Receipt of Incidental Take Permit Application and Proposed Habitat Conservation Plan for the Sweet Acres Wind Project, White County, IN; Categorical Exclusion

Issuing agencies

Abstract

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, have received an application from Indiana Crossroads Wind Farm II LLC (applicant), for an incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act, for its Sweet Acres Wind Project (project). If approved, the ITP would be for a 6-year period and would authorize the incidental take of the federally endangered Indiana bat, the federally endangered northern long-eared bat, and the tricolored bat and little brown bat, both of which are proposed for listing. The applicant has prepared a habitat conservation plan in support of the application. We request public comment on the application, which includes the applicant's proposed habitat conservation plan (HCP), and on the Service's preliminary determination that the proposed permitting action may be eligible for a categorical exclusion pursuant to the Council on Environmental Quality's National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations, the Department of the Interior's (DOI) NEPA regulations, and the DOI Departmental Manual. To make this preliminary determination, we prepared a draft environmental action statement and low-effect screening form, both of which are also available for public review. We invite comment from the public and local, State, Tribal, and Federal agencies.