[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 47 (Monday, March 11, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10928-10930]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-5776]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Reclamation Fish and Wildlife Service


Imperial Irrigation District Water Conservation and Transfer 
Project, Draft Habitat Conservation Plan, California [INT-DES-01-44], 
Notice of Public Hearings

AGENCIES: Bureau of Reclamation and Fish and Wildlife Service, 
Interior.

ACTION: Notice of public hearings.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as 
amended (NEPA), and the Council on Environmental Quality's Regulations 
for Implementing the Procedural Provisions of NEPA, on January 18, 
2002, the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) filed a draft 
environmental impact report/environmental impact statement (EIR/EIS) on 
Imperial Irrigation District's (IID) proposed Water Conservation and 
Transfer Project, Draft Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP). The Fish and 
Wildlife Service (Service) is a cooperating agency in the preparation 
of this EIR/EIS (pursuant to 40 CFR 1501.6).
    Under the proposed project, IID would conserve and transfer the 
right to use up to 300,000 acre-feet per year of Colorado River water, 
which IID is otherwise entitled to divert for use within IID's water 
service area in Imperial County, California. The conserved water would 
be transferred to San Diego County Water Authority, Coachella Valley 
Water District and/or The Metropolitan Water District. These transfers, 
which are to remain in effect for up to 75 years, would facilitate 
efforts to reduce California's diversion of Colorado River water in 
normal years to its annual 4.4 million acre-feet apportionment. The 
Secretary of the Interior is expected to approve the change in the 
point of delivery for the transferred water by executing an 
Implementation Agreement, the environmental impacts of which are 
disclosed in the ``Implementation Agreement, Inadvertent Overrun and 
Payback Policy, and Related Federal Actions Draft EIS'' (INT-DES-01-43) 
and the ``Biological Assessment for Proposed Interim Surplus Criteria, 
Secretarial Implementation Agreements

[[Page 10929]]

for California Water Plan Components and Conservation Measures on the 
Lower Colorado River (Lake Mead to the Southerly International 
Boundary)'' dated August 30, 2000. In addition, IID is applying for a 
permit with the Service pursuant to section 10(a)(1)(B) of the 
Endangered Species Act (ESA). This Section 10 permit would authorize 
the incidental take of covered species associated with the proposed 
water conservation and transfer project, as well as IID's ongoing 
operation and maintenance activities. As a condition of applying for a 
Section 10 permit, IID has developed a HCP in consultation with the 
Service and the California Department of Fish and Game, which is 
appended to the draft EIR/EIS. The HCP provides measures to minimize 
and mitigate the effects of the proposed taking of listed and sensitive 
species and the habitats upon which they depend. Issuance of a permit 
pursuant to Section 10(a)(1)(B) is a Federal action requiring 
evaluation under NEPA, and implementation of the HCP is addressed in 
the draft EIR/EIS. Additional information regarding the HCP is provided 
in SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION, below. The analysis in the draft EIR/EIS 
is intended to inform the public of the proposed action and 
alternatives; address public comments received during the scoping 
period; disclose the direct, indirect, and cumulative environmental 
effects of the proposed action and each of the alternatives; and 
indicate any irreversible commitment of resources that would result 
from implementation of the proposed action.
    Public hearings have been scheduled to receive written or verbal 
comments on the draft EIR/EIS from interested organizations and 
individuals on the environmental impacts of the proposed project and 
implementation of the HCP.

DATES: Public hearings are scheduled to be held to receive written or 
oral comments about the draft EIR/EIS from interested organizations and 
individuals, on the adequacy with which the draft EIR/EIS identifies 
and describes the potential impacts associated with approving and 
implementing the proposed Federal actions. The hearings will be held 
on:
     April 2, 2002, 5 p.m., in La Quinta*, California.
     April 3, 2002, 5 p.m., in El Centro*, California.
     April 4, 2002, 5 p.m., in San Diego, California.
    (*) A Spanish interpreter will be present.

    Written comments will continue to be accepted until April 26, 2002, 
the end of the public review and comment period (see ADDRESSES, below). 
(The end of the public review and comment period identified in the 
original notice of availability (67 FR 3732, Jan. 25, 2002) was in 
error.)
    Oral comments made at the public hearings may address the water 
conservation and transfer project and/or the HCP; they will be limited 
to 5 minutes. Time permitting, the meeting facilitator will allow any 
speaker to provide additional oral comments after all persons wishing 
to comment have been heard. A court reporter will prepare a written 
record of all comments made; however, commentors are encouraged to 
provide a written copy of their statement. If you would like to sign up 
in advance to provide oral comments, please contact Ms. Janice Kjesbo 
at (602) 216-3864, faxogram (602) 216-4006, by March 29, 2002. Hearing 
impaired, visually impaired, and/or mobility impaired persons planning 
to attend the meeting(s) may arrange for necessary accommodations by 
contacting Ms. Kjesbo no later than March 15, 2002.

ADDRESSES: The hearings will be held at the following locations:
     La Quinta*--IID Board Room, 81-600 Ave. 58, La Quinta, 
California 92253.
     El Centro*--IID Auditorium, 1284 Broadway, El Centro, 
California 92243.
     San Diego--San Diego County Water Authority Board Room, 
4677 Overland Ave., San Diego, California 92123.
    (*) A Spanish interpreter will be present.
    Written comments regarding the adequacy of the document will 
continue to be accepted until April 26, 2002, to Mr. Bruce Ellis, 
Chief, Environmental Resources Management Division, Bureau of 
Reclamation, Phoenix Area Office (PXAO-1500), PO Box 81169, Phoenix, AZ 
85069-1169, fax number (602) 216-4006; or Mr. Elston Grubaugh, Manager, 
Resource Planning and Management Department, Imperial Irrigation 
District, PO Box 937, Imperial, CA 92251, fax number (760) 339-9009.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions regarding the draft EIR/EIS 
should be directed to Mr. Ellis at the Phoenix Area Office address 
provided above, or telephone (602) 216-3854. For information related to 
the HCP, please contact Ms. Carol Roberts at the Carlsbad Fish and 
Wildlife Service office, telephone (760) 431-9440.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 9 of the ESA and Federal regulation 
prohibit the ``take'' of fish and wildlife species listed as endangered 
or threatened. Take of listed fish or wildlife is defined under the ESA 
to include kill, harm, or harass. Harm includes significant habitat 
modification or degradation that actually kills or injures listed 
wildlife by significantly impairing essential behavioral patterns, 
including breeding, feeding, and sheltering (50 CFR 17.3(c)). Under 
limited circumstances, the Service may issue permits to authorize 
incidental take; i.e., take that is incidental to, and not the purpose 
of, otherwise lawful activity. Regulations governing incidental take 
permits for threatened and endangered species are found in 50 CFR 17.32 
and 17.22, respectively. Pursuant to section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA, 
IID has developed an HCP. The IID HCP is intended to address the 
impacts of the incidental take potentially resulting from the water 
conservation and transfer project, and ongoing operations and 
maintenance activities. A total of 96 species are proposed for 
coverage, including 10 federally-listed and two proposed species. A 
series of strategies have been developed to address impacts in the 
drain, desert, tamarisk scrub, agricultural, and Salton Sea habitats. 
Specific strategies have been developed for the Burrowing Owl, desert 
pupfish, and razorback sucker. The strategies include the creation of 
freshwater marsh and native tree habitat, worker education programs, 
timing restrictions on some covered activities, and research efforts to 
identify more specifically the needs of some covered species in order 
to avoid, minimize, and mitigate the impacts of the incidental take. 
The draft EIR/EIS evaluates the impacts of implementing the HCP.
    It is anticipated that IID will be submitting its Incidental Take 
Permit Application in the near future. Upon receipt of the application 
package, the Service will publish a separate notice in the Federal 
Register announcing the receipt of the application and the draft 
Implementing Agreement, and their availability for public review.
    Comments received on the draft EIR/EIS become part of the public 
record associated with this action. Accordingly, Reclamation makes 
these comments, including names and home addresses of respondents, 
available for public review. Individual respondents may request that we 
withhold their home address from public disclosure, which we will honor 
to the extent allowable by law. There also may be circumstances in 
which we would withhold a respondent's identity from public disclosure, 
as allowable by law. If you wish us to withhold your name and/or 
address, you must state this

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prominently at the beginning of your comment. However, we will not 
consider anonymous comments. We will make all submissions from 
organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying 
themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or 
businesses, available for public disclosure in their entirety.

    Dated: February 26, 2002.
Willie Taylor,
Director, Office of Environmental Policy and Compliance.
[FR Doc. 02-5776 Filed 3-8-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MN-P