The economic impact on the forest sector of critical habita delineation for salmon in the Columbia and Snake River basins

Economic implications of critical habitat designation (CHD) for salmon in the Columbia River basin were estimated in advance of actual designation and recovery plan development. Economic impacts on Pacific， Northwest， Intermountain， and Northern Region National Forests' range， recreation， timber， and mineral programs in the Columbia and Snake River basins were analyzed. Two cases were considered: a worst case， where CHD results in a total reduction in the anadromous portions of the various programs， and a mitigated case， where all or part of the loss is mitigated. Results were analyzed over the 10-year Forest planning period under 4- and 9-percent interest rates. The recreation and timber programs showed values greater than costs for CHD mitigation， while the range program did not. The minerals program initially seemed to fall into the same situation as a range， but limited information in the analysis for minerals made this judgment subjective.(40p.)