[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 151 (Wednesday, August 5, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47397-47398]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-16980]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2020-0085; FXES11130400000EA-123-FF04EF1000]
Receipt of Incidental Take Permit Application and Proposed
Habitat Conservation Plan for the Sand Skink, Orange County, FL;
Categorical Exclusion
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comment and information.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce receipt
of an application from Withers, LLC (applicant) for an incidental take
permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act. The applicant requests
the ITP to take the federally listed sand skink incidental to
construction in Orange County, Florida. We request public
[[Page 47398]]
comment on the application, which includes the applicant's proposed
habitat conservation plan (HCP), and the Service's preliminary
determination that this HCP qualifies as ``low-effect,'' categorically
excluded, under the National Environmental Policy Act. To make this
determination, we used our environmental action statement and low-
effect screening form, both of which are also available for public
review.
DATES: We must receive your written comments on or before September 4,
2020.
ADDRESSES:
Obtaining Documents: You may obtain copies of the documents online
in Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2020-0085 at http://www.regulations.gov.
Submitting Comments: If you wish to submit comments on any of the
documents, you may do so in writing by any of the following methods:
Online: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments on Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2020-0085.
U.S. mail: Public Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No.
FWS-R4-ES-2020-0085; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS: PRB/3W, 5275
Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Erin M. Gawera, by telephone at 904-
731-3121 or via email at erin_gawera@fws.gov. Individuals who are
hearing or speech impaired may call the Federal Relay Service at 1-800-
877-8339 for TTY assistance.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service, announce
receipt of an application from Withers, LLC (applicant) for an
incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act of 1973,
as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). The applicant requests the
ITP to take the federally listed sand skink (Neoseps reynoldsi)
incidental to the construction of a housing development (project) in
Orange County, Florida. We request public comment on the application,
which includes the applicant's proposed habitat conservation plan
(HCP), and the Service's preliminary determination that this HCP
qualifies as ``low-effect,'' categorically excluded, under the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4231 et seq.). To make this
determination, we used our environmental action statement and low-
effect screening form, which are also available for public review.
Project
Withers, LLC requests a 5-year ITP to take sand skinks by
converting approximately 5.42 acres (ac) of occupied sand skink
foraging and sheltering habitat incidental to the construction of a
housing development located on a 158.4-ac parcel in Section 29;
Township 24 South; Range 27 East, on Parcel ID numbers 29-24-27-0000-
00-001, 29-24-27-0000-00-010 and 29-24-27-0000-00-00017, in Orange
County, Florida. The applicant proposes to mitigate for take of the
sand skinks by purchasing 10.84 credits from a Service-approved
conservation bank. The Service would require the applicant to make this
purchase prior to engaging in activities associated with the project.
Public Availability of Comments
Before including your address, phone number, email address, or
other personal identifying information in your comment, be aware that
your entire comment, including your personal identifying information,
may be made available to the public. While you may request that we
withhold your personal identifying information, we cannot guarantee
that we will be able to do so.
Our Preliminary Determination
The Service has made a preliminary determination that the
applicant's project, including land clearing, infrastructure building,
landscaping, and the proposed mitigation measure, would individually
and cumulatively have a minor or negligible effect on sand skinks and
the environment. Therefore, we have preliminarily concluded that the
ITP for this project would qualify for categorical exclusion and the
HCP is low effect under our NEPA regulations at 43 CFR 410.8405 and
410.8410. A low-effect HCP is one that would result in (1) minor or
negligible effects on federally listed, proposed, and candidate species
and their habitats; (2) minor or negligible effects on other
environmental values or resources; and (3) impacts that, when
considered together with the impacts of other past, present, and
reasonably foreseeable similarly situated projects, would not result in
significant cumulative effects to environmental values or resources
over time.
Next Steps
The Service will evaluate the application and the comments received
to determine whether to issue the requested permit. We will also
conduct an intra-Service consultation pursuant to section 7 of the ESA
to evaluate the effects of the proposed take. After considering the
preceding findings, we will determine whether the permit issuance
criteria of section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA have been met. If met, the
Service will issue ITP number TE 76035D-0 to Withers, LLC.
Authority
The Service provides this notice under section 10(c) (16 U.S.C.
1539(c)) of the ESA and NEPA regulation 40 CFR 1506.6.
Jay Herrington,
Field Supervisor, Jacksonville Field Office.
[FR Doc. 2020-16980 Filed 8-4-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P