[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 151 (Wednesday, August 5, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Page 47396]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-16983]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2020-0088; 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.

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

SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce receipt 
of an application from Freedom Construction USA, LLC (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-2020-0088 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-2020-0088.
     U.S. mail: Public Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No. 
FWS-R4-ES-2020-0088; 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 or speech impaired may call the Federal Relay Service at 1-800-
877-8339 for TTY assistance.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service, announce 
receipt of an application from Freedom Construction USA, 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 Florida scrub-
jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens), a bird species, incidental to the 
construction of multi-family homes (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

    Freedom Construction USA, LLC requests a 5-year ITP to take Florida 
scrub-jays through the conversion of approximately 0.17 acres of 
occupied Florida scrub-jay foraging and sheltering habitat incidental 
to the construction of multi-family homes located on a 0.64-acre parcel 
in Sections 13 and 14, Township 18 South, and Range 31 East, in Volusia 
County, Florida. The applicant proposes to mitigate for take of the 
Florida scrub-jays by the contribution of $5,180.58 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 measure, 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 TE76013D-0 to Freedom Construction USA, 
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. 2020-16983 Filed 8-4-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P