DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R7-R-2009-N260; 70133-1265-0000-S3]
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Fairbanks, AK
AGENCY: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of intent to revise the comprehensive conservation plan
and prepare an environmental impact statement; request for comment.
SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), will be
developing a revised comprehensive conservation plan (CCP) and
environmental impact statement (EIS) for Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
(NWR, Refuge). The Revised CCP will establish goals and
objectives, review Refuge rivers for potential recommendation for
Congress for inclusion within the National Wild and Scenic Rivers
System, and review Refuge lands for potential recommendation for Congress
for inclusion within the National Wilderness Preservation System. We will
use the internet, special
mailings, public service announcements, newspaper advertisements, and
other media to keep people updated throughout the planning process and
to provide opportunities for input. We will hold public meetings in
communities within and near the Refuge during preparation of the
Revised CCP. We will also hold meetings in Anchorage, AK, Fairbanks, AK,
and Washington, DC.
DATES: Meetings: A public scoping meeting will be held in Washington, DC
on May 4, 2010, from 1 to 4 p.m. in the Department of the Interior
Auditorium, 1849 C Street, NW., Washington, DC. In addition, we will hold
public scoping meetings in Anchorage and Fairbanks, AK and in
refuge area communities in Alaska. We will announce these meeting dates,
times, and locations locally, at least 10 days prior to each
meeting.
Comments: To ensure consideration, please send your written comments
on the scope of the CCP revision by June 7, 2010.
ADDRESSES: Information about the Refuge and the Revised CCP is available
on the internet at: http://arctic.fws.gov. Send your comments
or requests for more information by any of the following methods.
E-mail: [log in to unmask] Include ``Arctic NWR CCP'' in the
subject line of the message.
Fax: Attn: Sharon Seim, Planning Team Leader, (907) 456-0428.
U.S. Mail: Sharon Seim, Planning Team Leader, Arctic National
Wildlife Refuge, 101 12th Ave., Rm. 236, Fairbanks, AK 99701.
In-Person Drop-off: You may drop off comments during regular
business hours at the above address.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sharon Seim, Planning Team Leader,
phone (907) 456-0501.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Alaska National Interest Lands
Conservation Act of 1980 (94 Stat. 2371; ANILCA) requires us to develop
a CCP for each refuge in Alaska. The purpose of developing a CCP is to
provide refuge managers with a management strategy for achieving refuge
purposes and contributing toward the mission of the National Wildlife
Refuge System, consistent with sound principles of fish, wildlife, and
habitat management and conservation; legal mandates; and Service
policies. CCPs define long-term goals and objectives toward which
refuge management activities are directed, and identify which uses may be
compatible with the purposes of a refuge. CCPs are reviewed and
updated in accordance with direction in Section 304(g) of ANILCA and the
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA, 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.).
With this notice, we initiate our process for developing a revised CCP
for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska. We furnish this notice
in accordance with ANILCA, the National Wildlife Refuge System
Administration Act (16 U.S.C. 668dd-668ee), the regulations
implementing NEPA (40 CFR 1500-1508), and Service policies. The purpose
of this notice is to (1) Advise other Federal and State agencies,
Tribes, and the public of our intention to conduct detailed planning on
this refuge and (2) obtain suggestions and information on the scope of
issues to be considered in the EIS and during the development of the CCP.
Background
The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is a vast area unique in North
America--unique because it encompasses a full range of arctic and
subarctic ecosystems that are whole and undisturbed, functioning as they
have for centuries, largely free of human control and
manipulation. The move to protect this corner of Alaska began in the
early 1950s. Conservationists George Collins, Lowell Sumner, and Olaus
and Mardy Murie, considered the primary founders of the Refuge, launched
a campaign to permanently safeguard the area. Their effort
succeeded and the Arctic Refuge was established. The area originally
named ``Arctic National Wildlife Range'' was
created in 1960 by Public Land Order 2214, ``[f]or the purpose of
preserving unique wildlife, wilderness and recreational values. * * *''
The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is unique among Alaska conservation
units because it was the first for which ecological thinking and
concern for maintaining natural processes were significant factors in its
establishment. It is also the only Alaska refuge for which the
preservation of values was a founding purpose. In 1980, ANILCA
enlarged the area, designated much of the original
Range as Wilderness, renamed the whole area the Arctic National Wildlife
Refuge, and added four complementary purposes. The ANILCA
purposes are: (i) To conserve fish and wildlife populations and habitats
in their natural diversity, including, but not limited to, the
Porcupine caribou herd (including participation in coordinated ecological
studies and management of this herd and the Western Arctic
caribou herd), polar bears, grizzly bears, muskox, Dall sheep, wolves,
wolverines, snow geese, peregrine falcons and other migratory birds,
Arctic char, and grayling; (ii) To fulfill the international fish and
wildlife treaty obligations of the United States; (iii) To provide the
opportunity for continued subsistence uses by local residents; and (iv)
To ensure water quality and necessary water quantity within the Refuge.
Refuge Overview
The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge includes nearly 19.3 million
acres, three wild rivers, and one of the largest areas of designated
Wilderness in the United States. The majestic Brooks Range, with peaks
and glaciers to 9,000 feet, dominates the Refuge. These rugged
mountains extend east to west in a band 75 miles wide, rising abruptly
from a tundra-covered plain. This treeless expanse is cut by numerous
braided rivers and streams. South of the continental divide, rivers wind
serpentine courses through broad, spruce-covered valleys dotted
with lakes and sloughs. Nearly 180 species of birds, 45 species of
mammals, and 36 species of fish have been counted on the Arctic Refuge.
Vast mountains, diverse wildlife, and a wealth of habitats give this
unspoiled national treasure high cultural heritage, scenic, scientific,
and experiential values.
Public Involvement
We plan to provide public involvement opportunities in communities
within and near the Refuge, as well as in Anchorage and Fairbanks, AK,
and Washington, DC. The Washington, DC scoping meeting is scheduled for
Tuesday, May 4, from 1 to 4 p.m. in the Department of the Interior
Auditorium, 1849 C Street, NW., Washington, DC. With appropriate advance
notice, the other scoping meetings will be held between April
17 and May 28, 2010, as weather and other conditions permit. Public
notices of scoping meetings will be posted locally and placed on our
Web site at http://arctic.fws.gov. We will be accepting comments via
e-mail, U.S. mail, and telephone, and through personal contacts
throughout the planning process. The public's ideas and comments are
an important part of the CCP process, and we invite public participation.
The Service is looking for
meaningful comments that will help determine the desired future
conditions of the Refuge and address the full range of Refuge purposes.
Some concerns and interests related to the Refuge will not be addressed
in the Revised CCP. For example, the U.S. Congress has reserved for
itself in section 1002(i) of the ANILCA, 16 U.S.C. 3142(i), the decision
as to whether or not the Refuge Coastal Plain (also called the 1002
Area) should be made available for oil and gas development. Therefore,
the Service does not have the authority to decide this issue, and we
will not consider or respond to comments that support or oppose such
development during this CCP process.
Public Availability of Comments
All comments we receive, including those from individuals, become
part of the public record, and are available to the public upon
request. Therefore, before including your name, address, phone number,
e-mail address, or other personal identifying information with your
comment, you should be aware that your entire comment--including this
information--may be made available to the public upon request. 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. Dated: March 31, 2010.
Geoffrey L. Haskett,
Regional Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Anchorage, Alaska.
[FR Doc. 2010-7850 Filed 4-6-10; 8:45 am]
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