[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 128 (Monday, July 6, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38458-38459]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-16249]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[Docket No. FWS-R7-ES-2014-0060; FF07CAMM00 FXES11130700000]


Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Notice of 
Availability of Draft Polar Bear Conservation Management Plan

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of document availability for review and public comment.

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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the 
availability of our draft Polar Bear Conservation Management Plan 
(Polar Bear Plan). The polar bear is listed as threatened under the 
Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended, and is also considered 
``depleted'' under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as 
amended. The draft Polar Bear Plan identifies objective, measurable 
recovery criteria, site-specific recovery actions, and time and cost 
estimates, and also serves as a conservation plan. We request review 
and comment on the Polar Bear Plan from agencies, organizations, and 
individuals with an interest in polar bear conservation.

DATES: To ensure consideration of your comments in our preparation of 
the final plan, we must receive your comments and information by August 
20, 2015. However, we will accept information about any species at any 
time.

ADDRESSES: Document availability: The draft Polar Bear Plan is 
available for viewing at http://www.fws.gov/alaska/pbrt/ or at 
www.regulations.gov at Docket No. FWS-R7-ES-2014-0060.
    Comment submission: You may submit comments on the draft Polar Bear 
Plan by one of the following methods:
     U.S. mail or hand-delivery: Public Comments Processing, 
ATTN: FWS-R7-ES-2014-0060, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Headquarters, 
MS: BPHC, 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803; or
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments to Docket No. FWS-R7-
ES-2014-0060.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary Colligan, Chief, Marine Mammals 
Management, by telephone at 907-786-3800; by U.S. mail at Marine 
Mammals Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1011 East Tudor 
Road, Anchorage, AK 99503; or by email at [email protected]. 
Persons who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call 
the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We announce the availability of our draft 
Polar Bear Conservation Management Plan (Polar Bear Plan). The polar 
bear (Ursus maritimus) was listed throughout its range as threatened 
under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et 
seq.) (ESA). Because of its threatened status under the ESA, the 
species is also considered ``depleted'' under the Marine Mammal 
Protection Act of 1972, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.) (MMPA). As 
required under the ESA section 4(f), the draft Polar Bear Plan 
identifies ``objective, measurable'' recovery criteria and site-
specific recovery actions with estimated time and cost to completion 
for the polar bear. The Polar Bear Plan also serves as a conservation 
plan under the MMPA with a goal of conserving and restoring depleted 
marine mammals to their optimum sustainable population level, and will 
contribute to our international polar bear conservation efforts under 
the 1973 Agreement on the Conservation of Polar Bears (T.I.A.S. No. 
8409). We request review and comment on the Polar Bear Plan from 
agencies, organizations, and individuals with an interest in polar bear 
conservation.

Background

    We listed the polar bear as threatened on May 15, 2008 (73 FR 
28212). For description, taxonomy, distribution, status, breeding 
biology and habitat, and a summary of factors affecting the species, 
please see the final listing rule. Recovery of endangered or threatened 
animals and plants is a primary goal of our endangered species program 
and the ESA. To help guide the recovery effort, we prepare recovery 
plans for most listed species native to the United States. Further, the 
ESA requires that we develop recovery plans for listed species, unless 
such a plan would not promote the conservation of a particular species, 
and that we provide public notice and an opportunity for public review 
and comment during recovery plan development. Recovery plans describe 
actions considered necessary for the conservation and survival of the 
species, establish criteria for delisting listed species, and estimate 
time and cost for implementing needed recovery measures.
    MMPA Conservation Plans have the purpose of conserving and 
restoring a species or stock to its optimum sustainable population. The 
MMPA further provides that Conservation Plans shall be modeled on ESA 
recovery plans. Therefore, once finalized, the Polar Bear Plan will 
provide us with recommended management actions for the survival and 
recovery of the species, and to conserve and restore the species to its 
optimum sustainable population.
    Polar bears evolved to utilize the Arctic sea ice niche and are 
distributed throughout most ice-covered seas of the United States, 
Canada, the Russian Federation, Norway and Greenland/Denmark (Range 
States), in the Northern Hemisphere (see Figure 1 of the May 15, 2008, 
Listing Rule; 73 FR 28216). At the time of our 2008 final listing rule, 
we estimated the worldwide population of polar bears to be between 
20,000 and 25,000 (73 FR 28215).
    At the time of the listing, we determined that ongoing and 
projected loss of the polar bear's crucial sea ice habitat threatens 
the species throughout all of its range. Productivity, abundance, and 
availability of ice seals, the polar bear's primary prey base, would be 
diminished by the projected loss of sea ice, and energetic requirements 
of polar bears for movement and obtaining food would increase. Access 
to traditional denning areas would be affected. In turn, these factors 
would cause declines in the condition of polar bears from nutritional 
stress and reduced productivity. The eventual effect of this loss of 
sea ice is that the polar bear population would decline. The rate and 
magnitude of decline would vary geographically, based on differences in 
the rate, timing, and magnitude of impacts. However, within the 
foreseeable future, the worldwide population would be affected, and the 
species is likely to become in danger of extinction throughout all of 
its range (73 FR 28292-28293). As the Service explained in its listing 
determination, global climate change resulting from greenhouse gas 
emissions is the root cause of the loss of Arctic sea ice.

The Plan

    The Polar Bear Plan is more broadly focused than a typical recovery 
or conservation plan. At its core, the Polar Bear Plan contains a set 
of fundamental goals reflecting shared values of its diverse 
stakeholders. The fundamental

[[Page 38459]]

goals express the intentions of the Polar Bear Plan and will be used to 
guide management, research, monitoring, and communication. They include 
the goals of the MMPA and the ESA, as they relate to polar bear 
conservation and recovery. Beyond the statutory mandates, the 
fundamental goals also reflect the input and aspirations of 
stakeholders closely connected with polar bears and their habitat, 
including the State of Alaska, the North Slope Borough, Alaska Native 
peoples, the Polar Bear Range States, conservation groups, and the oil 
and gas industry. In most cases, the fundamental goals represent range-
wide objectives, but the specific applications under this Polar Bear 
Plan pertain primarily to the polar bear subpopulations (or stocks) 
present in Alaska. The goals call for a focus on conservation of polar 
bears while recognizing values associated with subsistence take, human 
safety, and economic activity. The draft Polar Bear Plan also contains 
specific recovery criteria, expressed in demographic and threats-based 
terms, to determine when the polar bear should be considered for 
delisting under the ESA, and demographic criteria to guide satisfying 
the conservation goals of the MMPA.
    Conservation and recovery actions are specified in the Polar Bear 
Plan. The single most important action for the recovery of polar bears 
is global reduction of atmospheric greenhouse gases, which, if 
achieved, should result in reduced global climate change, including 
Arctic warming and sea ice loss. Along with communicating that fact, 
the Polar Bear Plan identifies a suite of high-profile actions designed 
to ensure that polar bears remain in sufficient number and diversity so 
that they are in a position to recover once climate change is 
addressed. Those actions include the following:
     Limit global atmospheric levels of greenhouse gases to 
levels appropriate for supporting polar bear recovery and conservation, 
primarily by reducing greenhouse gas emissions Support international 
conservation efforts through the Range States relationships
     Manage human-bear conflicts
     Collaboratively manage subsistence harvest
     Protect denning habitat
     Minimize risks of contamination from spills
     Conduct strategic monitoring and research
    The full cost of implementing this Polar Bear Plan over the next 5 
years is approximately $12,921,200.

Request for Public Comments

    We request written comments on the draft Polar Bear Plan. All 
comments received by the date specified in DATES will be considered 
prior to finalization of the Polar Bear Plan. If you wish to comment, 
you may submit your comments and materials concerning this Plan by one 
of the methods listed in ADDRESSES.
    Comments and materials received, as well as supporting 
documentation used in preparation of the recovery plan, will be 
available for inspection, during normal business hours at the Service's 
Anchorage office (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
    This draft Polar Bear Plan represents the views and interpretations 
of the Service regarding the conservation and recovery of the polar 
bear only. The Service's approach set forth in this draft Polar Bear 
Plan does not necessarily preclude other approaches in developing ESA 
recovery plans or MMPA conservation plans. We seek comments from the 
public regarding viable alternatives for plans involving ice-dependent 
species and will consider all comments prior to finalizing this plan.
    In addition, we specifically seek comments on the following:
    (1) The scope and description of the six fundamental goals.
    (2) The suitability and feasibility of the MMPA demographic 
criteria related to human-caused removals and to the health of the 
marine ecosystem of which polar bears are part.
    (3) The suitability and feasibility of the ESA fundamental, 
demographic, and threats-based recovery criteria.
    (4) The use of ecoregions as recovery units to represent the 
genetic, behavioral, life-history, and ecological diversity of the 
species.
    (5) The conservation strategy and specific suite of high-priority 
conservation and recovery actions.

Public Availability of Comments

    Before including your address, phone number, email address, or 
other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be 
aware that your entire comment--including your personal identifying 
information--may be made publicly available at any time. While you can 
ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying 
information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be 
able to do so.

Authority

    We developed our draft recovery plan under the authority of ESA 
section 4(f), 16 U.S.C. 1533(f), as well as section 115(b) of the MMPA, 
16 U.S.C. 1383b(b). We publish this notice under ESA section 4(f) (16 
U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

    Dated: June 5, 2015.
Geoffrey L. Haskett,
Regional Director, Alaska Region, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-16249 Filed 7-2-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4310-55-P