Prefiled 12/29/2005. Read first time 01/09/2006.   Referred to Committee on Natural Resources, Ecology & Parks.

     AN ACT Relating to allowing the reintroduction of beavers into the historic habitat of the species; adding a new section to chapter 77.32 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 77.36 RCW; and creating a new section.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   The legislature finds that beavers have historically played a significant role in maintaining the health of watersheds in the Pacific Northwest and act as key agents in riparian ecology. The live trapping and relocating of beavers has long been recognized as a beneficial wildlife management practice, and has been successfully utilized to restore and maintain stream ecosystems for over fifty years. The benefits of active beaver populations include reduced stream sedimentation, stream temperature moderation, higher dissolved oxygen levels, overall improved water quality, increased natural water storage capabilities within watersheds, and reduced stream velocities. These benefits improve and create habitat for many other species, including endangered salmon, river otters, sandhill cranes, trumpeter swans, and other riparian and aquatic species. Relocating beavers into their historic habitat provides a natural mechanism for improving the environmental conditions in Washington's riparian ecosystems without having to resort to governmental regulation or expensive publically funded engineering projects.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   A new section is added to chapter 77.32 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The department shall offer a beaver relocation permit that allows the holder or the holder's agent to capture live beavers in the areas of the state where elevated beaver populations are considered a nuisance, transport the beavers, and release the live beavers on property owned or managed by the permit holder. Priority of issuing permits must be based on properties in which beaver populations are considered a nuisance.
     (2) The department may limit the availability of beaver relocation permits to areas of the state where:
     (a) There is a low probability of released beavers becoming a nuisance;
     (b) Conditions exist for released beavers to improve, maintain, or manage stream or riparian ecosystem functions; and
     (c) There is evidence of historic endemic beaver populations.
     (3) The department may condition beaver relocation permits to maximize the relocation's success and minimize risk. Factors that the department may condition include:
     (a) Stream gradient;
     (b) Sufficiency of the water supply;
     (c) Stream geomorphology;
     (d) Adequacy of a food source;
     (e) Proper site elevation and valley width;
     (f) Age of the beavers relocated;
     (g) Times of year for capture and relocation;
     (h) Requirements for the capture, handling, and transport of the live beavers;
     (i) Minimum and maximum numbers of beavers that can be relocated in one area; and
     (j) Requirements for the permit holder to initially provide supplemental food and lodge building materials.
     (4) The department shall provide beaver relocation permits at no charge to the applicant.
     (5) The holder of a beaver relocation permit must either obtain a trapping license under RCW 77.65.450 or employ a trapper licensed under RCW 77.65.450 to capture and transport the beavers that are to be relocated.
     (6) Nothing in this section creates any liability against the state or the beaver relocation permit holder nor authorizes any private right of action for any damages subsequently caused by beavers released pursuant to a beaver relocation permit.
     (7) For the purposes of this section only, beaver may be relocated from west of the crest of the Cascade mountains to areas east of the crest of the Cascade mountains, but may not be relocated to any area west of the crest of the Cascade mountains.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   A new section is added to chapter 77.36 RCW to read as follows:
     Whenever the department undertakes the trapping of nuisance or problem-causing beavers, the department must, if the option is available, capture the beavers with a live trap and work with the holders of beaver relocation permits issued under section 2 of this act to relocate the beavers onto properties that have requested their placement.