Celebrating a Century of Conservation 

March 14, 2003 marked a milestone in the 

history of wildlife conservation in America – 

the Centennial of the National Wildlife 

Refuge System. The Refuge System is the 

only network of federal lands dedicated 

specifically to wildlife conservation, 

representing our steadfast commitment to 

protecting our wild heritage. 

Refuge Planner Hired

Jackie Ferrier was hired in August 2003 as 

the refuge planner and will be working on 

the Refuge’s Comprehensive Conservation 

Planning (CCP). Jackie received her 

bachelor and master’s degrees at the College 

of Environmental Science and Forestry at 

Syracuse University in New York. She has 

worked on National Wildlife Refuges for ten 

years, most recently in Arizona. Jackie can 

be contacted at 530-934-2801. 

Progress on the CCP 

This is the fourth planning update since 

Sacramento River National Wildlife Refuge 

began its CCP process in June 2001. 

An administrative Draft CCP and 

Environmental Assessment (EA) has been 

developed by the Refuge staff and planning 

team. This administrative draft is currently 

under internal review and we expect that the 

Draft CCP and EA will be released for public 

review and comment early in 2004. 

The table on page 2 was developed to 

address the major issues identified during 

the public comment period. This table shows 

how each of the planning alternatives 

addresses these major issues. Comments 

about these alternatives will be accepted 

during the official comment period when the 

Draft CCP is released within the next few 

months. 

Need More Information? 

We are available to provide additional 

information regarding the refuge and this 

planning process. If you have any questions 

please feel free to contact us: 

Jackie Ferrier, Refuge Planner 

Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge 

Complex 

752 County Road 99W 

Willows, CA 95988 

530-934-2801 

Fax: 530-934-7814 

Jackie_Ferrier@r1.fws.gov 

Please visit the following sites on the Web 

for more Refuge information and other 

planning documents: 

http://sacramentovalleyrefuges.fws.gov and 

http://pacific.fws.gov/planning/ 
2

Key Elements of Alternatives Considered: 

How Issues Were Addressed 

Issues Raised During 

Public Scoping Alt A 

No Action 

(Continue Current 

Management) 

Alt B 

Optimize Habitat 

Restoration and Public 

Use (preferred alt) 

Alt C 

Accelerate Habitat 

Restoration and 

Maximize Public Use 

Public Use 

1. Hunting 

2. Fishing 

3. Recreation, 

Wildlife 

Viewing and 

Photography 

4. Access and trails 

5. Camping 

1. No hunting on the 

refuge 

2. Boat and bank fishing 

at Packer Lake only 

3. No recreation, wildlife 

viewing and 

photography on the 

refuge 

4. Limited access and no 

trails 

5. No camping allowed 

1. Open hunting on 54% 

of the refuge 

2. Open 23 river miles and 

seasonally submerged 

areas to fishing 

3. 86%of refuge opened 

for these activities 

4. Improved access and 

trails 

5. Allow camping below 

the ordinary high 

water mark on gravel 

bars 

1. Open hunting on 

70% of the refuge 

2. Same as Alt B 

3. 87% of refuge open 

for these 

activities 

4. Same as Alt B 

5. Same as Alt B 

Habitat Management 

1. Riparian restoration 

2. Threatened 

&Endangered 

(T&E) species 

habitat restoration 

3. Restore 

Anadromous Fish 

and Native Fish 

habitat 

1. Restore 4,636 acres by 

2014 

2. 2,036 additional acres 

restored for T&E 

species 

3. Restore and enhance 

2,017 acres of 

floodplain 

connectivity 

1. Restore 5,855 acres by 

2014 

2. 3,255 additional acres 

restored for T&E 

species 

3. Restore and enhance 

3,084 acres of 

floodplain 

connectivity 

1. Farming ceases 

immediately, 

restore 5,855 

acres by 2014 

2. Same as Alt B 

3. Same as Alt B 

Other 

1. Law enforcement 

2. Flood control/ 

erosion 

3. Farming 

1. One law enforcement 

officer on staff 

2. Restoration sites have 

been analyzed for 

hydrologic impacts 

3. Farming on 9 refuge 

units1

 is phased out 

over time as 

restoration funding 

becomes available 

1. Two law enforcement 

officers on staff 

2. Same as Alt A, with 

additional sites 

considered 

3. Same as Alt A on all 

Refuge units 

1. Three law 

enforcement 

officers on staff 

2. Same as Alt B 

3. All farming is 

ceased 

immediately 

1 These 9 units are covered under the 2001 Restoration EA.