Officials seek perspective on species' habitat map.

Byline: Edward Russo The Register-Guard

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service wants to know what Oregonians think about designating 3,901 acres, including land in Lane County, as important habitat for a type of butterfly and two plant species.

Responding to a lawsuit by Eugene-based environmental groups, the service wants to declare 3,089 acres in 13 areas as critical habitat for the Fender's blue butterfly, 724 acres in 16 areas for Kincaid's lupine and 718 acres in nine areas for the Willamette daisy. Some of the acreage overlaps with the other parcels.

The butterfly and the daisy are listed as endangered. The lupine is considered threatened.

The butterfly and the plants are endangered or threatened because their native prairie habitat has been developed or converted to farmland, said Phil Carroll, a spokesman for the Fish and Wildlife Service. The habitat also has been changed by non-native plants and by the suppression of prairie fires, he said.

Sixty-one percent of the proposed critical habitat is privately owned, 37 percent is federal land, and 2 percent is owned by the state or local governments.

One strip of potential designated area for the Fender's blue butterfly is west of Belt Line Road, north of West 11th Avenue. That strip is within the route of the proposed West Eugene Parkway, the city's long-planned and controversial expressway. It was not immediately clear whether the proposed critical habitat designation would affect the expressway project. State officials said they already have studied imperiled species in the path of the proposed expressway.

When it sought comments in other areas, the Fish and Wildlife Service often heard from landowners in or near the subject properties, plus conservation and development groups, and federal, state and local officials, Carroll said.

"By going out to the public and really shaking the bushes, we can learn things that were previously unknown to us," he said. "As for the landowners, we've even gone so far as to try to contact all of the potentially affected folks by mail to make sure they have an opportunity to tell us what they know."

Often, declaring a property a critical habitat does not stop development, Carroll said. But the designation could force changes to construction plans, he said. Also, to compensate for paving over designated habitat, developers can re-create the habitat elsewhere, he said.

The critical-habitat designation would be in addition to the protections given the butterfly and the two plants under the federal Endangered Species Act.

For example, private developers are not allowed to harm or kill plants or animals protected by the act, Carroll said.

If federal agencies are involved in development projects where the species exist, the law requires them to consult with the Fish and Wildlife Service before they authorize or fund the work, he said.

The critical habitat designation establishes rules to protect the areas where the species live, areas that "may require special management considerations," Carroll said.

Plans for the West Eugene Parkway must undergo a fed- erally required environmental analysis before the road can be built.

Officials with the Oregon Department of Transportation hope the review will be completed next year.

Last month, the City Council signaled that it wants to withdraw the city's support for the project, reigniting the political controversy that has followed the topic for years. A group of local elected officials is to discuss the matter on Thursday.

Ann Sanders, the parkway's project manager for the Oregon Department of Transportation, said she needs to learn more before she can say whether the proposed critical habitat designation would affect the proposed roadway.

The roadway would be built with the approval of the Federal Highway Administration and a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Sanders said.

The highway administration would be required to discuss the project with the Fish and Wildlife Service to ensure the road would not "adversely modify or destroy critical habitat," Carroll said.

But Carroll said that, in most cases, designating the areas as critical habitat won't stop development. It may trigger changes in construction plans, or require the state to compensate for the effects of the roadway by creating habitat elsewhere, he said.

The Fish and Wildlife Service developed the proposed designation after settling a lawsuit filed by environmental and land use groups, including the Cascadia Wildlands Project, Lane County Audubon Society and Friends of Eugene, Carroll said.

The settlement required the federal agency last month to submit the habitat proposal to the Federal Register. It requires a final critical habitat by October 2006.

Most of the 3,089 acres are in the Willamette Valley, but three areas are in Douglas County, and one is in Lewis County, Washington.

Public comments will be accepted until Jan. 3. Written comments can be sent to: Field Supervisor, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2600 S.E. 98th Ave., Suite 100, Portland, OR 97266. Comments also may be faxed to [phone], or sent by e-mail to fwlwillamettech@ fws.gov.

Protecting habitat

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service wants to hear from the public about designating critical habitat for the following:

Fender's blue butterfly: Wingspan, 1 inch. Upper wings of males are brilliant blue, with blackish wing margins and white fringes.

Where it lives: 32 areas in Yamhill, Polk, Benton, Lane counties.

Kincaid's lupine: Aromatic flowers with ruffled banner; yellowish-cream colored; leaves are deep green with smooth upper surface.

Where it grows: Mainly in Willamette Valley.

Willamette daisy: Daisylike flowers with yellow centers and pinkish-blue rays.

Where it grows: Grande Ronde to Goshen.

Learn more: Visit www.fws.gov/pacific/oregonfwo/EndSpp/ESA-ctions/CritHabWillametteValley-05. htm, or contact Kemper McMaster, field supervisor, [phone].