Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 10 / Thursday, January 15, 2015 / Notices 2119 

marking techniques; release; obtain and 

preserve blood, tissue, semen, ova, and 

other samples that are considered parts 

of wolves (scat is not considered a part 

of a wolf and can be collected without 

a permit); translocate; transport between 

approved Mexican wolf captive 

management facilities in the United 

States and Mexico, to approved release 

sites, and to and from the Vermejo Park 

Ranch; purposeful lethal take (lethal 

control is limited to Mexican wolves 

within the MWEPA in Arizona and New 

Mexico); hazing via less-than-lethal 

projectiles; injurious harassment; 

research; and any other USFWSapproved husbandry practice or 

management action for Mexican wolves. 

National Environmental Policy Act 

(NEPA) 

In compliance with NEPA (42 U.S.C. 

4321 et seq.), we have made an initial 

determination that the proposed 

activities in these permits are 

categorically excluded from the 

requirement to prepare an 

environmental assessment or 

environmental impact statement (516 

DM 6 Appendix 1, 1.4C(1)). 

Public Availability of Comments 

All comments and materials we 

receive in response to this request will 

be available for public inspection, by 

appointment, during normal business 

hours at the address listed in the 

ADDRESSES section of this notice. 

Before including your address, phone 

number, email 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. 

Authority 

We provide this notice under section 

10 of the Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) 

Dated: January 8, 2015. 

Joy E. Nicholopoulos, 

Acting Regional Director, Southwest Region, 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 

[FR Doc. 2015–00551 Filed 1–14–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

[FWS–HQ–R–2014–N231; 

FXRS12650900000–145–FF09R20000] 

RIN 1018–AZ89 

Final Strategic Growth Policy for the 

National Wildlife Refuge System 

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of availability. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service (Service) has finalized a policy 

to implement a strategic approach to the 

growth of the National Wildlife Refuge 

System (Refuge System, System). The 

National Wildlife Refuge System 

Administration Act (Administration 

Act), as amended by the National 

Wildlife Refuge System Improvement 

Act, requires that we ‘‘plan and direct 

the continued growth of the System in 

a manner that is best designed to 

accomplish the mission of the System.’’ 

This policy directs Refuge System 

employees to focus their protection 

measures on priority conservation 

features to ensure that our limited 

resources are used to make the greatest 

contribution to the conservation of 

species in a cost-effective and 

transparent manner. It ensures that the 

growth of the System reflects our vision 

toward managing functional landscapes, 

enhancing our scientific rigor, 

improving our effectiveness, and 

involving our partners and the 

American people. The Strategic Growth 

policy is found in ‘‘Refuge Planning,’’ 

chapter 5, part 602 in the Fish and 

Wildlife Service Manual. 

DATES: The policy was effective 

September 4, 2014. 

ADDRESSES: You may read the final 

policy online at http://www.fws.gov/

policy/602fw5.html. You may obtain a 

summary of how we addressed 

comments we received on the draft 

policy at http://www.fws.gov/refuges/

planning/StrategicGrowth.html. You 

may also request a copy of the policy by 

U.S. mail from USFWS, Division of 

Natural Resources and Conservation 

Planning, 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls 

Church, VA 22041–3803 (see FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). The 

policy is also available for public 

inspection, by appointment, during 

normal business hours at the above 

address. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Brian Salem, at the address above, or by 

telephone: (703) 358–2397. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Introduction 

The Service has established a final 

Strategic Growth policy, which is 

available at http://www.fws.gov/policy/

602fw5.html. The policy is chapter 5, 

part 602, ‘‘Refuge Planning,’’ in the Fish 

and Wildlife Service Manual. The 

purpose of the policy is to implement a 

strategic approach to the growth of the 

National Wildlife Refuge System. 

Background 

The National Wildlife Refuge System 

Improvement Act of 1997 (Improvement 

Act), which amended the 

Administration Act (16 U.S.C. 668dd– 

ee), states that the Refuge System 

mission is to ‘‘administer a national 

network of lands and waters for the 

conservation, management, and where 

appropriate, restoration of the fish, 

wildlife, and plant resources and their 

habitats for the benefit of present and 

future generations of Americans.’’ The 

Improvement Act requires us to ‘‘plan 

and direct the continued growth of the 

System in a manner that is best 

designed to accomplish the mission of 

the System,’’ ‘‘to fulfill the mission of 

the System, as well as the specific 

purposes for which [the] refuge was 

established,’’ and to ‘‘ensure timely and 

effective cooperation and collaboration 

with Federal agencies and State fish and 

wildlife agencies during the course of 

acquiring and managing refuges.’’ 

Because we are facing unparalleled 

challenges related to climate and nonclimate stressors, we must provide 

consistent direction for adding lands 

and waters to the System in a sciencebased, cost-effective, and transparent 

manner. The Strategic Growth policy is 

a result of this need for strategic and 

consistent planning. 

Final Policy 

The policy prioritizes acquisitions 

within existing refuge boundaries, 

expansion of existing refuges, and 

establishment of new refuges. It focuses 

protection measures on priority 

conservation features so that we can 

make the most of our limited resources. 

The policy is consistent with the 

biological planning and conservation 

design components of Strategic Habitat 

Conservation, the Service’s sciencebased adaptive management framework 

for determining where and how to 

deliver conservation efficiently to 

achieve specific biological outcomes. 

The policy identifies threatened and 

endangered species, migratory birds of 

conservation concern, and waterfowl, or 

the surrogate species that represent 

them, as priority conservation features. 

The policy requires application of the 

best available science to incorporate 


rljohnson on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
2120 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 10 / Thursday, January 15, 2015 / Notices 

elements of conservation design to help 

us identify priority conservation areas 

that will contribute to achieving 

measurable conservation targets such as 

population objectives. The policy 

ensures that when employees propose 

new refuges or expansions to existing 

refuges, they analyze and describe: (1) 

The project’s vulnerability to climate 

change and other non-climate stressors 

(e.g., habitat fragmentation, invasive 

species), (2) how we will mitigate 

stressors to ensure the project’s 

resiliency, (3) how the project is 

arranged in a geographically efficient 

manner to safeguard ecological 

processes across the landscape, and (4) 

how the project complements the 

resilience of other conservation areas. 

The policy establishes the process for 

sending project proposals to the Service 

Director and the potential outcomes of 

the Director’s review. It also describes 

how designated representatives at the 

local level—Refuge Managers—must 

interact, coordinate, cooperate, and 

collaborate with State fish and wildlife 

agencies in the acquisition and 

management of refuges. 

Summary of Comments and Changes to 

the Final Policy 

On January 30, 2014, we announced 

the draft policy and requested public 

comment via a Federal Register notice 

(79 FR 4952). The comment period was 

open from January 30, 2014, through 

March 3, 2014. We received 35 detailed 

comment letters and many individual 

comments on the draft policy. In total, 

we received 236 individual comments, 

which were grouped into 71 comment 

categories. The comments were from 

nongovernmental organizations, 

individuals, States, and industry. Most 

of the comments expressed general 

support, and many addressed specific 

elements in the draft policy. 

We considered all of the 

recommendations for improvement and 

clarification included in the comments 

and made appropriate changes to the 

draft policy. Many of the comments we 

received were outside the scope of this 

policy. We drafted this policy in a way 

that gives us flexibility as funding levels 

and resources change. The policy does 

not supersede any piece of legislation, 

regulation, or other policy. 

Dated: December 11, 2014. 

Dan Ashe, 

Director, Fish and Wildlife Service. 

[FR Doc. 2015–00381 Filed 1–14–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Bureau of Indian Affairs 

[AAK6006201 156A2100DD 

AOR3030.999900] 

Intent To Prepare an Environmental 

Impact Statement for the Proposed 

Coquille Indian Tribe Fee-to-Trust and 

Casino Project, City of Medford, 

Jackson County, Oregon 

AGENCY: Bureau of Indian Affairs, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: This notice advises the public 

that the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) 

as lead agency intends to gather 

information necessary for preparing an 

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) 

pursuant to the National Environmental 

Policy Act (NEPA) in connection with 

the Coquille Indian Tribe’s (Tribe) 

application for a proposed 2.4-acre feeto-trust transfer and casino project to be 

located in the City of Medford, Jackson 

County, Oregon. This notice also 

announces the beginning of the public 

scoping process to solicit public 

comments and identify issues. 

DATES: Written comments on the scope 

of the EIS must arrive by February 17, 

2015. The date of a public scoping 

meeting will be announced at least 15 

days in advance through a notice to be 

published in the local newspaper, the 

Mail Tribune, and posted at 

www.coquilleeis.com. 

ADDRESSES: You may mail or handdeliver written comments to Mr. Stanley 

Speaks, Northwest Regional Director, 

Bureau of Indian Affairs, Northwest 

Region, 911 Northeast 11th Avenue, 

Portland, Oregon 97232–4165. Please 

include your name, return address, and 

‘‘DEIS Scoping Comments, Coquille 

Indian Tribe Fee-to-Trust and Casino 

Project’’ on the first page of your written 

comments. The location of a public 

scoping meeting will be announced at 

least 15 days in advance through a 

notice to be published in the local 

newspaper, the Mail Tribune, and 

posted at www.coquilleeis.com. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

BJ Howerton, Bureau of Indian Affairs, 

Northwest Regional Office, 911 

Northeast 11th Avenue, Portland, 

Oregon 97232; fax (503) 231–2275; 

phone (503) 231–6749. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Tribe 

has submitted an application to the BIA 

requesting that approximately 2.4 acres 

of land be transferred from fee to trust 

status (Proposed Action), upon which 

the Tribe would renovate an existing 

bowling alley to convert it into a gaming 

facility. In order for the Department to 

fully consider and either grant or deny 

the Tribe’s application, the Department 

must first comply with NEPA. 

The proposed fee-to-trust property is 

located within the incorporated 

boundaries of the City of Medford, 

Oregon, adjacent to the northeastern 

boundary of Highway 99, between 

Charlotte Ann Lane and Lowry Lane. 

The Tribe’s stated purpose of the 

Proposed Action is to improve the 

economic status of the Tribe so it can 

better provide housing, health care, 

education, cultural programs, and other 

services to its members. Adjacent fee 

land would be used for parking. 

The Proposed Action encompasses 

the various federal approvals which 

may be required to implement the 

Tribe’s proposed economic 

development project, including 

approval of the Tribe’s fee-to-trust 

application. The EIS will identify and 

evaluate issues related to these 

approvals. 

Areas of environmental concern 

identified for analysis in the EIS include 

land resources; water resources; air 

quality; noise; biological resources; 

cultural/historical/archaeological 

resources; resource use patterns; traffic 

and transportation; public health and 

safety; hazardous materials and 

hazardous wastes; public services and 

utilities; socioeconomics; environmental 

justice; visual resources/aesthetics; and 

cumulative, indirect, and growthinducing effects. The range of issues and 

alternatives to be addressed in the EIS 

may be expanded or reduced based on 

comments received in response to this 

notice and at the public scoping 

meeting. Additional information, 

including a map of the project site, is 

available by contacting the person listed 

in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT section of this notice. 

Public Comment Availability: 

Comments, including names and 

addresses of respondents, will be 

available for public review at the BIA 

address shown in the ADDRESSES

section, during regular business hours, 8 

a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through 

Friday, except holidays. Before 

including your address, phone number, 

email 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 in your comment that 

your personal identifying information 

be withheld from public review, the BIA 

cannot guarantee that this will occur. 


rljohnson on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES