[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 184 (Monday, September 23, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 77538-77539]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-21714]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R7-NWRS-2024-0032; FXRS126107ISLAN-245-FF07R02000]
Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for
Rat Eradication From Four Uninhabited Aleutian Islands; Alaska Maritime
National Wildlife Refuge, AK
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of intent; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service, intend to prepare an
environmental impact statement (EIS) for a proposed project to
eradicate nonnative rats from four uninhabited islands (Amchitka, Attu,
Great Sitkin, and Kiska Islands) located in the Alaska Maritime
National Wildlife Refuge. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal
and Plant Health Inspection Service is a cooperating agency on the EIS.
We invite comments for consideration in establishing the scope and
content of the EIS from the public and local, State, Tribal, and
Federal agencies.
DATES:
Submitting comments: We must receive written data or comments by
November 7, 2024.
Public meeting: The Service will hold a public scoping meeting in
Anchorage, Alaska. A virtual participation option will also be
available. If you wish to participate virtually, contact the person in
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT no later than two days prior to the
meeting. The date, time, and location of the meeting will be announced
through local media and social media, and on the project website
(https://www.fws.gov/ratfreealeutians).
ADDRESSES: You may submit scoping comments by any one of the following
methods:
In-person: At the public scoping meeting, you may submit
written comments to Service personnel or to the court reporter
monitoring the meeting and typing up a record.
Online: https://www.regulations.gov. Search for and submit
comments on Docket No. FWS-R7-NWRS-2024-0032.
U.S. mail: Public Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No.
FWS-R7-NWRS-2024-0032; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS: PRB/3W; 5275
Leesburg Pike; Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
For more information, see ``Public Comment Procedures'' under
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Steve Delehanty, Refuge Manager, via
telephone at 907-226-4627, via email at [email protected], or via
U.S. mail at U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Alaska Maritime National
Wildlife Refuge, 95 Sterling Highway, Homer, AK, 99603. Please also
visit the project website at https://www.fws.gov/aleutianrateis.
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 Fish and Wildlife Service (Service),
intend to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) pursuant to
the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA; 42 U.S.C 4321 et seq.),
the Council on Environmental Quality's regulations for implementing
NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500-1508), and the Department of the Interior's
NEPA regulations (43 CFR part 46) for a proposed project to eradicate
nonnative rats from four uninhabited islands (Amchitka, Attu, Great
Sitkin, and Kiska Islands) located in the Alaska Maritime National
Wildlife Refuge (Refuge). The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal
and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is a cooperating agency on
the EIS. We invite comments from the public and local, State, Tribal,
and Federal agencies on the scope of the analysis, potential
alternatives, and identification of relevant information, studies, and
analyses.
Purpose and Need for the Proposed Action
The purpose of the proposed action is to eradicate nonnative rats
from Amchitka, Attu, Great Sitkin, and Kiska Islands in the Aleutian
archipelago, in order to eliminate their impacts on native species and
to restore natural island ecosystems. Nonnative rats occur on these
four uninhabited islands, where they have impacted native wildlife
populations and altered natural ecosystem function.
The Refuge encompasses over 1.9 million hectares and several
thousand coastal islands in Alaska. The long-term management strategies
for the Refuge are guided by its record of decision for its Final
Comprehensive Conservation Plan/Environmental Impact Statement and
Wilderness Review (plan) (FWS 1988). The wildlife management goal of
the selected management alternative in the plan is to protect existing
fish and wildlife populations and habitats, restore endangered and
other species to natural levels, and increase opportunities for
wildlife viewing and other nonconsumptive uses. One of the strategies
identified to meet this goal is the eradication of introduced predators
and rodents. Many Refuge islands have had accidental and intentional
introductions of nonendemic mammals (e.g., Arctic and red fox, ground
squirrel, Norway rat, house mouse, caribou, reindeer, cattle, and
Arctic and European hare). Although new introductions are prohibited,
accidental introductions, particularly of rodents, are still of great
concern.
Action is needed because rats have invaded at least 12 large
islands in the Aleutian Island archipelago, including Amchitka, Attu,
Great Sitkin, and Kiska Islands, and the diversity and numbers of
breeding birds are conspicuously low on islands with established
populations of introduced rats, which is consistent with worldwide
observations of the devastating direct impacts of introduced rats on
seabirds. Most of the Aleutian Islands lying within the Refuge provide
important breeding habitat for seabirds, including many bird species
for which the Aleutians provide a substantial portion of their
worldwide range. Rat-caused modifications to other components of the
island ecosystems (e.g., other birds, plants, and invertebrates) are
also evident.
The restoration of Aleutian ecosystems through eradications of
introduced predators has long been identified as a management priority
for the Refuge. Introduced foxes have been removed from over 40 islands
in the Aleutians, while Norway rats have been
[[Page 77539]]
successfully eradicated from 1. In 2008, the Refuge and partner
organizations demonstrated that Norway rats could be successfully
eradicated from Hawadax Island, and that the eradication could have a
positive impact on native wildlife communities.
Post-eradication monitoring found significant recoveries of
terrestrial birds and shorebirds, and the initial recolonization or
recovery of marine birds 5 years after eradication. Intertidal
ecosystem recovery was also documented 11 years post-eradication.
Proposed Action and Possible Alternatives
The Service intends to eradicate nonnative rats from four
uninhabited islands in the Refuge. The islands are remote, and
eradication efforts would be undertaken one single island at a time,
with years between efforts on each island. The Service is currently
considering four preliminary alternatives and a no-action alternative.
The Service will identify a preferred alternative in the final EIS. The
following alternatives are preliminary and may be revised based on
public input and internal considerations.
Alternative 1: The no-action alternative, in which
nonnative rats remain on islands.
Alternative 2: This alternative proposes rat eradication
primarily using bait pellets containing the rodenticide brodifacoum.
Alternative 3: This alternative proposes rat eradication
primarily using bait pellets containing the rodenticide diphacinone.
Alternative 4: This alternative analyzes rat eradication
using emerging genetic biocontrol technology to limit propagation or
survival.
Alternative 5: This alternative analyzes rat eradication
primarily using bait pellets containing the rodenticide norbormide.
Summary of Expected Impacts
The overall impact of the proposed action of eradicating nonnative
rats is anticipated to have a beneficial effect on the islands'
ecosystems. However, the EIS analysis will focus on the potential
significant impacts of each alternative. The Service anticipates
impacts to occur to, but not be limited to, the following resources
from any or all of the proposed alternatives:
Access to public lands
Air quality and climate
Aquatic and marine environments, including anadromous and non-
anadromous fish and invertebrate species
Cultural and historical resources
Designated Wilderness
Endangered Species Act-listed species
Marine mammals
Migratory birds, including bald eagles
Public health and safety
Socioeconomics, including impacts to subsistence and
recreational fisheries
Water quality
Anticipated Permits and Authorities
The proposed action may require the following permits or approvals:
Alaska Department of Fish and Game Wildlife Nuisance permit
Alaska Department of Natural Resources Fish Habitat permit
Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act section 14(h)(1) private
land permission
Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act permit
Clean Water Act permit
Endangered Species Act section 7 consultation
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act section 3
pesticide labels
Magnuson-Stevens Fisheries Conservation Act consultations for
essential fish habitat
Marine Mammal Protection Act authorization
Migratory Bird Treaty Act
Pesticide Use Proposal
State Historic Preservation Office section 106 consultation
under the National Historic Preservation Act
Water Pollution Control Act of 1948, as amended, National
Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit
Schedule for the Decision-Making Process
The Service will review and consider comments received during
scoping and incorporate substantive comments while writing the draft
EIS. The Service anticipates completion of the draft EIS in spring
2026, at which time we will publish a Federal Register notice of
availability requesting public comments. We will also hold a public
meeting on the draft EIS. We anticipate making the final EIS available
to the public in fall 2026. In accordance with 40 CFR 1506.10, a record
of decision shall not be made or issued for a minimum of 30 days after
the publication of the final EIS.
Public Comment Procedures
Public Availability of Comments
If you submit a comment at https://www.regulations.gov, your entire
comment, including any personal identifying information, will be posted
on the website. If you submit a hardcopy comment that includes personal
identifying information, such as your address, phone number, or email
address, 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 hardcopy comment to withhold your
personal identifying information from public review, we cannot
guarantee that we will be able to do so.
How To Request Reasonable Accommodations
For assistance at a scoping meeting, please contact the point of
contact in FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. Information regarding this
project will be made available in alternate formats upon request.
Socheata Lor,
Acting Regional Director, Alaska Region.
[FR Doc. 2024-21714 Filed 9-20-24; 8:45 am]
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