Save Upper Echo Lake

A report issued by the Endangered Species Coalition catalogs "ten species our children may never see," including the mountain yellow-legged frog.  In the report, the Coalition states "more than 95 percent of southern Sierra Nevada and Southern California populations have gone extinct, and remaining colonies have only about ten adults."  A number of news outlets covered the release of the report, including the Washington Post and Sierra Sun Times .

In a stipulation signed by the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California, the Forest Service committed to engage in consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service regarding the effects of the Upper Echo Lake Hazardous Fuels Reduction Project on the endangered Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frog.  The agency also agreed to halt all on-the-ground Project activity through 2014, and not resume any activity until consultation is completed.  The stiplation includes the following statement: "The Forest Service has ... determined that it will consult with the Fish and Wildlife Service regarding potential impacts to the frog, and has resolved to take no further on-the-ground activities on the project until consultation is complete and, in any event, no on-the-ground activities in 2014. In addition, the Forest Service is committed to taking no further activities without providing at least 35 days’ notice to Plaintiff." The Forest Service's decision c...

Previously, in a post located here , we explained that the Forest Service agreed not to implement phase two of the Upper Echo Lake Hazardous Fuels Reduction Project until September 1, 2014, at the earliest.  The agency has since agreed to further delay phase two to October 15, 2014, at the earliest.  The Forest Service may agree to further delays in order to address issues raised about the agency's compliance with federal law.

Brian Freiermuth has reported on efforts to reintorduce Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frog to the Desolation Wilderness to bolster existing populations.

In a letter to persons that hold permits from the Forest Service dated June 23, 2014, the agency indicated it has initiated "formal consultation" under section 7(a)(2) of the Endangered Species Act with the Fish and Wildlife Service.  The letter indicates that the Region 5 office has taken the lead in consulting with the Fish and Wildlife Service to develop "a programmatic Biological Assessment and Biological Opinion" to include affirmative Forest Service actions that may affect the Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frog.  Among the recipients of the letter were persons who hold permits for cabins at Upper Echo Lake.  It is unclear whether the Upper Echo Lake Hazardous Fuels Reduction Project will be among the "affirmative Forest Service actions" included in the consultation, although the Project is within the known historical distribution of the species, the Project area includes viable habitat for the species, the Project area is proposed for designation as cr...

On July 8, 2014, Dr. Dennis Murphy filed a second amended complaint in his case alleging violations of law by the U.S. Forest Service.  It includes allegations that the agency violated the Administrative Procedure Act, Endangered Species Act, and National Environmental Policy Act.

Over the past 12 years, the El Dorado Irrigation District has conducted surveys at Upper Echo Lake and other locations in the region.  In each year the District conducted surveys -- 2002 , 2004 , and 2011 -- the District located Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frogs at Camp Harvey West, a shuttered boy scout camp that used to operate on the west side of Upper Echo Lake.  A map of the location is set out below. The second phase of the Upper Echo Lake Hazardous Fuels Reduction Project, which is slated to commence after Labor Day 2014, contemplates tree cutting, brush removal, and slash pile placement activities on the south and west sides of Upper Echo Lake, including in areas that constitute habitat for the yellow-legged frog.