[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 174 (Thursday, September 8, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Page 55699]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-23051]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R4-R-2011-N078; 40136-1265-0000-S3]
Proposed Establishment of Everglades Headwaters National Wildlife
Refuge and Conservation Area
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability: draft land protection plan and
environmental assessment; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), propose to
establish a national wildlife refuge and conservation area in Polk,
Osceola, Highlands, and Okeechobee Counties, in central and south
Florida. A draft Land Protection Plan (LPP) and Environmental
Assessment (EA) for the establishment of the proposed refuge and
conservation area were prepared with input from Federal, State, and
local agencies; Native American tribal nations; various non-
governmental organizations; and the public. The EA considers the
biological, environmental, and socioeconomic impacts of establishment
of the refuge and conservation area and evaluates alternatives. The LPP
describes the alternative we propose for the establishment of the
refuge and conservation area.
DATES: To ensure consideration of your comments, we must receive your
written comments by October 24, 2011. We will schedule public meetings
during this public review and comment period. We will also inform the
public of the public review and comment period and the dates,
locations, and times of public meetings through mailings, press
releases, and the Service's Everglades Headwaters webpage: http://www.fws.gov/southeast/evergladesheadwaters.
ADDRESSES: You may obtain a copy of the draft LPP and EA via U.S. mail
at Everglades Headwaters Proposal, Fish and Wildlife Service, P.O. Box
2683, Titusville, FL 32781-2683, via e-mail at
EvergladesHeadwatersProposal@fws.gov, or by calling the Merritt Island
National Wildlife Refuge Complex at 321/861-0067 (telephone).
Alternatively, you may download the document from our Internet Site at
http://www.fws.gov/southeast/evergladesheadwaters. You may submit
comments on the draft LPP and EA to the above postal address, e-mail
address, or to 321/861-1276 (fax).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Cheri M. Ehrhardt, Natural
Resource Planner, at 321/861-2368 (telephone) or Mr. Charlie Pelizza,
Refuge Manager, at 772/562-3909, extension 244 (telephone).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We propose to establish a national wildlife
refuge and conservation area in Polk, Osceola, Highlands, and
Okeechobee Counties in central and south Florida. The proposed refuge
and conservation area would carry out many valuable functions,
including the following: (1) Conduct landscape-scale strategic habitat
conservation necessary to conserve important resources through
partnerships and responsible stewardship; (2) protect and enhance
habitats for Federal trust species and species of management concern,
with special emphasis on species listed under the Endangered Species
Act; (3) protect State-listed species; (4) protect and enhance
biological diversity; (5) protect and enhance prairie, scrub, sandhill,
flatwoods, and various wetland habitats within this landscape; (6)
protect the headwaters, groundwater recharge, and watershed of the
Kissimmee Chain of Lakes, Kissimmee River, and Lake Okeechobee region,
which would help improve water quantity and quality in the Everglades
watershed; (7) protect and enhance habitat corridors and implement
other wildlife adaptation strategies to help buffer the impacts of
climate change; and (8) provide opportunities for hunting, fishing,
wildlife observation, wildlife photography, and environmental education
and interpretation, while promoting activities that complement the
purposes of the refuge and other protected lands in the region.
Recognizing the generations of responsible stewardship within this
working rural landscape, this proposal seeks to work with willing
landowners to secure a legacy of conservation lands for future
generations to enjoy. This proposal aims to protect and restore one of
the great grassland and savanna landscapes of eastern North America,
conserving one of the nation's prime areas of biological diversity.
Further, the proposal aims to address the threats from habitat
fragmentation, urban development, and altered ecological processes, and
the impacts from global climate change. Key species and habitats of
concern for this area include: Florida grasshopper sparrow, Everglades
snail kite, Florida black bear, Audubon's crested caracara, red-
cockaded woodpecker, and the cutthroat wetlands habitats. By working
with willing landowners, the Service is proposing to establish a
national wildlife refuge and conservation area on 150,000 acres by
focusing fee title acquisition activities on 50,000 acres of refuge
area, while supporting landscape-scale conservation activities and
focusing conservation easements on another 100,000 acres.
Next Step
After the comment period ends, we will analyze the comments and
address them.
Public Availability of Comments
Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or
other personal identifying information in your comment, 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 your personal identifying
information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be
able to do so.
Authority
This notice is published under the authority of the National
Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997, Public Law 105-57.
Dated: April 27, 2011.
Mark J. Musaus,
Acting Regional Director.
[FR Doc. 2011-23051 Filed 9-7-11; 8:45 am]
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