[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 77 (Friday, April 21, 2006)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 20636-20637]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-5975]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

RIN 1018-AT91


Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Designation of 
Critical Habitat for the Fender's Blue Butterfly (Icaricia icarioides 
fenderi), Lupinus sulphureus ssp. kincaidii (Kincaid's Lupine), and 
Erigeron decumbens var. decumbens (Willamette Daisy)

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

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

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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the 
reopening of the public comment period and a public hearing on the 
proposed designation of critical habitat for the Fender's blue 
butterfly (Icaricia icarioides fenderi), Lupinus sulphureus ssp. 
kincaidii (Kincaid's lupine), and Erigeron decumbens var. decumbens 
(Willamette daisy).

DATES: Written comments: We will accept comments from all interested 
parties until 5 p.m. PST on May 19, 2006. Public hearing: The public 
hearing will be held on May 9, 2006, from 7 p.m. until 8:30 p.m. An 
informal informational meeting will precede the hearing from 5 p.m. 
until 6:30 p.m.

ADDRESSES: Written comments: If you wish to comment, you may submit 
your comments and materials concerning the proposal by any one of 
several methods:
    (1) You may submit written comments and information to Kemper 
McMaster, Field Supervisor, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Oregon Fish 
and Wildlife Office, 2600 SE. 98th Avenue, Suite 100, Portland, OR 
97266.
    (2) You may hand-deliver written comments to our Oregon Fish and 
Wildlife Office, at the above address.
    (3) You may send comments by electronic mail (e-mail) to 
[email protected]. Please see the Public Comments Solicited 
section below for file format and other information about electronic 
filing.
    (4) You may fax your comments to 503/231-6195.
    (5) You may submit your comments through the Federal E-rulemaking 
Portal at http://www.regulations.gov.

Public Hearing

    The public hearing will be held at the Corvallis Benton County 
Library, 645 NW. Monroe Avenue, Corvallis, OR 97330.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kemper McMaster, Field Supervisor, 
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Oregon Fish and Wildlife Office, 2600 
SE. 98th Avenue, Suite 100, Portland, OR 97266 (telephone 503/231-6179; 
facsimile 503/231-6195).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Public Comments Solicited

    We intend that any final action resulting from the proposal will be 
as accurate and as effective as possible. Therefore, comments or 
suggestions from the public, other concerned governmental agencies, the 
scientific community, industry, or any other interested party 
concerning the proposed rule are hereby solicited. Comments 
particularly are sought concerning:
    (1) The reasons any habitat should or should not be determined to 
be critical habitat as provided by section 4 of the Endangered Species 
Act (Act), including whether the benefit of designation would outweigh 
any threats to the species due to designation;
    (2) Specific information on the Fender's blue butterfly, Lupinus 
sulphureus ssp. kincaidii, and Erigeron decumbens var. decumbens and 
their habitat, and which habitat or habitat components (i.e., physical 
and biological features) are essential to their conservation, such as 
soil moisture gradient, microsite preferences, and light requirements;
    (3) Specific information on: The amount and distribution of the 
Fender's blue butterfly, Lupinus sulphureus ssp. kincaidii, and 
Erigeron decumbens var. decumbens habitat; what areas should be 
included in the designations that were occupied at the time of listing 
and contain the features that are essential to the conservation of the 
species and why; what areas were not occupied at the time of listing 
but are essential to the conservation of the species and why;
    (4) Land use designations and current or planned activities in the 
subject areas and their possible impacts on proposed critical habitat; 
we specifically solicit information including:
    (a) The benefits provided by a management plan; specifically 
describe how the plan addresses each primary constituent element (PCE) 
in the absence of designated critical habitat; describe conservation 
benefits to Fender's blue butterfly, Lupinus sulphureus ssp. kincaidii, 
or Erigeron decumbens var. decumbens; include citations that point to 
the certainty of implementation of those aspects of the management 
plans;
    (b) The benefits of excluding from the critical habitat designation 
the areas

[[Page 20637]]

covered by the management plan; we are especially interested in knowing 
how partnerships may be positively or negatively affected by a 
designation, or through exclusion from critical habitat, and costs 
associated with designation; and
    (c) With specific reference to sections 4(a)(3) and 4(b)(2) of the 
Act, we request information from the Department of Defense to assist 
the Secretary of the Interior in making a determination as to whether 
any proposed critical habitat overlaps with lands, administered by or 
under the control of the Department of Defense, covered by an 
Integrated Natural Resources Management Plan (INRMP) that benefits the 
conservation of the species;
    (5) Any foreseeable economic, national security, or other potential 
impacts resulting from the proposed designation and, in particular, any 
impacts on small entities; and
    (6) Whether our approach to designating critical habitat could be 
improved or modified in any way to provide for greater public 
participation and understanding, or to assist us in accommodating 
public concerns and comments.
    If you wish to comment, you may submit your comments and materials 
concerning the proposal by any one of several methods (see ADDRESSES 
section). Please submit Internet comments to [email protected] in 
ASCII file format and avoid the use of special characters or any form 
of encryption. Please also include ``RIN 1018-AT91'' in your e-mail 
subject header and your name and return address in the body of your 
message. If you do not receive a confirmation from the system that we 
have received your Internet message, contact us directly (see ADDRESSES 
section). Please note that the Internet address [email protected] 
will be unavailable at the termination of the public comment period.
    Our practice is to make 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 addresses from the rulemaking record, which we will honor to 
the extent allowable by law. There also may be circumstances in which 
we would withhold from the rulemaking record a respondent's identity, 
as allowable by law. If you wish to withhold your name and/or address, 
you must state this prominently at the beginning of your comment, but 
you should be aware that the Service may be required to disclose your 
name and address pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act. 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. Comments 
and materials received will be available for public inspection, by 
appointment, during normal business hours at the Oregon Fish and 
Wildlife Office (see ADDRESSES section).

Public Hearing

    Anyone wishing to make an oral statement for the record is 
encouraged to provide a written copy of their statement and present it 
to us at the hearing. In the event there is a large attendance, the 
time allotted for oral statements may be limited. Oral and written 
statements receive equal consideration. There are no limits on the 
length of written comments submitted to us. If you have any questions 
concerning the public hearing, please contact the Oregon Fish and 
Wildlife Office (see ADDRESSES above). Persons needing reasonable 
accommodations in order to attend and participate in the public 
hearings should contact Patti Carroll at 503/231-2080 as soon as 
possible. In order to allow sufficient time to process requests, please 
call no later than one week before the hearing date. Information 
regarding the proposal is available in alternative formats upon 
request.

Background

    On November 2, 2005, we published a proposed rule in the Federal 
Register (70 FR 66492) to designate approximately 3,089 acres (ac) 
(1,250 hectares (ha)) as critical habitat for Fender's blue butterfly, 
724 ac (293 ha) as critical habitat for Lupinus sulphureus ssp. 
kincaidii, and 718 ac (291 ha) as critical habitat for Erigeron 
decumbens var. decumbens. The proposed critical habitat is located in 
Polk, Benton, Yamhill, Lane, Marion, Linn, and Douglas Counties, 
Oregon, and Lewis County, Washington. The original comment period on 
the proposed critical habitat rule closed on January 3, 2006.
    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 a proposed rule. In response to a timely request 
received for a public hearing, we are conducting the public hearing on 
the date and at the address described in the DATES and ADDRESSES 
sections above, and reopening the comment period accordingly.

Author

    The primary author of this package is Mikki Collins, Oregon Fish 
and Wildlife Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Authority

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

    Dated: April 14, 2006.
Matt Hogan,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks.
[FR Doc. E6-5975 Filed 4-20-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P