Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 496 § 496.182 — Protection and conservation programs; mitigation of adverse impact on local

Protection and conservation programs; mitigation of adverse impact on local economies; compliance by state agencies; rules. (1) The burden of protecting and recovering threatened species or endangered species can be a significant cost to the citizens of this state and it is therefore the policy of this state to minimize duplication and overlap between state and federal laws dealing with threatened species or endangered species. To this end, nothing in this section is intended to prevent the adoption of cooperative state or federal programs when such programs provide protection for listed species without significant impact on the primary uses of state lands. (2)(a) At the time the State Fish and Wildlife Commission adds a species to the list of threatened species or endangered species under ORS 496.172, the commission shall establish by rule quantifiable and measurable guidelines that it considers necessary to ensure the survival of individual members of the species. These guidelines may include take avoidance and protecting resource sites such as spawning beds, nest sites, nesting colonies or other sites critical to the survival of individual members of the species. (b) The commission shall work with private landowners, affected cities, affected counties and affected local service districts, as defined in ORS 174.116, to mitigate the adverse impact on local economies when the commission adds a species to the list of threatened species or endangered species pursuant to ORS 496.172. (3) For threatened species listed under ORS 496.172 and in the absence of an approved endangered species management plan described in subsection (8) of this section for an endangered species, if a state agency determines that a proposed action on land it owns or leases, or for which it holds a recorded easement, has the potential to violate the guidelines established under subsection (2) of this section, it shall notify the State Department of Fish and Wildlife. Within 90 days of such notice, the department shall recommend reasonable and prudent alternatives, if any, to the proposed action which are consistent with the guidelines. (4) If a state agency fails to adopt the recommendations made under subsection (3) of this section, it shall, after consultation with the department, demonstrate that: (a) The potential public benefits of the proposed action outweigh the potential harm from failure to adopt the recommendations; and (b) Reasonable mitigation and enhancement measures shall be taken, to the extent practicable, to minimize the adverse impact of the action on the affected species. (5) When an action under this section is initiated by a person other than a state agency, the agency shall provide final approval or denial of the proposed action within 120 days of receipt of a written request for final determination. (6) The provisions of this section do not apply to lands acquired through foreclosures of loans made pursuant to programs of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs. (7) State land owning or managing agencies shall set priorities for establishing endangered species management plans required by subsection (8) of this section after consultation with the commission on the level of biological threat and, in consideration of available funds, the immediacy and seriousness of the threat to any listed species. (8)(a)(A) Within four months of the listing of an endangered species, the commission, in consultation and cooperation with the state land owning or managing agency, shall determine if state land can play a role in the conservation of endangered species. The commission and the land owning or managing agency shall consider species biology and geography of the land base to determine if the species or its habitat is found on state land. If the species or its habitat is not found on state land, the commission shall determine that state land has no role to play in the conservation of the species. (B) If the species or its habitat is found on state land, the land owning or managing agency, in consultation with the State Department of Fish and Wildlife, shall determine the role its state land shall serve in the conservation of the endangered species. This role may include, but is not limited to conservation, contribution toward conservation or take avoidance. To carry out its consulting role under this subsection, the department shall provide state agencies with an assessment of the conservation needs of the endangered species. In making this determination, the land owning or managing agency shall balance the statutory requirements, rules and policies applicable to the agency’s programs, the social and economic impacts that conservation would have on the state, the conservation needs of the species, the purpose of the land and the roles of other ownership categories. The agency shall balance these factors consistent with the commission’s rules related to the biologic