[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 53 (Friday, March 18, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15383-15385]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-05714]


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

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[RTID 0648-XB873]


Endangered and Threatened Species; Take of Anadromous Fish

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of availability and request for comments; announcement 
of public meeting.

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

SUMMARY: The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the U.S. Fish 
and Wildlife Service (FWS) have received separate incidental take 
permit (ITP) applications from the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF), 
associated with the Western Oregon State Forests habitat conservation 
plan (HCP). The HCP has been submitted pursuant to the Endangered 
Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA). In accordance with the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA), NMFS announces the 
availability of a draft environmental impact statement (Draft EIS). 
NMFS is the lead Federal agency under NEPA, and FWS is a cooperating 
agency. The Draft EIS analyzes the potential effects of issuance of the 
ITPs and approval of the HCP. If granted, the ITPs would authorize 
incidental take of the covered species resulting from the covered 
activities (see SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION), as well as take resulting 
from activities carried out as part of the HCP's conservation strategy.

DATES: Written comments must be received by May 17, 2022. Any comments 
received after the closing date may not be considered in the final 
decision on these actions. NMFS will host a virtual public meeting on 
April 6, 2022, from 1 to 3 p.m. Pacific Time. Oral comments will be 
accepted at the public meeting with advance registration.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments in two ways:
    Written Comments: Written comments on the Draft EIS and HCP 
submitted with the ITP applications will be accepted via the Federal e-
Rulemaking Portal. Go to https://www.regulations.gov and enter NOAA-
NMFS-2021-0019 in the Search Box. Follow instructions for submitting 
comments on Docket NOAA-NMFS-2021-0019. Please specify in your comments 
whether the comments provided pertain to the Draft EIS or the HCP. When 
commenting, please refer to the specific section and/or page number in 
the subject of your comment.
    Instructions: Written comments to any other address or individual, 
or received after the end of the comment period, may not be considered 
by NMFS. All comments received are part of the public record and will 
generally be posted for public viewing on https://www.regulations.gov. 
All personal identifying information (e.g., name, address), 
confidential business information, or otherwise sensitive information 
submitted voluntarily by the sender will be publicly accessible. NMFS 
will accept anonymous

[[Page 15384]]

comments (enter ``N/A'' in the required fields if you wish to remain 
anonymous).
    Oral Comments during the Public Meeting: NMFS will host a virtual 
public meeting on April 6, 2022, from 1 to 3 p.m. Pacific Time. NMFS 
will begin the public meeting by presenting information about the 
project and the process, and will accept oral comments during the 
remainder of the meeting. Oral comments received during the public 
meeting will be recorded, and the transcript uploaded to https://www.regulations.gov. The link to the virtual meeting and instructions 
for registering to provide oral comments are posted at https://www.fisheries.noaa .gov/action/western-oregon-state-forests-habitat-
conservation-plan. Persons needing reasonable accommodations to 
participate in the public meetings should contact Michelle McMullin by 
telephone at (541) 957-3378 or by email at [email protected] 
as soon as possible. To allow sufficient time for processing requests, 
please submit reasonable accommodation requests no later than one week 
before the public meeting. Information regarding this proposed action 
is available in alternative formats upon request.
    Obtaining Documents for Review: The Draft EIS and HCP are available 
for review online at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/western-
oregon-state-forests-habitat-conservation-plan and are also available 
on https://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michelle McMullin, NMFS, 541-957-3378, 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

ESA-Listed Species Covered in This Notice

    Species covered by NMFS:

 Coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch): Threatened Oregon Coast 
Evolutionarily Significant Unit (ESU), Threatened Southern Oregon/
Northern California Coast ESU, Threatened Lower Columbia River ESU
 Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha): Threatened Upper 
Willamette River ESU, Threatened Lower Columbia River ESU
 Chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta): Threatened Columbia River ESU
 Steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss): Threatened Upper Willamette 
River Distinct Population Segment (DPS)
 Eulachon (Thaleichthys pacificus): Threatened Southern DPS.

    Species covered by FWS:

 Northern spotted owl (Strix occidentalis): Threatened
 Marbled murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus): Threatened
 Coastal marten (Martes caurina): Threatened Coastal DPS.

Non-ESA-Listed Species Included in the HCP

 Oregon Coast spring Chinook (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha)
 Southern Oregon/Northern California Coast spring Chinook 
(Oncorhynchus tshawytscha)
 Oregon slender salamander (Batrachoseps wrighti)
 Columbia torrent salamander (Rhyacotriton kezeri)
 Cascade torrent salamander (Rhyacotriton cascadae)
 Red tree vole (Arborimus longicaudus).

Background

    Section 9 of the ESA and Federal regulations prohibit the taking of 
a species listed as endangered or threatened. The ESA defines ``take'' 
to mean to harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, 
capture, or collect, or to attempt to engage in any such conduct. NMFS 
and FWS may issue permits, under limited circumstances, to take listed 
species incidental to, and not the purpose of, otherwise lawful 
activities. Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA and implementing regulations 
(50 CFR 222.307 for NMFS and 50 CFR 17.22(b) and 17.32(b) for FWS) 
provide for authorizing incidental take of listed species.
    NMFS and FWS received separate ITP applications from ODF on 
February 9, 2022, pursuant to the ESA, as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 
et seq.). ODF prepared the HCP in support of both ITP applications and 
is seeking authorization from NMFS and FWS (together, the Services) for 
incidental take of the species described above.
    The ITPs, if issued, would authorize take of the covered species 
that may occur incidental to ODF's forest and recreation management 
activities (the covered activities). These activities include timber 
harvest; reforestation and young stand management; road system 
management activities; construction and maintenance of quarries, borrow 
sites, and stockpile sites; fire management; recreation infrastructure 
construction and maintenance; and implementation of the HCP's 
conservation strategy. A non-listed species that may become listed 
during the term of the proposed permit can be included in an HCP and 
ITP; take coverage would become effective if and when the species is 
listed.
    The HCP specifies the impacts that will likely result from the 
taking of covered species and describes the steps that ODF will take to 
minimize and mitigate such impacts. The HCP also describes the covered 
species' life history and ecology, as well as biological goals and 
objectives of the HCP, adaptive management, monitoring, and funding 
assurances.
    The proposed issuance of the ITP is considered a Federal action 
under NEPA, and NMFS determined that preparation of an EIS to analyze 
the potential impacts on the human (biological, physical, social, and 
economic) environment caused by the implementation of the HCP was 
appropriate. The Draft EIS was prepared by NMFS in accordance with the 
requirements of NEPA (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), with input from FWS as a 
cooperating agency. NMFS analyzed five alternatives in detail in the 
Draft EIS, including the issuance of the ITPs and implementation of the 
HCP, a no action alternative, and three action alternatives. All 
alternatives include the forest and recreation management activities 
listed above. The HCP includes a conservation strategy that ODF would 
implement to achieve the biological goals and objectives for the 
covered species and to avoid, minimize, and mitigate impacts of take on 
listed species. Under the no action alternative, current management 
practices would continue to guide the management of ODF lands, and ODF 
would continue to conduct these activities in the absence of the HCP. 
The action alternatives include Alternative 3, which modifies the 
proposed action's conservation strategy to increase conservation, 
Alternative 4, which has a shorter permit term than the proposed 
action, and Alternative 5, which modifies the proposed action's 
conservation strategy to increase timber harvest.
    The Services are seeking public input on the NEPA analysis in the 
Draft EIS, including the associated impacts of any reasonable 
alternatives, as well as comments on the HCP submitted with the ITP 
applications. We specifically request information on the following:
    1. Biological information, analysis, and relevant data concerning 
the covered species, other wildlife, and ecosystems.
    2. Potential effects that the proposed permit actions could have on 
the covered species, and other endangered or threatened species, and 
their habitats, including the interaction of the effects of the project 
with climate change and other stressors.

[[Page 15385]]

    3. Adequacy of the proposed actions to minimize and mitigate the 
impact of the taking on covered species.
    4. Potential effects that the proposed permit actions could have on 
other aspects of the human environment, including effects on plants and 
animals; water resources; and aesthetic, historic, cultural, economic, 
social, environmental justice, climate change, or health.
    5. The alternatives, information, and analyses submitted during the 
public scoping period.
    6. The alternatives analysis, including the range of alternatives 
analyzed and the alternatives considered but not analyzed in detail.
    7. Relevant reasonably foreseeable environmental trends and planned 
actions and their possible impacts on the affected environment, 
including the covered species, as well as any closely related connected 
actions.
    8. Other information relevant to the HCP and its impacts on the 
human environment.
    The Services will each make their permit decisions based on the 
statutory and regulatory criteria of the ESA. Their decisions will also 
be informed by the data, analyses, and findings in the EIS and public 
comments received on the Draft EIS and HCP. The Services will each 
document their determinations independently in an ESA section 10 
findings document, ESA Section 7 biological opinion, and NEPA Record of 
Decision developed at the conclusion of the ESA and NEPA compliance 
processes. If the Services find that all requirements for issuance of 
the ITPs are met, they will issue the requested permits, subject to 
terms and conditions deemed necessary or appropriate to carry out the 
purposes of ESA section 10.
    Additional Information: NMFS, as the lead Federal agency, has 
chosen to use the NEPA substitution process to fulfill obligations 
under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended 
(NHPA). While obligations under NHPA and NEPA are independent, the 
regulations implementing NHPA allow for the use of NEPA review to 
substitute for various aspects of the NHPA section 106 (16 U.S.C. 470f) 
review to improve efficiency, promote transparency and accountability, 
and support a broadened discussion of potential effects that a project 
may have on the human environment (36 CFR 800.3 through 800.6). During 
preparation of the EIS, NMFS will ensure that the NEPA substitution 
process will meet any NHPA obligations.
    Authority: Section 10(c) of the ESA and its implementing 
regulations (50 CFR 222.307, 50 CFR 17.22, and 50 CFR 17.32) and NEPA 
and its implementing regulations (40 CFR 1503.1 and 40 CFR 1506.6).

    Dated: March 14, 2022.
Angela Somma,
Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected Resources, 
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-05714 Filed 3-17-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P