Dr. Douglas Austen

Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission Executive Director Dr. Douglas Austen has been selected to chair the National Fish Habitat Initiative, a national workgroup developing a strategy to protect aquatic habitats and fisheries across the country.

Much like the highly successful North American Waterfowl Management Plan in the 1980s that forged partnerships for restoration or protection of millions of acres of wetland breeding areas for waterfowl, the National Fish Habitat Initiative is a collaborative effort to focus attention on common priorities for fish habitat across the country.

“Destruction of habitat is a principal culprit in many of the challenges fisheries managers face. Habitat alteration is a contributing factor to 75 percent of all fish extinctions during the past 75 years and 91 percent of fish listings under the Endangered Species Act,” Austen pointed out. “Our goal is to substantially increase the level of activity by state and federal agencies and conservation organizations in addressing aquatic habitat issues. Ultimately, the NFHI will produce geographically-focused, locally-driven, scientifically-based partnerships to protect, restore and enhance aquatic habitats across the nation.”

The development of the NFHI is one of six priority areas the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service identified in its Fisheries Program for the Future vision document in 2002. The USFWS then asked the state natural resources agencies, through the International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, to develop a formal NFHI plan and begin its implementation.

The NFHI project is now in the midst of a series of workgroup and support team meetings to develop the NFHI plan, acquire more partners, and begin implementation. The workgroup is developing compilations of existing habitat restoration efforts, habitat monitoring programs, research projects and databases from across the nation that will be useful in developing NFHI objectives.

The group is also actively looking to build the list of partners in the effort. In additional to state and federal agencies, sponsors of the NFHI now include conservation organizations like the American Fisheries Society, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Trout Unlimited, many BASS federation chapters including the Pennsylvania Chapter, as well as industry partners such as Bass Pro Shops, Sport Fishing and Boating Partnership Council and BASS/ESPN Outdoors.

Interested groups can become a member of the NFHI Partners Coalition by signing on through the NFHI website.

The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission has long been considered a national leader in addressing fish habitat, so tapping its Executive Director for a national effort is only logical.

Since 2000, the Commission’s Adopt a Stream program has overseen the construction and placement, with the assistance of volunteer cooperators, of over 1,000 fish habitat structures in streams throughout the Commonwealth. More than 4,000 manmade fish habitat structures have been placed in 50 different reservoirs, lakes and ponds as part of the agency’s Adopt a Lake program.

Over the same period, the Commission has played a key role in 110 dam removals and the design and construction of 12 fish passages to open habitat to migratory and resident fish species.

Dr. Austen sees an increasing role for the Fish and Boat Commission to be involved in habitat restoration and will be committing more staff in the future to such work.

“The restoration and protection of aquatic habitat needs to be a core component of what we do as an agency with our many conservation partners. We can create fishing opportunities, restore species, and increase the quality of the environment through these efforts and it will be an important part of the future of the Fish and Boat Commission,” said Austen.

7/15/2005