[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 204 (Wednesday, October 21, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Page 67008]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-23330]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2020-0117; FXES11140400000-201-FF04EF2000]
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 and information.
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SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce receipt
of an application from the Polk County Board of County Commissioners
(applicant) for an incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered
Species Act. The applicant requests the ITP to take the federally
listed sand skink and blue-tailed mole skink incidental to the
construction of the Loughman Fire Station 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 this HCP qualifies as ``low-
effect,'' categorically excluded under the National Environmental
Policy Act. To make this determination, we used our environmental
action statement and low-effect screening form, both of which are also
available for public review.
DATES: We must receive your written comments on or before November 20,
2020.
ADDRESSES: Obtaining Documents: You may obtain copies of the documents
online in Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2020-0117 at http://www.regulations.gov.
Submitting Comments: If you wish to submit comments on any of the
documents, you may do so in writing by any of the following methods:
Online: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments on Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2020-0117.
U.S. Mail: Public Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No.
FWS-R4-ES-2020-0117; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS: PRB/3W, 5275
Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dennis Hamlin, by telephone at 772-
469-4225 or via email at dennis_hamlin@fws.gov. Individuals who are
hearing impaired or speech impaired may call the Federal Relay Service
at 1-800-877-8339 for TTY assistance.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service, announce
receipt of an application from the Polk County Board of County
Commissioners (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 (Neoseps reynoldsi) and blue-tailed mole skink (Eumeces egregious
lividus) (skinks) incidental to the construction of the Loughman Fire
Station in Polk County, Florida. We request public comment on the
application, which includes the applicant's HCP, and on the Service's
preliminary determination that this HCP qualifies as ``low-effect,''
categorically excluded, under the National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). To make this determination, we used our
environmental action statement and low-effect screening form, both of
which are also available for public review.
Project
The applicant requests a 10-year ITP to take skinks through the
conversion of approximately 1.54 acres (ac) of occupied skink foraging
and sheltering habitat incidental to the construction of the Loughman
Fire Station on a 5.01-ac parcel in Section 13, Township 26, South,
Range 27 East in Polk County, Florida. The applicant proposes to
mitigate for take of the skinks by purchasing credits equivalent to
3.08 ac of skink-occupied habitat from a Service-approved conservation
bank in Polk County. The Service would require the applicant to
purchase the credits prior to engaging in any 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 land clearing, construction of the
Loughman Fire Station, and the proposed mitigation measures, would
individually and cumulatively have a minor or negligible effect on the
skinks and the environment. Therefore, we have preliminarily concluded
that the ITP for this project would qualify for categorical exclusion,
and the HCP would be low effect under our NEPA regulations at 43 CFR
46.205 and 46.210. A low-effect HCP is one that would result in (1)
minor or negligible effects on federally listed, proposed, and
candidate species and their habitats; (2) minor or negligible effects
on other environmental values or resources; and (3) impacts that, when
considered together with the impacts of other past, present, and
reasonable foreseeable similarly situated projects, would not result in
significant cumulative effects to environmental values or resources
over time.
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 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 TE79912D-0 to the Polk County Board of
County Commissioners.
Authority
The Service provides this notice under section 10(c) of the ESA (16
U.S.C. 1539(c)) and NEPA regulation 40 CFR 1506.6.
Roxanna Hinzman,
Field Supervisor, South Florida Ecological Services Office.
[FR Doc. 2020-23330 Filed 10-20-20; 8:45 am]
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