[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 136 (Monday, July 18, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41233-41234]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-14047]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
Draft Comprehensive Conservation Plan and Environmental
Assessment for Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge, Sherburne County, MN
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announces that the Draft
Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCP) and Environmental Assessment (EA)
is available for Sherburne NWR, Minnesota.
The CCP was prepared pursuant to the National Wildlife Refuge
System Administration Act of 1966, as amended by the National Wildlife
Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997, and the National Environmental
Policy Act of 1969. Goals and objectives in the CCP describe how the
agency intends to manage the refuge over the next 15 years.
DATES: Comments on the Draft CCP/EA must be received on or before
September 2, 2005.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the Draft CCP are available on compact disk or
hard copy, you may obtain a copy by writing to: U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, Division of Conservation Planning, Bishop Henry Whipple
Federal Building, 1 Federal Drive, Fort Snelling, Minnesota 55111 or
you may access and download a copy via the planning Web site at http://www.fws.gov/midwest/planning/sherburne/index.html.
All comments should be addressed to Sherburne National Wildlife
Refuge, Attention: CCP Comment, 17076 293rd Avenue, Zimmerman, MN
55398, or direct e-mail to [email protected]. Comments may also be
submitted through the Service's regional Web site at http://www.fws.gov/midwest/planning/.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anne Sittauer at (763) 389-3323
extension 11.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 30,575-acre Sherburne National Wildlife
is located in central Minnesota at the juncture of the northern boreal
forest, the eastern deciduous forest, and the tallgrass prairie. It was
established in 1965 under the general authority of the Migratory Bird
Conservation Act of 1929 (16 U.S.C. 715d). The Act states that lands
may be acquired `` * * * for use as an inviolate sanctuary, or for any
other management purpose, for migratory birds.'' The Refuge attracts
over 230 species of birds each year to its diverse habitats. Of these,
over 120 are known to nest in the area. The Refuge wetlands provide
habitat for about 30 nesting pairs of Greater Sandhill Cranes and serve
as a staging area for thousands of cranes during fall migration. During
fall and spring migration, the Refuge wetlands also support thousands
of waterfowl.
The EA evaluates five different approaches, or alternatives, to
future management of the Sherburne NWR. The plan also identifies
wildlife-dependent recreational opportunities available to the public
including hunting, fishing, wildlife observation and photography, and
environmental education and interpretation. The preferred alternative
calls for: (1) Changes in the water impoundment system and upland
management to create a diversity of wetland types and historic upland
plant communities; (2) increased opportunities for all types of
wildlife-dependent recreation; and (3) outreach, private lands, and
partnership activities that will emphasize natural processes, including
native habitat restoration and conservation, to form ecologically
functioning connections to and from the Refuge.
The National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966, as
amended by the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997
(16 U.S.C. 668dd-668ee et seq.) requires the Service to develop a CCP
for each National Wildlife Refuge. The purpose in developing a CCP is
to provide refuge managers with a 15-year strategy for achieving refuge
purposes and contributing toward the mission of the National Wildlife
Refuge System, consistent with sound principles of fish and wildlife
management, conservation, legal mandates, and Service policies. In
addition to outlining broad management direction for conserving
wildlife and their habitats, the CCP identifies wildlife-dependent
recreational opportunities available to the public, including
opportunities for hunting, fishing, 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 Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997,
and the
[[Page 41234]]
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321-4370d).
Dated: February 25, 2005.
Charles M. Wooley,
Acting Regional Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Ft. Snelling,
Minnesota.
[FR Doc. 05-14047 Filed 7-15-05; 8:45 am]
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