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U.S Fish & Wildlife Service National Wildlife Refuge System Inside July/August 2004 Vol 1, No 4 Historic Voyage through Hawaiian Islands, page 8 2,400-mile trip is first in centuries. Focus on Fire Management, page 10-17 An in-depth look at this essential element of refuge management. A Circle of Trees, page 19 Millennium Forest draws community together. First Friends in Montana, page 22 Group looks forward to 500. Most of the Conservation in Action Summit work took place in “breakout sessions,” when participants delved deeply into issues of priority for the Refuge System. More than 250 participants attended the Summit May 24-27 at the National Conservation Training Center. (Ryan Hagerty/USFWS) Shared Priorities Emerge from Conservation in Action Summit Enthused about the Refuge System, “We had held extensive meetings with more than 250 participants at the teams of experts to draft white papers. We landmark Conservation in Action Summit had several Web chats and a focus group of May 24-27 made major strides in 35 highly-experienced refuge managers to identifying a set of shared priorities to help refine the white papers,” he continued. guide the Refuge System for the next five “The Summit’s breakout sessions and (Ana Fuentes/USFWS) to 15 years. polling provided a wealth of insights about the challenges facing the Refuge System.” Coming from 38 states and representing a Born on a Refuge wide spectrum of backgrounds, the Among preliminary results from the 1 participants in 3 ⁄2 days debated and Summit were: Hopper Mountain Refuge, CA, was discussed ideas, strategies and action O established in 1974 to protect the items that had been formulated in the 10 The need for a more systematic California condor. Two other refuges – months leading up to the first-ever approach to bird conservation, Blue Ridge in 1982 and Bitter Creek Summit. Their final votes on priorities including identifying species of special Refuge in 1985 – joined Hopper continued the vision embodied in concern. Mountain to create a refuge complex Fulfilling the Promise. O The importance of endangered species for the same purpose. “Before the Summit, we had the benefit of work, with emphasis on refuge The population of condors dropped to so much input, including an extensive activities that integrate with the just 22 birds in 1983, its lowest level survey of Fish and Wildlife Service broader work of the USFWS and ever. In 1992, the first captive reared employees and conservation partners,” other conservation organizations. birds were released through Hopper noted Jim Kurth, deputy chief of the O The need to deal with invasive species Mountain Refuge Complex. Refuge System and a member of the along with vexing issues associated with Today, 244 condors soar in the wild, 99 three-person Summit Executive water quality and quantity on refuges. of which were bred in captivity. N Committee. continued pg 6 From the Director A Salute to Fire Management Wildland fire enhanced our ability to protect Council, the National Association of management has communities and the environment from Counties and the Federal Emergency been commanding unwanted fires. Management Agency. We need to more national attention in recent years, continue in this vein, collaborating with and with good reason. As development But the Service’s current involvement in state and local stakeholders in the continues to expand into rural areas and the fire management is not new. Refuges Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) as our forests and lands become more have long been leaders in using program, for example. Treatment of non- fragmented, wildland fire management is prescribed fires to restore and maintain WUI lands is also critical to conserve fish becoming an ever more important tool in wildlife habitat, long before others and wildlife habitats and to manage protecting habitat for both people understood or accepted the value of Refuge System lands. and wildlife. prescribed burns. We can be proud of our record of achievement and expertise Our federal, state and local partners The Fish and Wildlife Service has focused when it comes to using fire as a resource depend on us to share our fire-qualified on both the escalating costs of fire management tool. personnel, as we depend on them. That is suppression and the negative impacts of why timely mobilization of resources is intense, fast-moving wildfires that As fire management becomes more critical to effectively managing fires and recognize only natural forces – not complex, we are reaching out to their related costs. management or jurisdictional boundaries. collaborate with states and nontraditional As an agency, we are fully involved with a partners and groups. To that end, I’ve This issue of Refuge Update offers great variety of wildland fire management been honored to serve on the Wildland insight into many aspects of fire partners. Initiatives such as the National Fire Leadership Council since 2002, management as well as salutes those who Fire Plan, and the Healthy Forest working with the directors of the Interior are on the front lines of fire management. Initiative, the 10-Year Comprehensive land management agencies, the Forest Strategy and Implementation Plan, and Service, the National Governors the Healthy Forest Restoration Act have Association, the National Association of — Steve Williams State Foresters, the Intertribal Timber Chief’s Corner RefugeUpdate The Best Public Lands in the World Gale Norton Address editorial As we worked at the interpretive specialists, heavy- Secretary of the Interior inquiries to: Refuge Update end of the equipment operators and regional Steve Williams USFWS-NWRS Conservation in Action Summit to directors from the Fish and Wildlife Director – U.S. Fish and 4401 North Fairfax identify shared priorities, who voted Service participated. Wildlife Service Drive, Room 634C Arlington, VA was as important as what they William Hartwig The depth and breadth of the 22203-1610 voted for. Assistant Director – Phone: 703-358-1858 assemblage’s experience was National Wildlife Refuge Fax: 703-358-2517 During the Summit, more than 250 unsurpassed in the Refuge System’s System E-mail: people engaged in rich, collegial, open history. Never before have we Dick Cole [email protected] conversations – formally and informally gathered so many people representing Publisher – to set priorities for the Refuge such varied interests and perspectives. This newsletter is System. We had participants from 38 Martha Nudel published on recycled paper using soy-based states, representing a wide spectrum of Opinions abounded. That’s just what Editor in Chief made the Summit such a success. ink backgrounds. Twenty-three refuge Bill Ballou Friends groups were there, along with At the Summit’s conclusion, we asked Graphic Design Coordinator C numerous state agencies and dozens of all participants to vote on their top nonprofit conservation organizations. priorities in order to derive a set of Biologists, refuge managers, shared priorities continued pg 24 Pg 2 Refuge Update | July/August 2004 Public Can Comment on Bison Range Agreement The public may comment on a draft Flathead Reservation – National Bison which the agreement will be submitted to annual funding agreement negotiated by Range, Ninepipe Refuge, Pablo Refuge Congress for a 90-day review period the USFWS and the Confederated Salish and waterfowl production areas within before it is implemented. and Kootenai Tribes for the National Bison the reservation. Range Complex, MT, which would enable The Confederated Salish and Kootenai the tribes to perform some of the Service’s The draft agreement was negotiated Tribes are comprised of the Bitterroot activities during fiscal year 2005. The pursuant to the Indian Self-Determination Salish, the Pend d’Oreille, and the comment period closes Oct. 11. and Education Assistance Act. Under the Kootenai Tribes. The tribes occupy the Act, qualified Indian Tribes may request to 1.3 million acre Flathead Reservation in Activities covered by the draft agreement perform activities administered by the northwestern Montana. include the following categories: biological Department of the Interior that are of program; fire program; maintenance geographic, historic or cultural significance Prior to current negotiations regarding the program; and visitor services. to the requesting tribe. National Bison Range Complex, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes The USFWS will maintain ownership of The draft agreement is available at have assumed management of many and management authority over all lands http://mountain-prairie.fws.gov/cskt-fws- activities previously provided by the and buildings at the Bison Range. negotiation or by contacting the Bison federal government on the Flathead Range, 406-644-2211. Reservation. The activities include Tribal The National Bison Range Complex Health and Human Services; the Tribal consists of the National Bison Range, Comments may be submitted via e-mail at Wildlife Management Program; and Swan Lake, Lost Trail, Pablo and Ninepipe [email protected], or in Mission Valley Power. N refuges, and the Northwest Montana writing to the Bison Range, 132 Bison Wetland Management District. Range Rd., Moeise, MT, 59824. During the public comment period, an open house(s) Established in 1908 to conserve the may be held. A notice for the open house American Bison, the Bison Range and will appear in local newspapers. ancillary properties provide important habitat for a variety of species such as elk, Following the public comment period and pronghorn antelope and migratory birds. any subsequent revisions to the draft The draft agreement applies only to those agreement, the final agreement will be units that lie within the boundaries of the signed by the Service and the CSKT, after Agreement Reached with Tribal Consortium at Yukon Flats Refuge The product of nearly two years of negotiations, an agreement between the Council of Athabascan Tribal Governments and the USFWS enables the Council to perform some of the Service’s work on Yukon Flats NWR, AK, in fiscal years 2004-05.

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