Fish and Wildlife Service 2009 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, invite the public to comment on the following applications for permits to conduct certain activities with endangered species and/or marine mammals. Both the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act require that we invite public comment on these permit applications.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), intend to prepare a comprehensive conservation plan (CCP) for the Columbia National Wildlife Refuge (refuge) located in Adams and Grant Counties, Washington. We will also prepare an environmental assessment (EA) to evaluate the potential effects of various CCP alternatives. This notice also announces a public open house meeting; see SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for the details. We issue this notice in compliance with our CCP policy to advise the public and other agencies of our intentions and to obtain suggestions and information on the scope of issues we will consider during the CCP planning process.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), proposed in an earlier document to establish annual hunting regulations for certain migratory game birds for the 2009-10 hunting season. This supplement to the proposed rule provides the regulatory schedule, announces the Service Migratory Bird Regulations Committee and Flyway Council meetings, and provides Flyway Council recommendations resulting from their March meetings.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announce that the Final Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCP) for the Pathfinder National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) is available. This CCP, prepared pursuant to the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997 and the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, describes how the Service intends to manage the Pathfinder NWR for the next 15 years.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the availability of our final recovery plan for and the initiation of a 5- year status review for the short-tailed albatross (Phoebastria albatrus), a bird species listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). Our recovery plan describes the status, current management, recovery objectives and criteria, and specific actions needed to enable us to reclassify the short-tailed albatross from endangered to threatened, or from threatened to delisted. It also includes criteria that would justify reclassifying the species from threatened back to endangered. We conduct 5-year reviews to ensure that our classification of each species as threatened or endangered on the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants is accurate. We request any new information on this species that may have a bearing on its classification as endangered. Based on the results of this 5-year review, we will make a finding on whether this species is properly classified under the Act.

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) has applied to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) for an enhancement of survival permit pursuant to section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended. The permit application includes a proposed Programmatic Safe Harbor Agreement (Agreement) between ODFW and the Service. The proposed term of the permit and Agreement is 30 years. The requested permit would authorize ODFW to extend incidental take coverage with assurances to eligible landowners who are willing to carry out habitat management measures that would benefit the federally- listed as endangered Oregon chub (Oregonichthys crameri) by enrolling them under the Agreement as Cooperators through issuance of Certificates of Inclusion. The covered area or geographic scope of this Agreement includes all non-Federal properties in the Willamette Valley between the cities of Oregon City and Oakridge, Oregon, the estimated historical distribution of the species. We request comments from the public on the permit application, proposed Agreement, and related

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), designate revised critical habitat for the wintering population of the piping plover (Charadrius melodus) in 18 specific units in Texas under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). In total, approximately 139,029 acres (56,263 hectares) fall within the boundaries of the revised critical habitat designation. The revised critical habitat is located in Cameron, Willacy, Kenedy, Kleberg, Nueces, Aransas, Calhoun, Matagorda, and Brazoria Counties, Texas. Other previously designated critical habitat for the wintering piping plover in Texas or elsewhere in the United States remains unaffected.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, invite the public to comment on the following applications for permits to conduct certain activities with endangered species. The Endangered Species Act requires that we invite public comment on these permit applications.

Under the authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act), we, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), propose to reclassify the Oregon chub (Oregonichthys crameri) from endangered to threatened. This proposal is based on a thorough review of the best available scientific data, which indicate that the species' status has improved such that it is not currently in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range. We seek information, data, and comments from the public regarding the Oregon chub and this proposal.

The Trinity Adaptive Management Working Group (TAMWG) affords stakeholders the opportunity to give policy, management, and technical input concerning Trinity River (California) restoration efforts to the Trinity Management Council (TMC). The TMC interprets and recommends policy, coordinates and reviews management actions, and provides organizational budget oversight. This notice announces a TAMWG meeting, which is open to the public.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, invite the public to comment on the following applications for permits to conduct certain activities with endangered species or marine mammals. Both the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act require that we invite public comment on these permit applications.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the reopening of the public comment period on our proposal to designate critical habitat for the southwest Alaska Distinct Population Segment (DPS) of the northern sea otter (Enhydra lutris kenyoni) under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). This action will provide all interested parties with an additional opportunity to submit written comments on our December 16, 2008, proposed rule to designate approximately 15,225 square kilometers (km\2\) (5,879 square miles (mi\2\)) as critical habitat.

We the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), advise the public that we are extending the public comment period for the Tejon Ranchcorp's incidental take application (ITP), draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS), and draft Tehachapi Uplands Multiple Species Habitat Conservation Plan (TUMSHCP). See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for details.

We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the availability of a draft comprehensive conservation plan and environmental assessment (Draft CCP/EA) for Ernest F. Hollings ACE Basin National Wildlife Refuge (ACE Basin NWR) for public review and comment. In this Draft CCP/EA, we describe the alternative we propose to use to manage this refuge for the 15 years following approval of the Final CCP.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, invite the public to comment on the following applications to conduct certain activities with endangered species or marine mammals. Both the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act require that we invite public comment on these permit applications.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), have completed a comprehensive conservation plan, environmental assessment (CCP/EA), and finding of no significant impact (FONSI) for the McNary and Umatilla National Wildlife Refuges (Refuges), which are part of the Mid-Columbia River National Wildlife Refuge Complex (Complex). The CCP/ EA was developed to provide a foundation for the management and use of the Refuges. We are furnishing this notice to advise other agencies and the public of the availability of the CCP/EA and FONSI, and the decision to implement Alternative 2 as described in the CCP/EA. The Service's Regional Director for the Pacific Region selected Alternative 2 for managing the Refuges for the next 15 years. The Refuges are located along the Columbia River in the states of Oregon and Washington.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service or we) proposes to amend the regulations for the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge (refuge) that pertain to existing programs for migratory game bird hunting, upland game hunting, and big game hunting. These changes would take effect with the 2009-2010 season, would implement portions of the Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCP) for the refuge approved in 2006, and would amend other regulations. We also propose amendments to part 25 reflecting recent OMB approval of new hunting and fishing application forms and activity reports for national wildlife refuges.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the reopening of the comment period on our September 16, 2008, proposed revised designation of critical habitat for the California red-legged frog under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). We also announce the availability of the draft economic analysis (DEA), a revision to proposed critical habitat Unit MEN-1, and an amended required determinations section of the proposal. We are reopening the comment period to allow all interested parties an opportunity to comment simultaneously on the proposed revision of critical habitat (including the changes to proposed critical habitat Unit MEN-1), the associated DEA, and the amended required determinations section. Comments previously submitted on this rulemaking do not need to be resubmitted. These comments have already been incorporated into the public record and will be fully considered in preparation of the final rule.

We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announce the availability of a draft comprehensive conservation plan (Draft CCP/EA) for Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) for public review and comment. In this Draft CCP/EA, we describe the alternative we propose to use to manage this refuge for the 15 years following approval of the Final CCP.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 90-day finding on a petition to list the Tehachapi slender salamander (Batrachoseps stebbinsi) as a threatened or endangered species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). We find that the petition presents substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that listing the Tehachapi slender salamander may be warranted. Therefore, with the publication of this notice, we are initiating a status review to determine if listing this species is warranted. To ensure that the status review is comprehensive, we are soliciting information and data regarding this species. We will initiate a determination on critical habitat for this species, if and when we initiate a listing action.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the reopening of the public comment period on our July 26, 2006, proposed rule on the designation of critical habitat for the Hine's emerald dragonfly (Somatochlora hineana) under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). At this time the Service is reconsidering designating critical habitat on the Hiawatha National Forest in Michigan and the Mark Twain National Forest in Missouri as identified in the July 26, 2006, proposal. During the process of reconsidering the exclusion of these Federal lands, critical habitat designated by the September 5, 2007, final rule remains in place, while the Federal lands as described in the July 2006 proposed rule are considered as proposed critical habitat. Through this notice, the Service is also taking the opportunity pursuant to section 4(a)(3)(B) of the Act to propose a new unit on the Mark Twain National Forest that was not known to be occupied by the Hine's emerald dragonfly at the time of the September 5, 2007, final rule but has since been discovered. The reopened comment period will provide all interested parties with an additional opportunity to submit written comments on the proposed rule, specifically regarding the new proposed unit and the exclusion of U.S. Forest Service lands from the 2007 final designation. Comments previously submitted on the proposed critical habitat designation need not be resubmitted; they have already been incorporated into the public record and will be fully considered in the final decision.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, announce the availability of the Revised Recovery Plan for the Hawaiian crow or [revaps]Alala (Corvus hawaiiensis). This species, found only on the island of Hawai[revaps]i, was Federally listed as endangered in 1967.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, have received an application from Hossain Ahmadi (applicant) for a 3-year incidental take permit for five species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973,

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, invite the public to comment on the following applications to conduct certain activities with endangered species and/or marine mammals. Both the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act require that we invite public comment on these permit applications.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), make available a record of decision (ROD) under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). This ROD documents our decision to select an alternative including implementation of the Williamson County Regional Habitat Conservation Plan (RHCP). Our selected action (Alternative B, described below and in the ROD) entails the issuance of a 30-year incidental take permit (ITP) to Williamson County, Texas (the County), to incidentally take golden-cheeked warbler (Dendroica chrysoparia), black-capped vireo (Vireo atricapilla), Bone Cave harvestman (Texella reyesi), and Coffin Cave mold beetle (Batrisodes texanus). The RHCP will mitigate for take by purchasing mitigation credits in an existing conservation bank and by acquiring and managing replacement habitats and additional conservation measures as specifically described in the RHCP.