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Biological Resources <br />Alternative 1, Options A and B <br />The Riverfront site has been developed for amedical/dental campus. The site has a total of 69 <br />trees, of which seven are coniferous and 62 are deciduous. The deciduous trees are dominated <br />by big-leaf maple (Ater macrophyllum), pin oak (Quercus palustris), and various cherries and <br />plums (Prunus spp.). Eight trees are greater than 30 inches in diameter at breast height (dbh). <br />Alternative 2, Option A (Preferred Alternative) and Option B <br />The Alternative 2 site, currently the location of the Chiquita food processing plant (formerly <br />Agripac), has a total of 18 trees. Sixteen of the trees are small-diameter deciduous trees, and two <br />are medium-diameter conifers (up to 20 inches in diameter). Ten of the trees occur as a cluster <br />of small-diameter big-leaf maples. Four of the trees are hawthornes (Crataegus laevigata, Paul's <br />scarlet) that line the street at the southeastern corner of the site. The remaining four trees, two <br />walnuts (Juglans sp.) and two cedars (Chamaecyparis sp.), are located near the western site <br />boundary. <br />Threatened and Endangered Species <br />Section 7(a) of the federal Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended, requires federal <br />agencies to consult with the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service when a federal action may <br />potentially affect a listed endangered or threatened species. This consultation is required to <br />determine whether any action to be authorized, funded, or carried out by a federal agency is <br />likely to adversely affect a protected species or critical habitat. <br />On June 5, 2000, a letter was sent to the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to initiate <br />section 7 consultation with regard to the proposed construction of a new federal courthouse in <br />the Eugene/Springfield area. <br />According to USFWS (2000), several listed species may occur in the vicinity of all five of the <br />alternative sites, including birds, fishes, invertebrates, .and plants. The bald eagle (Haliaeetus <br />leucocephalus) is listed as a threatened species. Upper Willamette River steelhead <br />(Oncorhynchus mykiss), upper Willamette River Chinook salmon (O. tshawytscha), and <br />Columbia River bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) are all listed as threatened species. Oregon <br />chub (Oregonichthys crameri) is listed as an endangered species. Fenders blue butterfly <br />(Icaricia icarioides fenderi) is listed as an endangered species. Kincaid's lupine (Lupinus <br />sulphureus var. kincaidii) is listed as a threatened plant species, and both Willamette daisy <br />(Erigeron decumbens var. decumbens) and Bradshaw's lomatium (Lomatium bradshawii) are <br />listed as endangered species. In addition, the Oregon spotted frog (Rana pretiosa) is a candidate <br />species. <br />Bald eagles have been known to nest at the confluence of the Willamette and McKenzie rivers <br />and may migrate through the project areas en route to suitable habitat, although there is no <br />documented occurrence of bald eagles in the immediate vicinity of any of the alternative sites. <br />Final EIS 56 New Federal Courthouse <br />