Recovery Plan for the Northern Spotted Owl - DRAFT

Managing for a new cluster on state, private, and BLM lands in eastern TrinityCounty would enhance recovery. This cluster would provide stronger demographicsupport in this part of the province and better connectivity across thesouthern end of the Trinity Alps to the California Cascades province.Implementation options on nonfederal landsNumerous alternatives exist for achieving recovery goals on nonfederal lands inthe California Kiamath province. There are substantial reserves of publiclands, and the recommendations for federal DCAs incorporate most of them.One large private timberland owner has committed to a management planincorporating extensive owl surveys to ensure that owls will not be taken as aresult of the landowner's timber operations. A number of other timberlandowners in the province voluntarily practice partial entry or uneven-age managementwhich lessens impact to owl habitat. Other timberland owners haveexpressed an interest in developing comprehensive owl management plans fortheir ownerships, in compliance with the current state forest practices rules.The large number of owl sites in the area is an incentive for developing theseplans, as is the state-sponsored HCP, which could benefit smaller acreagelandowners in the province.Forest practices rules would have to be amended to require specific habitatretention standards, different practices in different 'zones," and long-termplans. Forest practices rules currently provide for long-term plans on nonindustrialownerships only. The state-sponsored habitat conservation plan (HCP)is underway and addressing these issues. The HCP is expected to be completedin early 1993.The extensive checkerboard ownership pattern in the province offers greaterflexibility to explore land exchanges.Land acquisition is likely to be less attractive, since many of the timberlandowners also own processing facilities that depend on a stable timber base.The feasibility and likelihood of early implementation of actions to achieve therecovery goals will increase if landowners are given greater flexibility to designateareas for maintaining nesting, roosting, and foraging habitat for supportingDCAs, but this may require greater effort in monitoring and establishmentof more stringent initial objectives.Four options are presented for achieving recovery goals. The options are notexhaustive, and other options may be appropriate if they achieve equivalent orbetter protection for the owl. Other options might provide for more generallandscape level habitat management, protection for other species and longtermmanagement. Given the differences in land ownership and specificconservation needs throughout the province, it is possible that some combinationof the options eventually will be implemented. All options must be evaluatedbased on the likelihood that they will achieve recovery goals when fullyimplemented.Option 1: Management of owl sites adjacent tofederal DCAsThis option would consolidate DCAs on federal land through the inclusion ofinholdings in the western zone. Inholdings would be managed to create andmaintain suitable owl habitat. The option would offer nonfederal support tocategory 2 DCAs and reserved pair areas in the eastern and southern zones,using sites less than, or equal to, 3 miles from the current DCA boundary, andall sites within the DCA boundary. Sites used for supporting federal areaswould have specified locations (e.g., confine site location to a specific drainage191