[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 151 (Monday, August 7, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44614-44615]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-12754]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[Docket No. 060725202-6202[ndash:01] I.D. No. 072006D]


Endangered and Threatened Wildlife; 90-Day Finding for a Petition 
To List the Cook Inlet Beluga Whale as an Endangered Species

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration, Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of 90-day petition finding.

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SUMMARY: We (NMFS) announce a 90-day finding on a petition to list the 
Cook Inlet beluga whale as an endangered species under the Endangered 
Species Act (ESA). We find that the petition presents substantial 
scientific or commercial information indicating that the petitioned 
action may be warranted.

DATES: The finding announced in this document was made on August 7, 
2006.

ADDRESSES: Requests for copies of the petition should be addressed to 
NMFS, Protected Resources Division, 709 West 9th Street, Box 21668, 
Juneau, AK 99802-1668. The petition may also be viewed on our Web site 
at http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brad Smith, NMFS, 222 West 7th Avenue, 
Anchorage, AK 99517, telephone (907) 271-5006, fax (907) 271-3030; Kaja 
Brix, NMFS, (907)586-7235, fax (907) 586-7012; or Marta Nammack, NMFS, 
(301)713ndash;1401.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On April 20, 2006, we received a petition 
from Trustees For Alaska to list the Cook Inlet beluga whale as 
endangered under the ESA. Section 4(b)(3)(A) of the ESA requires, to 
the maximum extent practicable, that within 90 days of receipt of a 
petition to designate a species as threatened or endangered, the 
Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) make a finding on whether that 
petition

[[Page 44615]]

presents substantial scientific or commercial information indicating 
that the petitioned action may be warranted. That finding is to be 
published promptly in the Federal Register.
    In determining whether a petition contains substantial information, 
we consider information submitted with and referenced in the petition 
and all other information readily available in our files. We do not 
conduct additional research at this point, and we subject the petition 
to critical review. Our ESA implementing regulations at 50 CFR 
424.14(b)(1) define substantial information as 
the amount of information that would lead a reasonable person to 
believe that the measure proposed in the petition may be warranted. If 
the petition is found to present such information, the Secretary must 
conduct a status review of the involved species. In making a finding on 
a petition to list a species, the Secretary must consider whether such 
a petition (i) clearly indicates the administrative measure recommended 
and gives the scientific and any common name of the species involved; 
(ii) contains detailed narrative justification for the recommended 
measure, describing, based on available information, past and present 
numbers and distribution of the species involved and any threats faced 
by the species; (iii) provides information regarding the status of the 
species over all or a significant portion of its range; and (iv) is 
accompanied by the appropriate supporting documentation in the form of 
bibliographic references, reprints of pertinent publications, copies of 
reports or letters from authorities, and maps (50 CFR 424.14(b)(2)).
    The petition submitted by Trustees for Alaska presents substantial 
evidence in support of their request. The petition states the Cook 
Inlet population of beluga whales is a ``species'' under the definition 
of the ESA, and that NMFS in June 2000 wrote that the Cook Inlet 
population of beluga whales qualifies as a Distinct Population Segment 
(DPS, which is a species under the ESA) under the joint NMFS/U.S. Fish 
and Wildlife policy on the Recognition of Distinct Vertebrate 
Population Segments under the ESA (61 FR 4722; February 7, 1996). This 
policy states that a population can be considered a DPS if it is 
discrete from other conspecific populations and if it is significant to 
the taxon to which it belongs. The petitioner provides genetic and 
geographic information to support that the Cook Inlet beluga whale is 
discrete from other beluga whale populations, as well as rationale for 
why this population is also significant to the beluga whale species. It 
is the petitioner's contention that the Cook Inlet beluga whale is in 
danger of extinction throughout its range, and, therefore, is an 
endangered species as defined under 16 U.S.C. 1532(6). The petition 
presents information on the abundance, demographics, and distribution 
of the Cook Inlet beluga whales, as well as a discussion of the 
applicability of the ESA section 4(a)(1) factors found at 16 U.S.C. 
1533(a).
    We evaluated whether the information provided or cited in the 
petition met the ESA's standard for ``substantial information.'' After 
reviewing the information contained in the petition, as described 
above, as well as other scientific information readily available, we 
have determined that the petition presents substantial scientific 
information indicating that the petitioned action may be warranted.
    We initiated a status review on March 29, 2006 (71 FR 14836), prior 
to receiving the petition. A status review is an evaluation of the 
available information about the biological vulnerability of a species, 
subspecies, or DPS. Information considered during a status review 
includes demographic information such as abundance, reproductive 
success, age structure, and distribution, and information provided in a 
petition for listing. A status review considers both historical and 
recent trends in these parameters, to the extent that this information 
is available. The status review must also evaluate current and 
potential threats facing the species and ongoing efforts to protect the 
species, subspecies, or DPS. We solicited information from the public 
to help us in evaluating the status of the Cook Inlet beluga whale when 
we announced the initiation of the status review (71 FR 14836; March 
24, 2006).
    Upon completion of the status review, and within 12 months of the 
petition, we must make one of the following findings: (1) The 
petitioned action is not warranted, in which case the Secretary shall 
promptly publish such finding in the Federal Register and so notify the 
petitioner; (2) the petitioned action is warranted, in which case the 
Secretary shall promptly publish in the Federal Register a proposed 
regulation to implement the action pursuant to 50 CFR 424.16; or (3) 
the petitioned action is warranted, but that (A) the immediate proposal 
and timely promulgation of a regulation to implement the petitioned 
action is precluded because of other pending proposals to list, delist, 
or reclassify species, and (B) expeditious progress is being made to 
list, delist, or reclassify qualified species, in which case such 
findings shall be promptly published in the Federal Register together 
with a description and evaluation of the reasons and data on which the 
finding is based.

Authority

    The authority for this action is the ESA, as amended (16 U.S.C. 
1531 et seq.).

    Dated: August 1, 2006.
William Hogarth,
Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
[FR Doc. E6-12754 Filed 8-4-06; 8:45 am]
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