[Federal Register: November 13, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 218)]
[Notices]
[Page 58602-58603]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr13no09-33]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
RIN 0648-XS76
Multi-species Habitat Conservation Plan
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce; Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability of draft environmental impact statement,
multi-species habitat conservation plan, and receipt of application;
notice of public meeting.
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SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of a Draft
Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS), proposed Multi-Species Habitat
Conservation Plan (HCP), and associated Implementation Agreement (IA),
for public review and comment. Fruit Growers Supply Company has
submitted separate applications to the National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS) and to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) for 50-
year incidental take permits under section 10 of the Endangered Species
Act (ESA) of 1973, as amended.
DATES: Written comments on the proposed HCP, IA, and DEIS must be
received by 5 p.m. Pacific Time on February 11, 2010.
ADDRESSES: Address all comments concerning the proposed HCP and DEIS to
Lisa Roberts, and send by any one of the following methods, U.S. Mail:
National Marine Fisheries Service, Arcata Area Office, 1655 Heindon Rd,
Arcata, CA 95521; Fax: (707) 825-4840; E-mail: FGSHCP.SWR@noaa.gov. In
the subject line of the e-mail, include the document identifier: FGS
HCP.
A public meeting will be held on December 2, 2009, 6-8 p.m. at the
Best Western Miners Inn Convention Center, 122 East Miner Street,
Yreka, CA 96097.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information, or to receive
a copy of the documents, please contact Lisa Roberts, Fisheries
Biologist, National Marine Fisheries Service, (707) 825-5178. The HCP
and DEIS are also available electronically for review on the NMFS
Southwest Region website at: http://swr.nmfs.noaa.gov, or the FWS Yreka
office website at: www.fws.gov/yreka/.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The documents being made available include
(1) the proposed HCP, (2) the IA, and (3) the DEIS. This notice is
provided pursuant to the ESA and the National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA) as amended. NMFS and FWS are furnishing this notice to allow
other agencies and the public an opportunity to review and comment on
these documents. All comments received will become part of the public
record for this action. Hard bound copies of the HCP, IA, and DEIS are
available for viewing, or for partial or complete duplication, at the
following locations:
1. Siskiyou County Library, 719 4th St., Yreka, CA 96097.
2. Humboldt County Library, 1313 3rd St., Eureka, CA 95501.
3. Del Norte County Library, 190 Price Mall, Crescent City, CA
95531.
4. National Marine Fisheries Service, 1655 Heindon Rd., Arcata, CA
95521.
5. Yreka Fish and Wildlife Office, 1829 South Oregon St., Yreka, CA
96097.
Background
Section 9 of the ESA prohibits the ''take'' of wildlife species
listed as endangered or threatened by either the FWS or NMFS (16 USC
1538). The ESA defines the term ''take'' as to harass, harm, pursue,
hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect listed species, or
attempt to engage in such conduct. ``Harm'' is defined to include
significant habitat modification or degradation where it actually kills
or injures wildlife by significantly impairing essential behavioral
patterns, including breeding, feeding, spawning, migrating, rearing,
and sheltering (64 FR 60727). Pursuant to section 10(a)(1)(B) of the
ESA, FWS and NMFS may issue ITPs authorizing the take of listed species
if, among other things, such taking is incidental to, and not the
purpose of, otherwise lawful activities.
Take of listed plant species is not prohibited under the ESA, and
cannot be authorized under a section 10 permit. However, the applicant
proposes to include Yreka phlox (Phlox hirsuta) in the HCP to extend
the plan's conservation benefits to this species. The applicant would
receive assurances under the ``No Surprises'' regulations found in 50
CFR 17.22(b)(5), 17.32(b)(5), and 222.307(g) for all proposed covered
species in the ITP.
To receive an ITP under the ESA, an applicant must prepare an HCP
that specifies the following: (1) the impact of the taking; (2) steps
the applicant will take to minimize and mitigate the impact; (3)
funding available to implement the steps; (4) what
[[Page 58603]]
alternative actions to the taking the applicant considered and the
reasons why these actions were not taken; and (5) any other measures
NMFS or FWS may require as being necessary or appropriate for the
purpose of the plan (16 USC 1539(a)(2)(A)). To issue a permit, NMFS and
FWS must find that: (1) the taking will be incidental; (2) the
applicant will minimize and mitigate impacts of the take to the maximum
extent practicable; (3) the applicant will ensure adequate funding for
the HCP; (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 meet other measures required by FWS and NMFS.
Regulations governing issuance of FWS permits for endangered and
threatened species are at 50 CFR 17.22 and 17.32, and for NMFS-issued
permits at 50 CFR 222.301 through 307.
The applicant has prepared a multi-species HCP and has applied for
ITPs under the ESA. The HCP applies to 152,163 acres of commercial
timberland owned by Fruit Growers Supply Company in Siskiyou County,
California. The ownership consists of three management units: Klamath
River (64,867 acres), Scott Valley (38,814 acres), and Grass Lake
(48,482 acres). The Klamath River and Scott Valley management units are
located west of Interstate 5, adjacent to and intermixed with Klamath
National Forest (KNF) lands. The Grass Lake management unit (also
adjacent to the KNF) lies east of Interstate 5 and predominantly north
of State Highway 97. These lands are referred to as the Plan Area.
The applicant has requested coverage from FWS for northern spotted
owl (Strix occidentalis caurina) and Yreka phlox (Phlox hirsuta), and
from NMFS for the Southern Oregon/Northern California Coasts coho
salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) Evolutionarily Significant Unit (ESU).
The applicant also has requested coverage under the ITP for the
unlisted Klamath and Trinity Rivers Chinook salmon (O. tshawytscha) ESU
and the Klamath Mountains Province steelhead (O. mykiss) ESU. Should
these unlisted covered species become listed under the ESA during the
term of the permit, take authorization for those species would become
effective upon listing. The HCP describes the habitat-based
conservation approach, with species-specific objectives. This includes
an Aquatic Species Conservation Program for salmonids and Terrestrial
Species Conservation Program for the northern spotted owl and Yreka
phlox.
Activities proposed for ITPs coverage include mechanized timber
harvest; forest product transportation; road and landing construction,
use, maintenance, and abandonment; site preparation; tree planting;
certain types of vegetation management; silvicultural thinning and
other silvicultural activities; fire suppression; rock quarry and
borrow pit operations; aquatic habitat restoration; minor forest
management activities such as forest product collecting; and monitoring
activities and scientific work in the Plan Area.
The proposed duration of the ITPs and HCP is 50 years, though many
aspects of the plan's conservation strategy are intended to benefit the
covered species long into the future. The goals of this HCP are to: (1)
protect and improve habitats required by species covered by the HCP and
(2) establish appropriate guidelines for continuing timber harvests and
other forest management activities.
National Environmental Policy Act Compliance
NMFS and FWS formally initiated an environmental review of the
project through publication of a Notice of Intent to prepare an
Environmental Impact Statement in the Federal Register on February 22,
2008 (73 FR 9776). That document also announced a public scoping period
during which interested parties were invited to provide written
comments expressing their issues or concerns relating to the proposal
and attend one of two public scoping meetings held in Yreka and Happy
Camp, California.
NMFS and FWS have jointly prepared a DEIS to analyze the effects of
alternatives on the human environment. Proposed issuance of the
associated ITPs from both NMFS and FWS for covered species and
applicant implementation of the HCP make up the Proposed Alternative in
the DEIS. The other alternatives analyzed in the DEIS include: (1) the
No Action Alternative (ITPs would not be issued and there would not be
an HCP); (2) Alternative A (ITPs would be issued by both agencies, and
northern spotted owl conservation areas would be based on the Northwest
Forest Plan (NWFP) system of late-successional reserves (LSRs), and the
Aquatic Species Conservation Program would be based on concepts
outlined in the NWFP for the protection of aquatic habitats); and (3)
Alternative B (FWS would issue an ITP for northern spotted owl, with
spotted owl conservation based on management of foraging and dispersal
habitat across the Plan Area).
Public Comments
If you wish to comment on the permit application, the HCP, IA, or
DEIS, you may submit your comments to the address listed in the
ADDRESSES section of this document. Before including your address,
phone number, e-mail 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 may 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.
Special Accommodations
The public meeting is physically accessible to people with
disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other
auxiliary aids should be directed to Lisa Roberts, National Marine
Fisheries Service (707) 825-5178, at least 5 working days prior to the
meeting date.
Next Steps
NMFS and FWS will evaluate the applications, associated documents,
and comments submitted to them to prepare a final EIS. A permit
decision will be made no sooner than 30 days after the publication of
the final EIS and completion of the Record of Decision.
Dated: November 5, 2009.
Alexandra Pitts,
Acting Deputy Regional Director, Pacific Southwest Region, U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service.
Dated: November 9, 2009.
Angela Somma,
Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected Resources,
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E9-27318 Filed 11-12-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S