Endangered and Threatened Species; Designation of Critical Habitat for 12 Evolutionarily Significant Units of West Coast Salmon and Steelhead in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho

We, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), are issuing a final rule designating critical habitat for 12 Evolutionarily Significant Units (ESUs) of West Coast salmon (chum, Oncorhynchus keta; sockeye, O. nerka; chinook, O. tshawytscha) and steelhead (O. mykiss) listed as of the date of this designation under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA). The specific areas designated in the rule text set out below include approximately 20,630 mi (33,201 km) of lake, riverine, and estuarine habitat in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho, as well as approximately 2,312 mi (3,721 km) of marine nearshore habitat in Puget Sound, Washington. Some of the areas designated are occupied by two or more ESUs. The annual net economic impacts of changes to Federal activities as a result of critical habitat designation (regardless of whether those activities would also change as a result of the ESA's jeopardy requirement) are estimated to be approximately $201.2 million. Fish and wildlife conservation actions for the Federal Columbia River Power System and other major hydropower projects in the Pacific Northwest are expected to generate another $500-700 million in annual costs, including forgone power revenues. While these hydropower projects are covered by ESA section 7, the conservation actions that generate these costs are imposed by a wide variety of laws. We solicited information and comments from the public in an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) and on all aspects of the proposed rule. This rule is being issued to meet the timeline established in litigation between NMFS and Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations (PCFFA et. al v. NMFS (Civ. No. 03-1883)). In the proposed rule, we identified a number of potential exclusions we were considering including exclusions for federal lands subject to the Pacific Northwest Forest Plan, PACFISH and INFISH. We are continuing to analyze whether exclusion of those federal lands is appropriate.