Project Review Process for Projects WITHOUT Any Federal Agency Involvement :

For projects not authorized, funded or carried out by a Federal agency, consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) pursuant to Section 7(a)(2) of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) (87 Stat. 884, as amended; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) is not required. But the prohibitions provided under the ESA still apply. For instance, no person is authorized to “take” (kill, injure, harass, etc.) any listed species without appropriate authorizations from the Service. Therefore, we provide technical assistance to individuals and agencies to assist with project planning to avoid the potential for “take,” or when appropriate, to provide assistance with their application for an incidental take permit pursuant to Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA. For more information on incidental take permits and associated Habitat Conservation Plans (HCPs), see below.

The following steps to determine whether you may have a listed species within your project action area apply to project sponsors or their representatives, as well as any appropriate Federal agency.

Step 1 - Determine whether any listed, proposed, or candidate species (T/E species) are likely to occur within the proposed project action area based on location of the proposed project:

A. NEW: Choose your county for a list of Threatened, Endangered, and Candidate Species and List of Extirpated Species.

B. Contact the New York Natural Heritage Program (NYNHP) and any appropriate New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) Regional Offices for additional information on Federally- and State-listed species. Please note that the NYNHP provides information on known occurrences; this information does not replace field surveys as most project sites have not been previously surveyed specifically for listed species.

If the proposed project occurs in a county with no known listed or candidate species present, no further coordination with the Service is needed. However, until the proposed project is complete, we recommend that you check our species lists every 90 days to ensure that listed species presence/absence information for the proposed project is current.

If the proposed project occurs in a county with known occurrences of listed or candidate species, proceed to Step 2.

Step 2 - Determine whether any T/E species are likely to occur within the proposed project area based on the habitat present within the proposed project action area.

Review the information we have provided, information from the NYNHP and NYSDEC, and any other sources of information available to you to determine types of habitat the species use.

Determine whether your proposed project action area has any potential for listed species habitat (e.g., are trees present - Indiana bats, are wetlands present - Bog turtles). After this initial coarse review, determine whether any more detailed surveys may be appropriate (e.g., Phase 1 survey for Bog turtles).

You will find that survey protocols are available for some species but not for others. Follow the steps provided for each species. If you have any questions regarding species that do not have specific protocols, please contact our office for technical assistance.

If the NYNHP does not identify any listed species for the proposed project AND there is no potential habitat for any listed species within the action area, no further coordination with the Service is required (*NOTE - this does not mean that no potential habitat is impacted by the footprint of the project; this means no potential habitat is present. Once you have documented potential listed species habitat, further coordination with the Service is recommended, further coordination with the involved Federal agency(ies) is required). However, you can also submit your findings to the Service for a “second look” at your analysis and we recommend this for species with defined habitat survey protocols (e.g., Bog turtles, Karner blue butterflies). Please note that if we agree that listed species are unanticipated within the project action area, we will simply document this for our files.

If there is potential habitat for any listed species, send the results of the habitat surveys to the Service and the appropriate NYSDEC Regional Office for further coordination, as well as:

• A detailed description of the proposed project, including approximate proposed project construction schedule and project activities (e.g., land clearing, utilities, stormwater management).
• A description of the natural characteristics of the property and surrounding area (e.g., forested areas, freshwater wetlands, open waters, and soils). Additionally, please include a description of surrounding land use (residential, agricultural, or commercial).
• A description of the area to be impacted by the proposed project, including trees to be removed.
• The location of the above referenced property and extent of any project related activities or discharges clearly indicated on a copy of a USGS 7.5 Minute Topographic Quadrangle (Quad) with the name of the Quad(s) and latitude/longitude clearly labeled.
• A description of conservation measures to avoid or minimize impacts to listed species.

Step 3 - Based on the results of the habitat survey and a description of the proposed project (including information as to whether any potential habitat may be directly or indirectly 1 affected), the Service may:

Additional information on incidental take permits and HCPs:

• Frequently Asked Questions on HCPs
• USFWS Habitat Conservation Plan Information
• HCP and Incidental Take Permit Process
• HCP Handbook
• 5-point Policy Initiative (Addendum to the Habitat Conservation Plan Handbook)

Habitat Conservation Plan and Incidental Take Application Package

• Incidental Take Permit Application - PDF - 332KB
• Regulations governing ITP and HCPs:
- 50 CFR Part 13 - General Permit Procedures - PDF 125KB
- 50 CFR Part 17 - Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants - PDF 18.2MB
Note: 50 CFR PDF versions are current through September 13, 2004
• Incidental Take Permit processing fees effective May 11, 2005 - PDF version 91KB

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1. Indirect effects are effects that are caused by or will result from the proposed action and are later in time, but still reasonable certain to occur [50 CFR §402.02]. For further discussion of effects analyses, please review pages 4-25 – 4-31 in our Section 7 Consultation Handbook and Chapter 3 of the HCP Handbook.