[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 125 (Friday, June 28, 2013)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 38895-38897]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-15531]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
50 CFR Part 17
[Docket Nos. FWS-R1-ES-2012-0017; FWS-R1-ES-2013-0012; 4500030113]
RIN 1018-AX72; RIN 1018-AZ54
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Threatened Status
and Designation of Critical Habitat for Eriogonum codium (Umtanum
Desert Buckwheat) and Physaria douglasii subsp. tuplashensis (White
Bluffs Bladderpod)
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
[[Page 38896]]
ACTION: Proposed rule; notice of public hearings.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce
notice of two public hearings associated with the recent reopening of
the comment period on our May 15, 2012, proposed listing and
designation of critical habitat for Eriogonum codium (Umtanum desert
buckwheat) and Physaria douglasii subsp. tuplashensis (White Bluffs
bladderpod) under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act).
DATES: Public Hearings: We will hold two public hearings on Thursday,
July 11, 2013. One hearing will occur from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the
Benton County Justice Center in Kennewick, Washington, and another
hearing will occur at the TRAC Center in Pasco, Washington, from 3 p.m.
to 5 p.m. and continuing from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. (see ADDRESSES).
Written Comments: We will consider comments received or postmarked
on or before July 22, 2013, or at the public hearings. Please note
comments submitted electronically using the Federal eRulemaking Portal
(see ADDRESSES) must be received by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the
closing date. Any comments that we receive after the closing date may
not be considered in the final decisions on these actions.
ADDRESSES:
Document Availability: You may obtain copies of the proposed rule
at http://www.regulations.gov at Docket No. FWS-R1-ES-2012-0017
(proposed listing) and Docket No. FWS-R1-ES-2013-0012 (proposed
designation of critical habitat) for Umtanum desert buckwheat and White
Bluffs bladderpod; from the Washington Fish and Wildlife Office's Web
site (http://www.fws.gov/wafwo/HanfordPlants.html); or by contacting
the Washington Fish and Wildlife Office directly (see FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT).
Public Hearings: The first of two public hearings for the Umtanum
desert buckwheat and White Bluffs bladderpod will be held on July 11,
2013, at the Benton County Justice Center, 7122 West Quinault Place,
Building A, Kennewick, Washington, 99336-7665. The second public
hearing will be held on July 11, 2013, at the TRAC Center, 6600 Burden
Blvd., Pasco, Washington, 99301. People needing reasonable
accommodation in order to attend and participate in either public
hearing should contact Ken Berg, Manager, Washington Fish and Wildlife
Office, as soon as possible (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
Comment Submission: You may submit written comments by one of the
following methods:
(1) Electronically: Go to the Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Submit comments on the proposed listing rule to
FWS-R1-ES-2012-0017. Submit comments on the proposed critical habitat
rule to FWS-R1-ES-2013-0012.
(2) By Hard Copy:
Submit comments on the proposed listing rule by U.S. mail or hand-
delivery to: Public Comments Processing, Attn: FWS-R1-ES-2012-0017,
Division of Policy and Directives Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, MS 2042-PDM, Arlington, VA 22203.
Submit comments on the proposed critical habitat rule by U.S. mail
or hand-delivery to: Public Comments Processing, Attn: FWS-R1-ES-2013-
0012, Division of Policy and Directives Management, U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, MS 2042-PDM, Arlington, VA
22203.
We request that you send comments only by the methods described
above. We will post all comments on http://www.regulations.gov. This
generally means that we will post any personal information you provide
us (see the Public Comments section below for more information).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ken Berg, Manager, Washington Fish and
Wildlife Office, 510 Desmond Drive, Suite 102, Lacey, WA 98503-1263; by
telephone (360) 753-9440; or by facsimile (360) 534-9331. Persons who
use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 800-877-8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Public Comments
We will accept written comments and information during the reopened
comment period and public hearings on our proposed listing and
designation of critical habitat for the Eriogonum codium (Umtanum
desert buckwheat) and Physaria douglasii subsp. tuplashensis (White
Bluffs bladderpod) that was published in the Federal Register on May
15, 2012 (77 FR 28704). We will consider all information and
recommendations from all interested parties.
As to the proposed listing determination, we are particularly
interested in comments concerning:
(1) Biological, commercial trade, or other relevant data concerning
any threats (or lack thereof) to these species and regulations that may
be addressing those threats.
(2) Additional information concerning the historical and current
status, range, distribution, and population size of these species,
including the locations of any additional populations.
(3) Any information on the biological or ecological requirements of
the species, and ongoing conservation measures for the species and
their habitats.
(4) Current or planned activities in the areas occupied by these
species and possible impacts of these activities on these species.
As to the proposed critical habitat determination, we are
particularly interested in comments concerning:
(5) The reasons why we should or should not designate habitat as
``critical habitat'' under section 4 of the Act, including whether
there are threats to the species from human activity, the degree of
which can be expected to increase due to the designation, and whether
that increase in threat outweighs the benefit of designation such that
the designation of critical habitat is not prudent.
(6) Specific information on:
(a) The amount and distribution of the species' habitat;
(b) What areas occupied by the species at the time of listing that
contain features essential for the conservation of the species we
should include in the designation and why;
(c) Special management considerations or protection that may be
needed in critical habitat areas we are proposing, including managing
for the potential effects of climate change; and
(d) What areas not occupied at the time of listing are essential to
the conservation of the species and why.
(7) Land use designations and current or planned activities in the
subject areas and their possible impacts on proposed critical habitat.
(8) Any foreseeable economic, national security, or other relevant
impacts that may result from designating any area that may be included
in the final designation. We are particularly interested in any impacts
on small entities and the benefits of including or excluding areas from
the proposed designation that are subject to these impacts.
(9) Whether our approach to designating critical habitat could be
improved or modified in any way to provide for greater public
participation and understanding, or to assist us in accommodating
public concerns and comments.
If you submitted comments or information on the proposed rule (77
FR 28704) during the initial comment period from May 15, 2012, to July
16,
[[Page 38897]]
2012, please do not resubmit them. We have incorporated them into the
public record as part of the original comment period, and we will fully
consider them in our final determinations.
You may submit your comments and materials concerning the proposed
rules by one of the methods listed in ADDRESSES. We request that you
send comments only by the methods described in ADDRESSES.
If you submit a comment via http://www.regulations.gov, your entire
comment--including any personal identifying information--will be posted
on the Web site. We will post all hardcopy comments on http://www.regulations.gov as well. If you submit a hardcopy comment that
includes personal identifying information, you may request at the top
of your document that we withhold this information from public review.
However, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
Comments and materials we receive, as well as supporting
documentation we used in preparing the proposed rule, will be available
for public inspection on http://www.regulations.gov at Docket No. FWS-
R1-ES-2012-0017 for the proposed listing action and at Docket No. FWS-
R1-ES-2013-0012 for the proposed critical habitat designation, or by
appointment, during normal business hours, at the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service, Washington Fish and Wildlife Office (see FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT).
Background
On May 15, 2012, we published a proposed rule to list Eriogonum
codium (Umtanum desert buckwheat) and Physaria douglasii subsp.
tuplashensis (White Bluffs bladderpod) as threatened and to designate
critical habitat for these species (77 FR 28704). We proposed to
designate a total of approximately 344 acres (139 hectares) of critical
habitat for Eriogonum codium in Benton County, Washington, and
approximately 2,861 acres (1,158 hectares) of critical habitat for
Physaria douglasii subsp. tuplashensis in Franklin County, Washington.
That proposal had a 60-day comment period, ending July 16, 2012.
On April 23, 2013, we published final rules for these proposed
actions. We published the final listing rule under Docket No. FWS-R1-
ES-2012-0017 (78 FR 23984) and the final critical habitat rule under
Docket No. FWS-R1-ES-2013-0012 (78 FR 24008). The provisions of the
final rules did not change from what was proposed. Both final rules had
an effective date of May 23, 2013.
On May 23, 2013, we published a notice reopening the comment period
on our May 15, 2012, proposed listing and designation of critical
habitat (78 FR 30839) and published a document to delay the effective
date of the April 23, 2013 final rules for an additional 6 months--
until November 22, 2013 (May 23, 2013; 78 FR 30772). We delayed the
effective date of the final rules and reopened the comment period on
the proposed rules to allow us time to follow proper procedure in
accordance with 16 U.S.C. 1533(b)(5). If, after review of any comments
received during this reopened comment period, we determine that we
should revise the final rules, we will announce this decision and our
course of action in a document published in the Federal Register.
Authority
The authority for this action is the Endangered Species Act of
1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).
Dated: June 20, 2013.
Rachel Jacobson,
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks.
[FR Doc. 2013-15531 Filed 6-25-13; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P