Taxpayers can protect wildlife.

Byline: Mary Anne Magiera

COLUMN: Outdoors

Oddly enough, the public agency charged with protecting the rarest environmental treasures in Massachusetts - such as bald eagles, butterflies, dragonflies and turtles - has no status in the annual state budget; it gets no state money to operate.

Instead, the state Natural Heritage & Endangered Species Program depends on the kindness of those preparing their state income tax forms, donations and permit fees to fund its staff and state bond funds to pay for special projects.

Although not having a base budget to count on can be stressful for administrators, the situation has a positive side: if tax filers are contributing during the best and worst of times, the agency must be doing something right.

The program was established in 1978. The option to donate on the state income tax form has existed since 1983, generating a total of $6.2 million. The agency got a lot bigger and more visible a few years ago during a reorganization of state environmental, wildlife and recreational agencies. The natural heritage program is now part of the state Division of Fisheries and Wildlife. The agency's total fiscal 2007 budget is $1.8 million; about $620,000 comes from donations and fees, with the balance coming from bond funds and federal grants.

"The agency is a much bigger deal than it was originally," said Henry Woolsey, acting assistant director.

The agency's role increased substantially with the passage of the state's Endangered Species Act five years ago, adding environmental impact review responsibilities for that act and other environmental protection laws. For example, staff reviewed 2,382 projects during fiscal 2006 to determine environmental impact on endangered species. There are 178 animals and 264 plants protected under state law and more than 5,100 current rare-species sites documented.

"Massachusetts has quite a strong endangered-species law," Woolsey noted. "It really does differentiate us from many other states. Our law goes farther than those other states."

Unlike most other states and the federal endangered-species laws, Massachusetts protects listed species on private property, regardless of whether a permit of some kind is being sought, Woolsey explained.

State and federal laws compliment each other, Woolsey said, and state and federal staff work together. The federal law deals with species endangered on a national scale. However, there are about 26 federally listed species that also are on the state's list. For example, the piping plover is on both lists.

The agency has produced, published and distributed to local environmental agencies and others, maps and other materials that pinpoint areas where endangered species are located. The information is also available online and to property owners. Because of its vast database of endangered and rare species, the agency is increasingly relied upon for advice on land conservation and environmental impact concerning wildlife.

"Looking at the big picture, our major concern has to be habitat loss and fragmentation," Woolsey said. "Across the board that is the threat; it's the big thing we're all racing against."

Different species are threatened in different ways, Woolsey said. As an example, for turtles- the agency's 2007 focus- it could mean that a new road crossing has been built, breaking a long-used migration corridor and resulting in mortality.

Although the state is losing population, Woolsey said, "we're sprawling, and therefore our footprint impact is greater than you might think.

"House lots are bigger, houses are bigger, and people are driving more than they used to. The solution - which is broader than just endangered wildlife - really is in land use: cluster development and smart growth."

The agency is now focusing on working with local planning boards as well as conservation commissions, Woolsey said, "to get the word out and educate people about what parts of their towns are more critical. In many cases, we're getting quite positive feedback. We're affirming what local officials suspected."

Some of the agency's success is obvious, such as the restoration of rare species such as bald eagles, peregrine falcons, common loons, terns, and piping plovers. However, success has not been without controversy. For example, surfcasters, bait and other tourist-sensitive shop owners became disgruntled when nesting piping plovers last summer forced the closing for weeks of beach access roads on Cape Cod 

"We are charged with protecting the birds," Woolsey offered. "We try to base all our decisions on science. It's not a question of whether we like vehicles on the beaches, or whatever.

"Ultimately, if there are trade-offs, then that's up to society to decide, the legislature or others. We're not going to decide that recreation is more important that a globally threatened bird. We're not trying to be any more restrictive than we need to."

Trout stocking begins

Eight area ponds and lakes were among several water bodies throughout the state to receive the first installment of what will be 625,800 trout to be stocked this spring.

South Pond in Brookfield, Wallum Lake in Douglas, Comet Pond in Hubbardston, Long Pond in Rutland, Big Alum Pond in Sturbridge, Webster Lake in Webster, and Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester were stocked by staff of the central district office of the state Division of Fisheries and Wildlife.

"Half of the trout will be over 12 inches long, with the larger bodies of water receiving the larger fish and the smaller brooks and streams receiving the younger fish," said Ken Simmons, the state's chief fish culturist.

In all, 354,000 rainbow trout, 150,000 brown trout, 112,400 brook trout, and 8,000 tiger trout will be released.