Federal Register/Vol. 76, No. 85/Tuesday, May 3, 2011/Proposed
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25150 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 85 / Tuesday, May 3, 2011 / Proposed Rules DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR any new information, materials, in response to the petition. The third comments, or questions concerning this possibility is that we may find that Fish and Wildlife Service notice to the above street address. listing is warranted but precluded. A FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: warranted but-precluded finding on a 50 CFR Part 17 Chief, Branch of Foreign Species, petition to list means that listing is [Docket No. FWS–R9–ES–2010–0053; MO Endangered Species Program, (see warranted, but that the immediate 92210–0–0010 B6] ADDRESSES); by telephone at 703–358– proposal and timely promulgation of a 2171; or by facsimile at 703–358–1735. final regulation is precluded by higher Endangered and Threatened Wildlife Persons who use a telecommunications priority listing actions. In making a and Plants; Annual Notice of Findings device for the deaf (TDD) may call the warranted-but-precluded finding under on Resubmitted Petitions for Foreign Federal Information Relay Service the Act, the Service must demonstrate Species; Annual Description of (FIRS) at 800–877–8339. that expeditious progress is being made Progress on Listing Actions to add and remove species from the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Lists. AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Background Pursuant to section 4(b)(3)(C)(i) of the Interior. The Endangered Species Act of 1973, Act, when, in response to a petition, we ACTION: Notice of review. find that listing a species is warranted as amended (Act) (16 U.S.C. 1531 et but precluded, we must make a new SUMMARY: In this notice of review, we seq.), provides two mechanisms for 12-month finding annually until we announce our annual petition findings considering species for listing. First, we publish a proposed rule or make a for foreign species, as required under can identify and propose for listing determination that listing is not section 4(b)(3)(C)(i) of the Endangered those species that are endangered or warranted. These subsequent Species Act of 1973, as amended. When, threatened based on the factors 12-month findings are referred to as in response to a petition, we find that contained in section 4(a)(1) of the Act. ‘‘resubmitted’’ petition findings. This listing a species is warranted but We implement this mechanism through notice contains our resubmitted petition precluded by higher priority listing the candidate program. Candidate taxa actions, we must review the status of the findings for foreign species previously are those taxa for which we have described in the 2009 Notice of Review species each year until we publish a sufficient information on file relating to (August 12, 2009, 74 FR 40540). proposed rule or make a determination biological vulnerability and threats to We maintain this list of candidates for that listing is not warranted. These support a proposal to list the taxa as a variety of reasons: To notify the public subsequent status reviews and the endangered or threatened, but for which that these species are facing threats to accompanying 12-month findings are preparation and publication of a their survival; to provide advance ‘‘ ’’ referred to as resubmitted petition proposed rule is precluded by higher knowledge of potential listings; to findings. priority listing actions. The second provide information that may stimulate Information contained in this notice mechanism for considering species for and guide conservation efforts that will describes our status review of 20 foreign listing is when the public petitions us remove or reduce threats to these taxa that were the subject of previous to add species to the Lists of species and possibly make listing warranted-but-precluded findings, most Endangered and Threatened Wildlife unnecessary; to request input from recently summarized in our 2009 Notice and Plants (Lists). The species covered interested parties to help us identify of Review published on August 12, 2009 by this notice were assessed through the those candidate species that may not (74 FR 40540). Based on our current petition process. require protection under the Act or review, we find that 20 species continue Under section 4(b)(3)(A) of the Act, additional species that may require the to warrant listing, but their listing when we receive a listing petition, we Act’s protections; and to request remains precluded by higher priority must determine within 90 days, to the necessary information for setting listing actions. maximum extent practicable, whether priorities for preparing listing proposals. With this annual notice of review the petition presents substantial On September 21, 1983, we published (ANOR), we are requesting additional scientific or commercial information guidance for assigning a listing priority information for the 20 taxa whose indicating that the petitioned action number (LPN) for each candidate listings that remain warranted but may be warranted (90-day finding). If species (48 FR 43098). Using this precluded by higher priority listing we make a positive 90-day finding, we guidance, we assign each candidate an actions. We will consider this are required to promptly commence a LPN of 1 to 12, depending on the information in preparing listing review of the status of the species. Using magnitude of threats, immediacy of documents and future resubmitted the information from the status review, threats, and taxonomic status; the lower petition findings for these 20 taxa. This in accordance with section 4(b)(3)(B) of the LPN, the higher the listing priority information will also help us to monitor the Act, we must make one of three (that is, a species with an LPN of 1 the status of the taxa and conserve them. findings within 12 months of the receipt would have the highest listing priority). DATES: We will accept information on of the petition (12-month finding). The Guidelines for such a priority-ranking these resubmitted petition findings at first possible 12-month finding is that guidance system are required under any time. listing is not warranted, in which case section 4(h)(3) of the Act (15 U.S.C. ADDRESSES: This notice is available on we need not take any further action on 1533(h)(3)). As explained below, in the Internet at http:// the petition. The second possibility is using this system we first categorize www.regulations.gov, and http:// that we may find that listing is based on the magnitude of the threat(s), endangered.fws.gov/. Supporting warranted, in which case we must then by the immediacy of the threat(s), information used in preparing this promptly publish a proposed rule to list and finally by taxonomic status. notice is available for public inspection, the species. Once we publish a Under this priority-ranking system, by appointment, during normal business proposed rule for a species, sections magnitude of threat can be either ‘‘high’’ hours at the Branch of Foreign Species, 4(b)(5) and 4(b)(6) of the Act govern or ‘‘moderate to low.’’ This criterion 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Room 420, further procedures, regardless of helps ensure that the species facing the Arlington, Virginia 22203. Please submit whether or not we issued the proposal greatest threats to their continued VerDate Mar<15>2010 16:20 May 02, 2011 Jkt 223001 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 4701 Sfmt 4702 E:\FR\FM\03MYP3.SGM 03MYP3 jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with PROPOSALS3 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 85 / Tuesday, May 3, 2011 / Proposed Rules 25151 existence receive the highest listing priority for preparing a proposed rule to review ensures that we focus priority. It is important to recognize that list a given species. Each species conservation efforts on those species at all candidate species face threats to their included in this notice is one for which greatest risk first. In addition to continued existence, so the magnitude we have sufficient information to reviewing foreign candidate species of threats is in relative terms. When prepare a proposed rule to list, because since publication of the last ANOR, we evaluating the magnitude of the threat(s) it is in danger of extinction or likely to have worked on numerous findings in facing the species, we consider become endangered within the response to petitions to list species and information such as: the number of foreseeable future throughout all or a on proposed and final determinations populations and/or extent of range of significant portion of its range. for rules to list species under the Act. the species affected by the threat(s); the For more information on the process Some of these findings and biological significance of the affected and standards used in assigning LPNs, determinations have been completed population(s), the life-history a copy of the guidance is available on and published in the Federal Register, characteristics of the species and its our Web site at: http://www.fws.gov/ while work on others is still under way current abundance and distribution; and endangered/esa-library/pdf/48fr43098- (see Preclusion and Expeditious whether the threats affect the species in 43105.pdf. For more information on the Progress, below, for details). only a portion of its range. We also LPN assigned to a particular species, the Based on our review of the best consider the likelihood of persistence of species assessment for each candidate available scientific and commercial the species in the unaffected portions contains the LPN and a rationale for the information, with this ANOR, we have and whether the effects are likely to be determination of the magnitude and changed the LPN for several candidates. permanent. imminence of threat(s) and assignment The review of these 20 species is As used in our priority ranking of the LPN; that information is summarized in Table 1.