Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 205 / Monday, October 25, 2010 / Notices 65507 

Availability of Documents 

Documents and other information 

submitted with these applications are 

available for review, subject to the 

requirements of the Privacy Act and 

Freedom of Information Act, by any 

party who submits a written request for 

a copy of such documents to: 

Dated: October 15, 2010. 

Brenda Tapia, 

Program Analyst/Data Administrator, Branch 

of Permits, Division of Management 

Authority. 

[FR Doc. 2010–26833 Filed 10–22–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

[FWS–R7–FHC–2010–N159; 71490–1351– 

0000–L5–FY10] 

U.S.-Russia Polar Bear Commission 

Adopts an Annual Taking Limit for the 

Alaska-Chukotka Polar Bear 

Population 

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: On June 9, 2010, by 

unanimous vote, the U.S.-Russia Polar 

Bear Commission established by the 

‘‘Agreement Between the Government of 

the United States of America and the 

Government of the Russian Federation 

on the Conservation and Management of 

the Alaska-Chukotka Polar Bear 

Population,’’ signed at Washington, DC, 

on October 16, 2000, adopted a limit to 

the take of the Alaska-Chukotka polar 

bear population. The decision of the 

Commission is that the total take should 

be limited to 58 bears per year to be 

shared between the United States of 

America and the Russian Federation. 

Both the United States and the Russian 

Federation are proceeding to implement 

the decision of the Commission. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Terry D. DeBruyn, Polar Bear Project 

Leader, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Marine Mammals Management Office, 

1011 East Tudor Road, Anchorage, AK 

99503; by telephone (907–786–3800); or 

by facsimile (907–786–3816). Persons 

who use a telecommunications device 

for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal 

Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 

800–877–8339. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The ‘‘Agreement Between the 

Government of the United States of 

America and the Government of the 

Russian Federation on the Conservation 

and Management of the AlaskaChukotka Polar Bear Population,’’ signed 

at Washington, DC, on October 16, 2000 

(the 2000 Agreement), provides legal 

protections for the population of polar 

bears found in the Chukchi-Northern 

Bering Sea. The 2000 Agreement is 

implemented in the United States 

through title V of the Marine Mammal 

Protection Act (MMPA) (16 U.S.C. 1361 

et seq.) and builds upon those 

protections already provided to this 

population of polar bears through the 

‘‘Agreement on the Conservation of 

Polar Bears,’’ done at Oslo, November 

13, 1973 (the 1973 Agreement), which 

was a significant early step in the 

international conservation of polar 

bears. 

The 1973 Agreement is a multilateral 

treaty to which the United States and 

Russia are parties with other polar bear 

range states: Norway, Canada, and 

Denmark. While the 1973 Agreement 

provides authority for the maintenance 

of a subsistence harvest of polar bears 

and provides for habitat conservation, 

the 2000 Agreement specifically 

establishes a common legal, scientific, 

and administrative framework for the 

conservation and management of the 

Alaska-Chukotka polar bear population 

between the United States and Russia. 

Because of the shared interest in this 

population of polar bears, which readily 

moves between U.S. and Russian 

Federation jurisdictions, a cooperative 

management regime for the subsistence 

harvest of bears is key to both providing 

for the long-term viability of the 

population as well as addressing the 

social, cultural, and subsistence 

interests of Alaska Natives and the 

native people of Chukotka. The 2000 

Agreement requires the United States 

and the Russian Federation to manage 

and conserve polar bears based on 

reliable science and to provide for 

subsistence harvest opportunity by 

native peoples. For example, the 2000 

Agreement provides a definition of 

‘‘sustainable harvest’’ [which] ‘‘means a 

harvest level which does not exceed net 

annual recruitment to the population 

and maintains the population at or near 

its current level, taking into account all 

forms of removal, and considers the 

status and trend of the population, 

based on reliable scientific information’’. 

In addition, the 2000 Agreement 

establishes the U.S.-Russia Polar Bear 

Commission (Commission), which 

functions as the bilateral managing 

authority to make scientific 

determinations, establish taking limits, 

and carry out other responsibilities 

important to the conservation and 

management of the polar bear. At its 

first meeting, held in Moscow, Russia, 

September 23–25, 2009, the 

Commission identified members of a 

Scientific Working Group (SWG) and 

tasked the SWG with reviewing the 

current level of subsistence take of polar 

bears. Recommendations from the SWG 

will help guide the research necessary 

to address present and future polar bear 

conservation issues in the shared 

Alaska-Chukotka polar bear population. 

The Commission also: (1) Identified 

habitat conservation as an important 

issue for the long-term conservation and 

management of the Alaska-Chukotka 

polar bear; (2) identified ways to ensure 

full participation of native peoples in 

the conservation of the shared polar 

bear population; and (3) adopted rules 

of procedure for the Commission. 

The first meeting of the SWG was 

held March 1–5, 2010, in Anchorage, 

Alaska. The SWG, tasked by the 

Commission with identifying a 

sustainable level of human-caused 

removals for the Alaska-Chukotka polar 

bear population, recognized that reliable 

scientific information was critical to the 

identification and implementation of a 

sustainable level of removals. At the 

same time, the SWG acknowledged that 

the information necessary to derive 

accurate estimates of sustainable 

removals that meet subsistence interests 

in the two countries for the AlaskaChukotka polar bear population is 

currently limited. However, the SWG 

recognized that the current unlimited 

subsistence harvest in the United States 

and illegal killing of polar bears in 

Russia represented an immediate threat 

to the Alaska-Chukotka polar bear 

population. 

The SWG evaluated the plausible 

range of sustainable removals for 

subsistence purposes based on 

population models and assumed values 

of population size and growth rate. 

These parameters and resulting estimate 

of sustainable subsistence removals 

were based on expert opinion of the 

group. The SWG identified two 

management options for consideration 

by the Commission. Both management 

options are short term (1 to 3 years) and 

require reevaluation when new 

information becomes available. 

Management option 1 was a moratorium 

on the subsistence harvest of polar bears 

in the United States in conjunction with 

a continued moratorium on subsistence 

harvest in Russia. Such a regime would 

be contingent upon effective 

enforcement capabilities in both 

countries. Management option 2 was to 

establish a regulated subsistence harvest 

in both the United States and Russia. 

Such a regime would be contingent 

upon the enforcement of a regulated 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with NOTICES
65508 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 205 / Monday, October 25, 2010 / Notices 

subsistence harvest and the 

implementation of community-level 

conservation programs in both the 

United States and Russia. 

The second meeting of the 

Commission took place June 7–10, 2010, 

in Anchorage, Alaska. During this 

meeting, the Commission evaluated the 

options provided by the SWG and 

determined that establishing a limit to 

the subsistence harvest of polar bears 

from the Alaska-Chukotka polar bear 

population was needed. Based on the 

recommendation and risk assessment 

relative to hypothetical harvest levels 

and traditional knowledge of the native 

people, the Commission determined 

that no more than 58 polar bears per 

year may be taken, of which no more 

than 19 animals may be females from 

the Alaska-Chukotka polar bear 

population. The Commission 

determined that all human-caused 

mortality, i.e., subsistence harvest as 

well as any bears that could be taken in 

defense of human life, to the AlaskaChukotka polar bear population will be 

counted toward this annual limit. 

Further, the Commission determined 

that the two countries will work 

together over the coming year to identify 

legal requirements and documents 

needed to implement the determined 

subsistence harvest limit and that 

further discussion would take place at 

the next Commission meeting in June 

2011. 

The adoption of an annual take limit 

by the Commission is a significant 

accomplishment in the conservation 

and management of the shared AlaskaChukotka polar bear population. The 

additional data obtained through 

enhanced management, especially in 

Russia where only limited information 

has been available, as well as increased 

monitoring of the previously unknown 

take of bears, will provide vital 

information and greater understanding 

of the status and trends of the AlaskaChukotka polar bear population. 

Resultant data will enable the countries 

to develop a more effective and robust 

strategy for the conservation and 

management of this shared population. 

The regulated subsistence harvest will 

also provide for the cultural, spiritual, 

and nutritional needs of the native 

people of Chukotka. It is anticipated 

that the illegal hunting of polar bears in 

Russia will decrease dramatically with 

the involvement of native Chukotkans 

in the implementation of subsistence 

harvest monitoring and management 

and enhanced legal enforcement. The 

Commission tasked the SWG with 

conducting an annual review of the 

annual subsistence take and providing a 

recommendation to the Commission 

each year confirming continuation of 

the existing subsistence harvest limit or 

specifying a new harvest limit 

recommendation. 

Determination of the Commission 

Therefore, as discussed above, and as 

required by Section 507(b) of the 

MMPA, the Commission notified the 

Secretary of the Interior (by letter dated 

June 23, 2010, and received on July 1, 

2010) of its determination to limit the 

annual take of polar bears from the 

Alaska-Chukotka population to no more 

than 58 animals, of which no more than 

19 may be female, to be shared equally 

between the two jurisdictions. Each 

country is responsible for developing 

documents describing how the regulated 

harvest will be implemented to be 

reported at the next Commission 

meeting. The United States and Russian 

Federation will work together over the 

coming year to identify the legal 

requirements and documents needed to 

implement the identified harvest limit. 

This will be further discussed at the 

next Commission meeting in June 2011. 

As required by Section 507(b) of the 

MMPA, notice of the Commission’s 

determination of taking limits for the 

Alaska-Chukotka polar bear population 

is hereby published in the Federal 

Register. 

Dated: October 12, 2010. 

Daniel M. Ashe, 

Acting Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service. 

[FR Doc. 2010–26864 Filed 10–22–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P 

INTERNATIONAL TRADE 

COMMISSION 

Notice of Receipt of Complaint; 

Solicitation of Comments Relating to 

the Public Interest 

AGENCY: U.S. International Trade 

Commission. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that 

the U.S. International Trade 

Commission has received a complaint 

entitled In Re Certain Automated Media 

Library Devices, DN 2762; the 

Commission is soliciting comments on 

any public interest issues raised by the 

complaint. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Marilyn R. Abbott, Secretary to the 

Commission, U.S. International Trade 

Commission, 500 E Street, SW., 

Washington, DC 20436, telephone (202) 

205–2000. The public version of the 

complaint can be accessed on the 

Commission’s electronic docket (EDIS) 

at http://edis.usitc.gov, and will be 

available for inspection during official 

business hours (8:45 a.m. to 5:15 p.m.) 

in the Office of the Secretary, U.S. 

International Trade Commission, 500 E 

Street, SW., Washington, DC 20436, 

telephone (202) 205–2000. 

General information concerning the 

Commission may also be obtained by 

accessing its Internet server (http:// 

www.usitc.gov). The public record for 

this investigation may be viewed on the 

Commission’s electronic docket (EDIS) 

at http://edis.usitc.gov. Hearingimpaired persons are advised that 

information on this matter can be 

obtained by contacting the 

Commission’s TDD terminal on (202) 

205–1810. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Commission has received a complaint 

filed on behalf of Overland Storage, Inc. 

on October 19, 2010. The complaint 

alleges violations of section 337 of the 

Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1337) in 

the importation into the United States, 

the sale for importation, and the sale 

within the United States after 

importation of certain automated media 

library devices. The complaint names as 

respondents BDT AG of Rottweil, 

Germany; BDT–Solutions GmbH & Co. 

KG of Rottweil, Germany; BDT 

Automation Technology (Zhuhai FTZ) 

Co., Ltd. of Zhuhai Guangdong, China; 

BDT de Mexico, S. de R.L. de C.V. of 

Tlaquepaque, Jalisco, Mexico; BDT 

Products, Inc. of Irvine, CA; Dell Inc. of 

Round Rock, TX; and International 

Business Machines Corp. of Armonk, 

NY. 

The complainant, proposed 

respondents, other interested parties, 

and members of the public are invited 

to file comments, not to exceed five 

pages in length, on any public interest 

issues raised by the complaint. 

Comments should address whether 

issuance of an exclusion order and/or a 

cease and desist order in this 

investigation would negatively affect the 

public health and welfare in the United 

States, competitive conditions in the 

United States economy, the production 

of like or directly competitive articles in 

the United States, or United States 

consumers. 

In particular, the Commission is 

interested in comments that: 

(i) Explain how the articles 

potentially subject to the orders are used 

in the United States; 

(ii) identify any public health, safety, 

or welfare concerns in the United States 

relating to the potential orders; 

(iii) indicate the extent to which like 

or directly competitive articles are 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with NOTICES