94-21338. Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Reopening of Comment Period and Notice of Public Hearing on Proposed Endangered Status for the Plant Puccinellia parishii

[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 167 (Tuesday, August 30, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-21338]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: August 30, 1994]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

RIN 1018-AC21

 

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Reopening of 
Comment Period and Notice of Public Hearing on Proposed Endangered 
Status for the Plant Puccinellia parishii

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule; notice of public hearing and reopening of 
comment period.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) provides notice 
that a public hearing will be held on the proposed determination of 
endangered status for Puccinellia parishii (Parish's alkali grass). 
This plant is found associated with desert seeps and springs in 
southwestern New Mexico, northeastern Arizona, and southern California.

DATES: The public hearing will be held from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. 
(Mountain Daylight Time), September 15, 1994, Tuba City Arizona. The 
comment period, which originally closed on May 12, 1994, now closes on 
September 26, 1994.

ADDRESSES: The public hearing will be held at Greyhills High School, 
Tuba City, Arizona. Written comments and materials should be sent to 
State Supervisor, New Mexico Ecological Services State Office, 3530 Pan 
American, N.E., Suite D, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87107, [phone], 
FAX [phone]. Comments and materials received will be available 
for public inspection during normal business hours (7:30 a.m. to 4:30 
p.m.), by appointment, at the above address .

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anne Cully, at [phone], New 
Mexico Ecological Services State Office (see ADDRESSES section).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Parish's alkali grass is an ephemeral, annual species that occurs 
in small, widely disjunct populations in California, Arizona, and New 
Mexico. Its habitat is desert seeps and springs. The grass is 
threatened by alteration of hydrologic flows due to spring or seep 
development, water diversion or impoundment, and groundwater pumping; 
loss of habitat from farming, grazing, and residential construction 
activities; limited distribution; and low population numbers.
    On March 28, 1994, the Service published a proposed rule to list 
the Parish's alkali grass as endangered under the Endangered Species 
Act of 1973, as amended. Section 4(b)(5)(E) of the Act requires that a 
public hearing be held if requested within 45 days of the proposal's 
publication in the Federal Register. A public hearing request was 
received within the allotted time period from Mr. Ron Wood, Kingman, 
Arizona.
    The Service has scheduled this hearing at 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. 
(Mountain Daylight Time), September 15, 1994, at the Greyhills High 
School, Tuba City, Arizona. Anyone wishing to make an oral statement 
for the record is encouraged to provide a written copy of their 
statement to be presented to the Service at the start of the hearing. 
In the event there is a large attendance, the time allotted for oral 
statements may have to be limited. Oral and written statements receive 
equal consideration. There are no limits to the length of written 
comments presented at this hearing or mailed to the Service. Legal 
notice announcing the dates, time, and location of the hearing are 
being published in newspapers concurrently with this Federal Register 
notice.
    The comment period on the proposal originally closed on May 12, 
1994. In order to accommodate the hearing, the Service also reopens the 
public comment period. Written comments may now be submitted until 
September 26, 1994, to the Service office in ADDRESSES section.

Author

    The primary author of this notice is Anne Cully, New Mexico 
Ecological Services State Office (see ADDRESSES section).

    Authority: The authority for this action is the Endangered 
Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

    Dated: August 24, 1994.
John G. Rogers,
Regional Director, Region 2.
[FR Doc. 94-21338 Filed 8-29-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-55-M