The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Friday allowed the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to implement a controversial policy to restore the northern spotted owl habitat by killing a limited number of barred owls from Oregon.
Northern spotted owls have been listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) since 1990. The USFWS concluded in 2011 that an increase in barred owls, which are native to the east coast but have expanded westward over time, may be contributing to the decline in spotted owl populations in Oregon. The two species compete for habitat and food resources, and barred owls have been seen acting aggressively toward spotted owls.
In 2011, the USFWS proposed a “barred owl management” plan, which created agreements with four landowners. The landowners agreed to conduct surveys of spotted owl sightings on their property and allow the USFWS to enter and remove barred owls in exchange for the right to continue harvesting timber from sites on the property where no spotted owls were sighted. The plan provided for the “lethal removal” of 3,600 barred owls. Environmental advocacy group Friends of Animals opposed this plan, claiming that the removal permits would not result in a “net conservation benefit” to the northern spotted owl population and could potentially harm the already-fragile spotted owl species with invasive removal tactics targeting the barred owl.
USFWS argued in response that, while the removal plan would not directly cause a “net conservation benefit,” it would allow the agency to study the relationship between the barred owl’s presence and the spotted owl’s decline, which would help them formulate a long-term strategy to bolster the spotted owl population. The Ninth Circuit panel agreed with this conclusion, holding that the policy “allowed the agency to obtain critical information to craft a policy to protect threatened or endangered species.”
The panel also ruled that the USFWS would not need to conduct another environmental impact survey, as this proposed plan was “adequately contemplated” when it was first proposed.
