[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 138 (Tuesday, July 20, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43428-43429]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-16409]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
Notice of Availability of the Draft Comprehensive Conservation
Plan and Environmental Assessment for Fish Springs National Wildlife
Refuge, Dugway, UT
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announces that
the Draft Comprehensive Conservation Plan and Environmental Assessment
(CCP/EA) for the Fish Springs National Wildlife Refuge (Refuge) is
available for public review and comment. This Draft CCP/EA was prepared
pursuant to the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act, as
amended, and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The Draft
CCP/EA describes the Service's proposal for management of the Refuge
for 15 years.
DATES: Written comments must be received at the postal or electronic
addresses listed below by August 18, 2004. Comments may also be
submitted VIA electronic mail to: [email protected].
ADDRESSES: To provide written comments or to obtain a copy of the Draft
CCP/EA, please write to Toni Griffin, Planning Team Leader, U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service, P.O. Box 25486, Denver Federal Center, Denver, CO
80225-0486; (303) 236-4378; fax (303) 236-4792 or Jay Banta, Refuge
Manager, Fish Springs National Wildlife Refuge, P.O. Box 568, Dugway,
Utah 84022; (435) 831-5353; fax (435) 831-5354. The Draft CCP/EA will
also be available for viewing and downloading online at http://mountain-prairie.fws.gov/planning.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Toni Griffin, Planning Team Leader at
the above address or at (303) 236-4378.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The National Wildlife System Administration
Act of 1966, as amended by the National Wildlife Refuge Improvement Act
of 1997 (16 U.S.C. 668dd-668ee et seq.), requires the Service to
develop a CCP for the Refuge. The purpose in developing a CCP is to
provide refuge managers with a 15-year
[[Page 43429]]
strategy for achieving refuge purposes and contributing toward the
mission of the National Wildlife Refuge System, consistent with sound
principles of fish and wildlife science, conservation, legal mandates,
and Service policies. In addition to outlining broad management
direction on conserving wildlife and their habitats, the CCP identifies
wildlife-dependent recreational opportunities available to the public,
including opportunities for hunting, wildlife observation and
photography, and environmental education and interpretation. We will
review and update these CCPs at least every 15 years in accordance with
the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966, as
amended by the National Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997, and the
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321-4370d).
Background: Fish Springs National Wildlife Refuge was established
under the Migratory Bird Conservation Act (MBCA) by the Migratory Bird
Conservation Commission. The stated purpose is ``* * * for use as an
inviolate sanctuary, or for any other management purpose, for migratory
birds.'' 16 U.S.C. 715d (Migratory Bird Act)
Significant issues addressed in the Draft CCP/EA include: habitat
and wildlife management, ecological integrity, visitor services,
cultural resources, and partnerships. The Service developed three
alternatives for management of the Refuge: Alternative A--No Action;
Alternative B--Restoration; Alternative C--Enhanced Habitat Management
and Public Use. All three alternatives outline specific management
objectives and strategies related to wildlife and habitat management,
ecological integrity, visitor services, cultural resources, and
partnerships.
Alternative A--No Action (Current Management) focuses on managing
water in nine marsh units to meet the life cycle needs of waterfowl,
shorebirds, and water birds. The marsh units are currently rotated
through a 5-year drawdown schedule according to the Marsh Management
Plan approved in 1991. In addition, the units drawn down each year are
burned according to a prescribed fire plan approved in August 2002.
Visitation to Fish Springs currently ranges between 2000 and 3100
visitors each year. Up to 40 percent of the Refuge is open for duck and
coot hunting each year. Waterfowl hunting remains the greatest
recreational interest. Continuing to provide educational and
interpretive opportunities for visitors will enhance understanding and
appreciation of the wildlife and cultural resources represented on the
Refuge. Efforts to inventory and analyze unmapped cultural resource
sites and fully understand known sites will continue. Continuing to
foster and increase opportunities for participation in conservation
initiatives, such as the Eastern Bonneville partnership, will help the
Refuge maximize its contribution to natural resource conservation.
Alternative B--Restoration, will restore, maintain and enhance the
Refuge's original hydrological system and high-desert shrubland habitat
to a condition resembling their historic nature prior to Refuge
development. Marsh restoration will ensure that habitat that is
critical to maintain the flora and fauna that historically inhabited
the Refuge is provided. Marsh restoration will call for the removal of
all dikes and water control structures. High-desert shrubland will be
restored to its historic native composition benefiting those species
dependent on this habitat type, such as kit fox, Bonneville pocket
gopher, loggerhead shrike, black-throated sparrow, and neotropical
migrants. Visitor services will change slightly under the restoration
alternative, with more emphasis placed on non-consumptive uses, such as
environmental education, interpretation, wildlife observation and
photography. The shift in visitor services is due mainly to the removal
of water control structures (i.e. dikes and roads) which will limit
vehicle access. The current hunting program will continue with the
addition of a goose hunt. Access to hunting areas will be provided via
boat and/or foot passage, promoting a remote hunting experience.
Restoration and subsequent monitoring of the marsh ecosystem will
provide expanded opportunities for interpretation and environmental
education.
Alternative C--Enhanced Habitat Management and Visitor Services,
the Service's Proposed Action, emphasizes the utilization of Fish
Springs NWR by a diversity of migratory birds. Marshes will continue to
be managed for waterfowl, shorebirds, and water birds. Current marsh
water management will continue, with few minor modifications to improve
foraging and nesting habitat for shorebirds and water birds. High-
desert shrublands will be restored to historic native composition,
thereby benefiting those species dependent on this habitat type, such
as kit fox, Bonneville pocket gopher, loggerhead shrike, black-throated
sparrow, and neotropical migrants. One of the five major thermal
springs that arise from a fault line at the base of the east slope of
the Fish Springs Range will be restored to its historic natural
condition providing habitat that is critical to maintain the flora and
fauna that historically inhabited the Refuge. Restoration and
subsequent monitoring of the marsh ecosystem will provide expanded
opportunities for interpretation and environmental education. Increased
efforts in visitor services and the addition of a goose hunt to the
current hunting program will attract more visitors to the Refuge. The
Refuge will maintain an auto-tour route which traverses a cross section
of the habitats and provides opportunity for wildlife viewing and
photography. The construction of an interpretive boardwalk and an
observation platform will further enhance wildlife viewing and
photography.
The review and comment period is 30 calendar days commencing with
publication of this Notice of Availability in the Federal Register.
After the review and comment period for this Draft CCP/EA, all comments
will be analyzed and considered by the Service. All comments received
from individuals on the Environmental Assessment become part of the
official public record. Requests for such comments will be handled in
accordance with the Freedom of Information Act, the Council on
Environmental Quality's NEPA regulations (40 CFR 1506.6(f)) and other
Service and Departmental policies and procedures.
Dated: July 14, 2004.
John A. Blankenship,
Deputy Regional Director, Region 6.
[FR Doc. 04-16409 Filed 7-19-04; 8:45 am]
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