[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 174 (Friday, September 6, 1996)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 47105-47106]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-22765]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17


Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Notice of Public 
Hearing and Reopening of Public Comment Period on Proposed Endangered 
Status for Two San Fransciso Bay California Tidal Marsh Plants

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule; notice of public hearing and reopening of public 
comment period.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), pursuant to the 
Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act), provides notice of a 
public hearing and reopening of the comment period on the proposed 
endangered status for Cirsium hydrophilum var. hydrophilum (Suisun 
thistle) and Cordylanthus mollis ssp. mollis (soft bird's-beak). All 
parties are invited to comment on this proposal.

DATES: The public hearing will be held from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on 
Wednesday, October 2, 1996, in Fairfield, California. The public 
comment period now closes on October 15, 1996. Any comments received by 
the closing date will be considered in the final decision on this 
proposal.

ADDRESSES: The public hearing will be held at the Holiday Inn, 1350 
Holiday Lane, Fairfield, California. Written comments and materials 
concerning this proposal should be sent to the Field Supervisor, 
Sacramento Field Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 3310 El Camino 
Avenue, Suite 130, Sacramento, California 95821-6340. Comments and 
materials received, as well as the supporting documentation used in 
preparing the rule, will be available for public inspection, by 
appointment, during normal business hours at the above address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kirsten Tarp, Sacramento Field Office 
(see ADDRESSES section) at (916) 979-2710; facsimile (916) 979-2723.

[[Page 47106]]

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Cirsium hydrophilum var. hydrophilum (Suisun thistle) and 
Cordylanthus mollis ssp. mollis (soft bird's beak) are restricted to 
salt or brackish tidal marshes within the San Francisco Bay area in 
northern California. Habitat conversion, changes in salinity of tidal 
marshes, water pollution, indirect effects of urbanization, habitat 
fragmentation, mosquito abatement activities such as off-road vehicle 
use and dredging, competition with non-native plants, insect predation, 
chance environmental events, inadequacy of existing laws, erosion, and 
other human-caused activities variously threaten these plants. 
Activities such as waterfowl hunting, bird watching, and fishing do not 
adversely affect the plants. A proposal to list these two plants was 
published in the Federal Register on June 12, 1995 (60 FR 31000).
    Section 4(b)(5)(E) of the Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) requires 
that a public hearing be held if it is requested within 45 days of the 
publication of the proposed rule. A public hearing request was received 
within the allotted time period from Paul Campos, General Council for 
the Building Industry Association. Because a Congressional moratorium 
on the Service's activities associated with final listing actions was 
in effect from April 1995, to April 1996, scheduling of the hearing was 
delayed. The Service has now scheduled a public hearing to be held on 
Wednesday, October, 2, 1996, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Holiday 
Inn, 1350 Holiday Lane, Fairfield, California.
    Anyone wishing to make statements for the record should bring a 
written copy of their statement to the hearing. Oral statements may be 
limited in length if the number of parties present at the hearing 
necessitates such a limitation. Oral and written comments receive equal 
consideration. The Service places no limits on the length of written 
comments or materials presented at the hearing or mailed to the 
Service.
    The comment period on the proposal was to close on August 21, 1995. 
To accommodate the hearing, the public comment period is reopened upon 
publication of this notice. Written comments may now be submitted until 
October 15, 1996, to the Service in the ADDRESSES section.

    The primary author of this notice is Kirsten Tarp (see ADDRESSES 
section).

Authority

    The authority for this action is the Endangered Species Act of 
1973, as amended: (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.)

    Dated: August 30, 1996.
Thomas Dwyer,
Acting Regional Director, Region 1, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 96-22765 Filed 9-5-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P