[Federal Register: November 5, 1999 (Volume 64, Number 214)]
[Notices]
[Page 60453-60454]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr05no99-87]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
Availability of the Reassessment of the Interim Wolf Control Plan
for the Northern Rocky Mountains
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of document availability.
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SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service, announce the availability
of the Reassessment of the Interim Wolf Control Plan for the Northern
Rocky Mountains, which includes northwestern Montana and the Panhandle
of northern Idaho (Exclusive of the Experimental Population Area). Our
1988 Interim Wolf Control Plan (Control Plan) was developed in response
to a recommendation in the 1987 Northern Rocky Mountain Wolf Recovery
Plan (Recovery Plan) to conserve and enhance survival and propagation
of the gray wolf, and is implemented under an Endangered Species Act
section 10 permit. The Control Plan has been carried out for 11 years
to control problem wolves.
A notice of availability of the draft reassessment was published in
the Federal Register, Volume 63, Number 78, on April 23, 1998,
soliciting review and comments from the public for 30 days. Based on
the review and the comments received, we have modified the Control Plan
to include changes in the following areas--(1) Management zones; (2)
encouraging research in deterring wolf depredations on livestock; (3)
recordkeeping and analysis; (4) non-lethal control techniques and; (5)
monitoring of the wolf population in northwestern Montana. The Control
Plan also was amended to include the need to control wolves that kill
pets and an increased educational effort about wolf recovery and
management in northwestern Montana.
ADDRESSES: Persons wishing to obtain a copy of the Reassessment and the
Modified Interim Wolf Control Plan may do so by contacting the Wolf
Recovery Coordinator, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 100 North Park,
Suite 320, Helena, Montana 59604, or by accessing the website. The
Control Plan and the Reassessment can be retrieved from the Service's
Region 6 website at <www.r6.fws.gov/wolf>. The complete administrative
record of this action is on file at the above address and is available
for inspection, by appointment, during normal business hours.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ed Bangs, Wolf Recovery Coordinator
(see ADDRESSES above), or at telephone (406) 449-5225, extension 204,
or e-mail <rockymtwolf@fws.gov>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The primary goal of our endangered species program is to restore an
endangered or threatened animal or plant to the point where it is again
a secure, self-sustaining member of its ecosystem. Recovery Plans
describe actions considered necessary for conservation of the species,
establish criteria for recovery levels for downlisting or delisting the
species, and estimate time and cost for implementing the recovery
measures identified.
Under provisions of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), as
amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), the northern Rocky Mountains wolf
population was listed as endangered, and we approved the Wolf Recovery
Plan for the Northern Rocky Mountains (Recovery Plan) in 1987. The
Recovery Plan recognized that, where ranges of wolves and livestock
overlap, some livestock would be killed by wolves. In order to address
this issue, the Recovery Plan identified the need ``to delineate
recovery areas and identify and develop conservation strategies and
management plan(s) to ensure perpetuation of the Northern Rocky
Mountain wolf.'' To respond to this need, a task was included to
develop and implement a wolf control/contingency plan for dealing with
wolf depredations. An Interim Wolf Control Plan for Montana and Wyoming
(Control Plan) was approved by the Service's Regional Director on
August 5, 1988. The Control Plan included criteria for determining
problem wolves, criteria for their disposition, and protocols and
techniques for control actions.
We conduct control of problem wolves through our section 10 permit
authority. Under section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Act, ``The Secretary (of
the Interior) may permit, under such terms and conditions as he may
prescribe--(A) any act otherwise prohibited by section 9 for scientific
purposes or to enhance the propagation or survival of the affected
species.''
The Control Plan has been carried out for 11 years to control
problem wolves. On February 27, 1998, a draft evaluation of the Control
Plan was completed to see if it was achieving its goal of helping
recovery of the Northern Rocky Mountain endangered wolf population. The
evaluation looked at--(1) the effectiveness of the program in
facilitating wolf recovery, (2) effectiveness of the guidelines for
determining problem wolves, conducting wolf control actions and the
disposition of problem wolves, (3) the analysis, accuracy, consistency
and value of the reporting and recording of actions for the record, and
(4) recommendations for the wolf control program.
A recommendation in the draft reassessment was to subject the
review to a wider and more professional scrutiny by publishing a notice
of availability in the Federal Register, and sending it to experts
experienced in managing wolf/livestock conflicts. A notice of
availability was published in the Federal Register, Volume 63, Number
78, on April 23, 1998, soliciting review and comments from the public
for 30 days. Copies of the notice were sent to congressional delegates
and the Governors in Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming. Copies were sent to
U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services State directors and
their Regional Office. All cooperators were made aware of the notice of
availability through the gray wolf weekly report mailing list and
postings on several Internet websites.
We received 25 written and 1 verbal response to the draft
reassessment. Comments were reviewed and 22 relevant issues regarding
the Control Plan were categorized and addressed. The categories, number
of comments, and responses to relevant issues are listed in the final
version of the Reassessment. After careful review and analysis of
comments received, and the evaluation of the Control Plan, some of the
recommendations in the draft reassessment were modified and several
additional recommendations have been added to the Modified Interim
Control Plan. We have modified the Control Plan for the Northern Rocky
Mountains to include changes in the following areas--(1) management
zones; (2) encouraging research in deterring wolf depredations on
livestock; (3) recordkeeping and analysis; (4) non-lethal control
techniques and; (5) monitoring of the wolf population in northwestern
Montana. The Control Plan also was amended to include the need to
control wolves that kill pets and a recommendation to increase
[[Page 60454]]
educational efforts about wolf recovery and management in northwestern
Montana.
Authority
The authority for this action is section 4(f) of the Endangered
Species Act, 16 U.S.C. 1533(f).
Dated: October 28, 1999.
Terry Terrell,
Deputy Regional Director, Denver, Colorado.
[FR Doc. 99-29001 Filed 11-4-99; 8:45 am]
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