[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 234 (Thursday, December 7, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57729-57730]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-26354]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XF864


Endangered and Threatened Species; Take of Anadromous Fish

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

ACTION: Notice; availability of evaluation of joint state/tribal 
harvest plan and request for comment.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the Sauk-Suiattle Indian Tribe, 
Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, Upper Skagit Indian Tribe, and the 
Skagit River System Cooperative and the Washington Department of Fish 
and Wildlife have jointly submitted a steelhead fishery resource 
management plan (RMP) to NMFS pursuant to the limitation on take 
prohibitions for actions conducted under Limit 6 of the 4(d) Rule for 
salmon and steelhead promulgated under the Endangered Species Act 
(ESA). The plan proposes to manage the harvest of natural-origin Skagit 
River (Washington State) steelhead as an independent steelhead 
management unit within the ESA-listed Puget Sound steelhead demographic 
population segment (DPS). The Plan proposes to implement these Skagit 
River steelhead fisheries pursuant to U.S. v. Washington. This document 
serves to notify the public of the availability for comment of the 
proposed evaluation and pending determination of the Secretary of 
Commerce (Secretary) as to whether the RMP meets the criteria under 
Limit 6 of the 4(d) Rule and as to whether implementation of the RMP 
will appreciably reduce the likelihood of survival and recovery of ESA-
listed Puget Sound steelhead and Puget Sound Chinook salmon.

DATES: Comments must be received at the appropriate address (see 
ADDRESSES) no later than 5:00 p.m. Pacific time on January 8, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on the proposed evaluation and pending 
determination should be addressed to James Dixon, NMFS Sustainable 
Fisheries Division, 510 Desmond Drive, Suite 103, Lacey, WA 98503. 
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 Skagit River Steelhead Harvest Plan.
    The documents are available on the Internet at 
www.westcoast.fisheries.noaa.gov. Comments received will also be 
available for public inspection, by appointment, during normal business 
hours by calling (360) 753-9579.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: James Dixon at (360) 534-9329 or by 
email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

ESA-Listed Species Covered in This Notice

    Steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss): Threatened, naturally produced and 
artificially propagated Puget Sound.
    Chinook salmon (O. tshawytscha): Threatened, naturally produced and 
artificially propagated Puget Sound.

Background

    The Sauk-Suiattle Indian Tribe, Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, 
Upper Skagit Indian Tribe, and the Skagit River System Cooperative and 
the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife have jointly submitted a 
steelhead fishery RMP to NMFS pursuant to the limitation on take 
prohibitions for actions conducted under Limit 6 of the 4(d) Rule for 
salmon and steelhead promulgated under the Endangered Species Act 
(ESA). The plan was submitted in November of 2016, pursuant to limit 6 
of the 4(d) Rule for ESA-listed salmon and steelhead. The RMP would 
manage the harvest of Skagit River natural-origin steelhead in the 
Skagit River and in the terminal marine area of the Skagit River 
(Marine Area 8).
    As required by the ESA 4(d) Rule (65 FR 42422, July 10, 2000, as 
updated in 70 FR 37160, June 28, 2005), the Secretary is seeking public 
comment on this proposed evaluation and pending determination as to 
whether the RMP meets the criteria under Limit 6 of the 4(d) Rule and 
as to whether implementation of the RMP will appreciably reduce the 
likelihood of survival and recovery of ESA-listed Puget Sound steelhead 
and Puget Sound Chinook.

Authority

    Under section 4 of the ESA, the Secretary of Commerce is required 
to adopt such regulations as he 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 6 of the updated 4(d) Rule (50 CFR 
223.203(b)(6)) 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 a joint state/tribal artificial propagation plan 
provided that the joint plan has been determined 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).


[[Page 57730]]


    Dated: November 29, 2017.
Angela Somma,
Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected Resources, 
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2017-26354 Filed 12-6-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P