Fish and Wildlife Service December 2017 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) is establishing and seeking nominations for the Hunting and Shooting Sports Conservation Council (Council). The Council will provide recommendations to the Federal Government, through the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) and the Secretary of Agriculture, regarding the establishment and implementation of existing and proposed policies and authorities with regard to wildlife and habitat conservation endeavors that: Benefit wildlife resources; encourage partnership among the public, sporting conservation organizations, Federal, state, tribal, and territorial governments; and benefit recreational hunting and recreational shooting sports.

We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), have received an application for an incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA). Lennar Corporation (Applicant) is requesting a 15-year ITP for take of the sand skink. We request public comments on the permit application and accompanying proposed habitat conservation plan (HCP), as well as on our preliminary determination that the plan qualifies as low-effect under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). To make this determination, we used our environmental action statement and low-effect screening form, which are also available for review.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, announce the receipt and availability of a draft Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) and draft environmental assessment (EA), which evaluates the impacts of, and alternatives to, the proposed Hinkley Groundwater Remediation Project. The Hinkley HCP was submitted by Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E) in support of an application under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended, for a permit authorizing the incidental take of covered species resulting from covered activities. PG&E's application is for a 50-year incidental take permit to cover groundwater remediation activities within a plan area of approximately 29,927 acres in and around Hinkley, California. We request review and comment on the Hinkley HCP and the draft EA from local, State, and Federal agencies; Tribes; and the public.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce 90- day findings on several petitions to list or reclassify wildlife or plants under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). Based on our review, we find that the petitions present substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that the petitioned actions may be warranted with respect to the species mentioned in this notification. Therefore, with the publication of this document, we announce that we plan to initiate a review of the status of each 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. After completing the status reviews, we will issue 12-month findings on the petitions, which will address whether or not the petitioned action is warranted, in accordance with the Act. In addition, we announce a correction to information contained in the 90- day petition finding for the leopard (Panthera pardus), which clarifies the range and entity we are evaluating in our status review of the species.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, announce the availability of the following documents for review and comment by the public and Federal, Tribal, State, and local governments: Draft Range-wide General Conservation Plan for Utah Prairie Dogs (GCP); Draft Implementing Agreement for the GCP; and Draft Environment Assessment of the GCP (EA). We prepared the draft GCP to fulfill the requirements of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) for issuing permits to authorize take of Utah prairie dogs incidental to development activities within the range of the species in Utah. The draft GCP is designed to streamline incidental take permit authorization for many types of development activities while conserving the species. As required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), we also prepared a draft EA that analyzes the potential effects to the natural and human environment from issuing permits to Iron, Beaver, and Garfield Counties and from overall implementation of the GCP, including potential issuance of master or individual permits over the 10-year term of the proposed GCP.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are proposing to update regulations for the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration and the Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish Restoration programs and subprograms, based on comments we received during the last rulemaking that were never resolved, existing guidance that we intend to move to regulation, and updates requested by States to improve the processes under license certification. We believe these changes will clarify and simplify the regulations and help ensure consistency in administering the programs across the Nation.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the availability of a draft Supplement to the Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan: Habitat-Based Recovery Criteria for the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem (NCDE). The draft supplement, which will be appended to the Grizzly Bear Recovery Plan upon finalization, proposes to establish habitat-based recovery criteria for the NCDE grizzly bear population. In addition, the Service hereby gives notice that a public workshop will be held to review the habitat-based recovery criteria for the grizzly bear in the NCDE. The workshop will allow scientists and the public to submit oral and written comments. The Service solicits review and comment from the public on this draft supplement.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, have issued permits to conduct activities with endangered and threatened species under the authority of the Endangered Species Act, as amended (ESA). With some exceptions, the ESA prohibits activities involving listed species unless a Federal permit is issued that allows such activity. We provide this list for the convenience of the public as a summary of our permit issuances for the first 6 months of calendar year 2017.

We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), have received an application from Mosaic Fertilizer, LLC (Applicant) for amendment of incidental take permit (ITP) number TE236128-1 under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended, in Manatee and Hardee Counties, Florida. We request public comments on the application and accompanying proposed amended habitat conservation plan (HCP) as well as on our preliminary determination that the plan qualifies as low-effect under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). To make this determination, we used our environmental action statement and low- effect screening form, which are also available for review.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce 12- month findings on petitions to list four species 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 listing the blackfin sucker, Mohave shoulderband snail, white-tailed prairie dog, and Woodville Karst cave crayfish is not warranted at this time. However, we ask the public to submit to us at any time any new information that becomes available concerning the stressors to any of the species listed above or their habitats.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, invite the public to comment on applications for permits to conduct activities intended to enhance the propagation or survival of endangered species. With some exceptions, the Endangered Species Act (ESA) prohibits certain activities that constitute take of listed species unless a Federal permit is issued that allows such activity. The ESA also requires that we invite public comment before issuing these permits.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announces a change in a regional partner, representing the Upper Copper River region, on the Alaska Migratory Bird Co-management Council (Co-management Council). For the Upper Copper River region, the Copper River Native Association has elected to step down, and the Co-management Council is replacing that partner with the Ahtna Intertribal Resource Commission. This action will ensure continuity of the Co-management Council's operations.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, have received an application from Orange County Waste & Recycling for a 5-year incidental take permit for the threatened coastal California gnatcatcher pursuant to the Endangered Species Act. We are requesting comments on the permit application and on our preliminary determination that the applicant's accompanying proposed habitat conservation plan qualifies as low effect, eligible for a categorical exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act. The basis for this determination is discussed in our environmental action statement and associated low- effect screening form, which are also available for public review.