On June 5, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission ("Florida FWC") released its second draft of the Imperiled Species Management Plan ("ISM Plan"), a project it has been working on over the last five years with the input of a multitude of partners and stakeholders. Over 500 comments were submitted on the first draft of the ISM Plan, which raised various issues from a large cross-section of shareholders.
The ISM Plan is intended to be the integrated conservation blueprint for the next 10 years for 57 imperiled species, including federally endangered species, federally threatened species, state threatened species, state species of special concern and state de-listed species.
The ISM Plan identifies “concentrated, species-specific conservation actions as well as broad, integrated strategies” and “will be implemented with intentional focus on areas managed for conservation and simultaneous cooperation with private landowners to ensure the desired future conditions is achieved.”
As a result of the rulemaking, additional conservation of land and habitat may be required and parties affected by the plan should engage in the rulemaking effort as it moves forward.
* * *
If you would like a copy of the draft ISM Plan or more information about the ongoing rulemaking effort, please contact Gunster attorney Kellie Scott.
What's next
FWC is hosting a webinar on the ISM Plan on June 11 with workshops on some of the specific species guidelines on June 16 and 18.
The Florida FWC’s board will be briefed on the revised ISM Plan on June 23.
The Florida FWC plans on seeking approval for the ISM Plan and guidelines in September 2015, with a public comment period to follow, prior to final adoption in early 2016.
Background
In 2010, the Florida FWC adopted its new conservation model and, soon after, the Florida FWC began conducting biological status reviews for the endangered and threatened species that did not have previous management plans, essentially functioning as a health assessment for each species.
Based on these reviews, the Florida FWC completed Species Action Plans ("SA Plans") encompassing the needs of all 57 species to be included in the ISM Plan.
The goal of each SA Plan is to appropriately manage the species through specific objectives and actions as well as identify key conservation strategies to minimize the impact of known threats and improve habitat conditions.
SA Plans were completed in 2013 and are set to be updated within seven years, or sooner, as objectives are reached or new information necessitates an update.
The ISM Plan incorporates the existing SA Plans and outlines the Florida FWC’s overall approach to species management, including individual and multispecies strategies and action.
The ISM Plan also identifies and targets the resources necessary to successfully implement the conservation strategies and reduce the risk of extinction of the species. The development of the ISM Plan required the creation of 14 Integrated Conservation Strategies “focusing on higher-level strategies and the integrated actions that benefit multiple species and their habitats.”
Imperiled Species Conservation Measures and Guidelines are also under development and will provide a comprehensive overview of approaches to limiting take for each state-listed species.
