Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge, Chesterfield County, SC, 60808-60810 [2010-24668]
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60808
Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 190 / Friday, October 1, 2010 / Notices
procedures and adopted mitigation
measures for the use of herbicides,
provides additional detailed analysis
regarding the potential for human and
environmental risks generated in
support of the Programmatic EIS, and
addresses the concerns raised by the
District Court in its 1984 Order.
A June 2009 stipulated agreement
says the 1984 injunction, as modified in
1987, shall cease to be in force and
effect regarding BLM applying
herbicides to treat invasive species upon
the completion of the protest and
appeals period following issuance of
this ROD. Preparation of the Oregon EIS
began with a Notice of Intent to Prepare
an Environmental Impact Statement in
the Federal Register on June 23, 2008
(73 FR 35408). The scoping period
included the mailing of 17,000
postcards to potentially interested
persons or groups, statewide radio and
newspaper news releases, and 12 public
scoping meetings held throughout
Oregon. A Draft EIS was released on
October 2, 2009 (74 FR 50986). Over
1,000 comment letters received through
January 6, 2010, on the Draft EIS and the
ideas presented in those comments were
used to improve the analysis presented
in the Final EIS. Comment responses
and resultant changes are documented
in the Final EIS, Appendix 10.
The Final EIS addressed all 15.7
million acres of BLM lands in Oregon
and all 18 herbicides approved for use
by the 2007 ROD for the Programmatic
EIS, which are being used in the other
16 western states. The Final EIS
analyzed a ‘‘no action’’ and three action
alternatives, which were shaped in part
by the comments received during 12
public scoping meetings held
throughout Oregon in July 2008. A ‘‘no
herbicides’’ reference analysis was also
included. The alternatives addressed
eight ‘‘purposes’’ or issues also
identified during scoping.
The Final EIS analysis indicated that
by using standard operating procedures
identified in applicable BLM manuals
and policy direction, along with
Programmatic EIS-adopted mitigation
measures, human and environmental
risk from the use of herbicides is both
minimized and reduced from current
levels. The analysis indicates the
selected alternative will also slow the
spread of noxious weeds on BLM lands
by approximately 50 percent and result
in an estimated 2.2 million fewer
infested acres in 15 years than under
current program capabilities, will
reduce rights-of-way maintenance costs
by about $1 million per year, and will
make possible an additional 3,700 acres
of habitat improvement for federally
listed and other special status species
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17:34 Sep 30, 2010
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each year. The ROD does not authorize
any specific herbicide treatment
projects. No site-specific projects (i.e.
application of herbicides beyond
current authorized uses) will proceed
until completion of additional, sitespecific NEPA analysis and decisionmaking.
Consultation with the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service and the National
Marine Fisheries Service was conducted
to ensure continued applicability of
informal consultation and the Biological
Opinion issued on the Programmatic
EIS by those two agencies respectively.
The signing official for the ROD is the
BLM Oregon and Washington State
Director.
Administrative Appeals: The decision
may be appealed to the Interior Board of
Land Appeals (IBLA), Office of the
Secretary, in accordance with
regulations contained in 43 CFR part 4
and Form 1842–1. If you file an appeal,
your notice of appeal must be mailed to
the Oregon/Washington BLM State
Director, P.O. Box 2965, Portland,
Oregon 97208–2965, and be postmarked
by November 1, 2010. The appellant has
the burden of showing the decision
appealed is in error.
A copy of the appeal, statement of
reasons, and all other supporting
documents must also be sent to the
Regional Solicitor, Pacific Northwest
Region, U.S. Department of the Interior,
805 SW. Broadway #600, Portland,
Oregon 97205–3346. If the notice of
appeal does not include a statement of
reasons for the appeal, it must be sent
to the Interior Board of Land Appeals,
Office of Hearings and Appeals, 801
North Quincy Street, Arlington, Virginia
22203 within 30 days of filing the notice
of appeal (43 CFR 4.412). It is suggested
that appeals be sent certified mail,
return receipt requested.
Requests for Stay: Should you wish to
file a motion for stay pending the
outcome of an appeal of this decision,
you must show sufficient justification
based on the following standards under
43 CFR 4.21:
• The relative harm to the parties if
the stay is granted or denied;
• The likelihood of the appellant’s
success on the merits;
• The likelihood of immediate and
irreparable harm if the stay is not
granted; and
• Whether or not the public interest
favors granting the stay.
As noted above, the motion for stay
must be filed in the office of the
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authorized officer and the Regional
Solicitor.
Edward W. Shepard,
State Director, Oregon/Washington.
[FR Doc. 2010–24641 Filed 9–30–10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–33–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS–R4–R–2010–N134; 40136–1265–0000–
S3]
Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife
Refuge, Chesterfield County, SC
Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability: Final
comprehensive conservation plan and
finding of no significant impact.
AGENCY:
We, the Fish and Wildlife
Service (Service), announce the
availability of our final comprehensive
conservation plan (CCP) and finding of
no significant impact (FONSI) for the
environmental assessment for Carolina
Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge
(NWR). In the final CCP, we describe
how we will manage this refuge for the
next 15 years.
ADDRESSES: You may obtain a copy of
the CCP by writing to: Ms. Allyne
Askins, Refuge Manager, Carolina
Sandhills NWR, 23734 U.S. Highway 1,
McBee, SC 29101. The CCP may also be
accessed and downloaded from the
Service’s Web site: https://
southeast.fws.gov/planning/ under
‘‘Final Documents.’’
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms.
Allyne Askins; telephone: 843–335–
8350; fax: 843–335–8406; e-mail:
allyne_askins@fws.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
SUMMARY:
Introduction
With this notice, we finalize the CCP
process for Carolina Sandhills NWR. We
started this process through a notice in
the Federal Register on August 22, 2007
(72 FR 47062).
Carolina Sandhills NWR was
established by Executive Order 8067,
dated March 17, 1939. This Executive
Order authorized the Federal
Government to purchase lands from
willing sellers to restore habitats and
wildlife species. Today, the 45,348-acre
refuge is managed to restore the longleaf
pine/wiregrass ecosystem for the benefit
of the red-cockaded woodpecker (RCW)
and other endangered species; to
provide habitat for migratory and
upland game birds; to provide
opportunities for environmental
E:\FR\FM\01OCN1.SGM
01OCN1
Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 190 / Friday, October 1, 2010 / Notices
emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with NOTICES
education, interpretation and wildlifedependent recreational opportunities;
and to demonstrate sound land
management practices that enhance
natural resource conservation. The
refuge is a land management
demonstration refuge for the longleaf
pine/wiregrass ecosystem. The refuge
supports an estimated 150 active
clusters of the endangered RCW, the
largest population in the National
Wildlife Refuge System. The refuge’s
primary public use is hunting; although
wildlife observation, hiking, and fishing
also are popular.
We announce our decision and the
availability of the final CCP and FONSI
for Carolina Sandhills NWR in
accordance with the 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
Comprehensive Conservation Plan and
Environmental Assessment (Draft CCP/
EA). The CCP will guide us in managing
and administering Carolina Sandhills
NWR for the next 15 years. Alternative
C is the foundation for the CCP.
The compatibility determinations for
hunting, fishing, wildlife observation
and photography, environmental
education and interpretation,
cooperative farming, commercial timber
harvest, boating, public safety and
military training, natural resource
collection for personal use, cemetery
upkeep, scientific research and
collections, off-road vehicle use for
mobility-impaired persons, outdoor
recreation (e.g., bicycling, hiking,
jogging, walking, mountain biking, and
picnicking), camping, and horseback
riding are available in the CCP.
Background
The National Wildlife Refuge System
Administration Act of 1966 (16 U.S.C.
668dd–668ee) (Administration Act), as
amended by the National Wildlife
Refuge System Improvement Act of
1997, requires us to develop a CCP for
each national wildlife refuge. The
purpose in 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
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photography, and environmental
education and interpretation. We will
review and update the CCP at least
every 15 years in accordance with the
Administration Act.
Comments
We made copies of the Draft CCP/EA
available for a 30-day public review and
comment period via a Federal Register
notice on January 21, 2010 (75 FR 3484).
We received five comments on the Draft
CCP/EA.
Selected Alternative
The Draft CCP/EA identified and
evaluated three alternatives for
managing the refuge. After considering
the comments we received and based on
the professional judgment of the
planning team, we selected Alternative
C for implementation.
Under Alternative C, we will optimize
management of native wildlife and
habitat diversity (e.g., floristic
communities, longleaf-wiregrass, and
native grasslands) and appropriate
wildlife-dependent public uses and
visitor services. We will continue our
focus on RCW monitoring and recovery,
while managing for a suite of species.
We will enhance habitat required for
RCWs by (1) accelerating the transition
to multi-aged management; (2)
improving forest structure and
composition, focusing on diversifying
plantation structure to create multipleaged classes and densities of overstory
pines, while improving ground layer
structure and composition; (3) using all
available tools to control midstory (e.g.,
chemical, mechanical, and precommercial); (4) increasing growing
season burning; and (5) considering use
of fall burning for hazardous fuel
reduction and seed bed preparation.
We will increase partnership
activities with the South Carolina
Department of Natural Resources,
Cheraw State Park, and Sandhills State
Forest to manage RCWs as one recovery
population. We will enhance our
management of the unique floristic
communities on the refuge, including
seepage bogs, Atlantic white cedar and
cane bottoms, and old field species at
Oxpen Farm. We will develop and
implement habitat management
response surveys to identify species
response to treatments in longleaf pine
and restoration in pocosin habitat sites.
We will manage 1,200 acres of
grasslands for birds of conservation
concern, conduct baseline population
surveys of grassland birds, and survey to
assess effects of habitat management. As
part of grassland management and
restoration, we will restore longleafwiregrass and native grasslands,
PO 00000
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
60809
establish native warm season grass
demonstration areas, and eradicate nonnative plants (e.g., fescue, love grass,
and bamboo). We will also establish a
seed nursery/orchard for native warm
season grass and native ground cover
and engage in native plant botanical
research.
We will balance habitat restoration
and fish and wildlife population
management with enhanced visitor
services. We will improve our wayside
exhibits and update our Web site,
encouraging families to use the refuge to
pursue outdoor recreational
opportunities. We will host an annual
public lands and private landowner
demonstration day to showcase
restoration and management practices.
We will work with our volunteers,
partners, and friends group, to further
information and technology exchange.
We will target land acquisitions that
will maximize ecosystem management
objectives and opportunities for public
use and environmental education. We
will identify and evaluate important
gaps and corridors to ensure landscapelevel conservation and connectivity. We
will search for opportunities to enter
into cooperative wildlife management
agreements with private landowners in
the Partners for Fish and Wildlife
Program focus areas. We will increase
protection of visitors to the refuge.
Alternative C directs the development
of programs to best achieve the refuge
purpose and goals; emphasizes adaptive
management; collects habitat and
wildlife data; and ensures long-term
achievement of refuge and Service
objectives. At the same time, these
management actions provide balanced
levels of compatible public use
opportunities consistent with existing
laws, Service policies, and sound
biological principles. It provides the
best mix of program elements to achieve
desired long-term conditions. Under
this alternative, all lands under our
management and direction will be
protected, maintained, and enhanced to
best achieve national, ecosystem, and
refuge specific goals and objectives
within anticipated funding and staffing
levels. In addition, the action positively
addresses significant issues and
concerns expressed by the public.
Authority
This notice is published under the
authority of the National Wildlife
Refuge System Improvement Act of
1997, Public Law 105–57.
E:\FR\FM\01OCN1.SGM
01OCN1
60810
Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 190 / Friday, October 1, 2010 / Notices
Dated: August 5, 2010.
Mark J. Musaus,
Acting Regional Director.
Dated: September 22, 2010.
Larry Echo Hawk,
Assistant Secretary—Indian Affairs.
[FR Doc. 2010–24668 Filed 9–30–10; 8:45 am]
Indian Tribal Entities Within the
Contiguous 48 States Recognized and
Eligible To Receive Services From the
United States Bureau of Indian Affairs
Absentee-Shawnee Tribe of Indians of
Oklahoma
Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians
of the Agua Caliente Indian
Reservation, California
Ak Chin Indian Community of the
Maricopa (Ak Chin) Indian
Reservation, Arizona
Alabama-Coushatta Tribes of Texas
Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town,
Oklahoma
Alturas Indian Rancheria, California
Apache Tribe of Oklahoma
Arapahoe Tribe of the Wind River
Reservation, Wyoming
Aroostook Band of Micmac Indians of
Maine
Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort
Peck Indian Reservation, Montana
Augustine Band of Cahuilla Indians,
California (formerly the Augustine
Band of Cahuilla Mission Indians of
the Augustine Reservation)
Bad River Band of the Lake Superior
Tribe of Chippewa Indians of the Bad
River Reservation, Wisconsin
Bay Mills Indian Community, Michigan
Bear River Band of the Rohnerville
Rancheria, California
Berry Creek Rancheria of Maidu Indians
of California
Big Lagoon Rancheria, California
Big Pine Band of Owens Valley Paiute
Shoshone Indians of the Big Pine
Reservation, California
Big Sandy Rancheria of Mono Indians of
California
Big Valley Band of Pomo Indians of the
Big Valley Rancheria, California
Blackfeet Tribe of the Blackfeet Indian
Reservation of Montana
Blue Lake Rancheria, California
Bridgeport Paiute Indian Colony of
California
Buena Vista Rancheria of Me-Wuk
Indians of California
Burns Paiute Tribe of the Burns Paiute
Indian Colony of Oregon
Cabazon Band of Mission Indians,
California
Cachil DeHe Band of Wintun Indians of
the Colusa Indian Community of the
Colusa Rancheria, California
Caddo Nation of Oklahoma
Cahuilla Band of Mission Indians of the
Cahuilla Reservation, California
Cahto Indian Tribe of the Laytonville
Rancheria, California
California Valley Miwok Tribe,
California
Campo Band of Diegueno Mission
Indians of the Campo Indian
Reservation, California
BILLING CODE 4310–55–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Indian Affairs
Indian Entities Recognized and Eligible
To Receive Services From the United
States Bureau of Indian Affairs
Bureau of Indian Affairs,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
This notice publishes the
current list of 564 tribal entities
recognized and eligible for funding and
services from the Bureau of Indian
Affairs by virtue of their status as Indian
tribes. The list is updated from the
notice published on August 11, 2009 (74
FR 40218).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Elizabeth Colliflower, Bureau of Indian
Affairs, Division of Tribal Government
Services, Mail Stop 4513–MIB, 1849 C
Street, NW., Washington, DC 20240.
Telephone number: (202) 513–7641.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
notice is published pursuant to Section
104 of the Act of November 2, 1994
(Pub. L. 103–454; 108 Stat. 4791, 4792),
and in exercise of authority delegated to
the Assistant Secretary—Indian Affairs
under 25 U.S.C. 2 and 9 and 209 DM 8.
Published below is a list of federally
acknowledged tribes in the contiguous
48 states and in Alaska.
Amendments to the list include name
changes and name corrections. To aid in
identifying tribal name changes, the
tribe’s former name is included with the
new tribal name. To aid in identifying
corrections, the tribe’s previously listed
name is included with the tribal name.
We will continue to list the tribe’s
former or previously listed name for
several years before dropping the former
or previously listed name from the list.
The listed entities are acknowledged
to have the immunities and privileges
available to other federally
acknowledged Indian tribes by virtue of
their government-to-government
relationship with the United States as
well as the responsibilities, powers,
limitations and obligations of such
tribes. We have continued the practice
of listing the Alaska Native entities
separately solely for the purpose of
facilitating identification of them and
reference to them given the large
number of complex Native names.
emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with NOTICES
SUMMARY:
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17:34 Sep 30, 2010
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Capitan Grande Band of Diegueno
Mission Indians of California:
Barona Group of Capitan Grande Band
of Mission Indians of the Barona
Reservation, California
Viejas (Baron Long) Group of Capitan
Grande Band of Mission Indians of
the Viejas Reservation, California
Catawba Indian Nation (aka Catawba
Tribe of South Carolina)
Cayuga Nation of New York
Cedarville Rancheria, California
Chemehuevi Indian Tribe of the
Chemehuevi Reservation, California
Cher-Ae Heights Indian Community of
the Trinidad Rancheria, California
Cherokee Nation, Oklahoma
Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes,
Oklahoma (formerly the CheyenneArapaho Tribes of Oklahoma)
Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe of the
Cheyenne River Reservation, South
Dakota
Chickasaw Nation, Oklahoma
Chicken Ranch Rancheria of Me-Wuk
Indians of California
Chippewa-Cree Indians of the Rocky
Boy’s Reservation, Montana
Chitimacha Tribe of Louisiana
Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma
Citizen Potawatomi Nation, Oklahoma
Cloverdale Rancheria of Pomo Indians
of California
Cocopah Tribe of Arizona
Coeur D’Alene Tribe of the Coeur
D’Alene Reservation, Idaho
Cold Springs Rancheria of Mono Indians
of California
Colorado River Indian Tribes of the
Colorado River Indian Reservation,
Arizona and California
Comanche Nation, Oklahoma
Confederated Salish & Kootenai Tribes
of the Flathead Reservation, Montana
Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis
Reservation, Washington
Confederated Tribes of the Colville
Reservation, Washington
Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower
Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians of
Oregon
Confederated Tribes of the Goshute
Reservation, Nevada and Utah
Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde
Community of Oregon
Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians of
Oregon (previously listed as the
Confederated Tribes of the Siletz
Reservation)
Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla
Reservation, Oregon
Confederated Tribes of the Warm
Springs Reservation of Oregon
Confederated Tribes and Bands of the
Yakama Nation, Washington
Coquille Tribe of Oregon
Cortina Indian Rancheria of Wintun
Indians of California
Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana
E:\FR\FM\01OCN1.SGM
01OCN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 190 (Friday, October 1, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 60808-60810]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-24668]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R4-R-2010-N134; 40136-1265-0000-S3]
Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge, Chesterfield County,
SC
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability: Final comprehensive conservation plan
and finding of no significant impact.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the
availability of our final comprehensive conservation plan (CCP) and
finding of no significant impact (FONSI) for the environmental
assessment for Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge (NWR). In
the final CCP, we describe how we will manage this refuge for the next
15 years.
ADDRESSES: You may obtain a copy of the CCP by writing to: Ms. Allyne
Askins, Refuge Manager, Carolina Sandhills NWR, 23734 U.S. Highway 1,
McBee, SC 29101. The CCP may also be accessed and downloaded from the
Service's Web site: https://southeast.fws.gov/planning/ under ``Final
Documents.''
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Allyne Askins; telephone: 843-335-
8350; fax: 843-335-8406; e-mail: allyne_askins@fws.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Introduction
With this notice, we finalize the CCP process for Carolina
Sandhills NWR. We started this process through a notice in the Federal
Register on August 22, 2007 (72 FR 47062).
Carolina Sandhills NWR was established by Executive Order 8067,
dated March 17, 1939. This Executive Order authorized the Federal
Government to purchase lands from willing sellers to restore habitats
and wildlife species. Today, the 45,348-acre refuge is managed to
restore the longleaf pine/wiregrass ecosystem for the benefit of the
red-cockaded woodpecker (RCW) and other endangered species; to provide
habitat for migratory and upland game birds; to provide opportunities
for environmental
[[Page 60809]]
education, interpretation and wildlife-dependent recreational
opportunities; and to demonstrate sound land management practices that
enhance natural resource conservation. The refuge is a land management
demonstration refuge for the longleaf pine/wiregrass ecosystem. The
refuge supports an estimated 150 active clusters of the endangered RCW,
the largest population in the National Wildlife Refuge System. The
refuge's primary public use is hunting; although wildlife observation,
hiking, and fishing also are popular.
We announce our decision and the availability of the final CCP and
FONSI for Carolina Sandhills NWR in accordance with the 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 Comprehensive Conservation Plan and
Environmental Assessment (Draft CCP/EA). The CCP will guide us in
managing and administering Carolina Sandhills NWR for the next 15
years. Alternative C is the foundation for the CCP.
The compatibility determinations for hunting, fishing, wildlife
observation and photography, environmental education and
interpretation, cooperative farming, commercial timber harvest,
boating, public safety and military training, natural resource
collection for personal use, cemetery upkeep, scientific research and
collections, off-road vehicle use for mobility-impaired persons,
outdoor recreation (e.g., bicycling, hiking, jogging, walking, mountain
biking, and picnicking), camping, and horseback riding are available in
the CCP.
Background
The National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 (16
U.S.C. 668dd-668ee) (Administration Act), as amended by the National
Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997, requires us to develop
a CCP for each national wildlife refuge. The purpose in 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 wildlife-dependent 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 Administration
Act.
Comments
We made copies of the Draft CCP/EA available for a 30-day public
review and comment period via a Federal Register notice on January 21,
2010 (75 FR 3484). We received five comments on the Draft CCP/EA.
Selected Alternative
The Draft CCP/EA identified and evaluated three alternatives for
managing the refuge. After considering the comments we received and
based on the professional judgment of the planning team, we selected
Alternative C for implementation.
Under Alternative C, we will optimize management of native wildlife
and habitat diversity (e.g., floristic communities, longleaf-wiregrass,
and native grasslands) and appropriate wildlife-dependent public uses
and visitor services. We will continue our focus on RCW monitoring and
recovery, while managing for a suite of species. We will enhance
habitat required for RCWs by (1) accelerating the transition to multi-
aged management; (2) improving forest structure and composition,
focusing on diversifying plantation structure to create multiple-aged
classes and densities of overstory pines, while improving ground layer
structure and composition; (3) using all available tools to control
midstory (e.g., chemical, mechanical, and pre-commercial); (4)
increasing growing season burning; and (5) considering use of fall
burning for hazardous fuel reduction and seed bed preparation.
We will increase partnership activities with the South Carolina
Department of Natural Resources, Cheraw State Park, and Sandhills State
Forest to manage RCWs as one recovery population. We will enhance our
management of the unique floristic communities on the refuge, including
seepage bogs, Atlantic white cedar and cane bottoms, and old field
species at Oxpen Farm. We will develop and implement habitat management
response surveys to identify species response to treatments in longleaf
pine and restoration in pocosin habitat sites.
We will manage 1,200 acres of grasslands for birds of conservation
concern, conduct baseline population surveys of grassland birds, and
survey to assess effects of habitat management. As part of grassland
management and restoration, we will restore longleaf-wiregrass and
native grasslands, establish native warm season grass demonstration
areas, and eradicate non-native plants (e.g., fescue, love grass, and
bamboo). We will also establish a seed nursery/orchard for native warm
season grass and native ground cover and engage in native plant
botanical research.
We will balance habitat restoration and fish and wildlife
population management with enhanced visitor services. We will improve
our wayside exhibits and update our Web site, encouraging families to
use the refuge to pursue outdoor recreational opportunities. We will
host an annual public lands and private landowner demonstration day to
showcase restoration and management practices. We will work with our
volunteers, partners, and friends group, to further information and
technology exchange. We will target land acquisitions that will
maximize ecosystem management objectives and opportunities for public
use and environmental education. We will identify and evaluate
important gaps and corridors to ensure landscape-level conservation and
connectivity. We will search for opportunities to enter into
cooperative wildlife management agreements with private landowners in
the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program focus areas. We will
increase protection of visitors to the refuge.
Alternative C directs the development of programs to best achieve
the refuge purpose and goals; emphasizes adaptive management; collects
habitat and wildlife data; and ensures long-term achievement of refuge
and Service objectives. At the same time, these management actions
provide balanced levels of compatible public use opportunities
consistent with existing laws, Service policies, and sound biological
principles. It provides the best mix of program elements to achieve
desired long-term conditions. Under this alternative, all lands under
our management and direction will be protected, maintained, and
enhanced to best achieve national, ecosystem, and refuge specific goals
and objectives within anticipated funding and staffing levels. In
addition, the action positively addresses significant issues and
concerns expressed by the public.
Authority
This notice is published under the authority of the National
Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997, Public Law 105-57.
[[Page 60810]]
Dated: August 5, 2010.
Mark J. Musaus,
Acting Regional Director.
[FR Doc. 2010-24668 Filed 9-30-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P
