[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 114 (Wednesday, June 14, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38887-38888]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-12714]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2023-0063; FXES11140400000-234-FF04EF4000]
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 comments.
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SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce receipt
of an application from Unicorp National Developments, LLC (Sutton
Lakes) (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 the construction of a
residential development in Orange 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 July 14,
2023.
ADDRESSES:
Obtaining Documents: You may obtain copies of the documents online
in Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2023-0063 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-2023-0063.
U.S. Mail: Public Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No.
FWS-R4-ES-2023-0063; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS: PRB/3W, 5275
Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Erin Gawera, by U.S. mail (see
ADDRESSES), by telephone at 904-731-3121, or via email at
[email protected]. 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 Unicorp National Developments,
LLC (Sutton Lakes) (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
threatened sand skink (Neoseps reynoldsi) (skink) incidental to the
construction and operation of a residential development in Orange
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 skinks via the
conversion of approximately 3.49 acres (ac) of occupied nesting,
foraging, and sheltering skink habitat incidental to the construction
and operation of a residential development on 137.60 ac on parcel
numbers 31-24-27-0000-00-009, 31-24-27-0000-00-010, 31-24-27-0000-00-
038, and 31-24-27-0000-00-045 in sections 31 and 32, township 24 south,
range 27 east, Orange County, Florida. The applicant proposes to
mitigate for take of the skinks by purchasing credits equivalent to
6.98 ac of skink-occupied habitat within the Collany Conservation Bank
or another 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 proposed project--including the construction of multiple
single-family residences, driveways, parking spaces, green areas,
stormwater ponds, and associated infrastructure (e.g., electric, water,
and sewer lines)--would individually and cumulatively have a minor or
negligible effect on the skinks
[[Page 38888]]
and the environment. Therefore, we have preliminarily determined that
the proposed ESA section 10(a)(1)(B) permit would be a low-effect ITP
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 nonsignificant
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 reasonably 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 PER1097491 to Unicorp National
Developments, LLC.
Authority
The Service provides this notice under section 10(c) of the
Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and its implementing
regulations (50 CFR 17.32) and the National Environmental Policy Act
(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. 2023-12714 Filed 6-13-23; 8:45 am]
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