[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 15 (Wednesday, January 23, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4835-4836]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-01249]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-XC431
Endangered and Threatened Species; Recovery Plan for the North
Pacific Right Whale
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) announces the
availability for public review of the draft Recovery Plan (Plan) for
the North Pacific right whale (Eubalaena japonica). NMFS is soliciting
review and comment from the public and all interested parties on the
Plan, and will consider all substantive comments received during the
review period before submitting the Plan for final approval.
DATES: Comments on the draft Plan must be received by close of business
on March 11, 2013.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by 0648- XC431, by any
of the following methods:
Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public comments via
the Federal eRulemaking Portal http://www.regulations.gov.
Mail: Angela Somma, National Marine Fisheries Service, Office of
Protected Resources, Endangered Species
[[Page 4836]]
Division, 1325 East West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910, Attn: North
Pacific Right Whale Recovery Plan.
Instructions: All comments received are a part of the public record
and will generally be posted to http://www.regulations.gov without
change. All Personal Identifying Information (for example, name,
address, etc.) voluntarily submitted by the commenter may be publicly
accessible. Do not submit Confidential Business Information or
otherwise sensitive or protected information.
NMFS will accept anonymous comments (enter N/A in the required
fields, if you wish to remain anonymous). You may submit attachments to
electronic comments in Microsoft Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or Adobe PDF
file formats only.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shannon Bettridge (301-427-8437),
email [email protected] or Larissa Plants (301-427-8471),
email [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Recovery plans describe actions beneficial to the conservation and
recovery of species listed under the Endangered Species Act of 1973
(ESA), as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). Section 4(f)(1) of the ESA
requires that recovery plans incorporate: (1) Objective, measurable
criteria which, when met, would result in a determination that the
species is no longer threatened or endangered; (2) site-specific
management actions necessary to achieve the Plan's goals; and (3)
estimates of the time required and costs to implement recovery actions.
The ESA requires the development of recovery plans for each listed
species unless such a plan would not promote its recovery.
The Northern right whale (Eubalaena glacialis) has been listed as
``endangered'' under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) since its passage
in 1973. In 2008, NMFS determined that the Northern right whale should
be listed as two separate species, the North Pacific right whale and
the North Atlantic right whale. North Pacific right whales historically
had a wide distribution in the Pacific Ocean, but the population was
dramatically reduced by extensive commercial whaling, now prohibited by
the International Whaling Commission. It is estimated that roughly
1,000 individuals remain. Of the commercially exploited ``great
whales,'' the North Pacific right whale is one of the least well
studied, and the current status of the North Pacific right whale
population is poorly understood. Currently, the population structure of
North Pacific right whales has not been adequately defined.
Because the current status of North Pacific right whales is
unknown, the primary purpose of the draft Recovery Plan is to provide a
research strategy to obtain data necessary to estimate population
abundance, trends, and structure and to identify factors that may be
limiting North Pacific right whale recovery. Criteria for the
reclassification of the North Pacific right whale are included in the
draft Recovery Plan. In summary, the North Pacific right whale may be
reclassified from endangered to threatened when all of the following
have been met: (1) Given current and projected threats and
environmental conditions, the North Pacific right whale population
satisfies the risk analysis standard for threatened status (has no more
than a 1 percent chance of extinction in 100 years) and the global
population has at least 1,500 mature, reproductive individuals
(consisting of at least 250 mature females and at least 250 mature
males in each ocean basin). Mature is defined as the number of
individuals known, estimated, or inferred to be capable of
reproduction. Any factors or circumstances that are thought to
substantially contribute to a real risk of extinction that cannot be
incorporated into a Population Viability Analysis will be carefully
considered before downlisting takes place; and (2) none of the known
threats to North Pacific right whales are known to limit the continued
growth of populations. Specifically, the factors in 4(a)(l) of the ESA
are being or have been addressed: (A) The present or threatened
destruction, modification or curtailment of a species' habitat or
range; (B) overutilization for commercial, recreational or educational
purposes; (C) disease or predation; (D) the inadequacy of existing
regulatory mechanisms; and (E) other natural or manmade factors.
The population will be considered for delisting if all of the
following can be met: (1) Given current and projected threats and
environmental conditions, the total North Pacific right whale
population in each ocean basin in which it occurs satisfies the risk
analysis standard for unlisted status (has less than a 10 percent
probability of becoming endangered in 20 years). Any factors or
circumstances that are thought to substantially contribute to a real
risk of extinction that cannot be incorporated into a Population
Viability Analysis will be carefully considered before delisting takes
place; and (2) none of the known threats to North Pacific right whales
are known to limit the continued growth of populations. Specifically,
the factors in 4(a)(l) of the ESA are being or have been addressed.
The time and cost to recovery is not predictable with the current
information and global listing of North Pacific right whales. The
difficulty in gathering data on North Pacific right whales and
uncertainty about the success of passive acoustic monitoring in
fulfilling data needs make it impossible to give a timeframe to
recovery. While we are comfortable estimating costs for 50 years of
plan implementation ($19.683 million), any projections beyond this date
are likely to be too imprecise to predict. The anticipated date for
removal from the endangered species list also cannot be determined
because of the uncertainty in the success of recovery plan actions for
North Pacific right whales. The effectiveness of many management
activities is not known on a global level. Currently it is impossible
to predict when such measures will bring the species to a point at
which the protections provided by the ESA are no longer warranted, or
even determine whether the species has recovered enough to be
downlisted or delisted. In the future, as more information is obtained
it should be possible to make more informative projections about the
time to recovery, and its expense.
NMFS will consider all substantive comments and information
presented during the public comment period in the course of finalizing
this Plan. NMFS concludes that the Draft Recovery Plan meets the
requirements of the ESA.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.
Dated: January 17, 2013.
Angela Somma,
Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected Resources,
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2013-01249 Filed 1-22-13; 8:45 am]
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