[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 162 (Monday, August 22, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52344-52345]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-21425]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R5-ES-2011-N164; 50120-1112-0000-F2]
Application for an Incidental Take Permit for the Madison Cave
Isopod From Dominion Virginia Power; Low-Effect Habitat Conservation
Plan
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of receipt of application.
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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
(Service or ``we'') announces the availability of an application for an
Incidental Take Permit (ITP) and a proposed Low-Effect Habitat
Conservation Plan (LEHCP) from Dominion Virginia Power for public
review and comment. We received the permit application from Dominion
Virginia Power for incidental take of the Madison Cave isopod during
construction of a new natural gas-fired combined-cycle power station in
Warren County, Virginia, extending over the next 9 years, until 2020.
Our preliminary determination is that the Habitat Conservation Plan
(HCP) qualifies as a low-effect plan under NEPA. To make this
determination, we used our LEHCP Screening Form/Environmental Action
Statement (EAS), which is also available for review.
We provide this notice to (1) seek public comments on the proposed
HCP and application; (2) seek public comments on our preliminary
determination that the HCP qualifies as a low-effect plan and is
therefore eligible for a categorical exclusion under NEPA; and (3)
advise other Federal and State agencies, affected Tribes, and the
public of our intent to issue an ITP.
DATES: The draft HCP and preliminary EAS are being made available
during a 30-day public review period. To ensure consideration, we must
receive your written comments by September 21, 2011.
ADDRESSES: Send comments by U.S. mail to Sumalee Hoskin, U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service, Virginia Field Office, 6669 Short Lane, Gloucester,
VA 23061; by fax at (804) 693-9032; or by electronic mail at sumalee_hoskin@fws.gov. In the subject line of your letter, fax, or electronic
mail, include the document identifier ``Warren County Power Station
HCP.''
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sumalee Hoskin, Fish and Wildlife
Biologist, Virginia Field Office (VAFO) (see ADDRESSES); telephone
(804) 693-6694; electronic mail: sumalee_hoskin@fws.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We received a permit application from
Dominion Virginia Power for incidental take of the federally listed
Madison Cave isopod over the next 9 years during construction of a new
natural gas-fired combined-cycle power station in Warren County,
Virginia. A conservation program to minimize and mitigate for the
incidental take would be implemented by Dominion Virginia Power as
described in the proposed Dominion Virginia Power LEHCP.
We prepared a preliminary EAS to comply with NEPA. The Service will
evaluate whether the proposed action and issuance of an ITP to Dominion
Virginia Power are adequate to support a categorical exclusion. This
notice is provided pursuant to section 10(c) of the ESA and NEPA
regulations (40 CFR 1506.6).
We are requesting comments on the proposed HCP and our preliminary
determination that the HCP qualifies as low-effect under NEPA.
Availability of Documents
The proposed LEHCP and preliminary EAS are available on the VAFO's
Web site at: http://www.fws.gov/northeast/virginiafield/. Copies of the
proposed LEHCP and preliminary EAS will be available for public review
during regular business hours at the VAFO (see ADDRESSES). Those who do
not have access to the Web site or cannot visit our office can request
copies by
[[Page 52345]]
telephone at (804) 693-6694 or by letter to the VAFO (see ADDRESSES).
Background
Section 9 of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and its implementing
regulations prohibit the ``take'' of animal species listed as
endangered or threatened. Take is defined under the ESA as to ``harass,
harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect
listed animal species, or to attempt to engage in such conduct'' (16
U.S.C. 1538). However, under section 10(a) of the ESA, we may issue
permits to authorize incidental take of listed species. ``Incidental
take'' is defined by the ESA as take that is incidental to, and not the
purpose of, carrying out an otherwise lawful activity. Regulations
governing ITPs for threatened and endangered species are found in the
Code of Federal Regulations at 50 CFR 17.22 and 50 CFR 17.32,
respectively.
Dominion Virginia Power is seeking a permit for the incidental take
of the federally listed threatened Madison Cave isopod during
construction activities and post-construction monitoring period
extending for a total term of 9 years, until 2020. Permit coverage does
not include plant operational activities, as these are not anticipated
to cause take of the Madison Cave isopod. Dominion Virginia Power
proposes to construct a natural gas-fired combined-cycle power station
that is anticipated to be one of the most efficient power plants in the
nation once operational. Incidental take of the Madison Cave isopod may
occur from disturbance of the subterranean karst, which is habitat the
species occupies, during construction. Additional information can be
found in the proposed LEHCP and on our Web site.
The LEHCP's proposed conservation strategy is designed to avoid,
minimize, and mitigate the impacts of covered activities on the covered
species. The biological goals and objectives are to protect high-
quality habitat for a known Madison Cave isopod population.
The Proposed Action consists of the issuance of an ITP and
implementation of the proposed LEHCP. Three alternatives to the
proposed action were considered in the LEHCP: A no-project alternative,
alternative sites, and alternative construction procedures. These three
alternatives were deemed impracticable by Dominion Virginia Power
because of logical, law enforcement, and wildlife management reasons.
The plant will be fueled by natural gas delivered to the site
through gas pipelines regulated by the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission. These pipelines are undergoing independent analysis under
the ESA, NEPA, and other environmental regulations.
National Environmental Policy Act
We have made a preliminary determination that the Dominion Virginia
Power's proposed LEHCP, including the proposed avoidance, minimization,
and mitigation measures, will have a minor or negligible effect on the
species covered in the HCP, and that the HCP qualifies as a ``low-
effect'' HCP as described in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Habitat
Conservation Planning Handbook (November 1996).
As further explained in our preliminary EAS, included for public
review, we preliminarily determine that the HCP qualifies as a LEHCP
based on the following three reasons:
1. Implementation of the HCP would result in minor or negligible
effects on federally listed, proposed, and candidate species and their
habitats;
2. Implementation of the plan would result in minor or negligible
effects on other environmental values or resources; and
3. Impacts of the plan, considered together with the impacts of
other past, present, and reasonably foreseeable similarly situated
projects, would not result, over time, in cumulative effects to
environmental values or resources that would be considered significant.
Based on these reasons, the incidental take permit also, therefore,
qualifies for a categorical exclusion under NEPA, as provided by the
Department of the Interior's NEPA implementing regulations (43 CFR
46.205, 46.210 and 46.215) and the Departmental Manual (516 DM 2
Appendix 1 and 516 DM 8). Based on our review of public comments that
we may receive in response to this notice, we may revise this
preliminary determination.
Next Steps
We will evaluate the draft HCP and preliminary LEHCP Screening
Form/EAS and comments we receive to determine whether the permit
application meets the requirements of section 10(a) of the ESA and
qualifies as a ``low-effect'' HCP and for a categorical exclusion under
NEPA. We will also evaluate whether issuance of a section 10(a)(1)(B)
permit would comply with section 7 of the ESA by conducting an intra-
Service section 7 consultation. We will use the results of this
consultation, in combination with the above findings, in our final
analysis to determine whether to issue an ITP. If the requirements are
met, we will issue the ITP to the applicant.
Public Comments
The Service invites the public to comment on the proposed HCP and
preliminary EAS during a 30-day public review period (see DATES).
Comments can be submitted to VAFO (see ADDRESSES). All comments
received, including names and addresses, will become part of the
administrative record and may be made available to the public. Before
including your address, phone number, email address, or other personal
identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your
entire comment--including your personal identifying information--may be
made publicly available at any time. While you may request at the top
of your document that we withhold your personal identifying information
from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
Dated: August 10, 2011.
Kenneth D. Elowe,
Acting Regional Director, Northeast Region.
[FR Doc. 2011-21425 Filed 8-19-11; 8:45 am]
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