Essential Fish Habitat. (This scope is for the corresponding section(s) as listed in the Affected Environment and Environmental Consequences section of the EA.) The Engineer shall perform Essential Fish Habitat studies. Studies shall fulfill the requirements of 50 CFR 600.920. The Engineer shall:
Essential Fish Habitat. Perform Essential Fish Habitat studies. Studies shall fulfill the requirements of 50 CFR §600.920. • Determine if Essential Fish Habitat is present in the project area. • Determine if the project will adversely affect Essential Fish Habitat. • Describe adverse impacts, if any.
Essential Fish Habitat. The Xxxxxxxx-Xxxxxxx Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Xxxxxxxx-Xxxxxxx Act) requires federal fishery management plans to describe the habitat essential to the fish being managed and describe threats to that habitat from both fishing and non-fishing activities. In addition, in order to protect this Essential Fish Habitat (EFH), federal agencies are required to consult with the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) on activities that may adversely affect EFH. Essential fish habitat has been designated for the 82 species of Pacific Coast groundfish, 3 species of salmon, and 5 species of coastal pelagic fish and squid that are managed by the Pacific Fishery Management Council. The 82 groundfish species include rockfishes, flatfish, sharks, and fish such as lingcod and sablefish. The Pacific Fishery Management Council manages the fisheries for coho, Chinook, and Puget Sound Pink Salmon and has defined EFH for these three species. Salmon EFH includes all those streams, lakes, ponds, wetlands, and other water bodies currently or historically accessible to salmon in Washington. The EFH needs of all these species, at each life stage, are broad, covering freshwater, estuarine, and marine environments. Salmon EFH extends from the nearshore and tidal submerged environments within state territorial waters out to the full extent of the exclusive economic zone (200 miles or 370.4km) offshore of Washington. The fishery management plan for Pacific coast Coastal Pelagic Species includes 5 species: northern anchovy, Pacific sardine, Pacific (chub) mackerel, jack mackerel, and market squid. Essential fish habitat for these coastal pelagic species is defined both through geographic boundaries and by sea-surface temperature ranges. The east-west geographic boundary of EFH for each individual finfish and market squid is defined to be all marine and estuarine waters from the shoreline along the coasts of California, Oregon, and Washington offshore to the limits of the exclusive economic zone (200 miles) and above the thermocline where sea surface temperatures range between 10 C and 26 C.
Essential Fish Habitat. The CONSULTANT will conduct field review, survey, and appropriate coordination with resource agencies to assess impacts to essential fish habitat (EFH) in accordance with Part 2, Chapter 11 of the PD&E Manual. The CONSULTANT will prepare the EFH Assessment as a component of the NRE to document potential adverse effects to EFH and measures to address those effects.
Essential Fish Habitat. (This scope is for the corresponding section(s) as listed in the Affected Environment and Environmental Consequences section of the EA.) The ENGINEER shall perform Essential Fish Habitat studies. Studies shall fulfill the requirements of 50 CFR 600.920. The ENGINEER shall: • Determine if Essential Fish Habitat is present in the project area. • Determine if the project will adversely affect Essential Fish Habitat. • Describe adverse impacts, if any. (If Essential Fish Habitat will be impacted, then consultation is required)
Essential Fish Habitat. Under the Xxxxxxxx-Xxxxxxx Fisheries Conservation and Management Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-297), the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council identified Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) for those species managed under its fisheries management plans. EFH is defined by the act as being “those waters and substrate necessary to fish for spawning, breeding, feeding or growth to maturity”. The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council lists the following federally managed species within the project area of the selected restoration alternative: white shrimp (Penaeus setiferus), brown shrimp (Penaeus aztecus), and red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus). A brief discussion of the identified EFH and Habitat Areas of Particular Concern (EFH-HAPCs) local to and potentially affected by the selected project for each species follows: Distribution and summary of habitats used by shrimp Brown and white shrimp use a variety of habitats as they grow from planktonic larvae to spawning adults. Brown shrimp are found within estuaries to offshore depths of 110 meters throughout the Gulf; white shrimp inhabit estuaries and to depths of 40 meters offshore in the coastal areas extending from Florida’s big bend through Texas. Brown and white shrimp are generally abundant in the central and western Gulf. Brown shrimp Brown shrimp eggs are demersal and occur offshore. The larvae occur offshore and begin to migrate to estuaries as postlarvae. Postlarvae migrate through passes on flood tides at night mainly from February – April with a minor peak in the fall. Postlarvae and juveniles are common to highly abundant in all U.S. estuaries from Apalachicola Bay in the Florida panhandle to the Mexican border. In estuaries, brown shrimp postlarvae and juveniles are associated with shallow vegetated habitats but also found over silty sand and non-vegetated mud bottoms. Postlarvae and juveniles have been collected in salinity ranging from zero to 70 ppt. The density of postlarvae and juveniles is highest in xxxxx edge habitat and submerged vegetation, followed by tidal creeks, inner xxxxx, shallow open water, and oyster reefs; in unvegetated areas muddy substrates seem to be preferred. Juveniles and sub-adults of brown shrimp occur from secondary estuarine channels out to the continental shelf but prefer shallow estuarine areas, particularly the soft, muddy areas associated with plant- water interfaces. Sub-adults migrate from estuaries at night on ebb tide on new and full moon. Abundance offshore correl...
Essential Fish Habitat. The Xxxxxxxx-Xxxxxxx Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA), as amended by the Sustainable Fisheries Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-267), requires federal agencies to consult with the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) on activities that may adversely affect Essential Fish Habitat (EFH). The MSA defines EFH as “those waters and substrate necessary to fish for spawning, breeding, feeding, or growth to maturity.” The Pacific Fisheries Management Council (PFMC) manages EFH for Pacific Salmon, which include Chinook, coho, and Puget Sound pink salmon. EFH for the Pacific coast salmon fishery means those waters and substrate necessary for salmon production needed to support a long-term sustainable salmon fishery and salmon contributions to a healthy ecosystem. Freshwater EFH for Pacific salmon includes all those streams, lakes, ponds, wetlands, and other water bodies currently or historically accessible to salmon in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and California, except areas upstream of certain impassable man-made barriers and longstanding, naturally- impassable barriers. If the project involves a federal nexus, such as U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Section 404 Permit, impacts to coho and Chinook salmon will also need to be evaluated for the purpose of complying with the MSA. Bald Eagles The bald eagle is no longer listed as Threatened under the ESA, but it is still protected under the Bald Eagle Protection Act. The riparian habitat along the Willamette River and the mouth of Xxxxx Creek within the District provides potential habitat for bald eagles. There is a known eagle pair that uses this reach of the Willamette River for foraging. Eagles may use the tall trees as resting perches during foraging. The closest nest is over one mile away. Eagles have not been documented as wintering along this reach of the Willamette. References City of Lake Oswego. 1994. Lake Oswego Comprehensive Plan. Adopted December 1994. xxxx://xxx.xx.xxxxxx.xx.xx/plan/Comp%20Plan/default.htm . 2003. Water Quality Standards – Title 3 Fact Sheet. xxxx://xxx.xx.xxxxxx.xx.xx/plan/water%20quality%20LU%2000- 0058/What%20is%20Title%203%20-%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf . 2008. Sensitive Lands Atlas. Revised October 2008. xxxx://xxx.xx.xxxxxx.xx.xx/engineer/documents/ExistingSensitiveLandsMap10_08.pdf . 2010. Lake Oswego Community Development Code. Amended September 2, 2010. xxxx://xxx.xx.xxxxxx.xx.xx/cityatty/comdevcode.htm . 2010. Lake Oswego Natural Resources. xxxx://xxx.xx.xxxxxx.xx.xx/plan/nature/...
Essential Fish Habitat. The Engineer shall perform Essential Fish Habitat studies. Studies shall fulfill the requirements of 50 CFR 600.920. The Engineer shall:
Essential Fish Habitat. According to the 1996 SFA Amendments to the Xxxxxxxx Act, Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) “means those waters and substrate necessary to fish for spawning, breeding, feeding, or growth to maturity." (Department of Commerce, 1996) The EFH Final Rule identifies adverse impacts as “any impact that reduces quality and/or quantity of EFH. Adverse effects may include direct (e.g. contamination or physical disruption), indirect, (e.g. loss of prey, or reduction of species' fecundity), site-specific or habitat-wide impacts including individual, cumulative, or synergistic consequences of actions. Adverse effects from fishing may include physical, chemical, or biological alterations of the substrate, and loss of, or injury to, benthic organisms, prey species and their habitat, and other components of the ecosystem. (NEFMC, 2002) Furthermore, the EFH final rule states that adverse effects “that justify the implementation of management measures should be identifiable” and that the intent of EHF, “is to regulate fishing gears that reduce an essential habitat's capacity to support marine resources, not practices that produce inconsequential changes in the habitat.” (NEFMC, 2002) Table 5- Depths and Substrates Associated With Essential Fish Habitats for Benthic Life Stage of 15 Species Included in the New England Multi-Species Fishery Management Plan (NEFMC, 1998).
