[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 86 (Friday, May 3, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19105-19106]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-09112]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-R8-ES-2019-N053; FXES11140800000-190-FF08E00000]


Green Diamond Resource Company Final Forest Habitat Conservation 
Plan and Final Environmental Impact Statement; Humboldt and Del Norte 
Counties, CA

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability of final environmental impact statement 
and final habitat conservation plan.

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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the 
availability of a final environmental impact statement (FEIS) under the 
National Environmental Policy Act. We also announce the availability of 
the final habitat conservation plan (HCP). These documents were 
prepared in support of a permit application submitted to us under the 
Endangered Species Act. We will use these documents to inform our 
decision regarding issuance of the permit.

DATES: A record of decision will be signed no sooner than 30 days after 
the publication of this notice of availability in the Federal Register.

ADDRESSES: 
    Obtaining Documents: You may obtain copies of the FEIS and other 
documents by the following methods.
     Internet: https://www.fws.gov/arcata/es/HCP.htm.
     Public libraries: Electronic copies of the documents will 
be available for viewing at Del Norte and Humboldt County Libraries on 
their public access computer stations. In Del Norte County, the 
documents will be available at the Main Library in Crescent City and at 
the branch library in Smith River. In Humboldt County, the documents 
will be at the Eureka Main Library, and at branch libraries in Arcata, 
McKinleyville, and Willow Creek.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jennifer L. Norris, Deputy Field 
Supervisor, by phone at 707-822-7201, or via U.S. mail to U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, 1655 Heindon Road, Arcata, CA 95521-4573.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as 
amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), Green Diamond Resource Company 
has applied for a 50-year incidental take permit (ITP); the applicant 
prepared the final Green Diamond Resource Company Forest Habitat 
Conservation Plan (HCP) pursuant to section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA. We, 
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the availability 
of the HCP, and also announce the availability of the final 
environmental impact statement (FEIS) under the National Environmental 
Policy Act of 1967 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). These documents were both 
prepared in support of the permit application. We will use these 
documents to inform our decision regarding issuance of the permit.

Background

    Section 9 of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and our Federal 
regulations (50 CFR part 17) prohibit the taking of fish and wildlife 
species listed as endangered or threatened under section 4 of the ESA. 
Regulations governing permits for endangered and threatened species are 
at 50 CFR 17.22 and 17.32, respectively. For more information about the 
Federal habitat conservation plan program, go to http://www.fws.gov/endangered/esa-library/pdf/hcp.pdf.
    The Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 (MBTA; 16 U.S.C. 703-712) 
protects over 1,000 species of birds, including the barred owl. The 
MBTA provides that it is unlawful to pursue, hunt, take, capture, kill, 
possess, sell, purchase, barter, import, export, or transport any 
migratory bird, or any part, nest, or egg of any such bird, unless 
authorized under a permit issued by the Secretary of the Interior. As 
authorized by the MBTA, the Service may issue permits for scientific 
collecting (50 CFR 21.23).

Applicant's Final Habitat Conservation Plan

Proposed Action Alternative

    The Proposed Action Alternative is implementation of the final HCP; 
issuance of a 50-year ITP authorizing incidental take of the northern 
spotted owl, fisher, red tree vole, and Sonoma tree vole that may occur 
as a result of implementation of the HCP; and issuance of an MBTA 
permit for barred owl experiments.

Plan Area

    The HCP area encompasses 357,412 acres in Humboldt and Del Norte 
Counties, California.

Covered Activities

    The HCP contains conservation measures considered necessary to 
minimize and mitigate the impacts, to the maximum extent practicable, 
of the potential taking of federally listed species to be covered by 
the HCP. The covered activities under the HCP are those associated with 
commercial forest management within the plan area.

Covered Species

    The proposed ITP includes one bird species, the northern spotted 
owl (Strix occidentalis caurina), which is federally listed as 
threatened. Three mammal species with no Federal listing status are 
also proposed to be covered--The fisher (Pekania pennanti), red tree 
vole (Arborimus longicaudus), and Sonoma vole (Arborimus pomo). In 
addition, experiments on barred owl (Strix varia) will be conducted as 
part of implementation of the HCP for the benefit of northern spotted 
owls.

National Environmental Policy Act Compliance

    The final EIS analyzed four land management alternatives. These 
include a ``no action'' alternative, which allows the existing 30-year 
incidental take permit to expire at the end of its term in 2022 with no 
permit replacement. The proposed action consists of a four-species HCP 
and associated permit with a 50-year term. Two other ``action'' 
alternatives are included. Alternatives A and B evaluate a single-
species HCP and 50-year permit for the northern spotted owl only. 
Alternative B differs from Alternative A by proposing a shift in Green 
Diamond company policy from even-aged forest management toward uneven-
aged forest management.

Public Review

    The Service published a notice of intent to prepare an EIS in the 
Federal Register on April 16, 2010 (75 FR

[[Page 19106]]

19994), announcing a 30-day public scoping period, during which the 
public was invited to provide written comments. The Service published a 
notice of availability (NOA) of the draft EIS and draft HCP in the 
Federal Register on July 23, 2018 (83 FR 34861). The NOA announced a 
45-day public comment period, during which the public was invited to 
provide written comments. In accordance with NEPA, the Environmental 
Protection Agency (EPA) will announce the final EIS in the Federal 
Register.

Next Steps

    Issuance of an ITP is a Federal proposed action subject to 
compliance with NEPA. We will evaluate the application, associated 
documents, and the public comments we received to determine whether the 
requirements of NEPA regulations and section 10(a) of the ESA have been 
met. If we determine that those requirements are met, we will issue a 
record of decision no sooner than 30 days after the EPA publishes 
notice of the final EIS in the Federal Register. Subsequently, we will 
issue a permit to the applicant for the incidental take of the covered 
species.

Authority

    We provide this notice under section 10(c) of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 
1531 et seq.) and its implementing regulations (50 CFR 17.22), the MBTA 
(16 U.S.C. 703 et seq.) and its implementing regulations (50 CFR 
21.23), and NEPA (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and its implementing 
regulations (40 CFR 1506.6).

Jody Holzworth,
Deputy Regional Director, Pacific Southwest Region, Sacramento, 
California.
[FR Doc. 2019-09112 Filed 5-2-19; 8:45 am]
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