Opinion ID: 775852
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The ACGA II Consultation

Text: 77
A. The Montana Allotment (Sonora chub) 78 The Montana Allotment consists of 27,940 acres in the Coronado National Forest. 79 Although the Montana Allotment Biological Opinion addresses the impact of grazing on the Sonora chub and the lesser long-nosed bat, the Fish and Wildlife Service appealed only the district court's finding as to the Sonora chub, a stream-dwelling member of the minnow family. In a relatively terse Biological Opinion, the Fish and Wildlife Service determined that the Sonora chub are present on the Montana Allotment, but that they are essentially confined to the California Gulch, an area from which livestock are excluded. Nonetheless, the Fish and Wildlife Service found that take of Sonora chub is expected to result from the ongoing grazing activities on the Montana Allotment.  The Biological Opinion projects both direct harm to individual fish that disperse into areas accessible to cattle and indirect harm stemming from habitat modification. With respect to direct harm, it concludes that, during periods of high instream flow and fish dispersal, livestock may directly impact fish in the stream channel. 80 The Biological Opinion is similarly sparse with respect to projected indirect harms. It notes that the watershed is naturally fragile and highly sensitive to disturbance . . . [and] [t]he effects of livestock grazing activities can be additive, exacerbating the naturally fragile and highly sensitive watershed conditions. The Biological Opinion also reports, however, that there are improved soil and riparian area conditions and that range condition is generally good with an upward trend. Although the Biological Opinion states that [l]ivestock currently have direct access to the stream channel immediately upstream of the enclosure and [h]arm occurs through the effects to habitat that alter the suitability of the habitat to support Sonora chub, there is no information about how far upstream the enclosure is nor is there site specific data that connects grazing in the enclosure and sedimentation. 81 The Biological Opinion also notes under Cumulative Effects that stray cattle could cross the Mexican-American border and access the area that the Sonora chub is thought to habitat, thereby causing a direct taking. The Biological Opinion does not present any evidence that this has occurred either in the Montana Allotment or on similar properties. 82 Because the Biological Opinion provides little factual support for its conclusion that an incidental taking is anticipated, we agree with the district court that the issuance of the Incidental Take Statement for the Sonora chub on the Montana Allotment was based only on the very speculativepotential for these fish to move upstream and on the potential downstream effects of grazing. We affirm the district court's holding that the mere potential for harm, however, is insufficient. Without evidence that a take would occur as a result of livestock grazing, issuing an Incidental Take Statement imposing conditions on the otherwise lawful use of the land was arbitrary and capricious. 83 B. The Sears-Club/Chalk Mountain Allotment (Gila topminnow) 84 The Fish and Wildlife Service has not documented the existence of Gila topminnow, a small fish that prefers shallow water, in the upper portion of Dutchman Grave Spring, located on the Sears-Club/Chalk Mountain Allotment. The topminnow are found, however, in the nearby lower reaches of Dutchman Grave Spring, on the Red Creek Allotment. Although the upper portion of the spring is separated from the lower portion by 1,000 feet of dry streambed and a partial barrier restricting upstream movement, the Fish and Wildlife Service concluded that upstream fish movement could be possible during some flows. Likewise, the Service recognized that grazing activities are unlikely to jeopardize the continued existence of the topminnow, but found that grazing on the upper spring could affect its suitability for any possible future reintroduction of Gila topminnow or any recolonization from the lower spring. 85 As with the Montana Allotment, we find that the Incidental Take Statement is based on the mere potential of harm to the Gila topminnow, not on any harm that would occur. The Fish and Wildlife Service provided only speculative evidence as to how these two-inch fish could travel upstream across 1,000 feet of dry streambed and over waterfalls (up to three feet high) to recolonize the area contained on the allotment. Such speculation is not a sufficient rational connection to survive judicial review. Accordingly, we agree with the district court's determination that the Fish and Wildlife Service's decision to issue an Incidental Take Statement for Gila top-minnow on the Sears-Club/Chalk Mountain Allotment was arbitrary and capricious. 86