Comment on FR Doc # E8-09282

The following comments are submitted on behalf of the Utah Native Plant Society (http://www.unps.org) and the Center for Native Ecosystems (http://www.nativeecosystems.org) in connection with the proposal to remove Erigeron maguirei from the federal list of endangered and threatened plants published May 16, 2008 (FR Vol. 73, Number 96). We support the delisting of plant species when that is supported by scientific information and meets the criteria of the Endangered Species Act. While the information available and presented to date may meet these criteria in connection with this species, we are nonetheless greatly troubled by the fact that this proposal is simply another in a long list of proposals that inadequately comply with the spirit, intent and purpose of the Endangered Species Act (ESA), and we would argue therefore that the delisting might be warranted but is precluded in the administration of a fair, balanced and just Act, and is ill-advised at a time when unrestrained energy development is at an unparalleled fervor. Over the past eight years your office has again and again considered delisting, or proposed delisting actions, or removed species as candidates without adding a single new candidate species nor proposing (absent a lawsuit) a single new species for listing, all during a period of time when global warming has become generally accepted as a planet altering affect, when human populations have increased to yet higher and increasingly non-sustainable levels, and when the demand for energy has reached dramatic new heights and when related energy exploration and development has impacted Utah as never before, and in a state that has many eligible rare and threatened plant species, and many that have been waiting decades for protection. In fact the actions of your office over the past eight years have been exactly contrary to the Act's enabling language, e.g. Sec. 2(a) that " . . . plants in the United States have been rendered extinct as a consequence of economic growth and development untempered by adequate concern and conservation." A greater imbalance in the administration and implementation of the ESA can not likely be found in any other period of the Act's roughly 35 year history, and the ESA has been funded in a way to directly subvert and bypass its purpose. We are also troubled by the fact that tar sands development has not been fully recognized as a threat to this species, and the lack of disclosing the number of plants in the Calf Canyon, Secret Mesa and Link Flats areas that are apparently within a designated tar sands area, particularly in light of the extremely invasive nature of the accompanying strip mining and other activity that may ensue. The conclusion that the impacts will be minor after concerns raised about pollinator impacts and the destruction of delicate ecosystems seem to be speculative and without basis. Delisting of the species will be another step towards opening up that area for development and it appears that the populations in this area are being considered an acceptable write-off. Yet these locations are in the eastern and northernmost areas of the distribution of the species, and likely contain not yet understood genetic variation that should not be written off. We are also concerned that the Central Utah Navajo Sandstone Endemics Conservation Agreement (August 14, 2006, referred to as CUNSEC) is in large part being relied on as justification for listing. This conservation agreement is not legally binding and was prepared behind closed doors with no public input whatsoever. At the same time, that document indicates that of the nine populations, seven are open to oil and gas mining (see p. 56). The fact that populations occur within Capitol Reef National Park do not per se mean that this species is protected. National Parks are not wildlife or plant sanctuaries and/or are managed with objectives that are not always consistent with the protection of rare elements. Further in the case of Capitol Reef and unlike most national parks, livestock grazing is still allowed. "Sandy canyon bottoms" is the first listed habitat type in the Flora of North American for this species. See FNA Vol. 20 Page 307. While the delisting proposal downplays the significance of grazing, in Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Reclassification of Erigeron maguirei (Maguire daisy) From Endangered to Threatened (Federal Register: June 19, 1996 Vol. 61, Number 119), it was stated that: "Several populations continue to be impacted by human and livestock trampling, especially in wash bottoms. The long term protection of the species in the Sid's Mountain Wilderness Study Area is uncertain, since the area has not been officially designated as a wilderness area. Without such designation, the area could be opened to various uses and development." The delisting proposal also does not discuss the impact of human trampling particularly within the Park. Yet in the Service's 1996 reclassification document it was indicated that: "Additionally, human and livestock trampling are known to adversely impact individual plants. Human foot traffic off established trails in Capitol Reef National Park is affecting one population (Heil 1989; K. Heil, pers. comm. 1994). Trampling from human foot traffic is a potential threat to the species throughout its scenic canyon habitat in the San Rafael Swell and Capitol Reef areas. Livestock trampling has affected all populations, including those in Capitol Reef National Park. Unlike most National Parks, Capitol Reef National Park is not closed to livestock grazing. Livestock trampling negatively impacts individuals of E. maguirei growing in accessible wash bottoms. This results in the species being restricted to less suitable habitat in the sandstone crevices of the adjoining slickrock canyon walls." Even if further study indicates that this species is actually more of cliff dweller than not, the occurrences of the species in areas where livestock grazing is allowed should not be dismissed and is clearly part of its overall range of habitat. The CUNSEC indicates that there are 10 grazing allotments in which E. maguirei occurs (p. 57). The species should therefore not be delisted absent changes that specifically disallow cattle grazing in its habitat. Cattle should not be allowed to trample the habitat of any federally listed species that occur in Capitol Reef including Sclerocactus wrightiae, Pediocactus winkleri and Schoenocrambe barnebyi. Cattle have seriously damaged S. wrightiae habitat within the Park. There is no reason to believe that this has not also occurred with E. maguirei. Finally, the post-delisting monitoring plan for the Maguire daisy (January 2007) makes alarming remarks about the status of several of the remote populations on pages 13 and 14. The Calf Canyon population of some 50 plants was last visited apparently in 1982 and it is indicated that it is unknown whether it still exists. The Link Flats population contains only two sites with more than 50 plants and three sites with less than ten. These small remote sites have not been properly evaluated as they will be likely the most seriously impacted by delisting. In conclusion, we oppose the delisting at this time (even though delisting may ultimately be appropriate) until the foregoing concerns are addressed and until such time as the Endangered Species Act is administered in a just and balanced way, and that public laws which ultimately are in the best interests of our citizens are not bypassed through intentional manipulation and malfeasance. One final note. It would be disingenuous for your office to indicate at any point that this species was "recovered." Should this species be delisted, it will be because of additional information and investigation that indicates that it is "more common" that was originally thought, not because it "was recovered" nor that it "recovered" on its own. Tony Frates Conservation co-chair Utah Native Plant Society Salt Lake City, Utah www.unps.org 801-277-9240 Erin Robertson Senior Staff Biologist Center for Native Ecosystems Denver, Colorado www.nativeecosystems.org 303-546-0214