[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 181 (Monday, September 19, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64192-64193]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-22455]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-R3-ES-2016-N128]; [FVES59420300000F2 14X FF03E00000]


Draft Environmental Impact Statement; Indiana Department of 
Natural Resources Habitat Conservation Plan

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement; 
notice of scoping meeting; and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as 
amended (NEPA), we are advising the public that we intend to prepare an 
environmental impact statement (EIS) on a proposed Endangered Species 
Act (ESA) incidental take permit (ITP) application from the Indiana 
Department of Natural Resources (IDNR), Division of Forestry (DoF) for 
the federally endangered Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis). We are also 
announcing the initiation of a public scoping process to engage 
Federal, Tribal, State, and local governments; special interest groups; 
and the public in the identification of issues and concerns, potential 
impacts, and possible alternatives to the proposed action.

DATES: Public scoping will begin with the publication of this NOI in 
the Federal Register and will continue through October 19, 2016. We 
will consider all comments on the scope of the EIS analysis that are 
received or postmarked by this date. Comments received or postmarked 
after this date will be considered to the extent practicable. We will 
conduct a public scoping meeting during the scoping period. The scoping 
meeting will provide the public with an opportunity to ask questions, 
discuss issues with Service staff regarding the EIS, and provide 
written comments.
     September 30th, 6:00-9:00 p.m. at the Forestry Training 
Center on Morgan-Monroe State Forest. Directions: from the Forest 
Office at 6220 Forest Road, Martinsville, IN (see Google Maps), go 0.2 
miles north on Forest Road and take the first road to the left (West), 
go 0.4 miles and park at 2nd building on the right. The Forestry 
Training Center is located approx. 6 miles south of Martinsville, IN.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments via U.S. mail to the Field Supervisor, 
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bloomington Field Office, 620 South 
Walker Street, Bloomington, IN 47403-2121; by facsimile to 812-334-
4273; or by electronic mail to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Andrew King, by telephone at 812-334-
4261, extension 1216, or email at [email protected]. If you use a 
telecommunications device for the deaf, please call the Federal 
Information Relay Service at 800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Introduction

    Indiana bats were listed as an endangered species under the ESA in 
1967. The decline of this species has historically been attributed to 
loss and degradation of winter hibernation habitat and summer roosting 
habitat, human disturbance during hibernation, and possibly pesticides. 
A recent new threat to Indiana bats is white-nose syndrome (WNS), a 
disease caused by the fungus Pseudogymnoascus destructans. WNS has 
caused significant population declines throughout much of the Indiana 
bat's range, particularly in the Northeast and Appalachian regions.
    The DoF conducts management activities on 13 State Forests and 2 
State Recreation Areas covering approximately 158,000 acres of state-
owned forest land in Indiana. These activities include maintenance of 
recreation trails, timber harvest, tree plantings, prescribed burning, 
and the use of specific chemicals such as herbicides and fertilizers. 
Management activities on these lands are designed for long-term 
sustainability and to enhance forest health and diversity, create 
wildlife habitat, provide recreational opportunities and to generate 
revenue from timber harvests that contribute to local and state 
economies. While many forest management activities benefit the 
conservation and recovery of the Indiana bat, some activities may 
adversely impact this species and their habitat during certain life 
stages.
    The net effect of forest management on Indiana bats may vary 
depending on the type, scale, and timing of various practices. Unlike 
forest conversion where habitat is permanently removed, the DoF's 
forest management practices are designed to promote and sustain 
suitable forested bat habitat on the landscape, and adverse impacts 
typically are temporary in nature. The primary potential benefit of 
forest management to the species is perpetuating forests on the 
landscape that provide suitable roosting and foraging habitat. Impacts 
from timber harvest, which can range from the selective removal of 
individual trees to small clearcuts, can range from positive (e.g., 
maintaining or increasing suitable roosting and foraging habitat within 
Indiana bat home ranges) to neutral (e.g., minor amounts of timber 
harvest, areas outside Indiana bats summer home ranges, away from 
hibernacula) to negative (e.g., death of adult female bats and/or pups 
resulting from accidental felling of occupied maternity roost trees). 
Therefore, the DoF is developing a Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) in 
support of an ITP that would authorize the incidental take of Indiana 
bats from certain forest management activities on State Forest lands 
within the State of Indiana.
    The HCP will incorporate avoidance, minimization, mitigation, 
monitoring, and reporting measures aimed at addressing the impact of 
take caused by certain forest and property management activities 
occurring on approximately 158,000 acres of state-owned land managed by 
the DoF. The forest and property management activities included in the 
DoF HCP are timber harvesting, prescribed burning, timber stand 
improvement, and the construction and maintenance of roads, trails, and 
recreation and operational facilities. Potential measures to avoid, 
minimize, and mitigate impacts to Indiana bats may include, but are not 
limited to, retention of potential roost trees, sustained supply of 
future roost trees, protection of known roost trees, leave-tree 
designation near perennial streams, seasonal tree-felling restrictions 
around known hibernacula, and set-back distances for the protection of 
hibernacula entrances. The requested term of the ITP is 20 years.

[[Page 64193]]

Habitat Conservation Plans and Incidental Take Permits

    Section 9 of the ESA prohibits ``take'' of fish and wildlife 
species listed as endangered under section 4 (16 U.S.C. 1538, and 1533, 
respectively). The ESA implementing regulations extend, under certain 
circumstances, the prohibition of take to threatened species (50 CFR 
17.31). Under section 3 of the ESA, the term ``take'' means to harass, 
harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or 
attempt to engage in any such conduct (16 U.S.C. 1532(19)).
    Under section 10 of the ESA, the Service may issue permits to 
authorize incidental take of federally listed fish and wildlife 
species. ``Incidental take'' is defined by the ESA as ``take that is 
incidental to, and not the purpose of, carrying out an otherwise lawful 
activity.'' To obtain an ITP, an applicant must submit an HCP to the 
Service that specifies (1) the impact that will likely result from the 
taking; (2) what steps the applicant will take to monitor, minimize and 
mitigate the impacts, the funding that will be available to implement 
such steps and the procedures to be used to deal with changed 
circumstances; (3) what alternative actions to the taking the applicant 
considered and the reasons why the alternatives are not being utilized; 
and (4) how the applicant will carry out any other measures that we may 
require as being necessary or appropriate for purposes of the HCP. 50 
CFR 17.22(b)(1)(iii); 50 CFR 17.32(b)(1)(iii)(C). If we find, after 
opportunity for public comment, with respect to the permit application 
and the related HCP that (1) the taking will be incidental; (2) the 
applicant will, to the maximum extent practicable, minimize and 
mitigate the impacts of such taking; (3) the applicant will ensure that 
adequate funding for the HCP will be provided, as well as procedures to 
deal with unforeseen circumstances; (4) the taking will not appreciably 
reduce the likelihood of the survival and recovery of the species in 
the wild; and (5) the measures, if any, required by us will be carried 
out; and we have received assurances that the plan will be implemented, 
then we will issue the DoF its requested permit. 50 CFR 17.22, 
17.32(b)(2)(i).
    The purpose of an HCP and subsequent issuance of an ITP is to 
authorize the incidental take of threatened or endangered species, not 
to authorize the underlying activities that result in take. This 
process ensures that the effects of the authorized incidental take will 
be adequately minimized and mitigated to the maximum extent practicable 
(Final Handbook for Habitat Conservation Planning and Incidental Take 
Permitting Process (61 FR 63854, December 2, 1996)).

Environmental Impact Statement

    NEPA (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) requires that Federal agencies 
conduct an environmental analysis of their proposed actions to 
determine if the actions may significantly affect the human 
environment. Based on 40 CFR 1508.27 and 40 CFR 1508.2, we have 
determined that issuance of an ITP to the DoF, including implementation 
of its proposed HCP (i.e., proposed action), may have significant 
impacts on the human environment. Therefore, before deciding whether to 
issue an ITP to the IDNR, we will prepare an EIS to analyze the 
environmental impacts associated with that action. The EIS will also 
include an analysis of a reasonable range of alternatives to the 
proposed action. Alternatives considered in the EIS may include, but 
are not limited to, variations in the permit term or permit structure; 
the level of take allowed; the level, location, or type of 
conservation, monitoring, or mitigation provided in the HCP; the scope 
of covered activities; or a combination of these factors. Additionally, 
a ``no-action'' alternative will be included that assesses the 
anticipated effects of not issuing an ITP for the DoF's management 
activities.

Request for Information

    We request data, comments, information, and suggestions from the 
public, other concerned governmental agencies, the scientific 
community, Tribes, industry, and any other interested party on this 
notice. We will consider all comments we receive with respect to 
complying with the requirements of NEPA and the development of the HCP 
and ITP. We seek comments particularly related to:
    (1) Information concerning the range, distribution, population 
size, and population trends of Indiana bats and other federally listed 
species in Indiana;
    (2) Additional biological information concerning Indiana bats and 
other federally listed species that occur in Indiana that could be 
affected by activities on State-owned forest land;
    (3) Relevant data and information concerning timber management 
practices and bat interactions;
    (4) Current or planned forest management activities and their 
possible impacts on Indiana bats and other federally listed species in 
Indiana;
    (5) The presence of facilities within the project planning area 
that are eligible to be listed on the National Register of Historic 
Places, or whether other historical, archeological, or traditional 
cultural properties may be present; and
    (6) Any other environmental issues that we should consider with 
regard to the HCP coverage area and potential ITP issuance.

Next Steps

    We are seeking information to assist us in the development of the 
EIS and the associated HCP. We will develop a draft EIS based on a 
complete ITP application, draft HCP, and public comments received 
through this early scoping effort. We may solicit additional public, 
agency, and Tribal input to identify the nature and scope of the 
potentially significant environmental issues that should be addressed 
in the EIS. We will publish a notice of availability for the draft EIS 
and draft HCP, and seek additional public comments, before completing 
our final analysis to determine whether to issue an ITP to the DoF.

Public Availability of Comments

    All comments received, including names and addresses, will become 
part of the administrative record and will be available to the public. 
Before including your address, phone number, electronic mail address, 
or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should 
be aware that your entire comment--including your personal identifying 
information--will be publicly available. If you submit a hardcopy 
comment that includes personal identifying information, you may request 
at the top of your document that we withhold this information from 
public review. However, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do 
so.

Authority

    We provide this notice under section 10 of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1531 
et seq.) and per NEPA regulations (40 CFR 1501.7, 1506.5, and 1508.22).

    Dated: August 22, 2016.
Lori H. Nordstrom,
Assistant Regional Director, Ecological Services, Midwest Region.
[FR Doc. 2016-22455 Filed 9-16-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4333-15-P