Peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus pealei) proposed management plan 2017: part 1

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Part 1 – Federal Addition to the Management Plan for the Peregrine Falcon, pealei subspecies (Falco peregrinus pealei) in British Columbia, prepared by Environment and Climate Change Canada

Preface

The federal, provincial, and territorial government signatories under the Accord for the Protection of Species at Risk (1996) agreed to establish complementary legislation and programs that provide for effective protection of species at risk throughout Canada. Under the Species at Risk Act (S.C. 2002, c. 29) (SARA), the federal competent ministers are responsible for the preparation of management plans for listed species of special concern and are required to report on progress within five years after the publication of the final document on the SAR Public Registry.

The Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Minister responsible for the Parks Canada Agency is the competent minister under SARA for the Peregrine Falcon pealei subspecies and has prepared the federal component of this management plan (Part 1), as per section 65 of SARA. To the extent possible, it has been prepared in cooperation with the Province of British Columbia, as per section 66(1) of SARA. SARA section 69 allows the Minister to adopt all or part of an existing plan for the species if the Minister is of the opinion that an existing plan relating to wildlife species includes adequate measures for the conservation of the species. The Province of British Columbia provided the attached management plan for the Peregrine Falcon pealei subspecies (Part 2) as science advice to the jurisdictions responsible for managing the species in British Columbia. It was prepared in cooperation with Environment and Climate Change Canada and the Parks Canada Agency.

Success in the conservation of this species depends on the commitment and cooperation of many different constituencies that will be involved in implementing the directions set out in this plan and will not be achieved by Environment and Climate Change Canada, and the Parks Canada Agency, or any other jurisdiction alone. All Canadians are invited to join in supporting and implementing this plan for the benefit of the Peregrine Falcon pealei subspecies and Canadian society as a whole.

Implementation of this management plan is subject to appropriations, priorities, and budgetary constraints of the participating jurisdictions and organizations.

Additions and modifications to the adopted document

The following sections have been included to address specific requirements of the federal Species at Risk Act (SARA) that are not addressed in the Management Plan for the Peregrine Falcon, pealei subspecies (Falco peregrinus pealei) in British Columbia (Part 2 of this document, referred to henceforth as "the provincial management plan") and/or to provide updated or additional information.

Under SARA, prohibitions regarding the protection of species and their habitat do not apply to species of special concern. Conservation measures in the provincial management plan dealing with the protection of individuals and their habitat are still adopted to guide conservation efforts but would not result in federal legal protection.

1 Effects on the environment and other species

A strategic environmental assessment (SEA) is conducted on all SARA recovery planning documents, in accordance with the Cabinet Directive on the Environmental Assessment of Policy, Plan and Program Proposals. The purpose of a SEA is to incorporate environmental considerations into the development of public policies, plans, and program proposals to support environmentally sound decision-making and to evaluate whether the outcomes of a recovery planning document could affect any component of the environment or achievement of any of the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy's (FSDS) goals and targets.

Conservation planning is intended to benefit species at risk and biodiversity in general. However, it is recognized that implementation of management plans may also inadvertently lead to environmental effects beyond the intended benefits. The planning process based on national guidelines directly incorporates consideration of all environmental effects, with a particular focus on possible impacts upon non-target species or habitats. The results of the SEA are incorporated directly into the management plan itself, but are also summarized below in this statement.

The provincial management plan for the Peregrine Falcon pealei subspecies contains a short section describing the effects of management activities on other species (i.e., section 9). Environment and Climate Change Canada adopts this section of the provincial management plan as the statement on effects of management activities on the environment and other species. The distribution of Peregrine Falcon pealei subspecies may overlap with that of other federally-listed species at risk occurring in coastal areas (e.g., Ancient Murrelet (Synthliboramphus antiquus), Band-tailed Pigeon (Patagioenas fasciata), Cassin's Auklet (Ptychoramphus aleuticus), Great Blue Heron fannini subspecies (Ardea herodias fannini), Marbled Murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus), Northern Goshawk laingi subspecies (Accipiter gentilis laingi), Northern Saw-whet Owl brooksi subspecies (Aegolius acadicus brooksi), Peregrine Falcon anatum/tundrius subspecies (Falco peregrinus anatum/tundrius), and Red Knot (Calidris canutus)) that could be affected by management actions. Conservation planning activities for Peregrine Falcon pealei subspecies will be implemented with consideration for all co-occurring species, with focus on species at risk, to avoid or minimize negative impacts to these species or their habitats. Some management actions for Peregrine Falcon pealei subspecies (e.g., research and monitoring, habitat conservation, public education, and mitigation about general threats to the species) may promote the conservation of other species at risk that overlap in distribution and rely on similar habitat attributes.