[Federal Register: September 22, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 182)]
[Notices]
[Page 48285-48287]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr22se09-97]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R2-ES-2009-N159; 20124-1112-0000-F2]
Environmental Impact Statement and Habitat Conservation Plan;
Oncor Electric Delivery Company; Routine Maintenance and Repair of
Facilities and Installation and Operation of New Facilities
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare a draft environmental impact
statement and draft habitat conservation plan; announcement of
meetings; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), advise the
public that we intend to prepare a draft Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS) to evaluate the impacts of, and alternatives to, the proposed
issuance of an Endangered Species Act permit to Oncor Electric Delivery
Company (Oncor; Applicant) for incidental take of 10 federally listed
species from activities associated with maintenance and repair of
existing facilities and installation and operation of new facilities
within Oncor's service area. We also announce plans for a series of
public scoping meetings located throughout Oncor's service area and a
public comment period.
DATES: Written comments on alternatives and issues to be addressed in
the draft EIS must be received by close of business on December 1,
2009. Public scoping meetings will be held at nine locations throughout
Oncor's proposed 103-county permit area. Public meetings will be held
between September 28, 2009, and October 28, 2009. Exact meeting
locations and times will be noticed in local newspapers and at the
Austin Ecological Services Office Web site, http://www.fws.gov/
southwest/es/AustinTexas/, at least 2 weeks prior to each event.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments or requests for information by mail to
the Field Supervisor, Austin Ecological Services Field Office, 10711
Burnett Road, Suite 200, Austin, TX 78758-4460; telephone 512/490-0057;
facsimile 512/490-0974; or e-mail luela_roberts@fws.gov. Note that
your information request or comments concern the Oncor draft EIS/HCP.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice is published in compliance with
the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended (42
U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), and its implementing regulations (40 CFR 1506.6),
and section 10(c) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended
(Act; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). The Service intends to gather the
information necessary to determine impacts and alternatives to support
a decision regarding the potential issuance of an incidental take
permit to the Applicant, and the implementation of the supporting draft
HCP.
The Service intends to prepare a draft EIS to evaluate the impacts
of, and alternatives to, the proposed issuance of an incidental take
permit under the Act to the Applicant. The Applicant proposes to apply
for an incidental take permit through development and implementation of
an HCP. The proposed HCP will include measures necessary to minimize
and mitigate the impacts to the maximum extent practicable of potential
proposed taking of federally listed species and the habitats upon which
they depend during routine maintenance and repair of existing Oncor
facilities and installation and operation of new Oncor facilities
within Oncor's service area.
Background
Section 9 of the Act prohibits ``taking'' of fish and wildlife
species listed as endangered or threatened under section 4 of the Act.
Under the Act, the term ``take'' means to harass, harm, pursue, hunt,
shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or attempt to engage in
any such conduct. The term ``harm'' is defined in the regulations as
significant habitat modification or degradation that results in death
or injury to listed species by significantly impairing essential
behavioral patterns, including breeding, feeding, or sheltering (50 CFR
17.3). The term ``harass'' is defined in the regulations as actions
that create the likelihood of injury to listed species to such an
extent as to significantly disrupt normal behavioral patterns which
include, but are not limited to, breeding, feeding, or sheltering (50
CFR 17.3). However, the Service may, under specified circumstances,
issue permits that allow the take of federally listed species, provided
that the take incidental to, but not the purpose of, otherwise lawful
activity. Regulations governing permits for endangered and threatened
species are at 50 CFR 17.22 and 17.32, respectively.
Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the Act contains provisions for issuing such
incidental take permits to non-Federal entities for the take of
endangered and threatened species, provided the following criteria are
met: (1) The taking will be incidental; (2) The applicant will, to the
maximum extent practicable, minimize and mitigate the impact of such
taking; (3) The applicant will develop a draft HCP and ensure that
adequate funding for the plan will be provided; (4) The taking will not
appreciably reduce the likelihood of the survival and recovery of the
species in the wild; and (5) The applicant will carry out any other
measures that we may require as being necessary or appropriate for the
purposes of the habitat conservation plan.
Thus, the purpose of issuing a permit is to allow Oncor to maintain
the efficiency of its projects and operations, while preserving
protected species and their habitat. Adoption of a multispecies habitat
conservation approach, rather than a species-by-species/project-by-
project approach, will reduce the costs of implementing species
minimization and mitigation measures, and eliminate cost and time-
consuming efforts associated with processing individual incidental take
permits for each project
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within Oncor's 106-county service area. In addition, the multispecies
habitat conservation plan approach provides a program of minimization,
including avoidance, and mitigation for each species that is
coordinated on a landscape level and provides increased benefits to the
covered species. The Service expects that the Applicant will request
permit coverage for a period of 30 years.
Scoping Meetings
The purpose of the scoping meetings is to provide the public with a
general understanding of the background of the proposed HCP and
activities that would be covered by the draft HCP, alternative
proposals under consideration for the draft EIS, and the Service's role
and steps to be taken to develop the draft EIS for the draft HCP. The
meeting format will consist of a 1-hour open house prior to the formal
scoping meeting that will provide an opportunity to learn about the
proposed action, permit area, and species covered. The open house will
be followed by a formal presentation of the proposed action, summary of
the NEPA process, and presentation of oral comments from meeting
participants. A court reporter will be present at each meeting and an
interpreter will be present when deemed necessary. The primary purpose
of these meetings and public comment period is to solicit suggestions
and information on the scope of issues and alternatives to consider
when drafting the EIS. Oral and written comments will be accepted at
the meetings. Comments can also be submitted to persons listed in the
ADDRESSES section. Once the draft EIS and draft HCP are completed and
noticed for review, there will be additional opportunity for public
comment on the content of these documents through an additional public
hearing and comment period.
Alternatives
The proposed action presented in the draft EIS will be compared to
the No-Action alternative. The No-Action alternative represents
estimated future conditions to which the proposed action's estimated
future conditions can be compared.
No-Action Alternative
Because the proposed covered activities (operation and maintenance
of existing lines and construction and operation of new lines) are
vital in providing services to accommodate future population growth and
energy demand, these activities would continue regardless of whether a
10(a)(1)(B) permit is sought or issued. The Applicant would continue to
avoid and minimize impacts to protected species habitat. Where
potential impacts could not be avoided, and where a Federal nexus
exists, they would be minimized and mitigated for through individual
formal or informal consultation with the Service. Thus, the Applicant
would potentially need an individual section 10(a)(1)(B) incidental
take permit on a project-by-project basis if activities might result in
the incidental take of a federally protected species within the
proposed permit area. Although future activities by the Applicant would
be similar to those covered by the HCP, not all activities would
necessitate an incidental take permit or even informal consultation
with the Service. Thus, under this alternative, numerous individual
section 10(a)(1)(B) permit applications would likely be filed over the
30-year project period. This project-by-project approach would be more
time-consuming, less efficient, and could result in an isolated
independent mitigation approach.
Proposed Alternative
The proposed action is the issuance of an incidental take permit
for the covered species during construction, operation, and/or
maintenance of the Applicant's transmission and distribution electrical
facilities within the proposed permit area for a period of 30 years.
The proposed HCP, which must meet the requirements in section
10(a)(2)(A) of the Act by providing measures to minimize and mitigate
the effects of the potential incidental take of covered species to the
maximum extent practicable, would be developed and implemented by the
Applicant. This alternative could allow for a comprehensive mitigation
approach for unavoidable impacts and reduce the permit processing
effort for the Service.
Actions covered under the requested incidental take permit may
include general activities associated with new construction,
maintenance, and emergency response and restoration, including
stormwater discharges from construction sites, equipment access, and
surveying. Construction activities covered for new facilities would
include new overhead transmission and distribution lines, new support
facilities such as substations and switching stations, adding a second
circuit on an existing structure, and underground electric
installation. Typical maintenance activities would include vegetation
management within a right-of-way, expansion of existing support
facilities, line upgrades, insulator replacement, and maintenance of
underground electric facilities.
The Applicant expects to apply for an incidental take permit for
ten species listed as endangered or threatened within the Oncor service
area. These species include four plants (large-fruited sand verbena,
Texas poppy-mallow, Navasota ladies'-tresses, and Pecos sunflower), one
invertebrate (American burying beetle), one amphibian (Houston toad),
three birds (golden-cheeked warbler, black-capped vireo, and red-
cockaded woodpecker), and one mammal (Louisiana black bear).
Counties included in the proposed permit area are those counties
within the 105-county Oncor service area, excluding Travis and
Williamson counties. These two counties are excluded because species in
them are covered under the Balcones Canyonland Plan and the Williamson
County Regional HCP.
Species not covered by the proposed incidental take permit will
also be addressed in the draft HCP. These species include candidate
species and federally listed species not likely to be affected by the
covered activities. The purpose of addressing the additional species is
to explain why the Applicant believes these species will not be
impacted by the covered activities.
Other alternatives considered will also be addressed in the draft
EIS, including impacts associated with each alternative evaluated will
be discussed in the draft EIS.
Public Availability of Comments
Written comments we receive become part of the public record
associated with this action. Before including your address, phone
number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in
your comment, you should be aware that the 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 review, we cannot
guarantee that we will be able to do so.
Environmental Review
The Service will conduct an environmental review to analyze the
proposed action, as well as other alternatives evaluated and the
associated impacts of each. The draft EIS will be the basis for the
impact evaluation for each species covered and the range of
alternatives to be addressed. The draft EIS is expected to provide
biological descriptions of the affected species and habitats, as well
as the effects of the alternatives on other resources such as
vegetation, wetlands,
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wildlife, geology and soils, air quality, water resources, water
quality, cultural resources, land use, recreation, water use, local
economy, and environmental justice.
Following completion of the environmental review, the Service will
publish a notice of availability and a request for comment on the draft
EIS and the Applicant's permit application, which will include the
draft HCP. The draft EIS and draft HCP are expected to be completed and
available to the public in early 2010.
Thomas L. Bauer,
Acting Regional Director, Region 2, Albuquerque, New Mexico.
[FR Doc. E9-22742 Filed 9-21-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P