Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 185 / Tuesday, September 24, 2013 / Proposed Rules 58507

(e) Applicability to ticketing. This the order which will include an option and other information regarding these section does not apply to a respondent to file an appeal for reconsideration of species. At the conclusion of this who fails to pay a civil penalty assessed the cessation of operations order within review, we will issue a 12-month by a ticket issued pursuant to § 107.310 20 days of receipt of the order; and finding on the petition, as provided in of this subchapter. (4) A description of the manner in section 4(b)(3)(B) of the Act. (f) Applicability to debtors. This which the respondent can make DATES: To allow us adequate time to section does not apply to a respondent payment of any money due the United conduct this review, we request that we who is unable to pay a civil penalty States as a result of the proceeding (i.e., receive information on or before because the respondent is a debtor in a the full outstanding balance of the civil November 25, 2013. After this date, you case under chapter 11, title 11, United penalty). must submit information directly to the States Code. A respondent who is a (c) The cessation of hazardous office listed in the FOR FURTHER debtor in a case under chapter 11, title materials operation order will be INFORMATION CONTACT section below. 11, United States Code must provide the delivered by personal service, unless Please note that we may not be able to following information to the agency such service is impossible or address or incorporate information that decision maker identified in the original impractical. If personal service is we receive after the above requested agency order or on its certificate of impossible or impractical then service date. service. may be made by certified mail or ADDRESSES: You may submit (1) The chapter of the Bankruptcy commercial express service. If a information by one of the following Code under which the bankruptcy respondent’s principal place of business is in a foreign country, it will be methods: proceeding is filed; • Electronically: Go to the Federal (2) The bankruptcy case number; delivered to the respondent’s designated eRulemaking Portal: http:// (3) The court in which the bankruptcy agent (as prepared in accordance with www.regulations.gov. In the Search proceeding was filed; and § 105.40 of this subchapter). field, enter Docket No. FWS–HQ–ES– (4) Any other information requested Issued in Washington, DC, on September by the agency to determine a debtor’s 2013–0051, which is the docket number 16, 2013, under authority delegated in 49 for this action. Then click on the Search bankruptcy status. CFR Part 106. (g) Penalties for Prohibited Hazardous button. You may submit a comment by Magdy El-Sibaie, clicking on ‘‘Comment Now!’’ If your Materials Operations. A respondent that Associate Administrator for Hazardous continues to conduct hazardous comments will fit in the provided Materials Safety, Pipeline and Hazardous comment box, please use this feature of materials operations in violation of this Materials Safety Administration. section may be subject to additional http://www.regulations.gov, as it is most [FR Doc. 2013–22952 Filed 9–23–13; 8:45 am] compatible with our comment review penalties, including criminal BILLING CODE 4910–60–P prosecution pursuant to 49 U.S.C. procedures. If you attach your § 5124. comments as a separate document, our preferred file format is Microsoft Word. § 109.103 Notice of Nonpayment of DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR If you attach multiple comments (such Penalties. as form letters), our preferred format is Fish and Wildlife Service (a) If a full payment of a civil penalty, a spreadsheet in Microsoft Excel. • By Hard Copy: U.S. mail or hand- or an installment payment as part of 50 CFR Part 17 agreed upon payment plan, has not been delivery: Public Comments Processing, made within 45 days after the date [Docket No. FWS–HQ–ES–2013–0051; 450 Attn: FWS–HQ–ES–2013–0051, specified for payment by the final 003 0115] Division of Policy and Directives agency order, the agency may issue a Management; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Endangered and Threatened Wildlife cessation of hazardous materials Service; 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, MS and Plants; 90-Day Finding on a operations order to the respondent. 2042–PDM; Arlington, VA 22203. (b) The cessation of hazardous Petition To List 10 Sturgeon Species We will not accept comments by materials operations order issued under as Endangered or Threatened email or fax. We will post all comments this section shall include the following AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, on http://www.regulations.gov. This information: Interior. generally means that we will post any personal information you provide us (1) A citation to the statutory ACTION: Notice of petition finding and provision or regulation the respondent initiation of status review. (see the Information Requested section, was found to have violated and to the below, for more information). terms of the order or agreement SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: requiring payment; Wildlife Service (Service), announce a Janine Van Norman, Chief, Branch of (2) A statement indicating that if the 90-day finding on a petition to list 10 Foreign Species, Endangered Species respondent fails to pay the full sturgeon species as endangered or Program, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, outstanding balance of the civil penalty threatened under the Endangered 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Room 420, within 90 days after the payment due Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). Arlington, VA 22203; telephone 703– date, the respondent shall be prohibited Based on our review, we find that the 358–2171; facsimile 703–358–1735. If from conducting any activity regulated petition presents substantial scientific you use a telecommunications device under the Federal hazardous material and commercial information indicating for the deaf (TDD), call the Federal transportation law, this subchapter or that the petitioned action may be Information Relay Service (FIRS) at subchapter C of this chapter, or an warranted. Therefore, with the 800–877–8339. exemption or special permit, approval, publication of this notice, we are SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: or registration issued under this initiating a review of the status of these subchapter or under subchapter C of species to determine if listing these 10 Information Requested this chapter; species is warranted. To ensure that this For the status review to be complete (3) A statement describing the status review is comprehensive, we and based on the best available respondent’s options for responding to request scientific and commercial data scientific and commercial information,

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we request information on 10 sturgeon submission—including any personal gueldenstaedtii); ship sturgeon (A. species (see list in Table 1, below) from identifying information—will be posted nudiventris); Persian sturgeon (A. government agencies (including foreign on the Web site. If you submit a hard persicus); stellate sturgeon (A. stellatus); national and provincial governments copy that includes personal identifying Siberian sturgeon (A. baerii); Yangtze within the range of each of these information, you may request at the top sturgeon (A. dabryanus); Chinese species), the scientific community, of your document that we withhold this sturgeon (A. sinensis); Sakhalin industry, and any other interested personal identifying information from sturgeon (A. mikadoi); Amur sturgeon parties. We seek information on: public review. However, we cannot (A. schrenckii); Kaluga sturgeon (Huso (1) Each species’ biology, range, and guarantee that we will be able to do so. dauricus); Syr Darya sturgeon population trends, including: We will post all hard copy submissions (Pseudoscaphirhynchus fedtschenkoi); (a) Habitat requirements for feeding, on http://www.regulations.gov. dwarf sturgeon (P. hermanni); and Amu breeding, and sheltering; Information and supporting Darya sturgeon (P. kaufmanni). The (b) Genetics and taxonomy; documentation that we received and petition states that all 15 petitioned (c) Historical and current range, used in preparing this finding will be sturgeon species are affected by similar including distribution patterns, available to review at http:// threats, which are primarily: Both legal particularly regarding their seasonal www.regulations.gov, or you may make and illegal harvest for meat and/or roe; migrations; an appointment during normal business habitat loss and degradation including (d) Historical and current population hours at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife dams or dam construction, and water levels, and current and projected Service, Endangered Species Program, pollution. The petition is available at FOR population trends; Branch of Foreign Species (see http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/pdfs/ FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). (e) Potential threats to each species petitions/sturgeon15_petition2012.pdf. such as harvest or other threats not Background identified; and NMFS acknowledged receipt of this (f) Past and ongoing conservation Section 4(b)(3)(A) of the Act requires petition in a letter dated April 14, 2012, measures for each species or its habitat. that we make a finding on whether a and informed the petitioners that NMFS (2) The factors that are the basis for petition to list, delist, or reclassify a would determine, under section 4 of the making a listing determination for a species presents substantial scientific or Act, whether the petition presents species or subspecies under section 4(a) commercial information indicating that substantial scientific or commercial of the Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), the petitioned action may be warranted. information indicating that the We are to base this finding on which are: petitioned action may be warranted. information provided in the petition, (a) The present or threatened Although the petition was initially sent supporting information submitted with destruction, modification, or to NMFS, as a result of subsequent the petition, and information otherwise curtailment of their habitat or range; discussions between NMFS and the available in our files. To the maximum (b) Overutilization for commercial, Service regarding the August 28, 1974, extent practicable, we are to make this recreational, scientific, or educational Memorandum of Understanding finding within 90 days of our receipt of purposes, particularly data on hunting; pertaining to ‘‘Jurisdictional the petition and publish our notice of (c) Disease or predation; Responsibilities and Listing Procedures the finding promptly in the Federal (d) The inadequacy of existing Under the Endangered Species Act of Register. regulatory mechanisms; or 1973,’’ we have determined that 10 of Our standard for substantial scientific the 15 petitioned sturgeon species are (e) Other natural or manmade factors or commercial information within the affecting their continued existence. within the jurisdiction of the Service. Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) with Therefore, in April 2012, the Service (3) The potential effects of climate regard to a 90-day petition finding is change on each species and its habitat. notified WildEarth Guardians that we ‘‘that amount of information that would have jurisdiction over the 10 sturgeon Please include sufficient information lead a reasonable person to believe that with your submission (such as full species, listed below, that are the the measure proposed in the petition subject of this 90-day finding. references) to allow us to verify any may be warranted’’ (50 CFR 424.14(b)). scientific or commercial information If we find that substantial scientific or This 90-day finding considers you include. Submissions merely stating commercial information was presented, whether the petitioned action may be support for or opposition to the action we are required to promptly initiate a warranted for the following 10 sturgeon under consideration without providing species status review, which we species included in the petition: supporting information, although noted, subsequently summarize in our 12- Siberian sturgeon (Acipenser baerii), will not be considered in making a month finding. Yangtze sturgeon (A. dabryanus), determination. Section 4(b)(1)(A) of the Russian sturgeon (A. gueldenstaedtii), Act directs that determinations as to Petition History ship sturgeon (A. nudiventris), Persian whether any species is an endangered or On March 12, 2012, the National sturgeon (A. persicus), Amur sturgeon threatened species must be made Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) (A. schrenckii), stellate sturgeon (A. ‘‘solely on the basis of the best scientific received a petition dated March 8, 2012, stellatus), Syr-Darya sturgeon and commercial data available.’’ from WildEarth Guardians and Friends (Pseudoscaphirhynchus fedtschenkoi), You may submit your information of Animals to list as endangered or dwarf sturgeon (P. hermanni), and the concerning this status review by one of threatened under the Act the following Amu Darya sturgeon (P. kaufmanni). the methods listed in the ADDRESSES 15 sturgeon species: Adriatic sturgeon The best available information regarding section. If you submit information via (Acipenser naccarii); Baltic sturgeon (A. the current ranges and population http://www.regulations.gov, your entire sturio); Russian sturgeon (A. trends is summarized in Table 1, below.

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TABLE 1—LIST OF SPECIES IN THIS 90-DAY FINDING

Species IUCN Status Population trend Current range

Siberian sturgeon (Acipenser baerii) ...... Endangered ...... Decreasing ...... China; Kazakhstan; Mongolia; Russia. Yangtze sturgeon (Acipenser dabryanus) ...... Critically Endangered Decreasing ...... China. Russian sturgeon (Acipenser gueldenstaedtii) Critically Endangered Decreasing ...... Azerbaijan; Bulgaria; Georgia; Iran; Kazakhstan; Moldova; Romania; Russia; Serbia; Turkey; Turkmenistan; Ukraine. Ship sturgeon (Acipenser nudiventris) ...... Critically Endangered Decreasing ...... Azerbaijan; Georgia; Hungary; Iran; Kazakhstan; Russia; Serbia; Turkey. Persian sturgeon (Acipenser persicus) ...... Critically Endangered Decreasing ...... Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Rus- sia, Turkey. Amur sturgeon (Acipenser schrenckii) ...... Critically Endangered Decreasing ...... China; Russia. Stellate sturgeon (Acipenser stellatus) ...... Critically Endangered Decreasing ...... Azerbaijan; Bulgaria; Iran; Kazakhstan; Moldova; Romania; Russia; Serbia; Turkey; Turkmenistan; Ukraine. Syr Darya sturgeon (Pseudoscaphirhynchus Critically Endangered Unknown ...... Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan. fedtschenkoi). Dwarf sturgeon (Pseudoscaphirhynchus Critically Endangered Decreasing ...... Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan. hermanni). Amu Darya sturgeon (Pseudoscaphirhynchus Critically Endangered Decreasing ...... Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan. kaufmanni).

Introduction monitor international trade in CITES- determine that the petition presents These 10 sturgeon species are either listed species (that is, their import, substantial scientific or commercial anadromous (spend part of their lives in export, and re-export) through a system information indicating that listing these salt water and return to rivers to breed) of permits and certificates. CITES lists 10 sturgeon species as endangered or or live solely in fresh water. Many species in one of three appendices— threatened may be warranted. This sturgeon species are prized for their roe, Appendix I, II, or III. finding is based on information which is made into caviar. The primary Evaluation of Information for a 90-Day provided in the petition regarding the factors indicated in the petition as Finding on a Petition five factors: The present or threatened affecting these species include destruction, modification, or Section 4 of the Act (16 U.S.C. 1533) overharvest and damming of rivers, curtailment of its habitat or range and its implementing regulations at 50 which affect the continued survival of (Factor A); overutilization for CFR 424 set forth the procedures for all the petitioned sturgeon with the commercial, recreational, scientific, or adding a species to, or removing a exception, at least at present, of those in educational purposes (Factor B); disease species from, the Federal Lists of the Amur River basin. and predation (Factor C); the In 1997, Parties to the Convention on Endangered and Threatened Wildlife inadequacy of existing regulatory International Trade in Endangered and Plants. A species may be mechanisms (Factor D); and other Species of Wild Fauna and Flora determined to be an endangered or natural or manmade factors affecting the (CITES) agreed to include all sturgeon threatened species due to one or more species’ continued existence (Factor E). species not already in the CITES of the five factors described in section The primary factors identified in the Appendices in Appendix II. The listing 4(a)(1) of the Act: petition as affecting these species are (A) The present or threatened became effective in April 1998. All 10 dams constructed within their range destruction, modification, or species of sturgeon in this finding were that fragment their habitat (Factor A); curtailment of its habitat or range; pollution that causes health and included in CITES Appendix II at that (B) Overutilization for commercial, reproduction issues (Factor A); severe time. Pursuant to Article II, paragraph recreational, scientific, or educational levels of overharvest (Factor B); and the 2(a) of CITES, Appendix II includes purposes; species that are not necessarily (C) Disease or predation; inadequacy of existing regulatory threatened now with extinction, but (D) The inadequacy of existing mechanisms (Factor D) to address those may become so unless trade in regulatory mechanisms; or threats. The petitioners also note that all specimens of such species is subject to (E) Other natural or manmade factors of the petitioned species are affected by strict regulation in order to avoid affecting its continued existence. more than one factor (Petition, p. 50). utilization incompatible with their In making this 90-day finding, we These species occur in several survival. In addition, Appendix II also evaluated whether information countries, and the factors affecting these includes species that may be listed due regarding threats to each species, as species are complex and interrelated. to their similarity in appearance with presented in the petition and other Because we have found that the petition other species that are regulated under information available in our files, is presents substantial information the treaty (CITES Article II 2(b)). Some substantial, thereby indicating that the indicating that listing these 10 sturgeon of the 10 species of sturgeon in this petitioned action may be warranted. Our species may be warranted, we are finding were listed in accordance with evaluation of this information is initiating a status review to determine the CITES criteria under paragraph 2(a) presented in Appendix A. in Docket No. whether listing these 10 sturgeon of Article II, while others were listed FWS–HQ–ES–2013–0051 on http:// species under the Act as endangered or based upon the similarity of appearance www.regulations.gov. threatened is warranted. provision. The ‘‘substantial information’’ CITES is a multinational agreement Finding standard for a 90-day finding differs between governments. CITES Parties On the basis of our review under from the Act’s ‘‘best scientific and (signatory countries) regulate and section 4(b)(3)(A) of the Act, we commercial data available’’ standard

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that applies to a 12-month finding mean that the 12-month finding will Species, Endangered Species Program, (status review) as to whether a result in a warranted finding. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. petitioned action is warranted. A 90-day References Cited Authority finding is not a status assessment of the A complete list of all references cited species and does not constitute a status The authority for this action is the review under the Act. In a 12-month in this 90-day finding is available on the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov at Endangered Species Act of 1973, as finding, we will determine whether a Docket No. FWS–HQ–ES–2013–0051 or amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). petitioned action is warranted after we upon request from the Branch of Foreign Dated: September 9, 2013. have completed a thorough status Species, Endangered Species Program, Stephen D. Guertin, review of the species, which is U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (see FOR Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. conducted following a substantial 90- FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). day finding. Because the Act’s standards [FR Doc. 2013–22879 Filed 9–23–13; 8:45 am] for 90-day and 12-month findings are Author BILLING CODE 4310–55–P different, as described above, a The primary author of this finding is substantial 90-day finding does not Amy Brisendine, Branch of Foreign

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