[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 10 (Friday, January 15, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4115-4116]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-00652]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
Fish and Wildlife Service
[212L1109AF LLUTC03000 L16100000.DS0000 LXSSJ0740000; UTU-93620; 13-
08807]
Notice of Availability of the Records of Decision for a Highway
Right-of-Way, Amended Habitat Conservation Plan and Issuance of an
Incidental Take Permit for the Mojave Desert Tortoise, and Approved
Resource Management Plan Amendments, Washington County, UT
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior; Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service (Service), as joint lead agencies, announce the
availability of the records of decision (ROD) for the Northern Corridor
highway right-of-way (ROW), issuance of an incidental take permit
(ITP), and approved amendments for the Red Cliffs National Conservation
Area (NCA) and St. George Field Office Resource Management Plans (RMP).
DATES: The Secretary of the Interior signed the ROD on January 13, 2021
which constitutes the final decision of the BLM and made the approved
amendments to the RMPs, effective immediately. The BLM also signed the
ROW grant for the Northern Corridor highway and issued the grant to the
Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) on January 13, 2021, which is
effective immediately. The Service's Regional Director for Interior
Regions 5 and 7 signed a ROD for issuance of an ITP, supported by the
Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP), to Washington County (County) on
January 13, 2021.
ADDRESSES: The RODs are available on the BLM ePlanning project website
at https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/1502103/510. Click
the ``Documents'' link on the left side of the screen to find the
electronic versions of these materials. If you would like to request to
view a hard copy, please call the St. George Field Office for more
information at (435) 688-3200, Monday through Friday, except holidays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gloria Tibbetts, BLM Color Country
District Planning and Environmental Coordinator, telephone: (435) 865-
3063; address: 176 East DL Sargent Dr., Cedar City, UT 84721; email:
gtibbetts@blm.gov. For information on the Amended HCP or ITP, contact
Yvette Converse, Field Supervisor, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
telephone: (801) 975-3330 ext. 61912; email:
utahfieldoffice_esa@fws.gov. Persons who use a telecommunications
device for the deaf may call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-
877-8339 to leave a message or question for Ms. Tibbetts or Ms.
Converse. The FRS is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Replies
are provided during normal business hours.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On September 4, 2018, UDOT submitted an
application for a ROW grant for the Northern Corridor Project north of
the City of St. George, Utah, on BLM-administered and non-Federal lands
within the Red Cliffs NCA and Red Cliffs Desert Reserve (Reserve). The
Reserve was established for the protection of the Mojave desert
tortoise under the 1995 Washington County HCP. The NCA was established
through the passage of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009.
The 1995 HCP expired in 2016 and was extended by the Service to allow
the County to amend the HCP pursuant to Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the
Endangered Species Act (ESA). The Service received an application for
an ITP dated January 30, 2015. The associated amended HCP was finalized
by Washington County on October 20, 2020. The amended HCP anticipates
the Northern Corridor highway, as a potential changed circumstance,
would be partially offset with the addition of a new sixth zone to the
Reserve (Reserve Zone 6) as the primary conservation strategy. To allow
for consideration of and mitigation for the Northern Corridor, the BLM
considered amendments to the Red Cliffs NCA and St. George Field Office
RMPs.
The BLM and the Service, as joint lead agencies, reviewed the ROW
and ITP applications, and the BLM
[[Page 4116]]
developed the approved amendments to the RMPs in close coordination
with the Service and cooperating agencies, using input from the public,
stakeholder groups, State and local government entities, and American
Indian tribes.
The BLM and the Service prepared an environmental impact statement
(EIS) in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
to analyze the environmental impacts associated with the proposed
action and the alternatives. Additionally, the BLM consulted with the
Service to meet the requirements in Section 7 of the ESA. A biological
opinion was issued by the Service to the BLM on January 12, 2021, and
determined that the ROW and approved amendments to the RMPs are not
likely to jeopardize the continued existence of the Mojave desert
tortoise in the Upper Virgin River Recovery Unit and range-wide and
that they are not likely to destroy or adversely modify designated
critical habitat for the desert tortoise. Pursuant to section 10 of the
ESA, the Service issued an intra-agency biological opinion on January
12, 2021, which determined that the ITP is not likely to jeopardize the
continued existence of the Mojave desert tortoise, Holmgren milkvetch,
Shivwits milkvetch, dwarf bear-poppy, Siler pincushion cactus, Gierisch
mallow, and Fickeisen plains cactus or result in the adverse
modification of critical habitat for the Mojave desert tortoise,
Holmgren milkvetch, Shivwits milkvetch, Gierisch mallow, or Fickeisen
plains cactus. The agencies also consulted with the Utah State Historic
Preservation Office (SHPO) and consulting parties as part of the
Section 106 review process under the National Historic Preservation Act
(NHPA). The BLM determined, and SHPO concurred, that the ROW will
result in adverse effects to historic properties and that the
amendments to the Red Cliffs NCA and St. George Field Office RMPs will
result in no adverse effects to historic properties. For the ITP, the
Service cannot fully determine the effects to historic properties prior
to issuance of the ITP and has worked with the SHPO and other
consulting parties to develop a programmatic agreement, as authorized
by 36 CFR 800.14(b). The programmatic agreement defines a process to
evaluate and address any adverse effects to historic properties related
to actions by Washington County on a case-by-case basis throughout the
term of the ITP. The final programmatic agreement for the ITP was
signed on December 15, 2020.
The formal public scoping process began on December 5, 2019, with
the publication of a Notice of Intent (NOI) in the Federal Register (84
FR 66692), which initiated a 30-day public scoping period. The Notice
of Availability (NOA) for the Draft EIS and Amendments to the RMPs,
Notice of ESA Section 10(a)(1)(B) permit application, and NOI
announcing a concurrent public comment period for the proposed
permanent closure of recreational target shooting within the proposed
Reserve Zone 6 area were published on June 12, 2020 (85 FR 35950),
which initiated a 90-day public comment period.
On November 13, 2020, the BLM published the NOA for the Final EIS
and Proposed Amendments to the RMPs (85 FR 72683), initiating a 30-day
protest period and a concurrent Governor's consistency review of up to
60 days. During the protest period for the Proposed Amendments to the
RMPs, the BLM received 18 protest letters. All protests were resolved
prior to the issuance of the RODs. For a full description of the issues
raised during the protest period and how they were addressed, please
refer to the BLM Protest Resolution Report, which is available online
at https://www.blm.gov/programs/planning-and-nepa/public-participation/protest-resolution-reports. The Governor of Utah reviewed the Final EIS
and Proposed Amendments to the RMPs and did not identify any
inconsistencies with State or local plans, policies, or programs.
Finally, in compliance with the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation,
Management, and Recreation Act of 2019, Public Law 116-9, 16 U.S.C.
7913, and 43 CFR 8364.1, the NOA for the Draft EIS and Draft Amendments
to the RMPs included an NOI announcing a concurrent 90-day public
comment period regarding the proposed closure of recreational target
shooting on BLM-administered lands within Reserve Zone 6. Based on
issues analyzed in the EIS and feedback received during the target
shooting comment period, protest period, government-to-government
consultation, section 106 (NHPA) and section 7 (ESA) consultation, and
Governor's consistency review, the BLM approved amendments to the St.
George Field Office RMP, which includes a closure to recreational
target shooting on BLM-administered lands within Reserve Zone 6.
Authority: Consistent with 40 CFR 1506.13 (2020), this notice
and the EIS are issued under previous NEPA regulations: 40 CFR
1505.2; 40 CFR 1506.6; 40 CFR 1506.10; and 43 CFR 1610.2. The BLM
also provides this notice under 43 CFR 8364.1 and 16 U.S.C. 7913.
The Service also provides this notice under section 10(c) of the ESA
(16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and its implementing regulations for
incidental take permits (50 CFR 17.22).
Gregory Sheehan,
State Director.
Noreen Walsh,
Regional Director.
[FR Doc. 2021-00652 Filed 1-14-21; 8:45 am]
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