U.S. Department of the Interior
Office of the Secretary

Lisa Guide, Stephanie Hanna 202/208-6416


For Release: November 29, 1995

Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt and Colorado Governor Roy Romer today announced a cooperative agreement between the State and the Department of Interior with the broad goal of preventing listings under the Endangered Species Act through coordinated conservation efforts. The unprecedented agreement will provide a greater role for the State in ESA conservation programs including listing, conservation and recovery of endangered species.

"This is an important example of what can be done to make the ESA work with greater flexibility and align State and Federal conservation priorities," said Secretary Babbitt. "This is a 'working agreement' that provides a road map to avoid train wrecks, prevent listings, and achieve wildlife conservation goals with reduced economic impacts."

"Endangered species issues have become very contentious and polarized. In the debate, we have lost sight of the importance of protecting species and yet do so in a way that does not seriously infringe on property rights and economic growth," said Governor Romer. "This agreement represents a new way of addressing this issue in a more proactive, collaborative and effective way. It shows how we here in Colorado, together with the Department of Interior, can make the ESA work for us to preserve our wildlife and our economy.�

The Colorado declining species agreement outlines a framework to encourage the voluntary participation on a multi- species basis to protect species and wildlife habitat, and avoid the need to list species as threatened or endangered. This agreement seeks to involve public and private interests such as landowners, anglers, hunters, public land recreation interests, Native American tribal governments, local governments, and others in wildlife conservation initiatives. The agreement creates a framework so that participants can change conservation approaches consistent with the goals of good scientific practices, cost- effectiveness and predictability.

For species that are declining, but not yet threatened or endangered, this agreement envisions the development of "conservation agreements" between State and Federal Agencies to prevent listings. Where listings become necessary, this agreement envisions employing a new feature under the Endangered Species Act, called "Recovery Agreements," that would use elements of the conservation agreements to streamline formal requirements of the ESA and accelerate conservation and resource development objectives. Under recovery agreements, State and Federal agencies are to identify priority actions likely to accelerate recovery of species, provide a clear basis for alternatives that achieve conservation and development goals, and guide the development of Habitat Conservation Plans (HCPs).

"This is another step in our hands-on efforts to make the Endangered Species Act more user-friendly," said Secretary Babbitt. "Our aim is to prevent the listing of species. However, if species must be listed, we�ll have a plan in place that from the start incorporates significant state, local government and public participation. This agreement will take the sting out of the listing process."

Babbitt said the agreement was 100 percent consistent with the direction proposed by the Western Governors� Association to provide a larger, more effective role for the States under the Endangered Species Act.

To further build on the comprehensive agreement signed today, the document highlights a number of specific areas where State and Federal agencies will work together. A major goal of these joint efforts will be providing timely information about the pressures that threaten species and habitats. This information can then be efficiently integrated into local comprehensive plans under Colorado's Smart Growth Initiative.

Some species-specific areas where State and Federal agencies will be working together include: efforts to stem the decline of many native fish species such as the Arkansas darter, Rio Grande sucker, Colorado river cutthroat and other South Platte River species; sustaining short grass prairie species such as the swift fox, burrowing owl and ferruginous hawk; conserving other species like the preble�s meadow jumping mouse, sage grouse, and the boreal toad, and delisting of the Colorado greenback cutthroat trout.

Under the agreement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the State Department of Natural Resources and its divisions will identify conservation strategies that optimize conservation initiatives on public lands which have the effect of increased flexibility for private landowners.

The Colorado declining species agreement also provides the foundation for the application of many conservation innovations such as incentives for landowners, water rights holders, and local governments that minimize economic conflicts. Such incentives could include "habitat banking concepts" where the most threatened habitat areas are preserved on a priority basis. "The Fish and Wildlife Service has a strong record of cooperation with the Colorado Division of Wildlife and the Department of Natural Resources," said the Service's Regional Director, Ralph Morgenweck. "This agreement shows that the ESA can work as a tool in concert with other wildlife conservation initiatives." The agreement helps fulfill the Colorado Division of Wildlife's Long Range Plan, adopted in 1994 which says, "the foremost aim in the future will be to protect and enhance the viability of all Colorado's wildlife species." "Too often, wildlife conservation has been viewed as coming from the top down, as driving state and local priorities, instead of working in tandem with them," said Colorado Department of Natural Resources Executive Director Jim Lochhead. "This new agreement gives all of us a powerful tool to help craft a future for the state's wildlife management and resource development that takes into account both national priorities and local realities.