Receipt of Incidental Take Permit Application and Proposed Habitat Conservation Plan for the Sand Skink and Blue-Tailed Mole Skink, Osceola County, FL; Categorical Exclusion, 43817-43818 [2019-18095]

Agencies

• Fish and Wildlife Service
• DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 163 (Thursday, August 22, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43817-43818]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-18095]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-R4-ES-2019-N101; FXES11140400000-178-FF04EF2000]


Receipt of Incidental Take Permit Application and Proposed 
Habitat Conservation Plan for the Sand Skink and Blue-Tailed Mole 
Skink, Osceola County, FL; 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 Mattamy Homes (applicant) for an incidental take 
permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act. The applicant requests 
the ITP to take the federally listed sand skink and blue-tailed mole 
skink incidental to construction in Osceola County, Florida. We request 
public comment on the application, which includes the applicant's 
proposed habitat conservation plan (HCP), and the Service's preliminary 
determination that this HCP qualifies as ``low-effect,'' categorically 
excluded, under the National Environmental Policy Act. To make this 
determination, we used our environmental action statement and low-
effect screening form, both of which are also available for public 
review.

DATES: We must receive your written comments on or before September 23, 
2019.

ADDRESSES: 
    Obtaining Documents: You may obtain copies of the documents by any 
of the following methods:
     Telephone: Alfredo Begazo, 772-469-4234.
     Email: [email protected].
     U.S. mail: Alfredo Begazo, South Florida Ecological 
Services Office, Attn Mattamy Homes Permit TE69953C-1, U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, 1339 20th Street, Vero Beach, FL 32960-3559.
     In-person: The documents may be reviewed by appointment 
during normal business hours at the above address. Please call to make 
an appointment.
     Fax: Alfredo Begazo, 772-562-4288.
    Submitting Comments: If you wish to submit comments on any of the 
documents, you may do so in writing via the above email address, U.S. 
mail address, or fax number, or you may hand-deliver comments to the 
above address during regular business hours.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Alfredo Begazo, by U.S. mail (see 
ADDRESSES) or via phone at 772-469-4234. Individuals who are hearing 
impaired or speech impaired may call the Federal Relay Service at 800-
877-8339 for TTY assistance.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), 
announce receipt of an application from Mattamy Homes (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 sand skink (Neoseps reynoldsi) and 
blue-tailed mole skink (Eumeces egregius lividus) (skinks) incidental 
to the construction of a residential development (project) in Osceola 
County, Florida. We request public comment on the application, which 
includes the applicant's proposed habitat conservation plan (HCP) and 
the Service's preliminary determination that this HCP qualifies as 
``low-effect,'' categorically excluded under the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). To make this determination, 
we used our environmental action statement and low-effect screening 
form, both of which are also available for public review.

Project

    Mattamy Homes requests a 5-year ITP to take skinks incidental to 
the conversion of approximately 5.04 acres of occupied skink foraging 
and sheltering habitat for the construction of a residential 
development located on a 83.29-acre parcel in Sections 18 and 19, 
Township 25 South, and Range 27 East, Osceola County, Florida. The 
applicant proposes to mitigate for take of the skinks by purchasing 
credits equivalent to 10.08 acres of skink-occupied habitat from a 
Service-approved conservation bank in Osceola County. The Service would 
require the applicant to purchase the credits prior to engaging in land 
clearing activities on the parcel.

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. While you may request that we 
withhold your personal identifying information, we cannot guarantee 
that we will be able to do so.

Our Preliminary Determination

    The Service has made a preliminary determination that the 
applicant's project, including land clearing, construction of the 
residential

[[Page 43818]]

development, and the proposed mitigation measure would individually and 
cumulatively have a minor or negligible effect on the skinks and the 
environment. Therefore, we have preliminarily concluded that the ITP 
for this project would qualify for categorical exclusion and the HCP is 
low effect under our NEPA regulations at 43 CFR 46.205 and 46.210. A 
low-effect HCP is one that would result in (1) minor or negligible 
effects on federally listed, proposed, and candidate species and their 
habitats; (2) minor or negligible effects on other environmental values 
or resources; and (3) impacts that, when considered together with the 
impacts of other past, present, and reasonable foreseeable similarly 
situated projects, would not over time result in significant cumulative 
effects to environmental values or resources.

Next Steps

    The Service will evaluate the application and the comments received 
to determine whether to issue the requested permit. 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 
above findings, 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 TE69953C-1 to Mattamy Homes.

Authority

    The Service provides this notice under section 10(c) (16 U.S.C. 
1539(c)) of the ESA and NEPA regulation 40 CFR 1506.6.

Roxanna Hinzman,
Field Supervisor, South Florida Ecological Services Office.
[FR Doc. 2019-18095 Filed 8-21-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4333-15-P