Draft Environmental Assessment and Receipt of Application for an Enhancement of Survival Permit Associated With the Reintroduction of Black-Footed Ferrets on Private Land in Logan County, KS, 59302-59303 [E7-20669]
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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 202 / Friday, October 19, 2007 / Notices
like west Nile virus. Therefore, recovery
actions in this plan focus on protecting
and enhancing forests in the species’
range; determining the specific habitat
requirements of the species to better
manage areas for the species’
conservation; assessing the impact of
black drongos and rats on nosa Luta,
and controlling these species as
appropriate; preventing the introduction
of new predators and avian diseases;
and developing techniques to safeguard
the species from extinction due to
random catastrophic events. Due to the
limited information available about the
species and its threats, this recovery
plan focuses on ten years of the recovery
process. As additional information is
learned about the species and its threats,
recovery strategies and measures should
be reassessed to determine the steps
needed for downlisting and then
delisting the species.
The primary objectives of this
recovery plan are to stop further
declines in the range and composition
of the nosa Luta population, develop
safeguards to prevent the species from
going extinct, and reverse population
declines to population levels estimated
in 1982 (10,000 individuals). These
objectives will be attained by
conducting the following actions: (1)
Reducing the decline of intact nosa Luta
habitat to help reduce further
population declines and range
restrictions and increasing the amount
of habitat available for sustaining an
increasing nosa Luta population; (2)
assessing the impact of black drongos
and introduced rats on the nosa Luta
population and controlling these
species, as needed, to decrease their
impacts on the nosa Luta; (3) preventing
the brown treesnake and other threats,
like West Nile virus, from becoming
established on Rota to prevent further
declines in the nosa Luta population; (4)
evaluating the need and determining the
requirements for establishing a second
population of nosa Luta to prevent the
species’ extinction; and (5) establishing
an outreach program to increase public
support for conservation of the nosa
Luta.
pwalker on PROD1PC71 with NOTICES
Authority: The authority for this action is
section 4(f) of the Endangered Species Act,
16 U.S.C. 1533(f).
Dated: September 7, 2007.
Renne Lohoefener,
Regional Director, Region 1, U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. E7–20628 Filed 10–18–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–55–P
VerDate Aug<31>2005
16:46 Oct 18, 2007
Jkt 214001
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
Draft Environmental Assessment and
Receipt of Application for an
Enhancement of Survival Permit
Associated With the Reintroduction of
Black-Footed Ferrets on Private Land
in Logan County, KS
Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior
ACTION: Notice of availability and
receipt of application.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service (Service) has prepared a draft
Environmental Assessment (EA) for the
proposed use of an Enhancement of
Survival Permit (ESP) for the
reintroduction of black-footed ferrets on
private land in Logan County, Kansas,
pursuant to section 10(a)(1)(A) of the
Endangered Species Act of 1973. as
amended (Act). The Service requests
information, views, and opinions from
the public via this notice.
DATES: Written comments on the permit
application must be received by
November 19, 2007.
ADDRESSES: Written data or comments
should be submitted to the Assistant
Regional Director, Fisheries-Ecological
Services, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
P.O. Box 25486, Denver Federal Center,
Denver, Colorado 80225–0486; facsimile
303–236–0027. Documents and other
information submitted with these
applications are available for review,
subject to the requirements of the
Privacy Act [5 U.S.C. 552A] and
Freedom of Information Act [5 U.S.C.
552], by any party who submits a
request for a copy of such documents
within 30 days of the date of publication
of this notice to Kris Olsen, by mail or
by telephone at 303–236–4256. You also
may obtain copies of the permit
application and the draft EA by visiting
our Web site at https://mountainprairie.fws.gov/species/mammals/
blackfootedferret/. All comments
received from individuals become part
of the official public record.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kris
Olsen, Regional Permit Coordinator
(ADDRESSES above), telephone 303–236–
4256, or Mike LeValley, Project Leader,
Kansas Ecological Services Office, 2609
Anderson Avenue, Manhattan, Kansas
66502, telephone 785–539–3474,
extension 105.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
applicant, Ecological Services, U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service, Manhattan,
Kansas, TE–139523, has requested
issuance of an enhancement of survival
permit to conduct certain activities with
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Sfmt 4703
endangered species pursuant to section
10(a)(1)(A) of the Act. Our draft EA has
been conducted pursuant to the
National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA).
The black-footed ferret is one of the
rarest mammals in North America.
Formerly co-occurring across the ranges
of all prairie dog species, its distribution
has been greatly reduced due to disease
(plague), poisoning of prairie dogs, and
human-related habitat alteration. The
only known current populations are
those in captivity and those started
through reintroduction of captive-bred
individuals. Protection of this species
and enhancement of its habitat on
private land will benefit recovery
efforts.
The primary objections of the
proposed action are—(a) to experiment
with reintroduction of ferrets into much
smaller prairie dog colonies than has
traditionally been attempted; and (b) to
attempt to establish a self-sustaining
population outside the known active
occurrence of sylvatic plague. This
action could result in the accidental
taking of individual ferrets on or off the
release properties, from normal
agricultural activities and vehicular
traffic, and the permit will cover that
take. The property upon which ferrets
will be reintroduced is currently used as
grazing land and cropland and is
bordered by private lands. At the
present time, each property supports
several active prairie dog colonies,
which have been evaluated and
determined potentially suitable for the
support of ferrets. The proposed
reintroduction experiment would
continue for 5 years, after which it may
be terminated or continued indefinitely
depending upon success and
cooperating landowner desires. For
more information regarding specifics of
the experiment, contact the Kansas
Field Office (FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT above).
We have made the determination that
the proposed activities will enhance
survival and recovery of the blackfooted ferret. This notice is provided
pursuant to NEPA and section 10 of the
Act.
The Service has evaluated the impacts
of this action under the NEPA and
determined that it is not a major Federal
action which would significantly affect
the quality of the human environment
within the meaning of section 102(s)(C)
of the NEPA. The Service has also
evaluated whether the activity complies
with section 7 of the Act by conducting
an intra-Service section 7 consultation
on the issuance of the permit. The result
of the biological opinion, in
combination with the above finding and
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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 202 / Friday, October 19, 2007 / Notices
any public comments, will be used in
the final analysis to determine whether
or not to finalize or amend the draft EA
and to issue the permit.
We will evaluate the permit
application, the draft EA, and comments
submitted therein to determine whether
the application meets the requirements
of section 10(a) of the Act. If it is
determined that those requirements are
met, a permit will be issued for the
reintroduction of the black-footed ferret.
The final permit decision will be made
no sooner than 30 days after the date of
this notice.
Authority: The authority of this action is
the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as
amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and the
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969,
as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.).
Dated: October 15, 2007.
Stephen Guertin,
Acting Regional Director, Denver, Colorado.
[FR Doc. E7–20669 Filed 10–18–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–55–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Indian Affairs
Final Programmatic Environmental
Impact Statement for the Proposed
Coeur d’Alene Tribal Integrated
Resource Management Plan, Coeur
d’Alene Reservation, Idaho
Bureau of Indian Affairs,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice.
pwalker on PROD1PC71 with NOTICES
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: This notice advises the public
that the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA)
intends to file a Final Programmatic
Environmental Impact Statement
(FPEIS) with the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency for the proposed
Coeur d’Alene Tribal Integrated
Resource Management Plan (IRMP),
Coeur d’Alene Reservation, Idaho, and
that the FPEIS is now available to the
public. The FPEIS analyzes the impacts
of four alternative approaches to
managing the natural, environmental
and cultural resources of the Coeur
d’Alene Tribe. The purpose of the
proposed action, approval of the tribe’s
implementation of the IRMP for a period
of 20 years, is to protect and sustain
these resources.
DATES: The Record of Decision on the
proposed action will be issued on or
after November 19, 2007. Any
comments on the FPEIS must arrive by
November 19, 2007.
ADDRESSES: You may mail or hand
deliver written comments to
Superintendent, Coeur d’Alene Agency,
VerDate Aug<31>2005
16:46 Oct 18, 2007
Jkt 214001
Bureau of Indian Affairs, P.O. Box 408,
850 A Street, Plummer, Idaho 83851.
Any person wishing a copy of this
FPEIS should immediately write to the
Coeur d’Alene Tribe, Attention: Tiffany
Allgood, P.O. Box 408, 850 A Street,
Plummer, Idaho 83851, or call her at the
number provided below.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Tiffany Allgood, (208) 686–8802.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FPEIS
analyzes the impacts of four possible
alternatives for the IRMP, as follows:
Alternative A—This is the No Action
Alternative. Under this alternative, there
would be no change in the existing
management. Current land use,
recreation and resource management
activities would continue using existing
laws, policies, land use practices,
management plans and agreements.
Alternative B—This is the preferred
alternative. It would provide for the
enhancement of natural and cultural
resources on the reservation, while
maintaining the rural character of the
reservation. The reservation ecology and
biodiversity would be managed to
ensure their restoration and
maintenance to provide for tribal
subsistence and cultural uses of the
resources. Under this alternative, 11,136
acres would be available for
development, 76,149 acres would be
managed for conservation, 661,123 acres
would retain their rural character,
92,565 acres would be managed for
agricultural uses and 95,558 acres
would be forested.
Alternative C—This alternative
emphasizes natural resource
conservation, while maintaining a
working landscape for agriculture and
forestry where compatible. New
development would be limited to
designated and environmentally
suitable areas to minimize resource
disturbances and adverse environmental
impacts. Under this alternative, 5,401
acres would be available for
development, 172,502 acres would be
managed for conservation values, 62,104
acres would be managed for agricultural
uses and 96,569 acres would be
forested.
Alternative D—This alternative would
manage the Reservation to maximize
growth and development where it is not
in conflict with either the natural and
cultural resources or existing land use
designations and suitability. Under this
alternative, 55,909 acres would be
available for development, 9,215 acres
would be managed for conservation
values, 4,808 acres would maintain their
rural character, 50,953 acres would be
managed for recreational uses, 72,791
acres would be managed for agricultural
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59303
uses and 123,634 acres would be
forested.
Public Comment Availability
Comments, including names and
addresses of respondents, will be
available for public review at the BIA
mailing address shown in the
ADDRESSES section, during regular
business hours, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.,
Monday through Friday, except
holidays. Individual respondents may
request confidentiality. If you wish us to
withhold your name and/or address
from public review or from disclosure
under the Freedom of Information Act,
you must state this prominently at the
beginning of your written comment.
Such requests will be honored to the
extent allowed by law. We will not,
however, consider anonymous
comments. All submissions from
organizations or businesses, and from
individuals identifying themselves as
representatives or officials of
organizations or businesses, will be
made available for public inspection in
their entirety.
Authority
This notice is published in
accordance with section 1502.1 of the
Council on Environmental Quality
Regulations (40 CFR parts 1500 through
1508) implementing the procedural
requirements of the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as
amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), and
the Department of Interior Manual (516
DM 1–6), and is in the exercise of
authority delegated to the Principal
Deputy Assistant Secretary—Indian
Affairs by 209 DM 8.
Dated: August 23, 2007.
Carl J. Artman,
Assistant Secretary—Indian Affairs.
[FR Doc. E7–20683 Filed 10–18–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–W7–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[NM220–1430 ES; NM–109924]
Recreation and Public Purposes
(R&PP) Act Classification; New Mexico
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of realty action.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) has determined that
land located in Santa Fe County, New
Mexico is suitable for classification for
lease or conveyance to Museum of New
Mexico Board of Regents, a statutorily
created body of the State of New
E:\FR\FM\19OCN1.SGM
19OCN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 202 (Friday, October 19, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 59302-59303]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-20669]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
Draft Environmental Assessment and Receipt of Application for an
Enhancement of Survival Permit Associated With the Reintroduction of
Black-Footed Ferrets on Private Land in Logan County, KS
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior
ACTION: Notice of availability and receipt of application.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) has prepared a
draft Environmental Assessment (EA) for the proposed use of an
Enhancement of Survival Permit (ESP) for the reintroduction of black-
footed ferrets on private land in Logan County, Kansas, pursuant to
section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973. as amended
(Act). The Service requests information, views, and opinions from the
public via this notice.
DATES: Written comments on the permit application must be received by
November 19, 2007.
ADDRESSES: Written data or comments should be submitted to the
Assistant Regional Director, Fisheries-Ecological Services, U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service, P.O. Box 25486, Denver Federal Center, Denver,
Colorado 80225-0486; facsimile 303-236-0027. Documents and other
information submitted with these applications are available for review,
subject to the requirements of the Privacy Act [5 U.S.C. 552A] and
Freedom of Information Act [5 U.S.C. 552], by any party who submits a
request for a copy of such documents within 30 days of the date of
publication of this notice to Kris Olsen, by mail or by telephone at
303-236-4256. You also may obtain copies of the permit application and
the draft EA by visiting our Web site at https://mountain-
prairie.fws.gov/species/mammals/blackfootedferret/. All comments
received from individuals become part of the official public record.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kris Olsen, Regional Permit
Coordinator (ADDRESSES above), telephone 303-236-4256, or Mike
LeValley, Project Leader, Kansas Ecological Services Office, 2609
Anderson Avenue, Manhattan, Kansas 66502, telephone 785-539-3474,
extension 105.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The applicant, Ecological Services, U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service, Manhattan, Kansas, TE-139523, has requested
issuance of an enhancement of survival permit to conduct certain
activities with endangered species pursuant to section 10(a)(1)(A) of
the Act. Our draft EA has been conducted pursuant to the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
The black-footed ferret is one of the rarest mammals in North
America. Formerly co-occurring across the ranges of all prairie dog
species, its distribution has been greatly reduced due to disease
(plague), poisoning of prairie dogs, and human-related habitat
alteration. The only known current populations are those in captivity
and those started through reintroduction of captive-bred individuals.
Protection of this species and enhancement of its habitat on private
land will benefit recovery efforts.
The primary objections of the proposed action are--(a) to
experiment with reintroduction of ferrets into much smaller prairie dog
colonies than has traditionally been attempted; and (b) to attempt to
establish a self-sustaining population outside the known active
occurrence of sylvatic plague. This action could result in the
accidental taking of individual ferrets on or off the release
properties, from normal agricultural activities and vehicular traffic,
and the permit will cover that take. The property upon which ferrets
will be reintroduced is currently used as grazing land and cropland and
is bordered by private lands. At the present time, each property
supports several active prairie dog colonies, which have been evaluated
and determined potentially suitable for the support of ferrets. The
proposed reintroduction experiment would continue for 5 years, after
which it may be terminated or continued indefinitely depending upon
success and cooperating landowner desires. For more information
regarding specifics of the experiment, contact the Kansas Field Office
(FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT above).
We have made the determination that the proposed activities will
enhance survival and recovery of the black-footed ferret. This notice
is provided pursuant to NEPA and section 10 of the Act.
The Service has evaluated the impacts of this action under the NEPA
and determined that it is not a major Federal action which would
significantly affect the quality of the human environment within the
meaning of section 102(s)(C) of the NEPA. The Service has also
evaluated whether the activity complies with section 7 of the Act by
conducting an intra-Service section 7 consultation on the issuance of
the permit. The result of the biological opinion, in combination with
the above finding and
[[Page 59303]]
any public comments, will be used in the final analysis to determine
whether or not to finalize or amend the draft EA and to issue the
permit.
We will evaluate the permit application, the draft EA, and comments
submitted therein to determine whether the application meets the
requirements of section 10(a) of the Act. If it is determined that
those requirements are met, a permit will be issued for the
reintroduction of the black-footed ferret. The final permit decision
will be made no sooner than 30 days after the date of this notice.
Authority: The authority of this action is the Endangered
Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and the
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C.
4321 et seq.).
Dated: October 15, 2007.
Stephen Guertin,
Acting Regional Director, Denver, Colorado.
[FR Doc. E7-20669 Filed 10-18-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P
