Management Guidelines for Whitebark & Limber Pine on the BLM Wyoming Sensitive Species List

United States Department of the InteriorBUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENTWyoming State OfficeP.O. Box 1828IN REPLY REFER TO: Cheyenne, Wyoming 82009-1828 6843 (930) P 5860August 23, 2011 EMS TRANSMISSION: August 25, 2011Instruction Memorandum No. WY-2011-041Expires: 09/30/2012To: District ManagersFrom: State DirectorSubject: Management Guidelines for Whitebark and Limber Pine on the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Wyoming Sensitive Species ListDD: 9/30/11Program Areas: Forestry, Threatened and Endangered SpeciesPurpose: This Instruction Memorandum (IM) updates and supersedes IM No. WY-2011-003, Management Guidelines for Whitebark and Limber Pine on the BLM Wyoming Sensitive Species ListBackground: The United States Fish and Wildlife Service issued their twelve (12) month finding on a petition to list whitebark pine as a threatened or endangered species on July 19, 2011, in the Federal Register Volume 76, Number 138. The finding was that of “warranted but precluded" with a Listing Priority Number (LPN) of 2. This LPN indicates that listing action by the Service will likely be taken in the coming Fiscal_Year. The BLM Wyoming Special Status Species list (IM No. WY-2010-027) includes both whitebark pine and limber pine and both species will remain on the BLM Wyoming Sensitive Species List.A current synopsis of whitebark pine distribution, health and current project status on BLM Wyoming lands can be found in Attachment 1, BLM Wyoming Whitebark Pine Status Summary, August 2011.Attachment 2, Whitebark and Limber Pine (Five Needle Pine) Management Guidelines for BLM Wyoming, August 2011 has been updated based on latest research findings. All updates are bolded in the text of this attachment.Policy/Action: BLM Wyoming Districts and Field Offices will, as funding and time permits, initiate the accurate mapping, inventory, and assessment of the health of the whitebark pine stands within their administrative boundaries. The Forestry Program Lead at the Wyoming State Office will be the focal point for funding needs, project development, and technical expertise. In cases where active management of vegetative resources involves, or may impact, the whitebark or limber pines, management guidelines in Attachment 2, Whitebark and Limber Pine (Five Needle Pine) Management Guidelines for BLM Wyoming, will be followed. In order to establish consistency of whitebark pine data accuracy and attribution in data collection, standardized geodatabase(s) for whitebark pine will be developed in cooperation with the SO GIS/Mapping Science group (WY-9571) and the Forestry Program Lead. Each affected District will provide at least one primary GIS contact and a designated subject matter expert to participate on a virtual working group to establish the accuracy requirements and develop the geodatabase standards. To prevent delays in data collection, the participants' names should be forwarded to Mary E. Wilson, Chief, GIS/Mapping Science, no later than September 30, 2011. Any needed Resource Management Plan (RMP), revision, amendment or maintenance actions for these species should be coordinated thru the WY-930 Planning section.Time Frame: This IM is effective upon issuance.Budget Impact: There are no anticipated budgetary impacts.Coordination: This IM has been coordinated with the Districts, and the Forestry, Threatened and Endangered Species and Planning program leads (WY-930) and GIS/Mapping Science (WY-9571) at the Wyoming BLM State Office.Contact: Questions regarding this IM should be directed to Bob Means (307) 775-6287, Forestry Program Lead; or Chris Keefe (307) 775-6101, Threatened and Endangered Species Program Lead.Signed by: Authenticated by: Donald A. Simpson Sherry Dixon State Director Secretary2 Attachments: 1 - Wyoming BLM Whitebark Pine Status Summary (2 pp) 2 - Whitebark and Limber Pine (Five Needle Pine) Management Guidelines (10 pp) Distribution Director (200) Room 3326, MIB 1 (w/o atch.) Field Managers 1 (w/atch.) CF 1 (w/atch.)