[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 60 (Wednesday, March 29, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18576-18577]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-06494]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2023-0039; 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.
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SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce receipt
of an application from JDT of Central Florida (applicant) for an
incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act. The
applicant requests the ITP to take the federally threatened sand skink
(Plestiodon reynoldsi) and the federally threatened blue-tailed mole-
skink (Eumeces egregius lividus) 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 the proposed permitting action may be eligible for a
categorical exclusion pursuant to the Council on Environmental
Quality's National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations, the
Department of the Interior's (DOI) NEPA regulations, and the DOI
Departmental Manual. To make this preliminary determination, we
prepared a draft environmental action statement and low-effect
screening form, both of which are also available for public review. We
invite comment from the public and local, State, Tribal, and Federal
agencies.
DATES: We must receive your written comments on or before April 28,
2023.
ADDRESSES:
Obtaining Documents: You may obtain copies of the documents online
in Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2023-0039; 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-2023-0039;
U.S. Mail: Public Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No.
FWS-R4-ES-2023-0039; U.S. Fish and Wildlife 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 JDT of Central Florida
(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
(Plestiodon 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 habitat
conservation plan (HCP), and on the Service's preliminary determination
that this proposed ITP qualifies as ``low effect,'' and may qualify for
a categorical exclusion pursuant to the Council on Environmental
Quality's National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations (40 CFR
1501.4), the Department of the Interior's (DOI) NEPA regulations (43
CFR 46), and the DOI's Departmental Manual (516 DM 8.5(C)(2)). To make
this preliminary determination, we prepared a draft 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 two skink species via
the conversion of approximately 1.53 acres (ac) of occupied nesting,
foraging, and sheltering skink habitat incidental to the construction
and operation of a residential development on a 14.34-ac parcel in
Section 13, Township 26 South, Range 27 East, Polk County, Florida. The
applicant proposes to mitigate for take of the skinks by purchasing
credits equivalent to 3.06 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 construction 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,
[[Page 18577]]
stormwater pond, and associated infrastructure (e.g., electric, water,
and sewer lines)--would individually and cumulatively have a minor
effect on the skinks and the environment. Therefore, we have
preliminarily determined that the proposed ESA section 10(a)(1)(B)
permit would be a ``low-effect'' ITP that individually or cumulatively
would have a minor effect on the species and may qualify for
application of a categorical exclusion pursuant to the Council on
Environmental Quality's NEPA regulations, DOI's NEPA regulations, and
the DOI Departmental Manual. A ``low-effect'' incidental take permit is
one that would result in (1) minor or negligible effects on species
covered in the HCP; (2) nonsignificant effects on the human
environment; and (3) impacts that, when added together with the impacts
of other past, present, and reasonable foreseeable actions, would not
result in significant cumulative effects to the human environment.
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 0068766 to JDT of Central
Florida.
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 1500-1508 and 43 CFR 46).
Robert L. Carey,
Manager, Division of Environmental Review, Florida Ecological Services
Field Office.
[FR Doc. 2023-06494 Filed 3-28-23; 8:45 am]
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