Caribou comment period extended

| March 24, 2012 9:00 PM

SANDPOINT - The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service is extending the comment period on a proposal to designate critical habitat for woodland caribou in the Panhandle and eastern Washington.

The new deadline to comment on the designation for caribou in the southern Selkirk Mountains is May 21.

Fish & Wildlife is hosting a information meeting and public hearing on the proposal in Bonners Ferry on Saturday, April 28. The informational meeting goes from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

The public hearing starts at 2 p.m., with speaker registration starting at 1 p.m.

The meeting and the hearing are being held at Bonners Ferry High School.

The habitat designation proposal and other links can be found at www.fws.gov/idaho.

Comments can be submitted electronically by pointing your web browser to www.regulations.gov. In the keyword box, enter Docket No. FWS-R1-ES-2011-0096. In the search panel on the left side of the screen, under the Document Type heading, click on the Proposed Rules link to locate the document. Submit comments by clicking on "Send a Comment or Submission."

Direct written comments to Public Comments Processing, Attn: FWS-R1-ES-2011-0096, Division of Policy & Directives Management, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, MS-2042-PDM, Arlington, VA. 22203.