[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 10 (Thursday, January 15, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2119-2120]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-00381]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-HQ-R-2014-N231; FXRS12650900000-145-FF09R20000]
RIN 1018-AZ89
Final Strategic Growth Policy for the National Wildlife Refuge
System
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) has finalized a
policy to implement a strategic approach to the growth of the National
Wildlife Refuge System (Refuge System, System). The National Wildlife
Refuge System Administration Act (Administration Act), as amended by
the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act, requires that we
``plan and direct the continued growth of the System in a manner that
is best designed to accomplish the mission of the System.'' This policy
directs Refuge System employees to focus their protection measures on
priority conservation features to ensure that our limited resources are
used to make the greatest contribution to the conservation of species
in a cost-effective and transparent manner. It ensures that the growth
of the System reflects our vision toward managing functional
landscapes, enhancing our scientific rigor, improving our
effectiveness, and involving our partners and the American people. The
Strategic Growth policy is found in ``Refuge Planning,'' chapter 5,
part 602 in the Fish and Wildlife Service Manual.
DATES: The policy was effective September 4, 2014.
ADDRESSES: You may read the final policy online at http://www.fws.gov/policy/602fw5.html. You may obtain a summary of how we addressed
comments we received on the draft policy at http://www.fws.gov/refuges/planning/StrategicGrowth.html. You may also request a copy of the
policy by U.S. mail from USFWS, Division of Natural Resources and
Conservation Planning, 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803
(see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). The policy is also available for
public inspection, by appointment, during normal business hours at the
above address.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brian Salem, at the address above, or
by telephone: (703) 358-2397.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Introduction
The Service has established a final Strategic Growth policy, which
is available at http://www.fws.gov/policy/602fw5.html. The policy is
chapter 5, part 602, ``Refuge Planning,'' in the Fish and Wildlife
Service Manual. The purpose of the policy is to implement a strategic
approach to the growth of the National Wildlife Refuge System.
Background
The National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997
(Improvement Act), which amended the Administration Act (16 U.S.C.
668dd-ee), states that the Refuge System mission is to ``administer a
national network of lands and waters for the conservation, management,
and where appropriate, restoration of the fish, wildlife, and plant
resources and their habitats for the benefit of present and future
generations of Americans.'' The Improvement Act requires us to ``plan
and direct the continued growth of the System in a manner that is best
designed to accomplish the mission of the System,'' ``to fulfill the
mission of the System, as well as the specific purposes for which [the]
refuge was established,'' and to ``ensure timely and effective
cooperation and collaboration with Federal agencies and State fish and
wildlife agencies during the course of acquiring and managing
refuges.'' Because we are facing unparalleled challenges related to
climate and non-climate stressors, we must provide consistent direction
for adding lands and waters to the System in a science-based, cost-
effective, and transparent manner. The Strategic Growth policy is a
result of this need for strategic and consistent planning.
Final Policy
The policy prioritizes acquisitions within existing refuge
boundaries, expansion of existing refuges, and establishment of new
refuges. It focuses protection measures on priority conservation
features so that we can make the most of our limited resources.
The policy is consistent with the biological planning and
conservation design components of Strategic Habitat Conservation, the
Service's science-based adaptive management framework for determining
where and how to deliver conservation efficiently to achieve specific
biological outcomes. The policy identifies threatened and endangered
species, migratory birds of conservation concern, and waterfowl, or the
surrogate species that represent them, as priority conservation
features.
The policy requires application of the best available science to
incorporate
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elements of conservation design to help us identify priority
conservation areas that will contribute to achieving measurable
conservation targets such as population objectives. The policy ensures
that when employees propose new refuges or expansions to existing
refuges, they analyze and describe: (1) The project's vulnerability to
climate change and other non-climate stressors (e.g., habitat
fragmentation, invasive species), (2) how we will mitigate stressors to
ensure the project's resiliency, (3) how the project is arranged in a
geographically efficient manner to safeguard ecological processes
across the landscape, and (4) how the project complements the
resilience of other conservation areas.
The policy establishes the process for sending project proposals to
the Service Director and the potential outcomes of the Director's
review. It also describes how designated representatives at the local
level--Refuge Managers--must interact, coordinate, cooperate, and
collaborate with State fish and wildlife agencies in the acquisition
and management of refuges.
Summary of Comments and Changes to the Final Policy
On January 30, 2014, we announced the draft policy and requested
public comment via a Federal Register notice (79 FR 4952). The comment
period was open from January 30, 2014, through March 3, 2014. We
received 35 detailed comment letters and many individual comments on
the draft policy. In total, we received 236 individual comments, which
were grouped into 71 comment categories. The comments were from
nongovernmental organizations, individuals, States, and industry. Most
of the comments expressed general support, and many addressed specific
elements in the draft policy.
We considered all of the recommendations for improvement and
clarification included in the comments and made appropriate changes to
the draft policy. Many of the comments we received were outside the
scope of this policy. We drafted this policy in a way that gives us
flexibility as funding levels and resources change. The policy does not
supersede any piece of legislation, regulation, or other policy.
Dated: December 11, 2014.
Dan Ashe,
Director, Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-00381 Filed 1-14-15; 8:45 am]
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