[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 107 (Monday, June 5, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36610-36611]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-11894]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R8-ES-2023-0087; FXES11140800000-234-FF08EVEN00]
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Draft Habitat
Conservation Plan and Draft Categorical Exclusion; Monterey County
Water Resources Agency Salinas River Lagoon and Sandbar Management
Project, Monterey County, CA
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the
availability of a draft habitat conservation plan (HCP) and draft low
effect screening form and environmental action statement (draft
screening form) for activities associated with an application for an
incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act. The ITP
would authorize take of the tidewater goby and western snowy plover
incidental to activities associated with management of the Salinas
River Lagoon in Monterey County, California. The applicant developed
the draft HCP as part of their application for an ITP. The Service
prepared a draft low-effect screening form and environmental action
statement in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act to
evaluate the potential effects to the natural and human environment
resulting from issuing an ITP to the applicant. We invite the public
and local, State, Tribal, and Federal agencies to comment on these
documents.
DATES: Written comments should be received on or before July 5, 2023.
ADDRESSES:
Obtaining Documents: The documents this notice announces, as well
as any comments and other materials that we receive, will be available
for public inspection online in Docket No. FWS-R8-ES-2023-0087 at
https://www.regulations.gov.
Submitting Written Comments: Please send us your written comments
using one of the following methods:
Online: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments on Docket No. FWS-R8-ES-2023-0087.
U.S. mail: Public Comments Processing; Attn: FWS-R8-ES-
2023-0087; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; MS: PRB/3W; 5275 Leesburg
Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mark Ogonowski, Senior Fish and
Wildlife Biologist, by email or U.S. mail (see ADDRESSES), or via phone
at (805) 677-3350. 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 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
(Service), announce the availability of a draft habitat conservation
plan (HCP) and draft low-effect screening form and environmental action
statement (draft screening form) for activities associated with an
application for an incidental take permit (ITP) under section
10(a)(1)(B) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA; 16
U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). The ITP would authorize take of the tidewater
goby (Eucyclogobius newberryi) and the Pacific Coast distinct
population segment (DPS) of the western snowy plover (Charadrius
nivosus nivosus) incidental to activities associated with management of
the Salinas River Lagoon and sandbar in Monterey County, California, to
prevent flooding of adjacent lands. The applicant developed the draft
HCP as part of their application for an ITP. In addition, the HCP
anticipates impacts to the federally threatened Monterey spineflower
(Chorizanthe pungens var. pungens), and proposes avoidance and
minimization measures for all three covered species and mitigation for
unavoidable temporary loss of suitable habitat. The Service prepared a
draft screening form in accordance with the National Environmental
Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) to evaluate the
potential effects to the natural and human environment resulting from
issuing an ITP and implementing the draft HCP in order to determine if
the action fits within the criteria for a categorical exclusion under
NEPA. We invite public comment on all of these documents.
Background
The Service listed the Monterey spineflower as threatened on
February 4, 1994 (59 FR 5499), tidewater goby as endangered on March 7,
1994 (59 FR 5494), and Pacific Coast DPS of the western snowy plover as
threatened on March 5, 1993 (58 FR 12864). Section 9 of the ESA
prohibits ``take'' of fish and wildlife species listed as endangered
(16 U.S.C. 1538), where take is defined to
[[Page 36611]]
include the following activities: ``to harass, harm, pursue, hunt,
shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or to attempt to engage
in any such conduct'' (16 U.S.C. 1532). The take prohibitions of
section 9 are extended to species listed as threatened at the
discretion of the Secretary of the Department of the Interior and were
extended at listing to the western snowy plover DPS.
Under section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1539(a)(1)(B)), we
may issue permits to authorize take of listed fish and wildlife species
that is incidental to, and not the purpose of, carrying out an
otherwise lawful activity. Regulations governing incidental take
permits for endangered and threatened species are in the Code of
Federal Regulations (CFR) at 50 CFR 17.22 and 17.32, respectively.
Issuance of an ITP also must not jeopardize the existence of federally
listed fish, wildlife, or plant species, pursuant to section 7 of the
ESA and 50 CFR 402.02. The permittee would receive assurances under our
``No Surprises'' regulations (50 CFR 17.22(b)(5) and 17.32(b)(5)).
The Service designated revised critical habitat for the tidewater
goby on February 6, 2013 (78 FR 8746). The project site includes 131.7
acres (ac) of tidewater goby critical habitat unit MN-2, representing
approximately 28 percent of unit MN-2 and 1 percent of critical habitat
designated for the species rangewide. The Service designated revised
critical habitat for the Pacific Coast DPS of the western snowy plover
on June 19, 2012 (77 FR 36728). The project site includes 95.2 ac of
western snowy plover critical habitat unit CA-22, representing
approximately 10 percent of unit CA-22 and less than 1 percent of
critical habitat designated for the Pacific Coast DPS rangewide. The
Service designated revised critical habitat for the Monterey
spineflower on January 9, 2008 (73 FR 1525). There is no Monterey
spineflower critical habitat within the project site.
Proposed Activities
The applicant has applied for a permit for incidental take of the
tidewater goby and the Pacific Coast DPS of the western snowy plover.
The take would occur in association with activities implemented
periodically to manage the water surface elevation in the Salinas River
Lagoon in Monterey County, California, during storm events in order to
avoid or minimize flooding of adjacent agricultural lands and
residences. Project activities would include moving a bulldozer or
excavator onto the beach on the seaward side of the Salinas River
Lagoon to excavate a pilot channel in the lagoon sandbar. Rising flood
waters would then break through a sand plug left in the channel,
connecting the Salinas River to the ocean and preventing a further rise
in lagoon elevation. The applicant anticipates that up to five
breaching events would be conducted during the 5-year project period
and all project effects are expected to be temporary.
The HCP includes avoidance and minimization measures for the
Monterey spineflower, tidewater goby, and Pacific Coast DPS of the
western snowy plover and mitigation for unavoidable temporary loss of
habitat for each species. As mitigation for temporary loss of up to
0.19 ac of Monterey spineflower habitat for each breaching event, the
applicant proposes to fund the removal of invasive species on 1 ac of
suitable habitat on Salinas River State Beach. As mitigation for
expected take of up to five tidewater gobies during each breaching
event, the applicant would fund two research projects developed in
collaboration with the Service to provide a greater understanding of
tidewater goby in the Salinas River Lagoon and larger Salinas Valley to
support recovery goals:
A study of goby reproductive patterns and population dynamics
in the Lagoon
A regional eDNA analysis of goby distribution in the Salinas
River and connected waterways to evaluate occupancy and the potential
presence of nearby source or refuge populations
As mitigation for expected take of up to one western snowy plover
nest (three eggs or three chicks) over the 5-year permit term and
temporary loss of up to 0.35 ac of western snowy plover habitat for
each breaching event, the applicant proposes to contribute funding to
California State Parks' breeding season habitat management and public
education and outreach programs at Salinas River State Beach, which may
include installation of symbolic fencing and signage around nesting
areas, interpretive signs at major trailheads, and animal-proof trash
receptacles at trailheads and beach access points, and direct public
outreach.
Public Availability of Comments
Before including your address, phone number, email 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 can
ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying
information from public view, we cannot guarantee that we will be able
to do so.
Authority
We provide this notice under section 10(c) of the Endangered
Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and its implementing regulations
(50 CFR 17.22 and 17.32) and National Environmental Policy Act (42
U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and its implementing regulations (40 CFR 1506.6).
Stephen Henry,
Field Supervisor, Ventura Fish and Wildlife Office, Ventura,
California.
[FR Doc. 2023-11894 Filed 6-2-23; 8:45 am]
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