Fish and Wildlife Service April 19, 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This notice announces a meeting of the Aquatic Nuisance Species (ANS) Task Force. The meeting is open to the public. The meeting topics are identified in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section.

Michael Perez and Cynthia Perez (Applicants) request an incidental take permit (ITP) for a two-year term pursuant to section 10(a)(1)(B) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The Applicants anticipate the removal of about 0.22 acre of Florida scrub-jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens)(scrub-jay) foraging, sheltering, and possibly nesting habitat, incidental to lot preparation for the construction of a single-family home and supporting infrastructure in Charlotte County, Florida (Project). The Applicants' Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) describes the mitigation and minimization measures proposed to address the effects of the Project to the Florida scrub-jay. These measures are outlined in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below.

We invite the public to comment on the following applications to conduct certain activities with endangered species.

We, the Fish and Wildlife Service, propose to revise the regulations that implement the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), a treaty that regulates international trade in certain protected species. The United States was one of the original signatories to CITES, which has been in effect since July 1, 1975. CITES uses a system of permits and certificates to help ensure that international trade is legal and does not threaten the survival of wildlife or plant species in the wild. Since the existing regulations were finalized, the CITES Conference of the Parties (CoP) has held a number of meetings where resolutions have been adopted. The Parties adopt resolutions as a means of standardizing interpretation and implementation of the provisions of the Treaty. On May 8, 2000, we proposed a revision of the regulations to incorporate applicable resolutions, as appropriate, adopted through the tenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to CITES (CoP10). This new proposal includes consideration of the comments received in response to the 2000 proposal and incorporates appropriate resolutions adopted at CoP11 through CoP13. Revised regulations will help us more effectively promote species conservation, continue to fulfill our responsibilities under the Treaty, and help those affected by CITES to understand how to conduct lawful international trade in CITES species.