Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants: Proposed Rulemaking To Designate Critical Habitat for Black Abalone

We, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), propose to designate approximately 390 square kilometers of critical habitat for the endangered black abalone, pursuant to section 4 of the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Specific areas proposed for designation include rocky habitats from the mean higher high water (MHHW) line to a depth of 6 meters (m) within the following areas on the California coast: Del Mar Landing Ecological Reserve to Point Bonita; from the southern point at the mouth of San Francisco Bay to Natural Bridges State Beach; from Pacific Grove to Cayucos; from Monta[ntilde]a de Oro State Park to just south of Government Point; Palos Verdes Peninsula from the Palos Verdes/Torrance border to Los Angeles Harbor; the Farallon Islands; A[ntilde]o Nuevo Island; San Miguel Island; Santa Rosa Island; Santa Cruz Island; Anacapa Island; San Nicolas Island; Santa Barbara Island; Catalina Island; and San Clemente Island. We propose to exclude the following area from designation because the economic benefits of exclusion outweigh the benefits of inclusion, and exclusion will not result in the extinction of the species: rocky habitats within the MHHW line to a depth of 6 m from Corona Del Mar State Beach to Dana Point, California.