A short permit can be a poor fit for a long-lived activity. That mismatch was the Fish and Wildlife Service's argument for revising eagle incidental-take permits: in its May 6, 2016 proposal, it said the five-year maximum discouraged long-term project proponents from applying. The proposed economic mechanism was greater predictability, including the ability to budget for future conservation measures. [2016-29908][2016-10542]

The final rule, published December 16 and covered here in a December 17 weekend retrospective, established a maximum incidental-take term of 30 years. The actual term depends on the activity, impacts and mitigation. January 17, 2017 was the specified effective date, not the weekend coverage date. The ceiling does not guarantee approval or apply indiscriminately to eagle-nest permits. [2016-29908][2016-10542]

The incentive is bounded by an environmental obligation. The Service must find permitted take compatible with preserving bald and golden eagles, and applicants must use appropriate, practicable avoidance and minimization measures, plus compensation where required. Incidental take remains harm associated with an otherwise lawful activity, not its purpose. A longer authorization is therefore not equivalent to making wildlife impacts costless. [2016-29908][2016-10542]

For a market reader, the testable idea is that a more durable permit could attract participation while making protective duties easier to plan. Neither document establishes the size of that response, a reduction in project costs or improved eagle populations. The proposal explains the incentive theory and the final sets its legal boundaries; they are stages of one agency rulemaking, not separate measurements of its performance. [2016-29908][2016-10542]

Source documents

  1. Eagle Permits; Revisions to Regulations for Eagle Incidental Take and Take of Eagle Nestshttps://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2016-12-16/html/2016-29908.htm
  2. Eagle Permits; Revisions to Regulations for Eagle Incidental Take and Take of Eagle Nestshttps://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2016-05-06/html/2016-10542.htm