Seattle DOT Elliott Bay LOA Biop
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United States Department of Commerce National Marine Fisheries Service United States Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service National Marine Fisheries Service U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 7600 Sand Point Way N.E. Pacific Region Seattle, Washington 98115-0070 911 N.E. 11th Avenue Portland, Oregon 97232-4181 Reply to: NMFS Tracking No.: 2012-9473 FWS Ref No.: 01EWFW00-2013-F-0063 Michelle Walker Corps of Engineers, Seattle District Regulatory Branch CENWS-OD-RG Post Office Box 3755 Seattle, Washington 98124-3755 Re: Endangered Species Act Section 7 Formal Consultation and Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act Essential Fish Habitat Consultation for the proposed Elliott Bay Seawall Project, City of Seattle, King County, Washington. Fifth Field HUC 1711001904, Puget Sound/East Passage. (COE No. NWS-2011-778-WRD). Dear Ms. Walker: The enclosed document contains the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (USFWS) joint (the Services) biological opinion (Opinion) pursuant to Section 7(a)(2) of the Endangered Species Act (ESA). It analyzes the effects of both the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (COE) proposal to issue a permit to the City of Seattle and NMFS’ issuance of a Letter of Authorization (LOA) under Section 101 (a)(5)(D) of the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) associated with the proposed replacement of the Elliott Bay Seawall project, in King County, Washington. In this Opinion, the Services conclude that the actions, as proposed, are not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of the following species and will not result in the destruction or adverse modification of the following designated critical habitat: NMFS species: Puget Sound Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) Puget Sound Chinook salmon critical habitat Southern Resident killer whale (Orcinus orca) Steller sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus) Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) Bocaccio (Sebastes paucispinis) Canary rockfish (S. pinniger) Yelloweye rockfish (S. ruberrimus) FWS species: Coastal-Puget Sound bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) Coastal-Puget Sound bull trout critical habitat The Services have also concluded that the proposed actions may affect, but are not likely to adversely affect the following species and designated critical habitat: NMFS species: Puget Sound steelhead (O. mykiss) Southern Resident killer whale critical habitat FWS species: Marbled murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus) As required under Section 7 of the ESA, the Services provided an incidental take statement (ITS) with the Opinion. The ITS describes reasonable and prudent measures the Services consider necessary or appropriate to minimize incidental take associated with these actions. The take statement sets forth nondiscretionary terms and conditions, including reporting requirements, that the Federal agency and any person who performs the action must comply with to carry out the reasonable and prudent measures. Incidental take from actions that meet these terms and conditions will be exempt from the ESA take prohibition. The LOA Terms and Conditions are appended to this document. This document also includes the results of our analysis of the action’s likely effects on essential fish habitat (EFH) pursuant to Section 305(b) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA). It includes four conservation recommendations that are not identified in whole or in part in the ESA section of the document. This document is based on information provided in the November 2012 Biological Assessment (received by the Services on November 28, 2012), various emails, phone calls, and meetings with 2 the COE and the Seattle Department ofTransportation held to discuss the project and potential effects ofthe project. A complete record ofthis consultation is on file at both NMFS's Washington State Habitat Office and the USFWS's Washington Fish and Wildlife Office in Lacey, Washington. If you have any questions, please contact Jim Muck at (206) 526-4740, email [email protected], Martha Jensen (USFWS) at (360) 753-9000, email [email protected], Tom Sibley (NMFS) at (206) 526- 4446, email [email protected], or by mail at the letterhead addresses. Sincerely, ~~~ r William W. S elle, Jr. ~en S. Berg, Manager 1lVRegional Administrator Washington Fish and Wildlife Service NOM Fisheries U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service cc J. Printz, COE 3 Endangered Species Act- Section 7(a)(2) Biological Opinion And Magnuson-Stevens Fisheries Conservation and Management Act Essential Fish Habitat Consultation Elliott Bay Seawall Project King County, Washington Fifth Field HUC 1711001904, Puget Sound/East Passage NMFS Consultation Number: 2012-94 73 FWS Reference Number: 01EWFW00-2013F-0063 Action Agencies: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Consultation Conducted By: National Marine Fisheries Service Northwest Region And U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Washington Fish and Wildlife Office IssuedBy: ~ Septnnber 30,2013 'Cv William W. Stelle, Jr. f..,. Regional Administrator National Marine Fisheries Service Issued By: September 30, 20l3 ~'c..,- en Berg, Manager Washington Fish and Wildlife Service U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.0 INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Consultation History ............................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Proposed Action ...................................................................................................................... 3 1.2.1 Seattle’s Seawall Replacement Project ......................................................................3 1.2.2 NMFS Proposed Issuance of a Letter of Authorization ...........................................29 1.3 Action Area ........................................................................................................................... 36 2.0 ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT: BIOLOGICAL OPINION ..................................................38 2.1 Analytical Approach ............................................................................................................. 38 2.2 Rangewide Status of the Species and Critical Habitat ..........................................................39 2.2.1 Status of the Species.................................................................................................39 2.2.2 Status of Designated Critical Habitat .......................................................................60 2.2.3 Effects of Climate Change .......................................................................................67 2.3 Environmental Baseline ........................................................................................................ 70 2.3.1 Physical Conditions ..................................................................................................70 2.3.2 Water Quality Conditions .........................................................................................73 2.3.3 Biological Conditions ...............................................................................................82 2.3.4 Status of the Listed Species and their Critical Habitat in the Action Area ..............88 2.3.5 Activities in the Action Area with completed Interagency Consultations ...............97 2.4 Effects of the Action ............................................................................................................. 98 2.4.1 Insignificant and Discountable Effect to Species and Designated Critical Habitat . 98 2.4.2 Construction Effects on Listed Species..................................................................102 2.4.3 Operational and Maintenance Effects on Listed Species .......................................131 2.4.4 Effects on the Designated Critical Habitat of Listed Species ................................147 2.5 Cumulative Effects .............................................................................................................. 151 2.6 Integration and Synthesis .................................................................................................... 152 2.6.1 Chinook Salmon .....................................................................................................152 2.6.2 Killer Whales ..........................................................................................................155 2.6.3 Steller Sea Lions .....................................................................................................156 2.6.4 Humpback Whales .................................................................................................156 2.6.5 Canary Rockfish, Bocaccio, and Yelloweye Rockfish...........................................156 2.6.6 Bull Trout ............................................................................................................... 157 2.6.7 PS Chinook Salmon Critical Habitat ......................................................................158 2.6.8 Bull Trout Critical Habitat .....................................................................................159 2.7 Conclusion........................................................................................................................... 159 3.0 ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT: INCIDENTAL TAKE STATEMENT .............................159 3.1 Amount or Extent of Take ..................................................................................................