[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 59 (Monday, March 28, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17143-17144]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-06943]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XE525


Endangered and Threatened Species; Take of Anadromous Fish

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

ACTION: Notice; availability of hatchery plan and request for comment.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the California Department of Fish 
and Wildlife (CDFW) has submitted a Hatchery and Genetic Management 
Plan (HGMP) pursuant to the protective regulations promulgated for 
Pacific salmon and steelhead under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). 
The HGMP specifies the operation of a hatchery program rearing 
steelhead in the Mad River subbasin within the State of California. 
This document serves to notify the public of the availability of the 
HGMP and associated draft environmental assessment (EA) for comment 
prior to a decision by NMFS whether to approve the proposed hatchery 
program.

DATES: Comments must be received at the appropriate address or fax 
number (see ADDRESSES) no later than 5 p.m. Pacific time on April 27, 
2016.

[[Page 17144]]


ADDRESSES: Written comments on the application should be addressed to 
the NMFS NOAA Fisheries West Coast Region California Coastal Office, 
1655 Heindon Road, Arcata, California 95521, or faxed to 707-825-4840. 
Comments may be submitted by email. The mailbox address for providing 
email comments is: [email protected]. Include in the 
subject line of the email comment the following identifier: Comments on 
the Mad River hatchery plan.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dan Free, at phone number: (707) 825-
5126, or via email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Species Covered in This Notice

    Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha): Threatened, naturally 
produced and artificially propagated California Coastal.
    Coho salmon (O. kisutch): Threatened, naturally produced and 
artificially propagated Southern Oregon/Northern California (SONCC).
    Steelhead (O. mykiss): Threatened, naturally produced and 
artificially propagated Northern California.

Background

    CDFW has submitted to NMFS an HGMP describing a hatchery program 
that releases steelhead into the Mad River, in northern California, for 
consideration pursuant to limit 5 of the ESA 4(d) rule for salmon and 
steelhead.
    The hatchery program that is the subject of the NMFS evaluation 
would operate to provide steelhead for harvest in freshwater 
recreational fisheries in the Mad River. The program would propagate 
steelhead that are derived from the local steelhead population in the 
Mad River, ensuring that at least half of the MRH winter-run steelhead 
spawning pairs are hatchery spawned natural-origin and to match 
natural-origin steelhead with their natural counterparts whenever 
possible. Measures would be applied in the hatchery program to reduce 
the risk of incidental adverse genetic, ecological, and demographic 
effects on natural-origin steelhead and salmon populations.
    As specified in the July 10, 2000, ESA 4(d) rule for salmon and 
steelhead (65 FR 42422) and updated June 28, 2005 (70 FR 37160), NMFS 
may approve an HGMP if it meets criteria set forth in 50 CFR 
223.203(b)(5)(i)(A) through (K). Prior to final approval of an HGMP, 
NMFS must publish notification announcing its availability for public 
review and comment.

Authority

    Under section 4 of the ESA, the Secretary of Commerce is required 
to adopt such regulations as she deems necessary and advisable for the 
conservation of species listed as threatened. The ESA salmon and 
steelhead 4(d) rule (65 FR 42422, July 10, 2000, as updated in 70 FR 
37160, June 28, 2005) specifies categories of activities that 
contribute to the conservation of listed salmonids and sets out the 
criteria for such activities. Limit 5 of the updated 4(d) rule (50 CFR 
223.203(b)(5)) 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 artificial propagation programs provided that an HGMP 
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).

    Dated: March 23, 2016.
Perry F. Gayaldo,
Deputy Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2016-06943 Filed 3-25-16; 8:45 am]
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