[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 135 (Tuesday, July 14, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 42362-42363]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-15141]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[RTID 0648-XA271]


Endangered and Threatened Species; Take of Anadromous Fish

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice; of availability of a Final Supplemental Environmental 
Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact for the Wells Summer 
Chinook Salmon Hatchery Program for southern resident killer whales.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that NMFS announces the availability of 
a Final Supplemental Environmental Assessment (FSEA) and Finding of No 
Significant Impact (FONSI) on the Washington Department of Fish and 
Wildlife (WDFW) and Public Utility District No. 1 of Douglas County's 
(Douglas PUD) Hatchery Genetic Management Plan (HGMP), in accordance 
with National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), as amended (42 
U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). The HGMP specifies the release of one million 
additional subyearling summer Chinook salmon at the Wells Hatchery. 
This notice provides information on where to view the FSEA and FONSI.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Natasha Preston at (503) 231-2178 or 
by email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

ESA-Listed Species Covered in This Notice

     Upper Columbia River Spring-run Chinook (Oncorhynchus 
tshawytscha): Endangered, naturally produced and artificially 
propagated in the Upper Columbia River Basin
     Upper Columbia River Steelhead (O. mykiss): Threatened, 
naturally produced and artificially propagated in the Upper Columbia 
River Basin.
     Southern Resident Killer Whales (Orcinus orca): 
Endangered.

Background and Purpose

    The HGMP submitted by WDFW and Douglas PUD describes the release of 
one million additional subyearling summer Chinook salmon at the Wells 
Hatchery. The HGMP was submitted to NMFS for review under Endangered 
Species Act (ESA) Limit 5 of the 4(d) Rule. This production is in 
addition to Douglas PUD's existing production of

[[Page 42363]]

summer Chinook of 320,000 yearlings and 484,000 subyearling Chinook at 
Wells Hatchery. These two existing programs are implemented under the 
terms and conditions of ESA Section 10(a)(1)(B) Permit No. 23193. These 
programs were evaluated in a 2019 Final Environmental Assessment (FEA) 
for ESA Section 4(d) Approval and Section 10(a)(1)(A) Permit Issuance 
for Steelhead Hatchery Programs and Section 10(a)(1)(B) Permits 
Issuance for Summer/Fall and Fall Chinook Salmon Hatchery Programs in 
the Upper Columbia River Basin. The HGMP describes broodstock 
collection, incubation, rearing, release, and monitoring and 
evaluation.
    The Proposed Action is for NMFS to make an ESA determination under 
Limit 5 of the 4(d) Rule for WDFW and Douglas PUD Wells Summer Chinook 
Salmon Hatchery Program for Southern Resident killer whales (SRKW).
    Alternatives considered for the project include:
     A ``No Action Alternative'' where NMFS would not make a 
determination under the ESA 4(d) Rule;
     A ``Proposed Action Alterative'' (Preferred Alternative) 
where NMFS would make a determination that the submitted HGMP meets the 
criteria of Limit 5 of the 4(d) Rule to produce up to 1,000,000 Chinook 
salmon subyearlings;
     A ``Reduced Production Alternative'' where the hatchery 
operators would submit a revised HGMP proposing the production of 
500,000 Chinook salmon smolts (i.e., a 50 percent reduction) and NMFS 
would make a determination that the revised HGMP meets the criteria of 
Limit 5 of the 4(d) Rule; and
     A ``No Production Alternative'' where the proposed 
hatchery program would not be implemented.
    Based on the information examined through the study of this 
project, the NMFS has determined that a Supplemental Environmental 
Assessment is the appropriate level of environmental documentation. The 
NMFS has determined that there are no significant impacts associated 
with the project and has issued a FONSI.
    This notice is being provided for information purposes only, and as 
such, there is no public comment period associated with this notice. 
This notice is issued under the authority of 5 U.S.C. 552(a).

Summary of Comments Received in the Response to the Hatchery and 
Genetic Management Plan and the 2019 FEA

    NMFS published notice of its HGMP for public review and comment on 
January 7, 2020 (85 FR 704), as required under ESA Limit 5 of the 4(d) 
Rule. The HGMP was available for public review and comment for 30 days. 
One set of comments was received by one individual during this public 
commenting period. NMFS considered this information as we reviewed the 
HGMP. WDFW and Douglas PUD did not make any changes to their HGMP, 
based on these comments.
    The 2019 FEA that precedes the FSEA was also made available for a 
30-day public comment period upon notice of availability in the Federal 
Register on April 2, 2019 (84 FR 12594). We received comments from two 
commenters. The comments were non-substantive and did not offer 
suggestions for improving the hatchery programs nor did they provide 
any supporting information or documentation for their critiques. None 
of the comments resulted in edits to the FEA.

Viewing the FSEA and FONSI

    To view the FSEA and FONSI, please visit: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/west-coast/laws-and-policies/west-coast-hatchery-nepa-documents.

Authority

    The FSEA and FONSI have been prepared in accordance with NEPA (42 
U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) 
Regulations for Implementing NEPA (40 CFR 1500-1508) and associated CEQ 
guidelines: Department of Homeland Security Directive 5100.1, National 
Environmental Policy Act Implementing Procedures and Policy for 
Considering Environmental Impacts.

    Dated: July 9, 2020.
Angela Somma,
Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected Resources, 
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2020-15141 Filed 7-13-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P