Listing Endangered and Threatened Species: Change in Status for Upper Columbia River Steelhead Distinct Population Segment
Federal Register: August 24, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 162)
Rules and Regulations
Page 42605-42606
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
DOCID:fr24au09-8
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 50 CFR Part 223
Docket No. 0907291194-91213-01
RIN 0648-XQ71
Listing Endangered and Threatened Species: Change in Status for the Upper Columbia River Steelhead Distinct Population Segment
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Final rule; correcting amendment.
SUMMARY: We, NMFS, announce that the Upper Columbia River steelhead is reclassified as a threatened species consistent with a recent court ruling. We also correct the table of threatened fishes to indicate that the same species is listed as threatened under the Endangered Species
Act of 1973 (ESA). This species was inadvertently dropped from the table during an unrelated rulemaking.
DATES: Effective August 24, 2009.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information regarding this notice contact Eric Murray, NMFS, Northwest Region, (503) 231- 2378; or Marta Nammack, NMFS, Office of Protected Resources, (301) 713- 1401.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
In 1997, we completed a comprehensive status review of West Coast steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) that resulted in ESA listings for Upper
Columbia River (UCR) steelhead and nine other distinct population segments (DPSs) of West Coast steelhead (62 FR 43937; Busby et al., 1996). At that time, we determined that the UCR steelhead was an endangered species. In January 2006, we reclassified the UCR steelhead from endangered to threatened based on an updated review that noted increasing steelhead abundance, more widespread spawning, and artificial propagation programs aimed at improving local adaptation and diversity within the range of this DPS (71 FR 834; January 5, 2006 ).
The decision to downlist UCR steelhead was also based on our application of a recent Policy on the Consideration of Hatchery-Origin
Fish in Endangered species Act Listing Determinations for Pacific
Salmon and Steelhead (70 FR 37204: June 28, 2005). Subsequent to this downlisting, we also published protective regulations (71 FR 5178;
February 1, 2006), designated critical habitat (70 FR 52630; September 2, 2005), and adopted a recovery plan (72 FR 57303; October 10, 2007) for UCR steelhead. In April 2006, our decision to downlist UCR steelhead from endangered to threatened was challenged in the U.S.
District Court for the Western District of Washington.
On June 13, 2007, the district court ruled that we had erred in downlisting UCR steelhead, concluding that we had not given appropriate consideration to self-sustaining natural populations (Trout Unlimited v. Lohn, C06-0483-JCC, 2007). The result of this ruling was to return
UCR steelhead to endangered status. We appealed that decision to the
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and on March 16, 2009, that court ruled that our downlisting did not violate the ESA and that, on remand, the district court should grant NMFS' motion for summary judgment. Accordingly, on June 18, 2009, the district court revised its ruling, effectively re-instating UCR steelhead to threatened status under the ESA.
Current Status
Consistent with the Courts' rulings and our listing determination of January 5, 2006 (71 FR 834), the UCR steelhead is listed as threatened under the ESA. Critical habitat was designated for UCR steelhead on September 2, 2005 (70 FR 52630). The protective regulations issued for UCR steelhead on February 1, 2006 (71 FR 5178) are now effective. A recovery plan was adopted for UCR steelhead on
October 9, 2007 (72 FR 57303).
Correcting Amendment
In the May 9, 2006, issue of the Federal Register, we published a final rule to implement our determination to list elkhorn (Acropora palmata) and staghorn (A. cervicornis) corals as threatened species under the ESA (7l FR 26852). In the same action, we made a format change to ensure that all threatened species listed under sect;(223.102 were in table format to match the threatened fishes table. By mistake, we did not include the already listed UCR steelhead DPS in Sec. 223.102(c). This document corrects the table in Sec. 223.102(c) to include the UCR steelhead DPS as a threatened species.
References
Copies of previous Federal Register Notices and reference materials are available on the Internet at http://www.nwr.noaa.gov, or upon request (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section above).
List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 223
Endangered and threatened species, Exports, Imports,
Transportation.
Page 42606
Dated: August 17, 2009.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service. 0
Accordingly, 50 CFR part 223 is corrected by making the following correcting amendment:
PART 223--THREATENED MARINE AND ANADROMOUS SPECIES 0 1. The authority citation for part 223 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1531-1543. 0 2. In Sec. 223.102, paragraph (c)(25) is added to the table to read as follows:
Sec. 223.102 Enumeration of threatened marine and anadromous species.
* * * * *
Species\1\
Citation(s) for
Where Listed
Citation(s) for Listing
Critical Habitat
Common Name
Scientific Name
Determination(s)
Designation(s)
(c) * * *
................. ......................................... .............................. ....................
(25) Upper Columbia River steelhead
Oncorhynchus
U.S.A., WA, Distinct Population Segment
71 FR 834; January 5, 2006
70 FR 52630; mykiss
including all naturally spawned
September 2, 2005 anadromous O. mykiss (steelhead) populations below natural and manmade impassable barriers in streams in the
Columbia River Basin upstream from the
Yakima River, Washington, to the U.S.-
Canada border, as well as six artificial propagation programs: the Wenatchee
River, Wells Hatchery (in the Methow and
Okanogan Rivers), Winthrop NFH, Omak
Creek, and the Ringold steelhead hatchery programs.
* * * * * * *
\1\Species includes taxonomic species, distinct population segments (DPSs) (for a policy statement, see 61 FR 4722, February 7, 1996) and evolutionarily significant units (ESUs) (for a policy statement, see 56 FR 58612, November 20, 1991).
FR Doc. E9-20315 Filed 8-21-09; 8:45 am
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