[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 219 (Tuesday, November 14, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57247-57248]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-28016]



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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service


Availability of an Environmental Assessment and Receipt of a 
Joint Application for an Incidental Take Permit for a Residential 
Project Called Pineda Crossing/Windover Farms, Located in Brevard 
County, FL

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: EKS Properties, Incorporated and Pineda Crossing Corporation 
(Applicants), are seeking an incidental take permit from the Fish and 
Wildlife Service (Service), pursuant to Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the 
Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), as amended. The permit would 
authorize the take of two families of the endangered red-cockaded 
woodpecker, Picoides borealis in Brevard County, Florida. The proposed 
taking is incidental to construction of two adjacent projects, Windover 
Farms and Pineda Crossing residential developments encompassing 940 
acres and 323 acres, respectively (Project). The two project sites are 
located on the western side of the city of Melbourne, between Wickham 
Road and Interstate 95, in Sections 36 and 25, Township 26 south, Range 
36 east, in Brevard County, Florida. Windover Farms of Melbourne occur 
north and west of the intersection of Post and Wickham Roads. The 
Pineda Crossing site lies immediately north of Windover Farms. Both 
sites have been partially developed, including construction of roads, 
single-family houses, and recreational centers. The Applicants are 
seeking an incidental take permit to proceed with development in areas 
currently occupied by the red-cockaded woodpecker.
    The Service also announces the availability of an environmental 
assessment (EA) and habitat conservation plan (HCP) for the incidental 
take application. Copies of the EA or HCP may be obtained by making a 
request to the Regional Office address below. Requests must be 
submitted in writing to be adequately processed. This notice is 
provided pursuant to Section 10(c) of the Act and National 
Environmental Policy Act Regulations (40 CFR 1506.6).

DATES: Written comments on the permit application, EA and HCP should be 
received on or before December 14, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Persons wishing to review the application, HCP, and EA may 
obtain a copy by writing the Service's Southeast Regional Office, 
Atlanta, Georgia. Documents will also be available for public 
inspection by appointment during normal business hours at the Regional 
Office, or the Jacksonville, Florida, Field Office. Written data or 
comments concerning the application, EA, or HCP should be submitted to 
the Regional Office. Please reference permit under PRT-808474 in such 
comments.

Regional Permit Coordinator, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1875 
Century Boulevard, Suite 200, Atlanta, Georgia 30345, (telephone 404/
679-7110, fax 404/679-7081).

Field Supervisor, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 6620 Southpoint 
Drive, South, Suite 310, Jacksonville, Florida 32216-0912, (telephone 
904/232-2580, fax 904/232-2404).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dawn Zattau at the Jacksonville, 
Florida, Field Office, or Rick G. Gooch at the Atlanta, Georgia, 
Regional Office.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The red-cockaded woodpecker (RCW) is a 
territorial, non-migratory cooperative breeding bird species. RCWs live 
in social units called groups which generally consist of a breeding 
pair, the current year's offspring, and one or more helpers (normally 
adult male offspring of the breeding pair from previous years). Groups 
maintain year-round territories near their roost and nest trees. The 
RCW is unique among North American woodpeckers in that it is the only 
woodpecker that excavates its roost and nest cavities in living pine 
trees. Each group member has its own cavity, although there may be 
multiple cavities in a single pine tree. The aggregate of cavity trees 
used by a breeding group is called a cluster. RCWs forage almost 
exclusively on pine trees and they generally prefer pines greater than 
10 inches diameter at breast height. Foraging habitat is contiguous 
with the cluster. The number of acres required to supply adequate 
foraging habitat depends on the quantity and quality of the pine stems 
available.
    The RCW is endemic to the pine forests of the Southeastern United 
States and was once widely distributed across 16 States. The species 
evolved in a mature, fire-maintained, ecosystem. The RCW has declined 
primarily due to the conversion of mature pine forests to young pine 
plantations, agricultural fields, residential and commercial 
developments, and to hardwood encroachment in existing pine forests due 
to fire suppression. The species is still widely distributed (presently 
occurs in 13 southeastern States), but remaining populations are highly 
fragmented and isolated. Presently, the largest populations occur on 
federally owned lands such as military installations and national 
forests.
    Continued development of the two tracts may result in death of, or 
harm to, any remaining RCWs through the loss of nesting and foraging 
habitat. The Service's EA outlines two alternatives in response to this 
application. The first alternative is a no-action alternative, which 
would result in the Service's denial of the request for incidental 
take. The second alternative is to accept the application as sufficient 
and issue an incidental take permit. Under Alternative 2, the 
Applicants' HCP proposes to offset the anticipated level of incidental 
take, by implementing the following mitigation/minimization measures, 
including providing adequate funding to ensure their success:
    1. For Pineda Crossing, temporary restrictions on construction 
activities at the project site will continue during the proposed period 
of 3 to 5 years of reproductive monitoring and translocations. This 
will provide 

[[Page 57248]]
temporary foraging, nesting, and roosting habitat. Construction within 
RCW habitat will not occur until translocation success is noted at the 
mitigation site or for 3 years, whichever comes first. If young birds 
are not available for 3 years, the HCP period will be extended to 5 
years.

    2. Three new cluster sites will be created at the Hal Scott 
Preserve in Orange County. Each cluster site will consist of three 
completed cavities and two start holes. New cavities will be caged and 
inspected for 6 months for sap leakage. Any trees leaking sap will not 
be opened for use by RCW.

    3. Annual monitoring of nesting and roosting activity will be 
conducted at the project sites. During nesting season, weekly visits to 
occupied cavity trees will be conducted.

    4. At Windover Farms, the single male RCW will be relocated to the 
newly created clusters at Hal Scott Preserve, along with a young female 
from Pineda Crossing, (if available) or from the Big Econlockhatchee 
population, of which the RCWs occupying Hal Scott are a part.

    5. The young birds from Pineda Crossing will be translocated to the 
newly created clusters at Hal Scott Preserve. Weekly visits will be 
conducted to the mitigation site once a week for 1 month after 
translocation to inspect the cavity and the surrounding area for the 
presence of these birds. Checks of the cluster sites will also be made 
four times during the following nesting season to monitor reproductive 
status and success.

    6. Young birds from the surrounding population in the Big Econ 
River area will be used, if necessary, to augment these created cluster 
sites during years of no reproduction on the Pineda Crossing site.

    7. At the mitigation site, inspections will be conducted in the 
fall and winter to locate the roost sites.

    Dated: November 7, 1995.

Noreen K. Clough,

Regional Director.

[FR Doc. 95-28016 Filed 11-13-95; 8:45 am]

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