FRESHWATER INFLOWS AND FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE OPERATIONS 



Michael Spear 

 Associate Director-Environment 



U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service 

 Washington, D.C. 



The mission of the U.S. Fish 

 and Wildlife Service (FWS) is to 

 provide the Federal leadership to 

 conserve, protect, and enhance fish 

 and wildlife resources and their 

 habitats for the benefit of people. 

 Our authorities are derived from 

 direct congressional mandates, such 

 as the Fish and Wildlife Coordina- 

 tion Act, National Environmental 

 Policy Act, the Endangered Species 

 Act, as well as from executive and 

 secretarial orders. I will comment 

 on the major responsibilities of 

 the FWS in the coastal zone and why 

 we are concerned about freshwater 

 inflow and the preservation of fish 

 and wildlife habitats in estuaries. 



The Service has 

 responsibilities in 

 zone: 



several major 

 the coastal 



that are directly involved in 

 estuarine activities. 



Within the Division of Eco- 

 logical Services, we have ex- 

 perts in marine biology and 

 fisheries biology who evalu- 

 ate works or activities that 

 propose modification of estu- 

 arine systems, wetlands, and 

 shorelands. As an integral 

 part of their evaluation, they 

 include all means and measures 

 necessary to preserve the in- 

 tegrity of the ecosystem. 



We have direct regulatory re- 

 sponsibilities in administering 

 the Endangered Species Act. 

 There are over 40 federally- 

 designated endangered species 

 of birds, reptiles, mammals 

 and fish in the coastal zone. 



Under the Fish and Wildlife 

 Coordination Act (FWCA) we are 

 charged to evaluate the effects 

 of all federally funded, li- 

 censed or permitted develop- 

 ment projects on fish and 

 wildlife resources and provide 

 comments to the permitting or 

 funding agencies. We review 

 plans, recommend modifications 

 or plans, and recommend miti- 

 gation measures when appro- 

 priate. 



We implement the provisions of 

 the FWCA primarily through the 

 Division of Ecological Servi- 

 ces (ES). There are 25 ES 

 Field Offices and Sub-Offices 

 located on or near coastal areas 



The FWS has 115 national wild- 

 life refuges on the coast that 

 include over seven million 

 acres . 



We participate in the Migra- 

 tory Bird Treaty with Mexico 

 and Canada which charges us 

 with protection and management 

 of all migratory birds includ- 

 ing waterfowl. 



We have an active program to 

 assist our Nation in planning 

 and locating energy develop- 

 ments in the coastal zone. 

 This work includes developing 

 methods for assessing and 

 predicting impacts, assembling 

 information for use in impact 



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