[Federal Register: April 28, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 81)]

[Notices]               

[Page 22058-22059]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

[DOCID:fr28ap05-94]                         



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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR



Fish and Wildlife Service



 

Draft Comprehensive Conservation Plan and Environmental Impact 

Statement for the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish 

Refuge, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin



AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.



[[Page 22059]]





ACTION: Notice of availability.



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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announces that the Draft 

Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCP) and Environmental Impact 

Statement (EIS) is available for Upper Mississippi River National 

Wildlife and Fish Refuge.

    The CCP was prepared pursuant to the National Wildlife Refuge 

System Administration Act of 1966, as amended by the National Wildlife 

Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997, and the National Environmental 

Policy Act of 1969. Goals and objectives in the CCP describe how the 

agency intends to manage the refuge over the next 15 years.



DATES: Comments on the Draft CCP/EIS must be received on or before 

August 31, 2005.



ADDRESSES: Copies of the Draft CCP are available on compact disk or 

hard copy. You may access and download a copy via the planning Web 

site: (http://www.fws.gov/midwest/planning/uppermiss/index.html) or you 



may obtain a copy by writing to the following address: U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service, Division of Conservation Planning, Bishop Henry 

Whipple Federal Building, 1 Federal Drive, Fort Snelling, Minnesota 

55111.

    All comments should be addressed to Upper Mississippi National 

Wildlife and Fish Refuge, Attention: CCP Comment, 51 East 4th Street, 

Room 101, Winona, Minnesota 55987, or direct e-mail to 

r3planning@fws.gov. Comments may also be submitted through the 



Service's regional Web site at: http://www.fws.gov/midwest/planning/.





FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Don Hultman at (507) 452-4232.



SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Upper Mississippi River National 

Wildlife and Fish Refuge encompasses 240,000 acres along 261 miles of 

Mississippi River floodplain in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, and 

Illinois. The Refuge was established by Congress in 1924 to provide a 

refuge and breeding ground for migratory birds, fish, other wildlife, 

and plants. The Refuge is perhaps the most important corridor of 

habitat in the central United States due to its species diversity and 

abundance, and it is the most visited refuge in the United States with 

3.7 million annual visitors.

    The focus of the CCP over the next 15 years will be on safeguarding 

existing habitat; enhancing floodplain habitat in partnership with the 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the states; increasing the abundance 

of fish and wildlife; improving wildlife-dependent recreation 

opportunities such as hunting, fishing, and wildlife observation; 

ensuring that traditional non-wildlife-dependent recreation remains 

compatible with the mission of the refuge system and the purposes of 

the refuge; and improving staffing and infrastructure capability.

    The EIS evaluates four alternatives: (1) No action or current 

direction; (2) wildlife focus; (3) public use focus; and (4) wildlife 

and integrated public use focus (preferred). The alternatives differ 

mainly in the level of effort and resources given to fish and wildlife 

and habitat management and public use opportunities and programs. Under 

the preferred alternative all current recreational uses would continue, 

although the location, season of use, and means of use could change.

    The National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966, as 

amended by the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997 

(16 U.S.C. 668dd-668ee et seq) requires the Service to develop a CCP 

for each National Wildlife Refuge. The purpose in developing a CCP is 

to provide refuge managers with a 15-year strategy 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 Service policies. In 

addition to outlining broad management direction for conserving 

wildlife and their habitats, the CCP identifies wildlife-dependent 

recreational opportunities available to the public, including 

opportunities for hunting, fishing, wildlife observation and 

photography, and environmental education and interpretation. We will 

review and update these CCPs at least every 15 years in accordance with 

the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966, as 

amended by the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997, 

and the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321-

4370d).



    Dated: March 7, 2005.

Charles M. Wooley,

Acting Regional Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Ft. Snelling, 

Minnesota.

[FR Doc. 05-8498 Filed 4-27-05; 8:45 am]



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