Oregon forestsnail (Allogona townsendiana) COSEWIC assessment and status report 2013: chapter 12
Oregon Forestsnail is protected under the federal Species at Risk Act (SARA) although protection is currently applied only on federal properties. SARA can provide immediate protection for individuals and their residences and includes provisions for the protection of critical habitat once identified in a recovery strategy. Oregon Forestsnail was originally assessed by COSEWIC as Endangered in 2002 (COSEWIC 2002) and was included on Schedule 1 of SARA as Endangered in 2003 when the Act was proclaimed. The residence concept under SARA does not apply to all species and as of October 2011, a residence description for Oregon Forestsnail has not been posted on the SARA Public Registry. Similarly, a finalized recovery strategy has not yet been posted on SARA, and critical habitat for the species has not yet been formally defined (Harrison pers. comm. 2012; Tanaka pers. comm. 2012). However, the provincial recovery plan has been approved (Oregon Forestsnail Recovery Team 2012).
Oregon Forestsnail would be protected within national parks and national historic sites under the National Parks Act if they were present. There is the possibility Oregon Forestsnail could be within Fort Langley National Historic Site. To date, there have not been surveys to confirm its presence but there is a known population within 1 km of the historic site.
The BC Park Act protects invertebrate species at risk (Red and Blue-listed species) in provincial parks and protected areas. When species at risk and their habitats are known to occur within a protected area, provisions for management are incorporated into the park master plan. Further, the BC Ecological Reserves Act provides protection for species (Red and Blue-listed) occurring within ecological reserves in BC.
Invertebrates assessed by COSEWIC as Threatened, Endangered or Extirpated will be protected through the BC Wildlife Act and Wildlife Amendment Act (Province of BC 1982) once the regulations listing these species are completed; however, they are currently not protected under these provincial Acts.
Oregon Forestsnail has a conservation status rank of S1S2 (critically imperilled-imperilled) in BC (BC Conservation Data Centre 2013) and is nationally ranked (Canada) as N1N2 (critically imperiled-imperilled) (NatureServe Canada 2012). The global conservation status rank is G3G4 (vulnerable-apparently secure) (NatureServe 2012). In Washington State the species has a conservation status rank of S3S4 (vulnerable-apparently secure) and in Oregon State the conservation status rank is SNR (status not ranked) (NatureServe 2012).
Oregon Forestsnail is a Priority 1 species (highest priority) under Goal 3 (maintain the diversity of native species and ecosystems) of the BC Conservation Framework (BC Ministry of Environment 2011a). Provincial staff responsible for Oregon Forestsnail conservation are aware of the habitat requirements of this species, and advise other staff to look out for possible new occurrences (Chatwin pers. comm. 2012; Hirner pers. comm. 2012; Robbins pers. comm. 2012; Welstead pers. comm. 2012).
Non-government conservation organizations, such as the South Coast Conservation Program (Robbins pers. comm. 2012; Welstead pers. comm. 2012) and Fraser Valley Conservancy (MacMillan pers. comm. 2012), outline stewardship opportunities and work with private landowners toward protecting Oregon Forestsnail habitat on private lands. Conservation organizations such as the Fraser Valley Conservancy (MacMillan pers. comm. 2012) and the Victoria Natural History Society (Copley pers. comm. 2012) include information on Oregon Forestsnail in their public newsletters.
Most land within the range of Oregon Forestsnail is privately owned (Table 1). Ownership is by individuals (e.g., farms or rural properties), private forest companies (e.g., for timber production), land developers (e.g., with future plans for urban housing or industrial real estate uses), or local governments (e.g., watersheds and natural areas or future urban/commercial real estate development).
The only federal property known to have a population of Oregon Forestsnail and therefore potentially under habitat protection provisions of SARA is at ASU Chilliwack. Intensive surveys within other federal properties within the known range of Oregon Forestsnail, such as Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Aldergrove, Gulf Islands National Park Reserve and Pacific Rim National Park Reserve have not yielded records. The ongoing use of military Range and Training Areas within ASU Chilliwack must comply with existing federal environmental legislation and departmental environment stewardship policies and requires military training be completed in a way that does not compromise environmental sustainability and values (Manweiler pers. comm. 2012). The responsible environmental officers have outlined habitat important for Oregon Forestsnail. A management plan is in place to prevent harm to individuals or destruction of important snail habitat (Manweiler pers. comm. 2012). Oregon Forestsnail has been recorded throughout most of the suitable habitat on the property (Hawkes and Gatten 2011). While the approximate size of the federal property is 644 ha, the amount of potential habitat is estimated at 397 ha but can be further reduced by removing unsuitable habitat for the snail i.e., areas of dense forest and a coniferous swamp with no Stinging Nettle. The actual area of occupancy at the site is unknown.
Oregon Forestsnail also has been recorded from four federal Indian Reserves totalling approximately 19 ha: Sahhacum Indian Reserve 1 (Abbotsford) (< 1 ha), Squiaala Indian Reserve 7 (Chilliwack) (5.39 ha); Popkum Indian Reserve 2 (near Hope) (< 3.9 ha), and Halalt Indian Reserve at Westholme near Crofton (8.8 ha).
There is no legislative protection specifically for Oregon Forestsnail habitat on provincially or privately owned lands in BC although it is recommended for listing as Identified Wildlife under the BC Forest and Range Practices Act (Province of BC 2002). At present, the species is not listed under this Act, although once listed it will be possible to protect known sites and habitat within Wildlife Habitat Areas on provincial Crown land.
Oregon Forestsnail has been recorded from two provincial parks: Bridal Veil Falls Provincial Park (< 1 ha area of occupancy within Stinging Nettle, Figure 9) and Cultus Lake Provincial Park (< 1 ha area of occupancy). The snails in the park are afforded protection through the legal provisions of the BC Parks Act. Both parks are popular recreational areas but there are currently no specific management provisions within the respective park master plans. Park staff are aware of the Oregon Forestsnail occurrences (Hirner pers. comm. 2012).
Oregon Forestsnail populations have been recorded from four private conservation areas in the Lower Fraser Valley. One is the TWU-ESA, which is approximately 50 ha of habitat that is partially covenanted under the BC Ministry of Environment for the protection of fish habitat. The other three properties are owned and/or managed by the Fraser Valley Conservancy (MacMillan pers. comm. 2012): South Fraser Way (1 ha); Auchenway (0.5 ha); and McKee Property (8 acres). Another property is managed by Fraser Valley Conservancy, but owned by the City of Abbotsford (MacMillan pers. comm. 2012).
Numerous Oregon Forestsnail records are from provincial crown land operating under the Chilliwack Forest District (BC Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations 2012). The Chilliwack Forest District covers approximately 1.4 million ha (BC Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Operations 2012). Approximately 10 sites (Table 1) are known to occur on provincial crown land.
Oregon Forestsnail has been recorded from eight local government parks within the Lower Fraser Valley. The approximate area of occupancy is greater than 11 ha. Metro Vancouver (regional district) land managers are aware of the Oregon Forestsnail and are working to incorporate best management practices into park maintenance planning within parks where the species has been recorded (Central Area Parks, Evely pers. comm. 2012; East Area Parks, Jarvis pers. comm. 2012; West Area Parks, Merkens pers. comm. 2012). Metro Vancouver parks with Oregon Forestsnail records and habitat include Colony Farm Regional Park (Figure 10); Brunette-Fraser Regional Greenway; Brae Island Regional Park and Glen Valley Regional Park. Fraser Valley Regional District is also aware of the snail and associated habitat within Cheam Lake Wetlands Regional Park, Aldergrove Regional Park and Neilson Park (Gadsden pers. comm. 2012; Jones pers. comm. 2012). Other parks with records of Oregon Forestsnail include Douglas Taylor Park (City of Abbotsford).
Proposed urban development requires various types of permitting under local, provincial and federal government policy and legislation. The scale, scope and impact of the development determine the type of permitting. As part of the environmental planning process, a proponent is required to apply for a development permit to local government.
Local government bylaws that protect environmental values differ among the 13 local governments (municipal and regional) known to have Oregon Forestsnail sites and unchecked habitat. There are no local (municipal and regional) government bylaws that specifically protect Oregon Forestsnail individuals or habitat; however, numerous development permit applications (depending on the jurisdiction) require environmental assessments that include wildlife values and consider impacts to natural habitats as part of the approval process. Part of the environmental assessment process requires wildlife surveys, which could reveal populations of Oregon Forestsnail within the planned development. Some municipalities have an Official Community Plan that designates environmentally sensitive development permit areas and can direct development away from these sensitive areas with high ecological (e.g., species at risk) values.
The most important legislation that has the potential to protect Oregon Forestsnail habitat is the BC Water Act (Province of BC 1996). Because the snail’s habitat includes ravines, riparian areas and wetland edges, including seasonal and permanent wetlands, and often is adjacent to natural watercourses, it is indirectly protected through provisions of this Act. The Act states the ownership of water is vested in the Crown. A "stream" "includes a natural watercourse or source of water supply, whether usually containing water or not, and a lake, river, creek, spring, ravine, swamp and gulch." Under the Water Act (Province of BC 1996), "changes in and about a stream" means:
- any modification to the nature of the stream including the land, vegetation, natural environment or flow of water within the stream, or
- any activity or construction within the stream channel that has or may have an impact on a stream.
Section 9 of the Water Act (Province of BC 1996) requires that a person may only make "changes in and about a stream" under an Approval or under a Water Licence or Order. Prior to receiving an Approval the proponent must address wildlife resource values among many other components. Advice by other regulatory agencies within the provincial government is often sought to determine the impacts to wildlife resource values. Oregon Forestsnail is considered an ecological value. Because Oregon Forestsnail habitat often overlaps with habitat needed to conserve and protect the water resources and values, the effects to its habitat from infilling, diverting or channelling existing natural watercourses to accommodate access and new urban development is frequently considered during this decision process. However, this potential habitat protection mechanism does not guarantee protection for the snail. Proponents often propose infilling, channelling and diverting water supplies followed by salvage and translocation of snails to different habitats. While there is no legislative requirement to conduct salvage, salvage is not a known viable long-term option for protecting Oregon Forestsnail individuals and habitat. In some cases, monitoring of salvaged populations is required as part of the Water Act approval (e.g., urban development on Mount Lehman, Abbotsford) but salvage of individual snails does little to protect habitat.
Oregon Forestsnail habitat is also indirectly protected under provisions in the Riparian Areas Regulation under the BC Fisheries Act, which requires habitat buffers to remain around watercourses (depending on the size of the watercourse); however, habitat buffer sizes are often not large enough to protect the entire population of the snail.
Despite the potential habitat protection provisions with the BC Water Act and BC Fisheries Act, there are at least five examples of BC Water Act Section 9 Approvals in the past four years that allowed the diversion of a watercourse and infilling of riparian habitat with Oregon Forestsnail populations (e.g., Port Mann Bridge Highway expansion project [Surrey]; Wren Street and Lougheed Highway [Mission]; Silverdale [Mission]; Mount Lehman [Abbotsford]; Marshall Creek ravine [Abbotsford]) (Malt pers. comm. 2012; Robbins pers. comm. 2012).
One example of a Water Act Section 9 approval involves infilling and loss of 500 m2 of in-stream habitat, 53,900 m2 of riparian habitat, and 9600 m2 of active floodplain habitat. This development will enable a large urban housing development to be built on the land, much of which is occupied Oregon Forestsnail habitat.
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