[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 228 (Tuesday, November 29, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73319-73320]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-25965]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-R6-ES-2023-N065; FXES11130600000-234-FF06E00000]


Endangered and Threatened Species; Receipt of Recovery Permit 
Applications

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of receipt of permit applications; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, have received 
applications for permits, permit renewals, and/or permit amendments to 
conduct activities intended to enhance the propagation or survival of 
endangered species under the Endangered Species Act. We invite the 
public and local, State, Tribal, and Federal agencies to comment on 
these applications. Before issuing any of the requested permits, we 
will take into consideration any information that we receive during the 
public comment period.

DATES: We must receive written data or comments on the applications by 
December 29, 2022.

ADDRESSES: Document availability and comment submission: Use one of the 
following methods to request documents or submit comments. Requests and 
comments should specify the applicant name(s) and application number(s) 
(e.g., Smith, PER0123456 or ES056001):
     Email: [email protected].
     U.S. Mail: Tom McDowell, Division Manager, Ecological 
Services, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 134 Union Blvd., Suite 670, 
Lakewood, CO 80228.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert Krijgsman, Recovery Permits 
Coordinator, Ecological Services, 303-236-4347 (phone), or 
[email protected] (email). 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: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 
invite review and comment from the public and local, State, Tribal, and 
Federal agencies on applications we have received for permits to 
conduct certain activities with endangered and threatened species under 
section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended 
(ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), and our regulations in the Code of 
Federal Regulations (CFR) at 50 CFR part 17. Documents and other 
information submitted with the applications are available for review, 
subject to the requirements of the Privacy Act and the Freedom of 
Information Act.

[[Page 73320]]

Background

    With some exceptions, the ESA prohibits take of listed species 
unless a Federal permit is issued that authorizes such take. The ESA's 
definition of ``take'' includes hunting, shooting, harming, wounding, 
or killing, and also such activities as pursuing, harassing, trapping, 
capturing, or collecting.
    A recovery permit issued by us under section 10(a)(1)(A) of the ESA 
authorizes the permittee to take endangered or threatened species while 
engaging in activities that are conducted for scientific purposes that 
promote recovery of species or for enhancement of propagation or 
survival of species. These activities often include the capture and 
collection of species, which would result in prohibited take if a 
permit were not issued. Our regulations implementing section 
10(a)(1)(A) for these permits are found at 50 CFR 17.22 for endangered 
wildlife species, 50 CFR 17.32 for threatened wildlife species, 50 CFR 
17.62 for endangered plant species, and 50 CFR 17.72 for threatened 
plant species.

Permit Applications Available for Review and Comment

    The ESA requires that we invite public comment before issuing these 
permits. Accordingly, we invite local, State, Tribal, and Federal 
agencies and the public to submit written data, views, or arguments 
with respect to these applications. The comments and recommendations 
that will be most useful and likely to influence agency decisions are 
those supported by quantitative information or studies. Proposed 
activities in the following permit requests are for the recovery and 
enhancement of propagation or survival of the species in the wild.

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     Permit No.          Applicant          Species          Location      Take activity       Permit action
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ES-047285..........  U.S. Geological    Pallid   Montana and      Survey,          Renew.
                      Survey,           sturgeon          North Dakota.    monitor,
                      Columbia          (Scaphirhynchus                    capture,
                      Environmental     albus).                            handle, tag,
                      Research                                             propagate,
                      Center, Fort                                         transport, and
                      Peck, Montana.                                       stock.
PER0011688.........  Bureau of Land              Utah...........  Play taped       Amend.
                      Management,       Southwestern                       vocalizations
                      Richfield Field   willow                             for surveys.
                      Office,           flycatcher
                      Richfield Utah.   (Empidonax
                                        traillii
                                        extimus).
PER0048042.........  Horrocks                    Colorado,        Play taped       New.
                      Engineers,        Southwestern      Idaho,           vocalizations
                      Riverdale, Utah.  willow            Montana,         for surveys.
                                        flycatcher        Oregon, Utah,
                                        (Empidonax        Washington,
                                        traillii          and Wyoming.
                                        extimus).
ES-040748..........  Cheyenne           Black-   Colorado and     Capture,         Renew.
                      Mountain Zoo,     footed ferret     Wyoming.         handle,
                      Colorado          (Mustela                           transport,
                      Springs,          nigripes).                         propagate in
                      Colorado.         Wyoming                    captivity,
                                        Toad (Anaxyrus                     provide
                                        baxteri).                          general care,
                                                                           collect
                                                                           biological
                                                                           samples, mark,
                                                                           survey, and
                                                                           monitor
                                                                           populations.
ES-040510..........  ERO Resources               Arizona,         Play taped       Renew and amend.
                      Corp., Denver,    Southwestern      Colorado, New    vocalizations
                      Colorado.         willow            Mexico, and      for surveys.
                                        flycatcher        Utah.
                                        (Empidonax
                                        traillii
                                        extimus).
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Public Availability of Comments

    Written comments we receive become part of the administrative 
record associated with this action. 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. All submissions from 
organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying 
themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or 
businesses, will be made available for public disclosure in their 
entirety.

Next Steps

    If we decide to issue a permit to an applicant listed in this 
notice, we will publish a notice in the Federal Register.

Authority

    We publish this notice under section 10(c) of the Endangered 
Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

Stephen Small,
Assistant Regional Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-25965 Filed 11-28-22; 8:45 am]
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