Receipt of Application for an Enhancement of Survival Permit for the Northern Spotted Owl and the Marbled Murrelet, 76680-76682 [E8-29899]
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Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 243 / Wednesday, December 17, 2008 / Notices
opportunities, visitor and contact
information, and regulations.
We will allow only compatible
activities that are consistent with a
‘‘wilderness-like’’ setting and adhere to
other deed restrictions. The new
activities we will allow include dogwalking only on leash, recreational
berry-picking, and the annual Wapack
Trail Run, under the stipulations of our
determination of its compatibility.
We do not propose to expand the
refuge. However, we will offer our
support in identifying unprotected
lands of high wildlife value to partners
engaged in other regional land
conservation and protection. We also
will offer our technical assistance in
managing those lands.
CCP Alternatives, Including Alternative
B, the Selected Alternative
pwalker on PROD1PC71 with NOTICES
provide refuge managers with a 15-year
plan for achieving refuge purposes and
contributing to the mission of the
National Wildlife Refuge System, in a
manner consistent with the sound
principles of fish and wildlife
management, conservation science, legal
mandates, and our policies. In addition
to outlining broad management
direction on conserving wildlife and
their habitats, CCPs identify
opportunities for wildlife-dependent
recreation available to the public,
including hunting, fishing, wildlife
observation and photography, and
environmental education and
interpretation. We will review and
update each CCP at least every 15 years,
in accordance with the Improvement
Act.
Comments
Our draft CCP/EA (73 FR 15769)
identified and addressed several issues
in its chapter 1, ‘‘The Purpose of and
Need for Action.’’ In that document, we
developed two alternatives to respond
to those issues. Alternative A
represented current management.
Alternative B was identified as the
Service-preferred alternative for several
reasons. It included an array of
management actions that, in our
professional judgment, worked best
toward achieving the purpose of the
refuge, our vision and goals for those
lands, and goals in State and regional
conservation plans. In our opinion,
alternative B most effectively addressed
the key issues.
The planning team recommended
alternative B to the Regional Director as
the better alternative for managing this
refuge over the next 15 years. He
selected it for the final CCP.
Implementing the CCP will improve
our knowledge of refuge resources and
start the development of a baseline
biological database. We plan to
inventory populations of plants and
wildlife on the refuge in partnership
with the U.S. Forest Service. That
project will also help us identify and
monitor threats to the integrity of refuge
habitats.
Other projects in the CCP will
enhance visitor programs by expanding
our partnerships with other Federal
agencies, State agencies, town
departments, local conservation
organizations, and individuals. Partners
will assist us in maintaining trails,
developing and maintaining a new
trailhead parking area, and increasing
our presence and visibility on the refuge
and in the local community. One of our
goals is to better communicate refuge
We solicited comments on the draft
CCP/EA for Wapack NWR from March
25, 2008 to May 1, 2008 (73 FR 15769).
We held a public meeting in
Peterborough, New Hampshire, on April
17, 2008. We evaluated all comments
received during the public comment
period, and included our responses to
those comments in appendix F of the
final CCP.
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Selected Alternative
The Regional Director selected
alternative B for implementation. The
following key changes were made
between draft and final plans.
• We found compatible the annual
Wapack Trail Race, with certain
stipulations identified in its
compatibility determination (refer to
CCP appendix A).
• The staff of Parker River NWR in
Newburyport, Massachusetts, now
administers the unstaffed Wapack NWR;
it is no longer administered from Great
Bay NWR.
Public Availability of Documents
In addition to the methods in
above, you can view or
obtain documents at the Peterborough,
New Hampshire, Town Library, at 2
Concord Street, Peterborough, New
Hampshire, during regular library hours.
ADDRESSES
Dated: November 19, 2008.
Thomas J. Healy,
Acting Regional Director, U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service, Hadley, MA 01035.
[FR Doc. E8–29436 Filed 12–16–08; 8:45 am]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS–R1–ES–2008–N0288; 10120–1112–
0000–F2]
Receipt of Application for an
Enhancement of Survival Permit for
the Northern Spotted Owl and the
Marbled Murrelet
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability and
receipt of application.
SUMMARY: Port Blakely Tree Farms
(PBTF) 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). The permit application
includes a draft Safe Harbor Agreement
(SHA), draft Implementing Agreement
(IA), and a draft Environmental
Assessment (EA). The proposed term of
the Permit and the Agreement is 60
years. The Permit would authorize
PBTF to carry out habitat management
measures that are likely to benefit the
northern spotted owl (Strix occidentalis
caurina) and the marbled murrelet
(Brachyramphus marmoratus), both of
which are federally listed as threatened,
and would allow PBTF to return their
properties to agreed upon baseline
conditions at the end of the Permit term.
The covered area is approximately
45,306 acres (18,335 hectares) and is
located in eastern Lewis and Skamania
counties, Washington. In accordance
with Service responsibilities pursuant to
the National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA), this notice also announces the
availability for public review of a draft
EA developed in conjunction with the
proposed SHA. We request comments
from the public on the permit
application, draft SHA, draft IA, and the
draft EA.
DATES: To be fully considered, written
comments from interested parties must
be received on or before January 16,
2009.
ADDRESSES: Written comments
concerning this notice should be
addressed to Mark Ostwald, U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service, Western
Washington Fish and Wildlife Office,
510 Desmond Drive, SE., Suite 102,
Lacey, WA 98503. You may also submit
written comments by electronic mail to
FW1WWO_SHAPBTF@FWS.GOV.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Mark Ostwald at (360) 753–9564.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
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Availability of Documents
Copies of the PBTF permit
application, draft SHA, draft IA, and the
draft EA, and other relevant documents
addressing the Service’s proposed
issuance of the subject permit may be
viewed on the internet by accessing:
https://www.fws.gov/westwafwo. You
may also request copies of the
documents by contacting the Service’s
Western Washington Fish and Wildlife
Office [see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT above]. The Service is
furnishing this notice to provide the
public, and other State and Federal
agencies, with an opportunity to review
and comment on the Service’s proposed
issuance of a permit to PBTF. All
comments received will become part of
the public record. 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 information
from public review, we cannot
guarantee that we will be able to do so.
All comments received from
organizations, businesses, or individuals
representing organizations or businesses
are available for public inspection in
their entirety.
Background
Under a SHA, participating
landowners voluntarily undertake
management activities on their property
to enhance, restore, or maintain habitat
benefiting species listed under the Act
(16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). SHAs, and the
subsequent enhancement of survival
permits that are issued pursuant to
section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Act, encourage
private and other non-Federal property
owners to implement conservation
efforts for listed species by assuring the
landowners that they will not be
subjected to increased property use
restrictions as a result of their efforts to
attract listed species to their property, or
to increase the numbers or distribution
of listed species already on their
property. Application requirements and
issuance criteria for enhancement of
survival permits through SHAs are
found in 50 CFR 17.22. These permits
allow for any necessary future
incidental take of any covered species
above the mutually agreed upon
baseline conditions for those species in
accordance with the terms of the permit
and any accompanying IA. In addition
to this Federal planning and permitting
process, PBTF is concurrently applying
VerDate Aug<31>2005
18:58 Dec 16, 2008
Jkt 217001
to the Washington Department of
Natural Resources for a Landowner
Option Plan and a Cooperative Habitat
Enhancement Agreement as allowed
under Washington Administrative Code
222–16–100 and 222–16–105.
PBTF has submitted a draft SHA for
the northern spotted owl and the
marbled murrelet covering 45,306 acres
(18,335 hectares) of managed forest
lands within the western Cascades in
Lewis and Skamania counties,
Washington. The covered lands have
been intensively managed and are not
currently known to be occupied by
either the spotted owl or the marbled
murrelet. The environmental baseline
will be measured in terms of dispersal
habitat for spotted owls and potential
nesting habitat for marbled murrelets.
Approximately 59 percent of the
proposed SHA occurs within the
Mineral Conservation Support Area
(CSA) for spotted owls, as described in
the Service’s Recovery Plan for the
Northern Spotted Owl (2008). The
primary role of the Mineral CSA in this
area is to provide dispersal support for
spotted owls. Although the remaining
41 percent of SHA lands are not within
the CSA, PBTF intends to manage all
SHA lands for the purpose of providing
dispersal habitat for spotted owls .
There are no known spotted owls
nesting on Port Blakely lands. However,
spotted owls have historically nested on
adjacent Federal lands and the 1.8-mile
(2.9-kilometer) radius circles around
those sites that are used for evaluating
potential habitat availability for spotted
owls extend onto PBTF lands. Because
of this, PBTF conducted habitat
evaluations of their properties to
determine the amount of suitable
spotted owl habitat present. Habitat
surveys determined that there is not any
high quality habitat, as defined in the
Service’s Recovery Plan for the Northern
Spotted Owl. Because 59 percent of
PBTF lands fall within a CSA intended
to provide for spotted owl dispersal, the
baseline for the SHA is defined in terms
of spotted owl dispersal habitat. The
baseline estimate for the SHA is 8,360
acres (3,383 hectares) of spotted owl
dispersal habitat, of which 4,083 acres
(1,652 hectares) occurs within the CSA
and 4,277 acres (1,731 hectares) occurs
outside of the CSA on PBTF land.
The Service’s Recovery Plan for the
Marbled Murrelet (1997) divides the
range of the marbled murrelet within
the continental United States into six
Conservation Zones. The zone
delineations assist the Service in the
design of management actions and
evaluation of impacts to the species at
different scales. Approximately 50
percent of the proposed SHA lands
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76681
occur within Puget Sound Conservation
Zone 1, which extends inland 50 miles
from eastern Puget Sound . The PBTF
lands covered under the proposed SHA
do not contain large patches of old
forest with which nesting marbled
murrelets are most commonly
associated. A previous landowner
surveyed a portion of the areas proposed
for coverage under the SHA for marbled
murrelet occupancy from 1998 to 2003
and did not locate any occupied sites.
The most relevant metric to describe
marbled murrelet nesting habitat is the
abundance of nesting platforms,
however, PBTF does not have this
information in their existing forest
inventory. For that reason, PBTF opted
to identify stands greater than 7 acres (3
hectares) in size and greater than 81
years old as potential marbled murrelet
nesting habitat for purposes of
establishing the SHA baseline for this
species. Using this habitat definition,
there are 498 acres (202 hectares) of
potential nesting habitat for the marbled
murrelet on covered lands under the
proposed SHA.
PBTF has worked closely with the
Service to develop their proposed SHA
and the voluntary conservation
measures that are expected to provide a
net conservation benefit to the northern
spotted owl and the marbled murrelet.
The Service anticipates the SHA would
result in benefits to these species by
committing PBTF to: (1) An average
harvest rotation of 60 years versus the
industry standard of 45 years; (2) a
wildlife tree and snag management
program; (3) marking a sample of snags
and defective trees to be used in studies
for effectiveness of snag creation
methods; (4) identification and longterm retention of special management
areas; and, (5) identification and longterm retention of special set-aside areas
to provide a greater amount of older
forest habitat within the covered area
than would occur under current forest
practices rules. By not operating within
these special set-aside areas for the term
of the SHA, stands will mature to an age
of 136 to 173 years and will have the
potential to provide foraging and
nesting areas for spotted owls and
nesting areas for murrelets.
The snag management program,
through both protection of existing
snags and creation of snags, and the
extended average rotation age of 60
years, are intended to improve spotted
owl dispersal habitat by providing more
habitat for prey species and, ultimately,
dispersing spotted owls. These young
forests are often deficient in snags that
provide habitat for small mammals that
are the owl’s prey. It is anticipated that
protecting existing snags, and creating
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Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 243 / Wednesday, December 17, 2008 / Notices
snags in combination with the extended
rotation age of 60 years, will improve
spotted owl dispersal habitat in this
CSA and outside of the CSA. Marbled
murrelets are expected to receive
benefits through the identification of
Special Management Areas and Special
Set Asides as these areas will be
allowed to develop into more
structurally diverse forest with an
increased chance of containing suitable
nesting platforms over the life of the
Permit. Spotted owls will also benefit
from improved habitat conditions in
these areas.
While SHAs are often categorically
excluded under NEPA, for this situation
an EA was determined to best integrate
Federal and State public review
processes. As described above, PBTF is
applying to the Washington Department
of Natural Resources for a Landowner
Option Plan and a Cooperative Habitat
Enhancement Agreement for both the
spotted owl and the marbled murrelet.
The draft EA evaluates the potential
impacts to the environment from the noaction alternative and the proposed
SHA.
This notice is provided pursuant to
section 10(c) of the Act and NEPA
regulations (40 CFR 1506.6). The
Service will evaluate the Permit
application, associated documents, and
comments submitted thereon to
determine whether the draft EA, and the
proposed SHA and Permit application
meet the requirements of NEPA
regulations and section 10(a) of the Act,
respectively. If it is determined that the
requirements are met, the SHA will be
finalized and signed, and the Permit
will be issued to the Applicant for
incidental take of the covered species.
The final NEPA and permit
determinations will not be completed
until after the end of the 30-day
comment period, and will fully consider
all public comments received during the
comment period.
Dated: October 17, 2008.
David J. Wesley,
Deputy Regional Director, Region 1, U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service, Portland, Oregon.
[FR Doc. E8–29899 Filed 12–16–08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–55–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
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Bureau of Land Management
[F–36732, F–36733, F–36735, F–36736, F–
36737, F–36741, F–40200, F–40201; AK–
964–1410–KC–P]
Alaska Native Claims Selection
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
VerDate Aug<31>2005
18:58 Dec 16, 2008
Jkt 217001
ACTION: Notice of decision approving
lands for conveyance.
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
As required by 43 CFR
2650.7(d), notice is hereby given that an
appealable decision approving the
surface and subsurface estates in certain
lands for conveyance pursuant to the
Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act
will be issued to Doyon, Limited. The
lands are in the vicinity of Wiseman,
Alaska, and are located in:
[F–21901–50, F–21901–51, F–21901–53, F–
21901–76, F–21901–77, F–21901–79, F–
21901–80, F–21901–81, F–21901–82, F–
21901–83, F–21904–59, F–21904–60, F–
21906–01, F–21906–04; AK–964–1410–KC–
P]
SUMMARY:
Fairbanks Meridian, Alaska
T. 33 N., R. 7 W.,
Secs. 4 to 9, inclusive;
Secs. 16 to 21, inclusive;
Secs. 28 to 33, inclusive.
Containing approximately 11,477 acres.
T. 34 N., R. 7 W.,
Secs. 1 to 21, inclusive;
Secs. 28 to 33, inclusive.
Containing approximately 17,153 acres.
T. 35 N., R. 7 W.,
Secs. 19 to 36, inclusive.
Containing approximately 11,425 acres.
Aggregating approximately 40,055 acres.
Notice of the decision will also be
published four times in the Fairbanks Daily
News-Miner.
DATES: The time limits for filing an
appeal are:
1. Any party claiming a property
interest which is adversely affected by
the decision shall have until January 16,
2009 to file an appeal.
2. Parties receiving service of the
decision by certified mail shall have 30
days from the date of receipt to file an
appeal.
Parties who do not file an appeal in
accordance with the requirements of 43
CFR Part 4, Subpart E, shall be deemed
to have waived their rights.
A copy of the decision may
be obtained from: Bureau of Land
Management, Alaska State Office, 222
West Seventh Avenue, #13, Anchorage,
Alaska 99513–7504.
ADDRESSES:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The
Bureau of Land Management by phone
at 907–271–5960, or by e-mail at
ak.blm.conveyance@ak.blm.gov. Persons
who use a telecommunication device
(TTD) may call the Federal Information
Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–800–877–
8330, 24 hours a day, seven days a
week, to contact the Bureau of Land
Management.
Hillary Woods,
Land Law Examiner, Land Transfer
Adjudication I.
[FR Doc. E8–29895 Filed 12–16–08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–JA–P
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Bureau of Land Management
Alaska Native Claims Selection
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of decision approving
lands for conveyance.
SUMMARY: As required by 43 CFR
2650.7(d), notice is hereby given that an
appealable decision approving the
surface and subsurface estates in certain
lands for conveyance pursuant to the
Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act
will be issued to Doyon, Limited. The
lands are in the vicinity of Wiseman,
Alaska, and are located in:
Fairbanks Meridian, Alaska
T. 29 N., R. 7 W.,
Secs. 1 to 18, inclusive.
Containing approximately 11,489 acres.
T. 30 N., R. 7 W.,
Secs. 1, 2, and 3;
Secs. 10 to 15, inclusive;
Secs. 19 to 36, inclusive.
Containing approximately 17,228 acres.
T. 32 N., R. 7 W.,
Secs. 1 to 18, inclusive.
Containing approximately 11,364 acres.
T. 30 N., R. 8 W.,
Secs. 4 to 9, inclusive; Secs. 16, 17, and 18.
Containing approximately 5,687 acres.
T. 31 N., R. 8 W.,
Secs. 5, 19, and 30.
Containing approximately 1,551 acres.
T. 32 N., R. 8 W.,
Secs. 1 to 36, inclusive.
Containing approximately 22,749 acres.
T. 33 N., R. 8 W.,
Secs. 1 to 36, inclusive.
Containing approximately 22,997 acres.
T. 29 N., R. 9 W.,
Secs. 1 to 22, inclusive;
Secs. 27 to 33, inclusive.
Containing approximately 18,519 acres.
T. 30 N., R. 9 W.,
Secs. 1 to 36, inclusive.
Containing approximately 22,840 acres.
T. 32 N., R. 9 W.,
Secs. 1 to 36, inclusive.
Containing approximately 22,749 acres.
T. 29 N., R. 10 W.,
Secs. 1 to 36, inclusive.
Containing approximately 22,999 acres.
Aggregating approximately 180,172 acres.
Notice of the decision will also be
published four times in the Fairbanks Daily
News-Miner.
DATES: The time limits for filing an
appeal are:
1. Any party claiming a property
interest which is adversely affected by
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17DEN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 243 (Wednesday, December 17, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 76680-76682]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-29899]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R1-ES-2008-N0288; 10120-1112-0000-F2]
Receipt of Application for an Enhancement of Survival Permit for
the Northern Spotted Owl and the Marbled Murrelet
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability and receipt of application.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: Port Blakely Tree Farms (PBTF) 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). The permit application includes a draft Safe
Harbor Agreement (SHA), draft Implementing Agreement (IA), and a draft
Environmental Assessment (EA). The proposed term of the Permit and the
Agreement is 60 years. The Permit would authorize PBTF to carry out
habitat management measures that are likely to benefit the northern
spotted owl (Strix occidentalis caurina) and the marbled murrelet
(Brachyramphus marmoratus), both of which are federally listed as
threatened, and would allow PBTF to return their properties to agreed
upon baseline conditions at the end of the Permit term. The covered
area is approximately 45,306 acres (18,335 hectares) and is located in
eastern Lewis and Skamania counties, Washington. In accordance with
Service responsibilities pursuant to the National Environmental Policy
Act (NEPA), this notice also announces the availability for public
review of a draft EA developed in conjunction with the proposed SHA. We
request comments from the public on the permit application, draft SHA,
draft IA, and the draft EA.
DATES: To be fully considered, written comments from interested parties
must be received on or before January 16, 2009.
ADDRESSES: Written comments concerning this notice should be addressed
to Mark Ostwald, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Western Washington
Fish and Wildlife Office, 510 Desmond Drive, SE., Suite 102, Lacey, WA
98503. You may also submit written comments by electronic mail to
FW1WWO_SHAPBTF@FWS.GOV.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mark Ostwald at (360) 753-9564.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
[[Page 76681]]
Availability of Documents
Copies of the PBTF permit application, draft SHA, draft IA, and the
draft EA, and other relevant documents addressing the Service's
proposed issuance of the subject permit may be viewed on the internet
by accessing: https://www.fws.gov/westwafwo. You may also request copies
of the documents by contacting the Service's Western Washington Fish
and Wildlife Office [see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT above]. The
Service is furnishing this notice to provide the public, and other
State and Federal agencies, with an opportunity to review and comment
on the Service's proposed issuance of a permit to PBTF. All comments
received will become part of the public record. 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 information from public review, we cannot
guarantee that we will be able to do so. All comments received from
organizations, businesses, or individuals representing organizations or
businesses are available for public inspection in their entirety.
Background
Under a SHA, participating landowners voluntarily undertake
management activities on their property to enhance, restore, or
maintain habitat benefiting species listed under the Act (16 U.S.C.
1531 et seq.). SHAs, and the subsequent enhancement of survival permits
that are issued pursuant to section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Act, encourage
private and other non-Federal property owners to implement conservation
efforts for listed species by assuring the landowners that they will
not be subjected to increased property use restrictions as a result of
their efforts to attract listed species to their property, or to
increase the numbers or distribution of listed species already on their
property. Application requirements and issuance criteria for
enhancement of survival permits through SHAs are found in 50 CFR 17.22.
These permits allow for any necessary future incidental take of any
covered species above the mutually agreed upon baseline conditions for
those species in accordance with the terms of the permit and any
accompanying IA. In addition to this Federal planning and permitting
process, PBTF is concurrently applying to the Washington Department of
Natural Resources for a Landowner Option Plan and a Cooperative Habitat
Enhancement Agreement as allowed under Washington Administrative Code
222-16-100 and 222-16-105.
PBTF has submitted a draft SHA for the northern spotted owl and the
marbled murrelet covering 45,306 acres (18,335 hectares) of managed
forest lands within the western Cascades in Lewis and Skamania
counties, Washington. The covered lands have been intensively managed
and are not currently known to be occupied by either the spotted owl or
the marbled murrelet. The environmental baseline will be measured in
terms of dispersal habitat for spotted owls and potential nesting
habitat for marbled murrelets.
Approximately 59 percent of the proposed SHA occurs within the
Mineral Conservation Support Area (CSA) for spotted owls, as described
in the Service's Recovery Plan for the Northern Spotted Owl (2008). The
primary role of the Mineral CSA in this area is to provide dispersal
support for spotted owls. Although the remaining 41 percent of SHA
lands are not within the CSA, PBTF intends to manage all SHA lands for
the purpose of providing dispersal habitat for spotted owls .
There are no known spotted owls nesting on Port Blakely lands.
However, spotted owls have historically nested on adjacent Federal
lands and the 1.8-mile (2.9-kilometer) radius circles around those
sites that are used for evaluating potential habitat availability for
spotted owls extend onto PBTF lands. Because of this, PBTF conducted
habitat evaluations of their properties to determine the amount of
suitable spotted owl habitat present. Habitat surveys determined that
there is not any high quality habitat, as defined in the Service's
Recovery Plan for the Northern Spotted Owl. Because 59 percent of PBTF
lands fall within a CSA intended to provide for spotted owl dispersal,
the baseline for the SHA is defined in terms of spotted owl dispersal
habitat. The baseline estimate for the SHA is 8,360 acres (3,383
hectares) of spotted owl dispersal habitat, of which 4,083 acres (1,652
hectares) occurs within the CSA and 4,277 acres (1,731 hectares) occurs
outside of the CSA on PBTF land.
The Service's Recovery Plan for the Marbled Murrelet (1997) divides
the range of the marbled murrelet within the continental United States
into six Conservation Zones. The zone delineations assist the Service
in the design of management actions and evaluation of impacts to the
species at different scales. Approximately 50 percent of the proposed
SHA lands occur within Puget Sound Conservation Zone 1, which extends
inland 50 miles from eastern Puget Sound . The PBTF lands covered under
the proposed SHA do not contain large patches of old forest with which
nesting marbled murrelets are most commonly associated. A previous
landowner surveyed a portion of the areas proposed for coverage under
the SHA for marbled murrelet occupancy from 1998 to 2003 and did not
locate any occupied sites. The most relevant metric to describe marbled
murrelet nesting habitat is the abundance of nesting platforms,
however, PBTF does not have this information in their existing forest
inventory. For that reason, PBTF opted to identify stands greater than
7 acres (3 hectares) in size and greater than 81 years old as potential
marbled murrelet nesting habitat for purposes of establishing the SHA
baseline for this species. Using this habitat definition, there are 498
acres (202 hectares) of potential nesting habitat for the marbled
murrelet on covered lands under the proposed SHA.
PBTF has worked closely with the Service to develop their proposed
SHA and the voluntary conservation measures that are expected to
provide a net conservation benefit to the northern spotted owl and the
marbled murrelet. The Service anticipates the SHA would result in
benefits to these species by committing PBTF to: (1) An average harvest
rotation of 60 years versus the industry standard of 45 years; (2) a
wildlife tree and snag management program; (3) marking a sample of
snags and defective trees to be used in studies for effectiveness of
snag creation methods; (4) identification and long-term retention of
special management areas; and, (5) identification and long-term
retention of special set-aside areas to provide a greater amount of
older forest habitat within the covered area than would occur under
current forest practices rules. By not operating within these special
set-aside areas for the term of the SHA, stands will mature to an age
of 136 to 173 years and will have the potential to provide foraging and
nesting areas for spotted owls and nesting areas for murrelets.
The snag management program, through both protection of existing
snags and creation of snags, and the extended average rotation age of
60 years, are intended to improve spotted owl dispersal habitat by
providing more habitat for prey species and, ultimately, dispersing
spotted owls. These young forests are often deficient in snags that
provide habitat for small mammals that are the owl's prey. It is
anticipated that protecting existing snags, and creating
[[Page 76682]]
snags in combination with the extended rotation age of 60 years, will
improve spotted owl dispersal habitat in this CSA and outside of the
CSA. Marbled murrelets are expected to receive benefits through the
identification of Special Management Areas and Special Set Asides as
these areas will be allowed to develop into more structurally diverse
forest with an increased chance of containing suitable nesting
platforms over the life of the Permit. Spotted owls will also benefit
from improved habitat conditions in these areas.
While SHAs are often categorically excluded under NEPA, for this
situation an EA was determined to best integrate Federal and State
public review processes. As described above, PBTF is applying to the
Washington Department of Natural Resources for a Landowner Option Plan
and a Cooperative Habitat Enhancement Agreement for both the spotted
owl and the marbled murrelet. The draft EA evaluates the potential
impacts to the environment from the no-action alternative and the
proposed SHA.
This notice is provided pursuant to section 10(c) of the Act and
NEPA regulations (40 CFR 1506.6). The Service will evaluate the Permit
application, associated documents, and comments submitted thereon to
determine whether the draft EA, and the proposed SHA and Permit
application meet the requirements of NEPA regulations and section 10(a)
of the Act, respectively. If it is determined that the requirements are
met, the SHA will be finalized and signed, and the Permit will be
issued to the Applicant for incidental take of the covered species. The
final NEPA and permit determinations will not be completed until after
the end of the 30-day comment period, and will fully consider all
public comments received during the comment period.
Dated: October 17, 2008.
David J. Wesley,
Deputy Regional Director, Region 1, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
Portland, Oregon.
[FR Doc. E8-29899 Filed 12-16-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P
