Efforts to recover, delist, and preclude the need to list species must start with stabilizing the threatened habitats upon which these species depend.  The Willamette Valley contains over 70% of Oregon’s human population, and over 95% of the Valley is in private ownership.  In this same area, over 95 % of native habitats (upland and wet prairies) have been lost to development, degraded, or converted to agriculture, resulting in 17 Federally-listed species and over 50 species of concern. By 2050, the human population in the Valley is expected to nearly doubled to 4 million. While the numbers are daunting, there are numerous and ongoing opportunities to secure species and habitat recovery through voluntary cooperation with landowners.

The purpose of Cross Program Recovery Initiative (CPR) is to better use the expertise and resources from multiple U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) programs (especially the Wetlands Reserve Program and Partners for Fish and Wildlife) to recover listed species and prevent future listings, by restoring native habitats.  The CPR Initiative focuses on 11 listed and unlisted species (Oregon chub, lamprey, Golden paintbrush, Fender’s blue butterfly, Kincaid’s lupine, Willamette daisy, Bradshaw’s desert parsley, Nelson’s checkermallow, Mardon skipper, Taylor’s checkerspot, streaked horned lark), where significant recovery is achievable over the next five years.  These programs use existing partnerships and develop new ones, internal and external to the Federal government, to implement practical on-the-ground actions that will lead to recovery.  The three Willamette Valley National Wildlife Refuges serve as demonstration areas for high quality habitat restoration and species recovery. 

• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service programs, including Ecological Services, Refuges, Fisheries and Habitat Conservation, Migratory Birds and State Programs, and External Affairs
• Natural Resources Conservation Service  
• Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife
• Oregon State University Extension Service
• Institute of Applied Ecology
• Greenbelt Land Trust Native Seed Network
• The Nature Conservancy
• Polk County Soil & Water Conservation District
• Benton County Natural Areas & Parks
• Benton County Soil & Water Conservation District
• Lane County Soil & Water Conservation District
• McKenzie River Trust ( Green Island )

Taking one of many examples, in the past two years, over $3.8 million of FWS funds have leveraged over $11.2 million to produce lasting partnerships for on-the-ground recovery actions for the Federally-listed Columbian white-tailed deer and 6 other listed species.  These actions include habitat restoration, reintroduction of species, invasive species control, species surveys, and habitat assessments.  These efforts are expected to result in a proposal to delist the Columbian white-tailed deer in 2006.  Two other species, the Oregon chub and Nelson’s checkermallow, are focal species for 2005. These species have the potential for reclassification and delisting over the next 5 years.