[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 214 (Friday, November 5, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 60453-60454]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-29001]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service


Availability of the Reassessment of the Interim Wolf Control Plan 
for the Northern Rocky Mountains

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of document availability.

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SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service, announce the availability 
of the Reassessment of the Interim Wolf Control Plan for the Northern 
Rocky Mountains, which includes northwestern Montana and the Panhandle 
of northern Idaho (Exclusive of the Experimental Population Area). Our 
1988 Interim Wolf Control Plan (Control Plan) was developed in response 
to a recommendation in the 1987 Northern Rocky Mountain Wolf Recovery 
Plan (Recovery Plan) to conserve and enhance survival and propagation 
of the gray wolf, and is implemented under an Endangered Species Act 
section 10 permit. The Control Plan has been carried out for 11 years 
to control problem wolves.
    A notice of availability of the draft reassessment was published in 
the Federal Register, Volume 63, Number 78, on April 23, 1998, 
soliciting review and comments from the public for 30 days. Based on 
the review and the comments received, we have modified the Control Plan 
to include changes in the following areas--(1) Management zones; (2) 
encouraging research in deterring wolf depredations on livestock; (3) 
recordkeeping and analysis; (4) non-lethal control techniques and; (5) 
monitoring of the wolf population in northwestern Montana. The Control 
Plan also was amended to include the need to control wolves that kill 
pets and an increased educational effort about wolf recovery and 
management in northwestern Montana.

ADDRESSES: Persons wishing to obtain a copy of the Reassessment and the 
Modified Interim Wolf Control Plan may do so by contacting the Wolf 
Recovery Coordinator, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 100 North Park, 
Suite 320, Helena, Montana 59604, or by accessing the website. The 
Control Plan and the Reassessment can be retrieved from the Service's 
Region 6 website at <www.r6.fws.gov/wolf>. The complete administrative 
record of this action is on file at the above address and is available 
for inspection, by appointment, during normal business hours.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ed Bangs, Wolf Recovery Coordinator 
(see ADDRESSES above), or at telephone (406) 449-5225, extension 204, 
or e-mail <[email protected]>.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The primary goal of our endangered species program is to restore an 
endangered or threatened animal or plant to the point where it is again 
a secure, self-sustaining member of its ecosystem. Recovery Plans 
describe actions considered necessary for conservation of the species, 
establish criteria for recovery levels for downlisting or delisting the 
species, and estimate time and cost for implementing the recovery 
measures identified.
    Under provisions of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), as 
amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), the northern Rocky Mountains wolf 
population was listed as endangered, and we approved the Wolf Recovery 
Plan for the Northern Rocky Mountains (Recovery Plan) in 1987. The 
Recovery Plan recognized that, where ranges of wolves and livestock 
overlap, some livestock would be killed by wolves. In order to address 
this issue, the Recovery Plan identified the need ``to delineate 
recovery areas and identify and develop conservation strategies and 
management plan(s) to ensure perpetuation of the Northern Rocky 
Mountain wolf.'' To respond to this need, a task was included to 
develop and implement a wolf control/contingency plan for dealing with 
wolf depredations. An Interim Wolf Control Plan for Montana and Wyoming 
(Control Plan) was approved by the Service's Regional Director on 
August 5, 1988. The Control Plan included criteria for determining 
problem wolves, criteria for their disposition, and protocols and 
techniques for control actions.
    We conduct control of problem wolves through our section 10 permit 
authority. Under section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Act, ``The Secretary (of 
the Interior) may permit, under such terms and conditions as he may 
prescribe--(A) any act otherwise prohibited by section 9 for scientific 
purposes or to enhance the propagation or survival of the affected 
species.''
    The Control Plan has been carried out for 11 years to control 
problem wolves. On February 27, 1998, a draft evaluation of the Control 
Plan was completed to see if it was achieving its goal of helping 
recovery of the Northern Rocky Mountain endangered wolf population. The 
evaluation looked at--(1) the effectiveness of the program in 
facilitating wolf recovery, (2) effectiveness of the guidelines for 
determining problem wolves, conducting wolf control actions and the 
disposition of problem wolves, (3) the analysis, accuracy, consistency 
and value of the reporting and recording of actions for the record, and 
(4) recommendations for the wolf control program.
    A recommendation in the draft reassessment was to subject the 
review to a wider and more professional scrutiny by publishing a notice 
of availability in the Federal Register, and sending it to experts 
experienced in managing wolf/livestock conflicts. A notice of 
availability was published in the Federal Register, Volume 63, Number 
78, on April 23, 1998, soliciting review and comments from the public 
for 30 days. Copies of the notice were sent to congressional delegates 
and the Governors in Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming. Copies were sent to 
U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services State directors and 
their Regional Office. All cooperators were made aware of the notice of 
availability through the gray wolf weekly report mailing list and 
postings on several Internet websites.
    We received 25 written and 1 verbal response to the draft 
reassessment. Comments were reviewed and 22 relevant issues regarding 
the Control Plan were categorized and addressed. The categories, number 
of comments, and responses to relevant issues are listed in the final 
version of the Reassessment. After careful review and analysis of 
comments received, and the evaluation of the Control Plan, some of the 
recommendations in the draft reassessment were modified and several 
additional recommendations have been added to the Modified Interim 
Control Plan. We have modified the Control Plan for the Northern Rocky 
Mountains to include changes in the following areas--(1) management 
zones; (2) encouraging research in deterring wolf depredations on 
livestock; (3) recordkeeping and analysis; (4) non-lethal control 
techniques and; (5) monitoring of the wolf population in northwestern 
Montana. The Control Plan also was amended to include the need to 
control wolves that kill pets and a recommendation to increase

[[Page 60454]]

educational efforts about wolf recovery and management in northwestern 
Montana.

Authority

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

    Dated: October 28, 1999.
Terry Terrell,
Deputy Regional Director, Denver, Colorado.
[FR Doc. 99-29001 Filed 11-4-99; 8:45 am]
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