Fern Davies Posted July 13, 2012 Share Posted July 13, 2012 THIS IS AN EXCERPT. FULL NOTICE IS ATTACHED. [Federal Register Volume 77, Number 134 (Thursday, July 12, 2012)] [Proposed Rules] [Pages 41147-41162] From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.g ======================================================================= ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Fish and Wildlife Service 50 CFR Part 17 [Docket No. FWS-R2-ES-2011-0053: 4500030114] RIN 1018-AX43 Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Designation of Revised Critical Habitat for the Southwestern Willow Flycatcher AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior. ACTION: Proposed rule; reopening of comment period. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the reopening of the public comment period on the August 15, 2011, proposed designation of revised critical habitat for the southwestern willow flycatcher (Empidonax traillii extimus) (flycatcher) under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). We are reopening the comment period to allow all interested parties an opportunity to comment on our amended required determinations and revisions to the proposed revised designation, which include additional areas as proposed critical habitat on two streams within the Santa Cruz Management Unit, Arizona, and revisions to areas being considered for exclusion under section 4(b)(2) of the Act. We are accepting comments on the draft environmental assessment prepared in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the draft economic analysis associated with the proposed rule. We are also providing notice of a public informational session and hearing (see DATES and ADDRESSES). Comments previously submitted need not be resubmitted, as they will be fully considered in preparation of the final rule. DATES: Written comments: We will consider comments received on or before September 10, 2012. Comments submitted electronically using the Federal eRulemaking Portal (see ADDRESSES section, below) must be received by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the closing date. Public informational session and public hearing: We will hold a public hearing on August 16, 2012, in San Carlos, AZ (see ADDRESSES). The hearing is open to all who wish to provide formal, oral comments regarding the proposed rule, and will be held from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., with an informational session before the hearing from 3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. During the informational session, Service employees will be available to provide information and answer questions. ADDRESSES: Document availability: You may obtain copies of the proposed rule, draft economic analysis, and draft environmental assessment on the internet at http://www.regulations.gov at Docket No. FWS-R2-ES- 2011-0053 or by mail from the Arizona Ecological Services Office (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). Written comments: You may submit written comments by one of the following methods: (1) Electronically: Go to the Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Search for Docket No. FWS-R2-ES-2011-0053, which is the docket number for this rulemaking. (2) By hard copy: Submit by U.S. mail or hand-delivery to: Public Comments Processing, Attn: FWS-R2-ES-2011-0053; Division of Policy and Directives Management; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, MS 2042-PDM; Arlington, VA 22203. We request that you send comments only by the methods described above. We will post all comments on http://www.regulations.gov. This generally means that we will post any personal information you provide us (see the Public Comments section below for more information). Public informational session and public hearing: The public informational session and hearing will be held at Apache Gold Convention Center, Highway 70, 5 miles East of Globe, in San Carlos, AZ 85550. People needing reasonable accommodations in order to attend and participate in the public hearing should contact Steve Spangle, Field Supervisor, Arizona Ecological Services Office, as soon as possible (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Steve Spangle, Field Supervisor, Arizona Ecological Services Office, 2321 West Royal Palm Road, Suite 103, Phoenix, AZ, 85021; telephone 602-242-0201; facsimile 602-242- 0513. Persons who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 800-877-8339. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Public Comments We will accept written comments and information during this reopened comment period on our proposed designation of revised flycatcher critical habitat that was published in the Federal Register on August 15, 2011 (76 FR 50542). We are accepting comments regarding additional areas we are proposing as critical habitat in this document and other areas that we are considering for exclusion under section 4(b)(2) of the Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), as discussed in this document. We are also accepting comments on the amended required determinations section, the draft economic analysis, and the draft environmental assessment prepared in compliance with NEPA (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). We will consider information and recommendations from all interested parties. We are particularly interested in comments concerning: (1) The reasons why we should or should not designate habitat as ``critical habitat'' under section 4 of the Act, including whether there are threats to the species from human activity, the degree of which can be expected to increase due to the designation, and whether that increase in threat outweighs the benefit of designation such that the designation of critical habitat is not prudent. (2) Specific information on: (a) The distribution of the flycatcher; (b) The amount and distribution of flycatcher habitat; © What areas that were occupied at the time of listing that contain features essential to the conservation of the species should be included in the designation and why; (d) What areas not occupied at the time of listing that meet our criteria as being essential for the conservation of the species should be included in the designation and why; (e) Special management considerations or protection that may be needed for the physical or biological features essential to the conservation of the species in the critical habitat areas we are proposing, including managing for the potential effects of climate change; (f) Stream segments, many of which are highlighted in the Southwestern Willow Flycatcher Recovery Plan (Recovery Plan) (Service 2002) and included in this proposed rule, that are not now known to have flycatcher nesting territories or known to only have few nesting flycatchers that may be capable of being improved for flycatcher recovery purposes. We specifically seek information about streams within the Amargosa, Salton, Mohave, Powell, San Juan, Santa Cruz, and Hassayampa and Agua Fria Management Units. Please provide information on flycatcher distribution and abundance, habitat quality, habitat locations, habitat improvement projects, management actions needed to improve habitat, habitat quality limitations, habitat recovery potential, and any other flycatcher or flycatcher-habitat-specific information, and; (g) Flycatcher habitat suitability for recovery in areas within the Santa Ana and San Diego Management Units in southern California, specifically in the following areas: (1) Entirety of Temescal Wash including Alberhill Creek in Riverside County; (2) entirety of Murrieta Creek in Riverside County; (3) Potrero Creek near the city of Beaumont in Riverside County; (4) Cajon Creek from Lone Pine Canyon to California State Highway 138 in San Bernardino County; and (5) Tijuana River from Dairy Mart Road to the Tijuana River Estuary in San Diego County. (3) Land use designations and current or planned activities in the subject areas and their possible impacts on proposed critical habitat. (4) Information on the projected and reasonably likely impacts of climate change on the flycatcher, the features essential to its conservation, and the areas proposed as revised critical habitat. (5) Any probable economic, national security, environmental, cultural, or other relevant impacts of designating any area that may be included in the final designation; in particular, we seek information concerning any impacts on small entities, and the benefits of including or excluding areas that exhibit these impacts. (6) Whether any specific areas we are proposing for critical habitat designation should be considered for exclusion under section 4(b)(2) of the Act, and whether the benefits of potentially excluding any specific area outweigh the benefits of including that area under section 4(b)(2) of the Act, in particular: (a) For specific lands that we should consider for exclusion under section 4(b)(2) of the Act, please provide us management plans, conservation easements, agreements, habitat conservation plans (HCPs), or other appropriate information, which describe the commitment and assurances of protection of the physical or biological features of flycatcher critical habitat; property boundaries; flycatcher status, distribution, and abundance; and management actions to protect the physical or biological features of flycatcher habitat; (b) For lands we evaluated and excluded from critical habitat under section 4(b)(2) of the Act in our 2005 flycatcher critical habitat designation (70 FR 60886, October 19, 2005) and lands to be newly considered for exclusion in this revision to designated critical habitat, please resubmit your request. In addition to your request, please include any updated information that pertains to the commitment and assurances of protection of flycatcher habitat; the physical or biological features of flycatcher critical habitat; property boundaries; flycatcher status, distribution, and abundance; and management actions to protect the physical or biological features of flycatcher habitat. Include the specific results of implementing these management plans since our 2005 flycatcher critical habitat designation; and © Information concerning the benefits of excluding or retaining lands we identify in the proposed critical habitat rule and revisions herein under consideration for exclusion under section 4(b)(2) of the Act. We specifically seek information about the possible exclusion of Elephant Butte Reservoir; areas within the operating pool of the reservoir may be subject to exclusion under 4(b)(2) of the Act if we determine that the benefits of excluding the area due to potential impacts to water operations outweigh the benefits to the subspecies of including the area as critical habitat. (7) Whether we could improve or modify our approach to designating critical habitat in any way to provide for greater public participation and understanding, or to better accommodate public concerns and comments. (8) Information on the extent to which the description of economic impacts in the draft environmental analysis is complete and accurate. (9) The likelihood of adverse social reactions to the designation of critical habitat, as discussed in the draft environmental assessment, and how the consequences of such reactions, if likely to occur, would relate to the conservation and regulatory benefits of the proposed revised critical habitat designation. (10) Information on the extent to which the description and evaluation of the proposal included in the draft environmental assessment is complete and accurate. If you submitted comments or information on the proposed revised rule (76 FR 50542) from August 15, 2011, to October 14, 2011, or since the initial comment period ended, please do not resubmit them. We will incorporate them into the public record as part of this comment period, and we will fully consider them in the preparation of our final determination. Our final determination concerning revised critical habitat will take into consideration all written comments, oral comments received during the public hearing, and any additional information we receive during both comment periods and the time between each comment period. You may submit your comments and materials concerning the proposed revised rule, draft economic analysis, or draft environmental assessment by one of the methods listed in the ADDRESSES section. We request that you send comments only by the methods described in the ADDRESSES section. If you submit a comment via http://www.regulations.gov, your entire comment--including any personal identifying information--will be posted on the Web site. We will post all hardcopy comments on http://www.regulations.gov as well. If you submit a hardcopy comment that includes personal identifying information, you may request at the top of your document that we withhold this information from public review. However, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so. Comments and materials we receive, as well as supporting documentation we used in preparing the proposed rule, draft economic analysis, and draft environmental assessment, will be available for public inspection on http://www.regulations.gov at Docket No. FWS-R2- ES-2011-0053, or by appointment, during normal business hours, at the Arizona Ecological Services Office (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). You may obtain copies of the proposed rule, draft economic analysis, and draft environmental assessment on the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov at Docket No. FWS-R2-ES-2011-0053, or by mail from the Arizona Ecological Services Office (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section). Background It is our intent to discuss only those topics directly relevant to the designation of revised critical habitat for the flycatcher in this document. For more information on previous Federal actions concerning the flycatcher, refer to the proposed designation of revised critical habitat published in the Federal Register on August 15, 2011 (76 FR 50542). Background information on the flycatcher can be found in the 2005 final flycatcher critical habitat rule published in the Federal Register on October 19, 2005 (70 FR 60886); our October 12, 2004, proposed critical habitat rule (69 FR 60706); the Recovery Plan; our first flycatcher critical habitat designation, published July 22, 1997 (62 FR 39129), and corrected on August 20, 1997 (62 FR 44228); the final flycatcher listing rule (60 FR 10694, February 27, 1995); and other documents described and cited in the August 15, 2011, flycatcher critical habitat proposal (76 FR 50542). Other reports can be retrieved from the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) flycatcher site at http://sbsc.wr.usgs.gov/cprs/research/projects/swwf. No new literature is being cited within this document. The current 2005 critical habitat rule remains in effect while this rulemaking process proceeds. For more information on this revised flycatcher critical habitat proposal, please go online to http://www.regulations.gov (at Docket No. FWS-R2- ES-2011-0053) or http://www.fws.gov/southwest/es/arizona/. All references cited in the August 15, 2011, flycatcher critical habitat revision proposal (76 FR 50542) can be retrieved from these Web sites. You can also contact the Arizona Ecological Services Office (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). SWFL.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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