46914 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 156 / Tuesday, August 12, 2008 / Notices 

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

SECURITY 

Federal Emergency Management 

Agency 

[FEMA–1772–DR] 

Minnesota; Amendment No. 4 to Notice 

of a Major Disaster Declaration 

AGENCY: Federal Emergency 

Management Agency, DHS. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: This notice amends the notice 

of a major disaster declaration for the 

State of Minnesota (FEMA–1772–DR), 

dated June 25, 2008, and related 

determinations. 

DATES: Effective Date: August 5, 2008. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Peggy Miller, Disaster Assistance 

Directorate, Federal Emergency 

Management Agency, 500 C Street, SW., 

Washington, DC 20472, (202) 646–3886. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The notice 

of a major disaster declaration for the 

State of Minnesota is hereby amended to 

include the following area among those 

areas determined to have been adversely 

affected by the catastrophe declared a 

major disaster by the President in his 

declaration of June 25, 2008. 

Cook County for Public Assistance. 

(The following Catalog of Federal Domestic 

Assistance Numbers (CFDA) are to be used 

for reporting and drawing funds: 97.030, 

Community Disaster Loans; 97.031, Cora 

Brown Fund; 97.032, Crisis Counseling; 

97.033, Disaster Legal Services; 97.034, 

Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA); 

97.046, Fire Management Assistance Grant; 

97.048, Disaster Housing Assistance to 

Individuals and Households in Presidentially 

Declared Disaster Areas; 97.049, 

Presidentially Declared Disaster Assistance—

Disaster Housing Operations for Individuals 

and Households; 97.050, Presidentially 

Declared Disaster Assistance to Individuals 

and Households—Other Needs; 97.036, 

Disaster Grants—Public Assistance 

(Presidentially Declared Disasters); 97.039, 

Hazard Mitigation Grant.) 

R. David Paulison, 

Administrator, Federal Emergency 

Management Agency. 

[FR Doc. E8–18523 Filed 8–11–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9110–10–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

SECURITY 

Federal Emergency Management 

Agency 

[FEMA–1772–DR] 

Minnesota; Amendment No. 3 to Notice 

of a Major Disaster Declaration 

AGENCY: Federal Emergency 

Management Agency, DHS. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: This notice amends the notice 

of a major disaster for the State of 

Minnesota (FEMA–1772–DR), dated 

June 25, 2008, and related 

determinations. 

DATES: Effective Date: August 5, 2008. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Peggy Miller, Disaster Assistance 

Directorate, Federal Emergency 

Management Agency, 500 C Street, SW., 

Washington, DC 20472, (202) 646–3886. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is 

hereby given that the incident period for 

this declared disaster is now June 6–12, 

2008. 

(The following Catalog of Federal Domestic 

Assistance Numbers (CFDA) are to be used 

for reporting and drawing funds: 97.030, 

Community Disaster Loans; 97.031, Cora 

Brown Fund; 97.032, Crisis Counseling; 

97.033, Disaster Legal Services; 97.034, 

Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA); 

97.046, Fire Management Assistance Grant; 

97.048, Disaster Housing Assistance to 

Individuals and Households in Presidentially 

Declared Disaster Areas; 97.049, 

Presidentially Declared Disaster Assistance—

Disaster Housing Operations for Individuals 

and Households; 97.050, Presidentially 

Declared Disaster Assistance to Individuals 

and Households—Other Needs; 97.036, 

Disaster Grants—Public Assistance 

(Presidentially Declared Disasters); 97.039, 

Hazard Mitigation Grant.) 

R. David Paulison, 

Administrator, Federal Emergency 

Management Agency. 

[FR Doc. E8–18524 Filed 8–11–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9110–10–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

[FWS–R4–R–2008–N0213; 40136–1265–

0000–S3] 

Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge 

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of availability of the 

Final Comprehensive Conservation Plan 

and Finding of No Significant Impact. 

SUMMARY: The Fish and Wildlife Service 

announces that a Final Comprehensive 

Conservation Plan (CCP) and Finding of 

No Significant Impact (FONSI) for 

Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge 

is available for distribution. This CCP 

was prepared pursuant to the National 

Wildlife Refuge System Improvement 

Act of 1997, and in accordance with the 

National Environmental Policy Act of 

1969, and describes how the refuge will 

be managed for the next 15 years. 

ADDRESSES: A copy of the CCP/FONSI is 

available on compact diskette or hard 

copy, and you may obtain a copy by 

writing: Merritt Island National Wildlife 

Refuge (CCP), P.O. Box 2683, Titusville, 

Florida 32781. You may also access and 

download a copy of the CCP/FONSI 

from the Service’s Web site address: 

http://southeast.fws.gov/planning/. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ron 

Hight, Telephone: 321/861–0667. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: With this 

notice, we finalize the CCP process for 

Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge 

begun as announced in the Federal 

Register on August 26, 2002 (67 FR 

54816). We released the Draft CCP/EA to 

the public, announcing and requesting 

comments for 60 days in a notice of 

availability in the Federal Register on 

December 27, 2006 (71 FR 77783). 

Purpose of the Refuge: Merritt Island 

National Wildlife Refuge was 

established in 1963, to protect migratory 

birds through an agreement with the 

National Aeronautics and Space 

Administration, as an overlay of John F. 

Kennedy Space Center. The over 

140,000 acres of beaches and dunes, 

estuarine waters, forested and nonforested wetlands, impounded 

wetlands, and upland shrub lands and 

forests of the refuge support over 500 

wildlife species and over 1,000 plant 

species, including a variety of 

waterfowl, shorebirds, and neotropical 

migratory birds. 

Alternatives and Preferred 

Alternative: The Draft CCP/EA 

addressed several priority issues raised 

by the Service, the Florida Fish and 

Wildlife Conservation Commission, 

other governmental partners, and the 

public. These issues included the 

spread of exotic, invasive, and nuisance 

species; the threats to threatened, 

endangered, and other imperiled 

species; the threats and impacts of an 

ever-increasing human population and 

the associated demand for public use 

activities; the management/maintenance 

of impounded wetlands; the 

coordination between 

intergovernmental partners; and the 

decline in migratory birds and their 

habitats. 


sroberts on PROD1PC70 with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 156 / Tuesday, August 12, 2008 / Notices 46915 

To address these priority issues, four 

alternatives were developed and 

evaluated during the planning process. 

Alternative A continued current 

refuge management activities and 

programs. Under this alternative, the 

refuge would continue to maintain 550 

Florida scrub jay family groups across 

15,000 acres, 11–13 nesting pairs of bald 

eagles, and 6.3 miles of sea turtle 

nesting beaches. 

Alternative B expanded refuge 

management actions on needs of 

threatened and endangered species. The 

refuge would aggressively manage for 

Florida scrub jays, restoring and 

maintaining 19,000–20,000 acres in 

optimal condition to support 900 family 

groups. Habitat management activities 

would support the number of nesting 

pairs of bald eagles to expand to 20, 

with increased protection of nest sites, 

development of artificial nesting 

platforms, and increased cultivation of 

future nest areas and nesting trees. 

Alternative C focused refuge 

management actions on the needs of 

migratory birds. Current management 

activities for threatened and endangered 

species would remain the same or 

would be decreased. The refuge would 

manage intensively for waterfowl, 

increasing the acres of impounded 

wetlands managed to over 16,000 acres 

and annually supporting targets of 250 

breeding pairs of mottled duck, 60,000 

lesser scaup, 25,000 dabbling ducks, 

and 38,000 diving ducks. The refuge 

would also intensively manage for 

shorebirds, increasing to over 5,000 

acres managed in impounded wetlands. 

Alternative D, the Service’s preferred 

alternative, takes a more landscape view 

of the refuge and its resources, focusing 

refuge management on wildlife and 

habitat diversity. The refuge will 

support 500–650 Florida scrub jay 

family groups with 350–500 territories 

in optimal conditions across 15,000–

16,000 acres. With active management, 

the refuge will support 11–15 nesting 

pairs of bald eagles; maintain 6.3 miles 

of sea turtle nesting beaches; and 

maintain 100 acres of habitat for the 

southeastern beach mouse, while the 

refuge population will serve as a source 

for reintroduction of the beach mouse to 

other sites. Manatee-focused 

management will be re-established on 

the refuge. The refuge will manage 

15,000–16,000 acres in impounded 

wetlands with a waterfowl focus and 

will support targets of 250 breeding 

pairs of mottled ducks, 60,000 lesser 

scaup, 25,000 dabbling ducks, and 

38,000 other diving ducks. Visitor 

services, programs, and messages will 

be focused on wildlife and habitat 

diversity, while also including 

threatened and endangered species, 

migratory birds, and climate change. 

The actions outlined in the CCP and 

in two included step-down plans 

provide direction and guidance for 

management of Merritt Island National 

Wildlife Refuge. Successful 

implementation will depend on 

coordination and partnerships between 

the public, the Service, and other 

governmental agencies. 

Authority: This notice is published under 

the authority of the National Wildlife Refuge 

System Improvement Act of 1997, Public 

Law 105–57. 

Dated: June 29, 2007. 

Cynthia K. Dohner, 

Acting Regional Director. 

Editorial Note: This document was 

received in the Office of the Federal Register 

on August 5, 2008. 

[FR Doc. E8–18411 Filed 8–11–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

National Park Service 

Denali Park Road Vehicle Management 

Plan Environmental Impact Statement 

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of Intent to Prepare an 

Environmental Impact Statement. 

SUMMARY: The National Park Service 

(NPS) intends to prepare an 

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) 

to develop and implement a plan to 

manage vehicles along the Denali park 

road, including carrying capacity (the 

maximum number of vehicles that can 

be accommodated on the Denali park 

road May–September). The goal of the 

plan is to provide a high quality 

experience for visitors while protecting 

wilderness resource values, scenic 

values, wildlife and other park 

resources, and maintaining the unique 

character of the park road. The plan will 

comprehensively evaluate the existing 

visitor transportation system to 

determine its effectiveness in protecting 

park resources and providing for visitor 

access and enjoyment. Demand for bus 

seats exceeds capacity in some cases 

and trends indicate that visitation will 

continue to increase. There is also a 

need to accommodate the changing 

demographics, interests, and needs of 

visitors. 

The EIS will evaluate a no action 

alternative of maintaining the existing 

vehicle management system on the 

Denali park road including current bus 

schedules, vehicle allocation, and 

carrying capacity. The effectiveness of 

the existing transportation system will 

be assessed and used to guide 

development of a range of action 

alternatives. 

Action alternatives will consider 

potential changes to transportation 

system components including carrying 

capacity, and allocation of vehicle use 

among shuttle buses, tours, inholders, 

professional photographers, and 

administrative vehicles. It will also 

consider changes to bus scheduling and 

spacing; the size and type of buses; tour 

services; educational opportunities and 

interpretive services; wildlife viewing 

opportunities; and possibly other 

factors. Alternatives may also consider 

operational improvements such as the 

quality of the buses, space for backpacks 

and bicycles, communications, 

accessibility and interpretive services 

(both on the buses or prior to departure). 

The NPS may consider utilizing an 

adaptive management approach based 

on a Before-After-Control-Impact (BACI) 

experimental design to implement any 

proposed changes. This BACI approach 

would increase the ability to detect and 

correct any future negative impacts on 

visitor experience or park resources and 

values caused by management actions. 

The NPS will consider a wide range 

of information including data collected 

from the 1930’s to the present. Intensive 

studies conducted over the last three 

years on wildlife populations and 

behavior, social science studies on 

visitor experience, and extensive 

modeling of traffic patterns on the park 

road will be considered in the 

development and analysis of 

alternatives. 

This EIS is being prepared in 

accordance with the requirements of the 

National Environmental Policy Act of 

1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4331 et 

seq.), and its implementing regulations 

at 40 CFR part 1500. 

Scoping: The planning team requests 

input from interested federal and state 

agencies, local governments, groups, 

organizations, park visitors, and the 

public. Written and verbal scoping 

comments are being solicited. Further 

information on this planning process 

will be available through public scoping 

meetings, press releases, and the park 

Web site. Public scoping meetings will 

be held in Anchorage, Denali Park, 

Susitna Valley, and Fairbanks, Alaska in 

2008. Additional locations may be 

added as appropriate. Specific dates, 

times, and locations of scoping meetings 

will be announced in local media and 

posted on the NPS Planning, 

Environment, and Public Comment 

(PEPC) Web site at http:// 

parkplanning.nps.gov/DENA. 

Before including your address, phone 

number, e-mail address, or other 


sroberts on PROD1PC70 with NOTICES