Endangered and threatened species: West coast steelhead,

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Federal Register: June 17, 1998 (Volume 63, Number 116)Rules and RegulationsPage 32996-32998From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

DOCID:fr17jn98-13

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

RIN 1018-AE97

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Listing of Several Evolutionarily Significant Units of West Coast Steelhead

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) is adding several Evolutionarily Significant Units (ESUs) of west coast steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) to the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife (List) in accordance with the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The Southern California and Upper Columbia River Basin ESUs are added as endangered, and the Central California Coast, South- Central California Coast, Snake River Basin, Lower Columbia River, and Central Valley California ESUs are added as threatened. This amendment is based on determinations by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce, which has jurisdiction for this species.

DATES: The effective date for listing of the Southern California and Upper Columbia River Basin ESUs as endangered and the Central California Coast, South-Central California Coast, and Snake River Basin ESUs as threatened is October 17, 1997. The effective date for listing of the Lower Columbia River and Central Valley California ESUs as threatened is May 18, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Division of Endangered Species, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Mail Stop 452, Arlington, Virginia 22203.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: E. LaVerne Smith, Chief, Division of Endangered Species, at the above address or telephone 703/358-2171.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

In accordance with the Act and Reorganization Plan No. 4 of 1970, NMFS has jurisdiction over west coast steelhead. Under section 4(a)(2) of the Act, NMFS must decide whether a species under its jurisdiction should be classified as endangered or threatened. The Service is responsible for the actual amendment of the List in 50 CFR 17.11(h).

On August 9, 1996, NMFS published a proposed rule to list as endangered or threatened 10 ESUs of west coast steelhead in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and California (61 FR 41541). On August 18, 1997, NMFS published a final rule listing five of these ESUs: the Southern California and Upper Columbia River Basin ESUs were listed as endangered, and the Central California Coast, South-Central California Coast, and Snake River Basin ESUs were listed as threatened (62 FR 43937).

Also on August 18, 1997, NMFS published a notice announcing that substantial scientific disagreement remained for the remaining five ESUs proposed for listing on August 9, 1996. The notice extended the deadline for a final listing determination for these five ESUs for 6 months to solicit, collect, and analyze additional information from NMFS scientists, co-management scientists, and scientific experts to enable NMFS to make a final listing determination based on the best available data. On March 19, 1998, NMFS published a final rule listing two of these five ESUs, the Lower Columbia River and the Central Valley California ESUs, as threatened (63 FR 13347).

The proposed rules identified above solicited comments from peer reviewers, the public, and all other interested parties. The final rules addressed the comments received in response to the proposed rules. Because NMFS provided public comment periods on the proposed rules, and because this action of the Service to amend the List in accordance with the determinations by NMFS is nondiscretionary, the Service has omitted the notice and public comment procedures of 5 U.S.C. 553(b) for this action.

National Environmental Policy Act

The Service has determined that an Environmental Assessment, as defined under the authority of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, need not be prepared in connection with regulations adopted pursuant to section 4(a) of the Act. A notice outlining the Service's reasons for this determination was published in the Federal Register on October 25, 1983 (48 FR 49244).

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 17

Endangered and threatened species, Exports, Imports, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Transportation.

Regulation Promulgation

Accordingly, the Service amends part 17, subchapter B of chapter I, title 50 of

[Page 32997]the Code of Federal Regulations, as follows:

PART 17--[AMENDED]

1. The authority citation for part 17 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1361-1407; 16 U.S.C. 1531-1544; 16 U.S.C. 4201-4245; Pub. L. 99-625, 100 Stat. 3500, unless otherwise noted.

2. Amend section 17.11(h) by adding the following, in alphabetical order under FISHES, to the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife:

Sec. 17.11 Endangered and threatened wildlife.

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  (h) * * *

Species

Vertebrate

population where

Critical Special Historic range endangered or

Status When listed habitat rules Common name

Scientific name

threatened

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

FISHES

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

Steelhead.................... Oncorhynchus mykiss. North Pacific Ocean All naturally

E

638

NA

NA from the Kamchatka spawned

Peninsula in Asia populations (and

to the northern their progeny) in

Baja Peninsula. rivers from the

Santa Maria R.,

San Luis Obispo

County, CA

(inclusive) to

Malibu Cr., Los

Angeles County, CA

(inclusive).

Do........................... ......do............ ......do........... All naturally

E

638

NA

NA spawned

populations (and

their progeny) in

the Upper Columbia

R. Basin upstream

from the Yakima

R., WA, to the

U.S./Canada

border, and also

including the

Wells Hatchery

stock.

Do........................... ......do............ ......do........... All naturally

T

638

NA

NA spawned

populations (and

their progeny) in

streams from the

Russian R. to

Aptos Cr., Santa

Cruz County, CA

(inclusive), and

the drainages of

San Francisco and

San Pablo Bays

eastward to the

Napa R.

(inclusive), Napa

County, CA,

excluding the

Sacramento-San

Joaquin R. Basin

of the Central

Valley of CA.

Do........................... ......do............ ......do........... All naturally

T

638

NA

NA spawned

populations (and

their progeny) in

streams from the

Pajaro R.

(inclusive),

located in Santa

Cruz County, CA,

to (but not

including) the

Santa Maria R.

[Page 32998]

Do........................... ......do............ ......do........... All naturally

T

638

NA

NA spawned

populations (and

their progeny) in

streams in the

Snake R. Basin of

southeast WA,

northeast OR, and

ID.

Do........................... ......do............ ......do........... All naturally

T

638

NA

NA spawned

populations (and

their progeny) in

streams and

tributaries to the

Columbia R.

between the

Cowlitz and Wind

Rivers, WA,

inclusive, and the

Willamette and

Hood Rivers, OR,

inclusive,

excluding the

Upper Willamette

River Basin above

Willamette Falls

and excluding the

Little and Big

White Salmon

Rivers in WA.

Do........................... ......do............ ......do........... All naturally

T

638

NA

NA spawned

populations (and

their progeny) in

the Sacramento and

San Joaquin Rivers

and their

tributaries,

excluding San

Francisco and San

Pablo Bays and

their tributaries.

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

Dated: May 11, 1998. Jamie Rappaport Clark, Director, Fish and Wildlife Service.

FR Doc. 98-16110Filed6-16-98; 8:45 amBILLING CODE 4310-55-P

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