59862 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 195 / Friday, October 6, 2000 / Notices

We estimate that the draft

environmental documents will be

available in January 2003.

Dated: September 28, 2000

H. Dale Hall,

Acting Regional Director.

[FR Doc. 00–25680 Filed 10–05–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–55–M

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

Notice of Intent To Prepare

Comprehensive Conservation Plans

for Reelfoot, Lake Isom, Chickasaw,

Lower Hatchie, and Hatchie National

Wildlife Refuges, and Sunk Lake Public

Use Natural Area in Tennessee

SUMMARY: This notice advises the public

that the Fish and Wildlife Service,

Southeast Region, intends to gather

information necessary to prepare

comprehensive conservation plans and

associated environmental documents

pursuant to the Service’s

Comprehensive Conservation Planning

Policy and the National Environmental

Policy Act and implementing

regulations to achieve the following:

(1) Advise other agencies and the

public of our intentions, and

(2) Obtain suggestions and

information on the scope of issues to

include in the environmental

documents.

Public scoping meetings will be held

as follows:

Lower Hatchie National Wildlife Refuge,

Sunk Lake Public Use Natural Area,

Thursday, October 26, 2000, 7 P.M.,

Community Conference Room, Baptist

Memorial Hospital, 1995 Highway 51

South, Covington, Tennessee 38019.

Chickasaw National Wildlife Refuge,

Thursday, November 2, 2000, 7 P.M.,

Multi-Purpose Room, Tennessee

Technology Center, 127 Industrial

Drive, Ripley, Tennessee 38063.

Hatchie National Wildlife Refuge,

Monday, November 6, 2000, 7 P.M.,

Brownsville-Haywood County

Chamber of Commerce, 121 West

Main, Brownsville, Tennessee 38012.

Reelfoot and Lakes Isom National

Wildlife Refugees, Tuesday,

November 14, 2000, 7 P.M., Ellington

Center, Route 1, Box 2345,

Tiptonville, Tennessee 38079,

(Located on Highway 21–22,

approximately 2 miles east of

Tiptonville at the State Park Visitor

Center.)

DATES: Written comments should be

received within 60 days of this

publication.

ADDRESSES: Address comments and

requests for more information to the

following: Rob Martin, U.S. Fish and

Wildlife Service, 309 N. Church Street,

Room 201, Dyersburg, Tennessee 38024,

(901) 287–0650, (901) 286–0468 (Fax).

If you wish to comment, you may

submit your comments by any one of

several methods. You may mail

comments to the above address. You

may also comment via the Internet to

the following address:

Rob_Martin@fws.gov. Please submit

Internet comments as an ASCII file

avoiding the use of special characters

and any form of encryption. Please also

include your name and return address

in your Internet message. If you do not

receive a confirmation from the system

that we have received your Internet

message, contact us directly at the above

address. Our practice is to make

comments, including names and home

addresses of respondents, available for

public review during regular business

hours. Individual respondents may

request that we withhold their home

address from the rulemaking record,

which we will honor to the extent

allowable by law. There also may be

circumstances in which we would

withhold from the rulemaking record a

respondent’s identity, as allowable by

law. If you wish us to withhold your

name and/or address, you must state

this prominently at the beginning of

your comment. However, we will not

consider anonymous comments. We

will make all submissions from

organizations or businesses, and from

individuals identifying themselves as

representatives or officials of

organizations or businesses, available

for public inspection in their entirety.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: By Federal

law, all lands within the National

Wildlife Refuge System are to be

managed in accordance with an

approved comprehensive conservation

plan. These plans will guide

management decisions and identify

refuge goals, long-range objectives, and

strategies for achieving refuge purposes.

The planning process will consider

many elements, including public use

management, habitat management,

wildlife population management, and

cultural resource identification and

protection. Alternatives that address the

issues and management strategies

associated with these topics will be

included in the environmental

documents.

Pre-planning for each of the above

stated national wildlife refuges, as well

as the public use natural area, began in

January 2000. Reelfoot Refuge was

established in 1941 under terms of a 75-

year cooperative agreement with the

State of Tennessee. Lake Isom Refuge

was established by a Presidential

Proclamation in 1938. Chickasaw

Refuge was established August 5, 1985,

by the Migratory Bird Conservation

Commission, as was Lower Hatchie

Refuge in 1980, and Hatchie Refuge in

1964. Sunk Lake Public Use Natural

Area was purchased in 1986 by the

Natural and Cultural Areas Acquisition

Fund. Reelfoot, Lake Isom, Chicasaw,

and Lower Hatchie Refuges were

established for use as inviolate

sanctuaries, or for any other

management purpose, for migratory

birds. Hatchie Refuge was established to

provide habitat for wintering and

migrating waterfowl, particularly

dabbling ducks. The Fish and Wildlife

Service manages the Sunk Lake Public

Use Natural Area in accordance with

State Natural Area rules of the

Tennessee Department of Conservation.

Dated: September 28, 2000.

H. Dale Hall,

Acting Regional Director.

[FR Doc. 00–25681 Filed 10–5–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–55–M

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

Notice of Intent To Prepare a

Comprehensive Conservation Plan for

St. Vincent National Wildlife Refuge in

Franklin County, FL

SUMMARY: This notice advises the public

that the Fish and Wildlife Service,

Southeast Region, intends to gather

information necessary to prepare a

comprehensive conservation plan and

associated environmental documents

pursuant to the National Environmental

Policy Act and implementing

regulations to achieve the following:

(1) Advise other agencies and the

public of our intentions, and

(2) To obtain suggestions and

information on the scope of issues to

include in the environmental

documents.

DATES: Written comments should be

received on or before December 5, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Address comments and

requests for more information to the

following:

Mr. Steve Ovenden, Natural Resource

Planner, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,

7298 Coastal Highway, Crawfordville,

Florida 32327, (850) 925–1497.

If you wish to comment, you may

submit your comments by any one of

several methods. You may mail

comments to the above address. You