found that the designation of critical habitat provides little additional protection to most listed species, while preventing the Service from using scarce conservation resources for activities with greater conservation benefits.
In almost all cases, recovery of listed species will come through voluntary cooperative partnerships, not regulatory measures such as critical habitat. Habitat is also protected through cooperative measures under the Endangered Species Act including Habitat Conservation Plans, Safe Harbor Agreements, Candidate Conservation Agreements and state programs. In addition, voluntary partnership programs such as the Service
