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When a species is protected under the Endangered Species Act the law requires that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) identify the species "critical habitat," the lands and waters essential to the conservation of the species. Under the Endangered Species Act, critical habitat is defined as: "the specific area within the geographical area occupied by the species, at the time it is listed on which are found those physical or biological features essential to the conservation of the species and which may require special management considerations or protection; and specific areas outside the geographical area occupied by the species at the time it is listed in accordance with the provisions of this Act, upon determination by the Secretary that such areas are essential for the conservation of the species." More simply stated, critical habitat is the habitat necessary to support existing members of threatened and endangered species as well as the increased numbers that would mark the species recovery. Critical habitat is established only after a proposal to designate it has been published in the Federal Register, public comment has been considered and an economic analysis of the designation has been completed. Currently, critical habitat designations cover approximately 43 million acres in the United States-1.8 % of the nation's total land area. Even so, only about 31% of listed species have designated critical habitat. Once critical habitat has been designated, federal agencies must consult with the FWS on actions they carry out, fund, or otherwise authorize in order to ensure that their actions will not destroy or adversely modify the critical habitat. This consultation helps conserve the occupied habitat, where the species currently exists, as well as the currently unoccupied habitat needed in the future to support the increased numbers of the species that will herald its recovery. Critical habitat designations have no effect on situations where a federal agency is not involved, such as a private landowner undertaking a project on their land that involves no federal funding or permit. As the National Association of Homebuilders points out "[T]here is no general prohibition against destruction of critical habitat broadly applicable to all persons under the Act. (1) Analysis conducted by the FWS demonstrates the value of critical habitat to fish and wildlife conservation. Of the 560 species with a known status in 1994, those with critical habitat were 11% less likely to be declining and 14% more stable than species without critical habitat. Of the 697 species with a known status in 1996, those with critical habitat were 11% more likely to be improving and 13% less likely to be declining than those without critical habitat. The benefits of critical habitat accrue over time: those with critical habitat for over five years were in better shape than those with critical habitat for five years or less. The example of the Peninsular bighorn sheep vividly illustrates the value of critical habitat to fish and wildlife management. The Peninsular bighorn sheep inhabits the foothills of Southern California's Peninsular Mountains. Litigation brought by conservationists allowed the sheep to be listed under the Endangered Species Act in 1998 following population declines of 77% due to habitat loss from urban sprawl, roads, off-road vehicle use, overgrazing, and diseases spread by domestic livestock. In 2000, there were only 334 Peninsular bighorn sheep left in the wild within the United States. In response to litigation brought by conservationists, the FWS in 2001 designated 854,000 acres of critical habitat for the sheep, allowing resource managers to improve land-use practices for the benefit of the species. The Bureau of Land Management removed disease carrying livestock that threatened the bighorns from 226,026 acres of critical habitat under its jurisdiction, closed illegal roads and instituted seasonal road cloasures in important lambing areas. The U.S. Forest Service removed livestock from 17,982 acres of the critical habitat it manages. Local communities have begun to proactively incorporate bighorn conservation concerns into their planning. These conservation measures were not put into place in areas that had not been designated as bighorn critical habitat. In 2003, the California Department of Game and Fish estimated that there were 500 Peninsular bighorn sheep in the wild in the U.S. - a 49% increase in the population since the species was listed and critical habitat management practices began.
Photo courtesy USFWS. Up to Top |
