[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 92 (Monday, May 13, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Page 20908]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-09712]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-R4-ES-2019-0046; FXES11130400000EA-123-FF04EF1000]


Receipt of Incidental Take Permit Application and Proposed 
Habitat Conservation Plan for the Sand Skink, Orange County, FL; 
Categorical Exclusion

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comment and information.

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SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce receipt 
of an application from Orange County Utilities (applicant) for an 
incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act. The 
applicant requests the ITP to take the federally listed sand skink 
incidental to construction in Orange County, Florida. We request public 
comment on the application, which includes the applicant's proposed 
habitat conservation plan (HCP) and the Service's preliminary 
determination that this HCP qualifies as ``low-effect,'' categorically 
excluded, under the National Environmental Policy Act. To make this 
determination, we used our environmental action statement and low-
effect screening form, both of which are also available for public 
review.

DATES: We must receive your written comments on or before June 12, 
2019.

ADDRESSES: 
    Obtaining Documents: You may obtain copies of the documents online 
in Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2019-0046 at http://www.regulations.gov.
    Submitting Comments: If you wish to submit comments on any of the 
documents, you may do so in writing by any of the following methods:
     Online: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments on Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2019-0046.
     U.S. mail or hand-delivery: Public Comments Processing, 
Attn: Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2019-0046, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 
MS: BPHC, 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Erin M. Gawera, by telephone at (904) 
731-3121 or via email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), 
announce receipt of an application from Orange County Utilities 
(applicant) for an incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered 
Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). The 
applicant requests the ITP to take the federally listed sand skink 
(Neoseps reynoldsi) incidental to the construction of a water 
reclamation facility (project) in Orange County, Florida. We request 
public comment on the application, which includes the applicant's 
proposed habitat conservation plan (HCP) and the Service's preliminary 
determination that this HCP qualifies as ``low-effect,'' categorically 
excluded, under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 
4231 et seq.). To make this determination, we used our environmental 
action statement and low-effect screening form, both of which are also 
available for public review.

Project

    Orange County Utilities requests a 20-year ITP to take sand skinks 
incidental to the conversion of approximately 8.84 acres of occupied 
skink foraging and sheltering habitat for the construction of a water 
reclamation facility located on a 49.18-acre parcel in Sections 16 and 
17, Township 23 South, Range 27 East, Orange County, Florida. The 
applicant proposes to mitigate for take of the skinks by purchasing 
17.68 credits in the Lake Wales Ridge Conservation Bank and/or another 
Service-approved sand skink bank. The Service would require the 
applicant to purchase the credits prior to engaging in activities 
associated with the project on the parcel.

Public Availability of Comments

    Before including your address, phone number, email address, or 
other personal identifying information in your comment, be aware that 
your entire comment--including your personal identifying information--
may be made available to the public. While you may request that we 
withhold your personal identifying information, we cannot guarantee 
that we will be able to do so.

Our Preliminary Determination

    The Service has made a preliminary determination that the 
applicant's project, including land clearing, infrastructure building, 
landscaping, and the proposed mitigation measures, would individually 
and cumulatively have a minor or negligible effect on the skinks and 
the environment. Therefore, we have preliminarily concluded that the 
ITP for this project would qualify for categorical exclusion and the 
HCP is low effect under our NEPA regulations at 43 CFR 46.205 and 
46.210. A low-effect HCP is one that would result in (1) minor or 
negligible effects on federally listed, proposed, and candidate species 
and their habitats; (2) minor or negligible effects on other 
environmental values or resources; and, (3) impacts that, when 
considered together with the impacts of other past, present, and 
reasonably foreseeable similarly situated projects, would not over time 
result in significant cumulative effects to environmental values or 
resources.

Next Steps

    The Service will evaluate the application and the comments received 
to determine whether to issue the requested permit. We will also 
conduct an intra-Service consultation pursuant to section 7 of the ESA 
to evaluate the effects of the proposed take. After considering the 
above findings, we will determine whether the permit issuance criteria 
of section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA have been met. If met, the Service 
will issue ITP number TE 21560D-0 to Orange County Utilities.

Authority

    The Service provides this notice under section 10(c) (16 U.S.C. 
1539(c)) of the ESA and NEPA regulation 40 CFR 1506.6.

Jay B. Herrington,
Field Supervisor, Jacksonville Field Office, Southeast Region.
[FR Doc. 2019-09712 Filed 5-10-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4333-15-P