Protect the Coaster Brook Trout! Letters Needed!
Please take a few minutes and write a letter supporting the petition to list the Coaster Brook Trout as threatened or endangered under the Federal Endangered Species Act. A sample letter is found below the dashed line in this article. The US Fish and Wildlife Service require comments to be submitted through their web site or by US Mail. COMMENTS ARE DUE BY MAY 19, 2OO8
You may submit comments by one of the following methods:
- U.S. mail or hand-delivery: Public Comments Processing, Attn: FWS-R3-ES-2008-0030, Division of Policy and Directives Management U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Suite 222 Arlington, VA 22203
- E-file your comments (use the following link): Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; 90-Day Finding on a Petition To List the U.S. Population of Coaster Brook Trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) as Endangered. Fill in the form with your name, address, and other information. Below that is a box where you can copy and paste your message, from the sample letter below found in this article. There, you can edit the content of the letter before you send in the form.
If there is any problem with the link to the petition form you may start here - Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov This page has instructions. To find the comment page for the petition type "Coaster Brook Trout" in the "Comment or Submission" search box. Next select "Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; 90-Day Finding on a Petition to List the US Population of Coaster Brook Trout..." Click on the "Send a Comment or Submission" link and you will be taken to the comment form page.
If you have any problems submitting the form This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .
E-mail or faxes not accepted. All comments will be posted at http://www.regulations.gov/
SAMPLE LETTER BELOW
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Docket ID: FWS-R3-ES-2008-0030
Docket Title: 90-Day Listing Finding for Coaster Brook Trout
Document ID: FWS-R3-ES-2008-0030-0001
Document Title Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants: 90-Day Finding on a Petition To List the U.S. Population of Coaster Brook Trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) as Endangered
Public Comments Processing, Attn: FWS-R3-ES-2008-0030
Division of Policy and Directives Management
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Suite 222
Arlington, VA 22203
Dear Decision Maker,
I write in support of placing the Coaster Brook Trout (CBT) on the Federal Endangered Species List. The Lake Superior population of coaster brook trout has been shown to be a distinct species and the loss will be environmentally and culturally significant. The continuing decline of the CBT meets the requirements necessary to receive this designation under the Endangered Species Act.
The ESA states "a species shall be listed because of any one or a combination of" the following factors including: present or threatened destruction, modification, or curtailment of its habitat or range, inadequacy of existing regulatory mechanisms, and other natural or manmade factors affecting its continued existence.
Research shows the CBT population has been in decline due to human impact on land, water and air. While at least 30 productive CBT locations previously existed, research at the federal, state, and local levels, show CBT now only exists in only two U.S. locations - Isle Royale National Park and the Salmon Trout River in Marquette County, Michigan.
Research shows that much of the CBT decline is due to years of building and operating dams in Great Lakes rivers, which have disrupted spawning and natural migration patterns, degraded habitat, and increased water temperatures. Even where dams have been closed, residual impacts continue to provide a hostile environment for the CBT.
Endangered listing is necessary because CBT habitat continues to be degraded and destroyed. Of special concern is runoff from agriculture, logging, and road-building. Clear-cutting and road-building along stream banks increases sedimentation - affecting water clarity and covering spawning beds. In 2005, a road crossing over the Salmon Trout River washed out, dumping over 80 tons of sediment into the only river where the CBT is found.
The only remaining US mainland locale where the CBT survive and spawn has an active plan to operate a metallic sulfide mine directly adjacent to and underneath the Salmon Trout River. Mining in metallic sulfide ore deposits has always resulted in the generation of sulfuric acid and acid mine drainage. If the Salmon-Trout River is degraded, there will no longer be any mainland location that can sustain the CBT. The species will be lost to us forever.
Federal listing of CBT would mandate and encourage a comprehensive restoration plan throughout its historic range.
The Coaster Brook Trout is one of the rarest, unprotected, native fish species, in the United States. The US Fish & Wildlife Service needs to list the Coaster Brook Trout as "threatened" or "endangered" under the Endangered Species Act. Additionally, the Service needs to designate all watersheds historically inhabited by CBT as "critical habitat," including the Salmon Trout River watershed.
Sincerely,
Your name and address