Department of the Interior November 2012 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The National Park Service (NPS) is revising the fees it charges for reviewing Historic Preservation Certification Applications.

In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended, and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, as amended, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has prepared a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the West Chocolate Mountains Renewable Energy Evaluation Area (REEA) and a California Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) Proposed Plan Amendment, and by this notice is announcing its availability.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), have received an application from Spring Mountain Raceway, LLC (applicant), for an incidental take permit under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended. The requested 4-year permit would authorize the incidental take of the threatened Mojave desert tortoise on 120 acres of habitat associated with the construction of a raceway expansion project in Pahrump, Nye County, Nevada. The applicant would implement conservation measures to avoid, minimize, and mitigate effects of the proposed project's covered activities, as described in the applicant's low- effect habitat conservation plan (HCP). We request comments on the permit application, including the HCP, and our preliminary determination that the plan qualifies as a ``low- effect'' habitat conservation plan, eligible for a categorical exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA). We explain the basis for this determination in our environmental action statement (EAS), which is also available for public review.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the opening of an information collection period regarding the status of the ashy storm-petrel (Oceanodroma homochroa) throughout its range in the United States. The status review will include analysis of whether the ashy storm-petrel may be an endangered or threatened species due to threats in any significant portion of the range of the ashy storm- petrel. Through this action, we encourage all interested parties to provide us information regarding the status of, and any potential threats to, the ashy storm-petrel throughout its range, or any significant portion of its range.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Assistant SecretaryIndian Affairs is submitting to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a request for renewal for the collection of information for Tribal Self-Governance Program. The information collection is currently authorized by OMB Control Number 1076-0143, which expires November 30, 2012.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, designate critical habitat for the southern Selkirk Mountains population of woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) under the Endangered Species Act. In total, approximately 30,010 acres (12,145 hectares) is being designated as critical habitat. The critical habitat is located in Boundary County, Idaho, and Pend Oreille County, Washington. We are finalizing this action in compliance with our obligation under the Act and in compliance with a court-approved settlement agreement. The effect of this regulation is to conserve the habitat essential to the southern Selkirk Mountains population of woodland caribou.

To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), we (the National Park Service) are notifying the public that we have submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) an information collection request (ICR) for a proposed new collection. This notice provides the public and other Federal agencies an opportunity to comment on the paperwork burden of this collection.

To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), we (the National Park Service) are notifying the public that we have submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) an information collection request (ICR) for a proposed new collection. This notice provides the public and other Federal agencies an opportunity to comment on the paperwork burden of this collection.

The meeting of the Secretarial Commission on Indian Trust Administration and Reform (the Commission) scheduled for December 6, 2012, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and December 7, 2012, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. is cancelled. The Commission's public youth outreach session scheduled for December 6, 2012, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. is also cancelled. Notice of this meeting was published in the November 14, 2012, issue of the Federal Register (77 FR 67827).

In accordance with the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA) and the Federal Advisory Committee Act of 1972 (FACA), the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Eastern Montana Resource Advisory Council (RAC) will meet as indicated below.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, invite the public to comment on the following applications to conduct certain activities with endangered species, marine mammals, or both. With some exceptions, the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) prohibit activities with listed species unless Federal authorization is acquired that allows such activities.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, invite the public to comment on the following applications to conduct certain activities with endangered species. With some exceptions, the Endangered Species Act (ESA) prohibits activities with listed species unless a Federal permit is issued that allows such activities. The ESA requires that we invite public comment before issuing these permits.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, invite the public to comment on the following application to conduct certain activities with endangered or threatened species. The Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act), prohibits activities with endangered and threatened species unless a Federal permit allows such activity. The Act also requires that we invite public comment before issuing these permits.

This notice announces the availability of the draft Mendocino Redwood Company Habitat Conservation Plan and Natural Community Conservation Plan (Proposed Plan), draft Implementing Agreement, and draft Environmental Impact Statement/Program Timberland Environmental Impact Report (EIS/PTEIR) for public review and comment. In response to receipt of an application from The Mendocino Redwood Company (MRC; Applicant), the National Marine Fisheries Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Services) are considering the proposed action of issuing an 80-year incidental take permit for nine federally listed species and two currently unlisted species. The proposed permit would authorize take of individual members of species listed under section 10 of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531-1544, 87 Stat. 884), as amended. The permit is needed because take of species could occur during timber harvest, forest management, and related activities within the 213,244-acre Proposed Plan Area in western Mendocino County, CA.

The U.S. Department of the Interior published a notice announcing the establishment of the Advisory Committee on Climate Change and Natural Resource Science (Committee), and inviting nominations for membership on the Committee. The closing date for nominations was November 19, 2012. This Federal Register Notice reopens the nomination and comment period for 30 days. If you have already submitted information to be considered for appointment to the Committee you do not have to resubmit it.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) is announcing that the information collection request for the Petition process for designation of Federal lands as unsuitable for all or certain types of surface coal mining operations and for termination of previous designations, has been submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The information collection request describes the nature of the information collection and its expected burden and cost. This information collection activity was previously approved by OMB and assigned clearance number 1029-0098.

In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended, and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, as amended (FLPMA), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has prepared a Draft California Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) Plan Amendment and a Draft Environmental Impact Statement/Environmental Impact Report (EIS/EIR) for the Stateline Solar Farm Project (Stateline) and by this notice is announcing the opening of the comment period.

This notice informs the public that the North Slope Federal Subsistence Regional Advisory Council (Council) will hold a public meeting by teleconference on December 7, 2013. The public is invited to participate and to provide oral testimony. The purpose of the Council is to provide recommendations and information to the Federal Subsistence Board, to review policies and management plans, and to provide a public forum for subsistence issues.

Notice of Filing of Plat of Survey; Alaska. Survey Desriptions: The plat representing the survey of U.S. Survey No. 14200, Alaska, located on Baranof Island, situated within unsurveyed T. 60 S., R. 65 E., Copper River Meridian, Alaska.

In this Candidate Notice of Review (CNOR), we, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), present an updated list of plant and animal species native to the United States that we regard as candidates for or have proposed for addition to the Lists of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended. Identification of candidate species can assist environmental planning efforts by providing advance notice of potential listings, allowing landowners and resource managers to alleviate threats and thereby possibly remove the need to list species as endangered or threatened. Even if we subsequently list a candidate species, the early notice provided here could result in more options for species management and recovery by prompting candidate conservation measures to alleviate threats to the species. The CNOR summarizes the status and threats that we evaluated in order to determine that species qualify as candidates and to assign a listing priority number (LPN) to each species or to determine that species should be removed from candidate status. Additional material that we relied on is available in the Species Assessment and Listing Priority Assignment Forms (species assessment forms) for each candidate species. Overall, this CNOR recognizes two new candidates, changes the LPN for nine candidates, and removes three species from candidate status. Combined with other decisions for individual species that were published separately from this CNOR in the past year, the current number of species that are candidates for listing is 192. This document also includes our findings on resubmitted petitions and describes our progress in revising the Lists of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants (Lists) during the period October 1, 2011, through September 30, 2012. We request additional status information that may be available for the 192 candidate species identified in this CNOR.

The Museum of Indian Arts and Culture, Museum of New Mexico, in consultation with the appropriate Indian tribe, has determined that the cultural items meet the definition of unassociated funerary objects and repatriation to the Indian tribe stated below may occur if no additional claimants come forward. Representatives of any Indian tribe that believes itself to be culturally affiliated with the cultural items may contact the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Forest Service, Ozark-St. Francis National Forests has completed an inventory of human remains and associated funerary objects, in consultation with the appropriate Indian tribes, and has determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and associated funerary objects and present-day Indian tribes. Representatives of any Indian tribe that believes itself to be culturally affiliated with the human remains and associated funerary objects may contact the Ozark-St. Francis National Forests. Repatriation of the human remains and associated funerary objects to the Indian tribes stated below may occur if no additional claimants come forward.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Forest Service, Ozark-St. Francis National Forests has completed an inventory of human remains and associated funerary objects, in consultation with the appropriate Indian tribes, and has determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and associated funerary objects and present-day Indian tribes. Representatives of any Indian tribe that believes itself to be culturally affiliated with the human remains and associated funerary objects may contact the Ozark-St. Francis National Forests. Repatriation of the human remains and associated funerary objects to the Indian tribes stated below may occur if no additional claimants come forward.