[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 170 (Friday, August 31, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44652-44654]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-18989]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[Docket No. FWS-R3-ES-2018-0037; FXES11130300000-189-FF03E00000]
Draft Environmental Impact Statement and Draft Habitat
Conservation Plan; Receipt of an Application for an Incidental Take
Permit for Midwestern Bat and Bird Species; MidAmerican Energy Company,
Iowa
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Endangered Species Act, as amended
(ESA), and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), we, the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the availability of a
draft habitat conservation plan (HCP) in support of an application from
MidAmerican Energy Company (applicant) for an incidental take permit
(ITP) for the federally endangered Indiana bat, federally threatened
northern long-eared bat, and federally protected bald eagle; also
included in the permit would be the little brown bat and tricolored
bat. The take is expected to result from operation of wind turbines in
22 counties in Iowa. Also available for review is the Service's draft
environmental impact statement (DEIS), which was prepared in response
to the application. We are seeking public comments on the draft HCP and
DEIS.
DATES:
Submitting Comments: We will accept hardcopy comments received or
postmarked on or before October 1, 2018. Comments submitted online at
https://www.regulations.gov/ (see ADDRESSES) must be received by 11:59
p.m. Eastern Time on October 15, 2018.
Public Involvement: The Service will announce future meetings and
any other public involvement activities at least 15 days in advance
through public notices, media releases, mailings, and/or online
postings at https://www.fws.gov/midwest/rockisland/te/MidAmericanHCP.html.
ADDRESSES: Obtaining Documents for Review: The documents this notice
announces, as well as any comments and other materials that we receive,
will be available for public inspection online in Docket No. FWS-R3-ES-
2018-0037 at http://www.regulations.gov.
Submitting Comments: You may submit comments by one of the
following methods:
Online: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments on Docket No. FWS-R3-ES-2018-0037.
U.S. mail or hand-delivery: Public Comments Processing,
Attn: Docket No. FWS-R3-ES-2018-0037; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service;
MS: BPHC; 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
We will post all comments on http://www.regulations.gov. This
generally means that we will post online any personal information that
you provide (see Public Availability of Comments under SUPPLEMENTARY
INFORMATION). We request that you send comments by only the methods
described above.
Reviewing EPA comments on the draft HCP and DEIS: See EPA's Role in
the EIS Process under SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Amber Schorg or Kraig McPeek, by phone
at 309-757-5800.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Service has received an incidental take
permit (ITP) application from the MidAmerican Energy Company in
accordance with the requirements of the Endangered Species Act, as
amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). The applicant has prepared a
draft habitat conservation plan (HCP) in support of the ITP application
and is seeking authorization for take of the federally endangered
Indiana bat, federally threatened northern long-eared bat, and
federally protected bald eagle, in addition to the little brown bat and
tricolored bat. Little brown bat and tricolored bat are not federally
protected, but they are currently being evaluated for protection under
ESA. The applicant has chosen to include these as covered species, and
they will be treated as if they were ESA listed. The ITP, if issued,
would authorize incidental take of these species that may occur as a
result of the operation of wind facilities in 22 Iowa counties over a
30-year permit term. The draft HCP describes how impacts to the covered
species will be minimized and mitigated. The draft HCP also describes
the covered species' life history and ecology, biological goals
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and objectives, the estimated take and its potential impact on covered
species' populations, adaptive management and monitoring, and
mitigation measures.
The Service has prepared a draft environmental impact statement
(DEIS) in response to the ITP application in accordance with
requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA; 42 U.S.C.
4321 et seq.). We are making the draft HCP and the DEIS available for
public review and comment.
Background
Section 9 of the ESA 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). Under section 10(a)(1)(B) of
the ESA, the Service 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.
Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA contains provisions for issuing
incidental take permits to non-Federal entities for the incidental take
of endangered and threatened species, provided the following criteria
are met: (a) The taking will be incidental; (b) the applicant will
minimize and mitigate, to the maximum extent practicable, the impact of
such taking; (c) the applicant will develop an HCP and ensure that
adequate funding for the plan will be provided; (d) the taking will not
appreciably reduce the likelihood of the survival and recovery of the
species in the wild; and (e) the applicant will carry out any other
measures that the Secretary of the Interior may require as being
necessary or appropriate for the purposes of the HCP. An applicant may
choose to cover nonlisted species in the HCP, and these species will be
treated as ESA-listed species.
Proposed Action
We propose to issue a 30-year permit for incidental take of the
Indiana bat, northern long-eared bat, bald eagle, little brown bat, and
tricolored bat if the MidAmerican HCP meets all the section 10(a)(1)(B)
permit issuance criteria. The permit would authorize the take of these
species incidental to the applicant's operation of wind projects.
Applicant's Project
MidAmerican Energy currently operates 22 Projects in Iowa,
consisting of 2,021 turbines that vary by type and project. Detailed
descriptions of the projects are found in section 2.0 of the HCP. All
projects and turbines are within the range of the northern long-eared
bat, little brown bat, tricolored bat, and eagle. Four projects have
turbines within Indiana bat range (375 turbines). MidAmerican has
developed a conservation program to avoid, minimize, and mitigate for
impacts to covered species. Bald eagle-specific avoidance and
minimization measures will include carrion removal in the vicinity of
projects and livestock operator outreach. Reductions in scavenging
opportunities are expected to reduce eagle use near wind projects. Bat-
specific minimization measures were informed by extensive species
presence-absence surveys, migration telemetry studies, and mortality
monitoring. Minimization measures will include blade feathering below
manufacturer's cut-in speed at all projects from March 15 through
November 15 from sunset to sunrise. Additionally, 4 projects (265
turbines) that are expected to have the highest risk to covered bat
species and all bats will be feathered below 5.0 meters per second (m/
s) July 15 through September 30 from sunset to sunrise when
temperatures are below 10 degrees Celsius (50 degrees Fahrenheit).
Blade feathering consists of turning turbine blades parallel to the
prevailing wind direction to reduce rotation of the turbine rotors,
which in turn reduces the likelihood of bat-turbine collisions.
MidAmerican will conduct an annual monitoring program at each project
throughout the life of the permit to confirm take permit compliance.
MidAmerican has committed to fully offsetting the impacts of the
taking for all covered bat species through habitat restoration,
preservation, and enhancement, as well as restoration and preservation
of at-risk occupied artificial roost structures. Measures to offset the
impacts to taking of bald eagles will include funding local or regional
eagle rehabilitation, a toxic substance education and abatement
program, and protection of key eagle nesting or foraging habitat.
National Environmental Policy Act
In compliance with NEPA (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), the Service has
prepared a DEIS, in which we analyze the proposed action and a
reasonable range of alternatives to the proposed action.
Seven alternatives are analyzed in the DEIS.
No-action alternative: No permit would be issued, and no
HCP would be implemented.
Alternative A: 5.0 m/s cut-in speed across all turbines
for the entire bat active season.
Alternative B: 5.0 m/s cut-in speed during fall bat
migration at all turbines and at turbines within 1,000 ft of suitable
habitat for Indiana and northern long-eared bats during the entire bat
active season.
Alternative C: 5.0 m/s cut-in speed during fall bat
migration.
Alternative D: Manufacturer's cut-in speed for the entire
bat active season.
The applicant's HCP alternative.
Participation in the Midwest Wind MSHCP alternative.
The environmental consequences of each alternative were analyzed to
determine if significant environmental impacts would occur.
EPA's Role in the EIS Process
The EPA is charged with reviewing all Federal agencies' EISs and
commenting on the adequacy and acceptability of the environmental
impacts of proposed actions in EISs. Therefore, EPA is publishing a
notice in the Federal Register announcing this DEIS, as required under
section 309 of the Clean Air Act. The publication date of EPA's notice
of availability is the official beginning of the public comment period.
EPA's notices are published on Fridays.
EPA serves as the repository (EIS database) for EISs prepared by
Federal agencies. All EISs must be filed with EPA, which publishes a
notice of availability on Fridays in the Federal Register. You may
search for EPA comments on EISs, along with EISs themselves, at https://cdxnodengn.epa.gov/cdx-enepa-public/action/eis/search.
Public Availability of Comments
We will post on http://regulations.gov all public comments and
information received electronically or via hardcopy. Written comments
we receive become part of the administrative record associated with
this action. 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 can request in your comment that we withhold your personal
identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we
will be able to do so. All submissions from organizations or
businesses, and from individuals identifying themselves as
representatives or officials of organizations or businesses, will be
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made available for public disclosure in their entirety.
Authority
We provide this notice under section 10(c) of the ESA (16 U.S.C.
1531 et seq.) and its implementing regulations (50 CFR 17.22) and the
NEPA (42 U.S.C. 4371 et seq.) and its implementing regulations (40 CFR
1506.6; 43 CFR part 46).
Charles M. Wooley,
Acting Regional Director, Midwest Region.
[FR Doc. 2018-18989 Filed 8-30-18; 8:45 am]
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