[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 175 (Monday, September 12, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53808-53809]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-17977]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service


Notice of Availability of a Technical Agency Draft Recovery Plan 
for the Endangered Spring Creek Bladderpod (Lesquerella perforata) for 
Review and Comment

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of document availability and opening of public comment 
period.

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SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service, announce the availability 
of the technical agency draft recovery plan for the Spring Creek 
bladderpod (Lesquerella perforata). This species is endemic to the 
Central Basin in Tennessee. It is currently known from only three 
watersheds (Spring Creek, Bartons Creek, and Cedar Creek) in Wilson 
County, Tennessee. The technical agency draft recovery plan includes 
specific recovery objectives and criteria to be met in order to 
downlist this species to threatened status and delist it under the 
Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act) (16 U.S.C. 1533 et 
seq.). We solicit review and comment on this technical agency draft 
recovery plan from local, State, and Federal agencies, and the public.

DATES: In order to be considered, we must receive comments on the draft 
recovery plan on or before November 14, 2005.

ADDRESSES: If you wish to review this technical agency draft recovery 
plan, you may obtain a copy by contacting the Tennessee Field Office, 
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 446 Neal Street, Cookeville, Tennessee 
38501 (telephone (931) 528-6481), or by visiting our recovery plan Web 
site at http://endangered.fws.gov/recovery/index.html#plans. If you 
wish to comment, you may submit your comments by any one of several 
methods:
    1. You may submit written comments and materials to the Project 
Leader, at the above address.
    2. You may hand-deliver written comments to our Tennessee Field 
Office, at the above address, or fax your comments to (931) 528-7075.
    3. You may send comments by e-mail to [email protected]. For 
directions on how to submit electronic filing of comments, see the 
``Public Comments Solicited'' section.
    Comments and materials received are available for public inspection 
on request, by appointment, during normal business hours at the above 
address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Timothy Merritt at the above address 
(telephone (931) 528-6481, ext. 211).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    We listed the Spring Creek bladderpod under the Act, on January 22, 
1997 (61 FR 67493). This rare plant, a winter annual, is restricted to 
the floodplains of three creeks (Bartons, Spring and Cedar) in Wilson 
County, Tennessee. It can be found in agricultural fields, flooded 
pastures and glades, and disturbed areas. It requires some degree of 
disturbance, such as scouring from natural flooding or plowing of the 
soil, to complete its life cycle.
    Factors contributing to its endangered status are an extremely 
limited range and loss of habitat. The primary threat is the loss of 
habitat due to conversion of land to uses other than cultivation of 
annual crops, such as the rapid commercial, residential, and industrial 
development that is occurring throughout Wilson County.
    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 endangered species

[[Page 53809]]

program. To help guide the recovery effort, we are preparing recovery 
plans for most listed species. Recovery plans describe actions 
considered necessary for conservation of the species; establish 
criteria for downlisting or delisting, and estimate time and cost for 
implementing recovery measures.
    The Act 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 us to provide a 
public notice and an opportunity for public review and comment be 
provided during recovery plan development. We will consider all 
information presented during a public comment period prior to approval 
of each new or revised recovery plan. We and other Federal agencies 
will take these comments into account in the course of implementing 
approved recovery plans.
    The objective of this technical agency draft plan is to provide a 
framework for the recovery of this species so that protection under the 
Act is no longer necessary. Spring Creek bladderpod will be considered 
for reclassification to threatened status when there are 15 
occurrences: Five occurrences located within the floodplain of each of 
the three creeks (Spring Creek, Bartons Creek, and Cedar Creek). These 
occurrences either located on public or private land must be protected 
by a permanent conservation easement with a management agreement. Each 
occurrence must consist of an average of 500 plants over a five-year 
period with no less than 100 plants in any given year.
    Spring Creek bladderpod will be considered for delisting when there 
are 25 occurrences, with at minimum five occurrences located within the 
floodplain of each of the three creeks (Spring Creek, Bartons Creek, 
and Cedar Creek). Each occurrence either located on public or private 
land must be protected by a permanent conservation easement with a 
management agreement. Each occurrence must consist of an average of 500 
plants over a ten-year period with no less than 100 plants in any given 
year. As reclassification and recovery criteria are met, the status of 
the species will be reviewed and it will be considered for 
reclassification or removal from the Federal List of Endangered and 
Threatened Wildlife and Plants.

Public Comments Solicited

    We solicit written comments on the recovery plan described. We will 
consider all comments received by the date specified above prior to 
final approval of the draft recovery plan.
    Please submit electronic comments as an ASCII file format and avoid 
the use of special characters and encryption. Please also include your 
name and return address in your e-mail message. If you do not receive a 
confirmation from the system that we have received your e-mail message, 
contact us directly by calling our Tennessee Field Office (see 
ADDRESSES section).
    Our practice is to make all comments, including names and home 
addresses of respondents, available for public review during regular 
business hours. Individual respondents may request that we withhold 
their home address from the record, which we will honor to the extent 
allowable by law. In some circumstances, we would withhold also from 
the record a respondent's identity, as allowable by law. If you wish 
for us to withhold your name and/or address, you must state this 
prominently at the beginning of your comments. However, we will not 
consider anonymous comments. We will make all submissions from 
organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying 
themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or 
businesses, available for public inspection in their entirety.

Authority

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

    Dated: August 17, 2005.
Cynthia K. Dohner,
Acting Regional Director, Southeast Region.
[FR Doc. 05-17977 Filed 9-9-05; 8:45 am]
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