[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 151 (Wednesday, August 5, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Page 47397]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-16977]



[[Page 47397]]

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2020-0087; FXES11130400000EA-123-FF04EF1000]


Receipt of Incidental Take Permit Application and Proposed 
Habitat Conservation Plan for the Florida Scrub-Jay, Volusia 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 ICI Homes, Inc. (applicant) for an incidental 
take permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act. The applicant 
requests the ITP to take the federally listed Florida scrub-jay, a bird 
species, incidental to construction in Volusia 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 September 4, 
2020.

ADDRESSES: 
    Obtaining Documents: You may obtain copies of the documents online 
in Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2020-0087 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-2020-0087.
     U.S. mail or hand-delivery: Public Comments Processing, 
Attn: Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2020-0087; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 
MS: PRB/3W, 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]. Individuals who are 
hearing impaired or speech impaired may call the Federal Relay Service 
at 800-877-8339 for TTY assistance.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), 
announce receipt of an application from ICI Homes, Inc. (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 Florida scrub-jay (Aphelocoma 
coerulescens), a bird species, incidental to the construction of a 
residential development (project) in Volusia 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, which are 
also available for public review.

Project

    ICI Homes, Inc. requests a 10-year ITP to take Florida scrub-jays 
by converting approximately 9.21 acres of occupied Florida scrub-jay 
foraging and sheltering habitat incidental to the construction of a 
residential development located on a 113.40-acre parcel in Section 20, 
Township 18 South, Range 31 East, in Volusia County, Florida. The 
applicant proposes to mitigate for take of Florida scrub-jays by 
contributing $282,323.34 to the Florida Scrub-jay Conservation Fund 
administered by The Nature Conservancy. The Service would require the 
applicant to make this contribution prior to engaging in activities 
associated with the project.

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 funding, would individually 
and cumulatively have a minor or negligible effect on Florida scrub-
jays 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 result in 
significant cumulative effects to environmental values or resources 
over time.

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 
preceding 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 TE76784D-0 to ICI Homes, Inc.

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 Herrington,
Field Supervisor, Jacksonville Field Office, South Atlantic-Gulf & 
Mississippi-Basin Regions.
[FR Doc. 2020-16977 Filed 8-4-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P