[Federal Register: August 29, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 166)]
[Notices]
[Page 51083-51084]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr29au05-74]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
Receipt of an Application for an Incidental Take Permit for the
Florida Scrub-jay Resulting From Construction of a Single-Family Home
in Charlotte County, FL
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: Mr. and Mrs. Nicholas Tamburri (Applicants) request an
incidental take permit (ITP) for a period of one year, pursuant to
section 10(a)(1)(B) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), as
amended (U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). The Applicants anticipate removal of
about 1.2 acres of occupied Florida scrub-jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens)
(scrub-jay) nesting, foraging, and sheltering habitat, incidental to
partial land clearing of their 5-acre lot and subsequent residential
construction of a single-family home and supporting infrastructure in
Charlotte County, Florida. Up to three scrub-jay individuals could be
taken as a result of the Applicants' proposed action. It is not
currently known if these three scrub-jays are part of the same scrub-
jay family.
The Applicants' Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) describes the
mitigation and minimization measures proposed to address the effects of
the project to the scrub-jay. These measures are outlined in the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below. We announce the availability
of the ITP application, HCP, and accompanying Environmental Assessment
(EA). Copies of the application, HCP, and EA may be obtained by making
a request to the Southeast Regional Office (see ADDRESSES). Requests
must be in writing to be processed. This notice is provided pursuant to
section 10 of the Act and National Environmental Policy Act regulations
(40 CFR 1506.6).
DATES: Written comments on the ITP application and HCP, and EA should
be sent to the Service's Southeast Regional Office (see ADDRESSES) and
should be received on or before October 28, 2005.
ADDRESSES: Persons wishing to review the application, HCP, and EA may
obtain a copy by writing the Service's Southeast Regional Office at the
address below. Please reference permit number TE093169-0 in such
requests. Documents will also be available for public inspection by
appointment during normal business hours at the Southeast Regional
Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1875 Century Boulevard, Suite
200, Atlanta, Georgia 30345 (Attn: Endangered Species Permits), or also
at the South Florida Ecological Services Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, 1339 20th Street, Vero Beach, Florida 32960-3559 (Attn: Field
Supervisor).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. David Dell, Regional HCP
Coordinator, Southeast Regional Office (see ADDRESSES above),
telephone: 404/679-7313, facsimile: 404/679-7081; or Ms. Constance
Cassler, Fish and Wildlife Biologist, South Florida Ecological Services
Office (see ADDRESSES above), telephone: 772/562-3909, ext. 243.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: If you wish to comment, you may submit
comments by any one of several methods. Please reference permit number
TE093169-0 in such comments. You may mail comments to the Service's
Southeast Regional Office (see ADDRESSES). You may also comment via the
Internet to david_dell@fws.gov. Please submit comments over the
Internet as an ASCII file, avoiding the use of special characters and
any form of encryption. Please also include your name and return
address in your e-mail message. If you do not receive a confirmation
from us that we have received your e-mail message, contact us directly
at either telephone number listed above (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT). Finally, you may hand-deliver comments to either Service
office listed above (see ADDRESSES). Our practice is to make comments,
including names and home addresses of respondents, available for public
review during regular business hours. Individual respondents may
request that we withhold their home addresses from the administrative
record. We will honor such requests to the extent allowable by law.
There may also be other circumstances in which we would withhold from
the administrative record a respondent's identity, as allowable by law.
If you wish us to withhold your name and address, you must state this
prominently at the beginning of your comments. We will not, however,
consider anonymous comments. We will make all submissions from
organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying
themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or
businesses, available for public inspection in their entirety.
The Florida scrub-jay (scrub-jay) is geographically isolated from
other species of scrub-jays found in Mexico and the western United
States. The scrub-jay is found exclusively in peninsular Florida and is
restricted to xeric uplands (well-drained, sandy soil habitats
supporting a growth of oak-dominated scrub). Increasing urban and
agricultural development has resulted in habitat loss and
fragmentation, which has adversely affected the distribution and
numbers of scrub-jays. The total estimated population is between 7,000
and 11,000 individuals. The decline in the number and distribution of
scrub-jays in Florida has been exacerbated by tremendous urban growth
in the past 50 years.
Xeric upland vegetative communities in southwestern Florida are
restricted primarily to ancient coastal dunes which are typically much
dryer and less susceptible to flooding due to their deep, well-drained
soils. Historically, these areas extended in a nearly continuous,
narrow band along the western mainland portions of northern Charlotte
to southern Hillsborough County. However, the same physical attributes
that resulted in the evolution of xeric vegetation on these sandy dunes
also provided sites for both agricultural and urban development. Over
the past 50 years, these ancient dunes have served as the backbone of
residential and commercial growth in southwestern Florida. The project
area is under tremendous development pressure, as is much of Charlotte
County. Much of the remaining scrub-jay habitat is now relatively small
and isolated. What remains is largely degraded, due to interruption of
the natural fire regime that is needed to maintain xeric uplands in
conditions suitable for scrub-jays.
Florida scrub-jays were documented using this residential lot on
ten separate occasions between October 9 and October 16, 2002, by
consultants from AMS Engineering and Environmental, Incorporated. Based
on the consultant's report, it appears that at least three scrub-jays
use this residential lot. It is not known whether these scrub-jays
previously nested on the subject lot, though the birds roost regularly
on a turkey oak there. Scrub-jays using the
[[Page 51084]]
project site are part of a metapopulation of scrub-jays in Charlotte
County that occurs east of the Peace River and Punta Gorda. The
continued survival and recovery of scrub-jays in this area may be
dependent on the maintenance of suitable habitat and the restoration of
unsuitable habitat.
Scrub-jays in urban areas are particularly vulnerable and typically
do not successfully produce young that survive to adulthood. Persistent
urban growth in the vicinity of the project will likely continue to
reduce the amount of suitable habitat for scrub-jays. Increasing urban
pressures are also likely to result in the continued degradation of
scrub-jay habitat, as fire exclusion slowly results in vegetative
overgrowth. Thus, over the long-term, scrub-jays are unlikely to
persist in urban settings, and conservation efforts for this species
should include acquisition and management of large parcels of land
outside the direct influence of urbanization.
Construction of the project's infrastructure and facilities could
result in harm to scrub-jays, incidental to the carrying out of these
otherwise lawful activities. Habitat alteration associated with the
proposed residential construction would reduce the availability of
nesting, foraging, and sheltering habitat for three scrub-jays. The
Applicants propose to minimize take of scrub-jays by avoiding land-
clearing activities during the breeding or nesting season (March
through June), by not planting additional trees which would allow
perching of predatory birds, by eliminating most predatory bird perches
(slash pines) to possibly reduce the risk of scrub-jays being killed by
raptors, and by preserving and maintaining 3.8 acres of scrub-jay
habitat on their 5-acre lot in perpetuity. The preserve would be
accomplished through recorded deed restriction which must be in place
within 30 days of ITP issuance and prior to any land-clearing
activities.
The Applicants also propose to mitigate the take of scrub-jays
through contribution of $1,200 to an approved scrub-jay mitigation
fund. This contribution must be made within 30 days of ITP issuance and
prior to any land-clearing activities. The fund would be used to
acquire and manage larger tracts of scrub habitat in the County.
The Service has made a preliminary determination that the issuance
of the ITP is not a major Federal action significantly affecting the
quality of the human environment within the meaning of section
102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act. This preliminary
information may be revised due to public comment received in response
to this notice and is based on information contained in the EA and HCP.
The Service will evaluate the HCP and comments submitted thereon to
determine whether the application meets the requirements of section
10(a) of the Act. If it is determined that those requirements are met,
the ITP will be issued for the incidental take of the Florida scrub-
jay. We will also evaluate whether issuance of the section 10(a)(1)(B)
ITP complies with section 7 of the Act by conducting an intra-Service
section 7 consultation. The results of this consultation, in
combination with the above findings, will be used in the final analysis
to determine whether or not to issue the ITP.
Dated: August 4, 2005.
Cynthia K. Dohner,
Acting Regional Director.
[FR Doc. 05-17064 Filed 8-26-05; 8:45 am]
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