Notice2023-00896
Candidate Conservation Agreement With Assurances for the Fisher in Oregon; Enhancement of Survival Permit Applications; Hampton and Starker Site Plans
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
January 19, 2023
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentFish and Wildlife Service
Abstract
We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), received two enhancement of survival permit (permit) applications pursuant to the Endangered Species Act (ESA). If granted, the requested permits would authorize take of the fisher (Pekania pennanti), incidental to otherwise lawful activities, if the species becomes federally listed under the ESA. These applications are associated with a template candidate conservation agreement with assurances (CCAA) developed by the Service for the conservation of the fisher. We have also prepared draft environmental action statements documenting our preliminary determination that the permit decisions may be eligible for categorical exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act. We provide this notice to open a public comment period and invite comments from all interested parties.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 12 (Thursday, January 19, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 12 (Thursday, January 19, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3428-3429]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-00896]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R1-ES-2022-0169; ES11140100000-234-FF01E0000]
Candidate Conservation Agreement With Assurances for the Fisher
in Oregon; Enhancement of Survival Permit Applications; Hampton and
Starker Site Plans
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), received two
enhancement of survival permit (permit) applications pursuant to the
Endangered Species Act (ESA). If granted, the requested permits would
authorize take of the fisher (Pekania pennanti), incidental to
otherwise lawful activities, if the species becomes federally listed
under the ESA. These applications are associated with a template
candidate conservation agreement with assurances (CCAA) developed by
the Service for the conservation of the fisher. We have also prepared
draft environmental action statements documenting our preliminary
determination that the permit decisions may be eligible for categorical
exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act. We provide this
notice to open a public comment period and invite comments from all
interested parties.
DATES: Submit written comments no later than February 21, 2023.
ADDRESSES:
Obtaining Documents: The applications, application supporting
materials, and any comments and other materials that we receive will be
available for public inspection at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> in
Docket No. FWS-R1-ES-2022-0169.
Submitting Comments: To submit written comments, please use one of
the following methods:
<bullet> Internet: <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>. Search for and
submit comments on Docket No. FWS-R1-2022-0169.
<bullet> U.S. Mail: Attn: Docket No. FWS-R1-ES-2022-0169; U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service Headquarters, MS: PRB/3W; 5275 Leesburg Pike,
Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
For more information, see Public Availability of Comments under
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Frank Weaver, via telephone at 541-
957-3471, or via email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#a5e3d7c4cbcefaf2c0c4d3c0d7e5c3d2d68bc2cad3"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="185e6a797673474f7d796e7d6a587e6f6b367f776e">[email protected]</span></a>. 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: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
(Service), have received two enhancement of survival permit (permit)
applications pursuant to section 10(a)1(A) of the Endangered Species
Act of 1973, as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). The two
applicants are Hampton Lumber (Hampton) and Starker Forest Inc./Starker
Properties LLC (Starker).
If granted, either or both of the requested permits would authorize
take of the fisher (Pekania pennanti) incidental to the applicants'
routine forest-related management activities, if the species becomes
federally listed under the ESA. Each application includes a proposed
individual site plan developed under a template candidate conservation
agreement with assurances (CCAA) developed by the Service in 2018 for
the conservation of the fisher. The conservation measures in the CCAA
are intended to provide a net
[[Page 3429]]
conservation benefit to the species. We have also prepared draft
environmental action statements (EAS) for our preliminary
determinations that each of the two permit decisions is eligible for
categorical exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). We provide this notice to open a public
comment period and invite comments from all interested parties
regarding the documents referenced above.
Background
A CCAA is a voluntary agreement whereby landowners agree to manage
their lands to remove or reduce threats to species that may become
listed under the ESA (64 FR 32726; June 17, 1999). CCAAs are intended
to facilitate the conservation of proposed and candidate species, and
species that are likely to become candidates soon, by giving non-
Federal property owners incentives to implement conservation measures
for declining species. In return for managing their lands to the
benefit of the covered species, enrolled landowners receive assurances
that additional land, water, or resource use restrictions will not be
required if the covered species becomes listed as threatened or
endangered under the ESA, so long as the CCAA remains in place and is
being fully implemented.
A CCAA serves as the basis for the Service to issue permits to non-
Federal participants pursuant to section 10(a)(l)(A) of the ESA.
Application requirements and issuance criteria for permits under CCAAs
are found in the Code of Regulations (CFR) at 50 CFR 17.22(d) and
17.32(d).
Template CCAA for Fisher
The Service developed a template CCAA for the West Coast distinct
population segment (DPS) of the fisher in Oregon. To comply with NEPA,
the Service also issued a draft EAS for future issuance of permits
under the finalized template. The template CCAA and the draft EAS were
both made available for public comment via a Federal Register notice
(81 FR 15737; March 24, 2016). The template CCAA and EAS were finalized
and signed by the Service on June 20, 2018.
The template CCAA established general guidelines and identified
minimum conservation measures for potential participants in the CCAA.
Interested participants can voluntarily enroll their properties under
the CCAA by developing individual site plans prepared in accordance
with the provisions of the CCAA and submitting the site plans part of
their permit applications. If granted, the permits authorize incidental
take of the fisher with regulatory assurances to qualifying landowners
who carry out conservation measures that would benefit the West Coast
DPS of the fisher.
Proposed Actions
Starker and Hampton Lumber each submitted their applications on
July 20, 2022, and July 21, 2022, respectively, for separate ESA
section 10(a)(l)(A) permits under the template CCAA for the fisher for
their identified lands in Oregon. Hampton Lumber and Starker are
responsible for planning and carrying out forest management activities
on their respective lands. Hampton Lumber seeks to enroll its
controlled and managed Oregon timberlands in Clatsop, Columbia,
Tillamook, Washington, Yamhill, Lincoln, Polk, Marion, and Benton
Counties. Hampton Lumber lands total approximately 97,821 acres (ac) in
many separate parcels. Starker seeks to enroll its controlled and
managed Oregon timberlands in Benton, Lane, Lincoln, Linn, and Polk
Counties. Starker lands total approximately 90,432 ac in many separate
parcels.
The Hampton Lumber and Starker permits would authorize incidental
take of the fisher until June 20, 2048, should it become federally
listed and affected by the applicants' routine forest-related
management activities on their properties. Fisher are not currently
known to occur on the applicants' proposed enrolled lands within the
West Coast Fisher DPS, but fisher may occur there in the future through
translocation or range expansion.
Each of the two permit applications includes a distinct proposed
site plan that describes the lands covered by the permit and the
conservation measures required under the template CCAA that will be
implemented on covered lands. The primary conservation measures
provided in the site plans include:
<bullet> Allowing access to covered lands to conduct fisher
surveys;
<bullet> Protecting fisher dens and their young by limiting
disturbance and impacts to denning structures;
<bullet> Limiting control of other animals by trapping/nuisance
that could pose a risk to the fisher (trapping of fishers is prohibited
by State of Oregon law);
<bullet> Allowing the potential future translocation of fishers
onto enrolled lands; and
<bullet> Promoting the development of habitat structures that would
support the fisher.
Request for Public Comments
We invite public review and comment on the two permit application
packages, including the individual site plans and draft EASs (see
ADDRESSES). The final template CCAA and EAS that were finalized and
signed by the Service on June 20, 2018, are also available for public
information. You may submit your comments and materials by one of the
methods listed in the ADDRESSES section. We request data, comments, new
information, or suggestions from the public, other concerned
governmental agencies, the scientific community, Tribes, industry, or
any other interested party on our proposed Federal action, including on
the adequacy of the site plans prepared in accordance with the template
CCAA, pursuant to the requirements for permits at 50 CFR parts 13 and
17.
Public Availability of Comments
All comments and materials we receive become part of the public
record associated with this action. Before including your address,
phone number, email address or other personal identifying information
in your comments, 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 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.
Authority
We provide this notice in accordance with the requirements of
section 10(c) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (16
U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), and its implementing regulations (50 CFR 17.22),
and the National Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and
its implementing regulations (40 CFR 1506.6).
Nanette Seto,
Acting Deputy Regional Director, Pacific Region 1, U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2023-00896 Filed 1-18-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P
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