[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 142 (Tuesday, July 24, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43350-43352]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-17962]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-R8-ES-2012-N043: FF08E00000-FXES11120800000F2-123-F2]


Draft Environmental Assessment and Proposed Habitat Conservation 
Plan for the San Diego Unified School District's Jonas Salk Elementary 
School Project in the City of San Diego, San Diego County, CA

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability: request for comment.

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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), have 
prepared a draft environmental assessment (EA) under the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for the proposed Jonas Salk Elementary 
School Project in response to an application from the San Diego Unified 
School District (District or applicant) for a 10-year incidental take 
permit under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The 
application addresses the potential for ``take'' of one federally 
listed animal, the San Diego fairy shrimp (Branchinecta 
sandiegonensis). The applicant would implement a conservation program 
to mitigate the project impacts, as described in the applicant's 
habitat conservation plan (plan). We request data, comments, and new 
information or suggestions from the public, other concerned 
governmental agencies, the scientific community, Tribes, industry, or 
any other interested party on the applicant's permit application, plan, 
and the associated EA.

DATES: To ensure consideration, please send your written comments by 
September 24, 2012.

ADDRESSES: Please send your comments or requests for more information 
by any one of the following methods.
    Email: [email protected]. Include ``Jonas Salk Elementary 
School'' in the subject line of the message.
    Fax: Attn: Jim Bartel, Field Supervisor, (760) 431-5902.
    U.S. Mail: Jim Bartel, Field Supervisor, Carlsbad Fish and Wildlife 
Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 6010 Hidden Valley Road, Suite 
101, Carlsbad, CA 92011.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Karen Goebel, Assistant Field 
Supervisor, at the address shown above or at (760) 431-9440 
(telephone). If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf, 
please call the Federal Information Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.

[[Page 43351]]


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the Service, publish this notice under 
the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 
4321 et seq.; NEPA), and its implementing regulations in the Code of 
Federal Regulations (CFR) at 40 CFR 1506.6, as well as in compliance 
with section 10(c) of the Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et 
seq.; Act). We have prepared this EA to evaluate the impacts of several 
alternatives related to the potential issuance of an incidental take 
permit (ITP) to the applicant, as well as impacts of the implementation 
of the supporting proposed plan.
    The applicant has submitted a habitat conservation plan as part of 
their application for an ITP under section 10(a)(1)(B) of the Act. The 
plan includes measures to minimize and mitigate the impacts, to the 
maximum extent practicable, of the proposed taking of a federally 
listed species to be covered by the plan, the San Diego fairy shrimp, 
and the habitat upon which it depends, resulting from construction of 
the proposed Jonas Salk Elementary School Project in the City of San 
Diego (City), San Diego County, California.

Background Information

    Section 9 of the Act prohibits taking of fish and wildlife species 
listed as endangered or threatened under section 4 of the Act. Under 
the Act, the term ``take'' means to harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, 
wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or to attempt to engage in any 
such conduct. The term ``harm'' is defined in the regulations as 
significant habitat modification or degradation that results in death 
or injury of listed species by significantly impairing essential 
behavioral patterns, including breeding, feeding, or sheltering (50 CFR 
17.3). The term ``harass'' is defined in the regulations as to carry 
out actions that create the likelihood of injury to listed species 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).
    However, under specified circumstances, the Service may issue 
permits that allow the take of federally listed species, provided that 
the take that occurs is incidental to, but not the purpose of, an 
otherwise lawful activity. Regulations governing permits for endangered 
and threatened species are at 50 CFR 17.22 and 17.32, respectively.
    Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the Act contains provisions for issuing such 
incidental take permits to non-Federal entities for the take of 
endangered and threatened species, provided the following criteria are 
met:
    1. The taking will be incidental;
    2. The applicants will, to the maximum extent practicable, minimize 
and mitigate the impact of such taking;
    3. The applicants will develop a proposed HCP and ensure that 
adequate funding for the plan will be provided;
    4. The taking will not appreciably reduce the likelihood of the 
survival and recovery of the species in the wild; and
    5. The applicants will carry out any other measures that the 
Service may require as being necessary or appropriate for the purposes 
of the HCP.
    The applicant seeks incidental take authorization for the federally 
endangered San Diego fairy shrimp (Branchinecta sandiegonensis), which 
is the only proposed covered species in the plan.
    The proposed covered activities under this plan include: (1) 
Construction of an elementary school, park, and joint-use facilities on 
the 13.1-acre project site; and (2) restoration and enhancement of 
vernal pools occupied by San Diego fairy shrimp on the McAuliffe Park 
and Carroll Canyon Mitigation Sites owned by the City (collectively 
referred to as the Mitigation Sites). These three sites are located 
within the Mira Mesa Community in the north-central portion of the 
City.
    The project site is bound by residences on the north, east, and 
southeast; Rattlesnake Canyon on the south and southwest; and Maddox 
Park on the west. The project site has been identified as a potential 
school site on the Mira Mesa Community Land Use Plan Map and 
``Recommended School Facilities'' Map since 1992. The District has 
determined that this site would provide the best location for a new 
elementary school to alleviate school overcrowding in the Mira Mesa 
attendance area.
    The McAuliffe Park Mitigation Site is approximately 0.3 mile to the 
north of the project site and is bound by residences on the east, 
Challenger Middle School on the north, and Lopez Canyon on the west and 
south. The McAuliffe Park Mitigation Site is fenced along the interface 
with the residences and school and owned by the City. The District and 
City have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that allows 
the District to use the McAuliffe Park Mitigation Site in exchange for 
additional park land and public facilities at the project site. Under 
the MOU, ownership of the McAuliffe Park Site would be transferred from 
the City to the District.
    The Carroll Canyon Mitigation Site is approximately 0.5 mile to the 
south of the project site and is within the larger 19.1-acre Carroll 
Canyon Preserve. The site is bound by residences on the north, the 
Carroll Canyon Preserve on the east and south, and aggregate mining 
operations on the west. The entire Carroll Canyon Preserve, including 
the mitigation site, is fenced and owned by the City.
    The District and City are negotiating on a Right of Entry Permit 
that allows the District to use the Carroll Canyon Mitigation Site. At 
this time, the Carroll Canyon Mitigation Site appears to be a viable 
mitigation option for the District. If the District is unable to 
negotiate a Right of Entry Permit with the City for use of the Carroll 
Canyon Mitigation Site, the District would be required to pursue other 
options acceptable to and approved by the Service.
    The District proposes to develop the Jonas Salk Elementary School, 
park, and joint use facilities on the project site. The park and joint-
use facilities would be constructed, owned, and maintained by the City 
in accordance with the MOU.
    The proposed project would permanently remove all San Diego fairy 
shrimp and its vernal pool habitat from the project site. To mitigate 
impacts to the San Diego fairy shrimp and its vernal pool habitat, the 
applicant would preserve, restore, enhance, monitor, and manage vernal 
pool habitat for the San Diego fairy shrimp on the Mitigation Sites.

Alternatives in the Draft Environmental Assessment

    The impacts of the proposed action are compared to the no-action 
alternative and to the impacts of a reduced vernal pool impact 
alternative in the draft EA.

Proposed Alternative

    The Proposed Alternative, the proposed HCP, would encompass a site 
area of 13.1 acres. This alternative would allow: (1) Construction of 
an elementary school that is in compliance with all applicable 
California Department of Education School Development Guidelines 
(guidelines); (2) construction of a park and public facilities 
according to an MOU between the District and City; and (3) the 
restoration, enhancement, preservation, and/or management of San Diego 
fairy shrimp habitat at the Mitigation Sites. The HCP's overall 
conservation strategy for the San Diego fairy shrimp is to allow 
impacts to degraded vernal pools with low long-term conservation value 
at the project site in exchange for conservation of higher quality 
vernal pools at the mitigation sites in

[[Page 43352]]

perpetuity to aid the recovery of the species.
    The Proposed Alternative would result in permanent impacts to all 
1.66 acres of San Diego fairy shrimp vernal pool habitat (i.e., all 99 
pools) on the project site. The applicant proposes to mitigate impacts 
to San Diego fairy shrimp and its vernal pool habitat at a 2:1 ratio by 
restoration, enhancement, and preservation of 3.32 acres of vernal 
pools: a total of 2.62 acres would occur at the McAuliffe Park 
Mitigation Site, and 0.7 acre would occur at the Carroll Canyon 
Mitigation Site. All restored pools would be occupied by the San Diego 
fairy shrimp. The applicant would record a perpetual biological 
conservation easement over, and implement a perpetual management and 
monitoring plan for, the Mitigation Sites.
    Under the Proposed Alternative, we would issue an incidental take 
permit for the applicant's proposed project, which includes the 
activities described above. These activities are described in detail in 
the plan.

Reduced Vernal Pool Impact Alternative

    Under the Reduced Vernal Pool Impact Alternative, the project would 
avoid and minimize impacts to the San Diego fairy shrimp and its vernal 
pool habitat by reducing the site area to 8.83 acres. This alternative 
would not comply with state guidelines for school site area, turf 
fields, or hardcourt play area, and only minimally comply with the 
guidelines for classrooms, support facilities, site circulation, and 
fire access.
    The Reduced Vernal Pool Impact Alternative would result in 
permanent impacts to 0.72 acre of San Diego fairy shrimp vernal pool 
habitat on the project site. The applicant would mitigate impacts to 
San Diego fairy shrimp and its vernal pool habitat at a 2:1 ratio by 
enhancing and preserving 0.94 acre of vernal pools on the project site 
and restoring 0.5 acre of vernal pools on the project site and/or at 
the McAuliffe Park Mitigation Site. All restored pools would be 
occupied by the San Diego fairy shrimp. The applicant would record a 
perpetual biological conservation easement over, and implement a 
perpetual management and monitoring plan for, the project site and/or 
McAuliffe Park Mitigation Site. While this alternative would avoid some 
of the San Diego fairy shrimp habitat onsite, the avoided habitat would 
be surrounded by the adjoining school and park and have a minimal 
connection with natural open space. Therefore, the avoided habitat 
would be subject to fragmentation and indirect impacts that would limit 
the long-term viability of the San Diego fairy shrimp population 
onsite.
    The Reduced Vernal Pool Impact Alternative would also require 
issuance of an incidental take permit.

No Action Alternative

    Under the No Action alternative, we would not issue a permit, and 
the applicant would not construct the project. The no-action 
alternative would not achieve the applicant's objectives and would not 
allow the development of the project on a District property that is 
identified as a potential school site on the Mira Mesa Community Land 
Use Plan Map and ``Recommended School Facilities'' Map. Under the No 
Action Alternative, the project site would continue to be subject to 
impacts from pedestrian, pet and bicycle traffic, which may eventually 
lead to the extirpation of San Diego fairy shrimp at the site. In 
addition, no mitigation lands would be restored, enhanced, monitored 
and managed for the permanent conservation of San Diego fairy shrimp 
under the no-action alternative.

Environmental Review and Next Steps

    As described in our EA, we have made the preliminary determination 
that approval of the proposed plan and issuance of the permit will not 
result in any significant impacts to the environment and warrants a 
Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) under NEPA (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 
seq.), as provided by Federal regulations (40 CFR 1500, 5(k), 
1507.3(b)(2), 1508.4) and the Department of the Interior Manual (516 DM 
2 and 516 DM 8). Our EA articulates the project's effects on all 
potential resources that could be adversely affected, including 
vegetation, wildlife, threatened or endangered species, wetlands, 
geology and soils, land use, air quality, water resources and water 
quality, cultural resources, paleontological resources, and traffic and 
transportation. It also includes an analysis of alternatives and 
cumulative effects.

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 the plan 
and the draft EA. We particularly seek comments on any environmental 
issues of concern to the public that should be considered with regard 
to the proposed development and permit action.
    You may submit your comments and materials by one of the methods 
listed in the ADDRESSES section.
    We will consider public comments on the draft EA when making the 
final determination on whether to prepare additional NEPA documents on 
the proposed action and in making a decision whether to issue an 
incidental take permit.

Public Availability of Comments

    Before including your address, phone number, email address, or 
other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be 
aware that your entire comment--including your personal identifying 
information--may 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.

Availability of Documents

    You may obtain copies of the permit application, plan, and EA from 
the individuals in FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. Copies of these 
documents are available for public inspection, by appointment, during 
regular business hours, at the Carlsbad Fish and Wildlife Office (see 
ADDRESSES). Documents are also available at the following City 
Libraries: (1) Mira Mesa Library, 8405 New Salem Street, 92126; (2) 
Scripps Ranch Library, 10301 Scripps Lake Drive, 92131; (3) Rancho 
Penasquitos Library, 13330 Salmon River Road, 92129; and (4) North 
University Community Branch Library 8820 Judicial Drive, 92122.

Authority

    We provide this notice pursuant to section 10(c) of the Act and 
NEPA regulations (40 CFR 1500.1(b), 1500.2(d), and 1506.6). We will 
evaluate the permit application, including the plan and comments we 
receive, to determine whether the application meets the requirements of 
section 10(a) of the Act. If the requirements are met, we will issue a 
permit to the applicant for the incidental take of the San Diego fairy 
shrimp from the implementation of the covered activities described in 
the plan. We will make the final permit decision no sooner than 30 days 
after the date of this notice.

Alexandra Pitts,
Deputy Regional Director, Pacific Southwest Region, U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, Sacramento, California.
[FR Doc. 2012-17962 Filed 7-23-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P