[Federal Register: September 22, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 184)]
[Notices]
[Page 54603-54604]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr22se08-56]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R1-ES-2008-N0200; 10120-1113-0000-C2]
Draft Recovery Plan for the Prairie Species of Western Oregon and
Southwestern Washington
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 announces the availability
of the draft Recovery Plan for the Prairie Species of Western Oregon
and Southwestern Washington for public review and comment. The listed
species addressed in the recovery plan are: Fender's blue butterfly
(Icaricia icarioides fenderi), Erigeron decumbens var. decumbens
(Willamette daisy), Lomatium bradshawii (Bradshaw's lomatium), Lupinus
sulphureus ssp. kincaidii (Kincaid's lupine), Sidalcea nelsoniana
(Nelson's checker-mallow) and Castilleja levisecta (golden paintbrush).
ADDRESSES: Copies of the draft recovery plan are available by request
from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Oregon Fish and Wildlife
Office, 2600 SE 98th Avenue, Suite 100, Portland, Oregon 97266 (phone:
503-231-6179). An electronic copy of the draft recovery plan is also
available at http://endangered.fws.gov/recovery/index.html#plans.
Printed copies of the draft recovery plan will be available for
distribution within 4 to 6 weeks.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cat Brown, Fish and Wildlife
Biologist, at the above Portland address and telephone number.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Recovery of endangered or threatened animals and plants is a
primary goal of the Endangered Species Act (Act) (16 U.S.C. 1531 et
seq.) and our endangered species program. Recovery means
[[Page 54604]]
improvement of the status of listed species to the point at which
listing is no longer required under the criteria set out in section
4(a)(1) of the Act. Recovery plans describe actions necessary for the
conservation and survival of the species, establish criteria for
downlisting or delisting listed species, and estimate time and cost for
implementing the measures needed for recovery.
The Act requires the development of recovery plans for endangered
or threatened species unless such a plan would not promote the
conservation of the species. Section 4(f) of the Act requires that
public notice, and an opportunity for public review and comment, be
provided during recovery plan development. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service (``we'') will consider all information presented during the
public comment period on each new or revised recovery plan.
The native prairies of western Oregon and southwest Washington are
among the most imperiled ecosystems in the United States. Six native
prairie species in the region--one butterfly and five plants--have been
added to the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and
Plants since 1988. In this draft recovery plan, we develop recovery
strategies and objectives for Fender's blue butterfly (Icaricia
icarioides fenderi), Erigeron decumbens var. decumbens (Willamette
daisy), Lomatium bradshawii (Bradshaw's lomatium), Lupinus sulphureus
ssp. kincaidii (Kincaid's lupine), Sidalcea nelsoniana (Nelson's
checker-mallow) and Castilleja levisecta (golden paintbrush). When
completed, this plan will replace and supersede previously approved
recovery plans for Lomatium bradshawii and Sidalcea nelsoniana. It will
augment, but not replace, the existing recovery plan for Castilleja
levisecta; this new Prairie Species Recovery Plan will provide
recommendations for the reintroduction of Castilleja levisecta into its
historical range in the Willamette Valley, consistent with the species'
published recovery plan. In addition to recovery strategies for these
six listed species, the plan will recommend conservation strategies for
one candidate species, the Taylor's checkerspot butterfly (Euphydryas
editha taylori), and another six plant species of concern: Delphinium
leucophaeum (pale larkspur), Delphinium oreganum (Willamette Valley
larkspur), Delphinium pavonaceum (peacock larkspur), Horkelia congesta
ssp. congesta (shaggy horkelia), Sericocarpus rigidus (white-topped
aster), and Sisyrinchium hitchcockii (Hitchcock's blue-eyed grass). All
of the species addressed in this recovery plan are threatened by the
continued degradation, loss and fragmentation of their native prairie
ecosystems.
We developed the draft recovery plan in coordination with the
Western Oregon and Southwestern Washington Prairie Species Recovery
Team, which includes representatives from two Federal agencies (U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service and Bureau of Land Management), two state
agencies (Washington Department of Natural Resources and Oregon
Department of Transportation), the Confederated Tribes of the Grande
Ronde Community of Oregon, Washington State University, and several
other experts from the academic and private sectors.
Our recovery strategy for the species addressed in this recovery
plan is to protect remaining fragments of upland and wet prairie
habitats and to restore them to fully functioning prairie ecosystems.
The draft recovery plan calls for viable populations of the listed
prairie species to be protected in a series of recovery zones
distributed across their historical ranges. Recovery actions will
include habitat management, restoration of historical disturbance
regimes, control of noxious nonnative plants, carefully planned
reintroductions, population monitoring, active research, and public
involvement and outreach. The recovery actions are designed to
ameliorate threats and increase population sizes of Fender's blue
butterfly, Lupinus sulphureus ssp. kincaidii, Erigeron decumbens var.
decumbens, Lomatium bradshawii, Sidalcea nelsoniana, and Castilleja
levisecta to achieve recovery goals, which, if successful, may allow
their eventual delisting (removal from the List of Endangered and
Threatened Wildlife and Plants).
The widespread loss and degradation of prairie habitats in western
Oregon and southwestern Washington have been responsible for the
decline of many other plant and animal species associated with these
communities. We believe that a holistic, ecosystem management approach
to the restoration of prairie habitats will not only contribute to the
recovery of the listed prairie species, but will also contribute to the
protection of populations of the associated prairie species of concern
discussed in this plan, as well as other native prairie species.
Public Comments Solicited
We solicit written comments on the draft recovery plan. All
comments received by the date specified above will be considered prior
to approval of this plan. If you wish to comment, you may submit your
comments and materials concerning this recovery plan by any of these
methods:
1. You may submit written comments and information by mail,
facsimile or in person to the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Office at the
above address (see ADDRESSES).
2. You may send comments by electronic mail (e-mail) to:
FW1PrairieRecoveryPlan@fws.gov. If you submit comments by e-mail,
please submit them as an ASCII file and avoid the use of special
characters and any form of encryption. Please also include your name
and return address in your e-mail message.
Comments and materials received, as well as supporting
documentation used in preparation of the recovery plan, will be
available for inspection, during normal business hours at the above
Portland address (see ADDRESSES).
Public Availability of Comments
Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or
other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be
aware that your entire comment, including your personal identifying
information, may be made publicly available at any time. While we will
try to honor your written request to withhold your personal identifying
information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be
able to do so.
Authority: The authority for this action is section 4(f) of the
Endangered Species Act, 16 U.S.C. 1533(f).
Dated: September 3, 2008.
David J. Wesley,
Acting Regional Director, Region 1, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. E8-22173 Filed 9-19-08; 8:45 am]
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