Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Endangered Species Status for the Alabama Hickorynut and Threatened Status With Section 4(d) Rule for Obovaria cf. unicolor

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR <SUBAGY>Fish and Wildlife Service</SUBAGY> <CFR>50 CFR Part 17</CFR> <DEPDOC>[Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2024-0130; FXES111109FEDR-245-FF09E21000]</DEPDOC> <RIN>RIN 1018-BH45</RIN> <SUBJECT>Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Endangered Species Status for the Alabama Hickorynut and Threatened Status With Section 4(d) Rule for Obovaria cf. unicolor</SUBJECT> <HD SOURCE="HED">AGENCY:</HD> Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior. <HD SOURCE="HED">ACTION:</HD> Proposed rule. <SUM> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUMMARY:</HD> We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), propose to list the Alabama hickorynut ( <E T="03">Obovaria unicolor</E> ) as an endangered species and the undescribed <E T="03">Obovaria</E> cf. <E T="03">unicolor</E> as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), as amended. Both species are freshwater mussels. This document also serves as our 12-month finding on a petition to list the Alabama hickorynut. For <E T="03">Obovaria</E> cf. <E T="03">unicolor,</E> we also propose a rule issued under section 4(d) of the Act to provide for the conservation of the species. If we adopt this rule as proposed, it would apply the protections of the Act to these species. We find that designation of critical habitat for both the Alabama hickorynut and <E T="03">Obovaria</E> cf. <E T="03">unicolor</E> is prudent but not determinable at this time. </SUM> <EFFDATE> <HD SOURCE="HED">DATES:</HD> We will accept comments received or postmarked on or before November 12, 2024. Comments submitted electronically using the Federal eRulemaking Portal (see <E T="02">ADDRESSES</E> , below) must be received by 11:59 p.m. eastern time on the closing date. We must receive requests for a public hearing, in writing, at the address shown in <E T="02">FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT</E> by October 25, 2024. </EFFDATE> <HD SOURCE="HED">ADDRESSES:</HD> You may submit comments by one of the following methods: (1) <E T="03">Electronically:</E> Go to the Federal eRulemaking Portal: <E T="03">https://www.regulations.gov.</E> In the Search box, enter FWS-R4-ES-2024-0130, which is the docket number for this rulemaking. Then, click on the Search button. On the resulting page, in the panel on the left side of the screen, under the Document Type heading, check the Proposed Rule box to locate this document. You may submit a comment by clicking on “Comment.” (2) <E T="03">By hard copy:</E> Submit by U.S. mail to: Public Comments Processing, Attn: FWS-R4-ES-2024-0130, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS: PRB/3W, 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803. We request that you send comments only by the methods described above. We will post all comments on <E T="03">https://www.regulations.gov.</E> This generally means that we will post any personal information you provide us (see Information Requested, below, for more information). <E T="03">Availability of supporting materials:</E> Supporting materials, such as the species status assessment report, are available at <E T="03">https://www.regulations.gov</E> under Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2024-0130. <FURINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:</HD> Bill Pearson, Field Supervisor, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Alabama Ecological Services Field Office, 1208 Main Street, Daphne, AL 36526; telephone 251-441-5870. Individuals in the United States who are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability may dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access telecommunications relay services. Individuals outside the United States should use the relay services offered within their country to make international calls to the point-of-contact in the United States. Please see Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2024-0130 on <E T="03">https://www.regulations.gov</E> for a document that summarizes this rulemaking. </FURINF> <SUPLINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:</HD> <HD SOURCE="HD1">Executive Summary</HD> <E T="03">Why we need to publish a rule.</E> Under the Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 <E T="03">et seq.</E> ), a species warrants listing if it meets the definition of an endangered (in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range) or a threatened species (likely to become an endangered species within the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range). If we determine that a species warrants listing, we must list the species promptly and designate the species' critical habitat to the maximum extent prudent and determinable. We have determined that the Alabama hickorynut meets the Act's definition of an endangered species and that <E T="03">Obovaria</E> cf. <E T="03">unicolor</E> meets the Act's definition of a threatened species; therefore, we are proposing to list them accordingly. Listing a species as an endangered species or a threatened species can be completed only by issuing a rule through the Administrative Procedure Act rulemaking process (5 U.S.C. 551 <E T="03">et seq.</E> ). <E T="03">What this document does.</E> We propose to list the Alabama hickorynut as an endangered species, and we propose to list <E T="03">Obovaria</E> cf. <E T="03">unicolor</E> as a threatened species with a rule issued under section 4(d) of the Act (a “4(d) rule”). <E T="03">The basis for our action.</E> Under the Act, we may determine that a species is an endangered or threatened species because of any of five factors: (A) The present or threatened destruction, modification, or curtailment of its habitat or range; (B) overutilization for commercial, recreational, scientific, or educational purposes; (C) disease or predation; (D) the inadequacy of existing regulatory mechanisms; or (E) other natural or manmade factors affecting its continued existence. We have determined that the Alabama hickorynut is endangered due to the following threats: sedimentation, altered flow regimes, point and nonpoint source pollution, climate change, direct and indirect impacts of development and anthropogenic disturbances, and sea level rise associated with climate change. We have further determined that <E T="03">Obovaria</E> cf. <E T="03">unicolor</E> is threatened due to the following threats: sedimentation, altered flow regimes, point and nonpoint source pollution, climate change, direct and indirect impacts of development and anthropogenic disturbances, and sea level rise associated with climate change. <HD SOURCE="HD1">Information Requested</HD> We intend that any final action resulting from this proposed rule will be based on the best scientific and commercial data available and be as accurate and as effective as possible. Therefore, we request comments or information from other governmental agencies, Native American Tribes, the scientific community, industry, or any other interested parties concerning this proposed rule. We particularly seek comments concerning: (1) The species' biology, range, and population trends, including: (a) Biological or ecological requirements of the species, including habitat requirements for feeding, breeding, and sheltering; (b) Genetics and taxonomy; (c) Historical and current range, including distribution patterns and the locations of any additional populations of these species; (d) Historical and current population levels, and current and projected trends; and (e) Past and ongoing conservation measures for these species, their habitats, or both. (2) Threats and conservation actions affecting these species, including: (a) Factors that may be affecting the continued existence of these species, which may include habitat modification or destruction, overutilization, disease, predation, the inadequacy of existing regulatory mechanisms, or other natural or manmade factors; (b) Biological, commercial trade, or other relevant data concerning any threats (or lack thereof) to these species; and (c) Existing regulations or conservation actions that may be addressing threats to these species. (3) Additional information concerning the historical and current status of these species. (4) Information to assist with applying or issuing protective regulations under section 4(d) of the Act that may be necessary and advisable to provide for the conservation of the <E T="03">Obovaria</E> cf. <E T="03">unicolor.</E> In particular, we seek information concerning: (a) The extent to which we should include any of the Act's section 9 prohibitions in the 4(d) rule; and (b) Whether we should consider any additional or different exceptions from the prohibitions in the 4(d) rule. Please include sufficient information with your submission (such as scientific journal articles or other publications) to allow us to verify any scientific or commercial information you include. Please note that submissions merely stating support for, or opposition to, the action under consideration without providing supporting information, although noted, do not provide substantial information necessary to support a determination. Section 4(b)(1)(A) of the Act directs that determinations as to whether any species is an endangered or a threatened species must be made solely on the basis of the best scientific and commercial data available. You may submit your comments and materials concerning this proposed rule by one of the methods listed in <E T="02">ADDRESSES</E> . We request that you send comments only by the methods described in <E T="02">ADDRESSES</E> . If you submit information via <E T="03">https://www.regulations.gov,</E> your entire submission—including any personal identifying information—will be posted on the website. If your submission is made via a hardcopy that includes personal identifying information, you may request at the top of your document that we withhold this information from public review. However ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Preview showing 10k of 142k characters. 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