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8 THE DESERT TORTOISE
Pages 195-208

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From page 195...
... Ecology included (1) a relocation plan for approximately 23-30 tortoises in the 36 ha site and other developed areas, a very small percentage of the total Ward Valley population; (2)
From page 196...
... in 6 Recovery Uruts. A fundamental goal of the Recovery Plan is to maintain the integrity of the distinct populations within each recovery unit, with D~MAs that contain desert tortoise habitat and viable tortoise populations identified in each unit.
From page 197...
... Recovery Plan and approximate locations of the proposed low-level radioactive waste disposal site and the desert tortoise study plots (G. Golfs Health Plot, and WV, Upper Ward Valley Demographic Plot)
From page 198...
... An expansion of the local raven population could similarly accompany development of the Ward Valley disposal site. Increased Contact with Humans Third, interactions between tortoises and humans are likely to increase with construction and operation of the disposal facility.
From page 199...
... Compensation for Habitat Loss and Fragmentation The licensee intends to compensate for lost tortoise habitat with a two-part plan. Fencing of I-40 The first step calls for fencing Interstate Highway I-40 and upgrading freeway underpasses to improve habitat currently supporting few tortoises and to facilitate movement throughout Ward Valley.
From page 200...
... Even with a reduction in vehicular mortality from fencing, the area adjacent to the freeway may remain as suboptimal habitat for desert tortoises. Relocation of Tortoises The second part of the plan to compensate for lost habitat calls for relocating tortoises displaced during site construction into the protected habitat north of I-40 created through fencing along the highway.
From page 201...
... Finally, the relocation plan could facilitate the transmission of disease from tortoises in the Penner DWMA to individuals in the Chemehuevi DWMA. Desert tortoises in parts of the Mojave population are affected by an upper respirator tract disease (URTD)
From page 202...
... . In 1993, desert tortoises ~ the Goffs Health Profile study plot, approximately 13 km northwest of the proposed Ward Valley disposal site (Figure 8.1)
From page 203...
... The Recovery Plan and the critical habitat designation were both based on the fundamental principle of conservation biology that large, u&agmented habitat reserves are more effective in preventing extinction than small, Eagmented ones (Simberioff end Abele, 1982; Wilcove et al., 1986~. The Chemehuev' DWMA, which includes the proposed waste disposal facility, is the only DWMA in the Northern Colorado Recovery Unit and contains one of the largest and most robust desert tortoise populations in the Mojave Desert (USFWS, 1994a)
From page 204...
... The Recovery Plan recommends restricting relocations to areas outside DWMAs and, if the relocation area already supports tortoises, only after a 2-year study of the recipient habitat and population. · If tortoise relocation remains as part of the mitigation measures for construction and operation of the Ward Valley facilities, the committee supports the recommendation of the U.S.
From page 205...
... 1994. Summary submittal of the California Department of Health Services to National Academy of Sciences Committee to Review Specific Scientific and Technical Safety Issues Related to the Ward Valley, California, Low-leve!
From page 206...
... 1989. Investigations of the desert tortoise at the California Department of Health Services proposed low-level radioactive waste facility site in Ward Valley, California, Report submitted to US Ecology and C
From page 207...
... 1994b. Endangered and threatened wildlife and plants; determination of critical habitat for the Mojave population of the desert tortoise.


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