[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 151 (Wednesday, August 5, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47399-47400]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-16979]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2020-0084; 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 BB Groves, LLC (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 September 4,
2020.
ADDRESSES:
Obtaining Documents: You may obtain copies of the documents online
in Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2020-0084 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-2020-0084.
U.S. Mail: Public Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No.
FWS-R4-ES-2020-0084; 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
[[Page 47400]]
BB Groves, LLC (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 housing
development (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, which are also
available for public review.
Project
BB Groves, LLC requests a 5-year ITP to take sand skinks through
the conversion of approximately 13.15 acres of occupied skink foraging
and sheltering habitat for the construction of a housing development
located on a 120.18-acre parcel in Sections 30 and 31; Township 24
South; Range 27 East, Orange County, Florida. The applicant proposes to
mitigate for take of the sand skinks by purchasing 26.30 credits from a
Service-approved conservation bank. The Service would require the
applicant to make this purchase 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 measures, would individually
and cumulatively have a minor or negligible effect on sand 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 426.3005 and
426.3010. 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 TE 75283D-0 to BB Groves, LLC.
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.
[FR Doc. 2020-16979 Filed 8-4-20; 8:45 am]
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