[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 122 (Tuesday, June 29, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34271-34273]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-13827]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-R6-ES-2020-N131; FXES11140600000]


Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Draft Recovery 
Plan for Pagosa Skyrocket

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of document availability for review and comment.

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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, announce the 
availability of a draft recovery plan for Pagosa skyrocket, a plant 
listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. We are 
requesting review and comment from the public on this draft plan.

DATES: We must receive any comments on the draft recovery plan on or 
before August 30, 2021.

ADDRESSES: 
    Document availability: Copies of the draft recovery plan are 
available at http://www.fws.gov/endangered/species/recovery-plans.html. 
Alternatively, you may request a copy by U.S. mail from the Western 
Colorado Field Office; 445 W. Gunnison Ave. #240; Grand Junction, CO 
81501; or by telephone at 970-243-2778. Persons who use a 
telecommunications device for the deaf may call the Federal Relay 
Service at 800-877-8339.
    Submitting comments: If you wish to comment on the draft recovery 
plan, you may submit your comments in writing by email to Ann 
Timberman, at [email protected], or by U.S. mail to Ann Timberman, 
Western Slope Field Supervisor, at the above U.S. mail address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ann Timberman, Western Slope Field 
Supervisor, at the above U.S. mail address or by telephone at 970-243-
2778. Persons who use a telecommunications device for the deaf may call 
the Federal Relay Service at 800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 
(Service), announce the availability of a draft recovery plan for 
Pagosa skyrocket (Ipomopsis polyantha), a plant listed as endangered 
under the Endangered Species Act, as amended (Act; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et 
seq.). The draft recovery plan includes objective, measurable criteria, 
and site-specific management actions as may be necessary to remove the 
species from the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Plants. We 
are requesting review and comment from the public on this draft 
recovery plan.

Species Information

    On August 26, 2011, we listed Pagosa skyrocket as an endangered 
plant (July 27, 2011; 76 FR 45054). On August 13, 2012, we designated 
approximately 9,641 acres (ac) (3,902 hectares (ha)) of critical 
habitat (77 FR 48368).
    Pagosa skyrocket is a narrow endemic plant, occurring only on soils 
of the Mancos shale formation in Archuleta County, Colorado. It occurs 
at between 6,400 to 8,100 feet (ft) (1,951-2,469 meters (m)) in 
elevation and typically grows on infrequently disturbed lightly 
vegetated sites or at the edge of ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) 
forest (Anderson 2004, p. 20). Pagosa skyrocket appears able to self-
pollinate when stressed, but reproduction is more successful when 
outcrossed (Anderson 2004, p. 23).
    Pagosa skyrocket typically spends more than a year in a vegetative 
state before flowering and dying (monocarpic perennial). However, if 
conditions are ideal, it behaves as a biennial. It is a member of the 
Polemoniaceae (phlox) family and is regarded as a distinct species 
(Anderson 2004, p. 10).
    We do not know the historical distribution of Pagosa skyrocket. 
Currently, we know of two populations--Pagosa Springs/Mill Creek and 
Dyke--occupying approximately 462 ac (187 ha) and located 13 miles (mi) 
(21 kilometers (km)) apart. Approximately 3.5 ac (1.4 ha) of occupied 
habitat occurs on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land. The remainder 
of occupied habitat is located on private land, land owned by the Town 
of Pagosa Springs, highway rights of way (ROWs), and an 88-ac (36-ha) 
parcel owned and managed by Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW). The CPW 
parcel contains more than 90 percent of all known Pagosa skyrocket 
plants and is managed with the primary goal of conserving Pagosa 
skyrocket. All known occupied habitat for the species occurs within 
designated critical habitat.
    The primary threat to Pagosa skyrocket, both at the time of listing 
and currently, is commercial, residential, agricultural, and municipal 
development. We have documented losses from development of habitat and 
individual plants for both populations. Without additional protections, 
we anticipate an increase in the magnitude of this threat affecting the 
species' future resiliency, redundancy, and representation. 
Overgrazing, invasive plants, and climate change may exacerbate the 
threat from development.
    Several conservation actions have been initiated since listing in 
2011 as follows:
    (1) CPW acquired 88 ac (36 ha) of occupied Pagosa skyrocket 
critical habitat that had been slated for development. The primary 
management goal of this parcel is conservation of Pagosa skyrocket.
    (2) Archuleta County incorporated Pagosa skyrocket preservation 
into the Archuleta County Community Plan to assist in recovering the 
species.
    (3) The Town of Pagosa Springs Master Plan identified a goal to 
``Strive to protect and celebrate the Pagosa skyrocket.''
    (4) Volunteers and the Geothermal Greenhouse Partnership initiated 
greenhouse experiments to grow and transplant Pagosa skyrocket 
individuals.

[[Page 34272]]

Draft Recovery Plan

    Below, we summarize components from our draft recovery plan. Please 
reference the draft recovery plan for full details.
    The draft recovery plan describes the recovery goal as the 
conservation and survival of Pagosa skyrocket. For recovery, the 
species needs at least three (redundant) persistent (resilient) 
populations across the species' range, where recruitment over time 
equals or exceeds loss of individuals and ecological and genetic 
diversity are maintained (representation). The three populations would 
include the two currently known populations (Pagosa Springs/Mill Creek 
and Dyke), as well as a third population that may be newly discovered 
or introduced. These three resilient populations would provide 
sufficient representation and redundancy across the species' range.
    The draft recovery plan includes recovery criteria for both 
downlisting and delisting. Downlisting criteria include:
    (1) Maintaining stable or increasing population growth rates in 
three populations, with or without augmentation;
    (2) Maintaining a minimum population of 4,824 individual plants in 
the Pagosa Springs/Mill Creek and Dyke populations, and a minimum 
population of 1,500 individual plants in the third newly discovered or 
introduced population;
    (3) Each of the three populations have regulatory mechanisms or 
conservation plans in place that address habitat loss and degradation 
from development, thus helping meet population trend and abundance 
targets identified in the first two criteria; and
    (4) Both known populations are represented in an off-site seed 
collection to preserve the genetic diversity of Pagosa skyrocket and 
provide added protection from potential stochastic events.
    Delisting criteria are the same as for downlisting, with the 
exception that all three populations must meet the first two criteria 
without further augmentation. To help meet these criteria, the draft 
recovery plan identifies recovery actions for each criteria.

Recovery Planning Process

    Restoring an endangered or threatened animal or plant to the point 
where it is again a secure, self-sustaining member of its ecosystem is 
a primary goal of the Service's endangered species program. Recovery 
means improving the status of a listed species to the point at which 
listing is no longer necessary according to the criteria specified 
under section 4(a)(1) of the Act. The Act requires recovery plans for 
listed species unless such a plan would not promote the conservation of 
a particular species. To help guide recovery efforts, we prepare 
recovery plans to promote the conservation of the species.
    The purpose of a recovery plan is to provide a recommended 
framework for the recovery of a species so that protection of the Act 
is no longer necessary. Pursuant to section 4(f) of the Act, a recovery 
plan must, to the maximum extent possible, include:
    (1) A description of site-specific management actions as may be 
necessary to achieve the plan's goal for the conservation and survival 
of the species;
    (2) Objective, measurable criteria which, when met, would support a 
determination under section 4(a)(1) of the Act that the species should 
be removed from the List of Endangered and Threatened Species; and
    (3) Estimates of time and costs required to carry out those 
measures needed to achieve the plan's goal and to achieve intermediate 
steps toward that goal.
    We used our new recovery planning and implementation (RPI) process 
to develop the draft recovery plan for Pagosa skyrocket. The RPI 
process helps reduce the time needed to develop and implement recovery 
plans, increases the relevancy of the recovery plan over longer 
timeframes, and adds flexibility so that the recovery plan can be more 
easily adjusted to new information and circumstances. Under our RPI 
process, a recovery plan will include the three statutorily required 
elements for recovery plans--objective and measurable criteria, site-
specific management actions, and estimates of time and cost--along with 
a concise introduction and our strategy for how we plan to achieve 
species recovery. The RPI recovery plan is supported by a separate 
species status assessment for the Pagosa skyrocket (SSA; Service 2020). 
The SSA is an in-depth, but not exhaustive, review of the species' 
biology and threats, an evaluation of its biological status, and an 
assessment of the resources and conditions needed to maintain long-term 
viability. The SSA provides the scientific background and threats 
assessment for Pagosa skyrocket, which are key to the development of 
the recovery plan. A third, separate working document, called the 
recovery implementation strategy (RIS), steps down the more general 
descriptions of actions in the recovery plan to detail the specifics 
needed to implement the recovery plan, which improves the flexibility 
of the recovery plan. The RIS will be adaptable, with new information 
on actions incorporated, as needed, without requiring a concurrent 
revision to the recovery plan, unless changes to the three statutory 
elements are required.

Peer Review

    In accordance with our July 1, 1994, peer review policy (59 FR 
34270; July 1, 1994); our August 22, 2016, Director's Memo on the Peer 
Review Process; and the Office of Management and Budget's December 16, 
2004, Final Information Quality Bulletin for Peer Review (revised June 
2012), we solicited independent scientific reviews of the information 
contained in the SSA report. Results of this structured peer review 
process can be found at https://www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/science/peerReview.php. We also submitted our SSA report to our Federal and 
State partners for their scientific review. There is no overlap of 
occupied habitat or critical habitat with Tribal lands. We incorporated 
the results of the peer and partner review in the SSA report, as 
appropriate. The SSA report is the scientific foundation for the draft 
recovery plan.

Request for Public Comments

    All comments we receive by the date specified (see DATES) will be 
considered prior to approval of the recovery plan. Written comments and 
materials regarding the recovery plan should be sent via one of the 
means in the ADDRESSES section.
    We will consider all information we receive during the public 
comment period, and particularly look for comments that provide 
scientific rationale or factual background. The Service and other 
Federal agencies and partners will take these comments into 
consideration in the course of implementing an approved final recovery 
plan. We are specifically seeking comments and suggestions on the 
following questions:
     Understanding that the time and cost presented in the 
draft recovery plan will be fine-tuned when localized recovery 
implementation strategies are developed, do you think that the 
estimated time and cost to recovery are realistic? Is the estimate 
reflective of the time and cost of actions that may have already been 
implemented by Federal, State, county, or other agencies? Please 
provide suggestions or methods for determining a more accurate 
estimation.
     Do the draft recovery criteria provide clear direction to 
partners on

[[Page 34273]]

what is needed to recover Pagosa skyrocket? How could they be improved 
for clarity?
     Are the draft recovery criteria both objective and 
measurable given the information available for Pagosa skyrocket now and 
into the future? Please provide suggestions.
     Understanding that specific, detailed, and area-specific 
recovery actions will be developed in the RIS, do you think that the 
draft recovery actions presented in the draft recovery plan generally 
cover the types of actions necessary to meet the recovery criteria? If 
not, what general actions are missing? Are any of the draft recovery 
actions unnecessary for achieving recovery? Have we prioritized the 
actions appropriately?

Public Availability of Comments

    We will summarize and respond to the issues raised by the public in 
an appendix to the approved final recovery plan. 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. You may request at the top of your 
comment that we withhold this information from public review; however, 
we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

Authority

    The authority for this action is section 4(f) of the Endangered 
Species Act, 16 U.S.C. 1533(f).

Matthew Hogan,
Deputy Regional Director, Lakewood, Colorado.
[FR Doc. 2021-13827 Filed 6-28-21; 8:45 am]
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