Critical habitat: Providing safe havens for fish  

     On Dec. 1, 1994, a proposal for designating critical habitat for the endangered Lost River and shortnose suckers was published in the Federal Register. Critical habitat is defined as all areas essential to the recovery of a species to the point of delisting.

   Designating critical habitat is meant to identify areas that have habitat features essential to the recovery of a species, regardless of whether the areas are currently occupied by a species. It makes agencies and the public more aware of the importance of an area, according to information from the Federal Register.  

   “The idea behind any critical habitat designation is you’re providing a safe haven for listed fish,” said Ani Kame’enui, the Klamath campaign coordinator for Oregon Wild. Oregon Wild sued the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1993 to finish critical habitat designation for the suckers.

   “The idea is you’re creating a specific area for this fish that can operate as an area that they will not be adversely affected by their surroundings,”   Kame’enui said.

   The designation of critical habitat does not, however, automatically prohibit certain actions, establish population goals or prescribe specific management actions. It can potentially increase knowledge about a species’ needs by focusing research efforts within the critical habitats. The designation affects solely federally issued permits and federally funded projects.

   Included in the proposal were portions of both current and historic habitat for the sucker. Because water quality and quantity are part of critical habitat, areas affecting water quality   were included. Sites such as Pelican Bay, which provides a refuge for the fish during times of poor water quality, and areas within 300 feet of either bank of streams known to be used by suckers, would fall under this provision.

   The areas identified for inclusion are Clear Lake and its watershed, Tule Lake and the Lost River, the Klamath River from Iron Gate Dam up to the Link River Dam, Upper Klamath Lake and its watershed (excluding Williamson and Sprague rivers, but including Agency Lake), the Williamson and Sprague rivers extending from the mouth of the Williamson River and up the Sprague   River to its confluence with Brown Creek and Gerber Reservoir and its watershed. Excluded are the Bureau of Reclamation canals.

   “We haven’t seen the final designation, but there was some thought that the final might be slightly smaller than the proposed critical habitat,” Kame’enui said.

   Mark Buettner, a biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said the finalization is likely to occur after the recovery plan is finished, perhaps in 2012.

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