[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 87 (Thursday, May 5, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26778-26781]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-09671]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-R1-ES-2022-0029; FXES11140100000-223-FF01E0000]


Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for 
the Elliott State Research Forest Habitat Conservation Plan in Coos and 
Douglas Counties, OR

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of intent; virtual public scoping meeting; request for 
comments.

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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), provide this 
notice to open a public scoping period and announce a virtual public 
scoping meeting, in accordance with requirements of the National 
Environmental Policy Act and its implementing regulations. The Oregon 
Department of State Lands is preparing a habitat conservation plan 
(HCP) in support of its anticipated applications for incidental take 
permits under the Endangered Species Act for activities it will 
undertake in managing the Elliott State Forest in southwestern Oregon. 
We intend to prepare an environmental impact statement to evaluate the 
impacts on the human environment related to the proposed issuance of 
these permits and implementation of the HCP.

DATES: Submitting Comments: We will accept online or hardcopy comments. 
Hardcopy comments must be received or postmarked on or before June 6, 
2022. (See ADDRESSES.) Comments submitted online at https://www.regulations.gov/ must be received by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on 
June 6, 2022.
    Public Meeting: FWS will hold a public scoping meeting during the 
scoping period. To help protect the public and limit the spread of the 
COVID-19 virus, the public meeting will be held virtually at the 
following time:
     May 16, 2022, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

ADDRESSES: Submitting Comments: You may submit comments by one of the 
following methods:
     Internet: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments on Docket No. FWS-R1-ES-2022-0029.
     U.S. mail: Public Comments Processing; Attn: Docket No. 
FWS-R1-ES-2022-0029; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Headquarters, MS: 
PRB/3W; 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
    For additional information about submitting comments, see Public 
Scoping Process under SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
    Public Meeting: A link and access instructions to the virtual 
scoping meeting will be posted to https://www.fws.gov/office/oregon-fish-and-wildlife at least one week prior to the public meeting date.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shauna Everett, by telephone at 503-
231-6949, or by email at [email protected]. Individuals in the 
United States who are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a 
speech disability may dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access 
telecommunications relay services. Individuals outside the United 
States should use the relay services offered within their country to 
make international calls to the point-of-contact in the United States.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Purpose and Need for the Proposed Action

    In accordance with section 10(a)(2)(A) of the Endangered Species 
Act (ESA), Oregon Department of State Lands (ODSL, or the applicant) 
intends to submit the draft Elliott State Research Forest Habitat 
Conservation Plan (ESRF HCP) to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 
(FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) (together, the 
Services) in support of applications for incidental take permits (ITPs) 
for the threatened northern spotted owl (Strix occidentalis), 
threatened marbled murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus), and threatened 
Oregon Coast coho (Oncorhynchus kisutch) (together, the covered 
species). The requested ITPs would authorize incidental take of covered 
species likely to result from research and management related 
activities on the Elliott State Forest, located in Coos and Douglas 
Counties in southwestern Oregon, including timber

[[Page 26779]]

removal associated with a suite of forest management prescriptions and 
associated infrastructure maintenance. The HCP will include 
minimization and mitigation measures to offset the impacts of the 
taking on covered species.
    To meet our requirements under NEPA, we intend to prepare a draft 
environmental impact statement (DEIS) and, later, a final environmental 
impact statement (FEIS), to evaluate the effects on the human 
environment of issuing the requested permit and ODSL's implementation 
of the ESRF HCP. NMFS is a cooperating agency and intends to adopt the 
EIS to address the impacts of issuing an ITP addressing the listed 
species under its jurisdiction (Oregon Coast coho salmon).
    ODSL's goals are to implement forest management activities on the 
Elliott State Forest to create a managed landscape where 
experimentation can occur. The goal of research on the Elliott State 
Forest is to advance more sustainable forest management practices 
through the application of a systems-based approach investigating the 
integration of intensively managed forests, forest reserves, 
dynamically managed complex forests, and the aquatic and riparian 
ecosystems that flow within them. ODSL's ESRF HCP conservation strategy 
also includes goals specific to offsetting impacts to the covered 
species. FWS has taken these goals into account in establishing the 
purpose and need for the proposed action, which are (1) to review the 
applicant's ITP request; and (2) to either grant, grant with 
conditions, or deny the ITP request in compliance with FWS's authority 
under applicable law, including, without limitation, section 10(a) of 
the ESA and applicable ESA implementing regulations.

Preliminary Proposed Action and Alternatives

    Consistent with 40 CFR 1501.9(d)(2), the preliminary description of 
the proposed action is issuance of ITPs authorizing incidental take of 
covered species in association with covered activities and HCP 
implementation. NMFS and FWS will review the applications to determine 
if ESA section 10(a) permit issuance criteria and all other legal 
requirements related to permit issuance are met before making separate 
permit decisions.
    The DEIS will include a reasonable range of alternatives, which may 
include but are not limited to variations in the level, location, and 
type of minimization and mitigation approaches; the scope or types of 
covered activities; limitations in forest management in covered species 
habitat; variation in the length of the permit term; adding or removing 
covered species or the level of allowable take; and variations in 
conservation implementation and effectiveness monitoring. Additionally, 
a No Action Alternative will be included. Under the No Action 
Alternative, no ITPs would be issued and ODSL would continue to manage 
the Elliott State Forest under the current management regime, which 
avoids take of listed species from research and management activities 
on the Elliott State Forest.

Background

    Section 9 of the ESA prohibits ``take'' of fish and wildlife 
species listed as endangered under section 4 (16 U.S.C. 1538 and 16 
U.S.C. 1533, respectively). The ESA implementing regulations extend, 
under certain circumstances, the prohibition of take to threatened 
species (50 CFR 17.31). Under section 3 of the ESA, the term ``take'' 
means to ``harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, 
capture, or collect, or attempt to engage in any such conduct'' (16 
U.S.C. 1532(19)). The term ``harm'' is defined by regulations as ``an 
act which actually kills or injures wildlife.'' ``Such act may include 
significant habitat modification or degradation where it actually kills 
or injures wildlife by significantly impairing essential behavioral 
patterns, including breeding, feeding, or sheltering'' (50 CFR 17.3; 50 
CFR 222.102).
    Under section 10(a) of the ESA, the Services may issue permits to 
authorize incidental take of listed fish and wildlife species. 
``Incidental take'' is defined by the ESA as take that is incidental 
to, and not the purpose of, carrying out an otherwise lawful activity. 
Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA contains provisions for issuing ITPs to 
non-Federal entities for the take of endangered and threatened species, 
provided the following criteria are met:
    1. The taking will be incidental;
    2. The applicant will, to the maximum extent practicable, minimize 
and mitigate the impact of such taking;
    3. The applicant will ensure that adequate funding for the plan 
will be provided;
    4. The taking will not appreciably reduce the likelihood of the 
survival and recovery of the species in the wild; and
    5. The applicant will carry out any other measures the Services may 
require as being necessary or appropriate for the purposes of the HCP.

Elliott State Research Forest Habitat Conservation Plan

    ODSL intends to implement the ESRF HCP to cover a variety of 
research and management activities, including timber removal associated 
with a suite of forest management prescriptions and associated 
infrastructure maintenance. The ESRF HCP includes measures to minimize 
and mitigate impacts of the taking on covered species. ODSL is expected 
to request 80-year ITPs from FWS and NMFS, respectively.

Covered Activities

    The proposed covered activities will likely include:
     Research Treatments: Research actions, harvest activities, 
and stand management activities that will be utilized to maintain the 
research platform.
     Research Projects: Short, long-term, active, or passive 
potential research projects related to climate change, social economic 
and recreation, aquatic and terrestrial systems, forest practices and 
management, fire and disturbance, and fish and wildlife habitat in 
managed forests.
     Supporting Management Activities: Activities used to 
facilitate stand management activities, including mechanical vegetation 
control and controlled burning.
     Supporting Infrastructure: Infrastructure needed to 
facilitate implementation of the research platform and programs, 
including roads, landings, drainage structures, quarries, and 
communication sites and lookouts.
     HCP Implementation Activities: Activities identified in 
the conservation strategy and monitoring program that may result in 
short-term effects on covered species.

Covered Species

    The species proposed for coverage under the ESRF HCP and ITPs will 
likely include the northern spotted owl, marbled murrelet, and Oregon 
Coast coho salmon. Each of the covered species is known to occur on the 
Elliott State Forest. The draft ESRF HCP will include an analysis of 
impacts to covered species and methodology for estimating and 
quantifying take and related conservation outcomes over time, and will 
propose limits on impacts resulting from covered activities.
    Measures to minimize and mitigate impacts on covered species will 
be described in the HCP for each species as conservation measures and 
conditions on covered activities, guided by goals and objectives in the 
conservation strategy of the HCP. These measures

[[Page 26780]]

would be systematically implemented and monitored for success. Impacts 
would be offset by a system of reserve areas. Minimization and 
mitigation measures are subject to adaptive management to ensure their 
effectiveness, and to ensure achievement of the ESRF HCP's biological 
goals and objectives.
    The ESRF HCP will include funding information and assurances, 
monitoring requirements, adaptive management, and changed circumstance 
provisions to help ensure conservation outcomes for the covered 
species. Annual reports would confirm the amount, type, and location of 
impacts and mitigation, as well as the status of monitoring, adaptive 
management, changed circumstances, and funding.

Summary of Expected Impacts

    The DEIS will identify and describe the effects of the proposed 
Federal action on the human environment that are reasonably foreseeable 
and have a reasonably close causal relationship to the proposed action. 
This includes effects that occur at the same time and place as the 
proposed action or alternatives and effects that are later in time or 
farther removed in distance from the proposed action or alternatives. 
Expected impacts may include, but are not limited to, positive and 
negative impacts to the covered species and critical habitat, geology 
and soils, air quality, water resources, other biological resources, 
health and safety, land use, recreation, aesthetics, historical and 
cultural resources, and socioeconomics.
    The analysis will consider the adequacy of each alternative to 
maintain or enhance the status of the covered species at appropriate 
scales, in light of the expected effects and other best available 
information. Impacts to air quality, water resources, and other 
biological resources, such as fish, wildlife, and forest ecosystem, are 
expected to include some negative impacts from the research and 
management activities that are minimized and or mitigated at the 
landscape level through application of applicable law, including local 
and State regulations, and implementation of conservation strategies 
under each alternative. The conservation programs described in the 
action alternatives may serve to offset or partially offset impacts on 
air quality, water resources, and other biological resources at the 
landscape scale, though these actions would be targeted at offsetting 
impacts to covered species. Localized positive and negative impacts to 
recreation, aesthetics, and historical and cultural resources may 
result from HCP implementation due to the expected changes in forests 
from the research and management-related activities (covered 
activities).

Anticipated Permits and Authorizations

    The following permits, consultations, or other authorizations are 
anticipated to be required in order to enable the Services to proceed 
with issuance of the ITPs:
     ESA Section 7 consultations, ESA Section 10 findings;
     Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 
consultation;
     Tribal consultations; and
     National Historic Preservation Act compliance.

Related Actions

    Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) has also applied for ITPs from 
FWS and NMFS and is currently preparing a Western Oregon State Forests 
HCP (WOHCP) to include 17 species (including all three species covered 
under the ESRF HCP). A DEIS and draft HCP were made available to the 
public on March 18, 2022 (87 FR 15383).
    The proposed WOHCP permit area includes all State forest lands west 
of the crest of the Cascade Range that are owned by the Oregon Board of 
Forestry and managed by ODF, and also includes some Common School Fund 
Lands owned by ODSL but managed by ODF. The plan area of the ESRF HCP 
overlaps with the permit area of the WOHCP. The overlap consists of 
8,897 acres that are Oregon Board of Forestry lands inside the Elliott 
State Forest boundary and 915 acres of other DSL lands adjacent to the 
ESRF. These lands would be covered by the WOHCP, if approved. However, 
if any of the Oregon Board of Forestry lands were later transferred to 
ODSL, they could be covered instead by the ESRF HCP.

Schedule for the Decision-Making Process

    FWS will conduct an environmental review to analyze the effects of 
the proposed permit actions, along with other alternatives considered 
and the associated impacts of each alternative for the development of 
the DEIS. Following completion of the environmental review, the 
Services will publish a notice of availability and request for public 
comments on the DEIS and the draft HCP submitted with the ITP 
applications. FWS expects to make the DEIS and draft HCP available to 
the public in Winter 2022-2023. After public review and comment, FWS 
and NMFS will evaluate the permit applications, associated documents, 
and any comments received, to determine whether the requirements of 
section 10(a)(1) of the ESA are met. FWS and NMFS will also evaluate 
whether issuance of the requested ITPs would comply with section 
7(a)(2) of the ESA. FWS expects to make the FEIS and final HCP 
available to the public in Summer 2023. At least 30 days after the FEIS 
is available, the Services' records of decision will be completed in 
accordance with applicable timeframes established in 40 CFR 1506.11. If 
appropriate, the Services would issue the ITPs after the issuance of 
the records of decision. If issued, the permits may include such terms 
and conditions deemed necessary or appropriate to carry out the 
purposes of the permit and the conservation plan.

Public Scoping Process

Virtual Public Meeting

    This notice of intent initiates the scoping process, which aids in 
the development of the EIS.
    To help protect the public and limit the spread of the COVID-19 
virus, the public scoping meeting will be conducted online to 
accommodate best practices and local guidelines in place at the time 
this notice was prepared. See DATES and ADDRESSES for the date and time 
of the virtual public scoping meeting. The virtual public scoping 
meeting will provide ODSL and FWS with an opportunity to present to the 
public information pertinent to the ESRF HCP, and for the public to ask 
questions on the scope of issues and alternatives that FWS should 
consider when preparing the EIS. No opportunity for oral comments will 
be provided. Written comments may be submitted by the methods listed in 
ADDRESSES.

Reasonable Accommodations

    Persons needing reasonable accommodations in order to attend and 
participate in the virtual public scoping meeting should contact the 
FWS's Oregon Fish and Wildlife Office (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT) as soon as possible. In order to allow sufficient time to 
process requests, please make contact no later than one week before the 
desired public meeting. Information regarding this proposed action is 
available in alternative formats upon request.

Request for Information

    We request comments on the proposed action, concerning the scope of 
the analysis and identification of relevant information, studies, and 
analyses from the public; affected Federal, State, Tribal, and local

[[Page 26781]]

governments, agencies, and offices; the scientific community; industry; 
or any other interested party. We will consider these comments in 
developing the DEIS. Specifically, we seek:
    1. Biological information, analysis and relevant data concerning 
the covered species and other wildlife;
    2. Potential effects that the proposed permit action could have on 
the covered species, and other endangered or threatened species, and 
their associated ecological communities or habitats;
    3. Potential effects that the proposed permit action could have on 
other aspects of the human environment, including ecological, 
aesthetic, historic, cultural, economic, social, environmental justice, 
or health;
    4. Other possible reasonable alternatives to the proposed permit 
action that FWS should consider, including additional or alternative 
avoidance, minimization, and mitigation measures;
    5. The presence of historic properties--including archaeological 
sites, buildings, and structures; historic events; sacred and 
traditional areas; and other historic preservation concerns--in the 
proposed plan and permit area, which are required to be considered in 
project planning by the National Historic Preservation Act;
    6. Information on other current or planned activities in, or in the 
vicinity of, the Elliott State Forest and their possible impacts on the 
covered species, including any connected actions that are closely 
related and should be discussed in the same DEIS; and
    7. Other information relevant to the ESRF HCP and its impacts on 
the human environment.

Public Availability of Comments

    You may submit your comments and materials by one of the methods 
listed in ADDRESSES. Before including your address, phone number, or 
other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be 
aware that your entire comment--including your personal identifying 
information--might be made publicly available at any time. While you 
can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying 
information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be 
able to do so. All submissions from organizations or businesses, and 
from individuals identifying themselves as representatives or officials 
of organizations or businesses, will be made available for public 
disclosure in their entirety.
    Comments and materials we receive, as well as supporting 
documentation we use in preparing the DEIS, will be available for 
public inspection online in Docket No. FWS-R1-ES-2022-0029, at https://www.regulations.gov/ (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).

Next Steps

    Once the DEIS is prepared, there will be further opportunity for 
comment on this proposed permit action through an additional public 
comment period.

Lead and Cooperating Agencies

    FWS is the lead agency for the NEPA process. NMFS is a cooperating 
agency in the NEPA process. FWS welcomes inquiries from other Federal, 
State, or Tribal, or local agencies potentially interested in being a 
cooperating agency for the NEPA process.

Decision Makers and Nature of Decision To Be Made

    The decision makers are the FWS Regional Director of the Pacific 
Region and the NMFS West Coast Regional Administrator. If, after 
publication of the record(s) of decision, the agencies determine that 
all requirements are met for ITP issuance, the decision makers will 
issue separate decisions on the requested ITPs.

Authority

    We provide this notice in accordance with the requirements of 
section 10(c) of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1539(c)) and NEPA regulations on 
the publication of a notice of intent to issue an EIS (40 CFR 
1501.9(d)).

Hugh Morrison,
Deputy Regional Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-09671 Filed 5-4-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P