Snake River Basin Steelhead Critical Habitat

These GIS data contain stream reaches that were designated as "critical
habitat" for the Lower Columbia River (LCR) steelhead Evolutionarily
Significant Unit (ESU). The critical habitat is defined in the National
Marine Fisheries Service's (NOAA Fisheries) final rule to designate
critical habitat for 12 ESUs of Pacific salmon and steelhead. The fish
distribution in this data set was compiled from data gathered from the
Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG), Oregon Department of Fish and
Wildlife (ODFW) and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
(WDFW). Additionally, we received comments from the public, federal
agencies, and state and tribal salmon co-managers during the rule making
process. A detailed description of this process can be found in the
following document: Final Assessment of NOAA Fisheries' Critical Habitat
Analytical Review Teams For 12 Evolutionarily Significant Units of
Pacific Salmon and Steelhead, NOAA Fisheries Protected Resources
Division, 2005.
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Within the Idaho portion of the ESU, we started with 1:100,000 scale
fish distribution from IDFG. We acquired a database from IDFG which
they refer to as the BLM Fish Presence Database (IDFG 2003). The data
came from an earlier database originally mapped in 1991 based on a Smolt
Density Model developed by the Northwest Power Planning Council. Since
1991, IDFG has made some improvements to the data by noting where
documented observations have occurred and where suitable habitat is
blocked by irrigation withdrawals. However, when we compared the
distribution data with GIS data acquired from the Payette National
Forest, it was apparent that there was additional data available that
would lead to important improvements to the Snake River Basin steelhead
distribution. After reviewing the database and after discussions with
staff at IDFG, we decided to solicit information about the distribution
of Snake River Basin steelhead from the BLM, USFS, and the Salmon River
Subbasin Planning Team. More information about the Idaho portion of the
data can be found in the documents referenced in the 'Supplemental
Information' section.
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On the Washington side of the ESU we started with 1:24,000 scale fish
distribution data from WDFW. On the Oregon side of the ESU we started
with 1:100,000 scale enhanced fish distribution data from ODFW. The
ODFW mapped fish distribution on 1:24,000 scale USGS topographic maps
and transferred the data to a 1:100,000 scale hydrography layer.
However, some of the streams found on a 1:24,000 scale map are not found
in the 1:100,000 scale hydrography. These non-matching streams are
recorded as points representing the upper extent of fish distribution.
We created new stream lines for these 1:24,000 scale points.
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We have excluded portions of the range of the ESU from the final
designation of critical habitat. Exclusions are based on economic and
other relevant impacts considered during our analysis, as described in
our 4(b)(2) Report. We also excluded Indian lands and Habitat
Conservation Plans (HCP). However, due to legal concerns about the
disclosure of the location of HCP and Indian lands, as well as questions
about the accuracy of the data, we do not identify the location of these
exclusions within this data set. For exact legal descriptions of
critical habitat please consult the Federal Register notice.