[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 15 (Wednesday, January 23, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4834-4835]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-01229]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XC444


Endangered and Threatened Species; Take of Anadromous Fish

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

ACTION: Notice of availability and request for comment.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that NMFS has received a Tribal 
Resource Management Plan (TRMP) from the Nez Perce Tribe (NPT), and an 
updated Fishery Management and Evaluation Plan (FMEP) for fishery 
management in the Snake River Basin in Northeast Oregon. The TRMP is 
provided pursuant to the Tribal 4(d) Rule; the FMEP is provided 
pursuant to the salmon and steelhead 4(d) Rule. This document serves to 
notify the public of the availability for comment of the proposed 
evaluation of the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) as to how the NPT 
TRMP addresses the criteria in the ESA, and of the FMEP. NMFS also 
announces the availability of a supplemental draft Environmental 
Assessment (EA) for the pending determination.

DATES: Comments and other submissions must be received at the 
appropriate address or fax number (see ADDRESSES) no later than 5 p.m. 
Pacific time on February 22, 2013.

ADDRESSES: Written responses to the application should be sent to 
Enrique Pati[ntilde]o, National Marine Fisheries Services, Salmon 
Management Division, 7600 Sand Point Way NE., Seattle, WA

[[Page 4835]]

98115. Comments may also be submitted by email to: 
[email protected]. Include in the subject line of the 
email comment the following identifier: Comments on Northeast Oregon 
Fishery Plans. Comments may also be sent via facsimile (fax) to (206) 
526-6736. Requests for copies of the documents should be directed to 
the National Marine Fisheries Services, Salmon Management Division, 
7600 Sand Point Way NE., Seattle, WA 98115. The documents are also 
available on the Internet at www.nwr.noaa.gov. Comments received will 
also be available for public inspection, by appointment, during normal 
business hours by calling (503) 230-5418.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Enrique Patino at (206) 526-4655 or 
email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Species Covered in This Notice

    Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha): threatened, naturally 
produced and artificially propagated Snake River Spring/Summer-run.
    Steelhead (O. mykiss): threatened, naturally produced and 
artificially propagated Snake River Basin.

Background

    Previously, NMFS had received fishery management plans for 
fisheries in tributaries of northeast Oregon. These plans, submitted by 
the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla 
Indian Reservation, and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife were 
the subjects of a draft environmental assessment and associated 
documents provided for public review and comment (76 FR 49735, August 
11, 2011). Subsequent to that 30-day comment period, on February 17, 
2012, NMFS received an updated TRMP from the NPT, addressing management 
of NPT fisheries in the Grande Ronde and Imnaha Rivers. NMFS also 
received an updated FMEP from Oregon describing inclusion of spring/
summer Chinook salmon fisheries in the Washington State portion of the 
Grande Ronde River to be managed by the Washington Department of Fish 
and Wildlife on April 24, 2012. NMFS received additional comments 
clarifying aspects of the proposed actions. NMFS prepared a proposed 
evaluation of and pending determination on the NPT fishery plan, and 
updated the NMFS EA to incorporate the additional information.
    The FMEPs and TRMPs propose to manage all spring/summer Chinook 
salmon fisheries to achieve escapement objectives. The FMEPs and TRMPs 
utilize a harvest rate with five tiers based on predicted adult 
abundance to each of the affected populations. The majority of the 
harvest is anticipated to come from hatchery-origin stocks. The FMEPs 
and TRMPs also describe a process to guide coordination of fishery 
design and implementation between the agencies implementing fisheries 
in the action area.
    As required by the ESA 4(d) Rule for Tribal Plans (65 FR 42481, 
July 10, 2000 [50 CFR 223.209]), the Secretary must determine pursuant 
to 50 CFR 223.209 and pursuant to the government-to-government 
processes therein whether the TRMPs for fisheries in Northeast Oregon 
would appreciably reduce the likelihood of survival and recovery of 
Snake River spring/summer and Snake River Basin steelhead. The 
Secretary must take comments on his pending determination as to whether 
the TRMPs address the criteria in the Tribal 4(d) Rule and in Sec.  
223.203(b)(4).
    As specified in Sec.  223.203(b)(4) of the ESA 4(d) Rule, NMFS may 
approve an FMEP if it meets criteria set forth in Sec.  
223.203(b)(4)(i)(A) through (I). Prior to final approval of an FMEP, 
NMFS must publish notification announcing its availability for public 
review and comment.
    NEPA requires Federal agencies to conduct an environmental analysis 
of their proposed actions to determine if the actions may affect the 
human environment. NMFS expects to take action on three ESA section 
4(d) TRMPs and two ESA section 4(d) FMEPs. Therefore, NMFS is seeking 
public input on the scope of the required NEPA analysis with the 
inclusion of the additional proposed activities, including the range of 
reasonable alternatives and associated impacts of any alternatives.
    The final NEPA, TRMP, and FMEP determinations will not be completed 
until after the end of the 30-day comment period and will fully 
consider all public comments received during the comment period. NMFS 
will publish a record of its final action on the TRMPs in the Federal 
Register.

Authority

    Under section 4 of the ESA, NMFS, by delegated authority from the 
Secretary of Commerce, is required to adopt such regulations as he 
deems necessary and advisable for the conservation of the species 
listed as threatened. The ESA salmon and steelhead 4(d) Rule (65 FR 
42422, July 10, 2000) specifies categories of activities that 
contribute to the conservation of listed salmonids and sets out the 
criteria for such activities. Limit 4 of the updated 4(d) rule (50 CFR 
223.203(b)(4)) further provides that the prohibitions of paragraph (a) 
of the updated 4(d) rule (50 CFR 223.203(a)) do not apply to activities 
associated with fishery harvest provided that an FMEP has been approved 
by NMFS to be in accordance with the salmon and steelhead 4(d) rule (65 
FR 42422, July 10, 2000, as updated in 70 FR 37160, June 28, 2005). The 
ESA Tribal 4(d) Rule (65 FR 42481, July 10, 2000) states that the ESA 
section 9 take prohibitions will not apply to TRMPs that will not 
appreciably reduce the likelihood of survival and recovery for the 
listed species.

    Dated: January 16, 2013.
Angela Somma,
Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected Resources, 
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2013-01229 Filed 1-22-13; 8:45 am]
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