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Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; 12-Month Petition Finding and Proposed Rule To List the Polar Bear (Ursus Maritimus) as Threatened Throughout Its Range 



[Federal Register: September 20, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 182)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Page 53749-53751]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr20se07-27]

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
50 CFR Part 17
RIN 1018-AV19

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; 12-Month Petition
Finding and Proposed Rule To List the Polar Bear (Ursus Maritimus) as
Threatened Throughout Its Range

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Reopening of comment period; notice of availability of new
information.

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[[Page 53750]]

SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the
availability of nine new United States Geological Survey (USGS) reports
produced for the Service to provide current data and modeling outputs
relevant to the final determination of whether the polar bear (Ursus
maritimus) qualifies for listing under the Endangered Species Act of
1973, as amended (Act). We intend to take these reports into
consideration as we make our final listing determination on the polar
bear. We also are reopening the public comment period on the January 9,
2007, proposed rule to list the polar bear as threatened throughout its
range under the Act (72 FR 1064). We are reopening the comment period
for an additional 15 days to allow interested parties to comment on the
nine USGS reports listed below. The comment period is being limited to
15 days because of the statutory deadline, which requires a final
listing determination within one year of publication of the proposed
rule, unless an extension of up to six months is granted due to
substantial disagreement regarding the sufficiency or accuracy of the
available data relevant to the determination.
    Please note that comments previously submitted should not be
resubmitted. This comment period is open only for comments on the nine
USGS reports listed below. Comments submitted during the prior comment
period have been incorporated into the public record and will be fully
considered during preparation of our final determination.

DATES: We will accept public comments until October 5, 2007.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments and materials to us by any one of
the following methods:
    (1) You may mail or hand-deliver written comments and information
to the Supervisor, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Marine Mammals
Management Office, 1011 East Tudor Road, Anchorage, AK 99503.
    (2) You may send comments by electronic mail (e-mail) to: 
Polar_Bear_Finding@fws.gov. For instructions on how to file comments

electronically, see the ``Public Comments Solicited'' section below. In
the event that our Internet connection is not functional, please submit
your comments by one of the alternate methods listed in this section.
    (3) You may submit your comments via the Federal eRulemaking Portal
at http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting
comments.
    For information on obtaining copies of the nine USGS reports, see
the ``Obtaining Copies of the Nine USGS reports'' section below.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rosa Meehan, Marine Mammals Management
Office (see ADDRESSES) (telephone 907-786-3800). Persons who use a
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On January 9, 2007 (72 FR 1064), the Service
published a 12-month petition finding and proposed rule to list the
polar bear (Ursus maritimus) as threatened throughout its range under
the Act. The document announced a 3-month public comment period on the
proposed rule, which closed on April 9, 2007. We also held three public
hearings during the proposed rule's comment period, as announced in the
February 15, 2007, Federal Register (72 FR 7381).
    On September 7, 2007, the Service received nine reports prepared by
the USGS that provide new data and modeling outputs relevant to the
final determination of whether the polar bear qualifies for listing as
threatened or endangered under the Act. These reports are:
    (1) Polar Bear Population Status in the Northern Beaufort Sea by
Stirling et al.
    (2) Polar Bear Population Status in Southern Hudson Bay Canada by
Obbard et al.
    (3) Polar Bears in the Southern Beaufort Sea I: Survival and
Breeding in Relation to Sea Ice Conditions, 2001-2006 by Regehr et al.
    (4) Polar Bears in the Southern Beaufort Sea II: Demography and
Population Growth in Relation to Sea Ice Conditions by Hunter et al.
    (5) Polar Bears in the Southern Beaufort Sea III: Stature, Mass,
and Cub Recruitment in Relationship to Time and Sea Ice Extent Between
1982 and 2006 by Rode et al.
    (6) Uncertainty in Climate Model Predictions of Arctic Sea Ice
Decline: An Evaluation Relevant to Polar Bears by DeWeaver.
    (7) Predicting the Future Distribution of Polar Bear Habitat in the
Polar Basin from Resource Selection Functions Applied to 21st Century
General Circulation Model Projections of Sea Ice by Durner et al.
    (8) Predicting Movements of Female Polar Bears between Summer Sea
Ice Foraging Habitats and Terrestrial Denning Habitats of Alaska in the
21st Century: Proposed Methodology and Pilot Assessment by Bergen et
al.
    (9) Forecasting the Range-wide Status of Polar Bears at Selected
Times in the 21st Century by Amstrup et al.
    We are notifying the public of the availability of these reports
and our intent to consider them in making our final listing
determination. We also are reopening the comment period for 15 days to
provide the public the opportunity to provide comments or information
on these reports. We are asking for public comments on these reports
and a review of the extent to which they add to the knowledge base for
making the final decision.

Obtaining Copies of the Nine USGS Reports

    You may obtain copies of any of the nine USGS reports:
    • By mail from the U.S. Department of the Interior, United
States Geological Survey, Office of Communication, 119 National Center,
Reston, VA 20192;
    • By calling USGS Public Affairs at (703) 648-4460;
    • By visiting the USGS Web site at http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/special/polar_bears/
; or
    • Via link to the USGS Web site from the Service's Web site:
http://www.fws.gov/.

    Copies of the reports are also available for public inspection, by
appointment during normal business hours, at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, Marine Mammals Management Office (see ADDRESSES).

Public Comments Solicited

    Comments and information submitted during the initial comment
period on the January 9, 2007 (72 FR 1064), proposed rule should not be
resubmitted, as this comment period is open only for comments on the
nine USGS reports listed above. Our final determination of whether the
polar bear qualifies as threatened or endangered under the Act will
take into consideration all comments and information we receive during
both comment periods.
    You may submit your comments and any materials concerning the above
reports by any one of several methods (see ADDRESSES). If you use e-
mail to submit your comments, please include ``Attn: Polar Bear
Finding'' in your e-mail subject header, preferably with your name and
return address in the body of your message.
    Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or
other personal identifying information in your comments, you should be
aware that your entire comment--including your personal identifying
information--may be made publicly available at any time. While you can
ask us in your comment to withhold from public view your personal
identifying information, we

[[Page 53751]]

cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

Author

    The primary author of this notice is staff of the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service.

    Authority: The authority for this action is the Endangered
Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

    Dated: September 13, 2007.
H. Dale Hall,
Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 07-4652 Filed 9-17-07; 11:03 am]

BILLING CODE 4310-55-P

 
 

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