15148 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 61 / Friday, March 30, 2007 / Notices 

Administration Office of the National 

Ombudsman at 888–REG–FAIR (734–

3247), fax: 202–481–5719, e-mail: 

ombudsman@sba.gov. 

Small businesses generally are 

independently owned and operated and 

are not dominant in their field. If you 

need help determining whether or not 

your business qualifies as a ‘‘small 

business,’’ contact SBA’s Office of the 

National Ombudsman using the 

information in the preceding paragraph. 

Dated: February 26, 2007. 

R. Thomas Weimer, 

Assistant Secretary—Policy, Management 

and Budget. 

[FR Doc. E7–5913 Filed 3–29–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–RK–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

Notice of Availability of a Supplement 

to the Final Environmental Impact 

Statement for the Coachella Valley 

Multiple Species Habitat Conservation 

Plan and Natural Community 

Conservation Plan, Riverside County, 

CA 

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of availability. 

SUMMARY: This notice announces the 

availability of the Recirculated Draft 

Coachella Valley Multiple Species 

Habitat Conservation Plan/Natural 

Community Conservation Plan 

(MSHCP), Supplement to the Final 

Environmental Impact Statement/ 

Recirculated Draft Environmental 

Impact Report (EIS/EIR), and 

Implementing Agreement for public 

review and comment. The Coachella 

Valley Association of Governments 

(CVAG), Coachella Valley Conservation 

Commission, County of Riverside, 

Riverside County Flood Control and 

Water Conservation District, Riverside 

County Parks and Open Space District, 

Riverside County Waste Management 

District, Coachella Valley Water District, 

Imperial Irrigation District, California 

Department of Transportation, 

California Department of Parks and 

Recreation, Coachella Valley Mountains 

Conservancy, and the cities of Cathedral 

City, Coachella, Indian Wells, Indio, La 

Quinta, Palm Desert, Palm Springs, and 

Rancho Mirage (Applicants) applied to 

the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) 

for an incidental take permit pursuant to 

section 10(a)(1)(B) of the Endangered 

Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). 

The Applicants also seek a Section 2835 

permit under the California Natural 

Community Conservation Planning Act 

of 2002. The Applicants are requesting 

a permit to incidentally take 22 animal 

species and seeking assurances for 5 

plant species, including 17 unlisted 

species should any of them become 

listed under the Act during the 

proposed 75-year term of the permit. 

The permit is needed to authorize 

incidental take of listed animal species 

(including harm, injury, and 

harassment) during development in the 

approximately 1.10 million-acre (1,719- 

square mile) Plan Area in the Coachella 

Valley of Riverside County, California. 

The MSHCP also incorporates a 

Public Use and Trails Plan which 

includes proposals that address nonmotorized recreation activities on 

Federal and non-Federal lands in the 

Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains. 

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) 

is a Cooperating Agency in this 

planning process and will use this EIS/ 

EIR to make decisions on BLMadministered public lands pertaining to 

trail use in the Santa Rosa and San 

Jacinto Mountains. The proposals 

constitute activity (implementation) 

level actions in furtherance of the 

California Desert Conservation Area 

Plan (1980), as amended, and the Santa 

Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains 

National Monument Management Plan 

(2004). The BLM will issue a separate 

Record of Decision regarding nonmotorized recreation activities on public 

lands. 

A Supplement to the Final 

Environmental Impact Statement, which 

is the Federal portion of the EIS/EIR, 

has been prepared jointly by the Service 

and CVAG, along with the biological 

consultant, to analyze the impacts of the 

MSHCP and is also available for public 

review. The analyses provided in the 

EIS/EIR are intended to inform the 

public of the proposed action, 

alternatives, and associated impacts; 

disclose the direct, indirect, and 

cumulative environmental effects of the 

proposed action and each of the 

alternatives; and indicate any 

irreversible commitment of resources 

that would result from implementation 

of the proposed action. All of the 

alternatives in the EIS/EIR are the same 

as the alternatives identified in the Final 

MSHCP and Final EIS/EIS, dated 

February 6, 2006, with one exception: 

the Preferred Alternative without the 

City of Palm Springs is no longer 

included. 

The Service and the cooperating 

agency issued a notice of intent to 

prepare an EIS/EIR for the proposed 

MSHCP, on June 28, 2000 (65 FR 

39920); a notice of availability of the 

Draft EIS/EIR for the proposed MSHCP 

on November 5, 2004 (69 FR 64581); 

and a notice of availability of the Final 

EIS/EIR for the proposed MSHCP on 

April 21, 2006 (71 FR 20719). 

The Service is issuing this notice to 

advise the public of revisions to the 

MSHCP and associated EIS/EIR which 

includes the following primary changes: 

(1) Removing the City of Desert Hot 

Springs as an Applicant; 

(2) including a Riverside County 

Flood Control/Water Conservation 

District flood control project as a 

Covered Activity within the Morongo 

Wash area, if the project meets the 

MSHCP’s biological goals and objectives 

for the Covered Species and the 

biological goals and objectives for 

maintaining fluvial sand transport and 

providing an adequate corridor for 

habitat connectivity; 

(3) identifying the revised Santa Rosa 

and San Jacinto Mountains Trails Plan 

as the chosen trails management 

alternative in the EIS/EIR. The Plan is 

structured to be consistent with larger 

recovery efforts for the bighorn sheep 

and takes an adaptive management 

approach to balancing its goals of: (a) 

Minimizing the risk of potential adverse 

impacts to Peninsular bighorn sheep 

from recreational activities, and (b) 

providing recreational opportunities for 

hikers, equestrians, and mountain 

bikers; and 

(4) identifying changes to 

conservation area boundaries to reflect 

‘‘like exchanges’’ approved by the 

applicants since the publication of the 

Final MSHCP, dated February 6, 2006. 

The ‘‘like exchanges’’ include Citrus 

Ranch, Lumkes Family Trust, Nott, 

Indio Water Authority Reservoirs, and 

the City of Cathedral City. 

DATES: Written comments should be 

received on or before May 29, 2007. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments should 

be sent to Mr. Jim Bartel, Field 

Supervisor, Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Carlsbad Fish and Wildlife Office, 6010 

Hidden Valley Road, Carlsbad, 

California 92011. You may also submit 

comments by facsimile to 760–431–

9624. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. 

Therese O’Rourke, Assistant Field 

Supervisor, at the Carlsbad Fish and 

Wildlife Office above; telephone 760–

431–9440. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Availability of Documents 

Documents available for public 

review include the permit applications, 

the MSHCP and Appendices I (the 

Technical Appendix) and II (the 

Planning Agreement), the accompanying 


cprice-sewell on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 61 / Friday, March 30, 2007 / Notices 15149 

Implementing Agreement, and the EIS/ 

EIRs. 

Individuals wishing copies of the 

documents should contact the Service 

by telephone at 760–431–9440, or by 

letter to the Carlsbad Fish and Wildlife 

Office (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT). Copies of the MSHCP, EIS/ 

EIRs, and Implementing Agreement also 

are available for public review, by 

appointment, during regular business 

hours, at the Carlsbad Fish and Wildlife 

Office or at the Coachella Valley 

Association of Governments (see 

ADDRESSES). Copies are also available 

for viewing on the Internet at http:// 

www.cvmshcp.org, in the Riverside 

County Planning Departments, and in 

each of the Applicant cities’ public 

libraries: 

(1) Riverside County Planning 

Department: 4080 Lemon Street, 9th 

Floor Riverside, California 92502. 

(2) Riverside County Planning: 82675 

Hwy 111, Room 209, Indio, California 

92201. 

(3) U.S. Bureau of Land Management: 

690 Garnet Avenue, North Palm 

Springs, California 92258. 

(4) City of Palm Springs: 3200 E. 

Tahquitz Canyon Way, Palm Springs, 

California 92262. 

(5) City of Cathedral City: 68–700 

Avenida Lalo Guerrero, Cathedral City, 

California 92234. 

(6) City of La Quinta: 78–495 Calle 

Tampico, La Quinta, California 92253. 

(7) City of Rancho Mirage: 69825 

Highway 111, Rancho Mirage, California 

92270. 

(8) City of Palm Desert: 73–510 Fred 

Waring Drive, Palm Desert, California 

92260 

(9) City of Indio: 100 Civic Center 

Mall, Indio, California 92201 

(10) City of Indian Wells: 44950 El 

Dorado Drive, Indian Wells, California 

92210 

(11) City of Coachella: 1515 Sixth 

Street, Coachella, California 92236 

(12) Cathedral City Public Library: 

33520 Date Palm Drive, Cathedral City, 

California 92234 

(13) Coachella Branch Library: 1538 

7th Street, Coachella Valley, California 

92260 

(14) Indio Public Library: 200 Civic 

Center Mall, Indio, California 92201 

(15) Lake Tamarisk Branch Library: 

Lake Tamarisk Drive, Desert Center, 

California 92239 

(16) La Quinta Public Library: 78080 

Calle Estado, La Quinta, California 

92253 

(17) Mecca-North Shore Branch 

Library: 65250 Cahuilla, Mecca, 

California 92254 

(18) Palm Springs City Library: 300 

South Sunrise Way, Palm Springs, 

California 92262 

(19) Rancho Mirage Public Library: 

42–520 Bob Hope Drive, Rancho Mirage, 

California 92270 

(20) Riverside County Library: Palm 

Desert Branch, 73–300 Fred Waring 

Drive, Palm Desert, California 92260 

(21) Thousand Palms Library: 72–715 

La Canada Way, Thousand Palms, 

California 92276 

Background Information 

A permit is needed because section 9 

of the Act and Federal regulations 

prohibit the ‘‘take’’ of animal species 

listed as endangered or threatened (16 

U.S.C. 1538). Take of listed animal 

species is defined under the Act to 

include kill, harm, harass, pursue, hurt, 

shoot, wound, capture or collect, or 

attempt to engage in any such conduct 

(16 U.S.C. 1532). Harm includes 

significant habitat modification or 

degradation that actually kills or injures 

listed animals by significantly impairing 

essential behavioral patterns, including 

breeding, feeding, and sheltering [50 

CFR 17.3(c)]. Under limited 

circumstances, the Service may issue 

permits to authorize incidental take; i.e., 

take that is incidental to, and not the 

purpose of, otherwise lawful activity. 

Although take of plant species is not 

prohibited under the Act, and therefore 

cannot be authorized under an 

incidental take permit, plant species are 

proposed to be included on the permit 

in recognition of the conservation 

benefits provided to them under the 

MSHCP. Assurances provided under the 

No Surprises Rule at 50 CFR 17.3, 

17.22(b)(5), and 17.32(b)(5) would 

extend to all species named on the 

permit. Regulations governing 

incidental take permits for threatened 

and endangered species are found in 50 

CFR 17.32 and 17.22, respectively. 

The EIS/EIR analyzes the impacts of 

the proposed implementation of the 

MSHCP by the Applicants. The 

Applicants seek an incidental take 

permit and assurances to incidentally 

take 22 animal species and assurances 

for 5 plants. Collectively, the 27 listed 

and unlisted species are referred to as 

‘‘Covered Species’’ by the MSHCP and 

include 5 plant species (2 endangered, 

3 unlisted); 2 insect species (both 

unlisted); 1 fish species (endangered); 1 

amphibian species (endangered); 3 

reptile species (2 threatened, 1 

unlisted); 11 bird species (3 endangered, 

8 unlisted); and 4 mammal species (1 

endangered and 3 unlisted). [c1] 

The MSHCP is intended to protect 

and sustain viable populations of native 

plant and animal species and their 

habitats in perpetuity through the 

creation of a reserve system, while 

accommodating continued economic 

development and quality of life for 

residents of the Coachella Valley. The 

MSHCP plan area includes the 

following eight incorporated cities: 

Cathedral City, Coachella, Indian Wells, 

Indio, La Quinta, Palm Desert, Palm 

Springs, and Rancho Mirage. It is one of 

two large, multiple-jurisdictional habitat 

planning efforts in Riverside County, 

each of which constitutes a 

‘‘subregional’’ plan under the State of 

California’s Natural Communities 

Conservation Planning Act, as amended. 

The MSHCP identifies the proposed 

reserve system which will be 

established from lands within 21 

conservation areas that are either 

adjacent or linked by biological 

corridors. When completed, the reserve 

system will include core habitat for 

Covered Species, essential ecological 

processes, and biological corridors and 

linkages to provide for the conservation 

of the proposed Covered Species. 

The Final MSHCP was approved by 

the CVAG’s Executive Committee on 

February 6, 2006, and by all local 

Permittees except one between March 

and June 2006. No action was taken by 

State Permittees. The MSHCP is being 

revised at the direction of the Executive 

Committee, following the City of Desert 

Hot Springs’ decision not to approve the 

MSHCP on June 20, 2006. After Desert 

Hot Springs declined to approve the 

MSHCP, the Executive Committee 

rescinded its approval. The Recirculated 

Draft MSHCP includes the Applicants 

identified above with the exception of 

Desert Hot Springs. 

Public Comments 

The Service and CVAG invite the 

public to comment on the MSHCP, 

Implementing Agreement, and EIS/EIR 

during a 60-day public comment period 

beginning the date of this notice. Our 

practice is to make comments, including 

names, home addresses, home phone 

numbers, and email addresses of 

respondents, available for public 

review. Individual respondents may 

request that we withhold their names 

and /or homes addresses, etc., but if you 

wish us to consider withholding this 

information you must state this 

prominently at the beginning of your 

comments. In addition, you must 

present a rationale for withholding this 

information. This rationale must 

demonstrate that disclosure would 

constitute a clearly unwarranted 

invasion of privacy. Unsupported 

assertions will not meet this burden. In 

the absence of exceptional, 

documentable circumstances, this 

information will be released. We will 

always make submissions from 

organization or businesses, and from 


cprice-sewell on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
15150 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 61 / Friday, March 30, 2007 / Notices 

individuals identifying themselves as 

representatives of or officials of 

organizations or businesses, available 

for public inspection in their entirety. 

This notice is provided pursuant to 

section 10(a) of the Act and Service 

regulations for implementing NEPA. 

The Service will evaluate the 

application, associated documents, and 

comments submitted thereon to prepare 

a Final Supplemental EIS. A permit 

decision will be made no sooner than 30 

days after the publication of the Final 

Supplemental EIS. 

Dated: March 16, 2007. 

Ken McDermond, 

Deputy Manager, California/Nevada 

Operations Office, Sacramento, California. 

[FR Doc. E7–5914 Filed 3–29–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

M/V Selendang Ayu Natural Resource 

Damage Assessment 

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of intent to conduct 

restoration planning. 

SUMMARY: On December 8, 2004, the 

shipping vessel M/V Selendang Ayu ran 

aground and broke apart between Skan 

Bay and Spray Cape on Unalaska Island, 

in Alaska’s Aleutian Islands. The vessel 

was carrying approximately 446,280 

gallons of Intermediate Fuel Oil 380 

(IFO) and 21,058 gallons of Marine 

Diesel Oil (MDO). Although a portion of 

the oils were eventually removed from 

the vessel, 339,538 gallons of the IFO 

380 and 14,680 gallons of marine diesel 

were discharged into the environment 

over time. This Notice of Intent to 

Conduct Restoration Planning (Notice), 

issued pursuant to 15 CFR 990.44, 

pertains to the discharge of oil from the 

M/V Selendang Ayu described above 

(the Incident). The Unified Command 

for the Incident undertook response 

activities to clean up the discharged oil. 

Under section 1006(b) of the Oil 

Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA), 33 U.S.C. 

2706(b), the President has designated 

the Secretary of the U.S. Department of 

the Interior (DOI), represented by the 

Regional Director of the Fish & Wildlife 

Service (FWS), Alaska Region, and the 

Secretary of the U.S. Department of 

Commerce (DOC), represented by the 

National Oceanic Atmospheric 

Administration, as Federal trustees of 

natural resources for this Incident. The 

Governor of the State of Alaska has 

designated the Commissioners of the 

Alaska Departments of Fish & Game, 

Environmental Conservation and 

Natural Resources, and the Alaska 

Attorney General as State trustees of 

natural resources. The Federal and State 

trustees for the Incident will be referred 

to herein collectively as the Trustees. 

The Trustees have determined that 

they have jurisdiction to enter into the 

restoration planning phase of a Natural 

Resource Damage Assessment under 

OPA and its implementing regulations 

and that it is appropriate to do so. The 

purpose of this phase is to prepare a 

plan for the restoration, rehabilitation, 

replacement or acquisition of the 

equivalent of the natural resources and 

services injured, destroyed or lost as a 

result of the Incident. 

ADDRESSES: Alaska Regional Office, U.S. 

Fish and Wildlife Service, 1011 E. 

Tudor Road, Anchorage, AK 99503. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jenifer Kohout, (907) 786–3687 (phone); 

Jenifer_Kohout@fws.gov (e-mail). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: One of the 

goals of OPA is to make the 

environment and the public whole for 

injuries to natural resources and 

services resulting from an incident 

involving a discharge or substantial 

threat of a discharge of oil from a vessel 

into or upon navigable waters or 

adjoining shorelines. This goal is 

achieved through the return of the 

injured natural resources and services to 

baseline and the compensation for 

interim losses of such natural resources 

and services from the date of the 

incident until recovery. 

To facilitate achievement of this goal, 

the Trustees are responsible for 

assessing the damages to natural 

resources under their trusteeship that 

have resulted from the Incident, 

developing a plan for the restoration of 

these resources, and pursuing from the 

parties responsible for the Incident 

(Responsible Parties) funding for the 

implementation of this plan or the 

implementation of the plan by the 

Responsible Parties themselves. The 

Trustees are proceeding in accordance 

with the regulations for Natural 

Resource Damage Assessments at 15 

CFR Part 990. 

The Responsible Parties include, but 

are not necessarily limited to, Ayu 

Navigation Sdn, Bhd, and IMC Shipping 

Pte, Ltd, which were the owner and the 

operator, respectively, of the M/V 

Selendang Ayu at the time of the 

Incident. The guarantor of financial 

responsibility for the liability of these 

Responsible Parties is 

SverigesA ̊ ngfartygs Assurans Fo ̈rening 

(The Swedish Club). 

The Trustees have performed 

preassessment activities in connection 

with the Incident, including data 

collection and preliminary analysis. 

These activities included conducting 

shore and skiff-based surveys to collect 

information about potential impacts to 

birds, marine mammals, fish, intertidal 

and subtidal biota, and associated 

habitats; aerial coastal and pelagic 

surveys and counts to determine species 

at risk from the Incident; surveys of 

subtidal habitats; surveys of 

anadromous fish streams; and collecting 

and cataloging marine bird carcasses 

found on beaches following the 

Incident. To date, the Responsible 

Parties have cooperated with the 

Trustees in the performance and/or 

funding of certain response, cleanup 

and data collection activities. 

Determination of Jurisdiction 

Under 15 CFR 990.41, the Federal and 

State natural resource trustees have 

determined that they have jurisdiction 

to pursue restoration under OPA and its 

implementing regulations, finding: 

a. The discharge of oil beginning on 

or about December 8, 2004 from the 

M/V Selendang Ayu into the Bering Sea, 

off the coast of Spray Cape on Unalaska 

Island, was an ‘‘Incident’’ as defined at 

15 CFR 990.30. 

(1) The M/V Selendang Ayu, a 

‘‘Vessel’’ as defined at 33 U.S.C. 

2701(37), discharged the entire quantity 

of oil involved in this Incident. 

(2) The M/V Selendang Ayu 

discharged oil into or upon navigable 

waters of the United States and 

adjoining shorelines, including federal 

and state waters adjacent to Unalaska 

Island, Alaska, the shoreline of 

Unalaska Island, and anadromous 

streams. 

b. The Trustees have also determined 

that: 

(1) This Incident was not permitted 

under Federal, State or local law; 

(2) The M/V Selendang Ayu is not a 

‘‘public vessel’’ as defined at 33 U.S.C. 

2701(2), as the vessel was not owned or 

bareboat chartered and operated by the 

United States or a State or political 

subdivision thereof, or by a foreign 

nation; and 

(3) The discharge of oil did not occur 

from an onshore facility subject to the 

Trans-Alaska Pipeline Authority Act, 43 

U.S.C. 1651, et seq. 

c. Based upon information gathered 

during the response, cleanup and 

preassessment phases, the Trustees have 

determined that, due to the amount and 

type of oil discharged, the known 

toxicity of the oil, the location of the 

discharge and the living and non-living 

natural resources and services in the 


cprice-sewell on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES