[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 26 (Tuesday, February 8, 2011)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 6754-6755]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-2752]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 223

RIN 0648-XZ59


Endangered and Threatened Species; Extension of Public Comment 
Period on Proposed Threatened Status for Subspecies of the Ringed Seal

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

ACTION: Proposed rule; extension of public comment period.

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SUMMARY: We, NMFS, are extending the date by which public comments are 
due concerning the proposed rule to list the Arctic (Phoca hispida 
hispida), Okhotsk (Phoca hispida ochotensis), Baltic (Phoca hispida 
botnica), and Ladoga (Phoca hispida ladogensis) subspecies of the 
ringed seal as threatened under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as 
amended (ESA). On December 10, 2010, we published a proposed rule to 
list these subspecies as threatened. As part of that proposal, we 
announced a public comment period to end on February 8, 2011. Today we 
extend the public comment period to March 25, 2011.

DATES: The deadline for receipt of comments on the proposed rule 
published on December 10, 2010 (75 FR 77476), is extended from February 
8, 2011, to March 25, 2011.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to Kaja Brix, Assistant Regional 
Administrator, Protected Resources Division, Alaska Region, NMFS, Attn: 
Ellen Sebastian. You may submit comments, identified by RIN 0648-XZ59, 
by any one of the following methods:
     Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal eRulemaking Portal http://www.regulations.gov.
     Mail: P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, AK 99802.
     Fax: (907) 586-7557.
     Hand delivery to the Federal Building: 709 West 9th 
Street, Room 420A, Juneau, AK.
    All comments received are a part of the public record. No comments 
will be posted to http://www.regulations.gov for public viewing until 
after the comment period has closed. Comments will generally be posted 
without change. All Personal Identifying Information (for example, 
name, address, etc.) voluntarily submitted by the commenter may be 
publicly accessible. Do not submit Confidential Business Information or 
otherwise sensitive or protected information.
    We will accept anonymous comments (enter N/A in the required 
fields, if you

[[Page 6755]]

wish to remain anonymous). You may submit attachments to electronic 
comments in Microsoft Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or Adobe PDF file 
formats only.
    The proposed rule, status review report, and other materials 
relating to this proposal can be found on the Alaska Region Web site 
at: http://alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tamara Olson, NMFS Alaska Region, 
(907) 271-5006; Kaja Brix, NMFS Alaska Region, (907) 586-7235; or Marta 
Nammack, Office of Protected Resources, Silver Spring, MD (301) 713-
1401.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On December 10, 2010 (75 FR 77476), we published a proposed rule to 
list the Arctic, Okhotsk, Baltic, and Ladoga subspecies of the ringed 
seal as threatened under the ESA. Based on the status of these 
subspecies, we also proposed protective regulations pursuant to section 
4(d) of the ESA for these subspecies to include all of the prohibitions 
in section 9(a)(1) of the ESA.
    We received requests to extend the public comment period on the 
proposed rule due to partial overlap of the comment period with the 
holiday season, and also because the comment period is scheduled 
concurrently with the comment period for the proposed listing of the 
Beringia and Okhotsk Distinct Population Segments (DPSs) of the bearded 
seal (Erignathus barbatus) (75 FR 77496). Three requesters asked for an 
additional 30 days; and one requester asked for an additional 60 days. 
We have considered these requests and conclude that a 45-day extension 
should allow sufficient time for responders to submit comments without 
significantly delaying this rulemaking process. We are therefore 
extending the public comment period, which was scheduled to end 
February 8, 2011, to March 25, 2011, to allow additional time for 
public comment. A 45-day extension of the public comment period on the 
proposed rule to list DPSs of the bearded seal is published 
concurrently as a separate notice.

    Authority:  16 U.S.C. 1533 et seq.

    Dated: January 31, 2011.
James H. Lecky,
Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
[FR Doc. 2011-2752 Filed 2-7-11; 8:45 am]
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