[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 116 (Friday, June 15, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28008-28011]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-12889]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R1-ES-2018-N017]; [FXES11140100000-189-FF01E00000]
Request for Renewal of the Incidental Take Permit and Short-Term
Habitat Conservation Plan for Operation and Maintenance of Existing and
Limited Future Facilities Associated With the Kauai Island Utility
Cooperative on Kauai, Hawaii
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The Kauai Island Utility Cooperative (KIUC, or applicant) has
submitted an application to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
(Service) for renewal of their incidental take permit (permit) under
the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended. The permit is
associated with KIUC's Short-Term Habitat Conservation Plan (Short-Term
HCP) that addresses incidental take of three listed bird species caused
by the operation and maintenance of KIUC's existing and anticipated
electrical utility facilities on Kauai, Hawaii. The applicant is
requesting renewal of the permit for an indefinite period until the
Service renders a decision on a Long-Term HCP and permit application
currently under development by KIUC. We are making the permit renewal
application available for public review and comment.
DATES: All comments from interested parties must be received on or
before July 16, 2018.
ADDRESSES: To request further information or submit written comments,
please use one of the following methods:
U.S. Mail: Field Supervisor, U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, Pacific Islands Fish and Wildlife Office, 300 Ala Moana
Boulevard, Room 3-122, Honolulu, Hawaii 96850. Include ``KIUC Short-
Term HCP'' in the subject line of your request or comment.
Email: KIUCShort-Termhcp@fws.gov. Include ``KIUC Short-
Term HCP'' in the subject line of the message.
Fax: 808-792-9580, Attn: Field Supervisor. Include ``KIUC
Short-Term HCP'' in the subject line of the message.
Internet: You may obtain copies of this notice on the
internet at https://www.fws.gov/pacificislands/, or from the Service's
Pacific Islands Fish and Wildlife Office in Honolulu, Hawaii (see FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section).
We request that you send comments by only one of the methods
described above. See the Public Availability of Comments section below
for more information.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Leila Nagatani, U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service (see ADDRESSES above), telephone (808) 792-9400. Hearing or
speech impaired individuals may call the Federal Relay Service at 800-
877-8339 for TTY assistance.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Kauai Island Utility Cooperative (KIUC,
or applicant) has submitted an application to the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service (Service) for renewal of their incidental take permit
(permit) under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA; 16
U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). The permit is associated with KIUC's Short-Term
Habitat Conservation Plan (Short-Term HCP) that addresses incidental
take of three listed species caused by the operation and maintenance of
KIUC's existing and anticipated electrical utility facilities on Kauai,
Hawaii. The applicant is
[[Page 28009]]
requesting renewal of the permit to authorize incidental take of the
federally endangered Hawaiian petrel, the federally endangered band-
rumped storm-petrel, and the federally threatened Newell's (Townsends)
shearwater (collectively referred to as ``Covered Species'') for an
indefinite period until the Service renders a decision on a Long-Term
HCP and permit application currently under development by KIUC. We are
making the permit renewal application available for public review and
comment.
Background
Section 9 of the ESA prohibits ``take'' of fish and wildlife
species listed as endangered under section 4 (16 U.S.C. 1538 and 16
U.S.C. 1533). The ESA implementing regulations extend, under certain
circumstances, the prohibition of take to threatened species (50 CFR
17.31). Under section 3 of the ESA, the term ``take'' means to
``harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or
collect, or attempt to engage in any such conduct'' (16 U.S.C.
1532(19)). The term ``harm'' is defined by regulation as ``an act which
actually kills or injures wildlife. Such act may include significant
habitat modification or degradation where it actually kills or injures
wildlife by significantly impairing essential behavioral patterns,
including breeding, feeding, or sheltering'' (50 CFR 17.3). The term
``harass'' is defined in the regulations as ``an intentional or
negligent act or omission which creates the likelihood of injury to
wildlife by annoying it 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).
Under section 10(a) of the ESA, the Service may issue permits to
authorize incidental take of listed fish and wildlife species.
``Incidental take'' is defined by the ESA as take that is incidental
to, and not the purpose of, carrying out an otherwise lawful activity.
Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA contains provisions for issuing
incidental take permits to non-Federal entities for the take of
endangered and threatened species, provided the following criteria are
met:
The taking will be incidental;
The applicant will, to the maximum extent practicable,
minimize and mitigate the impact of such taking;
The applicant will develop a proposed HCP and ensure that
adequate funding for the plan will be provided;
The taking will not appreciably reduce the likelihood of
the survival and recovery of the species in the wild; and
The applicant will carry out any other measures that the
Service may require as being necessary or appropriate for the purposes
of the HCP.
Regulations governing permits for endangered and threatened species
are at 50 CFR 17.22 and 17.32.
A permittee may submit an application for renewal of their permit
if they certify that all information in the original application
remains current and correct, unless previously changed or corrected. If
such information is no longer current or correct, they must provide
corrected information; see 50 CFR 13.22(a). The Service shall issue a
renewal of a permit if the issuance criteria set forth in 50 CFR
13.21(b) are met and the applicant for renewal is not disqualified. The
Service may deny renewal of a permit to an applicant who fails to meet
the issuance criteria set forth in Sec. 13.21 or the parts or sections
specifically governing the activity for which renewal is requested
(discussed above); see 50 CFR 13.22(d). Under certain conditions, an
entity holding a valid, renewable permit may continue the activities
authorized by the expired permit until the Service acts on the
application for renewal; see 50 CFR 13.22(c).
Covered Species
The federally endangered Hawaiian petrel (Pterodroma
sandwichensis), the federally endangered Hawaii population (distinct
population segment (DPS)) of the band-rumped storm petrel (Oceanodroma
castro), and the federally threatened Newell's Townsend's shearwater
(Puffinus auricularis newelli) or Newell's shearwater (as a subspecies
of the Townsend's shearwater), are seabirds that breed on Kauai and
feed in the open ocean. Each of these species spends a large part of
the year at sea. Adults generally return to their colonial nesting
grounds in the interior mountains of Kauai beginning in March and
April, and depart beginning in September. Juvenile seabirds travel from
the nesting colony to the sea in the fall. Both adults and juveniles
are known to collide with tall buildings, towers, power lines, and
other structures while flying at night between their nesting colonies
and at-sea foraging areas. These birds, and particularly juveniles, are
also attracted to bright lights. Disoriented birds are commonly
observed circling repeatedly around exterior light sources until they
fall to the ground or collide with structures.
KIUC Short-Term HCP
KIUC is a not-for-profit, tax-exempt cooperative association owned
by its ratepayer/customers and governed by a publicly-elected Board of
Directors. It generates and distributes electricity to the entire
island of Kauai, Hawaii. KIUC's existing facilities include over 1,400
miles of electrical transmission and distribution lines, two fossil
fuel-fired generating stations, two hydroelectric stations, two 12-
megawatt solar energy parks, 14 substations, and approximately 3,500
streetlights. KIUC developed a Short-Term HCP that addresses incidental
take of the three Covered Species caused by the operation and
maintenance of KIUC's existing and anticipated facilities over a period
of up to 5 years from 2011 to 2016.
In 2011, the KIUC Short-Term HCP was approved by the Service, and
KIUC received a permit for incidental take of the Covered Species. The
Short-Term HCP covers activities within all areas on Kauai where KIUC's
facilities (e.g., generating stations, power lines, utility poles,
lights) are located. These activities include the continuing operation,
maintenance, and repair of all existing facilities, and the
construction, operation, maintenance, and repair of certain new
facilities, during the term of the permit. The Short-Term HCP describes
the impacts of take incidental to those activities on the Covered
Species, and provides certain measures to minimize and mitigate the
impacts of such take on each of the Covered Species.
The Covered Species are subject to injury or mortality as a result
of colliding with KIUC-owned power lines and utility infrastructure,
and injury or mortality as a result of attraction to nighttime lighting
from KIUC-owned and operated streetlights and facilities. The Short-
Term HCP permit authorized an annual take amount of 162 Newell's
shearwaters, 2 Hawaiian petrels, and 2 band-rumped storm petrels over a
5-year period, as a result of attraction to, or collision with, KIUC
facilities. In total, the permit authorized a combined take amount of
830 sub-adults or adults of the Covered Species.
Current estimates of the Newell's shearwater population on Kauai,
where 90 percent of the total population nests, range from 16,400 to
33,400, based on at-sea population estimates from 1998 through 2011
(Joyce 2013). Analyses of radar data (a proxy for the breeding
population) suggest that the Newell's shearwater population on Kauai
declined 94 percent between 1993 and 2013 (an average annual rate of 13
percent) (Raine et al. 2017a).
The Hawaiian petrel population nests on several of the southeastern
Hawaiian Islands, including Hawaii, Kauai, Lanai, and Maui, and the
total population is
[[Page 28010]]
estimated at 19,000 individuals (Spear et al. 1995). While the majority
of the breeding population nests on Maui within Haleakal[amacr]
National Park (over 2,500 nests; HAVO 2015), all extant populations of
Hawaiian petrels across the Hawaiian Islands are biologically valuable
toward ensuring the survival and recovery of the species. The Kauai
population of Hawaiian petrels decreased by 78 percent (an average of 6
percent per year) between 1993 and 2013, according to trends in radar
data over the 20 year period (Raine et al. 2017a).
The band-rumped storm-petrel occurs in Japan, Hawaii, Galapagos
Islands, and subtropical areas of the Atlantic. The Hawaii DPS of the
band-rumped storm-petrel is found on the islands of Hawaii, Maui,
Kauai, and Lehua. The band-rumped storm-petrel is known to nest in
remote areas on vegetated to sparsely vegetated cliff faces or steeply
sloping areas on Kauai and Lehua Islet (VanderWerf et al. 2007; Raine
et al. 2017b). It has also been known to occur in sparsely vegetated
areas, high-elevation lava fields on Hawaii Island (Banko et al. 1991;
Banko 2015 in litt.), and possibly Haleakal[amacr] Crater on Maui,
where several birds were heard calling (Wood et al. 2002). An estimate
of the number of band-rumped storm-petrels within the Hawaiian Islands
is not available at this time.
Seabird colony monitoring data reflect significant threats from
feral pig, cat, barn owl, and rat predation, as well as habitat
degradation from invasive plants. Combined with the take caused by
power line collisions and light attraction, the above threats have
resulted in the dramatic decline of several breeding colonies on Kauai,
including Kalaheo and Kaluahonu, to the point of near extirpation
(Raine et al. 2017a).
The 2011 Short-Term HCP established a comprehensive monitoring and
research program designed to further evaluate the impact of the power
line system on seabird populations and to provide key biological data
to more adequately inform a longer term HCP and take authorization. To
this end, KIUC provides funding to the Kauai Endangered Seabird
Recovery Project (KESRP), a project of the University of Hawaii's
Pacific Cooperative Studies Unit, to monitor seabird colonies and
develop approaches to assess seabird-power line collisions. Due to the
remote location of many power lines on Kauai and the nocturnal behavior
of seabirds, in 2012, KESRP developed an acoustic song-meter monitoring
system to detect seabird collisions. This acoustic system became the
foundation for KIUC's Underline Monitoring Program (UMP) and has been
accepted and is funded by KIUC.
During the course of implementation of the KIUC Short-Term HCP,
KESRP observed a total of 43 seabird power line collisions using night
vision equipment. Of the 43 seabird power line collisions observed,
four of these collision events definitively resulted in an immediate
grounded bird within the observer's field of view. Additionally, about
25 deceased Newell's shearwaters have been opportunistically found from
2011 through 2015, associated with KIUC power lines or lights. The
acoustic system, which is able to monitor the power lines for seabird
collisions more extensively than human observers can, has detected a
minimum in excess of 1,000 seabird collision events annually in 2014,
2015, and 2016 (KIUC Short-Term HCP 2014, 2015, and 2016 UMP Reports).
Despite the above strike monitoring data, the applicant has only
requested take authorization at the original permit level of 166 listed
seabirds per year in its permit renewal application. KIUC's request for
extension without an amendment means its actual take would likely
continue to exceed the authorized level should the permit be renewed.
Since 2012, KESRP, in collaboration with KIUC, has identified all
high and medium risk power line spans that pose a threat to the Covered
Species. These high and medium risk lines are continually monitored
every year, and those data are used to plan and test for effective
minimization measures, including reconfiguring lines or installing bird
diverters. While the acoustic system has been successful in detecting
seabird power line collisions, only a subset of the power line system
can be monitored and therefore collisions outside of the monitored
areas must be estimated. Moreover, while a minimum of over 1,000
seabird collision events have been detected in 2016, the fate of the
birds that collided with these lines is unknown. Based on KESRP field
observations, it is certain that some portion of these collisions
results in immediate grounding or mortality, and that some additional
proportion results in harm or injury, or potential mortality sometime
after the collision event. Previous scientific studies based on
waterfowl and their interactions with power lines have estimated that
this subsequent mortality after the collision event could range from 20
percent to 74 percent of total detected collisions (Bevanger 1995;
Bevanger 1999; Beaulaurier 1981; and Shaw et al. 2010).
The Short-Term HCP has been successful in guiding measures that
KIUC has implemented to partially mitigate the impacts of the taking of
the Covered Species caused by its existing facilities, increasing
knowledge related to the impact of KIUC's power line system on seabird
populations, providing key biological data concerning the Covered
Species, and improving our understanding of the effectiveness of
conservation measures to more adequately inform a longer term habitat
conservation plan and take authorization.
Since 2011, under the Short-Term HCP, KIUC spent approximately $7.7
million to implement seabird colony management (i.e., predator control
and seabird monitoring) and the retrieval and rehabilitation of
seabirds on Kauai. KIUC has undergrounded or reconfigured 25 percent of
their identified high collision-risk power lines since 2011 and
installed bird deterrent devices to minimize impacts from high
collision-risk power lines. Although KIUC's current mitigation and
minimization programs are meaningful, these efforts are likely not
commensurate with the actual level of take occurring.
The Short-Term HCP permit expiration date was in May 2016. On April
12, 2016, one month before permit expiration, we received an
application for renewal of that permit pending preparation of a Long-
Term HCP.
Request for Information
We specifically request information from the public on whether the
application meets the statutory and regulatory requirements and
criteria for renewal of a permit. We are also soliciting information
regarding the adequacy of a potentially renewed Short-Term HCP and
permit to minimize, mitigate, and monitor the impacts of the taking of
the Covered Species caused by KIUC's covered activities, and to provide
for adaptive management for an indefinite period until the Service
renders a decision on a Long-Term HCP and permit application currently
under development by KIUC, as evaluated against our permit issuance
criteria found in section 10(a) of the ESA, 16 U.S.C. 1539(a), and 50
CFR 13.21, 17.22, and 17.32.
Public Availability of Comments
You may submit your comments and materials by one of the methods
listed above in the ADDRESSES section. 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
[[Page 28011]]
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. Comments and materials we receive will be
available for public inspection by appointment, during normal business
hours, at the Service's Pacific Islands Fish and Wildlife Office (see
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section).
Authority
We provide this notice in accordance with the requirements of
section 10 of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).
Theresa E. Rabot,
Deputy Regional Director, Pacific Region, U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service.
[FR Doc. 2018-12889 Filed 6-14-18; 8:45 am]
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