Commerce Department, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
On November 27, 2020, we, NMFS, published in the Federal Register a proposal to designate 17 island units of critical habitat in the Pacific Islands Region for 7 Indo-Pacific coral species listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Based on public comments and new information regarding the interpretation of the records of the listed corals and application to critical habitat, a substantial revision of the proposed rule is warranted. Accordingly, we are withdrawing the 2020 proposed rule and publishing this new proposed rule. We propose to designate critical habitat for five of the seven coral species that were addressed in the 2020 proposed rule: Acropora globiceps, Acropora retusa, Acropora speciosa, Euphyllia paradivisa, and Isopora crateriformis. Proposed critical habitat includes 16 island units encompassing approximately 251 square kilometers ((km\2\); 97 square miles (mi\2\)) of marine habitat. Several areas are ineligible for critical habitat because of final Department of Defense Integrated Natural Resource Management Plans that we have determined will benefit the listed corals. We have considered economic, national security, and other relevant impacts of the proposed designations, but are not proposing to exclude any areas from the critical habitat designations due to anticipated impacts.
Document Headings Document headings vary by document type but may contain the following: the agency or agencies that issued and signed a document the number of the CFR title and the number of each part the document amends, proposes to amend, or is directly related to the agency docket number / agency internal file number the RIN which identifies each regulatory action listed in the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions See the Document Drafting Handbook for more details. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 50 CFR Parts 223 and 226 [Docket No: 231120-0274] RIN 0648-BJ52 ( printed page 83644) AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce. ACTION: Proposed rule; withdrawal and reproposal; request for comments. SUMMARY: On November 27, 2020, we, NMFS, published in the Federal Register a proposal to designate 17 island units of critical habitat in the Pacific Islands Region for 7 Indo-Pacific coral species listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Based on public comments and new information regarding the interpretation of the records of the listed corals and application to critical habitat, a substantial revision of the proposed rule is warranted. Accordingly, we are withdrawing the 2020 proposed rule and publishing this new proposed rule. We propose to designate critical habitat for five of the seven coral species that were addressed in the 2020 proposed rule: Acropora globiceps, Acropora retusa, Acropora speciosa, Euphyllia paradivisa, and Isopora crateriformis. Proposed critical habitat includes 16 island units encompassing approximately 251 square kilometers ((km 2 ); 97 square miles (mi 2 )) of marine habitat. Several areas are ineligible for critical habitat because of final Department of Defense Integrated Natural Resource Management Plans that we have determined will benefit the listed corals. We have considered economic, national …
Other Federal Register documents from the same docket.
Citation: 88 FR 83644
