Proposed Candidate Conservation Agreement With Assurances for the Black-Tailed Prairie Dog, Mountain Plover, Burrowing Owl, and Ferruginous Hawk for the 4W Ranch in Niobrara and Weston Counties, WY, 62305-62307 [E8-24884]
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Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 203 / Monday, October 20, 2008 / Notices
Aircraft operators must provide TSA
with the flight plan and registration
number of their aircraft that operates to
or from DCA. This information is also
being shared with FAA for purposes of
tracking and identifying approved
aircraft. TSA estimates a total of 200
respondents annually. The total number
of annual burden hours is estimated to
be 227 hours per year (200 respondents
× 1.135 hours per respondent = 227
hours annually).
Issued in Arlington, Virginia, on October
15, 2008.
Kurt Guyer,
Acting Program Manager, Business
Improvements and Communications, Office
of Information Technology.
[FR Doc. E8–24929 Filed 10–17–08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–62–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS–R4–R–2008–N0218; 40136–1265–
0000–S3]
Lake Woodruff National Wildlife
Refuge, Lake and Volusia Counties, FL
Fish and Wildlife Service,
Department of the Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability: Final
comprehensive conservation plan and
finding of no significant impact.
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service (Service), announce the
availability of our final comprehensive
conservation plan (CCP) and finding of
no significant impact (FONSI) for Lake
Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge
(NWR). In the CCP, we describe how we
will manage Lake Woodruff NWR for
the next 15 years.
ADDRESSES: A copy of the final CCP may
be obtained by visiting the refuge at
2045 Mud Lake Road, DeLeon Springs,
FL 32130; by e-mailing
LakeWoodruffCCP@fws.gov; by calling
the Refuge Complex at 321/861–0667; or
by writing the Refuge Complex at Lake
Woodruff NWR (CCP), P.O. Box 2683,
Titusville, FL 32781–2683. The CCP
may also be accessed and downloaded
from the Service’s Internet Site: https://
southeast.fws.gov/planning.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Cheri Ehrhardt; Telephone: 321/861–
2368.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Introduction
With this notice, we finalize the CCP
process for Lake Woodruff NWR. We
started this process through a notice of
intent in the Federal Register on July
VerDate Aug<31>2005
16:42 Oct 17, 2008
Jkt 217001
26, 2006 (71 FR 42412). For more about
the process, see that notice.
Established in 1964, Lake Woodruff
NWR is located approximately 28 miles
west of Daytona Beach, Florida, in Lake
and Volusia counties. The 21,574-acre
refuge includes a diversity of habitats
consisting of open water, freshwater
marshes, impounded wetlands, and
uplands. These areas support a variety
of wildlife and plant species, including
waterfowl and other migratory birds, as
well as federal- and state-listed species.
In addition, the refuge protects
historical and archaeological sites and
provides a range of visitor services.
We announce our decision and the
availability of the final CCP and FONSI
for Lake Woodruff NWR in accordance
with National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA) [40 CFR 1506.6(b)]
requirements. We completed a thorough
analysis of impacts on the human
environment, which we included in the
Draft CCP and Environmental
Assessment (Draft CCP/EA).
Background
The National Wildlife Refuge System
Improvement Act of 1997 (16 U.S.C.
668dd–668ee) (Improvement Act),
which amended the National Wildlife
Refuge System Administration Act of
1966, requires us to develop a CCP for
each national wildlife refuge. The
purpose for developing a CCP is to
provide refuge managers with a 15-year
plan for achieving refuge purposes and
contributing toward the mission of the
National Wildlife Refuge System,
consistent with sound principles of fish
and wildlife management, conservation,
legal mandates, and our policies. In
addition to outlining broad management
direction on conserving wildlife and
their habitats, CCPs identify wildlifedependent recreational opportunities
available to the public, including
opportunities for hunting, fishing,
wildlife observation, wildlife
photography, and environmental
education and interpretation. We will
review and update the CCP at least
every 15 years in accordance with the
Improvement Act.
Comments
We solicited comments on the Draft
CCP/EA for a 30-day period as
announced in the Federal Register on
April 23, 2008 (73 FR 21978). All
comments were thoroughly evaluated,
and changes were incorporated into the
final CCP, where warranted.
Selected Alternative
After considering the comments we
received, we have selected Alternative D
for implementation. Under this
PO 00000
Frm 00060
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
62305
alternative, refuge management will
focus on maintaining native wildlife
and habitat diversity, restoring habitats,
improving conditions for threatened and
endangered species and migratory birds,
and increasing public use opportunities.
(Authority: This notice is published under
the authority of the National Wildlife Refuge
System Improvement Act of 1997, Public
Law 105–57.)
Dated: August 27, 2008.
Cynthia K. Dohner,
Acting Regional Director.
[FR Doc. E8–24885 Filed 10–17–08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–55–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS–R6–R–2008–N0268; 61411–0000–
1115–F4]
Proposed Candidate Conservation
Agreement With Assurances for the
Black-Tailed Prairie Dog, Mountain
Plover, Burrowing Owl, and
Ferruginous Hawk for the 4W Ranch in
Niobrara and Weston Counties, WY
Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; receipt of
application.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: This notice advises the public
that the 4W Ranch, FLP (Applicant) has
applied to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service (Service) for an enhancement of
survival permit (permit) pursuant to
section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Endangered
Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act).
This permit application includes a
Candidate Conservation Agreement with
Assurances (Agreement) between the
Applicant and the Service. The Service
requests information, views, and
opinions from the public via this notice.
Further, the Service is soliciting
information regarding the adequacy of
the Agreement as measured against the
Service’s Candidate Conservation
Agreement with Assurances policy and
the regulations that implement it.
DATES: Written comments on the permit
application must be received on or
before November 19, 2008.
ADDRESSES: Persons wishing to review
the Agreement and permit application
may obtain copies by writing to the
Wyoming Ecological Services Field
Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
5353 Yellowstone Road, Suite 308A,
Cheyenne, Wyoming 82001. Documents
also will be available for public
inspection during normal business
hours at this office. Documents also may
be viewed on the following Web site:
E:\FR\FM\20OCN1.SGM
20OCN1
62306
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 203 / Monday, October 20, 2008 / Notices
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
https://www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/
es/wyoming/index.htm. Written data or
comments concerning the Agreement or
permit application should be addressed
to Brian T. Kelly, Field Supervisor, at
the above address, to be adequately
considered in the Service’s decisionmaking process. Written comments also
may be sent by facsimile to (307) 772–
2358. Please reference permit number
TE184530 in your comments, or in the
request of the documents discussed
herein.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Brian T. Kelly, Field Supervisor,
Wyoming Ecological Services Field
Office, at the above address; telephone
(307) 772–2374. People who use a
telecommunications device for the deaf
(TDD) may call the Federal Information
Relay Service at (800) 877–8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Under a Candidate Conservation
Agreement with Assurances,
participating landowners voluntarily
undertake management activities on
their property to enhance, restore, or
maintain habitat benefiting species that
are proposed for listing under the Act,
candidates for listing, or may become
candidates. Candidate Conservation
Agreements with Assurances, and the
subsequent permits that are issued
pursuant to section 10(a)(1)(A) of the
Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), encourage
private and other non-Federal property
owners to implement conservation
efforts for species by assuring property
owners that they will not be subjected
to increased land use restrictions as a
result of efforts to attract or increase the
numbers or distribution of a listed
species on their property, if that species
becomes listed under the Act in the
future. Application requirements and
issuance criteria for permits through the
Candidate Conservation Agreement with
Assurances are found in 50 CFR
17.22(d) and 17.32(d).
We have worked with the Applicant
to develop this proposed Agreement for
the conservation of the black-tailed
prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus),
mountain plover (Charadrius
montanus), burrowing owl (Athene
cunicularia), and ferruginous hawk
(Buteo regalis) (covered species) on the
4W Ranch, which lies in Niobrara and
Weston Counties, Wyoming. Within the
29,000 acres of 4W Ranch owned or
leased lands, the landowners have
identified 3,370 acres of their privately
owned property on which habitat for the
covered species will be restored,
enhanced, and managed pursuant to the
Agreement. The proposed duration of
VerDate Aug<31>2005
16:42 Oct 17, 2008
Jkt 217001
the Agreement and permit is 10 years.
The Agreement fully describes the
proposed management activities to be
undertaken by the Applicant and the
conservation benefits expected to be
gained for the covered species. We have
made a preliminary determination that
the Agreement qualifies as a low-effect
plan, since it has minor to negligible
effects on federally listed, proposed or
candidate species and their habitats,
and qualifies for a categorical exclusion
under the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA).
Upon approval of this Agreement, and
consistent with the Service’s Candidate
Conservation Agreement with
Assurances’ policy published in the
Federal Register on June 17, 1999 (64
FR 32726), the Service would issue a
permit to the applicant authorizing take
of the covered species by the Applicant
associated with the implementation of
the management activities specified in
the Agreement. To benefit the covered
species, the Applicant agrees to
undertake site-specific management
activities, which are specified in their
Agreement.
The black-tailed prairie dog is
considered a keystone species, because
the effects of its foraging and burrowing
behaviors maintain habitat features
important to a variety of other species
and it serves as a food source for
predators. Prairie dog activities result in
mixing subsoil with topsoil, which
redistributes nutrients and increases
water infiltration rates. The resulting
soil and moisture conditions
consequently increase plant diversity,
which in turns attracts a variety of
animals to prairie dog colonies.
However, prairie dogs can also have
significant adverse effects on vegetation
communities in localized areas in and
near their colonies. Prairie dogs can
denude areas of vegetation under
prolonged drought and heat conditions.
As a result, prairie dogs have often been
viewed by landowners as directly
competing with livestock for forage
resources.
The black-tailed prairie dog was
eliminated from much of its historic
range as a result of control efforts by
both public and private landowners.
Control efforts no longer appear to be
significantly reducing the range-wide
distribution of the species, but
continued control efforts by some
landowners can have localized effects to
prairie dog populations. Due to the
perceived conflict of prairie dogs with
other land uses, landowners are more
inclined to maintain or increase habitat
as viable and productive for prairie dog,
if doing so can be balanced with other
land uses. Because most of the black-
PO 00000
Frm 00061
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
tailed prairie dog habitat in the eastern
range occurs on private lands, private
landowners willing to manage for
suitable habitat can play an important
role in the long-term conservation of the
black-tailed prairie dog. Accordingly,
the 4W Ranch agrees to undertake
management activities to enhance
habitat and protect the ranch’s
populations of black-tailed prairie dogs,
mountain plovers, burrowing owls, and
ferruginous hawks. However, the
willingness for participation by the
property owner depends on the ability
to manage these species to allow
maintenance of the ranch’s economic
viability and protection of high-value
forage areas for livestock.
Management activities described in
the Agreement provide for the
restoration, enhancement, and
management of native habitats of the
covered species on 3,370 acres of the
4W Ranch. The objective of such
activities is to enhance populations of
the covered species by increasing the
amount and quality of suitable habitat
on the enrolled properties. Management
of black-tailed prairie dogs, outlined in
the Agreement, will focus on
maintaining colonies within a 3,000acre core management area.
Conservation measures to be
implemented by the 4W Ranch under
the Agreement include control of
prickly pear cactus, range soil aeration,
reseeding grasses, and livestock grazing
rotation. These measures also would
benefit the other covered species, which
depend on the prairie dog for suitable
habitat and prey. The implementation of
these measures, as well as some routine
ranching activities, may result in the
incidental take of the covered species.
Such take would be authorized by the
issuance to the property owner of a
section 10(a)(1)(A) permit under the
authority of 50 CFR 17.22(d) for species
federally listed as endangered or 50 CFR
17.32 (d) for species federally listed as
threatened.
An incentive for long-term
conservation of the black-tailed prairie
dog on the 4W Ranch is the assurance
that the property owner will be able to
maintain economic viability of the
ranch by preventing encroachment of
prairie dogs onto important ranch
production areas (e.g., hay meadows).
The property owner would be
authorized to use primarily regulated
recreational shooting and other
measures as necessary to control prairie
dogs when populations on the 4W
Ranch are above established thresholds.
Such regulated take would be
authorized by the section 10(a)(1)(A)
permit issued to the property owner
under the authority of 50 CFR 17.22(a)
E:\FR\FM\20OCN1.SGM
20OCN1
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 203 / Monday, October 20, 2008 / Notices
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
for species federally listed as
endangered or 50 CFR 17.32 (a) for
species federally listed as threatened.
A single section 10(a)(1)(A) permit
would be issued with separate
authorizations, as cited above, for the
incidental take of the covered species
and for the intentional take of the blacktailed prairie dog. The permit also
would contain separate sets of special
terms and conditions for each of the two
types of take. The permit would become
effective upon Federal listing of any of
the covered species.
Annual monitoring, required by the
Agreement, will be conducted to
determine active burrow densities,
which can be used as an index of
population levels. Recreational shooting
will not occur unless monitoring
indicates the population threshold has
been exceeded. For example, when
plague epizootics have reduced the
population below established
thresholds, all recreational shooting will
be suspended, pending the recovery of
the population back to threshold levels.
Additionally, ongoing monitoring and
adaptive management will allow
adjustment of management goals and
thresholds should new information
indicate populations are decreasing or
increasing outside the threshold
parameters.
Baseline population and habitat
conditions for the covered species are
described in the Agreement. Annual
monitoring is a key component of the
Agreement and is one of the
requirements for receiving assurances
that no further measures would be
required of the property owner and that
take of any of the covered species, if
federally listed, under the permit would
continue to be authorized. Adaptive
management provides the plan
flexibility, if monitoring indicates
changes in management are necessary
(e.g., threshold levels need to be raised
to meet the conservation goals, as fully
described in the Agreement).
Public Review and Comments
The Service has made a preliminary
determination that the proposed
Agreement and permit issuance are
eligible for categorical exclusion under
NEPA. We explain the basis for this
determination in an Environmental
Action Statement, which also is
available for public review at the office
listed in the ADDRESSES section above.
If you wish to comment on the permit
application or the Agreement, you may
submit your comments to the address
listed in the ADDRESSES section of this
document. Before including your
address, phone number, e-mail address,
or other personal identifying
VerDate Aug<31>2005
16:42 Oct 17, 2008
Jkt 217001
information in your comment, you
should be aware that your entire
comment—including your personal
identifying information—may be made
publicly available at any time. While
you can ask us in your comment to
withhold your personal identifying
information from public review, we
cannot guarantee that we will be able to
do so.
We will evaluate this permit
application, associated documents, and
comments submitted thereon to
determine whether the permit
application meets the requirements of
section 10(a) of the Act and NEPA
regulations at 40 CFR 1506.6. If we
determine that the requirements are
met, we will sign the proposed
Agreement and issue a permit under
section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Act to the
Applicants for take of the covered
species in accordance with the terms of
the Agreement. We will not make our
final decision until after the end of the
30-day comment period and will fully
consider all comments received during
the comment period.
The Service provides this notice
under section 10(c) of the Act and
implementing regulations for NEPA (40
CFR 1506.6).
Dated: May 20, 2008.
Scott Hicks,
Deputy Field Supervisor, Cheyenne,
Wyoming.
[FR Doc. E8–24884 Filed 10–17–08; 8:45 am]
62307
Rialto, San Bernardino County,
California. A conservation program to
mitigate for impacts of the project on the
DSF would be implemented as
described in the proposed West Colton
Terminal Temporary Ethanol
Transloading Facility Low-Effect Habitat
Conservation Plan (HCP).
We are requesting comments on the
permit application and on the
preliminary determination that the
proposed HCP qualifies as a ‘‘LowEffect’’ Habitat Conservation Plan,
eligible for a categorical exclusion under
the National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA) of 1969, as amended. The basis
for this determination is discussed in
the Environmental Action Statement
(EAS) and the associated Low Effect
Screening Form, which are also
available for public review.
DATES: Written comments should be
received on or before November 19,
2008.
ADDRESSES: Comments should be
addressed to the Field Supervisor, Fish
and Wildlife Service, Carlsbad Fish and
Wildlife Office, 6010 Hidden Valley
Road, Suite 101, Carlsbad, California
92011. Written comments may be sent
by facsimile to (760) 918–0638.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms.
Karen Goebel, Assistant Field
Supervisor, Carlsbad Fish and Wildlife
Office (see ADDRESSES); telephone: (760)
431–9440.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
BILLING CODE 4310–55–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS–R8–ES–2008–N0262; 81430–1112–
0000–F2]
Proposed Low Effect Habitat
Conservation for West Colton Terminal
Temporary Ethanol Transloading
Facility, City of Rialto, County of San
Bernardino, CA
Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: West Colton Rail Terminal,
LLC (applicant) has applied to the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) for
a 3-year incidental take permit for one
covered species pursuant to section
10(a)(1)(B) of the Endangered Species
Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The
application addresses the potential for
‘‘take’’ of the endangered Delhi Sands
flower-loving fly (Rhaphiomidas
terminatus abdominalis, ‘‘DSF’’)
associated with construction of an
ethanol unloading facility in the City of
PO 00000
Frm 00062
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Availability of Documents
Individuals wishing copies of the
proposed HCP and EAS should
immediately contact the Service by
telephone at (760) 431–9440 or by letter
to the Carlsbad Fish and Wildlife Office.
Copies of the proposed HCP and EAS
also are available for public inspection
during regular business hours at the
Carlsbad Fish and Wildlife Office [see
ADDRESSES].
Background
Section 9 of the Act and its
implementing Federal regulations
prohibit the take of animal species listed
as endangered or threatened. Take is
defined under the Act as to harass,
harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill,
trap, capture or collect listed animal
species, or attempt to engage in such
conduct (16 U.S.C. 1538). However,
under section 10(a) of the Act, the
Service may issue permits to authorize
incidental take of listed species.
‘‘Incidental take’’ is defined by the Act
as take that is incidental to, and not the
purpose of, carrying out an otherwise
lawful activity. Regulations governing
incidental take permits for threatened
E:\FR\FM\20OCN1.SGM
20OCN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 203 (Monday, October 20, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62305-62307]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-24884]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R6-R-2008-N0268; 61411-0000-1115-F4]
Proposed Candidate Conservation Agreement With Assurances for the
Black-Tailed Prairie Dog, Mountain Plover, Burrowing Owl, and
Ferruginous Hawk for the 4W Ranch in Niobrara and Weston Counties, WY
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; receipt of application.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This notice advises the public that the 4W Ranch, FLP
(Applicant) has applied to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service)
for an enhancement of survival permit (permit) pursuant to section
10(a)(1)(A) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act).
This permit application includes a Candidate Conservation Agreement
with Assurances (Agreement) between the Applicant and the Service. The
Service requests information, views, and opinions from the public via
this notice. Further, the Service is soliciting information regarding
the adequacy of the Agreement as measured against the Service's
Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances policy and the
regulations that implement it.
DATES: Written comments on the permit application must be received on
or before November 19, 2008.
ADDRESSES: Persons wishing to review the Agreement and permit
application may obtain copies by writing to the Wyoming Ecological
Services Field Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 5353 Yellowstone
Road, Suite 308A, Cheyenne, Wyoming 82001. Documents also will be
available for public inspection during normal business hours at this
office. Documents also may be viewed on the following Web site:
[[Page 62306]]
https://www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/es/wyoming/index.htm. Written data
or comments concerning the Agreement or permit application should be
addressed to Brian T. Kelly, Field Supervisor, at the above address, to
be adequately considered in the Service's decision-making process.
Written comments also may be sent by facsimile to (307) 772-2358.
Please reference permit number TE184530 in your comments, or in the
request of the documents discussed herein.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brian T. Kelly, Field Supervisor,
Wyoming Ecological Services Field Office, at the above address;
telephone (307) 772-2374. People who use a telecommunications device
for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service at
(800) 877-8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Under a Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances,
participating landowners voluntarily undertake management activities on
their property to enhance, restore, or maintain habitat benefiting
species that are proposed for listing under the Act, candidates for
listing, or may become candidates. Candidate Conservation Agreements
with Assurances, and the subsequent permits that are issued pursuant to
section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), encourage
private and other non-Federal property owners to implement conservation
efforts for species by assuring property owners that they will not be
subjected to increased land use restrictions as a result of efforts to
attract or increase the numbers or distribution of a listed species on
their property, if that species becomes listed under the Act in the
future. Application requirements and issuance criteria for permits
through the Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances are found
in 50 CFR 17.22(d) and 17.32(d).
We have worked with the Applicant to develop this proposed
Agreement for the conservation of the black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys
ludovicianus), mountain plover (Charadrius montanus), burrowing owl
(Athene cunicularia), and ferruginous hawk (Buteo regalis) (covered
species) on the 4W Ranch, which lies in Niobrara and Weston Counties,
Wyoming. Within the 29,000 acres of 4W Ranch owned or leased lands, the
landowners have identified 3,370 acres of their privately owned
property on which habitat for the covered species will be restored,
enhanced, and managed pursuant to the Agreement. The proposed duration
of the Agreement and permit is 10 years. The Agreement fully describes
the proposed management activities to be undertaken by the Applicant
and the conservation benefits expected to be gained for the covered
species. We have made a preliminary determination that the Agreement
qualifies as a low-effect plan, since it has minor to negligible
effects on federally listed, proposed or candidate species and their
habitats, and qualifies for a categorical exclusion under the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
Upon approval of this Agreement, and consistent with the Service's
Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances' policy published in
the Federal Register on June 17, 1999 (64 FR 32726), the Service would
issue a permit to the applicant authorizing take of the covered species
by the Applicant associated with the implementation of the management
activities specified in the Agreement. To benefit the covered species,
the Applicant agrees to undertake site-specific management activities,
which are specified in their Agreement.
The black-tailed prairie dog is considered a keystone species,
because the effects of its foraging and burrowing behaviors maintain
habitat features important to a variety of other species and it serves
as a food source for predators. Prairie dog activities result in mixing
subsoil with topsoil, which redistributes nutrients and increases water
infiltration rates. The resulting soil and moisture conditions
consequently increase plant diversity, which in turns attracts a
variety of animals to prairie dog colonies. However, prairie dogs can
also have significant adverse effects on vegetation communities in
localized areas in and near their colonies. Prairie dogs can denude
areas of vegetation under prolonged drought and heat conditions. As a
result, prairie dogs have often been viewed by landowners as directly
competing with livestock for forage resources.
The black-tailed prairie dog was eliminated from much of its
historic range as a result of control efforts by both public and
private landowners. Control efforts no longer appear to be
significantly reducing the range-wide distribution of the species, but
continued control efforts by some landowners can have localized effects
to prairie dog populations. Due to the perceived conflict of prairie
dogs with other land uses, landowners are more inclined to maintain or
increase habitat as viable and productive for prairie dog, if doing so
can be balanced with other land uses. Because most of the black-tailed
prairie dog habitat in the eastern range occurs on private lands,
private landowners willing to manage for suitable habitat can play an
important role in the long-term conservation of the black-tailed
prairie dog. Accordingly, the 4W Ranch agrees to undertake management
activities to enhance habitat and protect the ranch's populations of
black-tailed prairie dogs, mountain plovers, burrowing owls, and
ferruginous hawks. However, the willingness for participation by the
property owner depends on the ability to manage these species to allow
maintenance of the ranch's economic viability and protection of high-
value forage areas for livestock.
Management activities described in the Agreement provide for the
restoration, enhancement, and management of native habitats of the
covered species on 3,370 acres of the 4W Ranch. The objective of such
activities is to enhance populations of the covered species by
increasing the amount and quality of suitable habitat on the enrolled
properties. Management of black-tailed prairie dogs, outlined in the
Agreement, will focus on maintaining colonies within a 3,000-acre core
management area. Conservation measures to be implemented by the 4W
Ranch under the Agreement include control of prickly pear cactus, range
soil aeration, reseeding grasses, and livestock grazing rotation. These
measures also would benefit the other covered species, which depend on
the prairie dog for suitable habitat and prey. The implementation of
these measures, as well as some routine ranching activities, may result
in the incidental take of the covered species. Such take would be
authorized by the issuance to the property owner of a section
10(a)(1)(A) permit under the authority of 50 CFR 17.22(d) for species
federally listed as endangered or 50 CFR 17.32 (d) for species
federally listed as threatened.
An incentive for long-term conservation of the black-tailed prairie
dog on the 4W Ranch is the assurance that the property owner will be
able to maintain economic viability of the ranch by preventing
encroachment of prairie dogs onto important ranch production areas
(e.g., hay meadows). The property owner would be authorized to use
primarily regulated recreational shooting and other measures as
necessary to control prairie dogs when populations on the 4W Ranch are
above established thresholds. Such regulated take would be authorized
by the section 10(a)(1)(A) permit issued to the property owner under
the authority of 50 CFR 17.22(a)
[[Page 62307]]
for species federally listed as endangered or 50 CFR 17.32 (a) for
species federally listed as threatened.
A single section 10(a)(1)(A) permit would be issued with separate
authorizations, as cited above, for the incidental take of the covered
species and for the intentional take of the black-tailed prairie dog.
The permit also would contain separate sets of special terms and
conditions for each of the two types of take. The permit would become
effective upon Federal listing of any of the covered species.
Annual monitoring, required by the Agreement, will be conducted to
determine active burrow densities, which can be used as an index of
population levels. Recreational shooting will not occur unless
monitoring indicates the population threshold has been exceeded. For
example, when plague epizootics have reduced the population below
established thresholds, all recreational shooting will be suspended,
pending the recovery of the population back to threshold levels.
Additionally, ongoing monitoring and adaptive management will allow
adjustment of management goals and thresholds should new information
indicate populations are decreasing or increasing outside the threshold
parameters.
Baseline population and habitat conditions for the covered species
are described in the Agreement. Annual monitoring is a key component of
the Agreement and is one of the requirements for receiving assurances
that no further measures would be required of the property owner and
that take of any of the covered species, if federally listed, under the
permit would continue to be authorized. Adaptive management provides
the plan flexibility, if monitoring indicates changes in management are
necessary (e.g., threshold levels need to be raised to meet the
conservation goals, as fully described in the Agreement).
Public Review and Comments
The Service has made a preliminary determination that the proposed
Agreement and permit issuance are eligible for categorical exclusion
under NEPA. We explain the basis for this determination in an
Environmental Action Statement, which also is available for public
review at the office listed in the ADDRESSES section above.
If you wish to comment on the permit application or the Agreement,
you may submit your comments to the address listed in the ADDRESSES
section of this document. Before including your address, phone number,
e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in your
comment, you should be aware that your entire comment--including your
personal identifying information--may be made publicly available at any
time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal
identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we
will be able to do so.
We will evaluate this permit application, associated documents, and
comments submitted thereon to determine whether the permit application
meets the requirements of section 10(a) of the Act and NEPA regulations
at 40 CFR 1506.6. If we determine that the requirements are met, we
will sign the proposed Agreement and issue a permit under section
10(a)(1)(A) of the Act to the Applicants for take of the covered
species in accordance with the terms of the Agreement. We will not make
our final decision until after the end of the 30-day comment period and
will fully consider all comments received during the comment period.
The Service provides this notice under section 10(c) of the Act and
implementing regulations for NEPA (40 CFR 1506.6).
Dated: May 20, 2008.
Scott Hicks,
Deputy Field Supervisor, Cheyenne, Wyoming.
[FR Doc. E8-24884 Filed 10-17-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P
