The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is seeking public comment on a draft update to the 2003 approved Environmental Assessment of the Fire Management Plan for Seney National Wildlife Refuge located near Seney, Mich. Once approved, the Environmental Assessment will guide the use of fire for hazard fuel management, managing habitats, and responding to wildfires on the Refuge.
The draft plan is available for public review on the Internet at: http://www.fws.gov/midwest/fire/firemgtplans.html. Printed copies can also be obtained by calling Seney National Wildlife Refuge at 906-586-9851 or by visiting the refuge visitor center at 1674 Refuge Entrance Road, Seney, MI 49883.
Written comments on the plan can be mailed to Refuge Manager Tracy Casselman at the address above; faxed to him at 906-586-3800; or emailed to tracy_casselman@fws.gov">. Comments must be received at the Refuge by the close of business May 19, 2007.
Established in 1935, the Seney National Wildlife Refuge is located five miles south of Seney, Mich., in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The 95,000 acre refuge provides habitat for northwoods wildlife and hosts more than 85,000 visitors annually.
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 96-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.
