The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service has issued a non-jeopardy biological opinion with regard to impacts on the threatened delta smelt of the proposed revised operations of the Central Valley Project (CVP) and the State Water Project (SWP).
The Service concludes in its July 30, 2004 opinion that any adverse effects from the Operating Criteria and Plan (OCAP) for the two jointly-operated projects will be avoided or minimized by the conservation measures and by the adaptive management measures newly incorporated into the project plan.
The OCAP addresses the operational impacts on delta smelt by committing the two projects to take early protective actions for the species, before high numbers of the fish reach the major export pumps, where losses often occur. The OCAP for the first time incorporates the Environmental Water Account (EWA) into the delta smelt protective actions, along with other management measures.
The biological opinion also sets new incidental take limits for delta smelt. The new take limits are based on the most recent 11 years of data (1993-2003). The Service concludes that, using the more recent information, the adaptive management measures in OCAP will provide better protection for the species.
In addition to the "formal consultation" for OCAP, the biological opinion also provides an "early consultation" for the proposed South Delta Improvement Program (SDIP), a package that includes export pumping at levels up to 8,500 cubic feet per second, permanent South Delta barriers, the long-term Environmental Water Account, water transfers, and some CVP and SWP operational integration. The early consultation provides a no preliminary jeopardy opinion, provided that the effects and the project do not change when the formal consultation is requested.
The delta smelt (hypomesus transpacificus) was listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 1993. Earlier this year the Service reviewed its status and recommended that no change in its threatened status was warranted, based on 37 years of data.
The opinion is provided as a Section 7 Section 7
Section 7 Consultation
The Endangered Species Act (ESA) directs all Federal agencies to work to conserve endangered and threatened species and to use their authorities to further the purposes of the Act. Section 7 of the Act, called "Interagency Cooperation," is the mechanism by which Federal agencies ensure the actions they take, including those they fund or authorize, do not jeopardize the existence of any listed species.
Learn more about Section 7 consultation. Section 7 of the ESA requires federal agencies to consult with the Service on their actions to "insure that any action?is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of any endangered species or threatened species?"
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, 64 fishery resources 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 and Native American tribal governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
