Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 206 / Friday, October 24, 1997 / Notices 55417

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

Application for Approval of TungstenPolymer Shot as Nontoxic for

Waterfowl Hunting

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service,

Interior.

ACTION: Notice of application.

SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife

Service (Service) announces that

Federal Cartridge Company (Federal) of

Anoka, Minnesota, has applied for

approval of tungsten-polymer shot as

nontoxic for waterfowl hunting in the

United States.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul

R. Schmidt, Chief, or Carol Anderson,

Wildlife Biologist, Office of Migratory

Bird Management (MBMO), (703) 358–

1714.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Since the

mid-1970s, the Service has sought to

identify shot that, when spent, does not

pose a significant toxic hazard to

migratory birds and other wildlife.

Currently, only bismuth-tin and steel

shot are approved by the Service as

nontoxic. Tungsten-iron shot has

received temporary conditional

approval for the 1997–98 hunting

season. The Service believes approval

for other suitable candidate shot

materials as nontoxic is feasible.

Federal submits their application for

approval of tungsten-polymer shot as

nontoxic pursuant to 50 CFR 20.134,

Migratory Bird Hunting: Nontoxic Shot.

The Service believes the candidate

material shows promise and will

consider the application.

Federal’s candidate shot is made by

physically mixing tungsten and polymer

(Nylon 6), then melting the nylon.

Cooling causes the nylon to cross-link

and bind the mixture into a permanent

shape. Shot made from this material has

a density of approximately 11.2 gm/cc

or approximately 100 percent the

density of lead. The shot will contain

nominally 95.5 percent by weight of

tungsten and 4.5 percent by weight of

polymer. An electronic device designed

to distinguish between shotshells

containing different shot materials will

register tungsten-polymer shells as a

nontoxic shotshell similar to bismuth

shells.

Federal’s application includes a

description of the new shot, a

toxicological report on the tungstenpolymer shot, and a 30-day test to assess

the toxicity of this shot in game-farm

mallards (Tier 1). The toxicological

report incorporates toxicity information

- a synopsis of acute and chronic

toxicity data for mammals and birds,

acute effects, potential for

environmental concern, toxicity to

aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates,

amphibians, and reptiles; and

information on environmental fate and

transport - shot and/or shot coating

alteration, environmental half-life, and

environmental concentration. The

toxicity study revealed no adverse

effects when mallards were dosed with

8 BB size tungsten-polymer shot and

monitored over a 30-day period.

The Service has requested the

applicant submit the Tier 2 test plan for

review. Once the Service approves the

plan the applicant will conduct testing

and submit an analysis of the results.

After reviewing the results, the Service

will either approve the shot as nontoxic

or request further testing. The applicant

plans to concurrently test this candidate

shot with the temporarily approved

tungsten-iron shot.

References

Barr Engineering Company. 1997.

Toxicology Report on New Shot. 24

pp.

Bursien, S.J., M.E. Kelly, D.C. Powell,

and R.J. Aulerich. 1996. Thirty-Day

Dosing Test to Assess the Toxicity of

Tungsten-Polymer Shot in Game-Farm

Mallards. 1996. Report to Federal

Cartridge Co. 78 pp.

Authorship

The primary author of this notice of

application is Carol Anderson, Office of

Migratory Bird Management.

Dated: October 16, 1997.

Jamie Rappaport Clark,

Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

[FR Doc. 97–28199 Filed 10–23–97; 8:45 am]

Billing Code 4310–55–F

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[MT–921–08–1320–01; MTM 83859]

Coal Lease Offering

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management,

Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Competitive Coal

Lease Offering by Sealed Bid MTM

83859—Spring Creek Coal Company.

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that

the coal resources in the lands described

below in Big Horn County, Montana,

will be offered for competitive lease by

sealed bid. This offering is being made

as a result of an application filed by

Spring Creek Coal Company, in

accordance with the provisions of the

Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, as

amended (41 Stat. 437; 30 U.S.C. 181 et

seq.).

DATES: The lease sale will be held at

11:00 a.m., November 13, 1997, in the

Conference Room, Side A, on the Sixth

Floor of the Granite Tower Building,

Bureau of Land Management, 222 North

32nd Street, Billings, Montana 59101.

Sealed bids clearly marked ‘‘Sealed Bid

for MTM 83859 Coal Sale—Not to be

opened before 11:00 a.m., Thursday,

November 13, 1997’’, must be submitted

on or before 10:00 a.m., November 13,

1997, to the cashier, Bureau of Land

Management, Montana State Office,

Second Floor, Granite Tower Building,

222 North 32nd Street, Post Office Box

36800, Billings, Montana 59107–6800.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: An

Environmental Assessment of the

proposed coal development and related

requirements for consultation, public

involvement and hearings have been

completed in accordance with 43 CFR

3425. The results of these activities were

a finding of no significant

environmental impact.

The coal resource to be offered

consists of all recoverable reserves in

the following-described lands:

T. 8 S., R. 39 E., P.M.M.,

Sec. 22: E1⁄2SW1⁄4SW1⁄4;

Sec. 25: SW1⁄4SW1⁄4;

Sec. 26: S1⁄2NE1⁄4NE1⁄4SW1⁄4,

NW1⁄4NE1⁄4SW1⁄4, N1⁄2SW1⁄4NE1⁄4SW1⁄4,

SE1⁄4NE1⁄4SW1⁄4, N1⁄2N1⁄2NW1⁄4SW1⁄4,

S1⁄2NE1⁄4NW1⁄4SW1⁄4,

SE1⁄4NW1⁄4NW1⁄4SW1⁄4,

NE1⁄4SE1⁄4NW1⁄4SW1⁄4, S1⁄2NW1⁄4SE1⁄4,

N1⁄2S1⁄2SW1⁄4SE1⁄4, SE1⁄4NE1⁄4SW1⁄4SE1⁄4,

N1⁄2SE1⁄4SE1⁄4, NE1⁄4SW1⁄4SE1⁄4SE1⁄4,

N1⁄2SE1⁄4SE1⁄4SE1⁄4;

Sec. 27: N1⁄2SW1⁄4NE1⁄4,

N1⁄2S1⁄2SW1⁄4NE1⁄4, SE1⁄4SE1⁄4SW1⁄4NE1⁄4,

S1⁄2NW1⁄4SE1⁄4NE1⁄4, S1⁄2SE1⁄4NE1⁄4,

E1⁄2NW1⁄4NW1⁄4, N1⁄2NE1⁄4SE1⁄4NW1⁄4,

SE1⁄4NE1⁄4SE1⁄4NW1⁄4,

NE1⁄4NW1⁄4SE1⁄4NW1⁄4,

NE1⁄4NE1⁄4NE1⁄4SE1⁄4.

T. 8 S., R. 40 E., P.M.M.,

Sec. 30: S1⁄2NW1⁄4NE1⁄4SW1⁄4,

S1⁄2NE1⁄4SW1⁄4, SW1⁄4NW1⁄4SE1⁄4,

W1⁄2SW1⁄4SE1⁄4, W1⁄2SE1⁄4SW1⁄4SE1⁄4.

Containing 320.00 acres, Big Horn County,

Montana.

The tract in this lease offering

contains split estate lands. The surface

is not held by a qualified surface owner

as defined in the regulations, 43 CFR

3400.0–5.

The tract will be leased to the

qualified bidder of the highest cash

amount provided that the high bid

meets the fair market value of the coal

resource. The minimum bid for the tract

is $100 per acre, or fraction thereof. No

bid that is less than $100 per acre, or

fraction thereof, will be considered. The

bids should be sent by certified mail,

return receipt requested, or be 3 hand-