[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 136 (Tuesday, July 16, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46682-46683]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-17758]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service


Notice of Intent To Prepare a Comprehensive Conservation Plan and 
Associated Environmental Impact Statement for Lake Umbagog National 
Wildlife Refuge

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Intent.

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SUMMARY: This notice advises the public that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service (Service) intends to prepare a Comprehensive Conservation Plan 
(CCP) and associated Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for Lake 
Umbagog National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) pursuant to the National 
Environmental Policy Act and its implementing regulations. Lake Umbagog 
NWR is located in Coos County, New Hampshire and Oxford

[[Page 46683]]

County, Maine. The planning process will also include a Wilderness 
Review of existing refuge lands, in accordance with the Wilderness Act 
of 1964, as amended, and Refuge Planning Policy 602 FW Chapters 1, 2, 
and 3. The Service is furnishing this notice in compliance with the 
National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966, as amended 
(16 U.S.C. 668dd et seq.):
    (1) To advise other agencies and the public of our intentions, and
    (2) to obtain suggestions and information on the scope of issues to 
include in the environmental documents.

DATES: The Service will hold a series of public scoping meetings early 
in the planning process to help identify issues of concern and gather 
comments from the public:
     Tuesday, July 30, 6:30 p.m., Errol Town Hall, Errol, New 
Hampshire;
     Thursday, Aug. 1, 6:30 p.m., New Hampshire Community 
Technical College, Berlin, New Hampshire;
     Friday, Aug. 2, 6:30 p.m., Bethel Inn, Bethel, Maine.
Remaining to be scheduled this summer are meetings in Augusta, Maine 
and Concord, New Hampshire.
    Inquire at the address below for dates and locations of future 
planning activities, or to be added to our mailing list. Further notice 
announcing times and locations of public meetings, public hearings, and 
release of a draft CCP and EIS will be published in local news media.

ADDRESSES: Address comments, questions and requests for more 
information to the following: Refuge Manager, Lake Umbagog National 
Wildlife Refuge, P.O. Box 240, Errol, New Hampshire 03579, (603) 482-
3415, e-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: By Federal law, all lands within the 
National Wildlife Refuge System are to be managed in accordance with an 
approved CCP. The CCP guides management decisions and identifies refuge 
goals, long-range objectives, and strategies for achieving refuge 
purposes. It will provide other agencies and the public with a clear 
understanding of the desired conditions for the refuge and how the 
Service will implement management strategies. The planning process will 
evaluate many elements, including habitat and wildlife management, 
additional land protection and refuge expansion, public use, and 
cultural resource protection. Public input into this planning process 
is essential.
    The Service will solicit public input via public meetings, 
workshops, and written comments. Special mailings, newspaper articles, 
webpages, and announcements will inform people of the time and place of 
such opportunities for public input to the CCP. Lake Umbagog NWR 
includes 16,300 acres of fresh water marsh and forest surrounding the 
8,500-acre Umbagog Lake on the New Hampshire and Maine border. A draft 
CCP and EIS is planned for public review in the fall of 2003. You can 
view the project's Web page at http://northeast.fws.gov/planning/umbagog.htm.
    Review of these projects will be conducted in accordance with the 
requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, 
as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), NEPA Regulations (40 CFR parts 
1500-1508), other appropriate Federal laws and regulations, and Service 
policies and procedures for compliance with those regulations.

    Dated: June 21, 2002.
Richard O. Bennett,
Deputy Regional Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Hadley, 
Massachusetts.
[FR Doc. 02-17758 Filed 7-15-02; 8:45 am]
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