Fish and Wildlife Service December 2023 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce receipt of an application from Sacramento Municipal Utility District (applicant) for an incidental take permit (permit) under the Endangered Species Act and an accompanying draft habitat conservation plan (plan). We also announce the availability of a draft environmental assessment pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act. We request public comment on the application, which includes the applicant's proposed plan, and the Service's draft environmental assessment. We invite comment from the public and local, State, Tribal, and Federal agencies.

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.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announces the availability of the draft revised National European Green Crab Management and Control Plan (2023 EGC plan). The Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force recently approved the 2023 EGC plan to be posted in the Federal Register for public comment. We invite comment from the public and local, State, Tribal, Federal agencies, and other relevant parties.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce findings that 10 species are not warranted for listing as endangered or threatened species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). After a thorough review of the best available scientific and commercial information, we find that it is not warranted at this time to list Hupp's Hill cave beetle (Pseudanophthalmus parvicollis), Hubbard's cave beetle (Pseudanophthalmus hubbardi), overlooked cave beetle (Pseudanophthalmus praetermissus), Shenandoah cave beetle (Pseudanophthalmus limicola), Little Kennedy cave beetle (Pseudanophthalmus cordicollis), Holsinger's cave beetle (Pseudanophthalmus holsingeri), Hubricht's cave beetle (Pseudanophthalmus hubrichti), silken cave beetle (Pseudanophthalmus sericus), Pinale[ntilde]o talussnail (Sonorella grahamensis), and San Xavier talussnail (Sonorella eremita). However, we ask the public to submit to us at any time any new information relevant to the status of any of the species mentioned above or their habitats.

This notice corrects the scoping comment period of the Notice of Intent to Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement to Reconsider a Highway Right-of-Way Application and Associated Amendment of an Incidental Take Permit, Washington County, Utah, published in the Federal Register on November 16, 2023. The initial notice had an incorrect end date of the scoping period of December 18, 2023. The correct end date of the scoping period is December 21, 2023.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, have received applications for permits to conduct activities intended to enhance the propagation and survival of endangered species under the Endangered Species Act. We invite the public and local, State, Tribal, and Federal agencies to comment on these applications. Before issuing the requested permits, we will take into consideration any information that we receive during the public comment period.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are reopening the comment period on our August 22, 2023, proposed rule to list the toothless blindcat (Trogloglanis pattersoni) and widemouth blindcat (Satan eurystomus), two cavefish species from the Edwards Aquifer in Bexar County, Texas, as endangered species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). We are reopening the proposed rule's comment period to give all interested parties an additional opportunity to comment on the proposed rule. Comments previously submitted need not be resubmitted, as they are already incorporated into the public record and will be fully considered in our final determinations.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), propose to list the northern distinct population segment (DPS) of the western spadefoot (Spea hammondii), an amphibian occurring in central and northern California, and the southern DPS of the western spadefoot, occurring in southern California and northwestern Mexico, as threatened DPSs under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), as amended. This determination serves as our 12-month finding on a petition to list the western spadefoot range-wide. After a review of the best scientific and commercial information available, we find that listing the northern and southern DPSs of the western spadefoot as threatened is warranted. Accordingly, we propose to list the northern and southern DPSs of the western spadefoot as threatened DPSs with a rule issued under section 4(d) of the Act (``4(d) rule''). If we finalize this rule as proposed, it would add the northern DPS and southern DPS of the western spadefoot to the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and extend the Act's protections to the two DPSs. Due to the current lack of data sufficient to perform required analyses, we conclude that the designation of critical habitat for the northern DPS and southern DPS of the western spadefoot is not determinable at this time.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service gives notice of a public meeting of the Aquatic Nuisance Species (ANS) Task Force in accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act. The purpose of the ANS Task Force is to develop and implement a program for U.S. waters to prevent introduction and dispersal of aquatic invasive species; to monitor, control, and study such species; and to disseminate related information.