The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) is seeking public comment on a draft Comprehensive Conservation Plan and Environmental Assessment for Agassiz National Wildlife Refuge in Marshall County, Minnesota. The draft Comprehensive Conservation Plan presents management alternatives for the Refuge, including fish and wildlife habitat protection priorities, partnership opportunities, and public use activities, and will serve as a guide for the Refuge through the next 15 years.
The Service will host an Open House on April 6 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Heritage Center, 301 Fourth Street East in Thief River Falls, Minn. Interested citizens are invited to stop by to comment or ask questions on the draft plan. Comment forms will be available so that written comments can be submitted at the open house or mailed in later.
The complete draft Plan and a summary can be viewed on the Internet at the Service’s Planning Website: http://www.fws.gov/midwest/planning/agassiz/. Paper copies of the draft Plan and/or compact disks are available in limited supply by making a request through the website or by calling toll free 1-800-247-1247. The draft Plan can also be viewed at public libraries in Thief River Falls, Warren, Greenbush, Crookston, and Roseau, Minn. Written comments on the draft Plan will be accepted by the Service until April 18, 2005, at the following address: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Conservation Planning, 1 Federal Drive, Fort Snelling, Minnesota 55111, Attention: Gary Muehlenhardt. Comments may also be submitted through the website.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 545 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 63 Fish and Wildlife Management offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
