Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; NewMark Merrill Companies Incidental Take Permit Application and Proposed Low-Effect Habitat Conservation Plan and Associated Documents; San Bernardino County, CA, 43062-43064 [2014-17407]
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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 142 / Thursday, July 24, 2014 / Notices
tribal sovereignty in American Indian
education and how to improve
educational outcomes for students at
BIE-funded schools. Overall, the Study
Group met with nearly 400 individuals
and received nearly 200 comments that
helped it prepare the draft framework
for educational reform that became the
subject of four tribal consultation
sessions held in April and May of 2014.
The Study Group incorporated feedback
it received from tribal leaders and other
BIE stakeholders into the final Blueprint
for Reform, released on June 13, 2014.
Acting on the recommendations in the
Blueprint, BIE will award competitive
grants to tribes and their tribal
education agencies to promote tribal
control and operation of BIE-funded
schools on their Indian reservations.
The purpose of the grants is to support
the tribe’s capacity to manage and
operate tribally controlled schools as
defined in the Tribally Controlled
Schools Act of 1988 (Pub. L. 100–297).
These funds will (a) support
development of a school-reform plan to
improve educational outcomes for
students and (b) improve efficiencies
and effectiveness in the operation of
BIE-funded schools within a
reservation.
Grant awards will range from
$100,000 to $200,000 per fiscal year
depending on the number of schools
involved, number of students,
complexity of creating new tribally
managed school system and the tribe’s
technical approach. The grants will
provide funds for the tribe to:
• Develop an implementation plan
that will reform a tribe’s current
organizational structure towards an
expert and independent tribal education
agency that will support schools and
students; and
• Cover the execution of the
implementation plan with identified
staffing, projected timelines, proposed
budgets, and activities.
BIE is seeking proposals from tribes
that support efforts to take control and
operate BIE-funded schools located on
the tribe’s reservation. Each proposal
must include a project narrative, a
budget narrative, a work plan outline,
and a Project Director to manage the
execution of the grant. The Project
Directors will participate in monthly
collaboration meetings, submit quarterly
budget updates, ensure an annual report
is submitted at the end of each project
year, and ultimately ensure that the
tribal education agency fulfills the
obligations of the grant. Complete
details on requirements for proposals
and the evaluation and selection process
can be found on the BIE Web site at the
VerDate Mar<15>2010
18:03 Jul 23, 2014
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address in the ADDRESSES section of this
notice.
The grant proposal is due September
12, 2014, at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The
proposal should be packaged for
delivery to permit timely arrival. The
proposal package should be sent or
hand delivered to the address in the
ADDRESSES section of this notice.
Fax applications will NOT be
accepted. Email submissions will be
accepted at the address in the
ADDRESSES section of this notice. Email
submissions are limited to attachments
compatible with Microsoft Office Word
2007 or later or files with a .pdf file
extension. Emailed submissions must
not exceed 3MB total in size.
Proposals submitted by Federal
Express or Express Mail should be sent
two or more days before the closing
date. The proposal package should be
sent to the address shown in the
ADDRESSES section of this notice. The
tribe is solely responsible for ensuring
that its proposal arrives in a timely
manner.
Dated: July 16, 2014.
Kevin K. Washburn,
Assistant Secretary, Indian Affairs.
[FR Doc. 2014–17397 Filed 7–23–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–4N–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS–R8–ES–2014–N151; FXES11120000–
145–FF08ECAR00]
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife
and Plants; NewMark Merrill
Companies Incidental Take Permit
Application and Proposed Low-Effect
Habitat Conservation Plan and
Associated Documents; San
Bernardino County, CA
Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request
for comments.
AGENCY:
We, the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service (Service), have received
an application from NewMark Merrill
Companies (applicant) for a 5-year
incidental take permit (permit). The
application includes the applicant’s
proposed habitat conservation plan
(HCP), as required by the Endangered
Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act).
If approved, the permit would authorize
incidental take of the endangered Delhi
Sands flower-loving fly in the course of
routine construction activities
associated with the construction of a
commercial retail development bounded
by West San Bernardino Avenue,
SUMMARY:
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Riverside Avenue, and Willow Avenue
in the City of Rialto, California. We
invite public comment on the permit
application and proposed HCP, and on
our preliminary determination that the
HCP qualifies as ‘‘low-effect’’ for a
categorical exclusion under the National
Environmental Policy Act. To make this
determination, we used our
environmental action statement and
low-effect screening form, which are
also available for review.
DATES: To ensure consideration, please
send your written comments by August
25, 2014.
ADDRESSES: Obtaining Documents: You
may request a copy of the incidental
take permit application, proposed HCP,
and associated documents by email,
telephone, fax, or U.S. mail (see below).
These documents are also available for
public inspection by appointment
during normal business hours at the
office below. Please send your requests
or comments by any one of the
following methods, and specify
‘‘Walmart Commercial Retail HCP’’ in
your request or comment.
Submitting Comments: You may
submit comments or requests for more
information by any of the following
methods:
Email: ken_corey@fws.gov. Include
‘‘Walmart Commercial Retail HCP’’ in
the subject line of your message.
Telephone: Kennon A. Corey, Palm
Springs Fish and Wildlife Office, 760–
322–2070.
Fax: Kennon A. Corey, Palm Springs
Fish and Wildlife Office, 760–322–4648,
Attn.: Walmart Commercial Retail HCP.
U.S. Mail: Kennon A. Corey, Palm
Springs Fish and Wildlife Office, Attn.:
Walmart Commercial Retail HCP, U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service, 777 East
Tahquitz Canyon Way, Suite 208, Palm
Springs, CA 92262.
In-Person Viewing or Pickup of
Documents, or Delivery of Comments:
Call 760–322–2070 to make an
appointment during regular business
hours at the above address.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Kennon A. Corey, Assistant Field
Supervisor, Palm Springs Fish and
Wildlife Office; telephone 760–332–
2070. If you use a telecommunications
device for the deaf (TDD), please call the
Federal Information Relay Service
(FIRS) at 800–877–8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Introduction
The applicant, NewMark Merrill
Companies, requests an incidental take
permit under section 10(a)(1)(B) of the
Act. If we approve the permit, the
applicant anticipates taking Delhi Sands
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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 142 / Thursday, July 24, 2014 / Notices
flower-loving fly (Rhaphiomidas
terminatus abdominalis) as a result of
minor disturbances to habitat the
subspecies uses for breeding, feeding,
and sheltering. Take of Delhi Sands
flower-loving fly would be incidental to
the applicant’s routine activities
associated with the construction of a
commercial retail facility in the City of
Rialto, San Bernardino County,
California. We published a final rule to
list the Delhi Sands flower-loving fly as
endangered on September 23, 1993 (58
FR 49881). A 5-year review of the
species was published in March 2008.
emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Background
Section 9 of the Act (16 U.S.C. 1531
et seq.) and our implementing Federal
regulations in the Code of Federal
Regulations (CFR) at 50 CFR 17 prohibit
the ‘‘take’’ of wildlife species listed as
endangered or threatened. Take of listed
wildlife is defined under the Act as ‘‘to
harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot,
wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect
listed species, or to attempt to engage in
any such conduct’’ (16 U.S.C. 1538).
‘‘Harm’’ includes significant habitat
modification or degradation that
actually kills or injures listed wildlife
by significantly impairing essential
behavioral patterns such as breeding,
feeding, or sheltering (50 CFR 17.3).
Under limited circumstances, we may
issue permits to authorize incidental
take of listed wildlife species, which the
Act defines as take that is incidental to,
and not the purpose of, the carrying out
of otherwise lawful activities.
Regulations governing incidental take
permits for threatened and endangered
species are at 50 CFR 17.32 and 17.22,
respectively. In addition to meeting
other criteria, activities covered by an
incidental take permit must not
jeopardize the continued existence in
the wild of federally listed wildlife or
plants.
Applicant’s Proposal
The applicant requests a 5-year permit
under section 10(a)(1)(B) of the Act. If
we approve the permit, the applicant
anticipates taking Delhi Sands flowerloving fly (Rhaphiomidas terminatus
abdominalis) as a result of the building
of a commercial retail facility which
would permanently impact 2.4 acres of
low-quality habitat for the subspecies.
The take would be incidental to the
applicant’s routine construction
activities associated with the
construction of the commercial retail
facility, south of West San Bernardino
Avenue, east of South Willow Avenue,
and west of South Riverside Avenue, in
the City of Rialto, San Bernardino
County, California.
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18:03 Jul 23, 2014
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A portion of the commercial retail
facility project is on Delhi Sands soils.
This soil type, which consists of fine
wind-blown sand deposits, along with
sparse native shrubs and annual plants,
defines the Delhi Sands flower-loving
fly habitat. A single male Delhi Sands
flower-loving fly was detected on the
site during pre-project surveys. Less
than 5 percent of the species’ historic
range is left, found in a few disjunct
locations in southwestern San
Bernardino and northwestern Riverside
Counties. Development and exclusion
by invasive plant species continue to be
threats to this species. Conservation
banks, like the Colton Dunes
Conservation Bank, are this species’ best
chance at recovery.
To mitigate for take of the Delhi Sands
flower-loving fly at the proposed project
site, the applicant proposes to mitigate
for the permanent take of 2.4 acres of
low quality habitat by preserving 2 acres
of habitat occupied by the subspecies.
The applicant’s proposed HCP also
contains the following proposed
measures to minimize the impact to the
habitat adjacent to the street
improvements:
• Fence work areas to exclude
personnel from areas where habitat may
be impacted.
• Require environmental awareness
training for all workers.
• Confine construction activities to
the project site and existing developed
areas.
• Require that all construction
activities be completed during the time
period October through June only (i.e.,
outside of the Delhi Sands flower-loving
fly flight season, with a 2-week buffer
on either side).
Proposed Habitat Conservation Plan
Alternatives
In the proposed HCP, the applicant
considers alternatives to the taking of
Delhi Sands flower-loving fly under the
proposed action. Our proposed action
under the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 is to issue an
incidental take permit to the applicant,
who would implement the HCP. If we
approve the permit, take of Delhi Sands
flower-loving fly would be authorized
for the applicant’s routine construction
activities associated with the
development. The applicant’s proposed
HCP identifies a no-action alternative
that would not result in incidental take
of Delhi Sands flower-loving fly.
However, the no-action alternative
would not contribute to the applicant’s
plans for expanding Walmart’s retail
opportunities in the Rialto area. In
addition, we consider that conserving
lands in the Colton Dunes Conservation
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43063
Bank is of higher conservation value
than simply avoiding impacts at the
proposed project site. The habitat at the
proposed project site is degraded and
fragmented from other habitat by roads.
By contrast, the Conservation Bank is a
150-acre area of high-quality habitat
occupied by the Delhi Sands flowerloving fly which is actively managed for
the subspecies and is contiguous to
other conservation lands.
Our Preliminary Determination
We invite comments on our
preliminary determination that our
proposed action, based on the
applicant’s proposed activities,
including the proposed minimization
and mitigation measures, would have a
minor or negligible effect on Delhi
Sands flower-loving fly, and that the
HCP qualifies as ‘‘low effect’’ as defined
by our Habitat Conservation Planning
Handbook (November 1996).
We base our determination that a HCP
qualifies as a low-effect plan on the
following three criteria:
(1) Implementation of the HCP would
result in minor or negligible effects on
federally listed, proposed, and
candidate species and their habitats;
(2) Implementation of the HCP would
result in minor or negligible effects on
other environmental values or
resources; and
(3) Impacts of the HCP, considered
together with the impacts of other past,
present, and reasonably foreseeable
similarly situated projects, would not
result, over time, in cumulative effects
to environmental values or resources
that would be considered significant.
As more fully explained in our
environmental action statement and
associated low-effect screening form, the
applicant’s proposed HCP qualifies as a
low-effect HCP for the following
reasons:
• The project would have minor or
negligible effects on the Delhi Sands
flower-loving fly because the lowquality impacted area would be small in
size, would be mitigated by the
purchase of conservation credits in the
Colton Dunes Conservation Bank, and
would not affect the continued viability
of the Delhi Sands flower-loving fly in
the Colton Recovery Unit.
• The project would have minor or
negligible effects on other
environmental resources or values
because it is a highly disturbed site with
no other known sensitive species or
resources.
• Impacts of the HCP would not
result, over time, in cumulative effects
to other significant environmental
values or resources, because it is a
relatively small infill project and
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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 142 / Thursday, July 24, 2014 / Notices
mitigation measures were developed
and will be implemented as part of
project approval by the City of Rialto to
address the identified environmental
effects. The mitigation measures include
preservation of 2 acres of occupied
Delhi Sands flower-loving fly habitat
within the Colton Dunes Conservation
Bank to offset impacts to the subspecies.
Therefore, our proposed issuance of
the requested incidental take permit
qualifies as a categorical exclusion
under NEPA, as provided by the
Department of the Interior Manual (516
DM 2 Appendix 1, 516 DM 6 Appendix
1, and 516 DM 8.5(C)(2)). Based on our
review of public comments that we
receive in response to this notice, we
may revise this preliminary
determination.
Next Steps
Public Comments
If you wish to comment on the permit
application, proposed HCP, and
associated documents, you may submit
comments by any of the methods noted
in the ADDRESSES section.
Public Availability of Comments
emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Applicants
We provide this notice under section
10 of the Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.)
and NEPA regulations (40 CFR 1506.6).
Permit No. TE–837448
Applicant: Douglas W. Allen, San Diego,
California
The applicant requests an amendment
to a permit to take (capture, collect,
transport, hatch, identify, and rear) the
Riverside fairy shrimp (Streptocephalus
woottoni) and San Diego fairy shrimp
(Branchinecta sandiegonensis), in
conjunction with fairy shrimp cyst
identification activities throughout the
range of each species in California for
the purpose of enhancing the species’
survival.
G. Mendel Stewart,
Field Supervisor, Carlsbad Fish and Wildlife
Office, Carlsbad, California.
[FR Doc. 2014–17407 Filed 7–23–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510–55–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS–R8–ES–2014–N144;
FXES11130800000–145–FF08E00000]
Endangered Species Recovery Permit
Applications
AGENCY:
We will evaluate the proposed HCP
and comments we receive to determine
whether the permit application meets
the requirements and issuance criteria
under section 10(a) of the Act. We will
also evaluate whether issuance of a
section 10(a)(1)(B) incidental take
permit would comply with section 7 of
the Act by conducting an internal
Service consultation. We will use the
results of this consultation, in
combination with the above findings, in
our final analysis to determine whether
or not to issue a permit. If the
requirements and issuance criteria
under section 10(a) are met, we will
issue the permit to the applicant for
incidental take of Delhi Sands flowerloving fly.
Before including your address, phone
number, email address, or other
personal identifying information in your
comment, you should be aware that
your entire comment—including your
personal identifying information—may
be made publicly available at any time.
While you may 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.
VerDate Mar<15>2010
Authority
18:03 Jul 23, 2014
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Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
Notice of receipt of permit
applications; request for comment.
ACTION:
We, the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service, invite the public to
comment on the following applications
to conduct certain activities with
endangered species. With some
exceptions, the Endangered Species Act
(Act) prohibits activities with
endangered and threatened species
unless a Federal permit allows such
activity. The Act also requires that we
invite public comment before issuing
recovery permits to conduct certain
activities with endangered species.
SUMMARY:
Comments on these permit
applications must be received on or
before August 25, 2014.
DATES:
Written data or comments
should be submitted to the Endangered
Species Program Manager, U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service, Region 8, 2800 Cottage
Way, Room W–2606, Sacramento, CA
95825 (telephone: 916–414–6464; fax:
916–414–6486). Please refer to the
respective permit number for each
application when submitting comments.
ADDRESSES:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Daniel Marquez, Fish and Wildlife
Biologist; see ADDRESSES (telephone:
760–431–9440; fax: 760–431–9624).
The
following applicants have applied for
scientific research permits to conduct
certain activities with endangered
species under section 10(a)(1)(A) of the
Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). We seek
review and comment from local, State,
and Federal agencies and the public on
the following permit requests.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
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Permit No. TE–034101
Applicant: Naval Facilities Engineering
Command, Southwest, San Diego,
California
The applicant requests a permit
renewal to take (harass by survey, locate
and monitor nests, capture, band, colorband, measure, and release) the coastal
California gnatcatcher (Polioptila
californica californica), western snowy
plover (Pacific Coast population Distinct
Population Segment (DPS)) (Charadrius
nivosus nivosus), and California least
tern (Sternula antillarum browni)
(Sterna a. browni); take (harass by
survey and locate and monitor nests) the
southwestern willow flycatcher
(Empidonax traillii extimus); take
(locate and monitor nests) the least
Bell’s vireo (Vireo bellii pusillus); take
(capture, collect, and collect vouchers)
the Riverside fairy shrimp
(Streptocephalus woottoni), San Diego
fairy shrimp (Branchinecta
sandiegonensis), and vernal pool
tadpole shrimp (Lepidurus packardi);
and take (harass by survey) the Quino
checkerspot butterfly (Euphydryas
editha quino), in conjunction with
surveys and population monitoring
activities throughout the range of each
species in California for the purpose of
enhancing the species’ survival.
Permit No. TE–33292B
Applicant: Tehama Environmental
Solutions, Inc., Tehama, California
The applicant requests a permit to
take (capture, collect, and collect
vouchers) the Conservancy fairy shrimp
(Branchinecta conservatio), longhorn
fairy shrimp (Branchinecta
longiantenna), Riverside fairy shrimp
(Streptocephalus woottoni), San Diego
fairy shrimp (Branchinecta
sandiegonensis), and vernal pool
tadpole shrimp (Lepidurus packardi) in
conjunction with survey activities
throughout the range of each species in
California for the purpose of enhancing
the species’ survival.
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 142 (Thursday, July 24, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43062-43064]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-17407]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R8-ES-2014-N151; FXES11120000-145-FF08ECAR00]
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; NewMark Merrill
Companies Incidental Take Permit Application and Proposed Low-Effect
Habitat Conservation Plan and Associated Documents; San Bernardino
County, CA
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), have
received an application from NewMark Merrill Companies (applicant) for
a 5-year incidental take permit (permit). The application includes the
applicant's proposed habitat conservation plan (HCP), as required by
the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). If approved, the
permit would authorize incidental take of the endangered Delhi Sands
flower-loving fly in the course of routine construction activities
associated with the construction of a commercial retail development
bounded by West San Bernardino Avenue, Riverside Avenue, and Willow
Avenue in the City of Rialto, California. We invite public comment on
the permit application and proposed HCP, and on our preliminary
determination that the HCP qualifies as ``low-effect'' for a
categorical exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act. To
make this determination, we used our environmental action statement and
low-effect screening form, which are also available for review.
DATES: To ensure consideration, please send your written comments by
August 25, 2014.
ADDRESSES: Obtaining Documents: You may request a copy of the
incidental take permit application, proposed HCP, and associated
documents by email, telephone, fax, or U.S. mail (see below). These
documents are also available for public inspection by appointment
during normal business hours at the office below. Please send your
requests or comments by any one of the following methods, and specify
``Walmart Commercial Retail HCP'' in your request or comment.
Submitting Comments: You may submit comments or requests for more
information by any of the following methods:
Email: ken_corey@fws.gov. Include ``Walmart Commercial Retail
HCP'' in the subject line of your message.
Telephone: Kennon A. Corey, Palm Springs Fish and Wildlife Office,
760-322-2070.
Fax: Kennon A. Corey, Palm Springs Fish and Wildlife Office, 760-
322-4648, Attn.: Walmart Commercial Retail HCP.
U.S. Mail: Kennon A. Corey, Palm Springs Fish and Wildlife Office,
Attn.: Walmart Commercial Retail HCP, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
777 East Tahquitz Canyon Way, Suite 208, Palm Springs, CA 92262.
In-Person Viewing or Pickup of Documents, or Delivery of Comments:
Call 760-322-2070 to make an appointment during regular business hours
at the above address.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kennon A. Corey, Assistant Field
Supervisor, Palm Springs Fish and Wildlife Office; telephone 760-332-
2070. If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), please
call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 800-877-8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Introduction
The applicant, NewMark Merrill Companies, requests an incidental
take permit under section 10(a)(1)(B) of the Act. If we approve the
permit, the applicant anticipates taking Delhi Sands
[[Page 43063]]
flower-loving fly (Rhaphiomidas terminatus abdominalis) as a result of
minor disturbances to habitat the subspecies uses for breeding,
feeding, and sheltering. Take of Delhi Sands flower-loving fly would be
incidental to the applicant's routine activities associated with the
construction of a commercial retail facility in the City of Rialto, San
Bernardino County, California. We published a final rule to list the
Delhi Sands flower-loving fly as endangered on September 23, 1993 (58
FR 49881). A 5-year review of the species was published in March 2008.
Background
Section 9 of the Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and our implementing
Federal regulations in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) at 50 CFR
17 prohibit the ``take'' of wildlife species listed as endangered or
threatened. Take of listed wildlife is defined under the Act as ``to
harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or
collect listed species, or to attempt to engage in any such conduct''
(16 U.S.C. 1538). ``Harm'' includes significant habitat modification or
degradation that actually kills or injures listed wildlife by
significantly impairing essential behavioral patterns such as breeding,
feeding, or sheltering (50 CFR 17.3). Under limited circumstances, we
may issue permits to authorize incidental take of listed wildlife
species, which the Act defines as take that is incidental to, and not
the purpose of, the carrying out of otherwise lawful activities.
Regulations governing incidental take permits for threatened and
endangered species are at 50 CFR 17.32 and 17.22, respectively. In
addition to meeting other criteria, activities covered by an incidental
take permit must not jeopardize the continued existence in the wild of
federally listed wildlife or plants.
Applicant's Proposal
The applicant requests a 5-year permit under section 10(a)(1)(B) of
the Act. If we approve the permit, the applicant anticipates taking
Delhi Sands flower-loving fly (Rhaphiomidas terminatus abdominalis) as
a result of the building of a commercial retail facility which would
permanently impact 2.4 acres of low-quality habitat for the subspecies.
The take would be incidental to the applicant's routine construction
activities associated with the construction of the commercial retail
facility, south of West San Bernardino Avenue, east of South Willow
Avenue, and west of South Riverside Avenue, in the City of Rialto, San
Bernardino County, California.
A portion of the commercial retail facility project is on Delhi
Sands soils. This soil type, which consists of fine wind-blown sand
deposits, along with sparse native shrubs and annual plants, defines
the Delhi Sands flower-loving fly habitat. A single male Delhi Sands
flower-loving fly was detected on the site during pre-project surveys.
Less than 5 percent of the species' historic range is left, found in a
few disjunct locations in southwestern San Bernardino and northwestern
Riverside Counties. Development and exclusion by invasive plant species
continue to be threats to this species. Conservation banks, like the
Colton Dunes Conservation Bank, are this species' best chance at
recovery.
To mitigate for take of the Delhi Sands flower-loving fly at the
proposed project site, the applicant proposes to mitigate for the
permanent take of 2.4 acres of low quality habitat by preserving 2
acres of habitat occupied by the subspecies. The applicant's proposed
HCP also contains the following proposed measures to minimize the
impact to the habitat adjacent to the street improvements:
Fence work areas to exclude personnel from areas where
habitat may be impacted.
Require environmental awareness training for all workers.
Confine construction activities to the project site and
existing developed areas.
Require that all construction activities be completed
during the time period October through June only (i.e., outside of the
Delhi Sands flower-loving fly flight season, with a 2-week buffer on
either side).
Proposed Habitat Conservation Plan Alternatives
In the proposed HCP, the applicant considers alternatives to the
taking of Delhi Sands flower-loving fly under the proposed action. Our
proposed action under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of
1969 is to issue an incidental take permit to the applicant, who would
implement the HCP. If we approve the permit, take of Delhi Sands
flower-loving fly would be authorized for the applicant's routine
construction activities associated with the development. The
applicant's proposed HCP identifies a no-action alternative that would
not result in incidental take of Delhi Sands flower-loving fly.
However, the no-action alternative would not contribute to the
applicant's plans for expanding Walmart's retail opportunities in the
Rialto area. In addition, we consider that conserving lands in the
Colton Dunes Conservation Bank is of higher conservation value than
simply avoiding impacts at the proposed project site. The habitat at
the proposed project site is degraded and fragmented from other habitat
by roads. By contrast, the Conservation Bank is a 150-acre area of
high-quality habitat occupied by the Delhi Sands flower-loving fly
which is actively managed for the subspecies and is contiguous to other
conservation lands.
Our Preliminary Determination
We invite comments on our preliminary determination that our
proposed action, based on the applicant's proposed activities,
including the proposed minimization and mitigation measures, would have
a minor or negligible effect on Delhi Sands flower-loving fly, and that
the HCP qualifies as ``low effect'' as defined by our Habitat
Conservation Planning Handbook (November 1996).
We base our determination that a HCP qualifies as a low-effect plan
on the following three criteria:
(1) Implementation of the HCP would result in minor or negligible
effects on federally listed, proposed, and candidate species and their
habitats;
(2) Implementation of the HCP would result in minor or negligible
effects on other environmental values or resources; and
(3) Impacts of the HCP, considered together with the impacts of
other past, present, and reasonably foreseeable similarly situated
projects, would not result, over time, in cumulative effects to
environmental values or resources that would be considered significant.
As more fully explained in our environmental action statement and
associated low-effect screening form, the applicant's proposed HCP
qualifies as a low-effect HCP for the following reasons:
The project would have minor or negligible effects on the
Delhi Sands flower-loving fly because the low-quality impacted area
would be small in size, would be mitigated by the purchase of
conservation credits in the Colton Dunes Conservation Bank, and would
not affect the continued viability of the Delhi Sands flower-loving fly
in the Colton Recovery Unit.
The project would have minor or negligible effects on
other environmental resources or values because it is a highly
disturbed site with no other known sensitive species or resources.
Impacts of the HCP would not result, over time, in
cumulative effects to other significant environmental values or
resources, because it is a relatively small infill project and
[[Page 43064]]
mitigation measures were developed and will be implemented as part of
project approval by the City of Rialto to address the identified
environmental effects. The mitigation measures include preservation of
2 acres of occupied Delhi Sands flower-loving fly habitat within the
Colton Dunes Conservation Bank to offset impacts to the subspecies.
Therefore, our proposed issuance of the requested incidental take
permit qualifies as a categorical exclusion under NEPA, as provided by
the Department of the Interior Manual (516 DM 2 Appendix 1, 516 DM 6
Appendix 1, and 516 DM 8.5(C)(2)). Based on our review of public
comments that we receive in response to this notice, we may revise this
preliminary determination.
Next Steps
We will evaluate the proposed HCP and comments we receive to
determine whether the permit application meets the requirements and
issuance criteria under section 10(a) of the Act. We will also evaluate
whether issuance of a section 10(a)(1)(B) incidental take permit would
comply with section 7 of the Act by conducting an internal Service
consultation. We will use the results of this consultation, in
combination with the above findings, in our final analysis to determine
whether or not to issue a permit. If the requirements and issuance
criteria under section 10(a) are met, we will issue the permit to the
applicant for incidental take of Delhi Sands flower-loving fly.
Public Comments
If you wish to comment on the permit application, proposed HCP, and
associated documents, you may submit comments by any of the methods
noted in the ADDRESSES section.
Public Availability of Comments
Before including your address, phone number, email address, or
other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be
aware that your entire comment--including your personal identifying
information--may be made publicly available at any time. While you may
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.
Authority
We provide this notice under section 10 of the Act (16 U.S.C. 1531
et seq.) and NEPA regulations (40 CFR 1506.6).
G. Mendel Stewart,
Field Supervisor, Carlsbad Fish and Wildlife Office, Carlsbad,
California.
[FR Doc. 2014-17407 Filed 7-23-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-55-P
