Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Notice of Public Hearing and Extension of Comment Period on the Proposed Rule to List the Alabama Sturgeon as Endangered

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

RIN 1018

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Notice of Public

Hearing and Extension of Comment Period on the Proposed Rule to List

the Alabama Sturgeon as Endangered

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule; notice of public hearing and extension of

comment period.

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SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service, give notice that we are

extending the comment period and holding a public hearing on the

proposed rule to list the Alabama sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus suttkusi) as

endangered. We invite all interested parties to submit comments on this

proposal.

DATES: We will hold the public hearing from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. on

Thursday, June 24, 1999, in Montgomery, Alabama. The comment period now

closes on July 5, 1999. We will consider any comments received by the

closing date in the final decision on this proposal.

ADDRESSES: We will hold the public hearing at the Montgomery Civic

Center, 300 Bibb Street, Montgomery, Alabama 36104. You may submit

written comments and materials concerning the proposal at the hearing

or send them directly to the Field Supervisor, U.S. Fish and Wildlife

Service, 6578 Dogwood View Parkway, Jackson, Mississippi 39213.

Comments and materials received will be available for public

inspection, by appointment, during normal business hours at the above

address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul Hartfield (see ADDRESSES

section), 601/965-4900, extension 25; facsimile 601/965-4340.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The Alabama sturgeon is a small freshwater sturgeon that was

historically found only in the Mobile River Basin of Alabama and

Mississippi. The Alabama sturgeon's historic range once included about

1,600 kilometers (km) (1,000 miles (mi)) of the Mobile River system in

Alabama (Black Warrior, Tombigbee, Alabama, Coosa, Tallapoosa, Mobile,

Tensaw, and Cahaba rivers) and Mississippi (Tombigbee River). Since

1985, all confirmed captures of this fish have been from a short, free-

flowing reach of the Alabama River below Miller's Ferry and Claiborne

locks and dams in Clarke, Monroe, and Wilcox counties, Alabama. The

historic decline of the Alabama sturgeon is attributed to over-fishing,

loss and fragmentation of habitat as a result of navigation-related

development, and water quality degradation. Current threats primarily

result from its small population numbers and its inability to offset

mortality rates with reproduction and recruitment.

On March 26, 1999, we published a rule proposing endangered status

for the Alabama sturgeon in the Federal Register (64 FR 14676). Section

4(b)(5)(E) of the Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) requires that we hold a

public hearing if it is requested within 45 days of the publication of

the proposed rule. Sheldon Morgan, Chairman, Alabama-

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Tombigbee Rivers Coalition, requested a public hearing within the

allotted time period. Public hearings are designed to gather relevant

information that the public may have that we should consider in

determining the status of and threats to this species. During the

hearing, we will present information about the proposed action of

listing the Alabama sturgeon as endangered. We invite the public to

submit information and comments either at the hearing on June 24, 1999,

or in writing.

The hearing will be at the Montgomery Civic Center in Montgomery,

Alabama, on Thursday, June 24, 1999, from 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. We

may have to limit the time allotted for oral statements, if the number

of people who wish to comment necessitates such a limitation. We

encourage persons wishing to comment at the hearing to provide a

written copy of their statement at the start of the hearing. There is

no limit on the length of written comments. Persons may also send

written comments to our office in the ADDRESSES section at any time

during the open comment period. We will give equal consideration to

oral and written comments. We are publishing legal notices announcing

the date, time, and location of the hearing in newspapers, concurrently

with this Federal Register notice. The comment period on the proposal

initially closed on May 26, 1999. To accommodate the hearing, we are

extending the public comment period upon publication of this notice.

The public comment period will close on July 5, 1999.

Author: The primary author of this notice is Paul Hartfield (see

ADDRESSES section).

Authority: The authority for this action is the Endangered

Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

Dated: May 18,1999.

H. Dale Hall,

Acting Regional Director, Fish and Wildlife Service.

[FR Doc. 99-13143 Filed 5-24-99; 8:45 am]

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