NMFS Responds to AFS Editorial on Habitat Protection Program

By Rolland Schmitten

The February fisheries editorial by AFS Executive Director Paul Brouha cites three recent assessments documenting that the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Habitat Protection Program has too few resources to meet its mandated and other task. Through this response, I want to make clear that we in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) agree fully with the need to build a strong and effective NMFS Habitat Protection Program for the 1990s and beyond. The loss of nearshore ocean and estuarine fishery habitat is probably the greatest long-term threat to U.S. marine fisheries productivity. Habitat loss and degradation are among the major factors contributing to poor harvests, depletion, endangerment, and extinction of living marine resources. Thus, managing stocks for long-term yield and promoting the recovery of depleted stocks is no longer sufficient. Nor is it enough to focus our greatest energies on maintaining the existence of endangered, threatened, and otherwise protected species. Conservation of living marine resources must start with habitat protection. For NMFS to fulfill the mission to conserve living marine resources, we must have an effective program for protecting the habitats that nurture and support these valuable resources. The assessment by the Department of Commerce's Office of Inspector General (OIG), published in January, accurately portrays the major problems with our habitat program. The findings of this report are basically the same as those in the 1990 NMFS Needs Assessment by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. That all three assessments have the same major finding and conclusions is not coincidental: habitat protection receives inadequate attention in management planning, interagency decision making, and research. NMFS and NOAA have already taken several corrective actions, and I intend to continue these efforts to rebuild our habitat program. Activities we have recently started or soon include the following: The Office of Habitat Protection will be provided with the resources and authority within NMFS to form and articulate national direction to the field offices. This will counteract the long-term, permanent attrition and redirection of staff and funding that the program has undergone . NMFS will develop a multi year budget initiative to obtain adequate resources to conduct a successful national habitat protection program When completed, the initiative will be incorporated into NOAA's Strategic Plan and associated budget initiatives. The extent to which NMFS habitat protection resources are redirected to carry out other NOAA/NMFS programs will be assessed. These resources will be recommitted to mandated habitat protection responsibilities. NMFS will work to improve the current Clean Water Act Section 404(q) Memorandum of Agreement between the U.S. departments of the Army and Commerce. A national performance tracking system to evaluate and document program accomplishments will be developed, funded, and implemented. Recently, NOAA Administrator James Baker said NOAA would support our efforts to have the NMFS Office of Habitat Protection directed by a senior executive. Also to enhance the chances of budgetary success for the multi year NOAA habitat initiative, I will propose transferring the habitat program into the Rebuilding U.S. Fisheries and Restoring Protection Species categories of NOAA's Strategic Plan. NOAA's response to the OIG report states an intention to make the NMFS habitat program needs a high NOAA priority. We will work closely with appropriate NOAA officials to ensure this program achieves equal status with our fisheries and protected species program. Fortunately, recommendations in the three program assessments provide us with an excellent blueprint for program building; we just need to roll up our sleeves and have at it. But NOAA cannot accomplish the job alone. AFS editorial support is an indication of concern and is appreciated. To get the job done, we must have greater public and professional involvement in strengthening the habitat component of fishery management and, in particular, NMFS's habitat protection and restoration activities.