WHEREAS Club 20 supports protection of endangered species as important to the economy and quality of life in Western Colorado; and
WHEREAS the rich variety of wildlife that inhabit the myriad landscapes of Western Colorado are valued by those who live and visit here; and
WHEREAS the Endangered Species Act has enjoyed significant public support since its inception in 1973; and
WHEREAS the Act has the potential to adversely impacted many private landowners and local economies including those whose livelihoods are dependent on the property and on whom the species depend upon for habitat;
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that Club 20 supports the following principles as related to endangered species:
- All current and future species listings must include recovery goals that will measure the success of the recovery effort that, when met, will trigger the automatic delisting of the species.
- State and local government involvement in any species listing, threatened or endangered, is critical to any listing decision, habitat designation and recovery plan; local interests must be included in all facets of consideration.
- State wildlife agencies are best suited to manage species across the landscape and should be entrusted, funded, and fully empowered to engage in the management or introduction of any candidate species in collaboration with the affected local governments.
- Scientific information upon which agency findings are based should include the best available science including that from state and local sources, have independent scientific peer review, include local experience and knowledge, and be available for public scrutiny.
- Prior to listing a species as either, threatened or endangered, and before identification of occupied habitat, a complete and thorough assessment of economic and cultural impacts of the proposed listing (consistent with NEPA) should be made available to the public for review and comment.
- All sources of threats to a species need to be identified and addressed in listing and recovery plans, including but not limited to, predation, invasive or other species use of habitat, habitat degradation which considers natural (i.e. fire, flood) as well as man-made sources of degradation.
- Private property rights and water rights under state law must be protected and just compensation to affected parties for any impairment to such rights must be provided.
- Include draft recovery plans in the public review process prior to listing and include within those recovery plans a definition of the species’ presently occupied habitat, historic habitat, and that habitat necessary for recovery of the species, and an analysis of the present threats to the species including habitat loss, predation, and disease.
- Ensure federal funding for recovery programs.
- Acknowledge the legitimacy of state government findings and processes; insofar as possible, ESA recovery plans should complement existing state and local recovery efforts.
- Recognize local conservation efforts that result in declared local regulations established for the benefit of a candidate species as positive assurances in recovery plans.
- There should be an emphasis on incentives to encourage private landowners to actively participate in the identification and recovery of candidate and listed species; these incentives may include, but should not be limited to, cash rewards, tax benefits, certainty for management expectations (“safe harbor” from changes in Agency direction extended to both private landowners and public land permittees), and immunity from liability for efforts to conserve the species.
- Upon the identification of a candidate species, locally derived collaborative efforts to form a local Working Groups and strategic committees to investigate and address the needs of the species, then the Secretary should recognize such groups from diverse interests residing within the affected communities and give serious consideration to the recommendations from those groups as part of the listing process.
Incorporates and replaces the following resolutions:
- PLNR-95-4, Endangered Species Act
- PLNR 98-7, ESA Listing of Prairie Dogs
- PLNR 12-2, Southwest Willow Fly Catcher
- PLNR 04-2, Wolf Management in Colorado
- PLNR 99-2, Fish, Endangered Fishes Recovery Program Funding
Adopted 9/21/19