Department of the Interior September 2024 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE), are approving an amendment to the Ohio Abandoned Mine Land (AML) Reclamation Plan (Ohio Plan or Plan) under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA or the Act). Ohio proposed to amend its existing plan to reflect statutory, regulatory, policy, procedural, and organizational changes made since it was originally approved in 1982. Ohio also submitted relevant statutory provisions amended by the State legislature in 2016, as well as draft statutory revisions regarding what land and water resources are eligible for Federal grant funds and other proposed amendments for consistency with SMCRA, for OSMRE's review and consideration.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are proposing a new information collection.

The Department of the Army (Army) filed an application with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for extension of the withdrawal of public lands for the Army's use for the McGregor Range, located in Otero County, New Mexico. The McGregor Range encompasses 608,385 acres that Congress withdrew from all forms of appropriation under the public land laws, including the mining, mineral leasing, and geothermal leasing laws, subject to valid existing rights, for a 25-year period and reserved for the Army's use. The current withdrawal will expire on November 6, 2026, unless Congress approves the extension. This notice advises the public of an opportunity to comment on the application, attend a public meeting, and review the legislative environmental assessment (EA).

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are proposing a new information collection.

Pursuant to the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, notice is hereby given that a meeting of the Invasive Species Advisory Committee (ISAC) will meet as indicated below.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), propose to revise the critical habitat designation for the Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris) and to designate critical habitat for the Antillean manatee (T. m. manatus), under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). In 1976, we designated critical habitat of approximately 965,394 acres (ac) (390,681 hectares (ha)) in Florida for the Florida manatee based on where large concentrations of manatees were known to occur at the time, but no critical habitat was ever designated for the Antillean manatee subspecies. After a review of the best scientific data available, we propose to revise the existing designated critical habitat for the Florida manatee and designate critical habitat for the Antillean manatee based on the physical or biological features essential to the conservation of each subspecies. The total proposed designation for Florida manatee is 1,904,191 ac (770,599 ha) and 78,121 ac (31,614 ha) for the Antillean manatee subspecies. We also announce the availability of an economic analysis of the proposed revised designation of critical habitat for the Florida manatee and proposed designation for the Antillean manatee.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, invite the public to comment on applications to conduct certain activities with foreign species that are listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). With some exceptions, the ESA prohibits activities with listed species unless Federal authorization is issued that allows such activities. The ESA also requires that we invite public comment before issuing permits for any activity otherwise prohibited by the ESA with respect to any endangered species.

We, the Fish and Wildlife Service, intend to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) for a proposed project to eradicate nonnative rats from four uninhabited islands (Amchitka, Attu, Great Sitkin, and Kiska Islands) located in the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is a cooperating agency on the EIS. We invite comments for consideration in establishing the scope and content of the EIS from the public and local, State, Tribal, and Federal agencies.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 ("PRA"), ONRR is proposing to renew an information collection. Through this Information Collection Request ("ICR"), ONRR seeks renewed authority to collect information related to the paperwork requirements under the Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990 ("CFO Act") covering the collection of royalties and other mineral revenues due, which obligations are accounted for as accounts receivables.

In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation, Nebraska-Kansas Area Office (Reclamation Nebraska- Kansas Area Office) intends to carry out the disposition of human remains and associated funerary objects removed from Federal or Tribal lands to the lineal descendants, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian organization with priority for disposition in this notice.

In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) intends to repatriate certain cultural items that meet the definition of unassociated funerary objects or objects of cultural patrimony and that have a cultural affiliation with the Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice.

In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), Kansas State University has completed an inventory of human remains and has determined that there is no lineal descendant and no Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization with cultural affiliation.

In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the Western Washington University (WWU) has completed an inventory of human remains and associated funerary objects and has determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and associated funerary objects and Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice.

In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve (TIMU) intends to carry out the disposition of human remains removed from Federal or Tribal lands to the lineal descendants, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian organization with priority for disposition in this notice.

This notice publishes the approval of the Addendum to Tribal- State Compact for Control of Class III Blackjack on the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa Reservation in Minnesota for Class III Card Games.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is adjusting the fixed fees set forth in the Department of the Interior's onshore mineral resources regulations for the processing of certain minerals program- related documents and actions.

In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA), and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, as amended (FLPMA), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announces the availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Rhyolite Ridge Lithium-Boron Mine Project (Project) proposed by Ioneer Rhyolite Ridge LLC (Ioneer) in Esmeralda County, Nevada.

In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University (PMAE) has completed an inventory of human remains and has determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice. The human remains were collected at the U.S. Indian Vocational School, Bernalillo County, NM and University of New Mexico, Bernalillo County, NM.

In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University (PMAE) has completed an inventory of human remains and has determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice. The human remains were collected at the Genoa Indian School, Nance County, NE, and an unknown location.

In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the University of California Berkeley has completed an inventory of human remains and associated funerary objects and has determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and associated funerary objects and Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice.

The U.S. Global Change Research Program seeks public comment on the proposed themes and topics of the first National Nature Assessment as indicated by the chapter annotated outlines linked here. Based on input received in response to this notice, chapter author teams will develop their draft chapters.

The purpose of this notice is to inform the public and interested State and local government officials of the filing of Plats of Survey in Nevada.

The purpose of this notice is to request public nominations for the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) Bears Ears National Monument Advisory Committee (MAC), the Grand Staircase-Escalante National MAC, the San Rafael Swell Recreation Area Advisory Council, and the Utah Resource Advisory Council (RAC) to fill existing vacancies and for member terms that are scheduled to expire.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, have received an application from the City of Tumwater Transportation and Engineering Department (applicant) for an incidental take permit (ITP) pursuant to the Endangered Species Act. The ITP would authorize the applicant's take of the federally threatened Olympia subspecies of the Mazama pocket gopher (Thomomys mazama pugetensis) ("covered species"), incidental to their otherwise lawful construction and infrastructure improvements at two locations in the City of Tumwater, Thurston County, Washington. We request public comment on the application, which includes the applicant's proposed habitat conservation plan (HCP), and on the Service's preliminary determination that the proposed permitting action may be eligible for a categorical exclusion pursuant to the Council on Environmental Quality's National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations, the Department of the Interior's (DOI) NEPA regulations, and the DOI Departmental Manual. To make this preliminary determination, we prepared a draft environmental action statement and categorical exclusion screening form, both of which are also available for public review. We invite comment from the public and local, State, Tribal, and Federal agencies.

This Final Sale Notice (FSN) contains information pertaining to the areas available for commercial wind power leasing during Atlantic Wind Lease Sale 11 (ATLW-11) on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) in the Gulf of Maine. Specifically, this FSN details certain provisions and conditions of the leases, auction details, the lease form, criteria for evaluating competing bids, and procedures for award, appeal, and lease execution. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) will offer eight leases for sale using an ascending clock auction with multiple-factor bidding: Lease OCS-A 0562, OCS-A 0563, OCS-A 0564, OCS-A 0565, OCS-A 0566, OCS-A 0567, OCS-A 0568, and OCS-A 0569 (lease areas). The first two lease areas (lease areas OCS-A 0562 and OCS-A 0563) comprise the North Region, and the remaining six lease areas comprise the South Region. Bidders are limited to bidding on no more than two lease areas at a time, and may not include in their bid more than one lease area in the North Region at a time. BOEM will use the BOEM Auction System for the lease sale. The lease areas are in the previously identified wind energy areas located in the Gulf of Maine offshore the States of Maine and New Hampshire and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The issuance of any lease resulting from this sale will not constitute approval of project-specific plans to develop offshore wind energy. Such plans, if submitted by the lessee, will be subject to environmental, technical, and public reviews prior to a BOEM decision on whether the proposed activity should be authorized.