Fish and Wildlife Service June 19, 2007 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a revised proposed critical habitat designation for the guaj[oacute]n (Eleutherodactylus cooki). We are reopening the public comment period to accept comments on proposed additional critical habitat units and revised required determinations, and also to announce the availability of and accept comments on our draft economic analysis of the proposed designation of critical habitat under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). We are allowing all interested parties an opportunity to comment simultaneously on the original proposed rule, the proposed additional critical habitat units, the revised required determinations, and the associated draft economic analysis. If you submitted comments previously on the original proposed rule, you need not resubmit them, as we will incorporate them into the public record and fully consider them as we prepare the final rule. We are proposing five additional critical habitat units totaling 43.4 acres (ac) (17.5 hectares (ha)). With their inclusion, we are proposing 17 critical habitat units for the species, for a total of 260.6 ac (105.6 ha). The amendments we propose in this document are in addition to, and not in lieu of, the proposed designation we published in our original proposed rule of October 5, 2006. The draft economic analysis, that includes the additional units, finds that potential future costs associated with conservation activities for the guaj[oacute]n are estimated at $4.34 million in undiscounted dollars, $4.28 million when discounted at 3 percent, and $4.23 million when discounted at 7 percent over the 20 year period 2007-2026. Annualized future costs are $288,000 and $399,000 using a 3 percent and 7 percent discount rate, respectively.