Common use of Purpose and Need Clause in Contracts

Purpose and Need. The purpose of this Agreement is to enhance the reintroduction and long-term recovery of Lahontan cutthroat trout within the Northwest Geographic Management Unit by encouraging private landowners to voluntarily create, enhance, maintain, or restore Lahontan cutthroat trout habitat. The primary objective of this Agreement is to encourage voluntary habitat restoration, maintenance, or enhancement activities to benefit Lahontan cutthroat trout by relieving a landowner, who enters into, and implements, the provisions of a Cooperative Agreement with the Department, from any additional section 9 liability under the Endangered Species Act beyond that which exists at the time the Cooperative Agreement is signed (baseline responsibilities). In other words, the objective is to give landowners “safe harbor” from added liability. A Safe Harbor Agreement encourages landowners and assures them that prohibitions against incidental take will not occur if those conservation efforts introduce or attract Lahontan cutthroat trout to the enrolled properties or result in increased numbers or distributions of Lahontan cutthroat trout already present on the enrolled properties. As long as landowners carry out agreed upon conservation measures on their property and maintain their baselines, they may continue or undertake regular ranching activities.