[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 27 (Wednesday, February 11, 2009)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 6852-6853]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-2921]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
50 CFR Part 17
[FWS-R1-ES-2008-0079; 92210-1117-0000]
RIN 1018-AW18
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Revised Critical
Habitat for the Marbled Murrelet
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Proposed rule; reopening of public comment period.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the
reopening of the public comment period for submitting comments on our
July 31, 2008 proposed revised designation of critical habitat for the
marbled murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus marmoratus) under the
Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The reopened comment
period will provide all interested parties with an additional
opportunity to submit written comments on the proposed rule. Comments
previously submitted for the proposed revised critical habitat
designation need not be resubmitted; they have already been
incorporated into the public record and will be fully considered in any
final decisions.
DATES: We will accept comments from all interested parties until March
13, 2009. Any comments received after the closing date may not be
considered in the final decision on the revised designation of critical
habitat.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by one of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
U.S. mail or hand-delivery: Public Comments Processing,
Attn: FWS-R1-ES-2008-0079; Division of Policy and Directives
Management; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; 4401 N. Fairfax Drive,
Suite 222; Arlington, VA 22203.
We will not accept e-mail or faxes. 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).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ken Berg, Field Supervisor, Western
Washington Fish and Wildlife Office, 510 Desmond Drive, SE, Suite 102,
Lacey, WA 98503-1273, telephone (360) 753-9440, facsimile (360) 753-
9008; Paul Henson, Field Supervisor, Oregon Fish and Wildlife Office,
2600 SE 98th Avenue, Suite 100, Portland, OR 97266, telephone (503)
231-6179, facsimile (503) 231-6195; or Michael Long, Field Supervisor,
Arcata Fish and Wildlife Office, 1655 Heindon Road, Arcata, CA 95521,
telephone (707) 822-7201, facsimile (707) 822-8411. If you use a
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), call the Federal
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 800-877-8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Public Comments
We intend that any final action resulting from the proposed rule
will be as accurate and as effective as possible. Therefore, we request
comments or suggestions on the proposed revised designation of critical
habitat for the marbled murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus marmoratus).
We particularly seek comments concerning:
(1) The reasons why we should or should not revise currently
designated critical habitat for the marbled murrelet by removing
254,070 ac (102,820 ha) from the 1996 designation, based on new
information that is the best available information indicating that
these areas do not meet the definition of critical habitat;
(2) Specific information on the amount and distribution of marbled
murrelet habitat;
(3) Any foreseeable economic, national security, or other potential
impacts resulting from the proposed critical habitat revision, and in
particular, any impacts on small entities;
(4) Our proposal to revise 50 CFR 17.11 to adopt the taxonomic
clarification for the marbled murrelet to reflect the change from
Brachyramphus marmoratus marmoratus to Brachyramphus marmoratus; and
(5) Whether we could improve or modify our approach to revising
critical habitat in any way to provide for greater public participation
and understanding, or to better accommodate public concerns and
comments.
You may submit your comments and materials concerning the proposed
revised designation of critical habitat for the marbled murrelet by one
of the methods listed in the ADDRESSES section. We will not accept
comments sent by e-mail or fax or to an address not listed 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. 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. We will post all
hardcopy submissions on http://www.regulations.gov.
Comments and materials we receive, as well as supporting
documentation we used in preparing the proposed revised designation of
critical habitat for the marbled murrelet, will be available for public
inspection on http://www.regulations.gov, or by appointment, during
normal business hours, at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Western
Washington Fish and
[[Page 6853]]
Wildlife Office (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
Background
On May 24, 1996, we designated 3,887,800 acres (ac) (1,573,340
hectares (ha)) as critical habitat for the marbled murrelet in
Washington, Oregon, and California. On July 31, 2008, we published a
proposed rule in the Federal Register (73 FR 44678) to revise critical
habitat for the marbled murrelet. Under the proposed revised
designation of critical habitat, we would remove approximately 254,070
ac (102,820 ha) in northern California and Oregon from the 1996
designation, based on new information indicating that these areas do
not meet the definition of critical habitat. This action, if adopted in
its entirety, would result in a revised designation of approximately
3,633,800 ac (1,470,550 ha) as critical habitat for the marbled
murrelet. In the proposed rule, we also proposed a taxonomic revision
of the scientific name of the marbled murrelet from Brachyramphus
marmoratus marmoratus to Brachyramphus marmoratus. We are reopening the
comment period to accept peer review comments into the administrative
record; however, all interested parties may submit comments and
materials on the proposed revised designation of critical habitat for
the marbled murrelet. Previously submitted comments for this proposed
rule need not be resubmitted. Those comments have been incorporated
into the public record and will be fully considered in our final
determination.
Author
The primary authors of this document are the staff members of the
Division of Endangered Species, Pacific Region, U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service.
Authority
The authority for this action is the Endangered Species Act of
1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).
Dated: February 4, 2009.
Jane Lyder,
Assistant Deputy Secretary, Department of the Interior.
[FR Doc. E9-2921 Filed 2-10-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P