[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 118 (Monday, June 20, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39952-39954]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-14567]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R8-ES-2016-N091; FXES11120808BYD-167-FF08FBDTOO]
Proposed Low-Effect Habitat Conservation Plan for the Valley
Elderberry Longhorn Beetle and Giant Garter Snake; South River Pump
Station, Yolo County, California
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; receipt of permit application; proposed
low-effect habitat conservation plan; request for comment.
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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), have
received an application from the Sacramento Regional County Sanitation
District (applicant) for a 5-year incidental take permit under the
endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The application
addresses the potential for ``take'' of two listed animals, the valley
elderberry longhorn beetle and giant garter snake, likely to result
from the construction of a new flood protection levee and raised all-
weather access road around the existing South River Pump Station. The
applicant would implement a conservation program to minimize and
mitigate the project activities, as described in the applicant's low-
effect habitat conservation plan (HCP). We request comments on the
application package, which includes the HCP and our preliminary
determination that the HCP qualifies as a ``low-effect'' HCP, eligible
for a categorical exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act
of 1969, as amended (NEPA). We discuss our basis for this determination
in our environmental action statement (EAS), also available for public
review.
DATES: To ensure consideration, please send your written comments by
July 20, 2016.
ADDRESSES:
Submitting Comments: Please address written comments to Lori Rinek,
Section 10 Coordinator, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bay-Delta Fish
and Wildlife Office, 650 Capitol Mall, Suite 8-300, Sacramento, CA
95814. Alternatively, you may send comments by facsimile to (916) 930-
5654.
Reviewing Documents: You may obtain copies of the HCP and EAS from
the individuals in FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, or from the Bay-
Delta Fish and Wildlife Office Web site at http://www.fws.gov/sfbaydelta. Copies of these documents are also available for public
inspection, by appointment, during regular business hours, at the Bay-
Delta Fish and Wildlife Office.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lori Rinek, at the address shown above
or at (916) 930-5603.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Introduction
We have received an application from the Sacramento Regional County
Sanitation District (applicant) for a 5-year incidental take permit
under the
[[Page 39953]]
endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The application
addresses the potential for ``take'' of two listed animals, the valley
elderberry longhorn beetle and giant garter snake, likely to result
from the construction of a new flood protection levee and raised all-
weather access road around the existing South River Pump Station. Below
we refer to both species, collectively, as the covered species. The
applicant would implement a conservation program to minimize and
mitigate the project activities, as described in the applicant's low-
effect habitat conservation plan (HCP). We request comments on the
application package, which includes the HCP, and our preliminary
determination that the HCP qualifies as a ``low-effect'' HCP, eligible
for a categorical exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act
of 1969, as amended (NEPA). We discuss our basis for this determination
in our environmental action statement (EAS), also available for public
review.
Background Information
Section 9 of the Act (16 U.S.C. 1531-1544 et seq.) and our
regulations in the Code of Federal Regulations (50 CFR 17) prohibit the
taking of fish and wildlife species listed as endangered or threatened
under section 4 of the Act. Take of federally listed fish or wildlife
is defined under the Act as to harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot,
wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect listed species, or attempt to
engage in such conduct. The term ``harass'' is defined in the
regulations as to carry out actions that create the likelihood of
injury to listed species to such an extent as to significantly disrupt
normal behavioral patterns, which include, but are not limited to,
breeding, feeding, or sheltering (50 CFR 17.3). The term ``harm'' is
defined in the regulations as significant habitat modification or
degradation that results in death or injury of listed species by
significantly impairing essential behavioral patterns, including
breeding, feeding, or sheltering (50 CFR 17.3). However, under
specified circumstances, the Service may issue permits that allow the
take of federally listed species, provided that the take that occurs is
incidental to, but not the purpose of, an otherwise lawful activity.
Regulations governing permits for endangered and threatened species
are at 50 CFR 17.22 and 17.32, respectively. Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the
Act contains provisions for issuing such incidental take permits to
non-Federal entities for the take of endangered and threatened species,
provided the following criteria are met:
(1) The taking will be incidental;
(2) The applicants will, to the maximum extent practicable,
minimize and mitigate the impact of such taking;
(3) The applicants will develop a proposed HCP and ensure that
adequate funding for the HCP will be provided;
(4) The taking will not appreciably reduce the likelihood of the
survival and recovery of the species in the wild; and
(5) The applicants will carry out any other measures that the
Service may require as being necessary or appropriate for the purposes
of the HCP.
Proposed Project
The draft HCP addresses potential effects to the covered species
that may result from the proposed activities. The applicant seeks
incidental take authorization for covered activities within the 136.4-
acre South River Pump Station site, located at 30030 South River Road,
in Sacramento County, California. The federally threatened valley
elderberry longhorn beetle (Desmocerus californicus dimorphus) (VELB)
and the federally threatened giant garter snake (Thamnophis gigas)
(GGS) are the covered species in the applicant's proposed HCP.
The applicant would seek incidental take authorization for these
two covered species and would receive assurances under our ``No
Surprises'' regulations (50 CFR 17.22(b)(5) and 17.32(b)(5)).
Proposed Covered Activities
Construction of a new flood protection levee and raised all-weather
access road will result in the permanent removal of 23 elderberry
shrubs, considered potential habitat for the VELB, and temporary
impacts to 10.775 acres of riparian scrub, ruderal, annual grassland,
agricultural crop, and urban vegetation communities considered upland
habitat for GGS. The following actions are proposed as the ``covered
activities'' under the HCP: Site preparation; tree removal;
transplanting elderberry shrubs, embankment degrade; excavation of
inspection trench and borrow material; construction of the levee;
construction and removal of temporary access road (if needed);
construction of access roads, maintenance roads, and a permanent access
road for the borrow site; and site restoration. The applicant seeks a
5-year permit to cover the activities associated with this proposed
construction within the 136.4-acre project site.
Proposed Mitigation Measures
The applicant proposes to avoid, minimize, and mitigate the effects
to the covered species associated with the covered activities by fully
implementing the HCP. The applicant will satisfy the mitigation
requirements by purchasing 55 VELB credits from a USFWS-approved
conservation bank and transplanting the removed elderberry shrubs to
the conservation bank, and by restoring temporarily impacted upland GGS
habitat to pre-project conditions within the same calendar year (Option
1). If final restoration of a portion of the temporarily impacted
upland GGS habitat occurs the calendar year following the initial
impact, then the applicant will satisfy additional mitigation
requirements by dedicating 0.780 acre of created GGS habitat at the
South Stone Lake Giant Garter Snake Mitigation Preserve or through the
purchase of mitigation credits from a USFWS-approved conservation/
mitigation bank (Option 2). To minimize effects to VELB, the applicant
is proposing to implement the avoidance and minimization measures
outlined in the Formal Programmatic Consultation for Projects with
Relatively Small Effects on the VELB (USFWS 1996a) and the Conservation
Guidelines for the VELB (USFWS 1999a). To minimize effects to GGS, the
applicant is proposing to implement the avoidance, minimization, and
conservation measures as specified in Appendix C of the Programmatic
Formal Consultation for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 404 Permitted
Projects with Relatively Small Effects on the Giant Garter Snake within
Butte, Colusa, Glenn, Fresno, Merced, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Solano,
Stanislaus, Sutter and Yolo Counties, California (USFWS 1997).
Proposed Action and Alternatives
Our proposed action (see below) is approving the applicant's HCP
and issuance of an incidental take permit for take resulting from
implementation of the covered activities. As required by the Act, the
applicant's HCP considers alternatives to the take under the proposed
action. The HCP considers the environmental consequences of two
alternatives to the proposed action: (1) The No Action Alternative; and
(2) the West Borrow Site Alternative.
No Action Alternative
Under the No-Action Alternative, we would not issue an incidental
take permit, the applicant would not build the flood protection levee
and access road, the elderberry shrubs and upland GGS habitat would not
be disturbed, and the applicant would not implement proposed mitigation
measures. While this No-Action Alternative would avoid take of the
covered species, it is considered infeasible because should a
[[Page 39954]]
significant flood event occur along the Sacramento River, sewer service
could be impacted for thousands of customers in the communities that
Sacramento Regional County Sanitation District serves. For this reason,
the No-Action Alternative has been rejected.
West Borrow Site Alternative
Under the West Borrow Site Alternative, the borrow material
necessary to construct the flood protection levee would be procured
from an agricultural field located to the west of the project site, and
an alternative haul road would need to be constructed. The West Borrow
Site Alternative would impact the same number of elderberry shrubs and
acreage of GGS upland habitat as the Proposed Action Alternative. In
addition to those impacts, there would be 0.422 acre of GGS aquatic
habitat impacts associated with construction of the alternative haul
road, as well as an additional 19.58 acres of GGS upland habitat
impacts. For this reason, the West Borrow Site Alternative has been
rejected.
Proposed Action
Under the Proposed Action Alternative, we would issue an incidental
take permit for the applicant's proposed project, which includes the
activities described above. The Proposed Action Alternative would
result in the permanent removal of 23 elderberry shrubs, considered
potential habitat for the VELB and temporary impacts to 10.775 acres of
upland habitat for GGS. To mitigate for these effects, the applicant
proposes to purchase 55 VELB credits from a USFWS-approved conservation
bank and transplant the removed elderberry shrubs to the conservation
bank, and restore temporarily impacted upland GGS habitat to pre-
project conditions within the same calendar year (Option 1). If final
restoration of a portion of the temporarily impacted upland GGS habitat
occurs the calendar year following the initial impact, then the
applicant will satisfy additional mitigation requirements, in addition
to what is proposed in Option 1, by dedicating 0.780 acre of created
GGS habitat at the South Stone Lake Giant Garter Snake Mitigation
Preserve or through the purchase of mitigation credits from a USFWS-
approved conservation/mitigation bank (Option 2).
National Environmental Policy Act
We made a preliminary determination that the applicants' project,
including the mitigation measures, will individually and cumulatively
have a minor or negligible effect on the species covered in the HCP.
Therefore, issuance of the ITP is a ``low-effect'' action and qualifies
as a categorical exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA) (40 CFR 1506.6), as provided by the Department of the Interior
Manual (516 DM 2 Appendix 1 and 516 DM 6 Appendix 1).
Determination of whether a habitat conservation plan qualifies as a
low effect is based on the following three criteria: (1) Implementation
of the proposed HCP would result in minor or negligible effects on
federally listed, proposed, and candidate species and their habitats;
(2) implementation of the proposed HCP would result in minor or
negligible effects on other environmental values or resources; and (3)
impacts of the HCP, considered together with the other past, present,
and reasonably foreseeable projects, would not result, over time, in
cumulative effects to environmental values or resources that would be
considered significant. Based upon the preliminary determinations in
the EAS, we do not intend to prepare further NEPA documentation. We
will consider public comments when making the final determination on
whether to prepare an additional NEPA document on the proposed action.
Public Comments
We request data, comments, new information, or suggestions from the
public, other concerned governmental agencies, the scientific
community, Tribes, industry, or any other interested party on this
notice. We particularly seek comments on the following:
(1) Our preliminary determination that the applicant's proposal
will have a minor or negligible effect on the valley elderberry
longhorn beetle and giant garter snake and the HCP qualifies as a low-
effect HCP.
(2) Biological information concerning the species;
(3) Relevant data concerning the species;
(4) Additional information concerning the range, distribution,
population size, and population trends of the species;
(5) Current or planned activities in the subject area and their
possible impacts on the species; and
(6) Identification of any other environmental issues that should be
considered with regard to the proposed project and permit action.
You may submit your comments and materials by one of the methods
listed above in ADDRESSES. Comments and materials we receive, as well
as supporting documentation we used in preparing the EAS, will be
available for public inspection by appointment, during normal business
hours, at our office (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
Public Availability of Comments
Before including your address, phone number, or other personal
identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your
entire comment--including your personal identifying information--might
be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your
comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public
review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
Next Steps
We will evaluate the permit application, including the HCP and
comments we receive, to determine whether the application meets the
requirements of section 10(a) of the Act. We will also evaluate whether
issuance of the incidental take permit would comply with section
7(a)(2) of the Act by conducting an intra-Service consultation pursuant
to section 7(a)(2) of the Act. If the requirements are met, we will
issue a permit to the applicant for the incidental take of the valley
elderberry longhorn beetle and giant garter snake from the
implementation of the covered activities described in the low-effect
Habitat Conservation Plan for the valley elderberry longhorn beetle and
giant garter snake, South River Pump Station, Sacramento, California.
We will make the final permit decision no sooner than 30 days after
publication of this notice in the Federal Register.
Authority
We publish this notice under the National Environmental Policy Act
of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321-4347 et seq.; NEPA), and its
implementing regulations in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) at 40
CFR 1500-1508, as well as in compliance with section 10(c) of the
Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531-1544 et seq.; Act).
Kaylee Allen,
Field Supervisor, Bay-Delta Fish and Wildlife Office, Sacramento,
California.
[FR Doc. 2016-14567 Filed 6-17-16; 8:45 am]
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