Friends Policy for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 22528-22529 [2014-09092]
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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 77 / Tuesday, April 22, 2014 / Notices
APPENDIX A FY2013 FAIR HOUSING INITIATIVES PROGRAM AWARDS—Continued
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[FR Doc. 2014–09174 Filed 4–21–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210–67–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS–R9–R–2011–N030; 93261–1263–000–
5C]
RIN 1018–AX35
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Friends Policy for the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service
of the policy is to assist Service
employees in achieving our mission
more efficiently and effectively by
increasing community involvement
through partnerships with nonprofit
Friends. The policy includes guidance
on the relationship between the Service
and Friends organizations, Service
employee responsibilities, financial and
administrative practices, Friends
Partnership Agreements, and revenuegenerating operations.
Background
While these chapters are written to
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service,
implement specific provisions of the
Interior.
National Wildlife Refuge System
ACTION: Notice.
Volunteer and Community Partnership
Enhancement Act of 1998 (Pub. L. 105–
SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife
242, 112 Stat. 1574), and the National
Service (Service), announce that we
Fish Hatchery System Volunteer Act of
have established a Friends policy, the
2006 (Pub. L. 109–360), they also
purpose of which is to assist Service
provide direction and administrative
employees in achieving our mission
procedures for other divisions of the
more efficiently and effectively by
Service seeking to establish and work
increasing community involvement
with Friends organizations.
through partnerships with nonprofit
The two Acts together encourage the
Friends organizations (Friends). The
National Wildlife Refuge and Hatchery
policy includes guidance on the
Systems to enter into partnerships with
relationship between the Service and
non-Federal entities such as Friends
Friends, Service employee
organizations to promote public
responsibilities, financial and
awareness of Service resources and
administrative practices, Friends
facilitate public participation in the
Partnership Agreements, and revenue
conservation of those resources, and to
generating operations.
accept donations of funds and other
DATES: This policy is in effect as of April
contributions by people and
4, 2014.
organizations through partnerships with
ADDRESSES: The Friends policy is
non-Federal entities such as Friends
available at www.fws.gov/refuges/
organizations. We based this policy on
friends and in the Fish and Wildlife
these statutory requirements.
Service Manual at: www.fws.gov/policy/
The National Friends Program
manuals/.
(National Refuge System) was
established in 1996 to encourage and
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Joanna Webb, Visitor Services, National organize community involvement in
refuge activities. The program works to
Wildlife Refuge System, U.S. Fish and
expand the number and effectiveness of
Wildlife Service, 4401 North Fairfax
community-based Friends
Drive, Room 635, Arlington, VA 22203;
organizations, which assist with
Telephone: 703–358–2392.
increasing visibility and support for
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
refuges, the Refuge System, and
Introduction
conservation. During the last decade,
the Friends program has grown
We have established a final Friends
substantially in size and complexity,
policy, which is available at
with approximately 200 Refuge Friends
www.fws.gov/refuges/friends and in the
organizations and 30 Fisheries Friends
Service Manual at www.fws.gov/policy/
organizations, with a combined
manuals/.
estimated total of 40–60,000 members.
We have incorporated this policy as
These organizations significantly
part 633, chapters 1–4 of the Fish and
strengthen refuges and fish hatcheries
Wildlife Service Manual. The purpose
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19:10 Apr 21, 2014
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Region
Award Amt.
across the country and help the Service
fulfill its mission.
Final Policy
We recognize that Friends provide
many vital services to our sites and
programs. This policy provides
guidance on roles and responsibilities
for the Service to enter into partnerships
and work with Friends organizations.
The purpose of this policy is to provide
Service employees with guidance when
working with Friends organizations.
Chapter 1 of this policy identifies the
legal authorities under which the
Service must work with Friends
organizations, describes the relationship
between the Service and Friends
organizations, and describes the
responsibilities of Service employees
and Friends organizations.
Chapter 2 describes the information
we need when we consider the financial
and administrative activities under
Friends agreements, including the
practices and activities that the Service
may allow on Service-managed
property.
Chapter 3 describes the major
components of and process for
developing and modifying legal Friends
Partnership Agreements between
Friends organizations and the Service.
Chapter 4 describes how we work
with Friends organizations to manage
revenue-generating operations on
Service property.
Summary of Comments and Changes to
the Final Policy
On October 18, 2010, we announced
the draft of this policy and requested
public comments via a Federal Register
notice (75 FR 63851). The comment
period was open from October 18, 2010,
through December 2, 2010. On March 9,
2011, we opened a second public
comment period, which went through
April 8, 2011 (76 FR 12989). In total, we
received approximately 40 comment
letters on the draft policy. The letters
included a total of approximately 500
individual comments on the draft
policy. The comments were from
Federal and State government agencies,
nongovernmental organizations, and
individuals. Most of the comments
addressed specific elements, while some
comments expressed general support,
E:\FR\FM\22APN1.SGM
22APN1
Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 77 / Tuesday, April 22, 2014 / Notices
without addressing specific elements.
We considered all of the information
and recommendations for improvement
included in the comments and made
appropriate changes to the draft policy.
We also made some additions and
clarifications to the policy that were not
addressed in the public comments, but
were discovered through internal
briefings and reviews during the policy
revision period.
Dated: April 7, 2014.
Daniel M. Ashe,
Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2014–09092 Filed 4–21–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–55–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[CACA–048669, LLCAD07000,
L51010000.ER0000.LVRWB10B4050]
Notice of Availability of the Record of
Decision for the San Diego Gas &
Electric Ocotillo Sol Solar Project and
California Desert Conservation Area
Plan Amendment, Imperial County, CA
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
AGENCY:
The Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) announces the
availability of the Record of Decision
(ROD) and approved plan amendment to
the California Desert Conservation Area
(CDCA) for the San Diego Gas & Electric
(SDG&E) Ocotillo Sol Solar Project in
Imperial County, California. The
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary,
Land and Minerals Management,
approved the ROD on April 7, 2014,
which constitutes the final decision of
the Department of the Interior.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the Ocotillo Sol
Solar Project ROD/approved CDCA plan
amendment are available upon request
at the BLM El Centro Field Office at
1661 S. 4th Street, El Centro, CA 92243,
at the BLM California Desert District
Office at 22835 Calle San Juan de los
Lagos, Moreno Valley, CA 92553, or via
the Internet at the following Web site:
https://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/
elcentro/nepa/ocotillosol.html.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Noel
Ludwig, BLM Project Manager,
telephone 951–697–5368; address BLM
California Desert District Office, 22835
Calle San Juan de Los Lagos, Moreno
Valley, CA 92553; or email nludwig@
blm.gov. Persons who use a
telecommunications device for the deaf
(TDD) may call the Federal Information
Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–800–877–8339
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
SUMMARY:
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16:26 Apr 21, 2014
Jkt 232001
to contact the above individual during
normal business hours. The FIRS is
available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,
to leave a message or question with the
above individual. You will receive a
reply during normal business hours.
The
applicant, SDG&E, filed an application
for a right-of-way (ROW) grant
authorization to construct, operate,
maintain, and decommission the
Ocotillo Sol project, a 20-megawatt
(MW) (peak load) solar photovoltaic
(PV) power plant facility, on 115 acres
of BLM-administered public lands in
Imperial County, California, including a
15-acre temporary construction laydown
area. The site for the solar facility would
be adjacent to the existing Imperial
Valley Substation (IVS), approximately
5 miles north of the United StatesMexico border, 9 miles southwest of El
Centro, and 82 miles east of San Diego.
The proposed project site is located
within the BLM’s CDCA, the BLM’s
Yuha Basin Area of Critical
Environmental Concern, and the Yuha
Desert Management Area for the flattailed horned lizard. A portion of the
Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic
Trail lies approximately 5 miles
southwest of the project site at its
closest point, and runs approximately
north-south. The Jacumba Mountains
Wilderness Area lies 11.7 miles to the
west of the project site. The Agency
Selected Alternative retains the 100-acre
solar facility from the proposed project,
but reduces the laydown area from 15
acres to 2 acres; this was described in
the final Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS) as Alternative 3:
Reduced Construction Footprint, and
identified as the Preferred Alternative.
All proposed project components,
including the temporary 2-acre
construction laydown area, would be
located on BLM-administered lands
subject to a ROW grant. The proposed
Ocotillo Sol project components would
include the PV modules and mounting
structures, a maintenance building with
an associated parking area, internal
roads, inverters, transformers, and the
combining switchgear. An existing road
to the IVS would provide access to the
proposed project site. New minor
internal roads would be constructed
between the module rows. The
interconnection to the IVS would be via
underground trench. Once approved
and operational, the proposed Ocotillo
Sol project is expected to have an
average generating capacity of 15 to 18
MW, depending on the specific
technology chosen, with a peak output
of 20 MW.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
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In addition to mitigation and
monitoring measures applied to all large
ground disturbance projects on BLM
land, the following are several of the key
mitigation measures included in the
ROD:
• Flat-tailed horned lizard
translocation and monitoring plan;
• Burrowing owl mitigation and
monitoring plan;
• Flat-tailed horned lizard
exclusionary fence monitoring plan;
• Compensatory mitigation for flattailed horned lizard habitat losses;
• Wildlife mortality monitoring plan
and mitigation measures; and
• An Archaeological Resources
Monitoring and Discovery Plan, Tribal
Participation Plan, and Long-Term
Archaeological Management Plan.
The project site is located in the
California Desert District within the
planning boundary of the CDCA Plan,
which is the applicable resource
management plan for the project site
and surrounding areas. The CDCA Plan,
while recognizing the potential
compatibility of solar energy generation
facilities with other uses on public
lands, requires that all sites associated
with power generation or transmission
not already identified in the Plan be
considered through the BLM’s land use
plan amendment process. As a result,
prior to approval of a ROW grant for the
Ocotillo Sol Solar Project, the BLM must
amend the CDCA Plan to allow the solar
energy generating project on that site.
The approved amendment to the CDCA
Plan specifically revises the CDCA Plan
to allow for the development of the
Ocotillo Sol Solar Project and ancillary
facilities on land managed by the BLM.
In addition to the ROW grant and plan
amendment, the ROD also authorizes
the temporary closures of existing routes
for purposes of construction and
maintenance of the underground
transmission line for the Project as
described in the ROD.
A Notice of Availability of the
proposed plan amendment/final EIS for
the Ocotillo Sol Solar Project was
published on July 26, 2013 (78 FR
45268). Publication of the Notice of
Availability for the plan amendment/
final EIS initiated a 30-day protest
period for the proposed amendment to
the CDCA Plan. At the close of the 30day period, no written protests were
received. Simultaneously with the
protest period, the Governor of
California conducted a 30-day
consistency review of the proposed plan
amendment to identify any
inconsistencies with State or local
plans, policies or programs; no
inconsistencies were identified.
E:\FR\FM\22APN1.SGM
22APN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 77 (Tuesday, April 22, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22528-22529]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-09092]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R9-R-2011-N030; 93261-1263-000-5C]
RIN 1018-AX35
Friends Policy for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce that we
have established a Friends policy, the purpose of which is to assist
Service employees in achieving our mission more efficiently and
effectively by increasing community involvement through partnerships
with nonprofit Friends organizations (Friends). The policy includes
guidance on the relationship between the Service and Friends, Service
employee responsibilities, financial and administrative practices,
Friends Partnership Agreements, and revenue generating operations.
DATES: This policy is in effect as of April 4, 2014.
ADDRESSES: The Friends policy is available at www.fws.gov/refuges/friends and in the Fish and Wildlife Service Manual at: www.fws.gov/policy/manuals/.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joanna Webb, Visitor Services,
National Wildlife Refuge System, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4401
North Fairfax Drive, Room 635, Arlington, VA 22203; Telephone: 703-358-
2392.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Introduction
We have established a final Friends policy, which is available at
www.fws.gov/refuges/friends and in the Service Manual at www.fws.gov/policy/manuals/.
We have incorporated this policy as part 633, chapters 1-4 of the
Fish and Wildlife Service Manual. The purpose of the policy is to
assist Service employees in achieving our mission more efficiently and
effectively by increasing community involvement through partnerships
with nonprofit Friends. The policy includes guidance on the
relationship between the Service and Friends organizations, Service
employee responsibilities, financial and administrative practices,
Friends Partnership Agreements, and revenue-generating operations.
Background
While these chapters are written to implement specific provisions
of the National Wildlife Refuge System Volunteer and Community
Partnership Enhancement Act of 1998 (Pub. L. 105-242, 112 Stat. 1574),
and the National Fish Hatchery System Volunteer Act of 2006 (Pub. L.
109-360), they also provide direction and administrative procedures for
other divisions of the Service seeking to establish and work with
Friends organizations.
The two Acts together encourage the National Wildlife Refuge and
Hatchery Systems to enter into partnerships with non-Federal entities
such as Friends organizations to promote public awareness of Service
resources and facilitate public participation in the conservation of
those resources, and to accept donations of funds and other
contributions by people and organizations through partnerships with
non-Federal entities such as Friends organizations. We based this
policy on these statutory requirements.
The National Friends Program (National Refuge System) was
established in 1996 to encourage and organize community involvement in
refuge activities. The program works to expand the number and
effectiveness of community-based Friends organizations, which assist
with increasing visibility and support for refuges, the Refuge System,
and conservation. During the last decade, the Friends program has grown
substantially in size and complexity, with approximately 200 Refuge
Friends organizations and 30 Fisheries Friends organizations, with a
combined estimated total of 40-60,000 members. These organizations
significantly strengthen refuges and fish hatcheries across the country
and help the Service fulfill its mission.
Final Policy
We recognize that Friends provide many vital services to our sites
and programs. This policy provides guidance on roles and
responsibilities for the Service to enter into partnerships and work
with Friends organizations. The purpose of this policy is to provide
Service employees with guidance when working with Friends
organizations.
Chapter 1 of this policy identifies the legal authorities under
which the Service must work with Friends organizations, describes the
relationship between the Service and Friends organizations, and
describes the responsibilities of Service employees and Friends
organizations.
Chapter 2 describes the information we need when we consider the
financial and administrative activities under Friends agreements,
including the practices and activities that the Service may allow on
Service-managed property.
Chapter 3 describes the major components of and process for
developing and modifying legal Friends Partnership Agreements between
Friends organizations and the Service.
Chapter 4 describes how we work with Friends organizations to
manage revenue-generating operations on Service property.
Summary of Comments and Changes to the Final Policy
On October 18, 2010, we announced the draft of this policy and
requested public comments via a Federal Register notice (75 FR 63851).
The comment period was open from October 18, 2010, through December 2,
2010. On March 9, 2011, we opened a second public comment period, which
went through April 8, 2011 (76 FR 12989). In total, we received
approximately 40 comment letters on the draft policy. The letters
included a total of approximately 500 individual comments on the draft
policy. The comments were from Federal and State government agencies,
nongovernmental organizations, and individuals. Most of the comments
addressed specific elements, while some comments expressed general
support,
[[Page 22529]]
without addressing specific elements. We considered all of the
information and recommendations for improvement included in the
comments and made appropriate changes to the draft policy. We also made
some additions and clarifications to the policy that were not addressed
in the public comments, but were discovered through internal briefings
and reviews during the policy revision period.
Dated: April 7, 2014.
Daniel M. Ashe,
Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2014-09092 Filed 4-21-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P
