Environmentalists sue feds over failure to protect iconic Clear Lake fish

(CN) — The Center for Biological Diversity hit the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and other federal officials with a lawsuit Tuesday to force Endangered Species Act protections for the threatened Clear Lake hitch.

Native to Clear Lake, arguably the oldest lake in North America and the largest lake situated entirely in California, Clear Lake hitch were once the most common fish species at the historic site. Referred to as “chi” by indigenous peoples, Clear Lake hitch were once so abundant in the lake — north of what is now San Francisco — that its tributaries became difficult to ford during spawning season.

But as the years have gone by and the effects of climate change have worsened, Clear Lake hitch no longer command the sweeping populations they used to. Increasing temperatures and more frequent droughts have destroyed much of the spawning habitat and drastically shortened the spawning window for the species, with estimates suggesting that more than 90% of their habitat has been rendered unusable in recent years.

After observing these troubling trends, the Center for Biological Diversity petitioned the federal government to list the hitch as an endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act, claiming that without protections the fish continue its path toward extinction.

But in December 2020, the Trump administration denied the group’s request. In a 12-month assessment, Fish and Wildlife claimed to recognize the threats posed by climate change and human interference, but said that such factors were unlikely to damage the populations in a “biologically meaningful way” and that protections were not necessary.

Now, in an action filed Tuesday in the Northern District of California, the Center for Biological Diversity claims that decision was based on falsehoods and an unwillingness to accept the realities of climate change.

“We can’t afford to lose the Clear Lake hitch,” Meg Townsend, staff attorney for the organization, said in a statement. “This is a native fish that’s vital to the Clear Lake ecosystem and the cultural legacy of the Pomo people. One of California’s most imperiled fish should not be denied protection based on the past administration’s misinformation, fuzzy science and climate change denial.”

In its lawsuit, the group takes particular issue with a claim by the feds that the Clear Lake hitch benefit from “behavioral flexibility” that allows them to use different spawning strategies under different conditions. But environmentalists say that didn’t come close to explaining why that justifies denying the fish protections, particularly when there is so much we don’t know about how well certain types of spawning could support long-term population growth.

Fish and Wildlife said Clear Lake hitch are also capable of living long lives and laying large numbers of eggs, but according to the lawsuit that did not explain how that will protect a fish species that is clearly hurtling toward extinction.

The federal government’s findings are also not in line with similar assessments done by other experts. Both the California Fish and Game Commission and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, as well as reports by California fish experts, all found that climate change and other factors were putting the pressure on Clear Lake hitch and that they had earned the designation of being a threatened species.

“It’s telling that the state of California protected the hitch as a threatened species based on sound science, while the Fish and Wildlife Service under Trump was presented with the same evidence and chose to ignore it,” Townsend said. “Our lawsuit seeks an honest assessment of the hitch’s status and the severe threats to its very existence.”

The center wants a federal judge to declare that the Trump administration’s assessment was unlawful under the Endangered Species Act and to order the feds to produce a new, supported Clear Lake hitch assessment.

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