[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 154 (Thursday, August 9, 2012)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 47587-47588]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-19487]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

[Docket No. FWS-R1-ES-2011-0098; 4500030113]
RIN 1018-AX14


Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Listing 38 Species 
on Molokai, Lanai, and Maui as Endangered and Designating Critical 
Habitat on Molokai, Lanai, Maui, and Kahoolawe for 135 Species

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule; extension of comment period.

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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are 
extending the comment period on our proposed rule to, among other 
things, list 38 species on the Hawaiian Islands of Molokai, Lanai, and 
Maui as endangered species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as 
amended, and designate critical habitat on Molokai, Lanai, Maui, and 
Kahoolawe for 135 species. We made the proposed rule available for 
public comment on June 11, 2012.

DATES: The comment period end date is September 10, 2012. The deadline 
for submitting an electronic comment using the Federal eRulemaking 
Portal (see ADDRESSES section, below) is 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on 
this date. After September 10, 2012, you must submit information 
directly to the Division of Policy and Directives Management (see 
ADDRESSES section below). Please note that we might not be able to 
address or incorporate information that we receive after the above 
requested date.

ADDRESSES: You may submit information by one of the following methods:
    (1) Electronically: Go to the Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. In the Search box, enter FWS-R1-ES-2011-0098, 
which is the docket number for this action. Then click on the Search 
button. You may submit a comment by clicking on ``Comment Now!''
    (2) By hard copy: Submit by U.S. mail or hand-delivery to: Public 
Comments Processing, Attn: FWS-R1-ES-2011-0098; Division of Policy and 
Directives Management; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; 4401 N. Fairfax 
Drive, MS 2042-PDM; Arlington, VA 22203.
    We will post all information we receive on http://www.regulations.gov. This generally means that we will post any 
personal information you provide us (see the Request for Information 
section below for more details).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Loyal Mehrhoff, Field Supervisor, 
Pacific Islands Fish and Wildlife Office, 300 Ala Moana Boulevard, Box 
50088, Honolulu, HI 96850; by telephone at 808-792-9400; or by 
facsimile at 808-792-9581. If you use a telecommunications device for 
the deaf (TDD), call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 
800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On June 11, 2012 (77 FR 34464), we published in the Federal 
Register, for review and comment, a proposed rule to list 38 species 
(35 plants and 3 tree snails) on the Hawaiian Islands of Molokai, 
Lanai, and Maui as endangered species, and concurrent designation of 
271,062 acres (ac) (109,695 hectares (ha)) as critical habitat. We are 
also proposing revision of critical habitat for 85 plants and 
designation of critical habitat for 11 listed plants and animals that 
do not have designated critical habitat on these islands. Approximately 
47 percent of the area being proposed as critical habitat is already 
designated as critical habitat for the 85 plant species or for other 
species. We also propose to delist the plant Gahnia lanaiensis, due to 
new information that this species is synonymous with G. lacera, a 
widespread species from New Zealand. In addition, we propose name 
changes or corrections for 11 endangered plants and 2 endangered birds, 
and we propose to reaffirm the listings for 2 endangered plant species 
with taxonomic revisions. We are also considering excluding 
approximately 40,973 ac (16,581 ha) of privately owned lands on Maui 
and Molokai.
    We received a request to extend the public comment period beyond 
the August 10, 2012, due date on our June 11, 2012 (77 FR 34464), 
proposal. We are working with our partners and local landowners to 
inform them of the proposed listings and critical habitat designations. 
In order to ensure that the public has an adequate opportunity to 
review and comment on our proposed rule, we are extending the comment 
period for an additional 30 days.

Request for Information

    We will accept written comments and information during this 
extended comment period. We will consider information and 
recommendations from all interested parties and intend that any final 
action resulting from this proposal will be based on the best 
scientific and commercial data available and be as accurate and as 
effective as possible. Therefore, we solicit comments or suggestions on 
this proposed rule from the public, other concerned governmental 
agencies, the scientific community, industry, or other interested 
parties. We particularly seek comments concerning:
    (1) Biological, commercial trade, or other relevant data concerning 
threats (or the lack thereof) to the 40 species proposed or being 
reevaluated for listing, and regulations that may be addressing those 
threats.
    (2) Additional information concerning the range, distribution, and 
population sizes of each of the 40 species proposed or being 
reevaluated for listing, including the locations of any additional 
populations of these species.
    (3) Any information on the biological or ecological requirements of 
the 40 species proposed or being reevaluated for listing.
    (4) The reasons why we should or should not designate areas for any 
of the species in this proposal as ``critical habitat'' under section 4 
of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act) (16 U.S.C. 1531 
et seq.), including whether there are threats to these species from 
human activity, the degree to which can be expected to increase due to 
the designation, and whether the benefit of designation would outweigh 
threats to these species caused by the designation, such that the 
designation of critical habitat is prudent.
    (5) Whether a revision of critical habitat is warranted for the 85 
plant species that are already listed as endangered or threatened under 
the Act and that currently have designated critical habitat.
    (6) Specific information on:
     The amount and distribution of critical habitat for the 
species included in this proposed rule;

[[Page 47588]]

     What areas currently occupied, and that contain the 
necessary physical or biological features essential for the 
conservation of the species, we should include in the designation and 
why;
     Whether special management considerations or protections 
may be required for the physical or biological features essential to 
the conservation of the species in this proposed rule; and
     What areas not currently occupied are essential to the 
conservation of the species and why.
    (7) Land use designations and current or planned activities in the 
areas occupied by the species, and the possible impacts of critical 
habitat on these designations or activities.
    (8) Any foreseeable economic, national security, or other relevant 
impacts of designating any area as critical habitat. We are 
particularly interested in any impacts on small entities, and the 
benefits of including or excluding areas that may experience these 
impacts.
    (9) Whether the benefits of excluding any particular area from 
critical habitat outweigh the benefits of including that area as 
critical habitat under section 4(b)(2) of the Act, after considering 
the potential impacts and benefits of the proposed critical habitat 
designation. Under section 4(b)(2), the Secretary may exclude an area 
from critical habitat if he determines that the benefits of such 
exclusion outweigh the benefits of including that particular area as 
critical habitat, unless failure to designate that specific area as 
critical habitat will result in the extinction of the species. We 
request specific information on:
     The benefits of including specific areas in the final 
designation and supporting rationale;
     The benefits of excluding specific areas from the final 
designation and supporting rationale; and
     Whether any specific exclusions may result in the 
extinction of the species and why.
    (10) Whether the proposed critical habitat on private lands and 
under consideration for exclusion under section 4(b)(2) of the Act 
should or should not be excluded and why.
    (11) Information concerning any habitat conservation or management 
plans, conservation plans or programs, or other such agreements for our 
consideration under section 4(b)(2) of the Act.
    (12) Information on the projected and reasonably likely impact of 
climate change on the species included in this proposed rule, and any 
special management needs or protections that may be needed in the 
critical habitat areas we are proposing.
    (13) Information on any special management needs or protections 
that may be needed in the critical habitat areas we are proposing.
    (14) Whether we could improve or modify our approach to designating 
critical habitat in any way to provide for greater public participation 
and understanding, or to better accommodate public concerns and 
comments.
    (15) Our proposal to revise taxonomic classifications with name 
changes or family changes for 11 plant species and 2 bird species 
identified in the proposed rule.
    (16) Specific information on ways to improve the clarity of this 
rule as it pertains to completion of consultations under section 7 of 
the Act.
    For more background on our proposed rule, see the June 11, 2012, 
Federal Register. The proposed rule is available at the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov (see ADDRESSES section 
above).
    If you previously submitted comments or information on the proposed 
rule, please do not resubmit them. We have incorporated them into the 
public record, and we will fully consider them in our final rulemaking. 
Our final determination concerning this proposed rulemaking will take 
into consideration all written comments and any additional information 
we receive.
    You may submit your comments and materials concerning the proposed 
rule by one of the methods listed in ADDRESSES. We request that you 
send comments only by the methods described in ADDRESSES.
    If you submit a comment via http://www.regulations.gov, your entire 
comment--including any personal identifying information--will be posted 
on the Web site. We will post all hardcopy comments on http://www.regulations.gov as well. If you submit a hardcopy comment that 
includes personal identifying information, you may request at the top 
of your document that we withhold this information from public review. 
However, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
    Comments and materials we receive, as well as supporting 
documentation we used in preparing the proposed rule, will be available 
for public inspection on http://www.regulations.gov at Docket No. FWS-
R1-ES-2011-0098, or by appointment, during normal business hours, at 
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Pacific Islands Fish and Wildlife 
Office (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). You may obtain copies of 
the proposed rule on the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov at 
Docket No. FWS-R1-ES-2011-0098, or by mail from the Pacific Islands 
Fish and Wildlife Office (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).

Authors

    The primary authors of this notice are the staff of the U.S. Fish 
and Wildlife Service.

Authority

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

    Dated: July 30, 2012.
Rowan W. Gould,
Acting Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2012-19487 Filed 8-8-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P