Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 157 / Thursday, August 14, 1997 / Notices 43545

Islands Ecoregion at the Honolulu cultivation facilities on the islands of 62, No. 108, Page 30876, that an address given above. Maui and Oahu. The remaining 21 application had been filed with the Fish FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: individuals are in small (10,000 square and Wildlife Service by Jon Ziegler, Karen Rosa, Assistant Field Supervisor- feet or less) outplanting sites on Rapid City, SD (PRT–830065) for a , at the Honolulu privately owned Molokai Ranch lands, permit to import a sport-hunted polar address given above. at Puu Nana, about 365 meters (1200 bear (Ursus maritimus) from Canada for feet) elevation. personal use. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The destruction of dryland habitats Notice is hereby given that on July 21, Background throughout the Hawaiian Islands, which 1997, as authorized by the provisions of Restoring endangered or threatened began 1,500 years ago with the coming the Marine Mammal Protection Act of animals and to the point where of the Polynesians to Hawaii and 1972, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et they are again secure, self-sustaining increased greatly with the arrival of the seq.) the Fish and Wildlife Service members of their ecosystem is a primary Europeans a little over 200 years ago, authorized the requested permit subject goal of the Service’s endangered species has led to the elimination of to certain conditions set forth therein. program. To help guide the recovery cookei in the wild. was Documents and other information effort, the Service is working to prepare directly impacted by browsing, bark submitted for these applications are recovery plans for most of the listed stripping, and soil trampling by available for review by any party who species native to the United States, its domestic and feral cattle, goats, and submits a written request to the U.S. Territories and Commonwealths. sheep. Currently, this species is most Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of Recovery plans describe actions threatened by the extremely low number Management Authority, 4401 North considered necessary for conservation of of individuals remaining, the lack of Fairfax Drive, Rm 430, Arlington, the species, establish criteria for the naturally rooted plants, and the lack of Virginia 22203. Phone (703) 358–2104 recovery levels for downlisting or viable seed production by the remaining or Fax (703) 358–2281. delisting them, and estimate time and individuals. Dated: August 8, 1997. The objective of this plan is to cost for implementing the recovery Mary Ellen Amtower, measures needed. provide a framework for the recovery of Kokia cookei so that its protection by Acting Chief, Branch of Permits, Office of The Endangered Species Act of 1973, Management Authority. as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) the Act is no longer necessary. Recovery efforts will focus on increasing the [FR Doc. 97–21449 Filed 8–13–97; 8:45 am] (Act), requires the development of BILLING CODE 4310±55±P recovery plans for listed species unless numbers of cloned individuals while such a plan would not promote the pursuing research into other methods, such as embryo culture methodology, conservation of a particular species. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Section 4(f) of the Act, as amended in for the production of individuals 1988, requires that a public notice and capable of setting viable seed. Suitable Bureau of Land Management an opportunity for public review and sites for outplanting of individuals on comment be provided during recovery Molokai, Maui, and Lanai will be [NM±030±7122±03±821G] located and steps taken to manage these plan development. The Service will Proposed Expansion of the Santa Rita consider all information presented lands for the perpetuity of Kokia cookei and other native components of the Pit and Land Exchange in Grant during a public comment period prior to County, New Mexico approval of each new or revised dryland forest. recovery plan. Substantive technical Public Comments Solicited AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, comments will result in changes to the Interior. The Service solicits written comments plan. Substantive comments regarding on the recovery plan described. All ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an recovery plan implementation may not comments received by the date specified Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) necessarily result in changes to the above will be considered prior to and notice of scoping meeting. recovery plan, but will be forwarded to approval of this plan. appropriate Federal or other entities so SUMMARY: Pursuant to Section 102(2)(C) that they can take these comments into Authority of the National Environmental Policy account during the course of The authority for this action is section Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended, the implementing recovery actions. 4(f) of the Endangered Species Act, 16 Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Las Individualized responses to comments U.S.C. 1533(f). Cruces District Office, will be directing will not be provided. the preparation of an EIS to be prepared The species being considered in this Dated: August 8, 1997. by a third party contractor. The EIS will recovery plan is Kokia cookei. Known Thomas J. Dwyer, describe the potential impacts of the only from the island of Molokai, Kokia Acting Regional Director, U.S. Fish and Phelps Dodge Corporation-Chino Mines cookei has been described as the rarest Wildlife Service, Region 1. Company (CMC) proposed Santa Rita Pit in the world. When first [FR Doc. 97–21545 Filed 8–13–97; 8:45 am] Expansion and Land Exchange Project, discovered in the 1860s, three of BILLING CODE 4310±55±P located approximately 7 miles north- this species were known. By the northeast of the town of Hurley, in twentieth century, only a single wild Grant County, New Mexico. The remained. The species became DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR proposed development would occur extirpated from the wild in 1918. partially on patented CMC land and Currently, only 28 cloned individuals of Fish and Wildlife Service partially on Federal land administered Kokia cookei exist. These individuals Issuance of Permits for Marine by the BLM. were produced by grafting to root stocks Mammals The public is invited to participate in of the two related Kokia species, Kokia the planning process. A public scoping kauaiensis and . On June 5, 1997, a notice was meeting will be held at the following Seven individuals are in artificial published in the Federal Register, Vol. time and location: