Standard Operating Procedures for Initiating Cooperating Agency Involvement

The direction contained in this IM applies to authorizing actions on all discretionary and non-discretionary projects that may affect federally listed species and/or critical habitat consistent with Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA), or birds protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBT A), and/or the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act (Eagle Act) that occur within the project boundaries on lands administered by BLMNV.

Based on the organizational structure of the USFWS, BLM NV needs to coordinate with both the USFWS's Ecological Service's Field Offices regarding ESA, and the Regional Migratory Bird Program's Office (MBO) regarding MBTA and Eagle Act as outlined below. BLM NV may also need to coordinate with the local Refuge Manager if a project crosses, involves, or may be adjacent to a USFWS National Wildlife Refuge.

1. Authorized Officer for BLM NV has the responsibility to determine if CA status is appropriate. Prior to determining whether USFWS should be invited as a CA, the BLM NV District/Field Office, as the lead agency, (or proponent's consultant) should prepare 1) a description of the project, 2) a map of the project area, and 3) a draft species list from the USFWS Information for Planning and Consultation (IPaC) tool https://ecos.fws.gov/ipac/ indicating what species could potentially be affected by the proposed project. Important: There is an option to initiate ESA Section 7 consultation (through the IPaC tool; however, BLM NV staff MUST NOT initiate consultation though IPaC, because it will prematurely start the consultation timeline (Attachment 1).

BLM NV should consider the information provided from the IPaC tool as well as other relevant factors in making a determination if federally listed species and/or critical habitat consistent with ESA, or Birds of Conservation Concern protected under the MBT A, and/or the Eagle Act could potentially be affected by the proposed project. The Authorized Officer for BLM NV has the responsibility to determine if CA status is appropriate, as described in the Desk Guide for Cooperating Agency Relationships and Coordination with Intergovernmental Partners referenced above.

1. If determined appropriate, the BLM NV District or Field Manager will invite CA status by sending a memorandum (memo), using the attached template (Attachment 2), to USFWS. There are four potential USFWS offices that BLM NV will need to invite as a cooperator: 1) Reno Fish and Wildlife Office (Reno), 2) Southern Nevada Fish and Wildlife Office (Las Vegas), 3) Regional MBO, and 4) USFWS Wildlife Refuge.

In general, the Reno Office covers the Great Basin Ecoregion, the Southern Nevada Office covers the Mojave Ecoregion, and the Regional MBO, in Sacramento, administers the entire state of Nevada, for both MBTA and the Eagle Act. USFWS Regional MBO should be invited as a CA for 1) any projects that could impact bald and golden eagles and 2) projects with potential major effects to local bird populations, particularly Birds of Conservation Concern, as identified on project IPaC lists. FWS Ecological Services Field Offices should be invited as a CA for 1) any projects with the potential to impact listed species and 2) any project with the potential to impact designated critical habitat.

1. One memo should be written and addressed to all USFWS offices, as appropriate. If there is doubt about which USFWS office should be included, send it to all three:
   1. Field Supervisor, Reno Fish & Wildlife Field Office (mare_jackson@fws.gov)
   2. Field Supervisor, Southern Nevada Field Office (glen_knowles@fws.gov)
   3. Deputy Chief, Migratory Bird Program (thomas_leeman@fws.gov)

If the BLM NV project crosses, involves, or may be adjacent to a USFWS National Wildlife Refuge, then contact the local Refuge Manager.

In addition, to facilitate communication, include BLM NV Deputy State Directors of Resources, Lands and Planning, and Minerals Management as recipients (copy only) in the memo. The memo will include: 1) project description, 2) project map and draft species report from IPaC, 3) other available relevant information (e.g. , nesting locations and history of eagles in the vicinity of the project).

To expedite the response from USFWS and avoid delays for both agencies, the BLM will provide USFWS with information about the project as soon as possible to allow USFWS to have familiarity with the request before it is sent. Likewise, USFWS will strive to coordinate internally in advance of receiving the memo to facilitate providing a response to the BLM within 14 days. Electronic exchange of information and responses will be used to avoid mailing delays (these can be followed up with the mailing of official letters or information for the record). The District or Field Office will determine who the USFWS should send their response to, and this will be indicated in the invitation letter (see attachment 2 - BLM CA Invitation template). The District or Field Office will also determine who should receive a carbon copy (cc) and as stated above, the cc will always include the DSD of Minerals and the DSD of Resources, Lands, and Planning at a minimum.

3. The USFWS offices/programs will each respond independently using the attached memo templates (Attachments 3 and 4); accepting or declining the invitation.
4. If accepted, the next steps include identifying BLM NV and USFWS agency team members, exchanging their contact information, and setting up communication protocols.