[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 220 (Thursday, November 18, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64522-64523]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-25120]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-R8-ES-2020-N174; FXES11140800000-212-FF08EVEN00]


Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Draft Habitat 
Conservation Plan and Draft Categorical Exclusion for the Central 
California Distinct Population Segment of the California Tiger 
Salamander; Churchill Family Properties Residential Development 
Project, San Benito County, California

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the 
availability of a draft habitat conservation plan (HCP) and draft 
categorical exclusion for activities associated with an application for 
an incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act of 
1973, as amended. The ITP would authorize take of the Central 
California distinct population segment of the California tiger 
salamander incidental to activities associated with construction 
adjacent to the City of Hollister in San Benito County, California. The 
applicant developed the draft HCP as part of their application for an 
ITP. The Service

[[Page 64523]]

prepared a draft low-effect screening form and environmental action 
statement (CatEx) in accordance with the National Environmental Policy 
Act to evaluate the potential effects to the natural and human 
environment resulting from issuing an ITP to the applicant. We invite 
public comment on these documents.

DATES: Written comments should be received on or before December 20, 
2021.

ADDRESSES: 
    Obtaining Documents: You may download a copy of the draft HCP and 
draft CatEx at http://www.fws.gov/ventura/, or you may request copies 
of the documents by U.S. mail (below) or by phone (see FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT).
    Submitting Written Comments: Please send us your written comments 
using one of the following methods:
     U.S. Mail: Stephen P. Henry, Field Supervisor, Ventura 
Fish and Wildlife Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2493 Portola 
Road, Suite B, Ventura, CA 93003.
     Email: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mark Ogonowski, Senior Fish and 
Wildlife Biologist, by email (see ADDRESSES), via phone at (805) 677-
3350, via the Federal Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339 for TTY 
assistance, or by mail (see ADDRESSES).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 
announce the availability of a draft HCP and draft CatEx for activities 
associated with an application for an ITP under section 10(a)(1)(B) of 
the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et 
seq.). The ITP would authorize take of the Central California distinct 
population segment (DPS) of the California tiger salamander (Ambystoma 
californiense) incidental to activities associated with the subdivision 
of two adjoining parcels and construction of residential housing over a 
23.5-acre project site adjacent to the City of Hollister in San Benito 
County, California. The site would be fully developed with single- and 
multi-family housing, rights of way for streets and utilities, and 
public open space lots. The applicant developed the draft HCP as part 
of their application for an ITP. The Service prepared a draft CatEx in 
accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA; 42 
U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) to evaluate the potential effects to the natural 
and human environment resulting from issuing an ITP to the applicant. 
We invite public comment on all of these documents.

Background

    The Service listed the Central California DPS of the California 
tiger salamander as threatened on August 4, 2004 (69 FR 47212). Section 
9 of the ESA prohibits ``take'' of fish and wildlife species listed as 
endangered (16 U.S.C. 1538), where take is defined to include the 
following activities: ``to harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, 
kill, trap, capture, or collect, or to attempt to engage in any such 
conduct'' (16 U.S.C. 1532). The take prohibitions of Section 9 are 
extended to species listed as threatened at the discretion the 
Secretary of the Department of the Interior.
    Under section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1539(a)(1)(B)), we 
may issue permits to authorize take of listed fish and wildlife species 
that is incidental to, and not the purpose of, carrying out an 
otherwise lawful activity. Regulations governing incidental take 
permits for threatened species are in the Code of Federal Regulations 
(CFR) at 50 CFR 17.32. Issuance of an ITP also must not jeopardize the 
existence of federally listed fish, wildlife, or plant species, 
pursuant to section 7 of the ESA and 50 CFR 402.02. The permittee would 
receive assurances under our ``No Surprises'' regulations (50 CFR 
17.32(b)(5)).
    The Service designated critical habitat for the Central California 
DPS of the California tiger salamander on August 23, 2005 (70 CFR 
49380). The project site encompasses 2.3 acres of California tiger 
salamander critical habitat unit EB 15A, representing approximately .09 
percent of this unit and .001 percent of critical habitat designated 
for the species rangewide. The area of critical habitat overlapping the 
project site is fragmented from the remainder of unit EB 15A by 
Fairview Road, which is moderately trafficked.

Proposed Activities

    The applicant has applied for a permit for incidental take of the 
Central California DPS of the California tiger salamander. The take 
would occur in association with the construction of residential housing 
over a 23.5-acre project site adjacent to the City of Hollister in San 
Benito County, California.
    The HCP includes avoidance and minimization measures for the 
Central California DPS of the California tiger salamander and 
mitigation for unavoidable loss of habitat. As mitigation, the 
applicant proposes to purchase credits from a Service-approved 
conservation bank. The Service in collaboration with the applicant 
determined the required mitigation using a habitat model based on the 
methodology in Calculating Biologically Accurate Mitigation Credits: 
Insights from the California tiger Salamander (Searcy and Shaffer 
2008). The method assigns a value to habitat that scales with the 
reproductive value of the individuals estimated to be occupying an 
area, which is a function of (1) distance to each known or potential 
breeding pond within dispersal distance of the site, and (2) 
surrounding land-use. A mitigation ratio of 1:1 (reproductive value 
lost: Reproductive value conserved) is then applied to determine the 
amount of mitigation required to offset impacts to California tiger 
salamander habitat based on the per-credit habitat value of mitigation 
credits at the chosen conservation bank.

Public Availability of Comments

    Before including your address, phone number, email address, or 
other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be 
aware that your entire comment, including your personal identifying 
information, may be made publicly available at any time. While you can 
ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying 
information from public view, we cannot guarantee that we will be able 
to do so.

Authority

    We provide this notice under section 10(c) of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 
1531 et seq.) and its implementing regulations (50 CFR 17.32) and NEPA 
(42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and its implementing regulations (40 CFR 
1506.6).

Stephen Henry,
Field Supervisor, Ventura Fish and Wildlife Office, Ventura, 
California.
[FR Doc. 2021-25120 Filed 11-17-21; 8:45 am]
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