Rules and Regulations. Notice of public hearings

Agency: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce
Action: Notice of public hearings
Citation: FR Doc. 04-20425 · I.D. 090204F · 50 CFR 223, 224

Summary

In June 2004, NMFS proposed new listing determinations for 27 Evolutionarily Significant Units (ESUs) of salmon and O. mykiss as threatened and endangered under the ESA, including 10 ESUs in California. NMFS recently extended the public comment period for these proposals to October 20, 2004, and also announced a series of eight public meetings/hearings that will be held in the Pacific Northwest. In this notice, NMFS is announcing that public hearings will also be held at six locations in California from late September through mid-October to provide additional opportunities for the public and other interested parties to comment on the subject proposals.

Dates

Written comments must be received by October 20, 2004. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for the specific public hearing dates.

Supplementary Information

Background On June 14, 2004, NMFS published proposed new ESA listing determinations for 27 salmon and O. mykiss ESUs, including ten ESUs that occur in California (69 FR 33101). The 27 proposed listing determinations include 162 total hatchery programs, as part of four ESUs being proposed for endangered status and 23 ESUs being proposed for threatened status. In addition, NMFS proposed amendments to the existing 4(d) protective regulations for the proposed threatened ESUs. Extension of Public Comment Period Several requests were received to extend the comment period for the proposed listing determinations for the 27 ESUs. The original comment period for the proposed listing determinations was to end on September 13, 2004, but has recently been extended to October 20, 2004 (69 FR 53031), to allow additional opportunity for public comment (see DATES and ADDRESSES ). Public Hearings Joint Commerce-Interior ESA implementing regulations state that the Secretary shall promptly hold at least one public hearing if any person requests one within 45 days of publication of a proposed regulation to list a species or to designate critical habitat (see 50 CFR 424.16(c)(3)). In order to provide the public additional opportunity provide comments on these new listing determination proposals, NMFS will be holding six public hearings in California at the specific dates and locations listed below: (1) September 22, 2004; 6:30-9:30pm at the North Coast Inn, 4975 Valley West Blvd., Arcata, CA 95521 (2) September 23, 2004; 6:30-9:30pm at the DoubleTree Hotel Sonoma Wine Country, One DoubleTree Drive, Rohnert Park, CA 94928 (3) September 28, 2004; 6:30-9:30pm at the Best Western Hilltop Inn, 2300 Hilltop Drive, Redding, CA 96002 (4) September 28, 2004; 6:30-9:30pm at the Monterey Beach Resort, 2600 Sand Dunes Drive, Monterey, CA 93940 (5) October 12, 2004; 6:30-9:30pm at the Radisson Hotel Sacramento, 500 Leisure Lane, Sacramento, CA 95815 (6) October, 12, 2004; 6:30-9:30pm at Fess Parker's DoubleTree Resort, 633 East Cabrillo Blvd., Santa Barbara, CA 93103 NMFS has scheduled these hearings to allow affected stakeholders and members of the public the opportunity to provide comments directly to agency staff during the comment period. However, these public meetings are not the only opportunity for the public to provide input on these proposals. The public and stakeholders are encouraged to continue to comment and provide input to NMFS on the proposals (via correspondence, e-mail, and the Internet; see ADDRESSES , above) up until the scheduled close of the comment period on October 20, 2004. References Copies of the Federal Register notices and related materials cited herein are available on the Internet at http://nwr.noaa.gov , or upon request (see ADDRESSES section above). Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq. Dated: September 3, 2004. Laurie K. Allen, Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service. [FR Doc. 04-20425 Filed 9-3-04; 2:49 pm]