[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 138 (Wednesday, July 20, 2022)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 43233-43234]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-14731]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

[Docket No. FWS-HQ-ES-2021-0073; FF09E21000 FXES1111090FEDR 223]
RIN 1018-BF34


Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Endangered Species 
Status for Russian, Ship, Persian, and Stellate Sturgeon

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule; extension of public comment period and 
announcement of public hearing.

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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are 
extending the public comment period on our May 25, 2022, proposed rule 
to list the Russian sturgeon (Acipenser gueldenstaedtii), ship sturgeon 
(A. nudiventris), Persian sturgeon (A. persicus), and stellate sturgeon 
(A. stellatus), all large fish native to the Black, Azov, Aral, 
Caspian, and northern Aegean Sea basins and their rivers in Europe and 
western Asia, as endangered species under the Endangered Species Act of 
1973, as amended (Act). We are extending the proposed rule's comment 
period for 30 days to conduct a public hearing on the petition to list 
these four species of sturgeon. Comments previously submitted need not 
be resubmitted and will be fully considered in preparation of the final 
rule.

DATES: Comment submission: The public comment period on the proposed 
rule that published on May 25, 2022, at 87 FR 31834 is extended. We 
will accept comments received or postmarked on or before August 25, 
2022. Comments submitted electronically using the Federal eRulemaking 
Portal (see ADDRESSES, below) must be received by 11:59 p.m. Eastern 
Time on the closing date, and comments submitted by U.S. mail must be 
postmarked by that date to ensure consideration.
    Public hearing: On August 11, 2022, we will hold a public hearing 
on the proposed rule to list the Russian sturgeon, ship sturgeon, 
Persian sturgeon, and stellate sturgeon under the Act from 6 to 7:30 
p.m. Eastern Time, using the Zoom platform (for more information, see 
Public Hearing, below).

ADDRESSES: Written comments: You may submit comments by one of the 
following methods:
    (1) Electronically: Go to the Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. In the Search box, enter FWS-HQ-ES-2021-0073, 
which is the docket number for this rulemaking. Then, click on the 
Search button. On the resulting page, in the Search panel on the left 
side of the screen, under the Document Type heading, check the Proposed 
Rule box to locate this document. You may submit a comment by clicking 
on ``Comment.''
    (2) By hard copy: Submit by U.S. mail to: Public Comments 
Processing, Attn: FWS-HQ-ES-2021-0073, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 
MS: PRB/3W, 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
    We request that you send comments only by the methods described 
above. We will post all comments on https://www.regulations.gov. This 
generally means that we will post any personal information you provide 
us (see Public Comments, below, for more information).
    Document availability: The proposed rule and supporting documents, 
including the species status assessment report, are available at 
https://www.regulations.gov under Docket No. FWS-HQ-ES-2021-0073.
    Public hearing: Interested parties may present verbal testimony 
(formal, oral comments) at a public hearing, which will be held 
virtually using the Zoom platform. See Public Hearing, below, for more 
information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Elizabeth Maclin, Chief, Branch of 
Delisting and Foreign Species, Ecological Services, U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, MS: ES, 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-
3803; telephone, 703-358-2171. Individuals in the United States who are 
deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability may dial 
711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access telecommunications relay 
services. Individuals outside the United States should use the relay 
services offered within their country to make international calls to 
the point-of-contact in the United States.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On May 25, 2022, we published a proposed rule (87 FR 31834) to list 
the Russian sturgeon, ship sturgeon, Persian sturgeon, and stellate 
sturgeon as endangered species under the Endangered Species Act of 
1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). The proposed rule opened a 
60-day public comment period, ending July 25, 2022. On June 10, 2022, 
we received a request for a public hearing on the proposed rule. With 
this document, we are announcing a public hearing and an extension of 
the comment period for an additional 30 days (see DATES, above) to 
allow the public further opportunity to provide comments on the 
proposed rule to list the Russian sturgeon, ship sturgeon, Persian 
sturgeon, and stellate sturgeon.
    For a description of previous Federal actions concerning the 
Russian sturgeon, ship sturgeon, Persian sturgeon, and stellate 
sturgeon and information on the types of comments that would be helpful 
to us in promulgating this rulemaking action, please refer to the May 
25, 2022, proposed rule (87 FR 31834).

Public Hearing

    We are holding a public hearing to accept comments on the proposed 
rule to list the Russian sturgeon, ship sturgeon, Persian sturgeon, and 
stellate sturgeon on the date and at the time listed in DATES. We are 
holding the public hearing via the Zoom online video platform and via 
teleconference so that participants can attend remotely. For security 
purposes, registration is required. All participants must register in 
order to listen and view the hearing via Zoom, listen to the hearing by 
telephone, or provide oral public comments at the hearing by Zoom or 
telephone. For information on how to register, or if technical problems 
occur joining Zoom on the day of the hearing, visit https://www.fws.gov/event/public-hearing-proposed-listing-ponto-caspian-sturgeon.
    Registrants will receive the Zoom link and the telephone number for 
the public

[[Page 43234]]

hearing. If applicable, interested members of the public not familiar 
with the Zoom platform should view the Zoom video tutorials (https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/206618765-Zoom-video-tutorials) prior 
to the public hearing.
    The public hearing will provide interested parties an opportunity 
to present verbal testimony (formal, oral comments) regarding the May 
25, 2022, proposed rule to list the Russian sturgeon, ship sturgeon, 
Persian sturgeon, and stellate sturgeon as endangered species (87 FR 
31834). The public hearing will not be an opportunity for dialogue with 
the Service, but rather a forum for accepting formal verbal testimony. 
In the event there is a large attendance, the time allotted for oral 
statements may be limited. Therefore, anyone wishing to make an oral 
statement at the public hearing for the record is encouraged to provide 
a prepared written copy of their statement to us through the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal or U.S. mail (see ADDRESSES, above). There are no 
limits on the length of written comments submitted to us. Anyone 
wishing to make an oral statement at the public hearing must register 
before the hearing (https://www.fws.gov/event/public-hearing-proposed-listing-ponto-caspian-sturgeon). The use of a virtual public hearing is 
consistent with our regulations at 50 CFR 424.16(c)(3).

Reasonable Accommodation

    The Service is committed to providing access to the public hearing 
for all participants. Closed captioning will be available during the 
public hearing. Further, a full audio and video recording and 
transcript of the public hearing will be posted online at https://www.fws.gov/event/public-hearing-proposed-listing-ponto-caspian-sturgeon after the hearing. Participants will also have access to live 
audio during the public hearing via their telephone or computer 
speakers. Persons with disabilities requiring reasonable accommodations 
to participate in the hearing should contact the person listed under 
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT at least 5 business days prior to the 
date of the hearing to help ensure availability. An accessible version 
of the Service's public hearing presentation will also be posted online 
at https://www.fws.gov/event/public-hearing-proposed-listing-ponto-caspian-sturgeon following the hearing (see DATES, above). See https://www.fws.gov/event/public-hearing-proposed-listing-ponto-caspian-sturgeon for more information about reasonable accommodation.

Public Comments

    If you submit information via https://www.regulations.gov, your 
entire submission--including your personal identifying information--
will be posted on the website. If your submission is made via a 
hardcopy that includes personal identifying information, you may 
request at the top of your document that we withhold this information 
from public review. However, we cannot guarantee that we will be able 
to do so. We will post all hardcopy submissions on https://www.regulations.gov.
    Comments and materials we receive, as well as supporting 
documentation we used in preparing the proposed rule, will be available 
for public inspection on https://www.regulations.gov.

Authors

    The primary authors of this document are the staff members of the 
Branch of Delisting and Foreign Species, Ecological Services Program.

Authority

    The authority for this action is the Endangered Species Act of 
1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

Martha Williams,
Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-14731 Filed 7-19-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P