12146 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 44 / Friday, March 6, 2015 / Notices 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

RIN 0648–XC598 

Endangered and Threatened Species; 

Availability of the Final Recovery Plan 

for Staghorn and Elkhorn Corals 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service, National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration, 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of availability. 

SUMMARY: The National Marine 

Fisheries Service (NMFS) announces the 

adoption of a Final Endangered Species 

Act recovery plan for elkhorn coral and 

staghorn coral. The Final Recovery Plan 

(Plan) for Elkhorn Coral (Acropora 

palmata) and Staghorn Coral (Acropora 

cervicornis) is now available. 

ADDRESSES: Electronic copies of the 

Plan are available on the NMFS Web 

site at http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/

recovery/plans.htm and on the 

Southeast Regional Office Web site at 

http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/protected_

resources/coral/. 

A copy of the Plan can be obtained by 

writing to: Assistant Regional 

Administrator for Protected Resources, 

NMFS, Southeast Regional Office, 263 

13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 

33701, Attn: Acropora Recovery Plan. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Alison Moulding (727–824–5312), email 

Alison.Moulding@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The Endangered Species Act of 1973 

(ESA), as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et 

seq.) requires NMFS to develop and 

implement recovery plans for the 

conservation and survival of threatened 

and endangered species, unless it is 

determined that such plans would not 

result in the conservation of the species. 

NMFS designated elkhorn and staghorn 

corals as ‘‘threatened’’ under the ESA in 

May 2006. In September 2014, NMFS 

published a final rule maintaining the 

status of elkhorn and staghorn corals as 

threatened species. NMFS published a 

Notice of Availability and requested 

public comments on the Draft Recovery 

Plan for Elkhorn Coral and Staghorn 

Coral (Draft Plan) in the Federal 

Register on September 5, 2014. We 

revised the Draft Plan based on the 

comments received, and this final 

version now constitutes the Recovery 

Plan for Elkhorn Coral (Acropora 

palmata) and Staghorn Coral (Acropora 

cervicornis). 

The Final Plan 

Recovery plans describe actions 

beneficial for the conservation and 

recovery of species listed under the 

ESA. Section 4(f)(1) of the ESA requires 

that recovery plans incorporate, to the 

maximum extent practicable: (1) 

Objective, measurable criteria which, 

when met, would result in a 

determination that the species is no 

longer threatened or endangered; (2) 

site-specific management actions 

necessary to achieve the Plan’s goals; 

and (3) estimates of the time required 

and costs to implement recovery 

actions. The ESA requires the 

development of recovery plans for each 

listed species unless a recovery plan 

would not promote a species’ 

conservation. 

The purpose of the Plan is to rebuild 

and assure the long-term viability of 

elkhorn and staghorn coral populations 

in the wild, allowing ultimately for the 

species’ removal from the federal list of 

endangered and threatened species. The 

goal of the Plan is to increase the 

abundance and to protect the genetic 

diversity of elkhorn and staghorn coral 

populations throughout their 

geographical ranges while sufficiently 

abating threats to warrant delisting of 

both species. Elkhorn and staghorn coral 

populations should be large enough to 

include numerous groups of 

successfully reproducing individuals, 

including thickets, across the historical 

range of these species. These groups 

should be large enough to protect 

genetic diversity and maintain 

ecosystem function. The recovery 

approach includes research and 

monitoring to identify, reduce, or 

eliminate threats so the recovery 

objectives outlined in the Plan have the 

greatest likelihood of being achieved. 

Because some threats to elkhorn and 

staghorn corals cannot be directly 

managed (e.g., disease), the Plan 

pursues concurrent actions to address 

both global and local threats. Population 

enhancement is also an integral part of 

elkhorn and staghorn recovery through 

restoration, restocking, and active 

management. Ecosystem-level actions 

are identified to improve habitat quality 

and restore community structure and 

ecological functions, such as herbivory, 

to sustain adult colonies and enable 

successful recruitment in the wild over 

the long term. The goal, objectives, and 

criteria of the Plan represent NMFS’ 

expectation of conditions to recover 

elkhorn and staghorn corals so they no 

longer need the protective measures 

provided by the ESA. 

The recovery criteria in the Plan are 

based on the current literature and 

expert consensus. In some cases, the 

current best available information is so 

limited that it is not practicable to 

identify recovery criteria. Instead, 

interim criteria are identified to gather 

and obtain the information necessary to 

establish final recovery criteria. 

Recovery criteria can be viewed as 

targets, or values, by which progress 

toward achievement of recovery 

objectives can be measured. In the Plan 

we frame recovery criteria both in terms 

of population parameters (Populationbased Recovery Criteria) and the five 

ESA listing factors (Threat-based 

Recovery Criteria). The Plan also 

includes the projected timeframe to 

recover elkhorn and staghorn corals and 

the cost of implementing actions. 

Conclusion 

NMFS has reviewed the Plan for 

compliance with the requirements of 

ESA section 4(f), determined that it does 

incorporate the required elements, and 

is therefore adopting it as the Final 

Recovery Plan for elkhorn and staghorn 

corals. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq. 

Dated: March 3, 2015. 

Angela Somma, 

Chief, Endangered Species Conservation 

Division, Office of Protected Resources, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2015–05192 Filed 3–5–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

Proposed Information Collection; 

Comment Request; Submission of 

Conservation Efforts To Make Listings 

Unnecessary Under the Endangered 

Species Act 

AGENCY: National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Department of 

Commerce, as part of its continuing 

effort to reduce paperwork and 

respondent burden, invites the general 

public and other Federal agencies to 

take this opportunity to comment on 

proposed and/or continuing information 

collections, as required by the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

submitted on or before May 5, 2015. 

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments 

to Jennifer Jessup, Departmental 

Paperwork Clearance Officer, 

Department of Commerce, Room 6616, 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES