[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 8 (Monday, January 13, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1777-1778]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-721]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service


Notice of Reopening of Comment Period on Draft Recovery Plan for 
the Wetland and Aquatic Species of the Owens Basin, Inyo and Mono 
Counties, California and Related Public Information Workshops

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of reopening of comment period and related public 
information workshops.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announces the 
reopening of the comment period for a draft recovery plan for 
endangered, proposed, and species of concern found in the wetland and 
aquatic habitats of the Owens Basin in Inyo and Mono Counties, 
California, and related public information workshops. The recovery plan 
targets recovery of 11 species found throughout the Owens River 
drainage on Federal, State and private lands. Also available for review 
is the draft Owens Basin Management Guidelines Plan for rare species. 
The Service solicits review and comment from the public on these draft 
plans. Three public information workshops will be held in conjunction 
with the reopening of the comment period.

DATES: Comments on the draft recovery plan and/or Management Guidelines 
Plan must be received on or before April 14, 1997 to ensure 
consideration by the Service.
    Public information workshops will be held:
    Tuesday, February 11, from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Mammoth High School, 
Multipurpose Room, 365 Sierra Park Road, Town of Mammoth Lakes;
    Wednesday, February 12, from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Eastern Sierra Tri-
County Fairgrounds, Home Economics Building, Sierra Street and 
Fairgrounds Drive, Bishop; and
    Thursday, February 13, from 6 to 8 p.m. in Statham Hall, corner of 
Jackson and Bush, Lone Pine, California.

ADDRESSES: The draft recovery plan and/or Management Guidelines Plan 
are available for public inspection, by appointment, during regular 
business hours (7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday) at the 
Service's Ventura Field Office, 2493 Portola Road, Suite B, Ventura, 
California, 93003, phone 805-644-1766. Copies of the draft plans may 
also be obtained by written or phone request to the Ventura Field 
Office. (Note: Copies of the draft Management Guidelines Plan will 
automatically be mailed to all parties who received the draft recovery 
plan during its previous release.) Comments and materials regarding the 
plan should be addressed to the Field Supervisor at the Ventura Field 
Office. Comments and materials received will be available for public 
inspection upon request, by appointment, at the Ventura Field Office.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Carl Benz, Assistant Field 
Supervisor, Division of Listing and Recovery, in the Ventura Field 
Office (see ADDRESSES section).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On August 26, 1996, the Service published a notice of availability 
for public review of a draft recovery plan for endangered, proposed, 
and species of concern found in the wetland and aquatic habitats of the 
Owens Basin in Inyo and Mono Counties, California. The original comment 
period closed on October 25, 1996. The draft Management Guidelines Plan 
was not completed at that time and therefore not available for public 
review.
    Restoring an endangered or threatened animal or plant to the point 
where it is again a secure, self-sustaining member of its ecosystem is 
a primary goal of the Service's endangered species program. To help 
guide recovery efforts, the Service prepares recovery plans for most of 
the listed species native to the United States. Recovery plans describe 
actions considered necessary for conservation of listed species, 
establish criteria for the recovery levels for reclassification from 
endangered to threatened or removal from the list, and estimate the 
time and cost for implementing the needed recovery measures.
    The Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act) (16 U.S.C. 
1531 et seq.) requires the development of recovery plans for listed 
species unless such a plan would not promote the conservation of a 
particular species. Section 4(f) of the Act requires that public notice 
and an opportunity for public review and comment be provided during 
recovery plan development. The Service will consider all information 
presented during a public comment period prior to approval of each new 
or revised recovery plan. The Service and other Federal agencies will 
take these comments into account in the course of implementing approved 
recovery plans.
    The draft recovery plan for the Owens Basin wetland and aquatic 
species addresses conservation of the following species: Owens tui 
chub, Owens pupfish, Fish Slough milk-vetch, Owens speckled dace, Long 
Valley Speckled dace, Inyo County mariposa lily, Owens Valley 
checkerbloom, Fish Slough springsnail, Owens Valley springsnail, 
Aardhal's springsnail, and Owens Valley vole. Owens tui chub and Owens 
pupfish are federally listed as endangered, and the Fish Slough milk-
vetch has been proposed for listing as endangered. All of these species 
are threatened by loss and degradation of wetland and aquatic habitats.
    The draft recovery plan was developed in accordance with the 
Service's recent policy emphasizing an ecosystem approach to 
conservation of endangered species. The goal of the recovery plan is to 
restore the target species to secure status within their natural 
habitats. Protecting the ecosystem of endangered species in the Owens 
Basin will also protect other locally rare species, and, it is hoped, 
avert future declines in plant and wildlife populations that could lead 
to future listings.
    The draft recovery plan was developed with the participation of

[[Page 1778]]

State and Federal land management agencies, local agencies and property 
owners, including the California Department of Fish and Game, U.S. 
Bureau of Land Management, Inyo National Forest, and the Los Angeles 
Department of Water and Power. The plan calls for restoration of 
wetland and aquatic habitats throughout the Owens River drainage. The 
plan describes tasks that, when accomplished, should ensure the 
survival of target species, and thereby justify their removal from the 
endangered and threatened species list.
    The draft Management Guidelines Plan for rare species was completed 
to provide management guidance to the Department of Fish and Game. The 
Management Guidance Plan is supplemental to, but independent from, the 
draft recovery plan. In essence, they are separate documents.

Public Comments Solicited

    The Service solicits written comments on the draft recovery plan 
and Management Guidelines Plan described herein. All comments received 
by the date specified above will be considered prior to approval of the 
plan or completion of a final Management Guidelines Plan.

Authority

    The authority for this action is section 4(f) of the Endangered 
Species Act, 16 U.S.C. 1533(f).

    Dated: January 3, 1997.
Thomas J. Dwyer,
Acting Regional Director.
[FR Doc. 97-721 Filed 1-10-97; 8:45 am]
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