30-day public comment period begins
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) published a Notice of Availability of the Draft Template Safe Harbor Agreement, Draft Environmental Assessment and Receipt of Applications for Enhancement of Survival permits for the Columbia Basin pygmy rabbit in todays Federal Register. The announcement of these documents for public review opens a 30-day comment period.
This innovative Safe Harbor Agreement approach provides a process for participants to voluntarily contribute to state and federal recovery efforts for the endangered Columbia Basin pygmy rabbit while avoiding the threat of incidental take under the Endangered Species Act.
The proposed template Safe Harbor Agreement addresses the incidental take of Columbia Basin pygmy rabbits that could result from activities associated with ranching, farming, recreation, residential upkeep, conservation programs and direct management of shrub steppe habitat on non-federal properties. The duration of the proposed template Agreement is 20 years.
In addition to submitting a Safe Harbor permit application, prospective participants would also need to develop a Site Plan, in cooperation with the Service, that identifies the specific properties to be enrolled and documents the baseline conditions, existing and proposed future land-use activities, and agreed-upon conservation measures that would be expected to provide a net conservation benefit for Columbia Basin pygmy rabbits.
In exchange for implementing conservation measures, participants will be provided with regulatory assurances that they will not be subject to future land-use restrictions or additional management requirements if their voluntary actions result in increased numbers or distribution of the species on their enrolled property.
The area covered by the proposed Safe Harbor Agreement includes portions of six counties in central Washington: Douglas, Grant, Lincoln, Adams, Franklin and Benton. Properties that are most likely to be enrolled under the template Agreement would have existing shrub steppe habitat and/or soil conditions that may be capable of supporting Columbia Basin pygmy rabbits, either currently or in the foreseeable future. These lands, as well as adjacent properties that may receive intermittent use by pygmy rabbits for exploratory behavior or dispersal between suitable habitats, total approximately 750,000 acres.
Implementation of the template Agreement would be conducted with emphasis given to eligible land owners and managers on or within five miles of a recovery emphasis area, and those whose properties may currently harbor purebred Columbia Basin pygmy rabbits. In the near-term (up to 10 years), approximately 160,000 acres of eligible property might be expected to be directly affected by implementation of the template Agreement and issuance of Permits, which amounts to roughly 6% of the covered area.
The Service is requesting comments from the public on the proposed template Agreement, current permit applications, and the draft EA. All comments must be received on or before October 10, 2006.
Copies of the draft documents and permit applications are available for public inspection, by appointment during normal business hours, at the Upper Columbia Fish and Wildlife Office (address below) in Spokane, or they may be viewed and downloaded on the internet at http://www.fws.gov/easternwashington.
You may also request copies of the documents by contacting the Upper Columbia Fish and Wildlife Office. The Service is furnishing this notice to provide the public, other state and federal agencies and tribes an opportunity to review and comment on these documents. All comments received will become part of the public record. If you wish us to withhold your name and/or address, you must state this prominently at the beginning of your comment. All comments received from organizations, businesses, or individuals representing organizations or businesses, are available for public inspection in their entirety.
Written comments concerning this notice should be addressed to: Susan Martin, Supervisor, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Upper Columbia Fish and Wildlife Office, 11103 East Montgomery Drive, Spokane, Washington 99206. You may also send comments by facsimile to: (509) 891-6748, or by electronic mail to: fw1cbprabbit@fws.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Chris Warren at (509) 893-8020, or Michelle Eames at (509) 893-8010.
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, 64 fishery resources 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 and Native American tribal 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.
