Coral Reef Restoration Plan, Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement, Biscayne National Park, FL, 21650-21651 [2010-9548]

Download as PDF sroberts on DSKD5P82C1PROD with NOTICES 21650 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 79 / Monday, April 26, 2010 / Notices for recovery. A recovery plan was originally completed for the Attwater’s prairie-chicken in 1983 and revised in 1993, but the recommendations contained in those plans are outdated. Section 4(f) of the Act requires that we provide public notice and an opportunity for public review and comment during recovery plan development. In fulfillment of this requirement, we made the draft second revision of the recovery plan for Attwater’s prairie-chicken available for public comment from November 19, 2007, through January 18, 2008 (November 19, 2007; 72 FR 65058). We also conducted peer review at this time. Based on this input, we revised and finalized the recovery plan, and summarized public comments in an appendix. The Attwater’s prairie-chicken was listed as endangered with risk of extinction in 1967 (March 11, 1967; 32 FR 4001). This listing was ‘‘grandfathered’’ into the Endangered Species Act of 1973. The Attwater’s prairie-chicken represents the southernmost subspecies of Tympanuchus cupido and currently occurs in the wild at only three locations: The Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge (Colorado County, Texas), the Texas City Prairie Preserve (Galveston County, Texas), and a private ranch in Goliad County, Texas. Annual counts are conducted every spring on the prairie-chicken’s booming grounds, and approximately 90 birds remained in these 3 populations as of March 2009. Counts for 2010 will be conducted in April. In addition, approximately 157 individuals were held in captivity at the Abilene Zoo (Abilene, Texas), Caldwell Zoo (Tyler, Texas), Fossil Rim Wildlife Center (Glen Rose, Texas), Houston Zoo (Houston, Texas), San Antonio Zoo (San Antonio, Texas), Sea World of Texas (San Antonio, Texas), and Texas A&M University (College Station, Texas) as of December 31, 2009. Habitat destruction and degradation are the primary factors contributing to historic population declines. Current threats include extremely small populations, habitat and population fragmentation resulting in genetic isolation, diseases and parasites in both wild and captive settings, inability of captive breeding facilities to produce large numbers of captive-reared birds that are capable of survival and reproduction in wild habitats, and poor brood survival in wild populations. Attwater’s prairie-chicken recovery must be focused on three primary areas: (1) Habitat management, (2) captive and VerDate Nov<24>2008 16:56 Apr 23, 2010 Jkt 220001 wild population management, and (3) public outreach. Authority: The authority for this action is section 4(f) of the Endangered Species Act, 16 U.S.C. 1533(f). Dated: March 17, 2010. Benjamin N. Tuggle, Regional Director, Region 2. [FR Doc. 2010–9605 Filed 4–23–10; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4310–55–P DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR National Park Service Coral Reef Restoration Plan, Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement, Biscayne National Park, FL AGENCY: National Park Service, Department of the Interior. ACTION: Notice of Availability of the Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for the Coral Reef Restoration Plan, Biscayne National Park. SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, 42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C), the National Park Service (NPS) announces the availability of a Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the Coral Reef Restoration Plan for Biscayne National Park, Florida. The DEIS provides a systematic approach to addressing injuries to coral reefs caused by vessel groundings within Biscayne National Park. DATES: The NPS will accept comments on the DEIS from the public for 60 days after the date the Environmental Protection Agency notices the availability of the DEIS in its regular Friday Federal Register listing. A public meeting will be held during the review period to facilitate submission of public comment. Once scheduled, the meeting date will be announced via the Biscayne National Park website (https:// www.nps.gov/bisc/), the NPS’s Planning Environment and Public Comment (PEPC) Web site (https:// parkplanning.nps.gov/bisc), and a press release to area media. ADDRESSES: The DEIS for the Coral Reef Restoration Plan will be available for public review online at the NPS’s PEPC Web site (https://parkplanning.nps.gov/ bisc), and in the office of Mark Lewis, Superintendent of Biscayne National Park, 9700 SW. 328th Street, Homestead, Florida 33033, 305–230– 1144. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Many vessel groundings occur annually in Biscayne National Park, causing injuries PO 00000 Frm 00074 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 to submerged resources. The goal of coral reef restoration actions in Biscayne National Park is to create a stable, selfsustaining reef environment of similar topography and surface complexity to that which existed prior to injury, such that natural recovery processes, enhanced through mitigation, if needed, will lead to a fully functioning coral reef community with near natural complexity, structure, and make-up of organisms. The DEIS provides a systematic approach to addressing injuries to coral reefs caused by vessel groundings within Biscayne National Park. It analyzes two alternatives, the No Action alternative (Alternative 1) and Restoration Using a Programmatic Approach (Alternative 2). Alternative 1 would not change the existing approach to coral reef restoration planning and implementation, including NEPA compliance. Currently, Biscayne National Park resource managers evaluate the impacts of coral reef restoration actions and specific restoration methods when planning and implementing restoration at each grounding incident. In contrast, to address each coral injury under Alternative 2, the most appropriate restoration actions and specific restoration methods would be selected from a ‘‘toolbox’’ of methods that already have had their impacts evaluated programmatically. Under Alternative 2, 11 reasonable and common coral reef restoration actions were identified and evaluated for inclusion in the toolbox. Alternative 2 (Restoration Using a Programmatic Approach) was identified as the NPS’s preferred alternative. The time required to evaluate environmental impacts of restoration actions after sitespecific injuries would be minimized substantially under Alternative 2, resulting in fewer adverse effects and/or more beneficial effects to park resources. If you wish to comment, you may submit your comments by any one of several methods. You may comment via the Internet at https:// parkplanning.nps.gov/bisc. You may also mail comments to Coral Reef Restoration Plan, Biscayne National Park, 9700 SW. 328th Street, Homestead, FL 33033. Finally, you may hand-deliver comments to Biscayne National Park, 9700 SW. 328th Street, Homestead, FL 33033. 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 E:\FR\FM\26APN1.SGM 26APN1 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 79 / Monday, April 26, 2010 / Notices 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. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Biscayne National Park, 9700 SW. 328th Street, Homestead, FL 33033; Telephone 305–230–1144. Dated: February 18, 2010. David Vela, Regional Director, Southeast Region, National Park Service. [FR Doc. 2010–9548 Filed 4–23–10; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4310–70–P DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR National Park Service sroberts on DSKD5P82C1PROD with NOTICES Final Environmental Impact Statement; Prisoners Harbor Coastal Wetland Restoration Plan, Channel Islands National Park, Santa Barbara County, CA; Notice of Availability SUMMARY: Pursuant to § 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, the National Park Service, Department of the Interior, has prepared a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) assessing the potential impacts of restoring the coastal wetland and lower riparian corridor at Prisoners Harbor on Santa Cruz Island, Channel Island National Park. The Final EIS analyzes the effects of implementing proposed actions that accomplish the following objectives: (1) Recreate a more natural topography and hydrology by reconnecting the Canada del Puerto stream with its floodplain and removing non-native eucalyptus trees and other vegetation which have proliferated in the lower drainage; (2) increase biological diversity and productivity by removing fill and restoring the historic wetland; (3) provide an enhanced visitor experience by installing additional interpretive displays; and (4) protect significant cultural and historic resources. Range of Alternatives: After identifying foreseeable environmental issues with the proposed restoration activities, conducting a site visit, and undertaking public scoping, the Park began developing alternatives for the area of potential effect. The Park assessed feasible extents of area of restored wetlands and considered several project scenarios. Alternative A (no action) and two action alternatives were identified and analyzed. Alternative B (2⁄3 Wetland Restoration with Partial Berm Removal) (agencypreferred alternative) involves removing VerDate Nov<24>2008 16:56 Apr 23, 2010 Jkt 220001 approximately 15,000 cubic yards of fill from the former wetland and restoring 3.1 acres of wetland, removing all cattle corrals, removing a portion of the berm and replanting the site with native plants, protecting the archeological site, removing eucalyptus from the riparian corridor, controlling other invasive plant species, and improving the visitor experience. Under supervision of park cultural resource specialists and after further consultation with the State Historic Preservation Office, the scale house would be partially dismantled, lifted off its current foundation, and reassembled and stabilized on a new foundation in its pre-1960’s location. To mitigate the loss of the existing cattle corral complex and other associated features, the Park will build a corral structure similar to the sheep corrals in photos dated c. 1900. The corrals will be adjacent to the warehouse, extending toward the pier and parallel to the row of eucalyptus trees at the base of the cliff, and enclosing the relocated scale house. Design and materials will be determined by NPS cultural resource specialists during the design phase of the project. Alternative C (1⁄3 Wetland Restoration with Partial Berm Removal) involves removing fill to restore 2.1 acres of wetland, removing six of eight cattle corrals, keeping the scale house in its present location, removing a portion of the berm, protecting the archeological site, removing eucalyptus from the riparian corridor, controlling other invasive plant species, and improving the visitor experience. In general, the wetland restoration activities would begin with aggressively removing and disposing of known nonnative invasive plants such as kikuyu grass, fennel, and eucalyptus. Removal and disposal techniques may include: Hand pulling or excavating by hand or mechanically; chain sawing; applying least-toxic herbicides; and/or burning or chipping plant residues. Next, old concrete foundations, corrals, posts, troughs, and other old features would be dismantled (and removed or reused where feasible). The Park then would remove approximately 250 feet of the low berm that severed the hydraulic connection between lower Canada del Puerto and its floodplain, excavate sand and rock fill to restore a portion of the buried wetlands, and replant the restored area with native wetland species. Work will be initiated in the late spring and completed in late summer or early fall when the wetland restoration area is in its driest condition, so that late-fall rains will initiate plant germination and growth after work is completed. PO 00000 Frm 00075 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 21651 Riparian restoration in Canada del Puerto would take place in a twopronged, step-wise approach. In an area of approximately 20 acres eucalyptus trees would be removed (1) from downstream to upstream, and (2) from the hillside toward the stream bank. Woody native vegetation including established oaks, island cherry, and coffee berry would remain. The eucalyptus would be replaced with native species typical of chaparral and island riparian woodland including oak, cottonwood, willow, and maple. The Park proposes to protect highvalue archeological resources at Prisoners Harbor from continuing (though lessened) exposure to stream flow erosion in Canada del Puerto by placement of a small earth, log, and cobble berm planted with native plants, thereby deflecting potential flood waters away from the culturally important area. The island gateway experience for visitors arriving at Prisoners Harbor will be enhanced by constructing temporary wayside exhibits, a wetland viewing bench, and/or interpretive signs. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A Notice of Intent to prepare an EIS was published in the Federal Register on June 11, 2008. The Draft EIS was made available on May 15, 2009. Nine written comments from interested individuals, agencies, and organizations including The Santa Cruz Island Foundation, The Nature Conservancy, Santa Barbara Channel Keepers, and the National Marine Sanctuary were received. Four individuals attending a June 23, 2009, open house at the Park Visitor Center provided oral commentary. Comment topics included visitor experience, historical resources, marine resources, vegetation removal, flood flows, and best management practices. All issues raised were duly considered in preparing the Final EIS. The Final EIS is now available for public review. Printed and CD copies will be distributed, and are also available at park headquarters. Printed copies will be made available at E.P. Foster Library in Ventura and Central Library in Santa Barbara. A digital version will be available online at the Park Web site https://www.nps.gov/chis or the NPS Park Planning Web site at https://parkplanning.nps.gov. Inquiries regarding the Final EIS should be directed to: Superintendent, Channel Islands National Park, 1901 Spinnaker Drive, Ventura, CA 93001; or by telephone at (805) 658–5700. Decision Process: A minimum 30-day no-action period begins with the Environmental Protection Agency’s announcement of the publication and E:\FR\FM\26APN1.SGM 26APN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 79 (Monday, April 26, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21650-21651]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-9548]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service


Coral Reef Restoration Plan, Draft Programmatic Environmental 
Impact Statement, Biscayne National Park, FL

AGENCY: National Park Service, Department of the Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Availability of the Draft Programmatic Environmental 
Impact Statement for the Coral Reef Restoration Plan, Biscayne National 
Park.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 
1969, 42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C), the National Park Service (NPS) announces 
the availability of a Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement 
(DEIS) for the Coral Reef Restoration Plan for Biscayne National Park, 
Florida. The DEIS provides a systematic approach to addressing injuries 
to coral reefs caused by vessel groundings within Biscayne National 
Park.

DATES: The NPS will accept comments on the DEIS from the public for 60 
days after the date the Environmental Protection Agency notices the 
availability of the DEIS in its regular Friday Federal Register 
listing. A public meeting will be held during the review period to 
facilitate submission of public comment. Once scheduled, the meeting 
date will be announced via the Biscayne National Park website (https://www.nps.gov/bisc/), the NPS's Planning Environment and Public Comment 
(PEPC) Web site (https://parkplanning.nps.gov/bisc), and a press release 
to area media.

ADDRESSES: The DEIS for the Coral Reef Restoration Plan will be 
available for public review online at the NPS's PEPC Web site (https://parkplanning.nps.gov/bisc), and in the office of Mark Lewis, 
Superintendent of Biscayne National Park, 9700 SW. 328th Street, 
Homestead, Florida 33033, 305-230-1144.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Many vessel groundings occur annually in 
Biscayne National Park, causing injuries to submerged resources. The 
goal of coral reef restoration actions in Biscayne National Park is to 
create a stable, self-sustaining reef environment of similar topography 
and surface complexity to that which existed prior to injury, such that 
natural recovery processes, enhanced through mitigation, if needed, 
will lead to a fully functioning coral reef community with near natural 
complexity, structure, and make-up of organisms. The DEIS provides a 
systematic approach to addressing injuries to coral reefs caused by 
vessel groundings within Biscayne National Park. It analyzes two 
alternatives, the No Action alternative (Alternative 1) and Restoration 
Using a Programmatic Approach (Alternative 2).
    Alternative 1 would not change the existing approach to coral reef 
restoration planning and implementation, including NEPA compliance. 
Currently, Biscayne National Park resource managers evaluate the 
impacts of coral reef restoration actions and specific restoration 
methods when planning and implementing restoration at each grounding 
incident. In contrast, to address each coral injury under Alternative 
2, the most appropriate restoration actions and specific restoration 
methods would be selected from a ``toolbox'' of methods that already 
have had their impacts evaluated programmatically. Under Alternative 2, 
11 reasonable and common coral reef restoration actions were identified 
and evaluated for inclusion in the toolbox.
    Alternative 2 (Restoration Using a Programmatic Approach) was 
identified as the NPS's preferred alternative. The time required to 
evaluate environmental impacts of restoration actions after site-
specific injuries would be minimized substantially under Alternative 2, 
resulting in fewer adverse effects and/or more beneficial effects to 
park resources.
    If you wish to comment, you may submit your comments by any one of 
several methods. You may comment via the Internet at https://parkplanning.nps.gov/bisc. You may also mail comments to Coral Reef 
Restoration Plan, Biscayne National Park, 9700 SW. 328th Street, 
Homestead, FL 33033. Finally, you may hand-deliver comments to Biscayne 
National Park, 9700 SW. 328th Street, Homestead, FL 33033. 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

[[Page 21651]]

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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Biscayne National Park, 9700 SW. 328th 
Street, Homestead, FL 33033; Telephone 305-230-1144.

    Dated: February 18, 2010.
David Vela,
Regional Director, Southeast Region, National Park Service.
[FR Doc. 2010-9548 Filed 4-23-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-70-P
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