1993_05 The Daily Collegian May 1993

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Thursday, May 6,1SI93
The Daily Collegian
News
Endangered
From page 4
Caglia doesn't believe any plant
needs to be listed since plants could
be propagated by nurseries if nec¬
essary.
"I don't want one single plant
destroyed," Caglia said.
"But by the same token I don't
want the people destroyed who"
have to sacrifice land for the spe¬
cies," Caglia said, noting that
people who have lost land often
spend thousands of dollars to de¬
fend themselves against govern¬
ment control or seizure of land.
Listing for research dollars
Other conservation advocacy
groups are also working to make
sure the plants are listed federally
not only so they will be protected,
but so more federal funds can be
accessed to do more research.
"We' re in the throes of learning
how to deal with federal and state
laws, yet we're still losing ground
with endangered species," said
Richard Spotts. California repre¬
sentative for Defenders of Wild¬
life. "The bottom line is that spe¬
cies are still decreasing to danger¬
ously low levels," he said.,
Stebbins said there are still prob¬
ably areas where the flower grows
that haven't been mapped, and he
said more long-term research needs
to be done.
"When it is finally listed more
money is available for research,"
Stebbins said. "In some cases, that
research has led to species being
. de-listed because we find out more
about them.
"But until that time we need some
protection so we have that time to
look at these species."
Another plant conservation
group, the California Natl ve Plants
Society, sued the Fish and Wildlife
Service, asking that about 160
plants be federally listed.
"They were tired of theslo.wness
in getting the plants listed," said'
Jan Knight, a Fish and Wildlife
endangered species coordinator.
"We're looking, at some pretty
accelerated listings in the next
couple years," she said. The out-
of-court settlement requires the
agency to list all 160 plants by
March 19%.
lie bearings
Public hearings
Knight said the publi
about any species proposed for fed¬
eral listing as an endangered spe¬
cies provides an opportunity for
anyone to make statements and
supply information.
She said plants have sometimes
been denied endangered status be¬
cause of information provided at
the public hearings.
But Stebbins says it's important
that some plants are listed as soon
as possible because they may be
endangered in all of the areas they
exist, such as with the Hartweg's
and San Joaquin sunburst flowers.
"Often by the time they get
around to listing things it.may be
too late, unfortunately," Stebbins
said.' .
' Spotts, who is at Defenders of
Wildlife, saidlistingthe plants ear¬
lier would make the process of
evaluating a plant's status easier
on everyone involved.
"In many cases, if the plant had
been I isted earlier there would have
been more flexibility," Spotts said.
" B y t'when people delay the pro¬
cess with legal proceedings then
the plants can get to such a low
population that it's necessary to be
(strict about their protection."
Regulating the land
. With the flowers, all but one or
two of the known populations are
on private land, meaning the gov¬
ernment has little it can do to regu¬
late the land.
Usually the Fish and Wildlife
doesn't do anything unless land¬
owners show hostility toward pre¬
serving the plant once they are
notified of its existence on their
property.
Also, when a landowner wants
to change the classification of the
zoning for their land to residential
or intensive agriculture, the Fish
and Wildlife might step in.
lii one of the sites listed in the
survey by Stebbins, a vernal pool
with several endangered or pro¬
posed endangered species barely
escaped being destroyed.
On one side, fields had been
plowed for agricultural use. On the
anothei side, a nine-hole golf
course edged toward the pool, and
on another side lies the Wild Water
Adventures Park.
The vernal pool narrowly: es¬
caped being run over by an expan¬
sion of the golf course, apian which
was scrapped several years ago.
But now the pool sits where a
major housing development called
Quail Lake Estates is planned.
The pool also helps maintain the
last known population of Orcutt
grass on the Valley floor. U once
was the primary grass in the Val¬
ley, but was overrun by foreign
plants brought to California from
Europe.
"If we hadn't done any research
we would haye lost those," Stebbins
said. "Now that we know they are
there, we can buffer against any
problems."
Dirk Poeschel handles the local
management of the Quail Lakes
project. He said the environmental
impact report done before the
project was planned, and they were
alerted about the presence of the
endangered flowers and grass.
Because they knew about the
endangered species, Poeschel said
plans were made to leave the 2-
acre area with the vernaj pool and
flowers open with a buffer zone
around it.
'We hired our own experts to
look at the land and worked with
the Fish and Game to make sure we
did the right thing," Poeschel said:
A group of botanists and research
ecologists is now working on a
project funded mostly by the Bu¬
reau ofRecIamation to look at ways
to preserve whole habitats rather
than just individual species.
Preserving habitat
Daniel Williams, the director of
(he Endangered Species Recovery
Program on the project, said habi¬
tat preservation is the most impor¬
tant part of sa|tjng species.
"Many species occupy
habitat,'' he said, "and a plan that
accommodates species in an area
where they are concentrated is the
most beneficial."
Stebbins agreed, saying, "We
cannot keep fragmenting these
habitats without risking a total col¬
lapse. We have, to get away from a
strict species approach and look at
the whole ecosystem and habitat
all together."
Some cities/such as Bakersfield,
are starting to implement develop¬
ment plans that have environmen¬
tal impact reports and endangered
species studies that account for
areas of important habitat.
Ray Beach, seniorXcnvironmen-
lal planner for the city of Fresno,
said Fresno has its own plan for
development.
"People throw a buzz word
around now like habitat-preserva¬
tion," he said. "But we've been
designating permanent open land
for endangered species already."
Beach said new species have
even men .-d into open land areas
the area around the San
Joaquin River.
Another method of preserving'
endangered species and habitats
involves charging developers fees
See Endangered, page 6
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