[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 51 (Thursday, March 16, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13624-13625]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-3800]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
Mexican Wolf Blue Range Reintroduction Project 5-Year Review
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of document availability.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announces the
availability of the Mexican Wolf Blue Range Reintroduction Project
(Reintroduction Project) 5-Year Review under the authority of section
10(j) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), as amended. The 5-
Year Review was conducted by the Mexican Wolf Blue Range Adaptive
Management Oversight Committee (AMOC). The 5-Year Review and public
comment will inform our decision to continue, continue with
modification, or terminate the Reintroduction Project. This 5-Year
Review should not be confused with status reviews (also called 5-year
reviews) conducted under section 4(c)(2)(A) of the Act. This 5-year
program evaluation of the Reintroduction Project is conducted pursuant
to a 1998 section 10(j) final rule.
DATES: The comment period for this 5-Year Review closes April 17, 2006.
Comments on the 5-Year Review must be received by the closing date to
assure consideration.
ADDRESSES: Mexican Wolf Recovery Coordinator, New Mexico Ecological
Services Field Office, 2105 Osuna NE., Albuquerque, NM 87113. To review
documents or submit comments, see ``Public Comments Solicited'' under
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mexican Wolf Recovery Coordinator,
telephone: (800) 299-0196 x4748; facsimile: (505) 346-2542; or e-mail:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Mexican wolf (Canis lupus baileyi) reintroduction in Arizona and
New Mexico is conducted under the authority of section 10(j) of the Act
(16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). On January 12, 1998, the Service published a
final rule (63 FR 1752) that established a nonessential experimental
population of the gray wolf in Arizona and New Mexico and defined the
Mexican Wolf Experimental Population Area (MWEPA) and the Blue Range
Wolf Recovery Area (BRWRA) within the states of Arizona and New Mexico.
Initial releases of captive-reared Mexican wolves into the BRWRA
occurred in 1998, and additional initial releases and translocations
have occurred annually.
The final rule states that the Service will prepare periodic
progress reports, annual reports, and full evaluations after three and
five years that will recommend continuation, modification, or
termination of the reintroduction effort. In 2004-2005, the AMOC, which
consists of the Arizona Game and Fish Department, New Mexico Department
of Game and Fish, USDA-Forest Service, USDA-APHIS Wildlife Services,
White Mountain Apache Tribe, and the Service, conducted the 5-Year
Review of the Reintroduction Project. The AMOC transmitted a final 5-
Year Review to the Service on December 31, 2005. The 5-Year Review
provides synthesized information on all aspects of the Reintroduction
Project, including the status of the wolf population, the social and
economic impacts of wolf reintroduction on surrounding communities, and
program management. This information is organized in four primary
components: Administrative, Technical, Socio-economic, and
Recommendations.
The Service acknowledges and commends the AMOC for its evaluation
of the Reintroduction Project, and recognizes AMOC's responsiveness to
the public during the development and completion of the 5-Year Review.
Public Comments Solicited
Persons wishing to review the 5-year review may request a printed
copy by contacting the Mexican Wolf Recovery Coordinator (see
ADDRESSES) or by downloading it from the Internet at: http://www.fws.gov/ifw2es/mexicanwolf/MWNR_FYRD.shtml.
Comments and materials concerning this 5-year review may be mailed
to the Mexican Wolf Recovery Coordinator (see ADDRESSES), or faxed or
e-mailed (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
Our practice is to make comments, including names and home
addresses of respondents, available for public review during regular
business hours. Respondents may request that we withhold a respondent's
identity, as allowable by law. If you wish us to withhold your name or
address, you must state this request prominently at the beginning of
your comment. We will not, however, consider anonymous comments. To the
extent consistent with applicable law, we will make all submissions
from organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying
themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or
businesses, available for public inspection in their entirety. Comments
and materials received will be available for public inspection, by
appointment, during normal business hours at our New Mexico Ecological
Services Field Office (see ADDRESSES).
To ensure that we have conducted a transparent process that is
based on the best available scientific and commercial information
throughout the development of the 5-Year Review and to inform our
subsequent decision to continue, continue with modification, or
terminate the Reintroduction Project, we are soliciting written
comments on the 5-Year Review from the public, concerned governmental
agencies,
[[Page 13625]]
Tribes, the scientific community, industry, environmental entities, and
any other interested parties. The Administrative, Technical, and
Socioeconomic components of the 5-Year Review have undergone extensive
public review under the oversight of the AMOC. The Service is
specifically interested in comments from the public pertaining to the
Recommendations and whether they follow logically from the background
information and analyses provided in the Administrative, Technical, and
Socio-economic components. However, comments on all components of the
5-Year Review received by the date specified above will be considered
prior to the Service's decision to continue, continue with
modifications, or terminate the Reintroduction Project. This 5-Year
Review should not be confused with status reviews (also called 5-year
reviews) conducted under section 4(c)(2)(A) of the Act. This is a 5-
year program evaluation of the Reintroduction Project as required by
the section 10(j) final rule (63 FR 1752).
Authority
The authority for this action is Section 10(j) of the Endangered
Species Act, 16 U.S.C. 1539(j).
Dated: February 22, 2006.
Benjamin N. Tuggle,
Acting Regional Director, Southwest Region, Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. E6-3800 Filed 3-15-06; 8:45 am]
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