Reintroduction of Bull Trout to the Clackamas River, Oregon Environmental Assessment Prepared by: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Oregon Fish and Wildlife Office June 2011 Photo: Joe Maroney, Kalispel Tribe Clackamas River Bull Trout Reintroduction Environmental Assessment Table of Contents 1.0 Introduction, Purpose and Need.............................................................................. 5 1.1 Introduction......................................................................................................... 5 1.2 Purpose of the Action.......................................................................................... 9 1.3 Need for the Action............................................................................................. 9 1.4 Consultation and Coordination ........................................................................... 9 1.5 Scoping ............................................................................................................. 10 1.5.1. Issues and Concerns.................................................................................. 10 2.0 Alternatives........................................................................................................... 11 2.1 Alternative A: Proposed Action........................................................................ 11 2.1.1 Goal of the Proposed Action..................................................................... 12 2.1.2 Geographic Scope of the Proposed Action ............................................... 12 2.1.3 Release Locations, Timing, Techniques ................................................... 12 2.1.4 Numbers and Life Stages.......................................................................... 13 2.1.5 Timing and Duration of Reestablishment Activities ................................ 14 2.1.6 Monitoring ................................................................................................ 14 2.1.7 Adaptive Management.............................................................................. 18 2.1.8 Experimental Population........................................................................... 19 2.1.9 Nonessential Experimental Population..................................................... 21 2.1.10 Take........................................................................................................... 22 2.1.11 Geographic Boundaries for the Proposed NEP......................................... 22 2.2 Alternative B: No Action.................................................................................. 25 2.3 Alternatives Considered But Eliminated from Detailed Study......................... 25 2.3.1 Reintroduction to Historical Habitat in Other Willamette Basin Tributaries................................................................................................................. 25 2.3.2 Reintroduction Utilizing an Alternate Donor Stock ................................. 25 2.3.3 Reintroduction of Bull Trout Without 10(j) Designation ......................... 26 2.3.4 Reintroduction of Bull Trout Under 10(j) Essential Experimental Population Designation............................................................................................. 27 2.3.5 Reintroduction of Bull Trout to the Clackamas River Under 10(j) NEP Designation with Alternative Boundary Areas......................................................... 27 3.0 Environmental Consequences............................................................................... 28 3.1 Alternative A, Proposed Action........................................................................ 28 3.1.1 Physical Environment ............................................................................... 28 3.1.2 Biological Environment............................................................................ 28 3.1.3 Social Environment................................................................................... 48 3.2 Alternative B, No Action .................................................................................. 50 3.2.1 Fish and Wildlife....................................................................................... 50 3.2.2 Land Use................................................................................................... 50 4.0 List of Preparers.................................................................................................... 51 5.0 List of Agencies, Organizations and Persons Contacted ...................................... 51 6.0 Literature Cited..................................................................................................... 53 2 Oregon Fish and Wildlife Office U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Clackamas River Bull Trout Reintroduction Environmental Assessment 7.0 Appendix A – Public Comments and Responses on the Draft Environmental Assessment and Proposed Rule on the Reintroduction of Bull Trout to the Clackamas River ……………………………………………………………………………………61 8.0 Appendix B – Non-Significant Issues Identified During Stakeholder Meetings and other Coordination ............................................................................................................ 78 9.0 Appendix C – Clackamas River Bull Trout Reintroduction: Implementation, Monitoring, and Evaluation Plan ...................................................................................... 83 3 Oregon Fish and Wildlife Office U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Clackamas River Bull Trout Reintroduction Environmental Assessment Summary The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), jointly with the State of Oregon, and in cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service, Mt. Hood National Forest (USFS), National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon (CTWSRO), propose to establish a nonessential experimental population (NEP) of bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) in the Clackamas River and its tributaries in Clackamas and Multnomah Counties, Oregon, under section 10(j) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The geographic boundaries of the NEP include the entire Clackamas River subbasin as well as the mainstem Willamette River, from Willamette Falls to its points of confluence with the Columbia River, including Multnomah Channel. The best available data indicate that reintroduction of bull trout to historical habitat in the Clackamas River subbasin is biologically feasible and will promote the conservation and recovery of the species. Bull trout from the Metolius River (Deschutes River Basin) have been identified as suitable donor stock and can provide sufficient individuals for release into suitable habitat identified in the upper portion of the Clackamas River subbasin (defined as the headwaters downstream to North Fork Reservoir, RM 30). We anticipate releasing bull trout annually into the upper Clackamas River via a 20-year three-phased adaptive management approach until either: (1) an evaluation of the program shows the goal of the action (Section 1.2 below) has been met, or is on a trajectory to be met; (2) mid-process evaluation suggests the reestablishment of bull trout is unlikely; or (3) evaluation indicates greater than anticipated impacts to federally listed salmon and steelhead in the Clackamas River from predation and competition. The Service, in collaboration with ODFW, conducted stakeholder/scoping meetings in October and November, 2008, to share information from the Clackamas River Bull Trout Reintroduction Feasibility Assessment (Shively et al. 2007), as well as a draft proposed action to reintroduce the species to historical habitat in the Clackamas River. The meetings also provided an opportunity for participants to provide comments and ask questions regarding the feasibility assessment and the possible reestablishment of the species in the Clackamas River. Based in part on the comments received through the stakeholder/scoping meetings, we developed and subsequently published a proposed rule and draft environmental assessment (DEA) on December 9, 2009, (74 FR 65045). We requested written comments on the proposed rule and DEA from the public and appropriate Federal, State, and local agencies, Tribes, scientific organizations, and other interested parties. The comment period was open from December 9, 2009 to February 8, 2010. We reviewed all comments received for substantive issues and new information regarding the proposed NEP. Substantive comments have been addressed in the Public Comments section of the final rule published concurrently with this environmental assessment (EA) or were incorporated directly into the final rule or this EA (Public Comments section of the final rule is included as Appendix A). 4 Oregon Fish and Wildlife Office U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Clackamas River Bull Trout Reintroduction Environmental Assessment In addition to the proposed action and a no action alternative, this EA also considered five other action alternatives, which, while eliminated from detailed study, are summarized in section 2.3 of this EA. 1.0 Introduction, Purpose and Need 1.1 Introduction On November 1, 1999, we published a final rule to list bull trout within the coterminous United States as threatened under the Act (64 FR 58910). The historical range of bull trout in the coterminous United States extended from the Canadian border south to the Jarbidge River in northern Nevada and from the Pacific Ocean inland to the Clark Fork River in western Montana and the Little Lost River in central