Federal Register/Vol. 85, No. 189/Tuesday, September 29, 2020
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61384 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 189 / Tuesday, September 29, 2020 / Proposed Rules DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR us at any time new information relevant Ecological Services Field Office, 160 to the status of purple lilliput or its Zillicoa St., Asheville, NC 28801; Fish and Wildlife Service habitat. telephone 828–258–3939. Persons who DATES: For the proposed rule to list and use a telecommunications device for the 50 CFR Part 17 designate critical habitat for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Relay Service at 800–877–8339. [Docket No. FWS–R4–ES–2020–0010; longsolid and round hickorynut, we will FF09E21000 FXES11110900000 201] accept comments received or SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: postmarked on or before December 28, Executive Summary RIN 1018–BD32 2020. Comments submitted electronically using the Federal Why we need to publish a rule. Under Endangered and Threatened Wildlife the Act, if we determine that a species and Plants; 12-Month Finding for eRulemaking Portal (see ADDRESSES, below) must be received by 11:59 p.m. is an endangered or threatened species Purple Lilliput; Threatened Species throughout all or a significant portion of Status With Section 4(d) Rule for Eastern Time on the closing date. We must receive requests for a public its range, we are required to promptly Longsolid and Round Hickorynut and publish a proposal in the Federal Designation of Critical Habitat hearing, in writing, at the address shown in FOR FURTHER INFORMATION Register and make a determination on our proposal within one year. To the AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, CONTACT by November 13, 2020. Petition maximum extent prudent and Interior. finding for the purple lilliput: For the purple lilliput, the finding in this determinable, we must designate critical ACTION: Proposed rule; announcement of habitat for any species that we 12-month findings. document was made on September 29, 2020. determine to be an endangered or threatened species under the Act. SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and ADDRESSES: You may submit comments Listing a species as an endangered or Wildlife Service (Service), announce 12- by one of the following methods: threatened species and designation of month findings on a petition to list the (1) Electronically: Go to the Federal critical habitat can only be completed purple lilliput (Toxolasma lividum), eRulemaking Portal: http:// www.regulations.gov. In the Search box, by issuing a rule. longsolid (Fusconaia subrotunda), and What this document does. We find enter FWS–R4–ES–2020–0010, which is round hickorynut (Obovaria that listing the purple lilliput as an the docket number for this rulemaking. subrotunda) freshwater mussels as endangered or threatened species is not Then, click on the Search button. On the endangered or threatened species and to warranted. We propose to list the resulting page, in the Search panel on designate critical habitat under the longsolid and round hickorynut as the left side of the screen, under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as threatened species with a rule under Document Type heading, check the amended (Act). We find that listing the section 4(d) of the Act, and we propose longsolid and round hickorynut is Proposed Rule box to locate this the designation of critical habitat for warranted. Accordingly, we propose to document. You may submit a comment these two species. list the longsolid and round hickorynut by clicking on ‘‘Comment Now!’’ The basis for our action. Under the as threatened species with a rule issued (2) By hard copy: Submit by U.S. mail Act, we may determine that a species is under section 4(d) of the Act (‘‘4(d) to: Public Comments Processing, Attn: an endangered or threatened species rule’’). If we finalize this rule as FWS–R4–ES–2020–0010, U.S. Fish and because of any of five factors: (A) The proposed, it would add these species to Wildlife Service, MS: PRB/3W, 5275 present or threatened destruction, the List of Endangered and Threatened Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041– modification, or curtailment of its Wildlife and extend the Act’s 3803. habitat or range; (B) overutilization for protections to the species. We also We request that you send comments commercial, recreational, scientific, or propose to designate critical habitat for only by the methods described above. educational purposes; (C) disease or the longsolid and round hickorynut We will post all comments on http:// predation; (D) the inadequacy of under the Act. For the longsolid, www.regulations.gov. This generally existing regulatory mechanisms; or (E) approximately 1,115 river miles (1,794 means that we will post any personal other natural or manmade factors kilometers), all of which is occupied by information you provide us (see affecting its continued existence. We the species, in Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Information Requested, below, for more have determined that threats to the West Virginia, Virginia, Tennessee, and information). longsolid and round hickorynut include Alabama fall within the boundaries of Availability of supporting materials: habitat degradation or loss from a the proposed critical habitat For the critical habitat designation, the variety of sources (e.g., dams and other designation. For the round hickorynut, coordinates or plot points or both from barriers, resource extraction); degraded approximately 921 river miles (1,482 which the maps are generated are water quality from chemical kilometers), all of which is occupied by included in the administrative record contamination and erosion from the species, in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and are available at https:// development, agriculture, mining, and Indiana, Kentucky, West Virginia, www.fws.gov/Asheville/ and at http:// timber operations; direct mortality from Tennessee, Alabama, and Mississippi www.regulations.gov under Docket No. dredging; residual impacts (reduced fall within the boundaries of the FWS–R4–ES–2020–0010. Any population size) from historical harvest; proposed critical habitat designation. additional tools or supporting and the proliferation of invasive, Finally, we announce the availability of information that we may develop for the nonnative species. These threats also a draft economic analysis of the critical habitat designation will also be contribute to the negative effects proposed designation of critical habitat available at the Service website set out associated with the species’ small for the longsolid and round hickorynut. above, and may also be included in the population size. After a thorough review of the best preamble and/or at http:// Section 4(a)(3) of the Act requires the available scientific and commercial www.regulations.gov. Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) to information, we find that it is not FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: designate critical habitat concurrent warranted at this time to list the purple Janet Mizzi, Field Supervisor, U.S. Fish with listing to the maximum extent lilliput. We ask the public to submit to and Wildlife Service, Asheville prudent and determinable. Section VerDate Sep<11>2014 20:20 Sep 28, 2020 Jkt 250001 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 4701 Sfmt 4702 E:\FR\FM\29SEP2.SGM 29SEP2 jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS2 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 189 / Tuesday, September 29, 2020 / Proposed Rules 61385 3(5)(A) of the Act defines critical habitat the conclusions made, including why and existing regulations that may be as (i) the specific areas within the we changed our conclusion. addressing those threats. geographical area occupied by the (4) Additional information concerning Acronyms and Abbreviations Used species, at the time it is listed, on which the historical and current status, range, are found those physical or biological We use several acronyms and distribution, and population size of this features (I) essential to the conservation abbreviations throughout the preamble species, including the locations of any of the species and (II) which may of this finding and proposed rule. To additional populations of this species. require special management assist the reader, we list them here: (5) Information on regulations that are considerations or protections; and (ii) Act = Endangered Species Act of 1973, as necessary and advisable to provide for specific areas outside the geographical amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) the conservation of the longsolid and area occupied by the species at the time AMD = acid mine and saline drainage round hickorynut, and that the Service it is listed, upon a determination by the BMP = best management practice can consider in developing a 4(d) rule Secretary that such areas are essential CBD = Center for Biological Diversity for the species. In particular, we seek for the conservation of the species. DEA = draft economic analysis information concerning the extent to = Section 4(b)(2) of the Act states that the IEM incremental effects memorandum HUC = hydrologic unit code which we should include any of the Secretary must make the designation on LS = longsolid section 9 prohibitions in the 4(d) rule or the basis of the best scientific data ppm = parts per million whether any other forms of take should available and after taking into RFA = Regulatory Flexibility Act be excepted from the prohibitions in the consideration the economic impact, the RH = round hickorynut 4(d) rule. impact on national security, and any SSA = species status assessment (6) The reasons why we should or other relevant impacts of specifying any TDEC = Tennessee Department of should not designate habitat as ‘‘critical particular area as critical habitat. Environment and Conservation habitat’’ under section 4 of the Act, = Peer review. In accordance with our TVA Tennessee Valley Authority including information to inform the joint policy on peer review published in Information Requested following factors that the regulations identify as reasons why designation of the Federal Register on July 1, 1994 (59 For the purple lilliput, we ask the critical habitat may be not prudent: FR 34270), and our August 22, 2016, public to submit to us at any time new memorandum updating and clarifying information relevant to the species’ (a) The species is threatened by taking the role of peer review of listing actions status or its habitat.