[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 146 (Friday, July 29, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45515-45516]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-19262]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XA606


Second Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact 
Statement Related to Two Joint State and Tribal Resource Management 
Plans for Puget Sound Hatchery Programs and Reopening of Comment Period

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

ACTION: Notice of intent; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), this 
notice announces that NMFS intends to obtain additional information 
necessary to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for two 
hatchery Resource Management Plans and appended Hatchery and Genetic 
Management Plans (HGMPs) jointly proposed by the Washington Department 
of Fish and Wildlife and the Puget Sound Treaty Tribes (referred to as 
the co-managers) for NMFS's evaluation and determination under the 
Endangered Species Act for threatened salmon. The previous notice of 
intent to prepare an EIS was published on May 12, 2004. NMFS is now 
reopening the comment period for 30 days.
    NMFS provides this notice to remind other agencies and the public 
of its plans to analyze effects related to the action, and obtain 
information that may not have been available in 2004 pertinent to the 
scope of issues to include in the EIS.

DATES: Written or electronic comments from all interested parties are 
encouraged and must be received no later than 5 p.m. Pacific Daylight 
Time August 29, 2011.

ADDRESSES: All comments concerning the preparation of the EIS and NEPA 
process should be addressed to Steve Leider, NMFS, 510 Desmond Drive, 
SE., Suite 103, Lacey, WA 98503; facsimile (360) 753-9517. Comments may 
be submitted by e-mail to the following address: 
[email protected] with a subject line containing the document 
identifier ``Puget Sound Hatcheries EIS Second Comment Period.''

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Steve Leider, NMFS, by phone at (360) 
753-4650. In addition, further information regarding this project, 
including the co-managers' Resource Management Plans and associated 
HGMPs may be found at http://www.nwr.noaa.gov/Salmon-Harvest-Hatcheries/Hatcheries/Puget-Sound-Hatchery.cfm.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Listed Species in This Notice

    The following species and Evolutionarily Significant Units (ESUs) 
and Distinct Population Segments (DPSs) under NMFS jurisdiction would 
potentially be affected by the proposed action:
    Puget Sound Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha).
    Hood Canal summer-run chum salmon (O. keta).
    Stellar sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus).
    Species listed since 2004:
    Puget Sound steelhead (O. mykiss).
    Southern Resident killer whale (Orcinus orca).
    Puget Sound/Georgia Basin bocaccio (Sebastes paucispinis).
    Puget Sound/Georgia Basin yelloweye rockfish (S. ruberrimus).
    Puget Sound/Georgia Basin canary rockfish (S. pinniger).
    Green sturgeon (Acipenser medirostris).
    Eulachon (Thaleichthys pacificus).
    Listed species regulated by the United States Fish and Wildlife 
Service that may be affected by the proposed action include bull trout 
(Salvelinus confluentus), brown pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis), 
marbled murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus marmoratus), and Northern 
spotted owls (Strix occidentalis caurina).

Background

    On May 14, 2004 (69 FR 26363), NMFS announced its intent to prepare 
an EIS pursuant to NEPA (42 U.S.C. et seq.), and to conduct public 
scoping meetings related to the action. A 60-day public comment period 
was opened from May 12, 2004 to July 12, 2004, and public scoping 
meetings were held at four locations in June, 2004, including Mount 
Vernon, Seattle, Belfair, and Port Hadlock, WA. NMFS sought public 
input on the scope of the required NEPA analyses at that time, in 
addition to seeking comment for a range of reasonable alternatives and 
impacts to resources. Since the 2004 scoping period, NMFS has begun its 
analyses on the action, but due in part to the elapsed time since the 
first notice, NMFS is reopening the comment period on the EIS to ask 
the public for input on possible new information related to this 
action.
    NEPA requires Federal agencies to conduct environmental analysis of 
the proposed actions to determine if the actions may affect the human 
environment. The co-managers' Resource Management Plans are the 
proposed framework through which they would jointly manage hatchery 
programs in Puget Sound, rearing steelhead and Chinook, coho, pink, 
sockeye, and chum salmon while meeting conservation requirements 
specified under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). NMFS's action of 
evaluating the co-managers Resource Management Plans for ESA compliance 
is a major Federal action subject to environmental review under NEPA. 
Therefore, NMFS is seeking additional public input on the

[[Page 45516]]

scope of the required NEPA analysis, including reasonable alternatives 
and the associated impacts of any alternatives.
    The co-managers have jointly submitted to NMFS two Resource 
Management Plans for hatcheries in Puget Sound. One plan describes 
hatchery programs that produce Chinook salmon. The other plan describes 
hatchery programs producing other anadromous salmonid species. Appended 
to the overarching Resource Management Plans are individual HGMPs for 
each hatchery program. The HGMPs describe each hatchery program, 
including measures proposed by the co-managers to minimize risks of 
adversely affecting listed fish. Both plans consider potential effects 
on Puget Sound Chinook and steelhead, and Hood Canal summer-run chum. 
NMFS listed as threatened the two salmon species in March 1999 (64 FR 
14308) and steelhead in May 2007 (72 FR 26722).
    NMFS will perform an environmental review of the Resource 
Management Plans and prepare an EIS. From the 2004 internal and public 
scoping process, the EIS will consider potential impacts on listed and 
non-listed species and their habitats, water quality and quantity, 
wildlife and marine mammals, socioeconomics, tourism and recreation, 
environmental justice, cultural resources, human health, and cumulative 
impacts.
    NMFS is rigorously exploring and objectively evaluating a full 
range of reasonable alternatives in the EIS, including the proposed 
action (evaluation of the co-managers' Resource Management Plans) and a 
no action alternative. Additional alternatives resulting from the 2004 
internal and public scoping processes include the following: (1) A 
decrease in artificial production in selected programs that have a 
primary goal of augmenting fisheries, and (2) an increase in artificial 
production in selected programs that have a primary goal of augmenting 
fisheries, where additional hatchery capacity exists.

Request for Comments

    Specific comments and suggestions are invited from all interested 
parties to ensure that the EIS considers the full range of issues and 
alternatives related to the proposed action. In particular, NMFS 
requests information that may have become available since 2004 that 
relates to: other possible alternatives; the direct, indirect, and 
cumulative impact that implementation of the proposed Resource 
Management Plans could have on endangered and threatened species and 
their communities and habitats; potential adaptive management and/or 
monitoring provisions; funding issues; baseline environmental 
conditions in Clallam, Island, King, Kitsap, Jefferson, Mason, Pierce, 
San Juan, Skagit, Snohomish, Thurston, and Whatcom Counties; other 
plans or projects that might be relevant to this proposed action; and 
potential methods to minimize and mitigate for impacts.
    Written comments concerning the proposed action and the 
environmental review should be directed to NMFS as described above (see 
ADDRESSES). All comments and materials received, including names and 
addresses, will become part of the administrative record and may be 
released to the public. The environmental review of this project will 
be conducted in accordance with the requirements of the NEPA of 1969 as 
amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.,) National Environmental Policy Act 
Regulations (40 CFR parts 1500-1508), other appropriate Federal laws 
and regulations, and policies and procedures of NMFS for compliance 
with those regulations.

    Dated: July 26, 2011.
Therese Conant,
Acting Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protective 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2011-19262 Filed 7-28-11; 8:45 am]
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