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

In accordance with the requirements of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, 5 U.S.C. Appendix 2, the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Osage Negotiated Rulemaking Committee will meet as indicated below.

Indian Affairs will conduct a listening session with Indian tribes to obtain oral and written comments concerning sacred sites located on Federal lands. This session in Tulsa, Oklahoma, is the sixth in a series of listening sessions held since the beginning of August.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, propose to list two Texas plants, Leavenworthia texana (Texas golden gladecress) as an endangered species and Hibiscus dasycalyx (Neches River rose-mallow) as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act) and propose to designate critical habitat for both species. These are proposed regulations, and if finalized the effect of these regulations will be to conserve the species and protect their habitat under the Endangered Species Act.

We, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM), are announcing receipt of a proposed amendment to the Arkansas regulatory program (Arkansas program) and the Arkansas abandoned mine land reclamation plan (Arkansas plan) under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA or the Act). Arkansas proposes to revise substantial portions of its regulatory program and abandoned mine land reclamation plan, make grammatical changes, correct punctuation, revise dates, and delete and add citations. The proposed amendment consists of substantive changes to Arkansas's regulations regarding: Subchapter AGeneral; Subchapter FAreas Unsuitable for Mining; Subchapter GSurface Coal Mining and Reclamation Operations Permits and Coal Exploration Procedures Systems; Subchapter JBond and Insurance Requirements for Surface Coal Mining and Reclamation Operations; Subchapter KState Program Performance Standards; Subchapter LState Program Inspection and Enforcement Procedures; Subchapter MTraining Programs for Blasters and Members of Blasting Crews, and Certification Programs for Blasters; and Subchapter R Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation. This document provides the times and locations that the Arkansas program, Arkansas plan, and this proposed amendment are available for your review; the comment period during which you may submit written comments on the amendment; and the procedures that we will follow for the public hearing, if one is requested.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is processing an application under the Federal Land Policy and Management Act to convey the federally owned mineral interests of 111.33 acres located in Maricopa County, Arizona, to the surface owner, Gavilan Peak Estates, LLC. Upon publication of this notice, the BLM is temporarily segregating the federally owned mineral interests in the land covered by the application from all forms of appropriation under the mining and mineral leasing laws for up to 2 years while the BLM processes the application.

Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended, the Bureau of Reclamation intends to prepare an environmental impact statement to identify and evaluate brine disposal alternatives to replace or supplement the existing Brine Injection Well No. 1 which has a projected remaining useful life of three to five years under current operations.

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

Under the provisions of the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, as amended, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) received a petition for reinstatement from Source Energy, LLC, for competitive oil and gas lease WYW164771 for land in Park County, Wyoming. The petition was filed on time and was accompanied by all the rentals due since the date the lease terminated under the law.

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 Proposed Recreation Area Management Plan (RAMP) and California Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) Plan Amendment/Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), for the Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area (ISDRA), and by this notice is announcing its availability.

The National Park Service intends to award a temporary concession contract to a qualified person for the conduct of certain visitor services within Canyon de Chelly National Mounument for a term not to exceed 3 years. The visitor services include lodging, food and beverage and retail.

Notice is hereby given that, pursuant to the Act of October 11, 1974 (Pub. L. 93- 439, 88 Stat. 1245), the boundary of Big Thicket National Preserve is modified to include 9 tracts of lands listed as follows: Tract 119-07, 123.07 acres; Tract 219-12, 6.45 acres; Tract 219- 13, 177.28 acres; Tract 221-15, 8.51 acres; Tract 221-16, 4.29 acres; Tract 224-16, 648.01 acres; Tract 225-20, 41.40 acres; Tract 227-04, 52.74 acres; and Tract 230-01, 1,141.87 acres; for a total of 2,203.62 acres. These lands are located in Hardin County, Polk County, and Tyler County, Texas, immediately adjacent to the existing boundary of Big Thicket National Preserve. The boundary revision is depicted on Map No. 175/106,913A dated August, 2011. The map is available for inspection at the following locations: National Park Service, Intermountain Region Land Resources Program Center, 12795 West Alameda Parkway, Denver, Colorado 80225-0287 and National Park Service, Department of the Interior, Washington, DC 20240.

We, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM), are announcing receipt of a proposed amendment to the Alabama regulatory program (Alabama program) under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA or the Act). Alabama proposes revisions to its Program regarding revegetation success guidelines. Alabama intends to revise its program to improve operational efficiency. This document gives the times and locations that the Alabama program and proposed amendment to that program are available for your inspection, the comment period during which you may submit written comments on the amendment, and the procedures that we will follow for the public hearing, if one is requested.

In accordance with the Federal Land Policy and Management Act and the Federal Advisory Committee Act of 1972, the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, the Southeast Oregon Resource Advisory Council (RAC) will meet as indicated below:

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), have received an application from Scott and Rita Longworth for a 10-year incidental take permit under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The application addresses the potential for ``take'' of the federally endangered Morro shoulderband snail that is likely to occur incidental to the construction, maintenance, and occupation of a single-family residence on a legally created single-family zoned parcel in the unincorporated community of Los Osos, San Luis Obispo County, California. The applicants would implement a conservation program to minimize and mitigate project activities that are likely to result in take of the Morro shoulderband snail as described in their plan. We invite comments from the public on the application, which includes the Longworth Low-Effect Habitat Conservation Plan for the Morro Shoulderband Snail. This proposed action has been determined to be eligible for a Categorical Exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA).

This order partially revokes the withdrawal created by Public Land Order No. 995 insofar as it affects approximately 82.81 acres of public land reserved for military purposes on behalf of the United States Department of the Air Force for the portion now containing the Lovelace Respiratory Research Institute. The land is no longer needed for the purpose for which it was withdrawn. This order also transfers administrative jurisdiction to the Department of Energy to allow for a subsequent conveyance of the land in accordance with the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, announce a 90-day finding on a petition to list the Eagle Lake rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss aquilarum) as an endangered or threatened species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). Based on our review, we find that the petition presents substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that listing the Eagle Lake rainbow trout may be warranted. Therefore, with the publication of this notice, we are initiating a review of the status of the subspecies to determine if listing the Eagle Lake rainbow trout is warranted. To ensure that this status review is comprehensive, we are requesting scientific and commercial data and other information regarding this subspecies. Based on the status review, we will issue a 12-month finding on the petition, which will address whether the petitioned action is warranted, as provided in section 4(b)(3)(B) of the Act.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), determine that Arctostaphylos franciscana (Franciscan manzanita) meets the definition of an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). This final rule implements the Federal protections provided by the Act for this species. We are simultaneously publishing a proposed rule to designate critical habitat for Arctostaphylos franciscana in a separate Federal Register notice.

Pursuant to section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, 42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C), the National Park Service (NPS) announces the opening of an additional comment period on the Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (Draft SEIS) for a Winter Use Plan for Yellowstone National Park, located in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming.

The Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Policy, Management and Budget proposes to withdraw, on behalf of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), approximately 6,737.42 acres of public lands from location and entry under the United States mining laws for a period of 20 years to protect natural resources and recreation values associated with the congressionally designated Auburn Reservoir Site and Recreation Area. This notice temporarily segregates the land for up to 2 years from mining while various studies and analyses are made to support a final decision on the withdrawal application.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) invites public comments on, and plans to request approval to continue, the collection of information under the General Mining Law. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has assigned control number 1004-0025 to this information collection.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will file the plat of survey of the lands described below in the BLM Montana State Office, Billings, Montana, on October 4, 2012.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 12-month finding on a petition to list four subspecies of Great Basin butterflies (White River Valley skipper (Hesperia uncas grandiosa), Steptoe Valley crescentspot (Phyciodes cocyta arenacolor), Baking Powder Flat blue butterfly (Euphilotes bernardino minuta), and bleached sandhill skipper (Polites sabuleti sinemaculata)) in Nevada as endangered or threatened species and designate critical habitat under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). After review of the best available scientific and commercial information, we find that listing these four butterfly and skipper subspecies is not warranted at this time. However, we ask the public to submit to us any new information that becomes available concerning the threats to the White River Valley skipper, Steptoe Valley crescentspot, Baking Powder Flat blue butterfly, and bleached sandhill skipper or their habitats at any time.

Pursuant to Public Law 96-472, the National Earthquake Prediction Evaluation Council (NEPEC) will hold a 1\1/2\ day meeting on September 17 and 18, 2012, at the U.S. Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center (NEIC), 1711 Illinois Avenue, Golden, Colorado 80401. The Council is comprised of members from academia and the Federal Government. The Council shall advise the Director of the U.S. Geological Survey on earthquake predictions, on the completeness and scientific validity of the available data related to earthquake predictions, and on related matters as assigned by the Director. Additional information about the Council may be found at https:// earthquake.usgs.gov/aboutus/nepec/. At the meeting, the Council will receive briefings on: ongoing and planned work with social and behavioral scientists on improving hazard and risk messages; development of a strategic plan for operational earthquake forecasting including calculation of short-term aftershock probabilities; discussions with emergency managers and other decision- makers about their needs for earthquake information, scientific evaluations, and hazard and risk forecasts; status of the project intended to deliver an updated Uniform California Earthquake Rupture Forecast (UCERF3); and on the delivery of near-real-time earthquake information by the NEIC. A draft meeting agenda is available from the Executive Secretary on request (contact information below), and will be posted to the web site (above) when finalized. In order to ensure sufficient seating and hand- outs, it is requested that visitors pre-register by September 13, 2012. Members of the public wishing to make a statement to the Council should provide notice of that intention by September 13 so that time may be allotted in the agenda.