zation bill (section 5 of H.R. 1027) into H.R. 4531, the 

 legislation extending the Wetlands Loan Act. This bill was 

 passed by the House on 14 October and by the Senate on 

 18 October and was signed into law (P.L. 99-625) by the Presi- 

 dent on 7 November 1986. The sea otter translocation amendment 

 serves as a free-standing provision, independent of the 

 Endangered Species Act. Thus, its requirements would continue 

 to apply even if the sea otter were to be delisted under the 

 Act. The purpose of the amendment was to encourage the develop- 

 ment and implementation of a plan to establish at least one sea 

 otter colony outside the present sea otter range in Califor- 

 nia. It required, among other things, that the translocation 

 plan specify a translocation zone that would meet the habitat 

 needs of the translocated animals and provide a buffer against 

 possible adverse activities that may occur outside that zone. 

 It also requires that the area surrounding the translocation 

 zone be designated a management zone from which sea otters 

 are to be excluded by non-lethal means. The amendment provides 

 that actions necessary to affect the translocation and manage- 

 ment of sea otters under the plan shall not be considered 

 violations of either the Endangered Species Act or the Marine 

 Mammal Protection Act. It authorizes (1) establishment of a 

 sea otter colony outside the existing California sea otter 

 range, and (2) use of non-lethal means to protect fishery 

 resources by prohibiting expansion of the mainland sea otter 

 population south of Point Concepcion. 



The Fish and Wildlife Service's proposal to translocate 

 up to 250 sea otters to San Nicolas Island was designed to 

 fulfill research as well as management objectives and therefore 

 required a scientific research permit as provided for in the 

 Marine Mammal Protection Act. It also constituted a major 

 Federal action under the Coastal Zone Managment Act and required 

 a determination of consistency with the California Coastal 

 Management Plan. In addition, to satisfy conditions related 

 to the Endangered Species Act, it required the concurrence of 

 the California Fish and Game Commission and consultations 

 within the Fish and Wildlife Service, pursuant to section 7 

 of the Act. Formal consultation pursuant to section 7 was 

 initiated in December 1985. On 6 March 1987, the Director of 

 the Service's Region 1 Office in Portland, Oregon, issued a 

 Biological Opinion which concluded that the proposed translo- 

 cation of sea otters to San Nicolas Island was not likely to 

 jeopardize the continued existence of the California sea 

 otter population. The Biological Opinion also recommended 

 steps that should be taken to minimize the possible adverse 

 effects of the translocation on the affected otters and to 

 facilitate evaluation of possible alternative means for regu- 

 lating the San Nicolas colony when it reaches carrying capacity. 



In accordance with the provisions of the Coastal Zone 

 Management Act and related regulations, the Fish and Wildlife 



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