[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 118 (Tuesday, June 21, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36876-36877]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-13205]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[Docket No. FWS-R8-ES-2022-0019; FF08ESMF00-FXES11140800000-223]
Maricopa Sun Solar Complex Habitat Conservation Plan, Kern
County, California; Environmental Assessment
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability of documents; request for public
comment.
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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, announce receipt of an
application from Maricopa Sun, LLC to amend their existing incidental
take permit for the Maricopa Sun Solar Complex. Under the Endangered
Species Act and National Environmental Policy Act, we are making
available the applicant's draft amended habitat conservation plan and
our draft environmental assessment. We invite the public and local,
State, Tribal, and Federal agencies to comment on the documents. Before
issuing a requested amended permit, we will take into consideration any
information that we receive during the public comment period.
DATES: We must receive your written comments on or before July 21,
2022.
ADDRESSES:
Obtaining Documents: The incidental take permit application, draft
environmental assessment (EA), draft amended habitat conservation plan
(HCP), and any comments and other materials that we receive are
available for public inspection at https://www.regulations.gov in
Docket No. FWS-R8-ES-2022-0019.
Submitting Comments: To send written comments, please use one of
the following methods, and note that your information requests or
comments are in reference to the draft EA, draft HCP, or both.
Internet: Submit comments at https://www.regulations.gov
under Docket No. FWS-R8-ES-2022-0019.
U.S. Mail: Public Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No.
FWS-R8-ES-2022-0019; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Headquarters, MS:
PERMA; 5275 Leesburg Pike; Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
For more information, see Public Comments under SUPPLEMENTARY
INFORMATION.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Justin Sloan, Senior Wildlife
Biologist, or Patricia Cole, Supervisor, San Joaquin Valley Division,
Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office, by phone at 916-414-6600.
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 receipt of an application from Maricopa Sun, LLC to
amend their existing incidental take permit (TE54164B-0) for the
Maricopa Sun Solar Complex. Maricopa Sun, LLC is requesting an
amendment to extend the permit term from 35 to 50 years, add Kern
mallow (Eremalche kernensis) as a covered species, reduce the habitat
conservation plan (HCP) area by removing 489.9 acres (ac) of potential
solar development, and add the installation and operation of battery
energy storage systems as covered activities. The amended HCP would
encompass 5,318.4 ac.
We also make available the draft environmental assessment (EA),
prepared pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as
amended (NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), and its implementing
regulations in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) at 40 CFR 1506.6.
The draft EA evaluates the impacts of the proposed action and the no-
action alternative. The draft EA tiers from the analysis within the
final environmental impact statement issued by the Service and
announced via a Federal Register notice to the public on December 8,
2014 (79 FR 72696).
Background Information
Section 9 of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1531-1544 et seq.) and Federal
regulations (50 CFR 17) prohibit the taking of fish and wildlife
species listed as endangered or threatened under section 4 of the ESA.
The definition of ``take'' under the ESA does not apply to plant
species; however, plant species can be listed on
[[Page 36877]]
the Federal permit as covered species in recognition of the
conservation measures provided for them under the HCP, and in order to
receive ``No Surprises'' regulatory assurances under the Federal
permit. Regulations governing permits for endangered and threatened
species are at 50 CFR 17.22 and 17.32, respectively. For more about the
Federal habitat conservation plan (HCP) program, go to https://www.fws.gov/service/habitat-conservation-plans
National Environmental Policy Act Compliance
The proposed issuance of a permit amendment triggers the need for
compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as
amended (NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). The draft EA was prepared to
analyze the impacts of issuing an amended ITP based on the draft
amended HCP; to inform the public of the proposed action, any
alternatives, and associated impacts; and to disclose any irreversible
commitments of resources. The draft EA tiers from the analysis within
the final environmental impact statement issued by the Service and
noticed to the public on December 8, 2014 (79 FR 72696).
Proposed Action
The proposed action includes amendments to the existing permit and
HCP to include:
1. The addition of Kern mallow to the five species that are covered
by the HCP and permit, and inclusion of additional species-specific
minimization measures.
2. An extension of the permit term from 35 years to 50 years.
3. The removal of 489.9 ac of potential solar site development area
that would reduce the permit area to 5,318.4 ac.
4. The inclusion of the installation and operation of battery
energy storage systems as part of the project.
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, the draft EA, and the draft amended HCP. We particularly seek
comments on the following:
1. Biological information concerning the species;
2. Relevant data concerning the species;
3. Additional information concerning the range, distribution,
population size, and population trends of the species;
4. Current or planned activities in the area and their possible
impacts on the species;
5. The presence of archeological sites, buildings and structures,
historic events, sacred and traditional areas, and other historic
preservation concerns, which are required to be considered in project
planning by the National Historic Preservation Act; and
6. Any other environmental issues that should be considered with
regard to the proposed development and permit action.
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.
Authority
We publish this notice under the National Environmental Policy Act
of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321-4347 et seq.), and its implementing
regulations 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.) and
its implementing regulations at 50 CFR 17.22.
Michael Fris,
Field Supervisor, Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office.
[FR Doc. 2022-13205 Filed 6-17-22; 8:45 am]
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