Department of the Interior August 6, 2014 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE), are approving an amendment to the Texas regulatory program (Texas program) under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA or the Act). Texas proposed revisions to its regulations regarding annual permit fees. Texas revised its program at its own initiative to raise revenues sufficient to cover its anticipated share of costs to administer the coal regulatory program and to encourage mining companies to more quickly reclaim lands and request bond release, thereby fulfilling SMCRA's purpose of assuring the reclamation of mined land as quickly as possible.

The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) is inviting you to provide comments on the GENWEST Systems, Inc., Effective Daily Recovery Capacity (EDRC) Study, National Academy of Sciences (NAS) Letter Report summarizing its peer review of the GENWEST Study, and comments provided by BSEE regarding each document. Background: EDRC is a calculation method established within BSEE's and the United States Coast Guard's (USCG) regulations to assign an oil recovery capability value to oil skimming equipment. Although the EDRC methodology was finalized in the early 1990's and has been an integral component of industry response planning and readiness for the past 20 years, the methodology came under heavy scrutiny in the wake of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. This spurred an open debate and ongoing dialogue on how to best improve the EDRC planning standard. In late 2011, BSEE contracted with GENWEST Systems Inc. to evaluate the EDRC methodology and to develop recommendations for improving the planning standard for the mechanical recovery of oil on water. GENWEST's final report produced the concept of Estimated Recovery System Potential (ERSP), an oil encounter rate- based calculator that evaluates mechanical recovery equipment as a complete system as opposed to focusing on an individual component such as a skimmer or an intake pump. Shortly thereafter, BSEE contracted the National Research Council's Ocean Studies Board to conduct an independent, third party peer review of the ERSP methodology. The resulting National Academy of Sciences (NAS) Peer Review Letter Report validated the ERSP standard as a sound methodology and a significant improvement over EDRC. The peer review also identified a number of areas for further consideration where ERSP might be improved. BSEE is continuing to develop and refine the ERSP methodology, with the intent of evaluating ERSP as a potential revision to BSEE's oil spill response plan (OSRP) regulations. This notice provides a high level summary of some of the key elements of both documents, as well as BSEE comments regarding each document. It also includes BSEE's response to recommendations in the NAS Letter Report. While the development of a new planning standard for calculating the mechanical recovery of spills continues to undergo additional research and refinement, this notice provides an early opportunity for public viewing and comment on the GENWEST EDRC Study and NAS Letter Report documents which are available in the regulations.gov docket ID: BSEE-2014-0006 and on the BSEE Web site at https://www.bsee.gov/Research-and-Training/Oil-Spill-Response- Research/Projects/Project-673/, as well as an opportunity to comment on the BSEE's responses to the findings and recommendations contained in each document.

We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), have received applications from the City of Deltona and Adventist Health System/ Sunbelt, Inc. (applicants) for incidental take permits under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The City of Deltona has applied for modification of an ITP (ITP; modification TE28377B-1), and Adventist Health System/Sunbelt, Inc. has applied for a 10-year incidental take permit (ITP; TE41877B- 0). We request public comment on the permit applications and accompanying proposed habitat conservation plans (HCPs), as well as on our preliminary determination that the plan qualifies as low-effect under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). To make this determination, we used our environmental action statement and low- effect screening form, which are also available for review.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), invite the public to comment on the following applications we've received for permits to authorize take of federally listed species. Although the Endangered Species Act (Act) prohibits the take of species listed as endangered or threatened under the Act, the USFWS may issue permits authorizing the take of endangered or threatened species if certain conditions are met by the applicant, and when such take will not appreciably reduce the likelihood of the survival and recovery of the species in the wild. The Act requires that we invite public comment before we issue these permits.

On November 9, 2011, we, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), published a notice of availability of a draft environmental assessment (DEA) and receipt of an application for an incidental take permit (permit) pursuant to the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA), submitted by the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (MDIFW), for the Maine Trapping Program Incidental Take Plan (ITP). MDIFW is requesting a permit under the ESA to authorize take of the federally threatened Canada lynx incidental to otherwise lawful activities associated with MDIFW's statewide furbearer trapping program. The permit would be in effect for 15 years. During the 60-day comment period, the Service received numerous comments on the DEA and the ITP. MDIFW revised the draft ITP to address public and Service comments and submitted a revised ITP to the Service in July 2013. The Service then revised its DEA. This notice announces the availability for a 30-day supplemental public comment period of both the revised DEA and the revised ITP for MDIFW's incidental take permit application.