Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 188 / Wednesday, September 29, 2004 / Notices 58183

the proposed action and each alternative 

will be included in the EA or EIS. 

Several alternatives, including a No 

Action Alternative, will be considered 

and analyzed, representing varying 

levels of conservation, impacts, and 

permit area configurations. The No 

Action alternative means that the 

Service would not issue a section 

10(a)(1)(B) permit. 

The EA or EIS will identify 

potentially significant direct, indirect, 

and cumulative impacts on biological 

resources, land use, air quality, water 

quality, water resources, economics, and 

other environmental issues that could 

occur with the implementation of the 

Service’s proposed actions and 

alternatives. For all potentially 

significant impacts, the EA or EIS will 

identify avoidance, minimization, and 

mitigation measures to reduce these 

impacts where feasible, to a level below 

significance. Where possible, we intend 

to incorporate by reference applicable 

sections from existing documents, such 

as the Army’s 1993 EIS and 1996 

Supplemental EIS on Fort Ord disposal 

and reuse. 

Review of this project will be 

conducted in accordance with the 

National Environmental Policy Act of 

1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 

seq.), NEPA regulations (40 CFR parts 

1500–1508) found at (http://

www.legal.gsa.gov), other appropriate 

Federal laws, and Service policies and 

procedures for compliance with those 

regulations. This notice is being 

furnished in accordance with 40 CFR 

1501.7 of NEPA to obtain suggestions 

and information from other agencies 

and the public on the scope of issues 

and alternatives to be addressed in the 

EA or EIS. The primary purpose of the 

scoping process is to identify important 

issues raised by the public, related to 

the proposed action. Written comments 

from interested parties are welcome to 

ensure that the full range of issues 

related to the permit request is 

identified. Written comments are 

encouraged, and we will accept written 

comments at the public meetings. In 

addition, you may submit written 

comments by mail or facsimile 

transmission (see ADDRESSES). All 

comments received, including names 

and addresses, will become part of the 

official administrative record and may 

be made available to the public.

Dated: September 21, 2004. 

Ron Cole, 

Deputy Manager, California/Nevada 

Operations Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service.

[FR Doc. 04–21813 Filed 9–28–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–55–M

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service 

Issuance of Permits

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior.

ACTION: Notice of issuance of permits for 

marine mammals. 

SUMMARY: The following permits were 

issued.

ADDRESSES: Documents and other 

information submitted with these 

applications are available for review, 

subject to the requirements of the 

Privacy Act and Freedom of Information 

Act, by any party who submits a written 

request for a copy of such documents to: 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Division 

of Management Authority, 4401 North 

Fairfax Drive, Room 700, Arlington, 

Virginia 22203; fax (703) 358–2281.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Division of Management Authority, 

telephone (703) 358–2104.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is 

hereby given that on the dates below, as 

authorized by the provisions of the 

Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, 

as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361, et seq.), the 

Fish and Wildlife Service issued the 

requested permit(s) subject to certain 

conditions set forth therein. 

Marine Mammals

Permit 

number Applicant Receipt of application Federal Registernotice 

Permit issuance

date 

086649 ..... Philip A. Teel ............................................. 69 FR 30715; May 28, 2004 ..................... August 5, 2004 

089464 ..... Randy C. Brooks ....................................... 69 FR 40965; July 7, 2004 ....................... September 7, 2004 

Dated: September 17, 2004. 

Monica Farris, 

Senior Permit Biologist, Branch of Permits, 

Division of Management Authority.

[FR Doc. 04–21783 Filed 9–28–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service 

Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force 

Gulf of Mexico Regional Panel Meeting

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior.

ACTION: Notice of meeting.

SUMMARY: This notice announces a 

meeting of the Aquatic Nuisance 

Species (ANS) Task Force Gulf of 

Mexico Regional Panel. The meeting 

topics are identified in the 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

DATES: The Gulf of Mexico Regional 

Panel will meet from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. 

on Monday, November 8, 2004, 8:30 

a.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesday, November 9, 

2004, and 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. on 

Wednesday, November 10, 2004. 

Minutes of the meeting will be available 

for public inspection during regular 

business hours, Monday through Friday.

ADDRESSES: The Gulf of Mexico 

Regional Panel meeting will be held at 

the Palace Resort and Hotel, 158 

Howard Avenue, Biloxi, MS 39530. 

Phone 228–432–8888. Minutes of the 

meeting will be maintained in the office 

of Chief, Division of Environmental 

Quality, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Suite 322, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, 

Arlington, Virginia 22203–1622.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ron 

Lukens, Gulf of Mexico Panel Chair, 

Assistant Director, Gulf States Marine 

Fisheries Commission, PO Box 726, 

Ocean Springs, MS 39566, 228–875–

5912, or Everett Wilson, U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service at 703–358–2148.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant 

to section 10(a)(2) of the Federal 

Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. app. 

I), this notice announces meetings of the 

Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force 

Gulf of Mexico Regional Panel. The 

Task Force was established by the 

Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance 

Prevention and Control Act of 1990. The 

Gulf of Mexico Regional Panel was 

established by the ANS Task Force in 

1999 and is comprised of 

representatives from Federal, State, and 

local agencies and from private 

environmental and commercial 

interests. 

The purpose of the Panel is to advise 

and make recommendations to the 

Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force on 

issues relating to the Gulf of Mexico 

region of the United States that 

includes: Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, 

58184 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 188 / Wednesday, September 29, 2004 / Notices 

Mississippi, and Texas. Responsibilities 

of the Panel include: 

a. Identifying priorities for the Gulf of 

Mexico Region with respect to aquatic 

nuisance species; 

b. Making recommendations to the 

Task Force regarding actions to carry 

out aquatic invasive species programs. 

c. Assisting the Task Force in 

coordinating Federal aquatic nuisance 

species program activities in the Gulf of 

Mexico region; 

d. Coordinating, where possible, 

aquatic invasive species program 

activities in the Gulf of Mexico region 

that are not conducted pursuant to the 

Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance 

Prevention and Control Act of 1990 (as 

amended, 1996); 

e. Providing advice to public and 

private individuals and entities 

concerning methods of controlling 

aquatic nuisance species; and 

f. Submitting an annual report 

describing activities within the Western 

region related to aquatic nuisance 

species prevention, research, and 

control. 

The Gulf of Mexico Regional Panel 

will discuss several topics at this 

meeting including: Panel administrative 

issues, potential new memberships, 

updates on the status of State ANS 

management plans, presentations from 

South Atlantic States, a discussion on 

the pet industry project, a discussion of 

the public aquarium project, work group 

reports, and a discussion of strategic 

plan development.

Dated: September 10, 2004. 

M. A. Parker, 

Co-Chair, Aquatic Nuisance Species Task 

Force, Assistant Director—Fisheries & Habitat 

Conservation.

[FR Doc. 04–21781 Filed 9–28–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service 

Conference of the Parties to the 

Convention on International Trade in 

Endangered Species of Wild Fauna 

and Flora (CITES); Thirteenth Regular 

Meeting; Tentative U.S. Negotiating 

Positions for Agenda Items and 

Species Proposals Submitted by 

Foreign Governments and the CITES 

Secretariat; Announcement of Public 

Meeting

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: This notice announces the 

tentative U.S. negotiating positions on 

agenda items, resolutions, and species 

proposals submitted by other countries 

and the CITES Secretariat for 

consideration by the Conference of the 

Parties to the Convention on 

International Trade in Endangered 

Species of Wild Fauna and Flora 

(CITES) at its thirteenth regular meeting 

(COP13). The meeting will be held in 

Bangkok, Thailand, October 2–14, 2004. 

With this notice we also announce a 

public meeting to be held after the 

conclusion of COP13 to inform the 

public of the results of COP13 and 

invite public input on whether the 

United States should take a reservation 

on any of the amendments to the CITES 

Appendices adopted at the meeting.

DATES: In further developing U.S. 

negotiating positions on these issues, we 

will continue to consider information 

and comments submitted in response to 

our notice of July 2, 2004 (69 FR 40411). 

We will also continue to consider 

information received at the public 

meeting announced in that notice, 

which was held on August 12, 2004. 

The public meeting to be held after 

COP13 will be held on December 13, 

2004, at 1:30 p.m.

ADDRESSES: Please send comments 

pertaining to resolutions and agenda 

items to the Division of Management 

Authority, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Room 

700, Arlington, VA 22203, or via e-mail 

at: citescop13@fws.gov. Please send 

comments pertaining to species 

proposals to the Division of Scientific 

Authority, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Room 

750, Arlington, VA 22203, or via e-mail 

to: ScientificAuthority@fws.gov. 

Comments and materials that we receive 

will be available for public inspection, 

by appointment, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., 

Monday through Friday, at the Division 

of Management Authority and the 

Division of Scientific Authority. 

Public Meeting 

The post-COP13 public meeting will 

be held in the Rachel Carson Room, in 

the Department of the Interior at 18th 

and C Streets, NW., Washington, DC. 

Directions to the building may be 

obtained by contacting the Division of 

Management Authority (see FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, below). 

Available Information 

Information concerning the results of 

COP13 will be available after the close 

of the meeting on the Secretariat’s Web 

site at http://www.cites.org, or upon 

request from the Division of 

Management Authority, or via our 

COP13 Web site at http://

international.fws.gov/cop%2013/

cop13.htm. If you wish to contact the 

U.S. delegation to COP13 during the 

meeting, you may send an e-mail to the 

following address: 

COP13_daily@fws.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

information pertaining to resolutions, 

discussion papers, and agenda items, 

contact Peter O. Thomas, Ph.D., Chief, 

Division of Management Authority, U.S. 

Fish and Wildlife Service, tel. 703–358–

2095; fax 703–358–2298; e-mail: 

citescop13@fws.gov. For information 

pertaining to species proposals, contact 

Robert R. Gabel, Chief, Division of 

Scientific Authority, U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service, tel. 703–358–1708; fax 

703–358–2276; e-mail: 

ScientificAuthority@fws.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The Convention on International 

Trade in Endangered Species of Wild 

Fauna and Flora, (CITES or the 

Convention), is an international treaty 

designed to control and regulate 

international trade in certain animal and 

plant species that are now or potentially 

may become threatened with extinction 

due to trade. These species are listed in 

Appendices to CITES, COPies of which 

are available from the Division of 

Management Authority or the Division 

of Scientific Authority at the above 

addresses, from our Web site at http://

international.fws.gov, or from the 

official CITES Secretariat (Secretariat) 

Web site at http://www.cites.org/.

Currently, 166 countries, including the 

United States, are Parties to CITES. 

CITES calls for regular meetings of the 

Conference of the Parties (COP) to 

review issues pertaining to CITES 

implementation, make provisions 

enabling the CITES Secretariat to carry 

out its functions, consider amendments 

to the list of species in Appendices I 

and II, consider reports presented by the 

Secretariat, and make recommendations 

to improve the effectiveness of CITES. 

Any country that is a Party to CITES 

may propose and vote on amendments 

to Appendices I and II (species 

proposals), resolutions, decisions, 

discussion papers, and agenda items 

submitted for consideration by the 

Conference of the Parties. Accredited 

nongovernmental organizations may 

participate in the meeting as approved 

observers and may speak during 

sessions when recognized by the 

meeting Chairman, but they may not 

vote or submit proposals. COP13 will be 

held in Bangkok, Thailand, October 2–

14, 2004.