Department of the Interior November 2005 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We are announcing receipt of a proposed amendment to the West Virginia regulatory program (the West Virginia program) under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA or the Act). West Virginia proposes to revise its Code of State Regulations (CSR) concerning surety bonds. The amendment is intended to provide the State with an alternative source of reliable financial information about the surety, and to allow sureties that are licensed and in good financial condition but are not currently listed with the U.S. Department of the Treasury as an acceptable surety of Federal bonds to provide surety bonds to the coal industry in West Virginia. The proposed amendment was authorized by the West Virginia Secretary of State as an emergency rule under the State's Administrative Procedures Act.

Pursuant to the authority vested in the Director of the Minerals Management Service by the joint bidding provisions of 30 CFR 256.41, each entity within one of the following groups shall be restricted from bidding with any entity in any other of the following groups at Outer Continental Shelf oil and gas lease sales to be held during the bidding period November 1, 2005, through April 30, 2006. The List of Restricted Joint Bidders published in the Federal Register May 3, 2005, covered the period May 1, 2005, through October 31, 2005.

Notice is hereby given, pursuant to 25 CFR 514.1(a)(3), that the National Indian Gaming Commission has adopted final annual fee rates of 0.00% for tier 1 and 0.053% (.00053) for tier 2 for calendar year 2005. These rates shall apply to all assessable gross revenues from each gaming operation under the jurisdiction of the Commission. If a tribe has a certificate of self-regulation under 25 CFR part 518, the final fee rate on class II revenues for calendar year 2005 shall be one-half of the annual fee rate, which is 0.0265% (.000265)

In accordance with Section 202 of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), the BLM announces the availability of the DEIS for the Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument RMP. The DEIS documents the direct, indirect, and cumulative environmental impacts of three alternative management plans for BLM-administered public lands within the Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument. When completed, the RMP will fulfill the obligations set forth by NEPA, the Federal Land Policy and Management Act, and associated Federal regulations.

The inaugural meeting of the Advisory Committee on the Bird Banding Laboratory (Committee) will be November 29-30, 2005, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. each day at the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, 11510 American Holy Drive, Laurel, Maryland 20708-4017. The meeting will take place in the conference room of the Gabrielson Building. A map and directions to the Center may be found at https://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/aboutous/direct.cfm. The purpose of the Advisory Committee, which is co-chaired by the USGS and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, is to represent the interests of the bird banding community, including both game and non-game and non-game birds, in advising the U.S. Department of the Interior, USGS, on current and future management of the Bird Banding Laboratory. The agenda for the inaugural meeting includes a tour of the Bird Banding Laboratory to familiarize members of the Committee with its operations, functions, and key personnel. In addition, the Committee will identify, prioritize, and begin discussions of the important issues it will address over the two-year period of its current Charter (May 2005-May 2007). The meeting is open to all members of the interested public; however, it will be temporarily closed to the public on November 29 during the Committee tour due to space limitations at the Laboratory. Time on the agenda has been reserved in the afternoon of November 30 for the Committee to receive verbal comments (limited to 5 minutes per person) from the public. To speak before the Committee you must register in advance with Mr. Daniel James (see contact information below), the USGS Designated Federal Official for the Committee. The Patuxent Wildlife Research Center is a gated, secure federal installation with no general public access. You must register with Patuxent personnel in advance of the Committee meeting dates to ensure that you are permitted access to the Center when you arrive. Please contact Ms. Regina Lanning, the Center's Communication Assistant, telephone: (301) 497-5509; e-mail: reginalanning@usgs.gov, to inform her that you will be attending the BBL Advisory Committee Meeting, and provide her with the following information: Full name (for each person if more than one), Company name (if applicable), Vehicle description, Approximate time of arrival dates: November 29-30, 2005.

We (Fish and Wildlife Service) have sent a request to OMB for approval of our information collection associated with the horseshoe crab tagging program. The OMB control number for this collection is 1018-0127, which expires on November 30, 2005. We have requested that OMB approve this information collection for a 3-year term.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, announce an extension of the comment period for the 5-year reviews of 31 listed species in Table 1 below, under section 4(c)(2)(A) of the Endangered Species Act (Act). The first request for information closed September 6, 2005. The purpose of a 5-year review is to ensure that the classification of a species as threatened or endangered on the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants is accurate and based on the best scientific and commercial data available at the time of the review. We are requesting submission of any such information that has become available since the original listing of each of these 31 species. Based on the results of these 5-year reviews, we will make the requisite findings under section 4(c)(2)(B) of the Act.

This notice announces that a Draft Comprehensive conservation Plan and environmental Assessment for St. Catherine Creek National Wildlife Refuge is available for review and comment. The National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966, as amended by the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997, requires the Service to develop a comprehensive conservation plan for each national wildlife refuge. The purpose in developing a comprehensive conservation plan is to provide refuge managers with a 15-year strategy 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 Service policies. In addition to outlining broad management direction on conserving wildlife and their habitats, the plan identifies wildlife- dependent recreational opportunities available to the public, including opportunities for hunting, fishing, wildlife observation, wildlife photography, and environmental education and interpretation.

Sundown Development and Realty (Applicant) is requesting an incidental take permit (ITP) for a period of five years, pursuant to section 10(a)(1)(B) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act) (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). The Applicant anticipates take of three federally threatened Florida scrub-jays (Aphelocoma coerulescens) (scrub-jay) incidental to clearing approximately 0.70 acre of scrub-jay foraging and roosting habitat in preparation for construction of a combination of office space and three-story townhomes on a 5.25-acre parcel (project). The anticipated take would occur in section 30, Township 40 South, Range 43 East, Village of Tequesta, Palm Beach County, Florida. The Applicant's Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) describes the mitigation and minimization measures proposed to address the effects of the project on the scrub-jay. These measures are also outlined in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below. The Service announces the availability of the Applicant's ITP application, HCP and Environmental Assessment (EA). Copies of the application, HCP and EA may be obtained by making a request to the Southeast Regional Office (see ADDRESSES). Requests must be in writing to be processed. This notice is provided pursuant to section 10 of the Act and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations (40 CFR 1506.6).

In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, the Fish and Wildlife Service announces a meeting designed to foster partnerships to enhance public awareness of the importance of aquatic resources and the social and economic benefits of recreational fishing and boating in the United States. This meeting, sponsored by the Sport Fishing and Boating Partnership Council (Council), is open to the public, and interested persons may make oral statements to the Council or may file written statements for consideration.

We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are soliciting project proposals for Federal assistance under the Tribal Wildlife Grants program (TWG). The Department of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year (FY) 2006 authorized an appropriation of $68,174,000 (subject to potential rescission to meet other important national priorities) for wildlife conservation grants to States and to the District of Columbia, U.S. Territories, and Tribes under provisions of the Fish and Wildlife Act of 1956 and the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act, for the development and implementation of programs for the benefit of wildlife and their habitat, including species that are not hunted or fished. The Act further specified that the Service use $5,971,000 of the funds for a competitive grant program available to federally recognized Indian Tribes. This allows the Secretary, through the Director of the Service, to manage a separate Tribal grant program not subject to the provisions of the formula-based State Wildlife Grants program, or other requirements of the State Wildlife Grants portion of Public Law 107-63.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), list the Gila chub (Gila intermedia) as endangered with critical habitat under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). Gila chub were historically found throughout the Gila River basin in southern Arizona, southwestern New Mexico, and northeastern Sonora, Mexico. The Gila chub has been reduced in numbers and distribution in the majority of its historical range (Minckley 1973; Weedman et al. 1996). Where it is still present, populations are often small, fragmented, and at risk from known and potential threats and from random events such as drought, flood events, and wildfire. The primary threats to Gila chub include predation by and competition with nonnative organisms, including fish in the family Centrarchidae (Micropterus spp., Lepomis spp.), other fish species, bullfrogs (Rana catesbeiana), and crayfish (Orconectes virilis), and habitat degradation from surface water diversions and ground water withdrawals. Secondary threats include habitat alteration, destruction, and fragmentation resulting from numerous factors that are discussed in this final rule. The current status of the Gila chub is much degraded from historical levels. The species exists as a few, small isolated, populations. The small size of these populations, and their degree of fragmentation and isolation, cause them to be highly susceptible to threats. We believe that due to the current reduced status of the Gila chub and the severity of threats, including nonnative species predation and habitat destruction, the Gila chub is likely to become extinct throughout all or a significant portion of its range. This final rule will implement the Federal protection and recovery provisions of the Act for this species. We are also designating approximately 160.3 river miles (mi) (258.1 kilometers (km)) of critical habitat located in Grant County, New Mexico, and Yavapai, Gila, Greenlee, Graham, Cochise, Santa Cruz, Pima, and Pinal Counties in Arizona.

The OCS Policy Committee meeting scheduled for November 15-16, 2005, at the Days Hotel and Conference Center at Dulles in Herndon, Virginia.

Pursuant to the provisions of 30 U.S.C. 188(d) and (e), and 43 CFR 3108.2-3(a) and (b)(1), a petition for reinstatement of oil and gas lease COC66816 for lands in Rio Blanco County, Colorado, was timely filed and was accompanied by all the required rentals accruing from the date of termination.

The following applicant has applied for a permit to conduct certain activities with endangered species. This notice is provided pursuant to section 10(c) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531, et seq.).

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, on behalf of the Department of the Interior, and the Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs, as Natural Resource Trustees, announces the release for public review of the Draft Programmatic Environmental Assessment (PEA) for the Massachusetts Housatonic River Watershed Restoration Program. The Draft PEA presents a restoration program featuring a mix of restoration approaches, including aquatic restoration, wildlife/terrestrial restoration, enhancement of recreational opportunities, and education/outreach initiatives. A mix of restoration approaches will allow the greatest degree of flexibility in the project selection process and will ensure the greatest environmental and socioeconomic benefits. This Draft PEA compares the preferred, blended restoration alternative with alternatives that focus on a single restoration approach, as well as with a no-action alternative in which no restoration is implemented with natural resource damages (NRD) funds. This Draft PEA is part of the restoration planning and implementation phase of the General Electric/Housatonic River Natural Resource Damage Assessment and Restoration (NRDAR) case.