ing endangered in the first place. They complement 
the conservation of wildlife on private lands by pro-
viding comparatively intact tracts of land that serve 
as refuges from human development and other pres-
sures. They help keep common species common, in-
cluding species valued for hunting and fishing. 
(5) Public lands provide refuges for species im-
pacted by the effects of global climate change, and 
will play an important role in wildlife’s ability to 
adapt to and survive global warmings mounting im-
pacts. 
(6) Consistent with long-standing principles of 
multiple use and sustained yield management, the 
goal of sustaining the diverse fish and wildlife com-
munities that depend on our Federal lands should 
guide the stewardship of America’s public lands. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) DESIRED NON-NATIVE SPECIES.—The term 
‘‘desired non-native species’’ means those wild spe-
cies of plants or animals that are not indigenous to 
a planning area but are valued for their contribution 
to species diversity or their social, cultural, or eco-
nomic value. 
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(2) INDICATOR SPECIES.—The term ‘‘indicator 
species’’ means species selected for monitoring be-
cause their population changes are believed to indi-
cate the effects of management activities, natural 
disruptions, or other factors on unmeasured species 
and to provide insights to the integrity of the eco-
logical systems to which they belong. 
(3) NATIVE SPECIES.—The term ‘‘native spe-
cies’’ means species of the plant and animal king-
doms indigenous to the planning area. 
(4) PLANNING
AREA.—The term ‘‘planning 
area’’ means any geographic unit of National Forest 
System lands or Bureau of Land Management lands 
covered by an individual management plan. 
(5) SECRETARIES.—The term ‘‘Secretaries’’ 
means the Secretary of the Interior and the Sec-
retary of Agriculture. 
(6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Ag-
riculture, as appropriate in the context. 
(7) SPECIES-AT-RISK.—The term ‘‘species-at- 
risk’’ means species listed as endangered or threat-
ened, or proposed or identified as candidates for list-
ing, under the Endangered Species Act of 1973; spe-
cies listed or proposed for listing under State endan-
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gered species laws; species identified as State special 
status species; species identified as declining or of 
special concern through State comprehensive wildlife 
conservation strategies; sensitive or special status 
species identified by the Forest Service or the Bu-
reau of Land Management; and other species identi-
fied by the Forest Service or the Bureau of Land 
Management for which scientific evidence or lack of 
information raises a significant concern regarding 
the species’ viability within the planning area. 
(8) VIABLE
POPULATION.—The term ‘‘viable 
population’’ means a population of a species that 
has the estimated numbers, distribution, and repro-
duction and survival rates to afford a high degree of 
scientific confidence that it will persist well distrib-
uted throughout its range for a period of at least 
100 years into the future. 
SEC. 4. VIABLE POPULATIONS. 
For all planning areas within the National Forest 
System or the Bureau of Land Management public 
lands— 
(1) the Secretary shall plan for and manage 
lands under the Secretary’s jurisdiction in order to 
maintain viable populations of existing native and 
desired non native species within each planning area, 
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except that management for desired non-native spe-
cies shall not interfere with the maintenance of via-
ble populations of native species within a planning 
area; 
(2) if a population extends across more than 
one planning area, the Secretary or Secretaries shall 
coordinate the management of habitat in the plan-
ning areas containing the population in order to 
maintain a viable population of such species; and 
(3) if the Secretary, using the best available 
science, makes a finding that conditions outside the 
authority of the Secretary make it impossible for the 
Secretary to maintain a viable population of a spe-
cies within a planning area (or, under the cir-
cumstances identified in paragraph (2), within 2 or 
more planning areas), the Secretary or Secretaries 
shall— 
(A) manage habitat within the planning 
area or areas in order to contribute to the max-
imum extent achievable to the viability of that 
species; and 
(B) ensure that any activity authorized, 
funded, or carried out within the planning area 
or areas does not contribute to a decline in the 
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population of the species in such planning area 
or areas. 
SEC. 5. MONITORING AND EVALUATION OF SPECIES VIA-
BILITY. 
(a) To provide the basis for determining species popu-
lation viability for purposes of section 4, the Secretaries 
shall adopt and implement, as part of the land manage-
ment planning for each planning area, a comprehensive 
monitoring program to determine the status and trends 
of wildlife populations on National Forest System and Bu-
reau of Land Management lands. Such monitoring pro-
grams shall designate indicator species representing the 
diversity of ecological systems and species present in the 
planning area, identify species-at-risk in the planning 
area, and provide for— 
(1) monitoring of the status and trends of the 
habitats and ecological conditions that support indi-
cator species and species-at-risk; 
(2) population surveys of the indicator species 
identified in the monitoring program at intervals 
sufficient to ensure that monitoring is providing ac-
curate information regarding the status and trends 
of species’ populations in the planning area; and 
(3) population surveys of species-at-risk whose 
populations are not adequately assessed by the popu-
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lation surveys of indicator species at intervals suffi-
cient to provide accurate information regarding the 
status and trends of such species’ populations in the 
planning area. 
(b) The Secretary shall conduct such monitoring in 
cooperation with State fish and wildlife agencies to the 
extent practicable, and shall consider relevant population 
data maintained by Federal and State agencies, or other 
entities. 
SEC. 6. COORDINATION. 
(a) The Secretaries shall coordinate, to the extent 
practicable and consistent with applicable law, the man-
agement of species populations in planning areas of the 
National Forest System and the Bureau of Land Manage-
ment with the management of species populations on lands 
within the National Wildlife Refuge System and National 
Park System, and with other Federal agencies, State fish 
and wildlife agencies, tribes, local governments, and non- 
governmental organizations engaged in species conserva-
tion, in order to— 
(1) achieve and maintain viable populations of 
native and desired non-native species; 
(2) reintroduce extirpated species, where appro-
priate, when a population is no longer present; 
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