[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 180 (Friday, September 17, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57055-57056]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-23234]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R6-ES-2008-N188; 60120-1113-0000; C2]
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Draft Revised
Recovery Plan for Utah Prairie Dog
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of document availability for review and comment.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announces the
availability of a draft revised recovery plan for the Utah prairie dog
(Cynomys parvidens). This species is federally listed as threatened
under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The Service
solicits review and comment from the public on this draft revised plan.
DATES: Comments on the draft revised recovery plan must be received on
or before November 16, 2010.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the draft revised recovery plan are available by
request from the Utah Field Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
2369 West Orton Circle, Suite 50, West Valley City, UT 84119; telephone
801-975-3330. Submit comments on the draft recovery plan to the Field
Supervisor at this same address. An electronic copy of the draft
recovery plan is available at http://www.fws.gov/endangered/species/recovery-plans.html.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Field Supervisor, at the above
address, or telephone 801-975-3330.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Restoring an endangered or threatened animal or plant to the point
where it is again a secure, self-sustaining member of its ecosystem is
a primary goal of the Service's endangered species program. To help
guide the recovery effort, the Service prepares recovery plans for the
federally listed species native to the United States where a plan will
promote the conservation of the species. Recovery plans describe site-
specific actions necessary for the conservation of the species,
establish objective, measurable criteria which, when met, would result
in a determination that the species no longer needs the protection of
the Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), and provide estimates of the time and
cost for implementing the needed recovery measures.
The Act requires recovery plans for listed species unless such a
plan would not promote the conservation of a particular species.
Section 4(f) of the Act, as amended in 1988, requires that public
notice and opportunity for public review and comment be provided during
recovery plan development. The Service will consider all information
received during a public comment period when preparing each new or
revised recovery plan for approval. The Service and other Federal
agencies also will take these comments into consideration in the course
of implementing approved recovery plans. It is our policy to request
peer review of recovery plans. We will summarize and respond to the
issues raised by the public and peer reviewers in an appendix to the
approved recovery plan.
The Utah prairie dog (Cynomys parvidens), found only in
southwestern and central Utah, was listed as an endangered species on
June 4, 1973 (38 FR 14678). At the time of listing, the species was
threatened by habitat destruction and modification, overexploitation,
disease, and predation. Subsequently, Utah prairie dog populations
increased significantly in portions of their range, and on May 29, 1984
(49 FR 22330), the species was reclassified as threatened with a
special rule to allow regulated take of the species. This special rule
was amended on June 14, 1991 (56 FR 27438), to increase the amount of
regulated take allowed throughout the species' range. Recent Utah
prairie dog population trends appear to be relatively stable, although
the species remains vulnerable to several serious threats. These
include habitat loss, plague, changing climatic conditions,
unauthorized take, and disturbance from recreational and economic land
uses.
The recovery of Utah prairie dogs will rely on effective
conservation responses to the issues facing the species, which remain
varied and complex. These issues include plague, urban expansion,
grazing, cultivated agriculture, vegetative community changes, invasive
plants, off-highway vehicle and recreation uses, climate change, energy
resource exploration and development, fire management, poaching, and
predation. Strategically, these issues can be reduced to two overriding
concerns: loss of habitat and plague. The recovery strategy for the
Utah prairie dog focuses on the need to address colony loss and disease
through a program that encompasses threats abatement, population
management, research, and monitoring. We emphasize conserving extant
colonies, many of which occur on non-Federal lands; establishing
additional colonies on Federal and non-Federal lands via habitat
improvement or translocations; controlling the transmission of plague;
and monitoring habitat conditions.
Request for Public Comments
The Service solicits public comments on the draft recovery plan.
All comments received by the date specified in DATES will be considered
prior to approval of the plan. Written comments and materials regarding
the plan should be addressed to the Field Supervisor (see ADDRESSES
section). Comments and materials received will be available, by
appointment, for public inspection during normal business hours at the
above address.
Authority
The authority for this action is section 4(f) of the Endangered
Species Act, 16 U.S.C. 1533(f).
[[Page 57056]]
Dated: August 18, 2010.
Hugh Morrison,
Acting Regional Director.
[FR Doc. 2010-23234 Filed 9-16-10; 8:45 am]
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