[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 169 (Wednesday, August 31, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54247-54248]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-22038]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R5-R-2010-N266; BAC-4311-K9-S3]
Supawna Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, Salem County, NJ; Final
Comprehensive Conservation Plan and Finding of No Significant Impact
for Environmental Assessment
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the
availability of our final comprehensive conservation plan (CCP) and
finding of no significant impact (FONSI) for the environmental
assessment (EA) for Supawna Meadows National Wildlife Refuge (NWR),
Salem County, New Jersey. In this final CCP, we describe how we will
manage this refuge for the next 15 years.
ADDRESSES: You may view or obtain copies of the final CCP (including
the FONSI) and the draft CCP/EA by any of the following methods. They
are available in hard copy, CD-ROM, or as a download from our Web site.
Agency Web Site: Download a copy of the documents at http://www.fws.gov/northeast/planning/SupawnaMeadows/ccphome.html.
E-mail: northeastplanning@fws.gov. Include ``Supawna Meadows NWR
Final CCP'' in the subject line of the message.
Mail: Brian Braudis, Refuge Manager, c/o Cape May NWR, 24 Kimbles
Beach Road, Cape May Court House, NJ 08210.
In-Person Viewing or Pickup: Call 609-463-0994 to make an
appointment during regular business hours at 24 Kimbles Beach Road,
Cape May Court House, NJ 08210.
Local Library: See ``Public Availability of Documents'' under
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brian Braudis, Refuge Manager, 609-
463-0994 (phone); capemaynwr@fws.gov (e-mail).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Introduction
With this notice, we finalize the CCP process for Supawna Meadows
NWR. We started this process through a notice in the Federal Register
(72 FR 54280; September 24, 2007). We released the draft CCP and the EA
to the public, announcing and requesting comments in a notice of
availability in the Federal Register (75 FR 59287; September 27, 2010).
Supawna Meadows NWR currently includes 3,016 acres of marsh,
grassland, shrubland, and forest habitats. The approved acquisition
boundary encompasses 4,527 acres along the Upper Delaware Bay in Salem
County. Supawna Meadows NWR was established to benefit migratory birds,
breeding birds, and wild animals, protect natural resources, and
provide opportunities for suitable wildlife-oriented recreation.
Refuge visitors engage in wildlife observation and photography,
hunting, and fishing. Portions of the refuge are open to deer hunting,
waterfowl hunting, and fishing and crabbing per State regulations.
Finns Point Rear Range Light, listed on the National Register of
Historic Places, draws a number of visitors as well.
We announce our decision and the availability of the FONSI for the
final CCP for Supawna Meadows NWR in accordance with National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) (40 CFR 1506.6(b)) requirements. We
completed a thorough analysis of impacts on the human environment,
which we included in the EA that accompanied the draft CCP.
The CCP will guide us in managing and administering Supawna Meadows
NWR for the next 15 years. Alternative B, as we described in the draft
CCP/EA as the Service-preferred alternative, with five modifications
made in response to public comments, is the foundation for this final
CCP.
Background
The National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 (16
U.S.C. 668dd-668ee) (Administration Act), as amended by the National
Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997, requires us to develop
a CCP for each national wildlife refuge. The purpose for developing a
CCP is to provide refuge managers with a 15-year plan 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 our policies. In
addition to outlining broad management direction on conserving wildlife
and their habitats, CCPs identify 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
the CCP at least every 15 years in accordance with the Administration
Act.
CCP Alternatives, Including Selected Alternative
To address several issues and develop a plan based on the purposes
for establishing the refuge, and the vision and goals we identified,
three alternatives were evaluated in our draft CCP/EA (75 FR 59287).
The alternatives share some actions in common, such as acquiring land
within the current refuge acquisition boundary, protecting cultural
resources, distributing refuge revenue sharing payments, and monitoring
water quality. There are also some actions shared by alternatives A and
B only. These include assessing public use opportunities on newly
acquired lands, monitoring and abating wildlife diseases, and
supporting biological and ecological research investigations. Other
actions distinguish the alternatives. The draft CCP/EA describes the
alternatives in detail, and relates them to the issues and concerns.
Alternative A, ``Current Management,'' is the ``No Action''
alternative required by NEPA. It describes our existing management
priorities and activities. It would maintain our present levels of
refuge staffing and the biological and visitor programs now in place.
We would continue to focus efforts on providing native tidal marsh
habitat for Federal trust resources, in particular, for migrating and
nesting wading birds, wintering habitats for marshbirds, waterfowl,
shorebirds, and other wildlife. We would continue to actively manage
tidal marsh and grassland habitats, and would maintain dikes and water
levels on impoundments that have water control structures.
Alternative B, the ``Service-preferred Alternative,'' emphasizes
management of specific refuge habitats to support Federal trust
resources and species of conservation concern in the area, as well as
providing additional visitor opportunities on the refuge. The priority
would be to protect and restore the refuge's native tidal marsh habitat
to
[[Page 54248]]
benefit Pea Patch Island colonial-breeding wading birds, as well as
secretive marshbirds, migratory waterfowl, shorebirds, and other birds
of conservation concern. A secondary consideration would be to manage a
diversity of other refuge wetland and upland habitats to benefit
breeding and migrating songbirds, waterfowl, and raptors, as well as
amphibians, reptiles, and mammals of conservation concern. Our Visitor
Services program would be enhanced to provide more opportunities for
wildlife observation, photography, hunting, fishing, environmental
education, and interpretation.
Alternative C, ``Cease Management and Close Refuge to Public
Uses,'' would close Supawna Meadows NWR to all public uses and cease
all habitat management activities. There would be no funding allocated
for any projects at the refuge. This alternative would only partially
achieve the refuge purposes, vision, and goals, and respond to public
issues. Cape May NWR staff would conduct semiannual site inspections
requiring about 40 staff hours per year. We would continue to meet our
trust obligations under the Federal Endangered Species Act, which
requires us to take measures to benefit the recovery of any federally
listed species that might be found on the refuge in the future. We
would also continue to comply with the National Historic Preservation
Act by maintaining Finns Point Rear Range Light.
Comments
We solicited comments on the draft CCP and the EA for Supawna
Meadows NWR from September 27 to October 27, 2010 (75 FR 59287). We
evaluated all substantive comments received during the public comment
period, and included a summary of comments and our responses as
appendix H of the final CCP.
Selected Alternative
We have selected alternative B for implementation, with the
following modifications:
We clarified the rationale for adopting the State's deer
hunting safety zones.
We added a paragraph stating we may evaluate black bear
hunting on the refuge if the State opens the area to hunting and if
there is enough interest.
We inserted a paragraph stating that although we are not
proposing to open the refuge to turkey hunting at this time, we are
willing to discuss opening the refuge to a spring turkey season with
assistance from the State.
We added a Finding of Appropriateness for the release of
the Rhinoncomimus latipes weevil by the New Jersey Department of
Agriculture for the biological control of mile-a-minute weed (Polygonum
perfoliatum).
We updated the White-tailed Deer Hunt Compatibility
Determination to include the State's deer hunting safety zones.
In summary, we believe modified alternative B combines the actions
that would most effectively achieve refuge purposes, vision, and goals,
and respond to public issues. The basis of our decision is detailed in
Appendix I of the final CCP.
Public Availability of Documents
In addition to the methods in ADDRESSES, you can view or obtain
documents at the following locations:
Our Web site: http://www.fws.gov/northeast/planning/SupawnaMeadows/ccphome.html.
Public Library: Pennsville Library, located at 14 North
Broadway, Pennsville, NJ 08070, during regular library hours.
Dated: July 27, 2011.
Wendi Weber,
Acting Regional Director, Northeast Region, U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, Hadley, MA 01035.
[FR Doc. 2011-22038 Filed 8-30-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P