Little Sandy National Wildlife Refuge, Wood County, Texas; Draft Comprehensive Conservation Plan and Draft Environmental Assessment, 8203-8205 [2017-01543]

Download as PDF 8203 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 14 / Tuesday, January 24, 2017 / Notices Information collection Number of respondents Frequency of response Responses per annum Burden hour per response Annual burden hours Hourly cost per response Cost SOMA ......... 12,000 4 48,000 .125 (30 minutes total divided by 4 interviews). 6000 $0 $0 Total ..... 12,000 4 48,000 .125 ................................. 6000 0 0 B. Solicitation of Public Comment This notice is soliciting comments from members of the public and affected parties concerning the collection of information described in Section A on the following: (1) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will have practical utility; (2) The accuracy of the agency’s estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information; (3) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) Ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses. HUD encourages interested parties to submit comment in response to these questions. C. Authority Section 3507 of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. Chapter 35. Dated: January 10, 2017. Matthew Ammon, General Deputy Secretary for Policy Development and Research. [FR Doc. 2017–01552 Filed 1–23–17; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4210–67–P DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Fish and Wildlife Service sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES [FWS–R2–R–2016–N168; FXRS12650200000–178–FF02R04000] Little Sandy National Wildlife Refuge, Wood County, Texas; Draft Comprehensive Conservation Plan and Draft Environmental Assessment Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior. ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments. AGENCY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the SUMMARY: VerDate Sep<11>2014 19:36 Jan 23, 2017 Jkt 241001 availability of a draft Comprehensive Conservation Plan (dCCP) and the draft Environmental Assessment (dEA) for Little Sandy National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), located approximately 80 miles east of Dallas, Texas, for public review and comment. The dCCP/dEA describes our proposal for managing the refuge for the next 15 years. DATES: To ensure consideration, please send your written comments by February 23, 2017. We will announce any potential upcoming public meetings in local news media. ADDRESSES: You may submit comments or requests for copies or more information by any of the following methods. You may request hard copies or a CD–ROM of the documents. Please contact David Weaver, Refuge Manager, or Joseph Lujan, Natural Resource Planner. Email: Joseph_Lujan@fws.gov. Include ‘‘Little Sandy NWR draft CCP and draft EA’’ in the subject line of the message. Fax: Attn: Joseph Lujan, 505–248– 6803. U.S. Mail: Joseph Lujan, Natural Resource Planner, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, NWRS, Division of Planning, P.O. Box 1306 Room 4335, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87103. In-Person Drop-off, Viewing, or Pickup: In-Person Drop-off: You may drop off comments during regular business hours of 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at 500 Gold Avenue SW; 4th Floor, Room 4335; Albuquerque, New Mexico 87102. Little Sandy NWR, CCP Project, P.O. Box 340, Broken Bow, Oklahoma 74728 FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David Weaver, Refuge Manager, Little Sandy NWR, CCP Project, P.O. Box 340, Broken Bow, Oklahoma 74728; phone: 580–584–6211. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Introduction With this notice, we continue the Comprehensive Conservation Planning (CCP) process for the Little Sandy NWR. We started this process through a notice in the Federal Register (72 FR 46095; August 16, 2007). The primary purpose of Little Sandy NWR is to protect a remnant of the bottomland hardwood forest ecosystem along the Sabine River in East Texas. The Little Sandy NWR was established PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 in December 1986 as a permanent nondevelopment easement with the Little Sandy Hunting and Fishing Club (LSHFC). It is managed as a unit of the National Wildlife Refuge System (NWRS) out of the Little River NWR Complex headquarters in Broken Bow Oklahoma. Background The CCP Process The National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Administration Act of 1966 (16 U.S.C. 668dd–668ee) (Refuge 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 for developing a CCP is to provide refuge managers with a 15 year plan for achieving refuge purposes and contributing toward the mission of the NWRS, consistent with sound principles of fish and wildlife management, conservation, legal mandates, and FWS 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 wildlife observation and photography, and environmental education and interpretation. We will review and update the CCP at least every 15 years in accordance with the Refuge Administration Act. Public Outreach Formal scoping began when we published a notice of intent to prepare a CCP and EA in the Federal Register on August 16, 2007, and formally invited the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) to participate in the development of the document. TPWD has provided constant input and the Service has continued to involve them throughout the planning process. Information sheets were sent to the public, and news releases were sent to a variety of media outlets. A public open house meeting was held on September 9, 2009, at Jarvis Christian College in Hawkins, Texas. Additional written comments were received prior to the open house. A variety of stakeholders contributed feedback at the open house meeting and via written E:\FR\FM\24JAN1.SGM 24JAN1 8204 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 14 / Tuesday, January 24, 2017 / Notices comments and we used the feedback in development of the dCCP. CCP Alternatives We Are Considering The public raised multiple issues during the public scoping process that initiated this dCCP. Our dCCP addresses them in detail. A full description of each alternative is in the dEA. To address these issues, we developed and evaluated the following alternatives, summarized below. COMPARISON OF ALTERNATIVES Issues and topics Alternative A: Current management Alternative B: Proposed action I. Habitat Management • Climate Change ............... The Service has limited activities at Little Sandy NWR; as such, the Refuge attempts to limit carbon footprints by consolidating trips from Caddo Lake NWR; what few trips are made to the Refuge are offset by the conservation of the bottomland hardwood habitat found on the Refuge. There are no Service facilities present on the Refuge; therefore, there is no effort to utilize green products commonly associated with such facilities. • Land Acquisition ............... The Service would work within the 10 percent rule which allows Refuge expansion to occur up to 10 percent of the total Refuge establishment acres within the Refuge or up to 1 mile of the existing Refuge boundary. This includes fee acquisition and conservation easements from willing sellers or donors. An initial habitat assessment of the refuge was completed by refuge staff when Little Sandy was brought into the Refuge System, and an additional ecological community characterization survey was conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Wetland Research Center. Current inventory activities are limited to identification and confirmation of invasive flora species when Little Sandy Hunting and Fishing Club (LSHFC) members report them. There is currently no prescribed fire plan or program on Little Sandy NWR. A Fire program would mimic natural fire ecology and be beneficial to upland habitat. • Flora Inventory ................. • Prescribed Burning ........... • Invasive Species Management (Flora). Limited management activities are present in the form of chemical (Garlon 3A and Garlon4) treatments when identified by LSHFC members.. In 2011 and 2012, limited funding was available to treat Chinese tallow and privet. • Water Body Management Brumley and Overton Lake levels managed by LSHFC for recreation and hunting purposes; the Refuge serves in an advisory function only. The Refuge would establish a baseline dataset for Refuge resources. To do so, the Refuge would use technologies including historical imagery and tabular data, existing maps and records, LiDAR, contemporary ortho-rectified imagery, ground-truthing and on-screen digitizing. This baseline dataset would enable the Refuge to develop a decision-based research and monitoring program to track potential impacts from climate change on the Refuge. There would be no Service development of facilities on the Refuge. The Refuge will participate in a partnership driven Land Protection Planning process that would guide land acquisition efforts and provide the opportunity to acquire any adjacent lands from willing sellers. Both bottomland and upland tracts would be considered in the plan. Same as Alternative A plus the development of a comprehensive species list for the Refuge would be beneficial for determining ecological integrity and habitat diversity as well as providing a baseline dataset from which any changes to habitat as a result of climate change and management activities can be tracked. The completion and implementation of a step-down fire management plan would be focused on mimicking natural fire ecology on the upland portions of the Refuge, controlling invasive flora species, reducing fuel loads from wildfires and promote pine savanna habitat. Same as Alternative A plus increased efforts to locate, map, treat, and monitor these, as well as other invasive species, which may be present on the Refuge. In addition, some stumps may be cut and sprayed to minimize spread of invasive species. This can be conducted in conjunction with the Flora Inventory as described above. Prescribed burning can also be used to treat with the production of a fire management plan. Same as Alternative A. II. Wildlife Management sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES • Fauna Inventory ............... VerDate Sep<11>2014 19:36 Jan 23, 2017 Annual aerial waterfowl surveys were conducted between October and March, from 2008–2011, on a monthly basis by the Region 2 pilot and a Refuge staff member. Aerial surveys were halted in 2011 when the Region no longer had a airplane. In addition, annual bird point counts are conducted with assistance from Region 2 migratory bird biologist, Texas Parks and Wildlife biologist and Refuge staff each spring in May and June. Jkt 241001 PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 Same as Alternative A, plus expand current wildlife monitoring on the Refuge and coordinate with the Division of Biological Sciences. This alternative would also provide an opportunity to utilize LiDAR to monitor changes in habitat throughout the Refuge. The alternative includes; expansion of bird point counts and monitoring to meet Service standards, continuation of on the ground waterfowl surveys and the collection of biological data from fauna harvested by the LSHFC. E:\FR\FM\24JAN1.SGM 24JAN1 8205 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 14 / Tuesday, January 24, 2017 / Notices COMPARISON OF ALTERNATIVES—Continued Issues and topics Alternative A: Current management The LSHFC staff identifies and removes beaver dams throughout the year from culverts and small drains to promote drainage and maintain trails. Hunt club members may take hogs during other hunting activities, but these circumstances are opportunistic and relatively rare; there have been coordinated trapping efforts between the Service and LSHFC since 2013. • Nuisance and Invasive Species Management (Fauna). Alternative B: Proposed action Under this alternative, the Refuge will develop step down management plans focused on nuisance and invasive species management. Step Down Plans would be initiated for an Invasive Species Management Plan, a Feral Hog and Beaver Management Plan. Step Down Management Plans may initiate management practices for nuisance species (beaver, nutria), such as dam removal and trapping, reducing the negative impacts to existing infrastructure. Additionally, the Refuge will utilize their own staff or contract services to conduct hunting and trapping of feral hogs. III. Staff Requirements Under the Two Alternatives Zero (0) Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) Staff 2.5 FTE. IV. Budgets Under the Two Alternatives • Refuge Base Operational Budget. • Annual Maintenance ........ • Fire Operations ................ • Tallow/Forest Inventory .... Total Budget ................. $0 .................................................................................... $612,476.00. $0 .................................................................................... $0 .................................................................................... $18,884.00 ...................................................................... $18,884.00 ...................................................................... $0. $0. $18,884.00. $631,360.00. Public Availability of Documents In addition to using any methods in you can view or obtain documents at the following locations: ADDRESSES, • Little River NWR, P.O. Box 340, Broken Bow, Oklahoma 74728, between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. • Our Web site: https://www.fws.gov/ southwest/refuges/texas/little_sandy/ CCP. • The following public libraries: Library Address Allen Memorial Public Library ................................................... Tyler Public Library ................................................................... 121 East Blackbourn Street, Hawkins, Texas 75765 .............. 201 South College Avenue, Tyler, Texas 75702 ..................... sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES Submitting Comments/Issues for Comment We consider comments substantive if they: • Question, with reasonable basis, the accuracy of the information in the document; • Question, with reasonable basis, the adequacy of the dEA; • Present reasonable alternatives other than those presented in the dEA; and/or • Provide new or additional information relevant to the dEA. Next Steps After this comment period ends, we will analyze the comments and then address them in the form of a final CCP and The National Environmental Policy Act decision document. Public Availability of Comments Before including your address, phone number, email address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment—including your personal identifying information—may VerDate Sep<11>2014 19:36 Jan 23, 2017 Jkt 241001 be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so. Dated: January 11, 2017. Benjamin Tuggle, Regional Director, Southwest Region, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. [FR Doc. 2017–01543 Filed 1–23–17; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4333–15–P DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Phone number 903–769–2241 903–593–7323 We (the U.S. Geological Survey) will ask the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to approve the information collection (IC) described below. This collection consists of 1 form. As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995, and as part of our continuing efforts to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, we invite the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on this IC. This collection is scheduled to expire on May 31, 2017. SUMMARY: Geological Survey To ensure that your comments are considered, we must receive them on or before March 27, 2017. [GX17LR000F60100] ADDRESSES: Agency Information Collection Activities: Request for Comments U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Interior. ACTION: Notice of a renewal of a currently approved information collection (1028–0070). AGENCY: PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 DATES: You may submit comments on this information collection to the Information Collection Clearance Officer, U.S. Geological Survey, 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive MS 807, Reston, VA 20192 (mail); (703) 648–7197 (fax); or gs-info_collections@usgs.gov (email). Please reference ‘Information Collection 1028–0070, Consolidated Consumers’ Report in all correspondence. E:\FR\FM\24JAN1.SGM 24JAN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 14 (Tuesday, January 24, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8203-8205]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-01543]


=======================================================================
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-R2-R-2016-N168; FXRS12650200000-178-FF02R04000]


Little Sandy National Wildlife Refuge, Wood County, Texas; Draft 
Comprehensive Conservation Plan and Draft Environmental Assessment

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.

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

SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the 
availability of a draft Comprehensive Conservation Plan (dCCP) and the 
draft Environmental Assessment (dEA) for Little Sandy National Wildlife 
Refuge (NWR), located approximately 80 miles east of Dallas, Texas, for 
public review and comment. The dCCP/dEA describes our proposal for 
managing the refuge for the next 15 years.

DATES: To ensure consideration, please send your written comments by 
February 23, 2017. We will announce any potential upcoming public 
meetings in local news media.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments or requests for copies or more 
information by any of the following methods. You may request hard 
copies or a CD-ROM of the documents. Please contact David Weaver, 
Refuge Manager, or Joseph Lujan, Natural Resource Planner.
    Email: Joseph_Lujan@fws.gov. Include ``Little Sandy NWR draft CCP 
and draft EA'' in the subject line of the message.
    Fax: Attn: Joseph Lujan, 505-248-6803.
    U.S. Mail: Joseph Lujan, Natural Resource Planner, U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, NWRS, Division of Planning, P.O. Box 1306 Room 4335, 
Albuquerque, New Mexico 87103.
    In-Person Drop-off, Viewing, or Pickup: In-Person Drop-off: You may 
drop off comments during regular business hours of 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. 
at 500 Gold Avenue SW; 4th Floor, Room 4335; Albuquerque, New Mexico 
87102. Little Sandy NWR, CCP Project, P.O. Box 340, Broken Bow, 
Oklahoma 74728

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David Weaver, Refuge Manager, Little 
Sandy NWR, CCP Project, P.O. Box 340, Broken Bow, Oklahoma 74728; 
phone: 580-584-6211.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Introduction

    With this notice, we continue the Comprehensive Conservation 
Planning (CCP) process for the Little Sandy NWR. We started this 
process through a notice in the Federal Register (72 FR 46095; August 
16, 2007).
    The primary purpose of Little Sandy NWR is to protect a remnant of 
the bottomland hardwood forest ecosystem along the Sabine River in East 
Texas. The Little Sandy NWR was established in December 1986 as a 
permanent non-development easement with the Little Sandy Hunting and 
Fishing Club (LSHFC). It is managed as a unit of the National Wildlife 
Refuge System (NWRS) out of the Little River NWR Complex headquarters 
in Broken Bow Oklahoma.

Background

The CCP Process

    The National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Administration Act 
of 1966 (16 U.S.C. 668dd-668ee) (Refuge 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 for developing a CCP is to provide refuge managers with a 15 
year plan for achieving refuge purposes and contributing toward the 
mission of the NWRS, consistent with sound principles of fish and 
wildlife management, conservation, legal mandates, and FWS 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 
wildlife observation and photography, and environmental education and 
interpretation. We will review and update the CCP at least every 15 
years in accordance with the Refuge Administration Act.

Public Outreach

    Formal scoping began when we published a notice of intent to 
prepare a CCP and EA in the Federal Register on August 16, 2007, and 
formally invited the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) to 
participate in the development of the document. TPWD has provided 
constant input and the Service has continued to involve them throughout 
the planning process. Information sheets were sent to the public, and 
news releases were sent to a variety of media outlets. A public open 
house meeting was held on September 9, 2009, at Jarvis Christian 
College in Hawkins, Texas. Additional written comments were received 
prior to the open house. A variety of stakeholders contributed feedback 
at the open house meeting and via written

[[Page 8204]]

comments and we used the feedback in development of the dCCP.

CCP Alternatives We Are Considering

    The public raised multiple issues during the public scoping process 
that initiated this dCCP. Our dCCP addresses them in detail. A full 
description of each alternative is in the dEA. To address these issues, 
we developed and evaluated the following alternatives, summarized 
below.

                       Comparison of Alternatives
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                 Alternative A:        Alternative B:
      Issues and topics        Current management      Proposed action
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                          I. Habitat Management
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Climate Change.....  The Service has       The Refuge would
                               limited activities    establish a
                               at Little Sandy       baseline dataset
                               NWR; as such, the     for Refuge
                               Refuge attempts to    resources. To do
                               limit carbon          so, the Refuge
                               footprints by         would use
                               consolidating trips   technologies
                               from Caddo Lake       including
                               NWR; what few trips   historical imagery
                               are made to the       and tabular data,
                               Refuge are offset     existing maps and
                               by the conservation   records, LiDAR,
                               of the bottomland     contemporary ortho-
                               hardwood habitat      rectified imagery,
                               found on the          ground-truthing and
                               Refuge. There are     on-screen
                               no Service            digitizing. This
                               facilities present    baseline dataset
                               on the Refuge;        would enable the
                               therefore, there is   Refuge to develop a
                               no effort to          decision-based
                               utilize green         research and
                               products commonly     monitoring program
                               associated with       to track potential
                               such facilities.      impacts from
                                                     climate change on
                                                     the Refuge. There
                                                     would be no Service
                                                     development of
                                                     facilities on the
                                                     Refuge.
 Land Acquisition...  The Service would     The Refuge will
                               work within the 10    participate in a
                               percent rule which    partnership driven
                               allows Refuge         Land Protection
                               expansion to occur    Planning process
                               up to 10 percent of   that would guide
                               the total Refuge      land acquisition
                               establishment acres   efforts and provide
                               within the Refuge     the opportunity to
                               or up to 1 mile of    acquire any
                               the existing Refuge   adjacent lands from
                               boundary. This        willing sellers.
                               includes fee          Both bottomland and
                               acquisition and       upland tracts would
                               conservation          be considered in
                               easements from        the plan.
                               willing sellers or
                               donors.
 Flora Inventory....  An initial habitat    Same as Alternative
                               assessment of the     A plus the
                               refuge was            development of a
                               completed by refuge   comprehensive
                               staff when Little     species list for
                               Sandy was brought     the Refuge would be
                               into the Refuge       beneficial for
                               System, and an        determining
                               additional            ecological
                               ecological            integrity and
                               community             habitat diversity
                               characterization      as well as
                               survey was            providing a
                               conducted by the      baseline dataset
                               U.S. Geological       from which any
                               Survey's National     changes to habitat
                               Wetland Research      as a result of
                               Center. Current       climate change and
                               inventory             management
                               activities are        activities can be
                               limited to            tracked.
                               identification and
                               confirmation of
                               invasive flora
                               species when Little
                               Sandy Hunting and
                               Fishing Club
                               (LSHFC) members
                               report them.
 Prescribed Burning.  There is currently    The completion and
                               no prescribed fire    implementation of a
                               plan or program on    step-down fire
                               Little Sandy NWR. A   management plan
                               Fire program would    would be focused on
                               mimic natural fire    mimicking natural
                               ecology and be        fire ecology on the
                               beneficial to         upland portions of
                               upland habitat.       the Refuge,
                                                     controlling
                                                     invasive flora
                                                     species, reducing
                                                     fuel loads from
                                                     wildfires and
                                                     promote pine
                                                     savanna habitat.
 Invasive Species     Limited management    Same as Alternative
 Management (Flora).           activities are        A plus increased
                               present in the form   efforts to locate,
                               of chemical (Garlon   map, treat, and
                               3A and Garlon4)       monitor these, as
                               treatments when       well as other
                               identified by LSHFC   invasive species,
                               members..             which may be
                              In 2011 and 2012,      present on the
                               limited funding was   Refuge. In
                               available to treat    addition, some
                               Chinese tallow and    stumps may be cut
                               privet.               and sprayed to
                                                     minimize spread of
                                                     invasive species.
                                                     This can be
                                                     conducted in
                                                     conjunction with
                                                     the Flora Inventory
                                                     as described above.
                                                     Prescribed burning
                                                     can also be used to
                                                     treat with the
                                                     production of a
                                                     fire management
                                                     plan.
 Water Body           Brumley and Overton   Same as Alternative
 Management.                   Lake levels managed   A.
                               by LSHFC for
                               recreation and
                               hunting purposes;
                               the Refuge serves
                               in an advisory
                               function only.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                         II. Wildlife Management
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Fauna Inventory....  Annual aerial         Same as Alternative
                               waterfowl surveys     A, plus expand
                               were conducted        current wildlife
                               between October and   monitoring on the
                               March, from 2008-     Refuge and
                               2011, on a monthly    coordinate with the
                               basis by the Region   Division of
                               2 pilot and a         Biological
                               Refuge staff          Sciences. This
                               member. Aerial        alternative would
                               surveys were halted   also provide an
                               in 2011 when the      opportunity to
                               Region no longer      utilize LiDAR to
                               had a airplane. In    monitor changes in
                               addition, annual      habitat throughout
                               bird point counts     the Refuge. The
                               are conducted with    alternative
                               assistance from       includes; expansion
                               Region 2 migratory    of bird point
                               bird biologist,       counts and
                               Texas Parks and       monitoring to meet
                               Wildlife biologist    Service standards,
                               and Refuge staff      continuation of on
                               each spring in May    the ground
                               and June.             waterfowl surveys
                                                     and the collection
                                                     of biological data
                                                     from fauna
                                                     harvested by the
                                                     LSHFC.

[[Page 8205]]

 
 Nuisance and         The LSHFC staff       Under this
 Invasive Species Management   identifies and        alternative, the
 (Fauna).                      removes beaver dams   Refuge will develop
                               throughout the year   step down
                               from culverts and     management plans
                               small drains to       focused on nuisance
                               promote drainage      and invasive
                               and maintain          species management.
                               trails. Hunt club     Step Down Plans
                               members may take      would be initiated
                               hogs during other     for an Invasive
                               hunting activities,   Species Management
                               but these             Plan, a Feral Hog
                               circumstances are     and Beaver
                               opportunistic and     Management Plan.
                               relatively rare;      Step Down
                               there have been       Management Plans
                               coordinated           may initiate
                               trapping efforts      management
                               between the Service   practices for
                               and LSHFC since       nuisance species
                               2013.                 (beaver, nutria),
                                                     such as dam removal
                                                     and trapping,
                                                     reducing the
                                                     negative impacts to
                                                     existing
                                                     infrastructure.
                                                     Additionally, the
                                                     Refuge will utilize
                                                     their own staff or
                                                     contract services
                                                     to conduct hunting
                                                     and trapping of
                                                     feral hogs.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
           III. Staff Requirements Under the Two Alternatives
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                              Zero (0) Full-Time    2.5 FTE.
                               Equivalent (FTE)
                               Staff
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                 IV. Budgets Under the Two Alternatives
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Refuge Base          $0..................  $612,476.00.
 Operational Budget.
 Annual Maintenance.  $0..................  $0.
 Fire Operations....  $0..................  $0.
 Tallow/Forest        $18,884.00..........  $18,884.00.
 Inventory.
    Total Budget............  $18,884.00..........  $631,360.00.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Public Availability of Documents

    In addition to using any methods in ADDRESSES, you can view or 
obtain documents at the following locations:
     Little River NWR, P.O. Box 340, Broken Bow, Oklahoma 
74728, between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through 
Friday.
     Our Web site: https://www.fws.gov/southwest/refuges/texas/little_sandy/CCP.
     The following public libraries:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
             Library                     Address          Phone number
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Allen Memorial Public Library....  121 East Blackbourn      903-769-2241
                                    Street, Hawkins,
                                    Texas 75765.
Tyler Public Library.............  201 South College        903-593-7323
                                    Avenue, Tyler,
                                    Texas 75702.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Submitting Comments/Issues for Comment

    We consider comments substantive if they:
     Question, with reasonable basis, the accuracy of the 
information in the document;
     Question, with reasonable basis, the adequacy of the dEA;
     Present reasonable alternatives other than those presented 
in the dEA; and/or
     Provide new or additional information relevant to the dEA.

Next Steps

    After this comment period ends, we will analyze the comments and 
then address them in the form of a final CCP and The National 
Environmental Policy Act decision document.

Public Availability of Comments

    Before including your address, phone number, email address, or 
other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be 
aware that your entire comment--including your personal identifying 
information--may be made publicly available at any time. While you can 
ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying 
information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be 
able to do so.

    Dated: January 11, 2017.
 Benjamin Tuggle,
Regional Director, Southwest Region, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2017-01543 Filed 1-23-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4333-15-P
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