Agreement Offers Hope for Spotted Owls in Washington State

Spotted Owl. Photo: USFWS

A settlement has been reached ending litigation to conserve Northern Spotted Owls on private lands in Washington State. Under the agreement, the Weyerhaeuser Company agreed to maintain habitat around four owl sites on land owned by the corporation. Additionally, as part of the agreement, the Washington State Forest Practices Board unanimously voted to establish a Policy Working Group on Northern Spotted Owl Conservation, a collaborative group including state officials, industry representatives and conservationists, that will make recommendations about how non-federal lands can contribute to owl conservation.

Last year, Seattle and Kittitas Audubon Societies won a preliminary injunction in federal court against Weyerhaeuser to stop logging in four areas occupied by Spotted Owls in southwest Washington. The suit was intended to bring Weyerhaeuser and Washington State forest practices into compliance with wildlife protection laws.

Plaintiffs hope the newly formed Working Group will bring about greater habitat protection for the owl, and correct a deficiency in the implementation of the Northwest Forest Plan. The Plan was predicated on the idea that most habitat protection for the owl would be on federal lands, but that state and private lands would also make a contribution in certain areas. Protection called for by the Plan was never established in some parts of Washington State, particularly on the Weyerhaeuser-owned lands.

In November 2005, Forest regulators in Washington State established a statewide moratorium on opening up additional Spotted Owl habitat to logging on state and private lands. The moratorium has since been extended several times and will currently expire at the end of this year. Prior to the moratorium, landowners could ask the state to “de-certify” protected areas if no Spotted Owls had been sighted in the past three years. The Forest Practices Board is continuing to review the logging rules that protect the owls, which are declining at an annual rate of 7% in the state.