[Federal Register: December 9, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 237)]
[Notices]
[Page 74746-74747]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr09de08-70]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R4-R-2008-N0244; 40136-1265-0000-S3]
Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge, Brevard and Indian River
Counties, FL
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability: final comprehensive conservation plan
and finding of no significant impact.
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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the
availability of our final comprehensive conservation plan (CCP) and
finding of no significant impact (FONSI) for Archie Carr National
Wildlife Refuge (NWR). In the CCP, we describe how we will manage
Archie Carr NWR for the next 15 years.
ADDRESSES: A copy of the CCP may be obtained by writing to the refuge
at: P.O. Box 2683, Titusville, FL 32781-2683. The CCP may also be
accessed and downloaded from the Service's Internet Site: http://
southeast.fws.gov/planning.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cheri Ehrhardt; Telephone: 321/861-
2368.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Introduction
With this notice, we finalize the CCP process for Archie Carr NWR.
We started this process through a notice of intent in the Federal
Register on April 24, 2000 (65 FR 21784). For additional information
regarding the process, see that notice. We released the draft
comprehensive conservation plan and environmental assessment (Draft
CCP/EA) to the public, announcing and requesting comments in a notice
of availability in the Federal Register on June 26, 2008 (73 FR 36347).
Established in 1991, Archie Carr NWR is located approximately 15
miles northeast of Vero Beach, Florida, in Brevard and Indian River
Counties. The 258-acre refuge includes a diversity of habitats
consisting of beaches, dunes, coastal strand, maritime hammock, and
mangroves. Refuge and partner beaches support the highest nesting
concentrations of federally protected loggerhead and green sea turtles
in the United States. Furthermore, several other state- and federal-
listed species are found in the coastal and other barrier island
habitats supported by the refuge. The refuge protects several
historical and archaeological sites and, through working with the
partners, provides a range of visitor services.
We announce our decision and the availability of the CCP and FONSI
for Archie Carr NWR in accordance with National Environmental Policy
Act (NEPA) [40 CFR 1506.6(b)] requirements. We completed a thorough
analysis of impacts on the human environment, which we included in the
Draft CCP/EA.
The CCP will guide us in managing and administering Archie Carr NWR
for the next 15 years. Alternative B, as we described in the CCP, is
the foundation for the CCP.
Background
The National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997 (16
U.S.C. 668dd-668ee) (Improvement Act), which amended the National
Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966, requires us to
develop a CCP for each national wildlife refuge. The purpose for
developing a CCP is to provide refuge managers with a 15-year plan for
achieving refuge purposes and contributing toward the mission of the
National Wildlife Refuge System, consistent with sound principles of
fish and wildlife management, conservation, legal mandates, and our
policies. In addition to outlining broad management direction on
conserving wildlife and their habitats, CCPs identify wildlife-
dependent recreational opportunities available to the public, including
opportunities for hunting, fishing, wildlife observation, wildlife
photography, and environmental education and interpretation. We will
review and update the CCP at least every 15 years in accordance with
the Improvement Act.
Comments
We solicited comments on the Draft CCP/EA for Archie Carr NWR from
June
[[Page 74747]]
26 to July 28, 2008. The comments were thoroughly evaluated, and
changes were incorporated into the CCP, where warranted. Some of the
changes include adding the impacts of climate change to the list of
priority issues facing the refuge and updating the land cover maps with
regard to the location of key non-native plant species.
Selected Alternative
After considering the comments received, we have selected
Alternative B for implementation. Under this alternative, refuge
management will focus on improving conditions for sea turtles and other
threatened and endangered species, maintaining and restoring habitat,
and improving biodiversity on the refuge, while focusing public use
activities on partner properties within the larger Archie Carr NWR
partnership.
Authority: This notice is published under the authority of the
National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997, Public Law
105-57.
Dated: September 19, 2008.
Cynthia K. Dohner,
Acting Regional Director.
[FR Doc. E8-29082 Filed 12-8-08; 8:45 am]
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