Fish and Wildlife Service January 2016 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service or FWS), announce that we have established a new Native American policy, which will replace the 1994 policy at 510 FW 1 in the Fish and Wildlife Service Manual. The purpose of the policy is to carry out the United States' trust responsibility to Indian tribes by establishing a framework on which to base our continued interactions with federally recognized tribes and Alaska Native Corporations. The policy recognizes the sovereignty of federally recognized tribes; states that the Service will work on a government-to-government basis with tribal governments; and includes guidance on co-management, access to and use of cultural resources, capacity development, law enforcement, and education.

We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the availability of the final comprehensive conservation plan (CCP) and finding of no significant impact for the environmental assessment for Cat Island National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) in West Feliciana Parish, Louisiana. In the final CCP, we describe how we will manage this refuge for the next 15 years.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, are making available the final environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact under the National Environmental Policy Act regarding a permit application submitted by Dallas Zoo Management, on behalf of the Dallas Zoo, Sedgwick County Zoo, and Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo. The three zoos have requested authorization under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora to import up to 18 live African elephants from Swaziland.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, designate critical habitat for Consolea corallicola (Florida semaphore cactus) and Harrisia aboriginum (aboriginal prickly-apple) under the Endangered Species Act (Act). In total, approximately 4,411 acres (1,785 hectares) for Consolea corallicola in Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties, Florida; and 3,444 acres (1,394 hectares) for Harrisia aboriginum in Manatee, Charlotte, Sarasota, and Lee Counties, Florida, fall within the boundaries of the critical habitat designations.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service or USFWS), have received an application from the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MADFW) for an incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA). We are considering issuing a 25-year permit to the applicant that would authorize take of the federally threatened piping plover incidental to otherwise lawful activities, specifically recreational activities and beach operations on piping plover breeding beaches in Massachusetts. Pursuant to the ESA and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), we announce the availability of the MADFW's ITP application and draft habitat conservation plan (HCP), as well as the Service's draft environmental assessment (EA), for public review and comment. We provide this notice to seek comments from the public and Federal, Tribal, State, and local governments.

On October 22, 2015, the U.S.-Russia Polar Bear Commission (Commission), established under the Agreement Between the Government of the United States and the Government of the Russian Federation on the Conservation and Management of the Alaska-Chukotka Polar Bear Population, unanimously agreed to maintain the annual taking limit adopted in 2010 for the Alaska-Chukotka polar bear population. In 2010, the Commission established an annual taking limit on the number of bears that may be removed from this population as a result of human activities, such as bears taken for subsistence purposes and in defense of human life. This annual taking limit, which corresponds with the annual sustainable harvest level for this population, is 58 polar bears per year, of which no more than 19 will be females. Under the Agreement, the annual taking limit is to be shared equally between the United States of America and the Russian Federation.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, invite the public to comment on the following applications to conduct certain activities with endangered species. With some exceptions, the Endangered Species Act (ESA) prohibits activities with listed species unless Federal authorization is acquired that allows such activities.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), finalize a rule under authority of section 4(d) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), as amended, that provides measures that are necessary and advisable to provide for the conservation of the northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis), a bat species that occurs in 37 States, the District of Columbia, and 13 Canadian Provinces.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is amending its regulations under the Lacey Act to add all species of salamanders from 20 genera, of which there are 201 species, to the list of injurious amphibians. With this interim rule, both importation into the United States and interstate transportation between States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any territory or possession of the United States of any live or dead specimen, including parts, of these 20 genera of salamanders are prohibited, except by permit for zoological, educational, medical, or scientific purposes (in accordance with permit conditions) or by Federal agencies without a permit solely for their own use. This action is necessary to protect the interests of wildlife and wildlife resources from the introduction, establishment, and spread of the chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans into ecosystems of the United States. The fungus affects salamanders, with lethal effects on many species, and is not yet known to be found in the United States. Because of the devastating effect that we expect the fungus will have on native U.S. salamanders if introduced and, therefore, the need to act immediately to prevent the disease from being introduced into the United States, the Service is publishing this interim rule.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce 90- day findings on various petitions to list, reclassify, or delist fish, wildlife, or plants under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). Based on our review, we find that six petitions do not present substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that the petitioned actions may be warranted, and we are not initiating status reviews in response to these petitions. We refer to these as ``not-substantial'' petition findings. We also find that 11 petitions present substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that the petitioned actions may be warranted. Therefore, with the publication of this document, we announce that we plan to initiate a review of the status of these species to determine if the petitioned actions are warranted. To ensure that these status reviews are comprehensive, we are requesting scientific and commercial data and other information regarding these species. Based on the status reviews, we will issue 12-month findings on the petitions, 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 (USFWS), published a proposed rule elsewhere in today's Federal Register to amend our regulations for National Wildlife Refuges (refuges) in Alaska. The public comment period on the proposed rule closes on the date specified in that document. This supplementary document contains the dates, times, and locations for the upcoming open houses and public hearings on the proposed rule.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), propose to reclassify the West Indian manatee from endangered to threatened under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act) due to substantial improvements in the species' overall status since the original listing in 1967 as endangered under the Endangered Species Conservation Act of 1966. This proposed action is based on a thorough review of the best scientific and commercial data available, which indicate that the West Indian manatee no longer meets the definition of endangered under the Act. If this proposal is finalized, the West Indian manatee including its subspecies would remain protected as a threatened species under the Act. This document also constitutes our 12-month finding on the petition received to reclassify this species.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 12-month finding on a petition to list the Alexander Archipelago wolf (Canis lupus ligoni) as an endangered or threatened species and to designate critical habitat under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The petitioners provided three listing options for consideration by the Service: Listing the Alexander Archipelago wolf throughout its range; listing Prince of Wales Island (POW) as a significant portion of its range; or listing the population on Prince of Wales Island as a distinct population segment (DPS). After review of the best available scientific and commercial information, we find that listing the Alexander Archipelago wolf is not warranted at this time throughout all or a significant portion of its range, including POW. We also find that the Alexander Archipelago wolf population on POW does not not meet the criteria of the Service's DPS policy, and, therefore, it does not constitute a listable entity under the Act. We ask the public to submit to us any new information that becomes available concerning the threats to the Alexander Archipelago wolf or its habitat at any time.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), have received an application from Central Coastal Water Authority (CCWA) for a 30-year incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The application addresses the potential for ``take'' of the federally endangered San Joaquin kit fox (Vulpes macrotis mutica) and federally threatened California red-legged frog (Rana draytonii) and California tiger salamander (Ambystoma californiense) that may occur incidental to the operations and maintenance of an existing potable water delivery system from near Polonio Pass in northeastern San Luis Obispo County to Lake Cachuma in Santa Barbara. We invite comments from the public on the application for an incidental take permit, which includes the Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP). This proposed action has been determined to be eligible for a categorical exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA).