Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 180 / Friday, September 17, 2010 / Notices 57055 

cottonwood gallery forest for migratory 

landbirds? 

• What are our options for preventing 

the introduction and dispersal of 

invasive plants and animals? 

• What is the refuge’s role in 

supporting native fish and restoring 

riparian habitat in Camas Creek? 

• How can we maintain, manage, and 

restore the refuge’s sagebrush, wet 

meadow, and upland habitats to support 

the long-term viability of native wildlife 

populations, and maximize habitat 

values for key wildlife species? 

• How can the refuge adaptively 

manage habitat in response to climate 

change issues? 

• How can we protect the refuge’s 

cultural and historical resources? 

• What is the most appropriate refuge 

land management strategy for providing 

contiguous and quality habitats for focal 

wildlife resources? 

Public Availability of Comments 

Before including your address, phone 

number, e-mail address, or other 

personal identifying information in your 

comment, you should be aware that 

your entire comment—including your 

personal identifying information—may 

be made publicly available at any time. 

While you can ask us in your comment 

to withhold your personal identifying 

information from public review, we 

cannot guarantee that we will be able to 

do so. 

Dated: August 5, 2010. 

Theresa E. Rabot, 

Acting Regional Director, Region 1, Portland, 

Oregon. 

[FR Doc. 2010–23243 Filed 9–16–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

[FWS–R6–ES–2008–N188; 60120–1113– 

0000; C2] 

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife 

and Plants; Draft Revised Recovery 

Plan for Utah Prairie Dog 

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of document availability 

for review and comment. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service (Service) announces the 

availability of a draft revised recovery 

plan for the Utah prairie dog (Cynomys 

parvidens). This species is federally 

listed as threatened under the 

Endangered Species Act of 1973, as 

amended (Act). The Service solicits 

review and comment from the public on 

this draft revised plan. 

DATES: Comments on the draft revised 

recovery plan must be received on or 

before November 16, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: Copies of the draft revised 

recovery plan are available by request 

from the Utah Field Office, U.S. Fish 

and Wildlife Service, 2369 West Orton 

Circle, Suite 50, West Valley City, UT 

84119; telephone 801–975–3330. 

Submit comments on the draft recovery 

plan to the Field Supervisor at this same 

address. An electronic copy of the draft 

recovery plan is available at http:// 

www.fws.gov/endangered/species/ 

recovery-plans.html. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Field Supervisor, at the above address, 

or telephone 801–975–3330. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

Restoring an endangered or 

threatened animal or plant to the point 

where it is again a secure, selfsustaining member of its ecosystem is a 

primary goal of the Service’s 

endangered species program. To help 

guide the recovery effort, the Service 

prepares recovery plans for the federally 

listed species native to the United States 

where a plan will promote the 

conservation of the species. Recovery 

plans describe site-specific actions 

necessary for the conservation of the 

species, establish objective, measurable 

criteria which, when met, would result 

in a determination that the species no 

longer needs the protection of the Act 

(16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), and provide 

estimates of the time and cost for 

implementing the needed recovery 

measures. 

The Act requires recovery plans for 

listed species unless such a plan would 

not promote the conservation of a 

particular species. Section 4(f) of the 

Act, as amended in 1988, requires that 

public notice and opportunity for public 

review and comment be provided 

during recovery plan development. The 

Service will consider all information 

received during a public comment 

period when preparing each new or 

revised recovery plan for approval. The 

Service and other Federal agencies also 

will take these comments into 

consideration in the course of 

implementing approved recovery plans. 

It is our policy to request peer review 

of recovery plans. We will summarize 

and respond to the issues raised by the 

public and peer reviewers in an 

appendix to the approved recovery plan. 

The Utah prairie dog (Cynomys 

parvidens), found only in southwestern 

and central Utah, was listed as an 

endangered species on June 4, 1973 (38 

FR 14678). At the time of listing, the 

species was threatened by habitat 

destruction and modification, 

overexploitation, disease, and 

predation. Subsequently, Utah prairie 

dog populations increased significantly 

in portions of their range, and on May 

29, 1984 (49 FR 22330), the species was 

reclassified as threatened with a special 

rule to allow regulated take of the 

species. This special rule was amended 

on June 14, 1991 (56 FR 27438), to 

increase the amount of regulated take 

allowed throughout the species’ range. 

Recent Utah prairie dog population 

trends appear to be relatively stable, 

although the species remains vulnerable 

to several serious threats. These include 

habitat loss, plague, changing climatic 

conditions, unauthorized take, and 

disturbance from recreational and 

economic land uses. 

The recovery of Utah prairie dogs will 

rely on effective conservation responses 

to the issues facing the species, which 

remain varied and complex. These 

issues include plague, urban expansion, 

grazing, cultivated agriculture, 

vegetative community changes, invasive 

plants, off-highway vehicle and 

recreation uses, climate change, energy 

resource exploration and development, 

fire management, poaching, and 

predation. Strategically, these issues can 

be reduced to two overriding concerns: 

loss of habitat and plague. The recovery 

strategy for the Utah prairie dog focuses 

on the need to address colony loss and 

disease through a program that 

encompasses threats abatement, 

population management, research, and 

monitoring. We emphasize conserving 

extant colonies, many of which occur on 

non-Federal lands; establishing 

additional colonies on Federal and nonFederal lands via habitat improvement 

or translocations; controlling the 

transmission of plague; and monitoring 

habitat conditions. 

Request for Public Comments 

The Service solicits public comments 

on the draft recovery plan. All 

comments received by the date specified 

in DATES will be considered prior to 

approval of the plan. Written comments 

and materials regarding the plan should 

be addressed to the Field Supervisor 

(see ADDRESSES section). Comments and 

materials received will be available, by 

appointment, for public inspection 

during normal business hours at the 

above address. 

Authority 

The authority for this action is section 

4(f) of the Endangered Species Act, 16 

U.S.C. 1533(f). 


wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with NOTICES_PART 1
57056 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 180 / Friday, September 17, 2010 / Notices 

Dated: August 18, 2010. 

Hugh Morrison, 

Acting Regional Director. 

[FR Doc. 2010–23234 Filed 9–16–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Bureau of Land Management 

[LLWYP07000; L16100000.DU0000] 

Notice of Availability of the Draft 

Buffalo Resource Management Plan 

Amendment for the Fortification Creek 

Planning Area and Environmental 

Assessment, Wyoming 

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of Availability. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

National Environmental Policy Act of 

1969, as amended, and the Federal Land 

Policy and Management Act of 1976, as 

amended, the Bureau of Land 

Management (BLM) has prepared a Draft 

Resource Management Plan Amendment 

and Environmental Assessment (RMPA/ 

EA) for the Buffalo Field Office (BFO) 

and by this notice is announcing the 

opening of the comment period. The 

RMPA/EA will amend the 1985 Buffalo 

Resource Management Plan. The BLM 

also announces the availability of 

information regarding a proposed Area 

of Critical Environmental Concern 

(ACEC) considered in the Draft RMPA/ 

EA. 

DATES: The BLM must receive written 

comments on the Draft RMPA/EA and 

on the proposed ACEC information 

within 60 days following the date that 

this Notice of Availability appears in the 

Federal Register. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

related to the Draft RMPA/EA by any of 

the following methods: 

• Web site: http://www.blm.gov/wy/ 

st/en/info/NEPA/bfodocs/ 

fortification_creek.html. 

• E-mail: Fort_Crk_WYMail@blm.gov. 

• Fax: (307) 684–1122. 

• Mail: Buffalo RMP Amendment/ 

Fortification Creek EA, BLM Buffalo 

Field Office, 1425 Fort Street, Buffalo, 

Wyoming 82834. 

Copies of the Draft RMPA/EA are 

available in the Buffalo Field Office at 

the above address and at the following 

location: 

• Bureau of Land Management, 

Wyoming State Office, 5353 

Yellowstone Road, Cheyenne, Wyoming 

82003. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

further information contact Thomas 

Bills, Buffalo RMPA Team Leader, 

telephone at 307–684–1133; mailing 

address at BLM Buffalo Field Office, 

1425 Fort Street, Buffalo, Wyoming 

82834; e-mail at tom_bills@blm.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Fortification Creek Planning Area 

(FCPA) is described as requiring 

‘‘special management’’ in the Powder 

River Basin Oil and Gas Project 

Environmental Impact Statement (PRB 

EIS). The FCPA also contains an 

isolated elk herd, a Wilderness Study 

Area (WSA) and a citizen-proposed 

ACEC. The FCPA is 100,655 acres in 

size and located in the center of the 

Powder River Basin in parts of 

Campbell, Johnson, and Sheridan 

Counties, Wyoming. 

An RMP amendment has been 

initiated to simplify, consolidate and 

unify overlapping planning decisions in 

the FCPA while ensuring the viability of 

the existing elk herd and maintaining 

other management activities in the 

planning area. 

The Draft RMPA/EA documents the 

direct, indirect, and cumulative 

environmental impacts of three 

alternatives for management of BLMadministered public lands and mineral 

resources within the Fortification Creek 

Area of the BFO. The alternatives 

incorporate best management practices 

for oil and gas development and other 

measures necessary to address impacts 

to transportation, public safety, cultural 

resources, recreational opportunities, 

wildlife, threatened and endangered 

species, visual resources, air quality, 

wilderness characteristics, and other 

relevant issues. The following 

descriptions of alternatives considered 

in the Draft RMPA/EA have been 

included to provide context for 

reviewers. Three alternatives are 

analyzed in detail: 

Alternative 1 (No Action Alternative): 

Continues the existing management 

direction in conformance with the 

current RMP and would not designate 

an ACEC in the FCPA; 

Alternative 2: Amends the existing 

RMP to allow overhead power lines on 

BLM surface within pre-defined 

corridors, applies elk security habitat 

standards as recommended by the 

Wyoming Game and Fish Department 

(WGFD), prescribes acceptable 

mitigation measures, and would 

designate an ACEC based on citizen 

proposed boundaries (33,757 acres; 

primarily public surface); and 

Alternative 3 (Agency Preferred 

Alternative): Amends the existing RMP 

by allowing overhead power lines along 

roads on BLM surface, applies elk 

security habitat standards developed 

jointly by the BLM and WGFD, 

establishes standards for performance 

based mitigation, and does not designate 

any area as an ACEC. 

There are no ACECs in the existing 

BFO land use plan. As proposed in the 

Draft RMPA/EA, there is potential for 

designation of a Fortification Creek 

ACEC. Values of concern include steep 

slopes, erosive soils, elk habitat, cultural 

resources, and visual resources. 

When commenting, please include 

reference to either the page or section in 

the Draft RMPA/EA to which the 

comment applies. To facilitate analysis 

of comments and information 

submitted, the BLM encourages those 

individuals submitting comments to 

submit them in electronic format. 

Please note that public comments and 

information submitted including names, 

street addresses, and e-il addresses of 

respondents will be available for public 

review and disclosure at the above 

address during regular business hours (8 

a.m. to 4 p.m.), Monday through Friday, 

except holidays. 

Before including your address, phone 

number, e-mail address, or other 

personal identifying information in your 

comment, you should be aware that 

your entire comment—including your 

personal identifying information–may 

be made publicly available at any time. 

While you may ask us in your comment 

to withhold your personal identifying 

information from public review, we 

cannot guarantee that we will be able to 

do so. 

Donald A. Simpson, 

State Director. 

[FR Doc. 2010–23330 Filed 9–16–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

[FWS–R5–R–2010–N150; 50133–1265– 

CHNP–S3] 

Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge 

and Wallops Island National Wildlife 

Refuge, Accomack County, VA; 

Comprehensive Conservation Plan and 

Environmental Impact Statement 

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of intent; announcement 

of public scoping and request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service (FWS), are gathering 

information to prepare a comprehensive 

conservation plan (CCP) and associated 

environmental impact statement (EIS) 


wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with NOTICES_PART 1