Endangered and Threatened Species; Recovery Plans, 21913-21917 [E8-8831]
Download as PDF
<![CDATA[
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 79 / Wednesday, April 23, 2008 / Notices
titled, U.S. Climate Change Science
Program Synthesis and Assessment
Product 5.2 ‘‘Best practice approaches
for characterizing, communicating, and
incorporating scientific uncertainty in
decisionmaking.’’
This draft report is being released
solely for the purpose of predissemination peer review under
applicable information quality
guidelines. This document has not been
formally disseminated by NOAA. It does
not represent and should not be
construed to represent any Agency
policy or determination. After
consideration of comments received on
the draft report, a revised version along
with the comments received will be
published on the CCSP web site.
Comments must be received by
June 9, 2008.
DATES:
The draft Synthesis and
Assessment Product: 5.2 is posted on
the CCSP Web site at:
https://www.climatescience.gov/Library/
sap/sap5–2/default.php
Detailed instructions for making
comments on this draft report are
provided at the CCSP link. Comments
must be prepared in accordance to these
instructions and must be submitted to:
5.2–uncertainties@climatescience.gov
ADDRESSES:
Dr.
Fabien Laurier, Climate Change Science
Program Office, 1717 Pennsylvania
Avenue, NW, Suite 250, Washington,
DC 20006, Telephone: (202)419–3481.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
The CCSP
was established by the President in 2002
to coordinate and integrate scientific
research on global change and climate
change sponsored by 13 participating
departments and agencies of the U.S.
Government. The CCSP is charged with
preparing information resources that
promote climate-related discussions and
decisions, including scientific synthesis
and assessment analyses that support
evaluation of important policy issues.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Dated: April 8, 2008.
William J. Brennan,
Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce for
International Affairs, and Acting Director,
Climate Change Science Program.
[FR Doc. E8–8829 Filed 4–22–08; 8:45 am]
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
BILLING CODE 3510–12–S
VerDate Aug<31>2005
16:58 Apr 22, 2008
Jkt 214001
21913
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Background
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
Recovery plans describe actions
beneficial to the conservation and
recovery of species listed under the
Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA),
as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). The
ESA requires that recovery plans
incorporate: (1) objective, measurable
criteria which, when met, would result
in a determination that the species is no
longer threatened or endangered; (2)
site-specific management actions
necessary to achieve the plan’s goals;
and (3) estimates of the time required
and costs to implement recovery
actions. The ESA requires the
development of recovery plans for each
listed species unless such a plan would
not promote its recovery.
NMFS is responsible for developing
and implementing ESA recovery plans
for listed salmon and steelhead. In so
doing, NMFS’ goal is to restore
endangered and threatened Pacific
salmonids to the point that they are
again self-sustaining members of their
ecosystems and no longer need the
protections of the ESA. NMFS believes
it is critically important to base its
recovery plans on the many state,
regional, tribal, local, and private
conservation efforts already underway
throughout the region. This Plan is the
product of a collaborative process
initiated by NMFS and involving the
participation and contributions of a
wide group of private and governmental
entities, citizens, and sovereigns (tribes)
with the potential to contribute to
recovery. In 2005, NMFS and the Lake
Ozette Steering Committee (Steering
Committee), an existing, locally based
citizen group, began working together to
write a draft recovery plan for Lake
Ozette sockeye salmon. The goal was to
produce a plan that meets ESA
requirements for recovery plans as well
as the State of Washington’s recovery
planning outline and guidance
(www.governor.wa.gov/gsro/default/
htm).
The Steering Committee has met
periodically since 1981 to discuss
natural resource issues related to
sockeye salmon. The Steering
Committee is made up of
representatives from the Makah and
Quileute Tribes, Olympic National Park,
Clallam County, local land owners,
Washington Governor’s Salmon
Recovery Office, Washington
Department of Fish and Wildlife,
Washington Department of Natural
Resources, NMFS, U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, North Olympic
Peninsula Lead Entity, private timber
companies, and local citizens.
RIN 0648–XH02
Endangered and Threatened Species;
Recovery Plans
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration,
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of Availability; request
for comments.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: The National Marine
Fisheries Service (NMFS) announces
that the Proposed Lake Ozette Sockeye
Salmon Recovery Plan (Plan) is
available for public review and
comment. The Plan addresses the Lake
Ozette Sockeye Salmon (Oncorhynchus
nerka) Evolutionarily Significant Unit
(ESU), which spawns in Lake Ozette
and its tributaries, on the Olympic
Peninsula at the western edge of
Washington State. NMFS is soliciting
review and comment from the public
and all interested parties on the
Proposed Plan.
DATES: NMFS will consider and address
all substantive comments received
during the comment period. Comments
must be received no later than 5 p.m.
Pacific daylight time on June 23, 2008.
ADDRESSES: Please send written
comments and materials to Rosemary
Furfey, National Marine Fisheries
Service, 1201 N.E. Lloyd Blvd, Suite
1100, Portland, OR 97232. Comments
may also be submitted by e-mail to:
OzettePlan.nwr@noaa.gov. Include in
the subject line of the e-mail comment
the following identifier: Comments on
Lake Ozette Sockeye Plan. Comments
may be submitted via facsimile (fax) to
503–872–2737.
Persons wishing to review the Plan
can obtain an electronic copy (i.e., CDROM) from Sharon Houghton by calling
503–230–5418 or by e-mailing a request
to sharon.houghton@noaa.gov with the
subject line ‘‘CD-ROM Request for Lake
Ozette Sockeye Plan.’’ Electronic copies
of the Plan are also available on-line on
the NMFS website www.nwr.noaa.gov/
Salmon-Recovery-Planning/ESARecovery-Plans/Draft-Plans.cfm
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Rosemary Furfey, NMFS Lake Ozette
Salmon Recovery Coordinator at 503–
231–2149, or Elizabeth Gaar, NMFS
Salmon Recovery Division at 503–230–
5434.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
PO 00000
Frm 00014
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
E:\FR\FM\23APN1.SGM
23APN1
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
21914
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 79 / Wednesday, April 23, 2008 / Notices
Frequent Steering Committee
meetings enabled NMFS and Puget
Sound Technical Recovery Team
members to share draft recovery plan
products and seek Steering Committee
review and comment as the draft plan
was developed. In early 2007, the
preliminary draft Lake Ozette Sockeye
Limiting Factors Analysis (Haggerty et
al., 2007) and NMFS’ Status Report for
Completing the Sockeye Recovery Plan
were posted on the North Olympic
Peninsula Lead Entity web page at
noplegroup.org/NOPLE/pages/
watersheds/
OzetteLakeWatershedPage.htm.
In addition to participating in
frequent Steering Committee meetings
during development of the draft
recovery plan, NMFS periodically
briefed staff or members of the following
key stakeholder groups: Olympic
National Park, Clallam County
Commissioners and Planning
Department, Makah Tribe, Quileute
Tribe, Washington Forest Protection
Association, Olympic Coast National
Marine Sanctuary, Lake Ozette
watershed private timber land
managers, Lake Ozette watershed
landowners, and North Olympic
Peninsula Lead Entity.
NMFS has appointed teams of
scientists with expertise in salmon
species to provide scientific support for
recovery planning in the Northwest.
These technical recovery teams (TRTs)
include biologists from NMFS, state,
tribal, and local agencies, academic
institutions, and private consulting
groups. The Puget Sound TRT provided
two reports for the Lake Ozette sockeye
salmon recovery planning process: (1) a
description of the Lake Ozette sockeye
salmon population (Currens et al., 2006)
and (2) viability criteria for the sockeye
(Rawson et al., 2008). The team also
reviewed the Lake Ozette Sockeye
Limiting Factors Analysis (Haggerty et
al., 2007) and the draft recovery plan in
detail, and the Plan was revised
accordingly.
The proposed Plan is now available
for public review and comment. The
Limiting Factors Analysis and the two
Puget Sound TRT reports, which
provide the scientific basis for the Plan,
are also available for public review and
comment. With approval of the final
Plan, NMFS commits itself to
implement the actions in the Plan for
which it has authority and funding, to
work cooperatively on implementation
of other actions, and to encourage other
Federal agencies and tribal governments
to implement Plan actions for which
they have responsibility and authority.
NMFS will also encourage the State of
Washington to seek similar
VerDate Aug<31>2005
16:58 Apr 22, 2008
Jkt 214001
implementation commitments from
state agencies and local governments.
NMFS will seek opportunities to work
with tribal governments on plan
implementation to help the agency meet
its trust and treaty responsibilities to the
tribes. NMFS will encourage other
Federal agencies to do the same when
implementing programs that may affect
trust and treaty resources.
NMFS expects the Plan to help NMFS
and other Federal agencies take a more
consistent approach to future ESA
section 7 consultations and other ESA
decisions. For example, the Plan will
provide greater biological context for the
effects that a proposed action may have
on the species. This context will be
enhanced by adding recovery plan
science to the ‘‘best available
information’’ for section 7 consultations
as well as for ESA section 10 habitat
conservation plans and other ESA
decisions. Such information includes
viability criteria for the ESU, better
understanding of and information on
limiting factors and threats facing the
ESU, better information on priority
areas for addressing specific limiting
factors, and better geographic context
for where the ESU can tolerate varying
levels of risk.
The Plan
Lake Ozette, its perimeter shore, and
most of the Ozette River, which forms
the outlet of the lake to the estuary and
Pacific Ocean, are included in the
922,000–acre Olympic National Park.
This Plan complements, recognizes, and
works within the authorities of the
Olympic National Park, Clallam County,
the Forest Practices Habitat
Conservation Plan, the Washington
Department of Natural Resources
Habitat Conservation Plan, and tribal
trust and treaty rights, and does not
augment or supersede these or other
authorities.
Lake Ozette sockeye salmon were
listed under the Endangered Species Act
(ESA) on March 25, 1999 (64 FR 14528)
as a species threatened with extinction.
The Lake Ozette Sockeye Salmon ESU is
unique among other ESA-listed salmon
in being made up of only one
population with an inland range that is
limited to a single freshwater watershed
a short distance from the ocean.
Furthermore, the Lake Ozette watershed
has an unusual potential for protection
and restoration of landscape processes
to support long-term salmon survival,
because it is relatively undeveloped, has
a relatively low human population
density, and the lake itself is located in
the Olympic National Park.
The Plan is based on a series of
hypotheses about what is limiting the
PO 00000
Frm 00015
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
survival of Lake Ozette sockeye salmon.
These hypotheses are based on the best
available current knowledge about the
Lake Ozette sockeye salmon, and are
designed to be tested in the course of
time through monitoring the fish, their
environment, and the effects of the
actions that may be taken to protect and
improve the Lake Ozette sockeye’s
ecosystem and survival chances. The
process of designing actions based on
best available information, then
monitoring the results to find out what
works best and changing the actions as
appropriate, is called adaptive
management. The Plan is intended as a
tool for adaptive management for Lake
Ozette sockeye salmon recovery.
ESU Addressed and Planning Area
The Plan is intended for
implementation within the range of the
Lake Ozette Sockeye Salmon ESU,
which spawns in Lake Ozette or its
tributaries, on the Olympic Peninsula at
the western edge of Washington State.
The Lake Ozette Sockeye Salmon ESU is
made up of only one population
(Currens et al., 2006), which currently
contains five distinct spawning
aggregations that are described in the
Plan as subpopulations. The
subpopulations can be grouped
according to whether they spawn in
tributaries or near lake beaches. Lake
Ozette sockeye salmon are distinguished
from other Washington sockeye salmon
ESUs based upon unique genetic
characteristics, early river entry, the
relatively large adult body size, and
large average smolt size relative to other
coastal Washington sockeye salmon
populations.
Lake Ozette is situated on the coastal
plain between the Pacific Ocean and the
Olympic Mountains. The lake is
approximately 8 miles (12.9 km) long
from north to south and 2 miles (3.2 km)
wide, irregularly shaped, and containing
several bays, distinct points, and three
islands. With a surface area of 11.8 mi2
(30.6 km2; 7,550 acres; 3,056 ha), Lake
Ozette is the third largest natural lake in
Washington State. The Ozette River
drains the lake from its north end and
travels approximately 5.3 miles (8.5 km)
along a sinuous course to the Pacific
Ocean. The total drainage area of the
Ozette watershed at the confluence with
the Pacific Ocean is 88.4 mi2 (229 km2).
Historically, the Ozette watershed
supported thriving populations of
sockeye salmon, which were an
important element of the fisheries of the
Makah and Quileute Tribes as well as an
important subsistence species for early
European-American settlers in the
watershed. The peak harvest of 17,500
fish was recorded in 1949, but
E:\FR\FM\23APN1.SGM
23APN1
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 79 / Wednesday, April 23, 2008 / Notices
abundance decreased rapidly in the
following two decades. Because of
declining numbers, tribal commercial
harvest ceased in 1974 and all tribal
ceremonial and subsistence harvest
ceased in 1982.
The Plan’s Recovery Goals and
Recovery Criteria
The Plan’s goal is for the Lake Ozette
sockeye salmon population to reach the
point that it is naturally self-sustaining,
no longer needs the protection of the
Act, and can be delisted. In addition, a
recovery plan can have ‘‘broad-sense’’
goals that may go beyond the
requirements for delisting to
acknowledge social, cultural, or
economic values regarding the listed
species. NMFS and the Lake Ozette
Steering Committee crafted the
following vision statement describing
desirable future conditions for the Lake
Ozette sockeye salmon and its human
and biological setting:
‘‘The naturally spawning Lake Ozette
sockeye salmon population is
sufficiently abundant, productive, and
diverse (in terms of life histories and
geographic distribution) to provide
significant ecological, cultural, social,
and economic benefits. Protection and
restoration of ecosystems have sustained
processes necessary to maintain sockeye
as well as other salmon, steelhead,
cutthroat trout, and other native fish
and wildlife species. Community
livability, economic well-being, and
treaty-reserved fishing rights have
benefited by balancing salmon recovery
with management of local land use and
fishery economies.’’
To meet the ESA requirement for
objective, measurable criteria for
delisting, the Plan provides biological
recovery criteria based on the Puget
Sound TRT viability criteria for Lake
Ozette sockeye salmon as well as
‘‘threats’’ criteria based on the listing
factors defined in ESA section 4(a)(1).
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
Biological Recovery Criteria
The Puget Sound TRT provided
viability criteria for Lake Ozette sockeye
salmon in terms of the four ‘‘viable
salmonid population’’ (VSP) parameters
defined in a NMFS technical
memorandum, Viable salmonid
populations and the recovery of
evolutionarily significant units
(McElhany et al., 2000). The Puget
Sound TRT’s viability criteria for Lake
Ozette sockeye salmon are as follows:
• Abundance: Between 35,500 and
121,000 adult spawners, over a number
of years.
• Productivity (Growth Rate): Stable
or increasing
VerDate Aug<31>2005
16:58 Apr 22, 2008
Jkt 214001
• Spatial Structure: Multiple,
persistent, and spatially distinct beach
spawning aggregations, augmented by
tributary spawning aggregations.
• Diversity: One or more persistent
spawning aggregations from each major
genetic and life history group
historically present within that
population. Maintain the distinctness
between Lake Ozette sockeye salmon
and kokanee.
NMFS, in coordination with the
Steering Committee, concluded that the
Puget Sound TRT’s viability criteria
should be the biological recovery
criteria of the plan.
Threats Criteria
‘‘Threats’’ are the human activities or
natural events that cause the factors
limiting a species’ survival. For
example, where high water
temperatures are identified as a limiting
factor, removal of riparian vegetation,
which causes loss of shade and results
in higher water temperatures, is
categorized as a threat. The threats
criteria define the conditions under
which the listing factors, or threats, can
be considered to be addressed or
mitigated. Threats criteria are provided
in Section 3.3.2 of the Plan.
Causes for Decline and Current Threats
The 1999 listing of the Lake Ozette
sockeye salmon as threatened under the
ESA was primarily attributed to
concerns about low abundance and
effects of small population genetic and
demographic variability. A more
thorough identification of limiting
factors is provided in the draft Lake
Ozette Sockeye Limiting Factors
Analysis (Haggerty et al., 2007). Based
on the best available information and
analysis, the Lake Ozette Steering
Committee’s Technical Workgroup
evaluated and rated each of the limiting
factors hypotheses for its contribution to
sockeye population or subpopulation
mortality by life stage.
Some limiting factors, habitat
conditions, and life histories are shared
among all subpopulations, while others
vary. In the Limiting Factors Analysis,
the subpopulations were grouped based
on spawning environment, i.e., tributary
vs. beach, and limiting factors were
described in three categories: those
affecting the entire population; those
specific to beach spawners; and those
specific to tributary spawners.
Two limiting factors are hypothesized
as having a high impact on all Lake
Ozette sockeye salmon population
segments: piscivorous fish predation on
juveniles rearing in the lake, and general
marine survival. Limiting factors with
moderate impact on all population
PO 00000
Frm 00016
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
21915
segments are marine mammal predation
on adults re-entering the Ozette River
and water quality in the Ozette River.
Limiting factors hypothesized as
having a high impact specifically on
beach spawners are poor-quality
spawning habitat, which decreases
survival in the incubation-to-emergence
life stage, and predation on adults, eggs,
and newly emerged fry. Limiting factors
with moderate impact on beach
spawners are: seasonal lake level
changes; water quality issues, including
turbidity and fine sediment; and
competition for good quality spawning
habitat, which can result in redd
superimposition and decreased egg-tofry survival.
Limiting factors hypothesized as
having high impact specifically on
tributary spawners are fine sediments,
unstable channel, and other water
quality issues that reduce spawning
habitat quality and result in decreased
egg-to-fry survival. High predation on
fry during their emigration to the lake
was identified as a limiting factor with
moderate impact on tributary spawners.
Recovery Strategies and Actions
The Plan recommends an overall
recovery strategy based on current
research about the relationships
between watershed processes, land use,
and freshwater habitat. This information
is then related to what is known about
sockeye salmon mortality by life stage,
and to the hypothesized limiting factors.
The result is a hierarchy of types of
recovery strategies that can form the
basis for setting priorities among
potential actions.
The first priority, and likely the most
effective type of action, is to assess,
protect, and maintain good quality
habitat and the processes that create and
maintain it. One example would be to
protect currently used spawning areas.
Another would be for willing
landowners to protect forest or
streamside areas with conservation
easements, where trees could be
allowed to grow large, mature, and
eventually fall by natural forces,
creating habitat conditions needed by
sockeye salmon.
Next in importance and certainty of
effectiveness is reconnecting isolated
habitat – for example, removing a
blockage in the stream, thus allowing
salmon more room to spawn and rear.
Third is restoring biological processes
of various kinds; this includes a wide
range of potential actions. For example:
restoring natural predator-prey balance
by improving egg-to-fry survival and/or
reducing non-native fish species by
means of selective fishing; ceasing to
remove large woody debris from
E:\FR\FM\23APN1.SGM
23APN1
21916
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 79 / Wednesday, April 23, 2008 / Notices
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
sections of the lower Ozette River; and
assessing sources of sediment and
reducing sediment production and
delivery to streams.
Directly restoring degraded habitat is
of lower priority because it is more
difficult, often more costly, and often
effective only in the short term,
compared to restoring the processes that
create habitat and will continue creating
properly functioning habitat over time.
However, some direct actions, such as
placing large woody debris in carefully
chosen areas, will initiate biological
processes that are likely to continue
naturally. Creating new habitat is
significantly more difficult than
working to protect and restore existing
habitat; creating new habitat is therefore
of lowest priority, although in some
circumstances it may be the only
alternative.
NMFS, with input from the Steering
Committee, evaluated the sub-basins in
the Lake Ozette watershed for their
importance as sockeye habitat. The Plan
accordingly provides geographic
priorities for recovery actions.
Habitat, harvest, and hatchery factors
affecting Lake Ozette sockeye salmon
are included in the recovery strategies.
Hatchery and harvest management
issues are presented and addressed
within the context of biological
processes.
NMFS and the Lake Ozette Steering
Committee developed an extensive list
of 121 potential projects/actions. The
proposed actions are designed to
address the full range of limiting factors
for all life cycle stages of Lake Ozette
sockeye salmon and are intended to
improve the health and ecosystems of
these fish.
The proposed actions are in six
categories:
• Fisheries management
• Habitat-related actions
• Hatchery supplementation
• Predation-related actions
• Research, monitoring, and adaptive
management
• Public education and outreach
The proposed recovery actions will
need to be implemented in cooperation
with all appropriate permitting
authorities (including the Olympic
National Park), and in the context of
existing permits, regulations,
agreements, and public processes.
Research, Monitoring, and Adaptive
Management
The Plan identifies the many
knowledge gaps and uncertainties
involved in designing recovery actions
for the Lake Ozette sockeye salmon.
Because the proposed recovery actions
are based on hypotheses about the
VerDate Aug<31>2005
16:58 Apr 22, 2008
Jkt 214001
relationships between fish, limiting
factors, human activities, and the
environment, the Plan recommends
research and monitoring to determine
progress in recovery. Monitoring is the
basis for adaptive management – the
process of adjusting management
actions and/or directions based on new
information. Research, monitoring, and
adaptive management are built into the
Plan.
Time and Cost Estimates
The ESA section 4(f)(1) requires that
the recovery plan include ‘‘estimates of
the time required and the cost to carry
out those measures needed to achieve
the Plan’s goal and to achieve
intermediate steps toward that goal’’ (16
U.S.C. 1533[f][1]).
Appendix E of the Plan provides cost
estimates for actions where costs are
available. Costs for actions that are
being implemented as part of ongoing,
existing programs are considered
‘‘baseline’’ and are not included in
Appendix E as costs to recover sockeye
salmon. During the public comment
period, NMFS will work with regional
experts to identify costs, scale, or unit
costs for actions that require more
information. Appendix E and the total
cost estimate will be updated with this
new information for the final recovery
plan. The overall total cost to
implement potential recovery actions
for the first 10 years of this plan is
estimated to be about $46 million. Many
of these are one-time costs.
Approximately $100,000 represents
ongoing, annual administrative or
infrastructure costs that will likely
continue for the duration of
implementation of the recovery plan.
Thus, it can be inferred that if recovery
takes 50 years, another $4 million may
be incurred over the long term to
continue and maintain proposed habitat
improvements.
NMFS estimates that recovery of the
Lake Ozette Sockeye Salmon ESU, like
recovery for most of the ESA-listed
salmon, could take 50 to 100 years.
Because many uncertainties exist about
how sockeye salmon and their habitat
will respond to recovery actions, the
costs and recovery actions in this plan
focus on the first 10 years of
implementation. Actions and costs will
be revised over time as part of adaptive
management.
Unlike other ESA-listed salmon
species in Washington State, the Lake
Ozette Sockeye Salmon ESU has not had
a state-designated recovery board
responsible for developing the recovery
plan. Therefore, NMFS is working with
the Lake Ozette Steering Committee and
other entities such as the newly formed
PO 00000
Frm 00017
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
North Pacific Coast Lead Entity and the
Washington Coast Sustainable Salmon
Partnership to make an implementation
plan. NMFS anticipates that the
organizations potentially involved will
choose to participate, in recognition of
the shared benefits of habitat protection
and restoration. A detailed
implementation schedule and further
details of an organizational approach to
implementation will be produced in
2008 after the recovery plan is adopted.
Conclusion
NMFS concludes that the Plan meets
the requirements of ESA section 4(f) and
thus is proposing it as an ESA recovery
plan.
Public Comments Solicited
NMFS solicits written comments on
the Proposed Plan. All comments
received by the date specified above
will be considered prior to NMFS’
decision whether to approve the Plan.
Additionally, NMFS will provide a
summary of the comments and
responses through its Northwest Region
web site and provide a news release for
the public announcing the availability
of the response to comments. NMFS
seeks comments particularly in the
following areas: (1) the analysis of, and
hypotheses concerning, limiting factors
and threats; (2) the recovery objectives,
strategies, and actions; (3) the criteria
for removing the ESU from the Federal
list of endangered and threatened
wildlife and plants; and (4) estimates of
time and cost to implement recovery
actions, including the intent to be even
more specific by soliciting an
implementation schedule.
Literature Cited
Currens, K.P., R. Fuerstenberg, W.
Graeber, K. Rawson, M. Ruckelshaus,
N.J. Sands, and J. Scott. 2006.
Independent populations of sockeye
salmon in Lake Ozette. Puget Sound
Technical Recovery Team document.
March 21, 2006. Northwest Fisheries
Science Center. NOAA Fisheries
Service. Seattle, WA. 20p.
www.nwfsc.noaa.gov/trt/pugetldocs
Haggerty, M.J., A.C. Ritchie, J.G.
Shellberg, M.J. Crewson, and J. Jolonen.
2007. Lake Ozette Sockeye Limiting
Factors Analysis: Draft 8l1. Prepared
for the Makah Indian Tribe and NOAA
Fisheries in cooperation with the Lake
Ozette Sockeye Steering Committee.
Port Angeles, WA.
McElhany, P., M.H. Ruckelshaus, M.J.
Ford, T.C. Wainwright, and E.P.
Bjorkstedt. 2000. Viable salmon
populations and the recovery of
evolutionarily significant units. U.S.
E:\FR\FM\23APN1.SGM
23APN1
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 79 / Wednesday, April 23, 2008 / Notices
Dept. of Commerce, NOAA Tech.
Memo., NMFS-NWFSC–42, 156p.
Rawson, K., N.J. Sands, K.P.Currens,
W. Graeber, M. Ruckelshaus, R.
Fuerstenberg, and J.B. Scott. 2008.
Viability Criteria for the Lake Ozette
Sockeye Salmon ESU. Puget Sound
Technical Recovery Team document.
Northwest Fisheries Science Center.
NOAA Fisheries Service. Seattle, WA.
39p.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.
BILLING CODE 3510–22–S
Revised Draft Framework for
Developing the National System of
Marine Protected Areas and Response
to Comments
NOAA, Department of
Commerce (DOC).
AGENCY:
Extension of public comment
period; Notice on the Revised Draft
Framework for Developing the National
System of Marine Protected Areas.
ACTION:
SUMMARY: NOAA and the Department of
the Interior published a notice in the
Federal Register on March 17, 2008 (73
FR 14227) announcing a 30-day public
comment period on the Revised Draft
Framework for Developing the National
System of Marine Protected Areas
(Revised Draft Framework). Copies of
the Revised Draft Framework can be
requested via the contact information
below or downloaded from https://
www.mpa.gov. The deadline for public
comment on the Revised Draft
Framework is hereby extended.
The extended deadline for
comments on the Revised Draft
Framework is 11:59 EDT, May 16, 2008.
DATES:
All comments regarding the
Revised Draft Framework should be
submitted to Joseph Uravitch, National
MPA Center, N/ORM, NOAA, 1305 EastWest Highway, Silver Spring, Maryland
20910. Comments sent via e-mail should
be sent to mpa.comments@noaa.gov,
and all comments sent by fax should be
sent to 301–713–3110. E-mail and fax
comments should state ‘‘Revised Draft
Framework Comments’’ in the subject
line.
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
Jkt 214001
COMMODITY FUTURES TRADING
COMMISSION
Proposal To Exempt the Trading and
Clearing of Certain Products Related to
streetTRACKS Gold Trust Shares
Commodity Futures Trading
Commission.
ACTION: Notice of proposed order and
request for comment.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
18:48 Apr 22, 2008
Dated: April 16, 2008.
David M. Kennedy,
Director, Office of Ocean and Coastal
Resource Management, National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration.
[FR Doc. E8–8672 Filed 4–22–08; 8:45 am]
AGENCY:
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
VerDate Aug<31>2005
Refer to the Federal Register notice of
March 17, or contact Lauren Wenzel,
NOAA, at 301–713–3100, or via e-mail
at mpa.comments@noaa.gov.
BILLING CODE 3510–08–M
Dated: April 17, 2008.
Marta Nammack,
Acting Chief, Endangered Species Division,
Office of Protected Resources, National
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E8–8831 Filed 4–22–08; 8:45 am]
ADDRESSES:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
SUMMARY: The Commodity Futures
Trading Commission (‘‘CFTC’’ or the
‘‘Commission’’) is proposing to exempt
the trading and clearing of products
called options on streetTRACKS Gold
Trust Shares (‘‘ST Gold Options’’),
proposed to be traded on a national
securities exchange, and cleared
through the Options Clearing
Corporation (‘‘OCC’’), from the
provisions of the Commodity Exchange
Act (‘‘CEA’’) 1 and the regulations
thereunder to the extent necessary to
permit them to be so traded and cleared.
Authority for this exemption is found in
Section 4(c) of the CEA.2
DATES: Comments must be received on
or before April 30, 2008.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be
submitted by any of the following
methods:
• Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://
www.regulations.gov/https://
frwebgate.access.gpo/cgi-bin/leaving.
Follow the instructions for submitting
comments.
• E-mail: secretary@cftc.gov. Include
‘‘OCC ST Gold Options 4(c)’’ in the
subject line of the message.
• Fax: 202/418–5521.
• Mail: Send to David A. Stawick,
Secretary, Commodity Futures Trading
Commission, Three Lafayette Centre,
1155 21st Street, NW., Washington, DC
20581.
• Courier: Same as mail above.
All comments received will be posted
without change to https://
www.CFTC.gov/.
17
27
PO 00000
U.S.C. 1 et seq.
U.S.C. 6(c).
Frm 00018
Fmt 4703
21917
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Robert B. Wasserman, Associate
Director, 202–418–5092,
rwasserman@cftc.gov, Division of
Clearing and Intermediary Oversight,
Commodity Futures Trading
Commission, Three Lafayette Centre,
1151 21st Street, NW., Washington, DC
20581.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The OCC is both a Derivatives
Clearing Organization (‘‘DCO’’)
registered pursuant to Section 5b of the
CEA, 7 U.S.C. 7a–1, and a securities
clearing agency registered pursuant to
Section 17A of the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934 (‘‘the ’34 Act’’).3
OCC has filed with the CFTC,
pursuant to Section 5c(c) of the CEA
and Commission Regulations 39.4(a)
and 40.5 thereunder,4 requests for
approval of rules and rule amendments
that would enable OCC to clear and
settle ST Gold Options 5 traded on a
national securities exchange in its
capacity as a registered securities
clearing agency (and not in its capacity
as a DCO).6 Section 5c(c)(3) provides
that the CFTC must approve any such
rules and rule amendments submitted
for approval unless it finds that the
rules or rule amendments would violate
the CEA.
The request for approval concerning
the ST Gold Options was filed effective
February 4, 2008, and Amendment No.
1 thereto was filed effective March 7,
2008.
II. Section 4(c) of the Commodity
Exchange Act
Section 4(c)(1) of the CEA empowers
the CFTC to ‘‘promote responsible
economic or financial innovation and
fair competition’’ by exempting any
transaction or class of transactions from
any of the provisions of the CEA
(subject to exceptions not relevant here)
where the Commission determines that
the exemption would be consistent with
the public interest.7 The Commission
3 15
U.S.C. 78q–l.
U.S.C. 7a–2(c), 17 CFR 39.4(a), 40.5.
5 streetTRACKS Gold Trust Shares, which
underly ST Gold Options, are described in greater
detail in the ‘‘Proposed Exemptive Order for ST
Gold Futures Contracts,’’ 73 FR 13,867 (March 14,
2008). The length of the comment period for this
proposal is informed by the fact that the ST Gold
Futures Contracts proposal is outstanding, and the
goal of addressing both proposals simultaneously.
6 See SR–OCC–2008–04 and Amendment No. 1
thereto. OCC has also filed these proposed rule
changes with the SEC.
7 Section 4(c)(1) of the CEA, 7 U.S.C. 6(c)(1),
provides in full that:
In order to promote responsible economic or
financial innovation and fair competition, the
47
Continued
Sfmt 4703
E:\FR\FM\23APN1.SGM
23APN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 79 (Wednesday, April 23, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21913-21917]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-8831]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-XH02
Endangered and Threatened Species; Recovery Plans
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of Availability; request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) announces that
the Proposed Lake Ozette Sockeye Salmon Recovery Plan (Plan) is
available for public review and comment. The Plan addresses the Lake
Ozette Sockeye Salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) Evolutionarily Significant
Unit (ESU), which spawns in Lake Ozette and its tributaries, on the
Olympic Peninsula at the western edge of Washington State. NMFS is
soliciting review and comment from the public and all interested
parties on the Proposed Plan.
DATES: NMFS will consider and address all substantive comments
received during the comment period. Comments must be received no later
than 5 p.m. Pacific daylight time on June 23, 2008.
ADDRESSES: Please send written comments and materials to Rosemary
Furfey, National Marine Fisheries Service, 1201 N.E. Lloyd Blvd, Suite
1100, Portland, OR 97232. Comments may also be submitted by e-mail to:
OzettePlan.nwr@noaa.gov. Include in the subject line of the e-mail
comment the following identifier: Comments on Lake Ozette Sockeye Plan.
Comments may be submitted via facsimile (fax) to 503-872-2737.
Persons wishing to review the Plan can obtain an electronic copy
(i.e., CD-ROM) from Sharon Houghton by calling 503-230-5418 or by e-
mailing a request to sharon.houghton@noaa.gov with the subject line
``CD-ROM Request for Lake Ozette Sockeye Plan.'' Electronic copies of
the Plan are also available on-line on the NMFS website
www.nwr.noaa.gov/Salmon-Recovery-Planning/ESA-Recovery-Plans/Draft-
Plans.cfm
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rosemary Furfey, NMFS Lake Ozette
Salmon Recovery Coordinator at 503-231-2149, or Elizabeth Gaar, NMFS
Salmon Recovery Division at 503-230-5434.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Recovery plans describe actions beneficial to the conservation and
recovery of species listed under the Endangered Species Act of 1973
(ESA), as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). The ESA requires that
recovery plans incorporate: (1) objective, measurable criteria which,
when met, would result in a determination that the species is no longer
threatened or endangered; (2) site-specific management actions
necessary to achieve the plan's goals; and (3) estimates of the time
required and costs to implement recovery actions. The ESA requires the
development of recovery plans for each listed species unless such a
plan would not promote its recovery.
NMFS is responsible for developing and implementing ESA recovery
plans for listed salmon and steelhead. In so doing, NMFS' goal is to
restore endangered and threatened Pacific salmonids to the point that
they are again self-sustaining members of their ecosystems and no
longer need the protections of the ESA. NMFS believes it is critically
important to base its recovery plans on the many state, regional,
tribal, local, and private conservation efforts already underway
throughout the region. This Plan is the product of a collaborative
process initiated by NMFS and involving the participation and
contributions of a wide group of private and governmental entities,
citizens, and sovereigns (tribes) with the potential to contribute to
recovery. In 2005, NMFS and the Lake Ozette Steering Committee
(Steering Committee), an existing, locally based citizen group, began
working together to write a draft recovery plan for Lake Ozette sockeye
salmon. The goal was to produce a plan that meets ESA requirements for
recovery plans as well as the State of Washington's recovery planning
outline and guidance (www.governor.wa.gov/gsro/default/htm).
The Steering Committee has met periodically since 1981 to discuss
natural resource issues related to sockeye salmon. The Steering
Committee is made up of representatives from the Makah and Quileute
Tribes, Olympic National Park, Clallam County, local land owners,
Washington Governor's Salmon Recovery Office, Washington Department of
Fish and Wildlife, Washington Department of Natural Resources, NMFS,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, North Olympic Peninsula Lead
Entity, private timber companies, and local citizens.
[[Page 21914]]
Frequent Steering Committee meetings enabled NMFS and Puget Sound
Technical Recovery Team members to share draft recovery plan products
and seek Steering Committee review and comment as the draft plan was
developed. In early 2007, the preliminary draft Lake Ozette Sockeye
Limiting Factors Analysis (Haggerty et al., 2007) and NMFS' Status
Report for Completing the Sockeye Recovery Plan were posted on the
North Olympic Peninsula Lead Entity web page at noplegroup.org/NOPLE/
pages/watersheds/OzetteLakeWatershedPage.htm.
In addition to participating in frequent Steering Committee
meetings during development of the draft recovery plan, NMFS
periodically briefed staff or members of the following key stakeholder
groups: Olympic National Park, Clallam County Commissioners and
Planning Department, Makah Tribe, Quileute Tribe, Washington Forest
Protection Association, Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary, Lake
Ozette watershed private timber land managers, Lake Ozette watershed
landowners, and North Olympic Peninsula Lead Entity.
NMFS has appointed teams of scientists with expertise in salmon
species to provide scientific support for recovery planning in the
Northwest. These technical recovery teams (TRTs) include biologists
from NMFS, state, tribal, and local agencies, academic institutions,
and private consulting groups. The Puget Sound TRT provided two reports
for the Lake Ozette sockeye salmon recovery planning process: (1) a
description of the Lake Ozette sockeye salmon population (Currens et
al., 2006) and (2) viability criteria for the sockeye (Rawson et al.,
2008). The team also reviewed the Lake Ozette Sockeye Limiting Factors
Analysis (Haggerty et al., 2007) and the draft recovery plan in detail,
and the Plan was revised accordingly.
The proposed Plan is now available for public review and comment.
The Limiting Factors Analysis and the two Puget Sound TRT reports,
which provide the scientific basis for the Plan, are also available for
public review and comment. With approval of the final Plan, NMFS
commits itself to implement the actions in the Plan for which it has
authority and funding, to work cooperatively on implementation of other
actions, and to encourage other Federal agencies and tribal governments
to implement Plan actions for which they have responsibility and
authority. NMFS will also encourage the State of Washington to seek
similar implementation commitments from state agencies and local
governments. NMFS will seek opportunities to work with tribal
governments on plan implementation to help the agency meet its trust
and treaty responsibilities to the tribes. NMFS will encourage other
Federal agencies to do the same when implementing programs that may
affect trust and treaty resources.
NMFS expects the Plan to help NMFS and other Federal agencies take
a more consistent approach to future ESA section 7 consultations and
other ESA decisions. For example, the Plan will provide greater
biological context for the effects that a proposed action may have on
the species. This context will be enhanced by adding recovery plan
science to the ``best available information'' for section 7
consultations as well as for ESA section 10 habitat conservation plans
and other ESA decisions. Such information includes viability criteria
for the ESU, better understanding of and information on limiting
factors and threats facing the ESU, better information on priority
areas for addressing specific limiting factors, and better geographic
context for where the ESU can tolerate varying levels of risk.
The Plan
Lake Ozette, its perimeter shore, and most of the Ozette River,
which forms the outlet of the lake to the estuary and Pacific Ocean,
are included in the 922,000-acre Olympic National Park. This Plan
complements, recognizes, and works within the authorities of the
Olympic National Park, Clallam County, the Forest Practices Habitat
Conservation Plan, the Washington Department of Natural Resources
Habitat Conservation Plan, and tribal trust and treaty rights, and does
not augment or supersede these or other authorities.
Lake Ozette sockeye salmon were listed under the Endangered Species
Act (ESA) on March 25, 1999 (64 FR 14528) as a species threatened with
extinction. The Lake Ozette Sockeye Salmon ESU is unique among other
ESA-listed salmon in being made up of only one population with an
inland range that is limited to a single freshwater watershed a short
distance from the ocean. Furthermore, the Lake Ozette watershed has an
unusual potential for protection and restoration of landscape processes
to support long-term salmon survival, because it is relatively
undeveloped, has a relatively low human population density, and the
lake itself is located in the Olympic National Park.
The Plan is based on a series of hypotheses about what is limiting
the survival of Lake Ozette sockeye salmon. These hypotheses are based
on the best available current knowledge about the Lake Ozette sockeye
salmon, and are designed to be tested in the course of time through
monitoring the fish, their environment, and the effects of the actions
that may be taken to protect and improve the Lake Ozette sockeye's
ecosystem and survival chances. The process of designing actions based
on best available information, then monitoring the results to find out
what works best and changing the actions as appropriate, is called
adaptive management. The Plan is intended as a tool for adaptive
management for Lake Ozette sockeye salmon recovery.
ESU Addressed and Planning Area
The Plan is intended for implementation within the range of the
Lake Ozette Sockeye Salmon ESU, which spawns in Lake Ozette or its
tributaries, on the Olympic Peninsula at the western edge of Washington
State. The Lake Ozette Sockeye Salmon ESU is made up of only one
population (Currens et al., 2006), which currently contains five
distinct spawning aggregations that are described in the Plan as
subpopulations. The subpopulations can be grouped according to whether
they spawn in tributaries or near lake beaches. Lake Ozette sockeye
salmon are distinguished from other Washington sockeye salmon ESUs
based upon unique genetic characteristics, early river entry, the
relatively large adult body size, and large average smolt size relative
to other coastal Washington sockeye salmon populations.
Lake Ozette is situated on the coastal plain between the Pacific
Ocean and the Olympic Mountains. The lake is approximately 8 miles
(12.9 km) long from north to south and 2 miles (3.2 km) wide,
irregularly shaped, and containing several bays, distinct points, and
three islands. With a surface area of 11.8 mi2 (30.6 km2; 7,550 acres;
3,056 ha), Lake Ozette is the third largest natural lake in Washington
State. The Ozette River drains the lake from its north end and travels
approximately 5.3 miles (8.5 km) along a sinuous course to the Pacific
Ocean. The total drainage area of the Ozette watershed at the
confluence with the Pacific Ocean is 88.4 mi2 (229 km2).
Historically, the Ozette watershed supported thriving populations
of sockeye salmon, which were an important element of the fisheries of
the Makah and Quileute Tribes as well as an important subsistence
species for early European-American settlers in the watershed. The peak
harvest of 17,500 fish was recorded in 1949, but
[[Page 21915]]
abundance decreased rapidly in the following two decades. Because of
declining numbers, tribal commercial harvest ceased in 1974 and all
tribal ceremonial and subsistence harvest ceased in 1982.
The Plan's Recovery Goals and Recovery Criteria
The Plan's goal is for the Lake Ozette sockeye salmon population to
reach the point that it is naturally self-sustaining, no longer needs
the protection of the Act, and can be delisted. In addition, a recovery
plan can have ``broad-sense'' goals that may go beyond the requirements
for delisting to acknowledge social, cultural, or economic values
regarding the listed species. NMFS and the Lake Ozette Steering
Committee crafted the following vision statement describing desirable
future conditions for the Lake Ozette sockeye salmon and its human and
biological setting:
``The naturally spawning Lake Ozette sockeye salmon population is
sufficiently abundant, productive, and diverse (in terms of life
histories and geographic distribution) to provide significant
ecological, cultural, social, and economic benefits. Protection and
restoration of ecosystems have sustained processes necessary to
maintain sockeye as well as other salmon, steelhead, cutthroat trout,
and other native fish and wildlife species. Community livability,
economic well-being, and treaty-reserved fishing rights have benefited
by balancing salmon recovery with management of local land use and
fishery economies.''
To meet the ESA requirement for objective, measurable criteria for
delisting, the Plan provides biological recovery criteria based on the
Puget Sound TRT viability criteria for Lake Ozette sockeye salmon as
well as ``threats'' criteria based on the listing factors defined in
ESA section 4(a)(1).
Biological Recovery Criteria
The Puget Sound TRT provided viability criteria for Lake Ozette
sockeye salmon in terms of the four ``viable salmonid population''
(VSP) parameters defined in a NMFS technical memorandum, Viable
salmonid populations and the recovery of evolutionarily significant
units (McElhany et al., 2000). The Puget Sound TRT's viability criteria
for Lake Ozette sockeye salmon are as follows:
Abundance: Between 35,500 and 121,000 adult spawners, over
a number of years.
Productivity (Growth Rate): Stable or increasing
Spatial Structure: Multiple, persistent, and spatially
distinct beach spawning aggregations, augmented by tributary spawning
aggregations.
Diversity: One or more persistent spawning aggregations
from each major genetic and life history group historically present
within that population. Maintain the distinctness between Lake Ozette
sockeye salmon and kokanee.
NMFS, in coordination with the Steering Committee, concluded that
the Puget Sound TRT's viability criteria should be the biological
recovery criteria of the plan.
Threats Criteria
``Threats'' are the human activities or natural events that cause
the factors limiting a species' survival. For example, where high water
temperatures are identified as a limiting factor, removal of riparian
vegetation, which causes loss of shade and results in higher water
temperatures, is categorized as a threat. The threats criteria define
the conditions under which the listing factors, or threats, can be
considered to be addressed or mitigated. Threats criteria are provided
in Section 3.3.2 of the Plan.
Causes for Decline and Current Threats
The 1999 listing of the Lake Ozette sockeye salmon as threatened
under the ESA was primarily attributed to concerns about low abundance
and effects of small population genetic and demographic variability. A
more thorough identification of limiting factors is provided in the
draft Lake Ozette Sockeye Limiting Factors Analysis (Haggerty et al.,
2007). Based on the best available information and analysis, the Lake
Ozette Steering Committee's Technical Workgroup evaluated and rated
each of the limiting factors hypotheses for its contribution to sockeye
population or subpopulation mortality by life stage.
Some limiting factors, habitat conditions, and life histories are
shared among all subpopulations, while others vary. In the Limiting
Factors Analysis, the subpopulations were grouped based on spawning
environment, i.e., tributary vs. beach, and limiting factors were
described in three categories: those affecting the entire population;
those specific to beach spawners; and those specific to tributary
spawners.
Two limiting factors are hypothesized as having a high impact on
all Lake Ozette sockeye salmon population segments: piscivorous fish
predation on juveniles rearing in the lake, and general marine
survival. Limiting factors with moderate impact on all population
segments are marine mammal predation on adults re-entering the Ozette
River and water quality in the Ozette River.
Limiting factors hypothesized as having a high impact specifically
on beach spawners are poor-quality spawning habitat, which decreases
survival in the incubation-to-emergence life stage, and predation on
adults, eggs, and newly emerged fry. Limiting factors with moderate
impact on beach spawners are: seasonal lake level changes; water
quality issues, including turbidity and fine sediment; and competition
for good quality spawning habitat, which can result in redd
superimposition and decreased egg-to-fry survival.
Limiting factors hypothesized as having high impact specifically on
tributary spawners are fine sediments, unstable channel, and other
water quality issues that reduce spawning habitat quality and result in
decreased egg-to-fry survival. High predation on fry during their
emigration to the lake was identified as a limiting factor with
moderate impact on tributary spawners.
Recovery Strategies and Actions
The Plan recommends an overall recovery strategy based on current
research about the relationships between watershed processes, land use,
and freshwater habitat. This information is then related to what is
known about sockeye salmon mortality by life stage, and to the
hypothesized limiting factors. The result is a hierarchy of types of
recovery strategies that can form the basis for setting priorities
among potential actions.
The first priority, and likely the most effective type of action,
is to assess, protect, and maintain good quality habitat and the
processes that create and maintain it. One example would be to protect
currently used spawning areas. Another would be for willing landowners
to protect forest or streamside areas with conservation easements,
where trees could be allowed to grow large, mature, and eventually fall
by natural forces, creating habitat conditions needed by sockeye
salmon.
Next in importance and certainty of effectiveness is reconnecting
isolated habitat - for example, removing a blockage in the stream, thus
allowing salmon more room to spawn and rear.
Third is restoring biological processes of various kinds; this
includes a wide range of potential actions. For example: restoring
natural predator-prey balance by improving egg-to-fry survival and/or
reducing non-native fish species by means of selective fishing; ceasing
to remove large woody debris from
[[Page 21916]]
sections of the lower Ozette River; and assessing sources of sediment
and reducing sediment production and delivery to streams.
Directly restoring degraded habitat is of lower priority because it
is more difficult, often more costly, and often effective only in the
short term, compared to restoring the processes that create habitat and
will continue creating properly functioning habitat over time. However,
some direct actions, such as placing large woody debris in carefully
chosen areas, will initiate biological processes that are likely to
continue naturally. Creating new habitat is significantly more
difficult than working to protect and restore existing habitat;
creating new habitat is therefore of lowest priority, although in some
circumstances it may be the only alternative.
NMFS, with input from the Steering Committee, evaluated the sub-
basins in the Lake Ozette watershed for their importance as sockeye
habitat. The Plan accordingly provides geographic priorities for
recovery actions.
Habitat, harvest, and hatchery factors affecting Lake Ozette
sockeye salmon are included in the recovery strategies. Hatchery and
harvest management issues are presented and addressed within the
context of biological processes.
NMFS and the Lake Ozette Steering Committee developed an extensive
list of 121 potential projects/actions. The proposed actions are
designed to address the full range of limiting factors for all life
cycle stages of Lake Ozette sockeye salmon and are intended to improve
the health and ecosystems of these fish.
The proposed actions are in six categories:
Fisheries management
Habitat-related actions
Hatchery supplementation
Predation-related actions
Research, monitoring, and adaptive management
Public education and outreach
The proposed recovery actions will need to be implemented in
cooperation with all appropriate permitting authorities (including the
Olympic National Park), and in the context of existing permits,
regulations, agreements, and public processes.
Research, Monitoring, and Adaptive Management
The Plan identifies the many knowledge gaps and uncertainties
involved in designing recovery actions for the Lake Ozette sockeye
salmon. Because the proposed recovery actions are based on hypotheses
about the relationships between fish, limiting factors, human
activities, and the environment, the Plan recommends research and
monitoring to determine progress in recovery. Monitoring is the basis
for adaptive management - the process of adjusting management actions
and/or directions based on new information. Research, monitoring, and
adaptive management are built into the Plan.
Time and Cost Estimates
The ESA section 4(f)(1) requires that the recovery plan include
``estimates of the time required and the cost to carry out those
measures needed to achieve the Plan's goal and to achieve intermediate
steps toward that goal'' (16 U.S.C. 1533[f][1]).
Appendix E of the Plan provides cost estimates for actions where
costs are available. Costs for actions that are being implemented as
part of ongoing, existing programs are considered ``baseline'' and are
not included in Appendix E as costs to recover sockeye salmon. During
the public comment period, NMFS will work with regional experts to
identify costs, scale, or unit costs for actions that require more
information. Appendix E and the total cost estimate will be updated
with this new information for the final recovery plan. The overall
total cost to implement potential recovery actions for the first 10
years of this plan is estimated to be about $46 million. Many of these
are one-time costs. Approximately $100,000 represents ongoing, annual
administrative or infrastructure costs that will likely continue for
the duration of implementation of the recovery plan. Thus, it can be
inferred that if recovery takes 50 years, another $4 million may be
incurred over the long term to continue and maintain proposed habitat
improvements.
NMFS estimates that recovery of the Lake Ozette Sockeye Salmon ESU,
like recovery for most of the ESA-listed salmon, could take 50 to 100
years. Because many uncertainties exist about how sockeye salmon and
their habitat will respond to recovery actions, the costs and recovery
actions in this plan focus on the first 10 years of implementation.
Actions and costs will be revised over time as part of adaptive
management.
Unlike other ESA-listed salmon species in Washington State, the
Lake Ozette Sockeye Salmon ESU has not had a state-designated recovery
board responsible for developing the recovery plan. Therefore, NMFS is
working with the Lake Ozette Steering Committee and other entities such
as the newly formed North Pacific Coast Lead Entity and the Washington
Coast Sustainable Salmon Partnership to make an implementation plan.
NMFS anticipates that the organizations potentially involved will
choose to participate, in recognition of the shared benefits of habitat
protection and restoration. A detailed implementation schedule and
further details of an organizational approach to implementation will be
produced in 2008 after the recovery plan is adopted.
Conclusion
NMFS concludes that the Plan meets the requirements of ESA section
4(f) and thus is proposing it as an ESA recovery plan.
Public Comments Solicited
NMFS solicits written comments on the Proposed Plan. All comments
received by the date specified above will be considered prior to NMFS'
decision whether to approve the Plan. Additionally, NMFS will provide a
summary of the comments and responses through its Northwest Region web
site and provide a news release for the public announcing the
availability of the response to comments. NMFS seeks comments
particularly in the following areas: (1) the analysis of, and
hypotheses concerning, limiting factors and threats; (2) the recovery
objectives, strategies, and actions; (3) the criteria for removing the
ESU from the Federal list of endangered and threatened wildlife and
plants; and (4) estimates of time and cost to implement recovery
actions, including the intent to be even more specific by soliciting an
implementation schedule.
Literature Cited
Currens, K.P., R. Fuerstenberg, W. Graeber, K. Rawson, M.
Ruckelshaus, N.J. Sands, and J. Scott. 2006. Independent populations of
sockeye salmon in Lake Ozette. Puget Sound Technical Recovery Team
document. March 21, 2006. Northwest Fisheries Science Center. NOAA
Fisheries Service. Seattle, WA. 20p. www.nwfsc.noaa.gov/trt/puget_docs
Haggerty, M.J., A.C. Ritchie, J.G. Shellberg, M.J. Crewson, and J.
Jolonen. 2007. Lake Ozette Sockeye Limiting Factors Analysis: Draft 8--
1. Prepared for the Makah Indian Tribe and NOAA Fisheries in
cooperation with the Lake Ozette Sockeye Steering Committee. Port
Angeles, WA.
McElhany, P., M.H. Ruckelshaus, M.J. Ford, T.C. Wainwright, and
E.P. Bjorkstedt. 2000. Viable salmon populations and the recovery of
evolutionarily significant units. U.S.
[[Page 21917]]
Dept. of Commerce, NOAA Tech. Memo., NMFS-NWFSC-42, 156p.
Rawson, K., N.J. Sands, K.P.Currens, W. Graeber, M. Ruckelshaus, R.
Fuerstenberg, and J.B. Scott. 2008. Viability Criteria for the Lake
Ozette Sockeye Salmon ESU. Puget Sound Technical Recovery Team
document. Northwest Fisheries Science Center. NOAA Fisheries Service.
Seattle, WA. 39p.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.
Dated: April 17, 2008.
Marta Nammack,
Acting Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E8-8831 Filed 4-22-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S
