[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 176 (Tuesday, September 13, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56081-56082]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-19711]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2022-0122; FXES11130400000-223-FF04EF4000]
Receipt of Incidental Take Permit Application and Proposed
Habitat Conservation Plan for the Sand Skink and Blue-Tailed Mole
Skink; Polk County, FL; Categorical Exclusion
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments and information.
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SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce receipt
of an application from CG Citrus, 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 and blue-
tailed mole skink incidental to the construction of a residential
development in Polk County, Florida. We request public comment on the
application, which includes the applicant's proposed habitat
conservation plan (HCP), and on 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 October 13,
2022.
ADDRESSES:
Obtaining Documents: You may obtain copies of the documents online
in Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2022-0122; at https://www.regulations.gov.
Submitting Comments: If you wish to submit comments on any of the
documents, you may do so in writing by one of the following methods:
Online: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments on Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2022-0122;
U.S. mail: Public Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No.
FWS-R4-ES-2022-0122; U.S. Fish and Wildlife
[[Page 56082]]
Service, MS: PRB/3W, 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Alfredo Begazo, by U.S. mail (see
ADDRESSES), by telephone at 772-469-4234 or via email at
afredo_begazo@fws.gov. Individuals in the United States who are deaf,
deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability may dial 711
(TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access telecommunications relay services.
Individuals outside the United States should use the relay services
offered within their country to make international calls to the point-
of-contact in the United States.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service),
announce receipt of an application from CG Citrus, 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) and
blue-tailed mole-skink (Eumeces egregius lividus) (skinks) incidental
to the construction and operation of a residential development in Polk
County, Florida. We request public comment on the application, which
includes the applicant's HCP, and on 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.
4321 et seq.). To make this determination, we used our environmental
action statement and low-effect screening form, both of which are also
available for public review.
Proposed Project
The applicant requests a 5-year ITP to take skinks via the
conversion of approximately 4.08 acres (ac) of occupied nesting,
foraging, and sheltering skink habitat incidental to the construction
and operation of a residential development on an 80.56-ac parcel in
Section 6, Township 30 South, Range 28 East, Polk County, Florida. The
applicant proposes to mitigate for take of the skinks by purchasing
credits equivalent to 8.16 ac of skink-occupied habitat from a Service-
approved conservation bank. The Service would require the applicant to
purchase the credits prior to engaging in any phase of 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 the construction of multiple single-
family residences, driveways, parking spaces, green areas, stormwater
pond, and associated infrastructure (e.g., electric, water, and sewer
lines)--would individually and cumulatively have a minor or negligible
effect on the skinks and the environment. Therefore, we have
preliminarily concluded that the ITP for this project would qualify for
categorical exclusion and that the HCP is low effect under our NEPA
regulations at 43 CFR 46.205 and 46.210. 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 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 and other matters, 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 PER 0050424 to CG Citrus, LLC.
Authority
The Service provides this notice under section 10(c) of the ESA (16
U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and its implementing regulations (50 CFR 17.32),
and NEPA (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and its implementing regulations (40
CFR 1506.6 and 43 CFR 46.305).
Robert L. Carey,
Division Manager, Environmental Review, Florida Ecological Services
Office.
[FR Doc. 2022-19711 Filed 9-12-22; 8:45 am]
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