[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 163 (Friday, August 21, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51751-51752]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-18326]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2020-0089; FXES11130400000EA-123-FF04EF1000]


Receipt of Incidental Take Permit Application and Proposed 
Habitat Conservation Plan for the Alabama Beach Mouse, Baldwin County, 
AL; 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 SeaGlades at St. Andrew Bay (applicant) for an 
incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act. The 
applicant requests the ITP to take the federally listed Alabama beach 
mouse incidental to construction of twenty-seven single family homes 
and amenities in Baldwin County, Alabama. 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 low-effect screening form, which is also 
available for public review.

DATES: We must receive your written comments on or before September 21, 
2020.

ADDRESSES: 
    Obtaining Documents: You may obtain copies of the documents online 
in Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2020-0089 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-2020-0089.
     U.S. Mail: Public Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No. 
FWS-R4-ES-2020-0089; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS: PRB/3W, 5275 
Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. William Lynn by telephone at (251) 
441-5868 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 SeaGlades at St. Andrew Bay (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 Alabama beach mouse (Peromyscus 
polionotus ammobates) incidental to the construction of 27 single-
family homes and amenities (project) in Baldwin County, Alabama. 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 
and low-effect screening form, which is also available for public 
review.

Project

    The applicant requests a 50-year ITP to take Alabama beach mice 
through the conversion of approximately 2.58 acres of occupied Alabama 
beach mouse habitat incidental to the construction of 27 single-family 
homes with amenities located on a 10.53-acre parcel in Baldwin County, 
Alabama. The applicant proposes to minimize and mitigate for take of 
the Alabama beach mouse through standard minimization, mitigation 
measures and monitoring onsite population of the species with fall and 
spring trapping surveys (twice a year) for the next 50 years. Standard 
mitigation and minimization measures are a reduced footprint of 0.10 
acres or less for each lot (27 lots) within the 10.53-acre parcel, 
creation of an on-site Alabama beach mouse conservation area and a 
$37,000 monitoring and dune management fund. The applicant also will 
install fully shielded exterior lighting, tinted windows, native 
vegetation for landscaping, and driveway materials that will not 
disperse in a storm surge. There will be refuse control, restoration of 
habitat after tropical storms, and prohibitions on the use of exterior 
rodenticides and cats roaming free within the property. The Service 
would require that the applicant ensure that all funding for the HCP is 
available upfront and prior to its 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

[[Page 51752]]

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 minimization and mitigation measures, 
would individually and cumulatively have a minor or negligible effect 
on the Alabama beach mouse 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 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 
above findings, we will determine whether the permit issuance criteria 
of section 10(a)(l)(B) of the ESA have been met. If met, the Service 
will issue ITP number TE63246D-0 to SeaGlades at St. Andrew Bay.

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.

William Pearson,
Field Supervisor, Alabama Ecological Service Office.
[FR Doc. 2020-18326 Filed 8-20-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P