[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]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P