Department of the Interior January 20, 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In order to implement the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES or the Convention), the Parties to the Convention meet periodically to review which species in international trade should be regulated and other aspects of the implementation of CITES. The fourteenth regular meeting of the Conference of the Parties to CITES (CoP14) is tentatively scheduled to be held June 3-15, 2007, in The Hague, Netherlands. Therefore, with this notice we are soliciting recommendations for amending Appendices I and II of CITES at CoP14. We are also soliciting recommendations for resolutions, decisions, and agenda items for discussion at CoP14. We invite you to provide us with information and recommendations on animal and plant species that should be considered as candidates for U.S. proposals to amend CITES Appendices I and II. Such amendments may concern the addition of species to Appendix I or II, the transfer of species from one Appendix to another, or the removal of species from Appendix II. We also invite you to provide us with information and recommendations on possible resolutions, decisions, and agenda items for discussion at the upcoming meeting. Finally, with this notice we also describe the U.S. approach to preparations for CoP14.

The National Park Service Director has determined that Garden Canyon, located within Fort Huachuca, Cochise County, Arizona, appears to meet the criteria for national significance and proposes to recommend the site for designation as a National Natural Landmark. The public is invited to comment on this recommendation. This proposal will be considered by the National Park System Advisory Board at a meeting to be held on March 21 and 22, 2006, at Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve, in the Ribault Club, 11241 Fort George Rd., Jacksonville, Florida.

The Fish and Wildlife Service announces that a Draft Comprehensive Conservation Plan and Environmental Assessment for St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge are 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, plans identify wildlife-dependent recreational opportunities available to the public, including opportunities for hunting, fishing, wildlife observation, wildlife photography, and environmental education and interpretation.

Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 (as amended), the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), with and on behalf of other joint-lead agencies (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers [Corps], Department of Defense; and the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission [Commission], State of New Mexico), has prepared a draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) to assess the consequences of proposed changes to water operations in the Rio Grande basin above Fort Quitman, Texas. The DEIS is programmatic and is not intended to authorize specific projects that may also be applied to the upper Rio Grande system. It is anticipated that a plan for water operations at existing Reclamation and Corps facilities will be developed. The DEIS presents alternatives with respect to water operations and evaluates the environmental, economic, and social effects of these alternatives. Some of the alternatives considered include changing the channel capacity criteria at Albuquerque, storage or non-storage of Rio Grande water in authorized San Juan-Chama space in Abiquiu Reservoir, and operation of the Low Flow Conveyance Channel.