Notice2024-24261
Receipt of Incidental Take Permit Application and Proposed Habitat Conservation Plan for the Eastern Indigo Snake; Decatur County, GA; Categorical Exclusion
Primary source
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Published
October 21, 2024
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentFish and Wildlife Service
Abstract
We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce receipt of an application from Tri-State II Solar Project, LLC (applicant) for an incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act. The applicant requests the ITP to take the federally listed threatened eastern indigo snake incidental to the construction and operation of a solar facility in Decatur County, Georgia. 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.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 203 (Monday, October 21, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 203 (Monday, October 21, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 84186-84188]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-24261]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2024-0155; FXES11140400000-245-FF04EG1000]
Receipt of Incidental Take Permit Application and Proposed
Habitat Conservation Plan for the Eastern Indigo Snake; Decatur County,
GA; Categorical Exclusion
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments and information.
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SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce receipt
of an application from Tri-State II Solar Project, LLC (applicant) for
an incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act. The
applicant requests the ITP to take the federally listed threatened
eastern indigo snake incidental to the construction and operation of a
solar facility in Decatur
[[Page 84187]]
County, Georgia. 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.
DATES: We must receive your written comments on or before November 20,
2024.
ADDRESSES:
Obtaining Documents: The documents this notice announces, as well
as any comments and other materials that we receive, will be available
for public inspection online in Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2024-0155 at
<a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>.
Submitting Comments: If you wish to submit comments on any of the
documents, you may do so in writing by one of the following methods:
<bullet> Online: <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments on Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2024-0155.
<bullet> U.S. mail: Public Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No.
FWS-R4-ES-2024-0155; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS: PRB/3W; 5275
Leesburg Pike; Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michele Elmore, Georgia Ecological
Services Field Office, by phone at 706-613-9493 or via email at
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#eaadabafb9b58b999983999e8b84898faa8c9d99c48d859c"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="8ec9cfcbddd1effdfde7fdfaefe0edebcee8f9fda0e9e1f8">[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 Fish and Wildlife Service (Service),
announce receipt of an application from Tri-State II Solar Project, LLC
(applicant) for an incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered
Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). The
applicant requests the ITP to take the federally listed threatened
eastern indigo snake (Drymarchon couperi) incidental to the
construction and operation of a solar facility in Decatur County,
Georgia. We request public comment on the application, which includes
the applicant's habitat conservation plan (HCP), and on the Service's
preliminary determination that this proposed ITP qualifies as low
effect, and may qualify for a categorical exclusion pursuant to the
Council on Environmental Quality's National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA) regulations (40 CFR 1501.4), the Department of the Interior's
(DOI) NEPA regulations (43 CFR 46), and the DOI's Departmental Manual
(516 DM 8.5(C)(2)). 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.
Proposed Project
The applicant requests a 10-year ITP to take three eastern indigo
snakes and one nest via the conversion of approximately 600 acres (ac)
of occupied nesting, foraging, and sheltering habitat incidental to the
construction and operation of a solar facility on a 788-ac parcel. The
parcel is approximately 3 miles northwest of the city of Bainbridge,
Georgia, between Highways 27 and 84. The applicant proposes to avoid
and minimize take of the species to the greatest extent possible by
implementing the Service's standard protection measures for the eastern
indigo snake during implementation of activities associated with the
construction and operation of the solar facility. The applicant
proposes to mitigate for take of the eastern indigo snake by
contributing $157,500.00 to the Wildlife Foundation of Florida's
Eastern Indigo Snake Conservation Fund. These funds will be used for
the management or restoration of eastern indigo snake habitat, purchase
of occupied habitat, purchase of development rights of occupied
habitat, or a combination thereof, in Georgia. The Service would
require the applicant to provide the contribution of the funds prior to
engaging in any phase of the project.
Our Preliminary Determination
The Service has made a preliminary determination that the
applicant's proposed project, including the construction and operation
of the solar facility, would individually and cumulatively have a minor
effect on the eastern indigo snake and the human environment.
Therefore, we have preliminarily determined that the proposed ESA
section 10(a)(1)(B) permit would be a low-effect ITP that individually
or cumulatively would have a minor effect on eastern indigo snakes and
may qualify for application of a categorical exclusion pursuant to the
Council on Environmental Quality's NEPA regulations, DOI's NEPA
regulations, and the DOI Departmental Manual. A low-effect ITP is one
that would result in (1) minor or nonsignificant effects on species
covered in the HCP; (2) nonsignificant effects on the human
environment; and (3) impacts that, when added together with the impacts
of other past, present, and reasonable foreseeable actions, would not
result in significant cumulative effects to the human environment.
Next Steps
The Service will evaluate the application and the comments to
determine whether to issue the requested ITP. We will also conduct an
intra-Service consultation pursuant to section 7 of the ESA to evaluate
the effects of the proposed take. After considering the preceding and
other matters, we will determine whether the permit issuance criteria
of section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA have been met. If met, the Service
will issue ITP number PER12687707 to Tri-State II Solar Project, LLC.
Public Availability of Comments
Before including your address, phone number, email address, or
other personal identifying information in your comment, be aware that
your entire comment, including your personal identifying information,
may be made available to the public. If you submit a comment at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>, your entire comment, including any personal
identifying information, will be posted on the website. If you submit a
hardcopy comment that includes personal identifying information, such
as your address, phone number, or email address, you may request at the
top of your document that we withhold this information from public
review. However, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
Moreover, 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
The Service provides this notice under section 10(c) of the
Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and
[[Page 84188]]
its implementing regulations (50 CFR 17.32) and the National
Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and its implementing
regulations (40 CFR 1500-1508 and 43 CFR 46).
Peter Maholland,
Field Supervisor, Georgia Ecological Services Office.
[FR Doc. 2024-24261 Filed 10-18-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P
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