[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 103 (Tuesday, May 28, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46150-46151]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-11656]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[Docket No. FWS-R8-ES-2024-0001; FXES11140800000-234-FF08EVEN00]
Receipt of Incidental Take Permit Application and Proposed
Habitat Conservation Plan for the Morro Shoulderband Snail, San Luis
Obispo County, CA; Categorical Exclusion
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce receipt
of an application from Ken Carlson (applicant) for an incidental take
permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act. The applicant requests
the ITP to take the federally listed Morro shoulderband snail
(Helminthoglypta walkeriana) incidental to construction of a single-
family residence at 2045 Pine Avenue, San Luis Obispo County,
California. We request public comment on the application, which
includes the applicant's proposed habitat conservation plan (HCP), and
the Service's preliminary determination that the proposed permitting
action may be eligible for a categorical exclusion pursuant to the
Council on Environmental Quality's National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA) regulations, the Department of the Interior's (DOI) NEPA
regulations, and the DOI Departmental Manual. To make this preliminary
determination, we prepared a draft environmental action statement and
low-effect screening form, both of which are also available for public
review. We invite comment from the public and local, State, Tribal, and
Federal agencies.
DATES: We must receive your written comments on or before June 27,
2024.
ADDRESSES:
Obtaining Documents: 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-R8-ES-2024-0001 at
https://www.regulations.gov.
Submitting Comments: You may submit comments in writing by one of
the following methods:
Online: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments on Docket No. FWS-R8-ES-2024-0001.
U.S. mail: Public Comments Processing; Attn: FWS-R8-ES-
2024-0001; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; MS: PRB/3W; 5275 Leesburg
Pike; Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joseph Brandt, Fish and Wildlife
Biologist, by email at [email protected], via phone at 805-644-
1766, or by U.S. mail at 2493 Portola Road, Suite B, Ventura, CA 93003.
Individuals in the United States who are deaf, deafblind, hard of
hearing, or have a speech disability may dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or
TeleBraille) to access telecommunications relay services. Individuals
outside the United States should use the relay services offered within
their country to make international calls to the point-of-contact in
the United States.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service),
announce receipt of an application from Ken Carlson (applicant) for an
incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act of 1973,
as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). The applicant requests the
ITP to take the federally listed Morro shoulderband snail
(Helminthoglypta walkeriana) incidental to construction of a single-
family residence at 2045 Pine Avenue, San Luis Obispo County,
California. We request public comment on the application, which
includes the applicant's proposed habitat conservation plan (HCP), and
on the Service's preliminary determination that this proposed ITP
qualifies as ``low effect,'' and may qualify for a categorical
exclusion pursuant to the Council on Environmental Quality's National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations (40 CFR 1501.4), the
Department of the Interior's (DOI) NEPA regulations (43 CFR 46), and
the DOI's Departmental Manual (516 DM 8.5(C)(2)). To make this
preliminary determination, we prepared a draft environmental action
statement and low-effect screening form, both of which are also
available for public review.
Background
On December 15, 1994 (59 FR 64613), the Service listed the
Arctostaphylos morroensis (Morro manzanita) as threatened and the Morro
shoulderband snail as endangered. The Service subsequently reclassified
the Morro shoulderband snail from endangered to threatened on February
3, 2022 (87 FR 6063). Section 9 of the ESA prohibits ``take'' of fish
and wildlife species listed as endangered (16 U.S.C. 1538), where take
is defined to include the following activities: ``to harass, harm,
pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or to
attempt to engage in any such conduct'' (16 U.S.C. 1532). The take
prohibitions of section 9 are extended to species listed as threatened
at the discretion of the Secretary of the Department of the Interior,
and were extended to Morro shoulderband snail, with exceptions. The
Service published a 4(d) rule, which includes exceptions to incidental
take associated with native habitat enhancement and fire reduction
activities (February 3, 2022, 87 FR 6063).
Under section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1539(a)(1)(B)), we
may issue permits to authorize take of listed fish and wildlife species
that is incidental to, and not the purpose of, carrying out an
otherwise lawful activity. Regulations governing incidental take
permits for endangered and threatened species are in the Code of
Federal Regulations (CFR) at 50 CFR 17.22 and 17.32, respectively.
Issuance of an ITP also must not jeopardize the existence of federally
listed fish, wildlife, or plant species. The permittee would receive
assurances under our ``No Surprises'' regulations (50 CFR 17.22(b)(5)
and 17.32(b)(5)).
Applicant's Proposed Activities
The applicant has applied for a permit for incidental take of the
Morro shoulderband snail. The take would occur in association with
activities necessary for the construction of a single-family home,
installation of a driveway, and installation of a septic system and
utilities on 0.41 acres of low-quality Morro shoulderband snail
habitat. A Fire Hazard Reduction Plan has been approved by the Service
for the parcel. As a result, fire hazard reduction activities on the
remaining 1.59 acres will be exempt from section 9 take prohibitions
under the 4d Rule exemption.
The HCP includes avoidance and minimization measures for the Morro
shoulderband snail, and mitigation for unavoidable loss of occupied
habitat. The applicant will commensurately
[[Page 46151]]
offset impacts through a Service-approved mechanism such as an in-lieu
program, conservation bank, or species account, which would go toward
accomplishing the recovery goals for the species, such as restoration
and protection of habitat.
Public Availability of Comments
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
ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying
information from public view, we cannot guarantee that we will be able
to do so.
Our Preliminary Determination
The Service has made a preliminary determination that the
applicant's proposed project would individually and cumulatively have a
minor effect on the Morro shoulderband snail and the human environment.
Therefore, we have preliminarily determined that the proposed ESA
section 10(a)(1)(B) permit would be a ``low-effect'' ITP that
individually or cumulatively would have a minor effect on the species
and may qualify for application of a categorical exclusion pursuant to
the Council on Environmental Quality's NEPA regulations, DOI's NEPA
regulations, and the DOI Departmental Manual. A ``low-effect'' ITP is
one that would result in (1) minor or nonsignificant effects on species
covered in the HCP; (2) nonsignificant effects on the human
environment; and (3) impacts that, when added together with the impacts
of other past, present, and reasonable foreseeable actions, would not
result in significant cumulative effects to the human environment.
Next Steps
The Service will evaluate the application and the comments received
to determine whether to issue the requested ITP. We will also conduct
an intra-Service consultation pursuant to section 7 of the ESA to
evaluate the effects of the proposed take. After considering the
preceding and other matters, we will determine whether the permit
issuance criteria of section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA have been met. If
met, the Service will issue an ITP to the applicant.
Authority
We provide this notice under section 10(c) of the Endangered
Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and its implementing regulations
(50 CFR 17.22 and 17.32) and the National Environmental Policy Act (42
U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and its implementing regulations (40 CFR 1500-1508
and 43 CFR 46).
Stephen P. Henry,
Field Supervisor, Ventura Fish and Wildlife Office, Ventura,
California.
[FR Doc. 2024-11656 Filed 5-24-24; 8:45 am]
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