Invasive Species Advisory Committee

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Office of the Secretary
Invasive Species Advisory Committee
AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of intent to establish; request for nominations and comments.
SUMMARY: Pursuant to Executive Order 13112, the U.S. Department of the Interior, on behalf of the new interdepartmental Invasive Species Council, proposes to establish the Invasive Species Advisory Committee (ISAC). The Secretary of the Interior, acting as administrative lead, is requesting nominations for qualified persons to serve as members of the ISAC.
DATES: Written nominations must be received within 30 days of the date of publication, October 25, 1999.
ADDRESSES: Nominations should be sent to Gordon Brown, Invasive Species Coordinator, Department of the Interior, Office of the Secretary, 1849 C Street, NW, room 6635, Washington DC, 20240. 
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gordon Brown, Invasive Species Coordinator, telephone (202) 208-6336; fax (202) 208-2219; e-mail a__gordon__brown@ios.doi.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Advisory Committee Scope and Objectives

The purpose and role of the ISAC are to provide advice to the Invasive Species Council (Council), as authorized by Executive Order 13112, on a broad array of issues related to preventing the introduction of invasive species and providing for their control and minimizing the economic, ecological, and human health impacts that invasive species cause. The Council is Co-chaired by the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Agriculture, and the Secretary of Commerce. The duty of the Council is to provide national leadership regarding invasive species issues. The Council will coordinate Federal agency activities concerning invasive species; prepare and issue a national Invasive Species Management Plan; encourage planning and action at local, tribal, State, regional an   ecosystem-based levels to achieve the goals and objectives of the management plan; develop recommendations for international cooperation in addressing invasive species; develop, in consultation with the Council on Environmental Quality, guidance to Federal agencies pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act on invasive species matters; facilitate development of a coordinated network to document, evaluate, and monitor impacts from invasive species; facilitate establishment of an information-sharing system on invasive species that utilizes, to the greatest extent practicable, the Internet; support long-term continuance and effective implementation of the Management Plan.

The ISAC will maintain an intensive and regular dialogue to actively explore these issues and will draw on the expertise of its members and other sources to provide advice in order to help the Council fulfill these goals. The ISAC will provide advice in cooperation with stakeholders and existing organizations addressing invasive species. The ISAC will meet up to four (4) times per year. The ISAC will be made up of United States citizens. It will consist of no more than 25 voting members. Members will be appointed by the Secretary of Interior, in consultation with the other members of the Council. Members of ISAC will be knowledgeable in and represent one or more of the following communities of interests: weed science; fisheries science; rangeland management; forest science; entomology; nematology; plant pathology; veterinary medicine; the broad range of farming or agricultural practices; biodiversity issues; applicable laws and regulations relevant to invasive species policy; risk assessment; biological control of invasive species; public health/epidemiology; industry activities, structure, and international trade; environmental education; ecosystem monitoring; natural resource database design and integration; internet-based management of conservation issues. Members should also have practical experience in one or more of the following areas: representing sectors of the national economy that are significantly threatened by biological invasions (e.g. agriculture, fisheries, public utilities, recreational users, tourism, etc.); representing sectors of the national economy whose routine operations may pose risks of new or expanded biological invasions (e.g. shipping, forestry, horticulture, aquaculture, pet trade, etc.); developing natural resource management plans on regional or ecosystem-level scales; addressing invasive species issues, including prevention, control and monitoring, in multiple ecosystems and on multiple scales; integrating science and the human dimension in creating effective solutions to complex conservation issues; coordinating diverse groups of stakeholders to resolve complex environmental issues and conflicts; complyin  with NEPA and other federal requirements for public involvement in major conservation plans. Members will be selected in order to achieve a balanced representation of viewpoints to effectively address invasive species issues under consideration. No member may
serve on the ISAC for more than three (3) consecutive terms of two years. Reappointment terms will be staggered within stakeholder groups (2 or 3 years) to avoid turnover. Members of the ISAC and its subcommittees will serve without pay. However, while away from their homes or regular places of business in the performance of services of the ISAC, members shall be allowed travel expenses  including per diem in lieu of subsistence, in the same manner as persons employed intermittently in the government service, as authorized by section 5703 of Title 5, United States Code.

Submitting Nominations

Nominations should be typed and should include the following:
1. A brief summary of no more than two (2) pages explaining the nominee's suitability to serve on the ISAC.
2. A resume or curriculum vitae.
3. Letters of reference.

Nominations should be sent, no later than September 24, 1999, to Gordon Brown, Department of the Interior, Office of the Secretary, 1849 C Street, NW, Room 6635, Washington DC, 20240.

To ensure that recommendations of the ISAC take into account the needs of the diverse groups served, Department of the Interior is actively soliciting nominations of qualified minorities, women, persons with disabilities and members of low income populations.
Dated: September 21, 1999.
William Y. Brown,
Science Advisor to the Secretary of the Interior.
[FR Doc. 99-25012 Filed 9-23-99; 8:45 am]
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