[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 48 (Monday, March 12, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14412-14413]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-5979]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Office of the Secretary
National Invasive Species Council
AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, Interior.
ACTION: Final Version of the National Invasive Species Management Plan;
Notice of Availability.
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SUMMARY: The National Invasive Species Council is announcing the
availability of the final version of the National Invasive Species
Management Plan, ``Meeting the Challenge.''
DATES: The National Invasive Species Management Plan was approved on
January 18, 2001.
ADDRESSES: National Invasive Species Council, 1951 Constitution Avenue
NW., Suite 320, Washington, DC 20240.
The final version of the National Invasive Species Management Plan
is available on the Council's website, http://www.invasivespecies.gov.
Copies may be obtained by contacting the Council Staff at (202) 208-
6336; fax at (202) 208-1526; or e-mail at [email protected].
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kelsey Passe, Program Analyst,
National Invasive Species Council; E-mail: Kelsey [email protected];
Phone (202) 208-6336; Fax: (202) 208-1526.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Executive Order 13112 on Invasive Species
established the National Invasive
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Species Council (Council), which is chaired by the Secretaries of
Agriculture, Commerce, and the Interior and includes the Departments of
State, Treasury, Defense, and Transportation and the Environmental
Protection Agency. The Order directed the Secretary of the Interior to
establish an Invasive Species Advisory Committee (ISAC) including
diverse stakeholders to advise the Council. The Order applies to all
Federal agencies whose actions may affect the status of invasive
species and requires agencies to identify such actions and to the
extent practicable and permitted by law (1) take actions specified in
the Order to address the problem consistent with their authorities and
budgetary resources; and (2) not authorize, fund, or carry out actions
that they believe are likely to cause or promote the introduction or
spread of invasive species in the United States or elsewhere unless,
``pursuant to guidelines that it has prescribed, the agency has
determined and made public its determination that the benefits of such
actions clearly outweigh the potential harm caused by invasive species;
and that all feasible and prudent measures to minimize risk of harm
will be taken in conjunction with the actions.'' Although Executive
Order 13112 applies to all Federal agencies, most of the duties
required by the Executive Order are the responsibility of the eight
Council Departments.
The Council was directed by the President to release the first
edition of a National Invasive Species Management Plan (Plan) 18 months
after the Order was issued, and to include performance-oriented goals
and objectives and specific measures of success for Federal agency
efforts concerning invasive species, update the Plan biennially, and
evaluate and report on the success in achieving the goals and
objectives of the Plan. The Plan is also to identify the personnel,
other resources, and additional levels of coordination needed to
achieve its goals and objectives. The purpose of the Plan is to provide
a blueprint for Federal action in coordination with State, local, and
private programs and international cooperation to prevent the
introduction of invasive species, provide for their control, and
minimize their economic, environmental, and human health impacts. The
focus of the Plan is on those non-native species that cause or may
cause significant negative impacts and do not provide an equivalent
benefit to society.
In preparing the first edition of the Plan, the Council engaged in
extensive consultation with many organizations and individuals with
differing interests. Valuable guidance came from ISAC and members of
six working groups made up of both Federal and non-federal experts
under the auspices of the Advisory Committee, including: (1)
International, (2) communication, outreach, and education, (3) policy
and regulation, (4) risk analysis and prevention, (5) management, and
(6) research, information sharing, documentation, and monitoring. The
Plan contains a number of actions recommended by the working groups and
discussed in the reports of the groups which are posted on the
Council's website. The Council also heard from a wide range of
organizations and individuals at five public listening sessions held in
July 2000 around the country and through numerous written comments.
A draft Plan was made available for comment on the Council's
website in early August of 2000, before the deadline set by the
Executive Order. However, due to extensive revisions made in response
to public comment and delays in hiring Council staff, the final version
was not issued until January 18, 2001. On October 2, 2000, a Federal
Register notice (65 FR 58783-58784) announced the availability of the
draft Plan. In that notice, the Council solicited comments on the Plan
for 45 days ending on November 16, 2000. In response to a number of
requests submitted by interested persons, the Council extended the
comment period by 15 days in a second notice published in the Federal
Register on November 16, 2000 (65 FR 69320).
By December 1, 2000, the close of the extended comment period, the
Council had received a total of 181 written comments. The comments were
from private citizens; a Native American association; businesses and
industry groups; academic institutions; scientific, conservation, and
other non-governmental organizations; State, local, and Federal
Government agencies; and several public/private partnerships. The
commenters generally supported the goals of the Executive Order and the
Plan; however, nearly all of the commenters offered specific opinions,
suggestions, or criticisms regarding the content of the draft Plan.
The Council carefully considered each of the comments received and
made numerous changes to the Plan to reflect many of the points raised
in the comments. In some cases, however, commenters brought up issues
that were outside the scope of the Plan, made specific recommendations
regarding detailed operational matters, or questioned why the
activities of particular groups were either mentioned or overlooked.
Other commenters sought firm funding or action commitments that cannot
be made until the implementation stage of the Plan. Wherever possible
and appropriate, the Council will consider those comments that were not
integrated into the final version of the Plan that deal with
implementation issues during the implementation phase of the Plan.
The first edition of the Plan provides a general blueprint for
action to deal with the threats posed by invasive species; however,
many of the details of the actions called for will require further
development in the implementation phase. At that point, specific
measures of success, as well as the personnel and other resources
needed to achieve the Plan's goals, will be described. The action items
included in the Plan outline an array of prospective approaches for
preventing the introduction and spread of invasive species. The Plan
provides for development of an oversight mechanism to ensure agency
accountability and calls on Council Departments to submit annual
reports summarizing their progress in implementing the Plan.
The final version of the Plan was approved by the eight Council
member agencies on January 18, 2001, and is now available to the
public. The Plan is available on the Council's website; in addition,
you may request a hard copy of the Plan by contacting the Council
staff. In the near future, printed copies of the Plan will be made
available and an order form will be posted on the Council's website.
Specific information regarding the availability of the Plan can be
found in the ADDRESSES section of this notice.
Lori Williams,
Executive Director, National Invasive Species Council.
[FR Doc. 01-5979 Filed 3-9-01; 8:45 am]
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