Spotted Owl Petition Tests Canada's New Species Law

VICTORIA, British Columbia, Canada, March 4, 2004 (ENS) - Canada’s new Species at Risk Act (SARA) received its first test Wednesday when conservationists submitted a legal petition to federal Environment Minister David Anderson asking him to make an emergency intervention to prevent the northern spotted owl from going extinct in Canada.

The petition was timed to coincide with the opening in Victoria of the national conference Species at Risk 2004: Pathways to Recovery. There are 120 threatened or endangered species in Canada and several major ecosystems under stress.

The government of British Columbia’s spotted owl management strategy has not increased the number of this endangered species, and government granted logging permits in the old growth forests where the owl is found the main reason for its demise, says lawyer Devon Page of Sierra Legal Defence Fund, who is representing four conservation organizations.

Northern spotted owls need large old growth trees to survive. (Photo courtesy USFWS Oregon Office)

“In 2003, government biologists counted only 14 adult spotted owls in old growth forests in southeastern B.C. The British Columbia government is doing nothing to protect them and that is why conservation groups are calling upon the federal government to act today,” he said.

In June, the new Species at Risk Act will be fully in force. In his opening address to conference delegates, Anderson announced the release of a consultation document that will begin the public consultation process to determine whether or not the 63 terrestrial species being considered for listing, should receive protection under the new law.

"This is the first official opportunity under the new legislation for Canadians to provide direct input on the decisionmaking process for the protection of species at risk," the minister said.

"Your ideas, knowledge and advice are important and will help the government of Canada assess the impacts of adding species to the legal list under SARA," said Anderson.

In their submission on the northern spotted owl, four conservation groups leave little room for doubt that the bird deserves immediate protection.

The David Suzuki Foundation, ForestEthics, Sierra Club of Canada and the Western Canada Wilderness Committee call the spotted owl "the most endangered bird in Canada, with only 14 adult owls recorded last year in British Columbia, the only province where it is found.

British Columbia has no endangered species protection laws and new forestry laws introduced in January 2004 give priority to logging over species protection, the groups warn.

The British Columbia government ignored recommendations of government biologists who called for immediate protection of spotted owl habitat, despite the fact that over the 10 years from 1992 through 2002 the spotted owl population declined by 67 percent.

Environment Minister David Anderson represents British Columbia in Parliament, so the owl petition is a test for him on his home ground. (Photo courtesy Office of the Minister)

“Last month, David Suzuki and I met with Prime Minister [Paul] Martin and he assured us that the environment is one of his top priorities,” Fulton said.

Environment Minister Anderson, who has remained in the position to which he was appointed by the previous Prime Minister Jean Chretien, affirmed to conference delegates that the environment is a priority for the federal government under its new leader, Paul Martin.

It is not enough to list species, Anderson said, the habitat necessary for their survival must also be protected. He announced that the government is moving forward with a critical habitat policy, and said the public will be asked to provide reaction and input.

The basis of the government's habitat policy, the minister said, is the conservation of entire ecosystems. "As valuable as they are, protected areas are not enough. No matter what percentage we protect, the remaining area cannot be viewed as a gigantic development zone."

Anderson pointed out that the government has recently made investments in the expansion of national parks and national marine conservation areas, and in the near future plans to invest in national wildlife areas and migratory bird sanctuaries.

Migratory bird sanctuaries will not help the spotted owl to survive, however, because these birds remain in the same nesting location as long as they live, a natural lifespan of about 16 years. They inhabit old growth forests, and studies have shown that the majority of spotted owls live in forests where the dominant trees in the area measure more than 32 inches in diameter.

British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell sets forest policy for the province. (Photo courtesy BC Government)

“For several years we've been documenting extensive logging of spotted owl habitat that is sanctioned by the provincial government," said Joe Foy, campaign director for the Western Canada Wilderness Committee. "It is now crystal clear to us that the BC government is actively working to wipe the spotted owl out of the province. Therefore, the federal government must step in now."

“The British Columbia government has acknowledged logging of old growth habitat as the principal cause of the spotted owl’s decline, yet approved logging in at least three, and as many as six, of the 10 areas in which the owl was detected in 2003,” the environmental groups say in their letter to Minister Anderson.

The provincial government, while acknowledging logging as the principal problem, is the largest logger of spotted owl habitat under its BC Timber Sales program.

“The new federal endangered species act is now facing its first major test,” said Elizabeth May, executive director of the Sierra Club of Canada. “If it cannot work for a high-profile endangered animal like the spotted owl then it is not worth the paper it is written on.”