Proposed Safe Harbor Agreement for the California Red-Legged Frog and the California Tiger Salamander for Landowners Restoring and Enhancing Stock Ponds in Alameda County, CA, 52339-52340 [E6-14630]
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Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 171 / Tuesday, September 5, 2006 / Notices
pursuant to implementing regulations
for NEPA (40 CFR 1506.6).
Susan Moore,
Acting Field Supervisor, Sacramento Fish and
Wildlife Office, Sacramento, California.
[FR Doc. 06–7402 Filed 9–1–06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–55–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
Proposed Safe Harbor Agreement for
the California Red-Legged Frog and
the California Tiger Salamander for
Landowners Restoring and Enhancing
Stock Ponds in Alameda County, CA
Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability: receipt of
application; request for comments.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: This notice advises the public
that the Alameda County Resource
Conservation District (Applicant) has
applied to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service (Service) for an enhancement of
survival permit pursuant to Section
10(a)(1)(A) of the Endangered Species
Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The
permit application includes a proposed
Safe Harbor Agreement (Agreement)
between the Applicant and the Service
for the threatened California red-legged
frog (CRLF) (Rana aurora draytonii) and
the California tiger salamander (CTS)
(Ambystoma californiense). The
Agreement and permit application are
available for public comment.
DATES: Written comments should be
received on or before October 5, 2006.
ADDRESSES: Comments should be
addressed to Shannon Holbrook, U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service, Sacramento
Fish and Wildlife Office, 2800 Cottage
Way, W–2605, Sacramento, CA 95825,
or sent by facsimile to (916) 414–6712.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms.
Shannon Holbrook, Sacramento Fish
and Wildlife Office (see ADDRESSES);
telephone: (916) 414–6600.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Availability of Documents
sroberts on PROD1PC70 with NOTICES
You may obtain copies of the
documents for review by contacting the
individual named above. You may also
make an appointment to view the
documents at the above address during
normal business hours.
Background
Under a Safe Harbor Agreement,
participating landowners voluntarily
undertake management activities on
their property to enhance, restore, or
VerDate Aug<31>2005
17:24 Sep 01, 2006
Jkt 208001
maintain habitat benefiting species
listed under the Act. Safe Harbor
Agreements, and the subsequent
enhancement of survival permits that
are issued pursuant to Section
10(a)(1)(A) of the Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et
seq.), encourage private and other nonFederal property owners to implement
conservation efforts for listed species by
assuring property owners that they will
not be subjected to increased property
use restrictions as a result of their efforts
to attract listed species to their property,
or to increase the numbers or
distribution of listed species already on
their property. Application
requirements and issuance criteria for
enhancement of survival permits
through Safe Harbor Agreements are
found in 50 CFR 17.22(c).
We have worked with the Applicant
to develop this proposed Agreement for
the conservation of the CRLF and CTS
on private ranches in Alameda County,
California. The properties subject to this
Agreement consist of those non-Federal
lands in Alameda County, California, on
which existing stock ponds will be
restored and maintained pursuant to a
written agreement between the Natural
Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
and the landowner.
This Agreement provides for the
creation of a Program in which private
landowners (Program Participants), who
enter into written cooperative
agreements with the Applicant pursuant
to the terms of the Agreement, will
restore, enhance, and maintain stock
ponds in ways beneficial to the CRLF
and CTS. Such cooperative agreements
will be for a term of at least 10 years.
The proposed duration of the
Agreement is 50 years, and the proposed
term of the enhancement of survival
permit is 50 years. The Agreement fully
describes the proposed Program,
management activities to be undertaken
by Program Participants, and the
conservation benefits expected to be
gained for the CRLF and CTS.
Upon approval of this Agreement, and
consistent with the Service’s Safe
Harbor Policy published in the Federal
Register on June 17, 1999 (64 FR 32717),
the Service would issue a permit to the
Applicants authorizing take of CRLF
and CTS incidental to the
implementation of the management
activities specified in the cooperative
agreements, incidental to other lawful
uses of the properties, including normal,
routine land management activities, or
to return to pre-Agreement conditions.
To benefit the CRLF and CTS,
Program Participants will agree to
undertake management activities
specified in their written cooperative
agreements with the Applicant. Such
PO 00000
Frm 00023
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
52339
management activities shall provide for
the restoration and maintenance of an
existing stock pond. These practices
have been designed to achieve a high
degree of likelihood that the pond will
retain water through the rearing season
of the CRLF and CTS so as to allow
metamorphosis of their larvae,
vegetation and grazing management
appropriate to the conservation needs of
the species, effective control of nonnative predators, and related measures.
The object of such measures is to
enhance the potential of existing stock
ponds to serve as effective breeding sites
for the CRLF and CTS while
simultaneously providing water for use
by livestock. Take of CRLF or CTS
incidental to the aforementioned
activities is unlikely; however, it is
possible that in the course of such
activities or other lawful activities on
the enrolled property, a Program
Participant could incidentally take a
CRLF or CTS, thereby necessitating take
authority under the permit.
Both the CRLF and CTS rely on a
variety of habitats for various stages of
their life cycle, including pond and
riparian habitat, upland habitat, and
moist refuges. Pre-Agreement conditions
(baseline), consisting of the size of
existing ponds and riparian habitat,
acreage of appropriate upland habitat
and a characterization and location of
moist refuges associated with ponds,
shall be determined for each enrolled
property as provided in the Agreement.
In order to receive the above assurances
regarding incidental take of CRLF and
CTS, a Program Participant must
maintain baseline on the enrolled
property. The Agreement and requested
enhancement of survival permit will
allow each Program Participant to return
to baseline conditions after the end of
the term of the 10-year cooperative
agreement and prior to the expiration of
the 50-year permit, if so desired by the
Applicants.
Consistent with the Service’s Safe
Harbor Policy (64 FR 32717 et seq.), the
proposed Agreement and requested
permit also extend certain assurances to
those lands that are immediately
adjacent to lands on which restoration
activities occur. To receive such
assurances, a neighboring landowner
must enter into a written agreement
with the Service that specifies the
baseline conditions on the property.
This written agreement remains in effect
until the expiration of the 50-year
Agreement between the Applicant and
the Service and requires the neighboring
landowner to maintain the baseline
conditions established at the start of the
agreement.
E:\FR\FM\05SEN1.SGM
05SEN1
sroberts on PROD1PC70 with NOTICES
52340
Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 171 / Tuesday, September 5, 2006 / Notices
Public Review and Comments
The Service has made a preliminary
determination that the proposed
Agreement and permit application are
eligible for categorical exclusion under
the National Environmental Policy Act
of 1969 (NEPA). We explain the basis
for this determination in an
Environmental Action Statement, which
is also available for public review.
Individuals wishing copies of the
permit application, copies of our
preliminary Environmental Action
Statement, and/or copies of the full text
of the Agreement, including a map of
the proposed permit area, references,
and legal descriptions of the proposed
permit area, should contact the office
and personnel listed in the ADDRESSES
section above.
If you wish to comment on the permit
application or the Agreement, you may
submit your comments to the address
listed in the ADDRESSES section of this
document. Comments and materials
received, including names and
addresses of respondents, will be
available for public review, by
appointment, during normal business
hours at the address in the ADDRESSES
section above and will become part of
the public record, pursuant to section
10(c) of the Act. Individual respondents
may request that we withhold their
home address from the record, which
we will honor to the extent allowable by
law. There also may be circumstances in
which we would withhold from the
record a respondent’s identity, as
allowable by law. If you wish us to
withhold your name and/or address,
you must state this prominently at the
beginning of your comment.
Anonymous comments will not be
considered. All submissions from
organizations or businesses, and from
individuals identifying themselves as
representatives or officials of
organizations or businesses, are
available for public inspection in their
entirety.
We will evaluate this permit
application, associated documents, and
comments submitted thereon to
determine whether the permit
application meets the requirements of
section 10(a) of the Act and NEPA
regulations. If we determine that the
requirements are met, we will sign the
proposed Agreement and issue an
enhancement of survival permit under
section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Act to the
Applicants for take of the CRLF and
CTS incidental to otherwise lawful
activities in accordance with the terms
of the Agreement. We will not make our
final decision until after the end of the
30-day comment period and will fully
VerDate Aug<31>2005
17:24 Sep 01, 2006
Jkt 208001
consider all comments received during
the comment period.
The Service provides this notice
pursuant to section 10(c) of the Act and
pursuant to implementing regulations
for NEPA (40 CFR 1506.6).
Susan Moore,
Acting Field Supervisor, Sacramento Fish and
Wildlife Office, Sacramento, California.
[FR Doc. E6–14630 Filed 9–1–06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–55–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[ID 220 5101 ER D025]
Notice of Availability of the Record of
Decision for the Cotterel Wind Power
Project and Cassia Resource
Management Plan Amendment/
Environmental Impact Statement
AGENCY: Lead Agency—Bureau of Land
Management, Interior; Cooperating
Agencies—U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, Interior; Bureau of Reclamation,
Interior; Bonneville Power
Administration, Energy; Idaho
Department of Lands; Cassia County
Commissioners; Participating Agency—
Idaho Department of Fish and Game.
ACTION: Notice of availability of a
Record of Decision (ROD).
SUMMARY: In accordance with the
Federal Land Policy and Management
Act of 1976 and the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969, the
Bureau of Land Management announces
the availability of the ROD for the Cassia
Resource Management Plan
Amendment/Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS) for the Cotterel Wind
Power Project, located in south central
Idaho. The decision contained in the
ROD is two-fold. It approves both the
amendment to the Cassia Resource
Management Plan and the issuance of a
right-of-way grant pursuant to Title V of
the Federal Land Policy and
Management Act of 1976.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the Cotterel Wind
Power Project ROD are available upon
request from the Field Office Manager,
Burley Field Office, Bureau of Land
Management, 15 East 200 South, Burley,
ID 83318. The document may also be
viewed on the following Web site:
https://www.id.blm.gov/offices/burley/
index.htm.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Scott Barker, Project Manager, Burley
Field Office, Bureau of Land
Management, 15 East 200 South, Burley,
ID 83318, phone (208) 677–6678, fax
PO 00000
Frm 00024
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
(208) 677–6699 or e-mail:
Scott_Barker@blm.gov.
Windland,
Inc. proposes to construct, operate, and
maintain a wind-powered electric
generation facility on the ridgeline of
Cotterel Mountain, near the towns of
Albion, Malta, and Burley in south
central Idaho. Windland, Inc. has a
development agreement with Shell
Wind Energy, Inc. for this project.
Four alternatives were analyzed in a
four-year collaborative process to arrive
at the decisions contained in the ROD.
The approved Cassia Resource
Management Plan Amendment permits
the development of a single wind energy
project as described in Alternative C of
the Final Environmental Impact
Statement, published in March 2006,
and in the Plan of Development (POD)
and environmental protection measures,
which are attached to and made a part
of the ROD.
BLM received eight protests to the
proposed plan amendment, all of which
have been resolved. The Governor
determined this project EIS and plan
amendment are both consistent with
State policy by letter dated May 30,
2006.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Dated: July 31, 2006.
Kenneth E. Miller,
Burley Field Office Manager, Bureau of Land
Management.
[FR Doc. E6–14647 Filed 9–1–06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–GG–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[MT–066–1220–AL]
Notice of Relocation/Change of
Address/Office Closure; Montana
Bureau of Land Management;
Interior.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
September 15, 2006.
June
Bailey, Lewistown Field Manager, 406/
538–1900, BLM Lewistown Field Office,
920 NE Main Street, Lewistown,
Montana 59457.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On
September 15, 2006, the Bureau of Land
Management’s Fort Benton River
Management Station, the Fort Benton
Visitor Contact Station and the Fort
Benton Law Enforcement Ranger will
move/relocate their offices to the Upper
Missouri River Breaks National
Monument Interpretive Center, at 701
7th Street in Fort Benton, Montana
59442. The following business practices
EFFECTIVE DATE:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
E:\FR\FM\05SEN1.SGM
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 171 (Tuesday, September 5, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52339-52340]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-14630]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
Proposed Safe Harbor Agreement for the California Red-Legged Frog
and the California Tiger Salamander for Landowners Restoring and
Enhancing Stock Ponds in Alameda County, CA
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability: receipt of application; request for
comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This notice advises the public that the Alameda County
Resource Conservation District (Applicant) has applied to the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service (Service) for an enhancement of survival permit
pursuant to Section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973,
as amended (Act). The permit application includes a proposed Safe
Harbor Agreement (Agreement) between the Applicant and the Service for
the threatened California red-legged frog (CRLF) (Rana aurora
draytonii) and the California tiger salamander (CTS) (Ambystoma
californiense). The Agreement and permit application are available for
public comment.
DATES: Written comments should be received on or before October 5,
2006.
ADDRESSES: Comments should be addressed to Shannon Holbrook, U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service, Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office, 2800 Cottage
Way, W-2605, Sacramento, CA 95825, or sent by facsimile to (916) 414-
6712.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Shannon Holbrook, Sacramento Fish
and Wildlife Office (see ADDRESSES); telephone: (916) 414-6600.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Availability of Documents
You may obtain copies of the documents for review by contacting the
individual named above. You may also make an appointment to view the
documents at the above address during normal business hours.
Background
Under a Safe Harbor Agreement, participating landowners voluntarily
undertake management activities on their property to enhance, restore,
or maintain habitat benefiting species listed under the Act. Safe
Harbor Agreements, and the subsequent enhancement of survival permits
that are issued pursuant to Section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Act (16 U.S.C.
1531 et seq.), encourage private and other non-Federal property owners
to implement conservation efforts for listed species by assuring
property owners that they will not be subjected to increased property
use restrictions as a result of their efforts to attract listed species
to their property, or to increase the numbers or distribution of listed
species already on their property. Application requirements and
issuance criteria for enhancement of survival permits through Safe
Harbor Agreements are found in 50 CFR 17.22(c).
We have worked with the Applicant to develop this proposed
Agreement for the conservation of the CRLF and CTS on private ranches
in Alameda County, California. The properties subject to this Agreement
consist of those non-Federal lands in Alameda County, California, on
which existing stock ponds will be restored and maintained pursuant to
a written agreement between the Natural Resources Conservation Service
(NRCS) and the landowner.
This Agreement provides for the creation of a Program in which
private landowners (Program Participants), who enter into written
cooperative agreements with the Applicant pursuant to the terms of the
Agreement, will restore, enhance, and maintain stock ponds in ways
beneficial to the CRLF and CTS. Such cooperative agreements will be for
a term of at least 10 years. The proposed duration of the Agreement is
50 years, and the proposed term of the enhancement of survival permit
is 50 years. The Agreement fully describes the proposed Program,
management activities to be undertaken by Program Participants, and the
conservation benefits expected to be gained for the CRLF and CTS.
Upon approval of this Agreement, and consistent with the Service's
Safe Harbor Policy published in the Federal Register on June 17, 1999
(64 FR 32717), the Service would issue a permit to the Applicants
authorizing take of CRLF and CTS incidental to the implementation of
the management activities specified in the cooperative agreements,
incidental to other lawful uses of the properties, including normal,
routine land management activities, or to return to pre-Agreement
conditions.
To benefit the CRLF and CTS, Program Participants will agree to
undertake management activities specified in their written cooperative
agreements with the Applicant. Such management activities shall provide
for the restoration and maintenance of an existing stock pond. These
practices have been designed to achieve a high degree of likelihood
that the pond will retain water through the rearing season of the CRLF
and CTS so as to allow metamorphosis of their larvae, vegetation and
grazing management appropriate to the conservation needs of the
species, effective control of non-native predators, and related
measures. The object of such measures is to enhance the potential of
existing stock ponds to serve as effective breeding sites for the CRLF
and CTS while simultaneously providing water for use by livestock. Take
of CRLF or CTS incidental to the aforementioned activities is unlikely;
however, it is possible that in the course of such activities or other
lawful activities on the enrolled property, a Program Participant could
incidentally take a CRLF or CTS, thereby necessitating take authority
under the permit.
Both the CRLF and CTS rely on a variety of habitats for various
stages of their life cycle, including pond and riparian habitat, upland
habitat, and moist refuges. Pre-Agreement conditions (baseline),
consisting of the size of existing ponds and riparian habitat, acreage
of appropriate upland habitat and a characterization and location of
moist refuges associated with ponds, shall be determined for each
enrolled property as provided in the Agreement. In order to receive the
above assurances regarding incidental take of CRLF and CTS, a Program
Participant must maintain baseline on the enrolled property. The
Agreement and requested enhancement of survival permit will allow each
Program Participant to return to baseline conditions after the end of
the term of the 10-year cooperative agreement and prior to the
expiration of the 50-year permit, if so desired by the Applicants.
Consistent with the Service's Safe Harbor Policy (64 FR 32717 et
seq.), the proposed Agreement and requested permit also extend certain
assurances to those lands that are immediately adjacent to lands on
which restoration activities occur. To receive such assurances, a
neighboring landowner must enter into a written agreement with the
Service that specifies the baseline conditions on the property. This
written agreement remains in effect until the expiration of the 50-year
Agreement between the Applicant and the Service and requires the
neighboring landowner to maintain the baseline conditions established
at the start of the agreement.
[[Page 52340]]
Public Review and Comments
The Service has made a preliminary determination that the proposed
Agreement and permit application are eligible for categorical exclusion
under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). We explain
the basis for this determination in an Environmental Action Statement,
which is also available for public review.
Individuals wishing copies of the permit application, copies of our
preliminary Environmental Action Statement, and/or copies of the full
text of the Agreement, including a map of the proposed permit area,
references, and legal descriptions of the proposed permit area, should
contact the office and personnel listed in the ADDRESSES section above.
If you wish to comment on the permit application or the Agreement,
you may submit your comments to the address listed in the ADDRESSES
section of this document. Comments and materials received, including
names and addresses of respondents, will be available for public
review, by appointment, during normal business hours at the address in
the ADDRESSES section above and will become part of the public record,
pursuant to section 10(c) of the Act. Individual respondents may
request that we withhold their home address from the record, which we
will honor to the extent allowable by law. There also may be
circumstances in which we would withhold from the record a respondent's
identity, as allowable by law. If you wish us to withhold your name
and/or address, you must state this prominently at the beginning of
your comment. Anonymous comments will not be considered. All
submissions from organizations or businesses, and from individuals
identifying themselves as representatives or officials of organizations
or businesses, are available for public inspection in their entirety.
We will evaluate this permit application, associated documents, and
comments submitted thereon to determine whether the permit application
meets the requirements of section 10(a) of the Act and NEPA
regulations. If we determine that the requirements are met, we will
sign the proposed Agreement and issue an enhancement of survival permit
under section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Act to the Applicants for take of the
CRLF and CTS incidental to otherwise lawful activities in accordance
with the terms of the Agreement. We will not make our final decision
until after the end of the 30-day comment period and will fully
consider all comments received during the comment period.
The Service provides this notice pursuant to section 10(c) of the
Act and pursuant to implementing regulations for NEPA (40 CFR 1506.6).
Susan Moore,
Acting Field Supervisor, Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office,
Sacramento, California.
[FR Doc. E6-14630 Filed 9-1-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P
