[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 14 (Wednesday, January 22, 2020)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 3601-3603]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-00616]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
50 CFR Part 21
[Docket No. FWS-HQ-MB-2019-0103; FF09M29000-190-FXMB1232090000]
RIN 1018-BE67
Migratory Bird Permits; Management of Double-Crested Cormorants
(Phalacrocorax auritus) Throughout the United States
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Advance notice of proposed rulemaking; intent to prepare a
National Environmental Policy Act document.
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SUMMARY: This document advises the public that we, the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service, intends to gather information necessary to develop a
proposed rule to expand management of double-crested cormorants
(Phalacrocorax auritus) throughout the United States, and prepare a
draft environmental review pursuant to the National Environmental
Policy Act of 1969, as amended. We are furnishing this advance notice
of proposed rulemaking to advise other agencies and the public of our
intentions; obtain suggestions and information on the scope of issues
to include in the environmental review; and announce public scoping
webinars to occur in 2020.
DATES:
Comment submission: Public scoping will begin with the publication
of this document in the Federal Register and will continue through
March 9, 2020. We will consider all comments on the scope of the draft
environmental review that are received or postmarked by that date.
Comments received or postmarked after that date will be considered to
the extent practicable.
Scoping meetings: We will hold public scoping meetings in the form
of multiple webinars that will occur in February 2020. We will announce
exact webinar dates, times, and registration
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details on the internet at https://www.fws.gov/birds/management/managed-species/double-crested-cormorants.php.
ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments by one of the following
methods. Please do not submit comments by both.
(1) Electronically: Go to the Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments to
Docket No. FWS-HQ-MB-2019-0103.
(2) By hard copy: Submit by U.S. mail or hand-delivery to: Public
Comments Processing, Attn: FWS-HQ-MB-2019-0103; U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service Headquarters, MS: JAO/1N, 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA
22041-3803.
We do not accept email or faxes. We will post all comments on
http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information you
provide.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jerome Ford, Assistant Director,
Migratory Birds, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, at 202-208-1050.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) is the Federal agency
delegated with the primary responsibility for managing migratory birds.
Our authority derives from the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, as
amended (MBTA), which implements conventions with Great Britain (for
Canada), Mexico, Japan, and the Russia Federation. The MBTA protects
certain migratory birds from take, except as permitted under the MBTA.
We implement the provisions of the MBTA through regulations in parts
10, 13, 20, 21, and 22 of title 50 of the Code of Federal Regulations
(CFR). Regulations pertaining to migratory bird permits are at 50 CFR
part 21.
The double-crested cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus, [cormorants])
is a fish-eating migratory bird that is distributed across a large
portion of North America. There are five different breeding populations
of cormorants, variously described by different authors as the Alaska,
Pacific Coast, Interior, Atlantic, and Southern populations. Cormorant
populations have exhibited increasing abundance over the last few
decades. In response to ongoing damage at aquaculture facilities and
other damage and conflicts associated with increasing cormorant
populations, the Service administered regulations that included an
Aquaculture Depredation Order (which was located at 50 CFR 21.47) and a
Public Resource Depredation Order (which was located at 50 CFR 21.48)
from October 2003 until May of 2016.
The Aquaculture Depredation Order eliminated individual permit
requirements in 13 States for private individuals, corporations, State
agencies, and Federal agencies taking cormorants at aquaculture
facilities. The Public Resource Depredation Order enabled States,
Tribes, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Services in
24 States, without individual depredation permits, to take cormorants
found committing or about to commit, and to prevent, depredations on
the public resources of fish (including hatchery stock at Federal,
State, and Tribal facilities), wildlife, plants, and their habitats. In
May of 2016, the depredation orders were vacated by the United States
District Court for the District of Columbia. The Court concluded that
the Service did not sufficiently consider the effects of the
depredation orders on cormorant populations and other affected
resources and failed to consider a reasonable range of alternatives in
the review within the environmental assessment issued under the
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA), in 2014.
The authority for authorizing lethal take of depredating cormorants
reverted back to the issuance of individual depredation permits
pursuant to 50 CFR 21.41.
Conflicts in aquatic systems continue to exist between cormorants
and fish stocks managed by Federal, State, and Tribal agencies as
recreational and/or commercial fisheries, or for species-conservation
purposes. Cormorant predation of fish also occurs at aquaculture
facilities and private recreational lakes and ponds. Birders and other
interested parties value cormorants for their aesthetic and existential
values.
The Service is responsible for determining the maximum amount of
lethal take of cormorants to allow in order to minimize conflicts in
aquatic systems, while maintaining sustainable populations of
cormorants and minimizing the regulatory burden on Federal and State
agencies and individual citizens. In the process of making this
decision, the Service wants to use an effective and transparent
decision-making process that ensures collaboration among migratory bird
and fisheries management programs, fulfills Tribal trust and
subsistence responsibilities, adheres to legal and regulatory
requirements under NEPA, and addresses key biological uncertainties.
When determining total allowable take, the Service must consider
uncertainty related to cormorant population dynamics, estimated maximum
sustainable harvest, and risk of over-exploitation. Furthermore, the
Service and stakeholders must identify appropriate monitoring
requirements that ensure progress toward stated objectives and inform
future decisions regarding total allowable take.
Public Scoping
A primary purpose of the NEPA scoping process is to receive
suggestions and information on the scope of issues and alternatives to
consider when drafting the environmental documents and to identify
significant issues and reasonable alternatives related to the Service's
proposed action. In order to ensure that we identify a range of issues
and alternatives related to the proposed action, we invite comments and
suggestions from all interested parties. We will conduct a review of
this proposed action according to the requirements of NEPA and its
regulations, other relevant Federal laws, regulations, policies, and
guidance, and our procedures for compliance with applicable
regulations. Once the environmental documents are completed, we will
offer further opportunities for public comment.
Proposed Action and Possible Alternatives
The Service has collaborated with State fish and wildlife agencies,
Tribes, and Federal partners in further addressing cormorant conflicts
including aquaculture and wild and stocked fisheries. In this
rulemaking action, we propose these long-term solutions to cormorant
conflicts:
(1) Establish a new permit for State wildlife agencies for
authorizing certain cormorant management and control activities that
are normally prohibited and are intended to relieve or prevent impacts
from cormorants on wild and stocked fisheries, aquaculture facilities,
human health and safety, property, and threatened and endangered
species (as listed under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended
(16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.)). States would have the delegated authority to
determine whether, when, where, and for what purposes to control
cormorants within limits set by the Service.
(2) Establish an aquaculture depredation order, which would allow
take of cormorants under prescribed conditions at aquaculture
facilities without the need to acquire an individual permit.
(3) Both (1) and (2) in combination.
The proposed action presented in the environmental analysis will be
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compared to the no-action alternative. The no-action alternative will
compare estimated future conditions without implementation of the
alternatives listed here to the estimated future conditions with those
alternative actions in place (i.e., issuance of individual depredation
permits pursuant to 50 CFR 21.41).
Information Requested
Issues Related to the Scope of the NEPA Review
We seek comments or suggestions from the public, governmental
agencies, Tribes, the scientific community, industry, or any other
interested parties. To promulgate a proposed rule and prepare a draft
environmental review pursuant to NEPA, we will take into consideration
all comments and any additional information received. To ensure that
any proposed rulemaking effectively evaluates all potential issues and
impacts, we are seeking comments and suggestions on the following for
consideration in preparation of additional management for double-
crested cormorants:
a. Assessment of interest in use of a new special permit by States
and Tribes;
b. Appropriate limitations to cormorant management and control
activities, such as season, scope, and magnitude of expected lethal
take; and
c. Potential reporting and monitoring strategies of cormorants by
States and participating Tribes.
The Service will act as the lead Federal agency responsible for
completion of the environmental review. Therefore, we are seeking
comments on the identification of direct, indirect, beneficial, and
adverse effects that might be caused by additional management for
double-crested cormorants. You may wish to consider the following
issues when providing comments:
a. Impacts on floodplains, wetlands, wild and scenic rivers, or
ecologically sensitive areas;
b. Impacts on park lands and cultural or historic resources;
c. Impacts on human health and safety;
d. Impacts on air, soil, and water;
e. Impacts on prime agricultural lands;
f. Impacts to other species of wildlife, including endangered or
threatened species;
g. Disproportionately high and adverse impacts on minority and low-
income populations;
h. Any other potential or socioeconomic effects; and
i. Any potential conflicts with other Federal, State, local, or
Tribal environmental laws or requirements.
Public Availability of Comments
Written comments we receive become part of the public record
associated with this action. Before including your address, phone
number, email address, or other personal identifying information in
your comment, you should be aware that the entire comment--including
your personal identifying information--may be made publicly available
at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your
personal identifying information from public review, we cannot
guarantee that we will be able to do so. Comments and materials we
receive, as well as supporting documentation we use in preparing the
environmental analysis, will be available for public inspection, by
appointment, during normal business hours at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service Headquarters (see ADDRESSES, above).
Scoping Meetings
See DATES for information about upcoming scoping webinars. The
purpose of scoping webinars is to provide the public with a general
understanding of the background of the proposed rule, alternatives and
activities it would cover, alternative proposals under consideration,
and the Service's role and steps to be taken to develop the draft
environmental analysis for the proposed action. Additionally, the
purpose of these meetings and public comment period is to solicit
suggestions and information on the scope of issues and alternatives for
the Service to consider when preparing the draft environmental
documents. Oral comments will be accepted at the webinars.
Comments can also be submitted by methods listed in ADDRESSES. Once
the draft environmental documents and proposed rule are complete and
made available for review, there will be additional opportunity for
public comment on the content of these documents through an additional
comment period.
Scoping Webinar Accommodations
Please note that the Service will ensure that the public scoping
webinars will be accessible to members of the public with disabilities.
Public Comments
To promulgate a proposed rule and prepare a draft environmental
review pursuant to NEPA, we will take into consideration all comments
and any additional information received. Please note that submissions
merely stating support for or opposition to the proposed action and
alternatives under consideration, without providing supporting
information, will be noted but not considered by the Service in making
a determination. Please consider the following when preparing your
comments:
a. Be as succinct as possible.
b. Be specific. Comments supported by logic, rationale, and
citations are more useful than opinions.
c. State suggestions and recommendations clearly with an
expectation of what you would like the Service to do.
d. If you propose an additional alternative for consideration,
please provide supporting rationale and why you believe it to be a
reasonable alternative that would meet the purpose and need for our
proposed action.
e. If you provide alternate interpretations of science, please
support your analysis with appropriate citations.
The alternatives we develop will be analyzed in our draft
environmental review pursuant to NEPA. We will give separate notice of
the availability of the draft environmental review for public comment
when it is completed. We may hold public hearings and informational
sessions so that interested and affected people may comment and provide
input into the final decision.
Authority
The authority for this action is the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of
1918 (16 U.S.C. 703 et seq.) and the National Environmental Policy Act
of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.).
Dated: December 6, 2019.
Rob Wallace,
Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks.
[FR Doc. 2020-00616 Filed 1-21-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P