[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 132 (Wednesday, July 10, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56775-56776]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-15085]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[Docket No. FWS-R8-ES-2024-0120; FXES11140800000-245-FF08ESMF00]
Draft Environmental Assessment and Proposed Pacific Gas and
Electric Valley Elderberry Longhorn Beetle Operation and Maintenance
Habitat Conservation Plan
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for public comment.
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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, announce receipt of an
application from Pacific Gas and Electric for an incidental take permit
for the Valley Elderberry Longhorn Beetle Operation and Maintenance
Habitat Conservation Plan. Under the Endangered Species Act and
National Environmental Policy Act, we are making available the
applicant's draft habitat conservation plan and our draft environmental
assessment. We invite the public and local, State, Tribal, and Federal
agencies to comment on the documents. Before issuing a requested
permit, we will take into consideration any information that we receive
during the public comment period.
DATES: We must receive your written comments on or before August 9,
2024.
ADDRESSES:
Obtaining Documents: The incidental take permit application, draft
environmental assessment (EA), draft habitat conservation plan (plan),
and any comments and other materials that we receive are available for
public inspection at https://www.regulations.gov in Docket No. FWS-R8-
ES-2024-0120.
Submitting Comments: To send written comments, please use one of
the following methods, and note that your information requests or
comments are in reference to the draft EA, draft plan, or both.
Internet: Submit comments at https://www.regulations.gov
at Docket No. FWS-R8-ES-2024-0120.
U.S. Mail: Public Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No.
FWS-R8-ES-2024-0120; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Headquarters, MS:
PRB/3W; 5275 Leesburg Pike; Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
For more information, see Public Comments under SUPPLEMENTARY
INFORMATION.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Wendy Prestera, Senior Wildlife
Biologist, or Jennifer Hobbs, Supervisor, Military and Waterway
Planning Division, Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office, by phone at
916-414-6675. 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 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
(Service), announce receipt of an application from Pacific Gas and
Electric (PG&E) for a 30-year incidental take permit for the Valley
Elderberry Longhorn Beetle Operation and Maintenance Habitat
Conservation Plan (plan). The draft plan covers operations and
maintenance activities and minor new construction projects that impact
valley elderberry longhorn beetle (Desmocerus californicus dimorphus;
beetle) and its habitat. PG&E has three other habitat conservation
plans permitted between 2007 and 2020; the draft plan would fill gaps
in coverage for the beetle and span all or portions of 12 counties in
California.
We also make available the draft environmental assessment (EA),
prepared pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as
amended (NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), and its implementing
regulations in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) at 40 CFR 1506.6.
The draft EA evaluates the impacts of the proposed action and the no-
action alternative. The Service also considered four other
alternatives, but these were eliminated from further consideration
because they did not meet the purpose and need of the proposed action
or the applicant's objectives.
Background Information
Section 9 of the Endangered Species Act (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1538) and
Federal regulations (50 CFR 17) prohibit the taking of fish and
wildlife species listed as endangered or threatened under section 4 of
the ESA. Regulations governing permits for endangered and threatened
species are at 50 CFR 17.22 and 17.32, respectively. For more about the
Federal habitat conservation plan (HCP) program, go to https://www.fws.gov/service/habitat-conservation-plans.
National Environmental Policy Act Compliance
The proposed issuance of a permit triggers the need for compliance
with NEPA. The draft EA was prepared to
[[Page 56776]]
analyze the impacts of issuing an incidental take permit based on the
draft plan; to inform the public of the proposed action, any
alternatives, and associated impacts; and to disclose any irreversible
commitments of resources.
Proposed Action
The proposed action is the Service's issuance of an incidental take
permit for a period of 30 years for covered species that could be
affected by PG&E's operations and maintenance activities and minor new
construction (covered activities). The valley elderberry longhorn
beetle, federally listed as threatened, is the only species included as
a covered species in the draft plan. The permit is requested to fill
gaps in coverage from PG&E's three other habitat conservation plans,
which include coverage for other federally listed species that occur in
the plan area. Measures outlined in these three other plans will
continue to be implemented along with the measures included in the
draft plan in areas where multiple plans overlap. The goal of PG&E's
overall program for the draft plan is to avoid, minimize, and mitigate
temporary and permanent impacts to the beetle and its habitat resulting
from covered activities.
Covered activities will occur in all or part of the following 12
California counties: Solano, Contra Costa, San Joaquin, Alameda,
Stanislaus, Merced, Napa, Santa Clara, San Benito, Fresno, Mariposa and
Madera. The total plan area is approximately 477,646 acres. It includes
PG&E gas and electric transmission and distribution facilities plus
rights-of-way, the lands owned by PG&E or subject to PG&E easements to
maintain these facilities, private and public access routes associated
with PG&E's routine maintenance, a buffer around the rights of way,
areas of minor new construction, and mitigation areas acquired to
mitigate effects resulting from covered activities.
Public Comments
We request data, comments, new information, or suggestions from the
public, other concerned governmental agencies, the scientific
community, Tribes, industry, or any other interested party on this
notice, the draft EA, and the draft plan. We particularly seek comments
on the following:
1. Biological information concerning the species;
2. Relevant data concerning the species;
3. Additional information concerning the range, distribution,
population size, and population trends of the species;
4. Current or planned activities in the area and their possible
impacts on the species;
5. The presence of archeological sites, buildings and structures,
historic events, sacred and traditional areas, and other historic
preservation concerns, which are required to be considered in project
planning by the National Historic Preservation Act; and
6. Any other environmental issues that should be considered with
regard to the proposed development and permit action.
Public Availability of Comments
Before including your address, phone number, or other personal
identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your
entire comment--including your personal identifying information--might
be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your
comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public
review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
Authority
We publish this notice under the National Environmental Policy Act
of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), and its implementing
regulations at 40 CFR 1500-1508, as well as in compliance with section
10(c) of the Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and its
implementing regulations at 50 CFR 17.22 and 17.32.
Michael Fris,
Field Supervisor, Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office.
[FR Doc. 2024-15085 Filed 7-9-24; 8:45 am]
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