Final Environmental Impact Statement and Final Habitat Conservation Plan for the Na Pua Makani Wind Energy Project, Oahu, HI, 45174-45176 [2016-16082]

Agencies

• Fish and Wildlife Service
• DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 133 (Tuesday, July 12, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45174-45176]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-16082]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-R1-ES-2016-N086; FXES11120100000-167-FF01E00000]


Final Environmental Impact Statement and Final Habitat 
Conservation Plan for the Na Pua Makani Wind Energy Project, Oahu, HI

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the 
availability of the final environmental impact statement (EIS) and 
final habitat conservation plan (HCP) for Na Pua Makani Power Partners, 
LLC's (applicant) Na Pua Makani Wind Energy Project (Project). The 
applicant is requesting an incidental take permit (ITP) to authorize 
take of one threatened and six endangered species (covered species) 
listed under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA). If 
issued, the ITP would authorize incidental take of the covered species 
that may occur as a result of the construction and operation of the 
Project over a 21-year period. The HCP describes the applicant's 
actions and measures to minimize, mitigate, and monitor incidental take 
of the covered species. The final EIS has been prepared in response to 
the permit application in accordance with requirements of the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

DATES: The Service's decision on issuance of an ITP will occur no 
sooner than 30 days after the publication of the U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency's notice of the final EIS in the Federal Register and 
will be documented in a Record of Decision (ROD).

ADDRESSES: You may obtain copies of the final EIS and final HCP by one 
of the following methods.
     Internet: Documents may be viewed and downloaded on the 
Internet at https://www.fws.gov/pacificislands/.
     U.S. Mail: You may obtain a compact disk with electronic 
copies of these documents by writing to Mary Abrams, Field Supervisor; 
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Pacific Islands Fish and Wildlife 
Office; 300 Ala Moana Boulevard, Room 3-122; Honolulu, HI 96850.
     Telephone: Call 808-792-9400 during regular business 
hours.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Jodi Charrier (Renewable Energy 
Coordinator) or Mr. Aaron Nadig (Oahu, Kauai, American Samoa Geographic 
Deputy Field Supervisor), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (see ADDRESSES 
above); by telephone 808-792-9400; or by email at 
NaPuaMakanihcp@fws.gov. If you use a telecommunications device for the 
deaf, please call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 800-
877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We are advising the public of the 
availability of the final EIS and final HCP associated with an ITP 
application. The applicant is requesting an ITP for a 21-year permit 
term to authorize take of the threatened Newell's shearwater (Puffinus 
newelli), and the endangered Hawaiian stilt (Himantopus mexicanus 
knudseni), Hawaiian coot (Fulica americana alai), Hawaiian moorhen, 
(Gallinula chloropus sandvicensis), Hawaiian duck (Anas wyvilliana), 
Hawaiian goose (Branta sandvicensis), and the Hawaiian hoary bat 
(Lasiurus cinereus semotus) that may occur as a result of the 
construction and operation of the Project. The final HCP describes the 
applicant's actions and the measures the applicant will implement to 
minimize, mitigate, and monitor incidental take of the covered species. 
Additionally, the Project would be partially located on State of Hawaii 
lands, triggering environmental review under the Hawaii Environmental 
Policy Act (HEPA) (Chapter 343 of the Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS)).

Background

    The applicant proposes to construct and operate the wind energy 
generation Project on approximately 707 acres of public and private 
lands near the town of Kahuku on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. The 
western portion of the Project would be located on about 255 acres of 
State of Hawaii lands managed by the Hawaii Department of Land and 
Natural Resources. The eastern portion of the Project would be located 
on about 452 acres of land owned by the Malaekahana Hui West, LLC. 
Additional parcels would be used to access the Project, for which the 
applicant would utilize temporary entry permits, licenses or easements.
    The proposed Project would have a generating capacity of up to 
approximately 25 megawatts (MW) and

[[Page 45175]]

would supply wind-generated electricity to the Hawaii Electric Company. 
The Project would consist of 8 to 10 wind turbine generators (WTGs), 1 
permanent un-guyed lattice-frame meteorological tower, up to 4.9 miles 
of new and existing access roads, an operations and maintenance 
facility, electrical collection and interconnection infrastructure, an 
electrical substation, and a temporary laydown area. The applicant is 
considering a variety of WTG models, each ranging from 427 feet to 656 
feet in height, and having up to 3.3 MW of generating capacity. The 
applicant will select the most appropriate WTGs prior to construction. 
The selection of the WTG models would not change the impacts to the 
covered species analyzed in the EIS.
    The proposed Project area is surrounded by agricultural farm lands 
to the north; residential housing, community infrastructure, and 
agricultural farm lands to the east; a mixture of agricultural farm 
lands and undeveloped forest lands to the south; and undeveloped forest 
lands to the west. The James Campbell National Wildlife Refuge is 
approximately 0.75 mile to the north, and the Malaekahana State 
Recreation Area is 0.1 mile to the east. The operational 30-MW Kahuku 
wind project abuts the proposed Project area to the northwest.
    Acoustic monitoring has confirmed the presence of the Hawaiian 
hoary bat in the vicinity of the Project site. Hawaiian hoary bats have 
collided with wind turbines at the 30-MW Kahuku and 69-MW Kawailoa wind 
projects on Oahu, and at the 30-MW Kaheawa I, 21-MW Kaheawa II, and 21-
MW Auwahi wind projects on Maui. The Hawaiian goose occurs in the 
vicinity of the proposed Project and may collide with wind turbines as 
documented at Kaheawa I and II. Although there have been no known 
occurrences of Newell's shearwaters, Hawaiian stilts, Hawaiian coots, 
Hawaiian moorhens, or Hawaiian ducks colliding with wind turbines 
within the State of Hawaii, these covered species may transit the 
Project area.
    The applicant has developed a final HCP that addresses the 
incidental take of the seven covered species that may occur as a result 
of the construction and operation of the Project over a period of 21 
years. The final HCP details proposed measures the applicant will 
implement to minimize, mitigate, and monitor incidental take of the 
covered species. The applicant has also applied for a State of Hawaii 
incidental take license under Hawaii State law.
    To offset anticipated take, the applicant is proposing mitigation 
measures on Oahu that include: (1) Funding research to support 
effective management of Newell's shearwaters; (2) fencing and predator 
control to conserve the Hawaiian goose at James Campbell National 
Wildlife Refuge; (3) a combination of bat research and native forest 
restoration and management to increase Hawaiian hoary bat habitat; (4) 
acoustic surveys to document occupancy of the affected area by the 
Hawaiian hoary bat; and (5) fencing and public outreach at Hamakua 
Marsh to benefit conservation of the Hawaiian stilt, Hawaiian coot, 
Hawaiian moorhen and the Hawaiian duck. This final HCP incorporates 
adaptive management provisions to allow for modifications to the 
mitigation and monitoring measures as knowledge is gained during 
implementation of the HCP.
    The proposed action in the FEIS is to approve the final HCP and to 
issue an ITP with a term of 21 years to the applicant for incidental 
take of the covered species caused by covered activities associated 
with the construction and operation of the Project, if permit issuance 
criteria are met.

National Environmental Policy Act Compliance

    The development of the final HCP and the proposed issuance of an 
ITP under this plan is a Federal action that triggers the need for 
compliance with NEPA (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). We have prepared a final 
EIS to analyze the environmental impacts of a range of alternatives 
related to the issuance of the ITP and implementation of the 
conservation program under the proposed final HCP. The alternatives 
include a no-action (alternative 1), proposed action (alternative 2), 
and a modified proposed action option (alternative 2a), and a larger 
wind energy generation project alternative (alternative 3).
    Under the no-action alternative, the proposed Project would not be 
constructed, the proposed final HCP would not be implemented, and no 
ITP would be issued. The proposed action alternative is construction 
and operation of the Project consisting of between 8 and 10 wind 
turbines, implementation of the final HCP, and issuance of the ITP. In 
response to public comments on the draft EIS related to visual impacts 
and consideration of fewer turbines with larger generating capacities, 
a modified proposed action option with a reduced maximum number of 
turbines consisting of only 9 turbines with larger generating 
capacities and taller dimensions was added to the final EIS. The 
modified proposed action option also includes implementation of the 
final HCP, and issuance of the ITP. The larger wind energy generation 
project alternative would include the construction and operation of a 
larger generation facility of up to 42 MW. This alternative would 
consist of up to 12 WTGs, each with a generating capacity of up to 3.3 
MW, implementation of an HCP, and issuance of the ITP.
    In accordance with NEPA (40 CFR 1502.14(e)), the Service has 
identified the proposed action (alternative 2) including the modified 
proposed action option (alternative 2a) as the preferred alternative. 
Under NEPA, the ``agency's preferred alternative'' is a preliminary 
indication of the Federal responsible official's preference of action, 
which is chosen from among the alternatives analyzed in an EIS. It is 
the alternative which the agency believes would fulfill its statutory 
mission and responsibilities, giving consideration to economic, 
environmental, technical and other factors (43 CFR 46.420(d)). The 
preferred alternative is not a final agency decision; rather, it is an 
indication of the agency's preference. The final agency decision is 
presented in the Record of Decision.

Public Involvement

    In May 2013, the applicant began holding community meetings, small 
focus group meetings with stakeholders, and individual meetings with 
community leaders and legislators to discuss the proposed Project and 
engage the public in the Project's planning and design.
    The Service published a notice of intent (NOI) to prepare a draft 
EIS in the Federal Register on November 5, 2013, (78 FR 66377). The NOI 
also announced a public scoping period (November 5 to December 5, 
2013), during which we invited interested parties to provide written 
comments related to the proposal. A public scoping meeting was held in 
Kahuku, Hawaii on November 13, 2013, in accordance with NEPA (40 CFR 
1501.7). Utilizing public scoping comments, we prepared a draft EIS to 
analyze the effects of the alternatives on the human environment. The 
Service published a notice of availability (NOA) of the draft EIS in 
the Federal Register on June 12, 2015 (80 FR 33535) opening a 60-day 
public comment period. The Service also posted the Federal Register 
NOA, Notice of Public Scoping Meeting, draft HCP, draft EIS, and a news 
release on their Web site at https://www.fws.gov/pacificislands/. A 
public open-house meeting was held on June 23, 2015, in Kahuku, Hawaii 
to solicit additional input from the public on the draft EIS and draft 
HCP. A total of 90 comment letters and emails were received from

[[Page 45176]]

the public. The official comment period ended on August 11, 2015.
    The State of Hawaii's environmental impact statement preparation 
notice (EISPN) was distributed to interested parties for review between 
December 23, 2013, and January 23, 2014, and again between November 8 
and December 8, 2014 (republished to reflect the addition of a second 
access into the Project site). During the initial public scoping period 
for the EISPN, three public scoping meetings were held at Kahuku 
Community Center: on November 13, 2013, January 10, 2014, and November 
19, 2014. In addition to the public meetings, a media advisory was sent 
out prior to each meeting. The State of Hawaii's Department of Land and 
Natural Resources hosted a public hearing at the Kahuku Community 
Center on June 4, 2015. The draft EIS was published in the State of 
Hawaii Office of Environmental Quality Control's The Environmental 
Notice on June 8, 2015, in accordance with requirements set forth under 
the Hawaii Environmental Policy Act (HRS Sec.  343-3). Public comments 
were accepted during the 45-day State public comment period.

Next Steps

    We will evaluate the permit application, associated documents, and 
public comments in reaching a final decision on whether the application 
meets the requirements of section 10(a) of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1531 et 
seq.). We will evaluate whether the proposed permit action would comply 
with section 7 of the ESA by conducting an intra-Service section 7 
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 an ITP. If the requirements are met, we will 
issue the ITP to the applicant. We will issue a record of decision and 
issue or deny the ITP no sooner than 30 days after publication of the 
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's notice of availability of the 
final EIS.

Authority

    We provide this notice in accordance with the requirements of 
section 10(c) of the ESA and its implementing regulations (50 CFR 17.22 
and 17.32) and NEPA and its implementing regulations (40 CFR 1506.6).

Theresa Rabot,
Deputy Regional Director, Pacific Region, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service, Portland, Oregon.
[FR Doc. 2016-16082 Filed 7-11-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4333-15-P