Position on S.J. Res. 69, Barred Owl Management Strategy

We write in opposition to S.J. Res. 69 – providing for congressional disapproval of the “Record of Decision for the Barred Owl Management Strategy.”

For 50 years, the Endangered Species Act (ESA) has been a critically important tool in the conservation and restoration of the over 600 threatened and endangered species that depend on habitats in national parks. Species like the California condor, the humpback whale, and the Santa Rosa Island fox have all benefited from the restoration and recovery framework and support the ESA provides.

The Barred Owl Management Strategy addresses actions to support the recovery of populations of the endangered northern spotted owl in Washington, Oregon and California. The choice to lethally remove an invasive species should not be taken lightly and should only be taken after careful consideration of scientific best practices. In this case, after conducting a rigorous assessment and on-the-ground testing, the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service found that removing the barred owl is a necessary step towards protecting the northern spotted owl. This management intervention is one of the tools outlined in the 2011 Revised Northern Spotted Owl Recovery Plan. The removal of invasive species is an important management tool federal agencies use to support ecosystem health including the removal of Burmese pythons in the Everglades or lake trout in Yellowstone.

NPCA is very concerned by the use of the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to rescind agency rulemakings and management plans specific to the ESA. If enacted, a CRA resolution would void the rule in question and prevent the agency from issuing a substantially similar rule in the future. This could severely hamper the government’s ability to take protective actions if species populations decline or are under significant threat.

As a changing climate impacts species and habitats, agencies will have to make tough decisions on how to intervene. Those decisions should be made based on science, through the processes already in place to comment on, examine, and reexamine species management plans. This is especially true in the case of the Barred Owl Management Strategy, where the agency received extensive public input to make a hard decision regarding the protection of the northern spotted owl.

Without this plan, the northern spotted owl is headed for extinction. The plan itself is not a mandate but instead creates flexibility for land managers to protect this particular listed species. We urge you to protect our ability to make ESA decisions based on science and vote NO on S.J. Res. 69.