Endangered Species; Notice of Issuance for Incidental Take Permit No. 21316, 48508-48510 [2020-17519]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 155 (Tuesday, August 11, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48508-48510]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-17519]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[RTID 0648-XA327]


Endangered Species; Notice of Issuance for Incidental Take Permit 
No. 21316

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice; issuance of permit.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that NMFS has issued an incidental take 
permit to Barney Davis, LLC, for the

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incidental take of threatened North Atlantic Distinct Population 
Segment green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas) and endangered Kemp's ridley 
sea turtles (Lepidochelys kempii) during the conduct of otherwise 
lawful activities associated with the operation of the Barney Davis 
Energy Center, located in Corpus Christi, TX. The incidental take 
permit is issued for a duration of 10 years.

ADDRESSES: The incidental take permit, final environmental assessment, 
and other related documents are available on the NMFS Office of 
Protected Resources website at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/incidental-take-permit-barney-davis-llc.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sara Wissmann, phone: (301) 427-8402; 
email: [email protected], or Wendy Piniak, phone: (301) 427-8402; 
email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 9 of the Endangered Species Act 
(ESA) and Federal regulations prohibit the `taking' of a species listed 
as endangered or threatened. The ESA defines ``take'' to mean harass, 
harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or 
to attempt to engage in any such conduct. NMFS may issue permits, under 
limited circumstances to take listed species if the taking is 
incidental to, and not the purpose of, otherwise lawful activities. 
Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA provides for authorizing incidental take 
of listed species. The regulations for issuing incidental take permits 
for threatened and endangered species are promulgated at 50 CFR 
222.307.
    Barney Davis, LLC (herein Barney Davis) owns Barney Davis Energy 
Center (herein facility), a natural gas-fired electric power generating 
facility. The facility is located at 4301 Waldron Road, Corpus Christi, 
Nueces County, Texas. The facility has approximately 1,992 acres of 
land between the Laguna Madre and Oso Creek and comprises two natural 
gas-fired combustion turbines, two Heat Recovery Steam Generators, a 
Cooling Water Intake Structure (CWIS) and other equipment and 
structures necessary for operation.
    The facility uses a 0.75-mile (1.2-kilometer) cooling water intake 
canal leading to the CWIS from the Laguna Madre basin. Although the 
facility has been in operation since 1974, the presence of sea turtles 
in the intake canal has only been documented during the past 10 years 
and has been primarily associated with cold-stunning events.
    On December 23, 2015, Barney Davis submitted a first draft 
application for an incidental take permit for the take of ESA-listed 
sea turtles associated with otherwise lawful activities associated with 
the operations of its power station. After review by and discussions 
with NMFS, subsequent revised applications and information were 
submitted on November 4, 2016 and August 25, 2017. On September 14, 
2017, NMFS published a notice of availability of the Barney Davis 
application and conservation plan in the Federal Register (82 FR 
43224), and requested public comment. The comment period was open for 
30-days, and ended on October 16, 2017. Two public comments were 
received. The information in these comments was incorporated into the 
incidental take permit. After discussions between NMFS and the 
applicant, additional revisions were made to the application and 
conservation plan, and application was re-submitted on October 19, 
2018. On September 27, 2019 NMFS published a second notice of 
availability in the Federal Register (84 FR 51116) to request public 
comment on the Draft Environmental Assessment and revised application 
and conservation plan. The public comment period was open for 30-days, 
through October 28, 2019. No public comments were received on either 
the Draft Environmental Assessment or the revised application.
    In February 2020, NMFS and the applicant entered into discussions 
on the level of take that would be authorized by the proposed 
incidental take permit. It was decided to restructure the take 
authorization to a 10-year permit total and reduce the number of takes 
authorized. As such, NMFS requested that the applicant update their 
application and conservation plan with their updated take request and 
incorporate the best available science. The Applicant revised their 
application and conservation plan to include the best scientific and 
commercial data available and submitted a final version to NMFS on June 
26, 2020. This final document is available on the NMFS website.
    NMFS has issued the requested incidental take permit under the 
authority of the ESA of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and 
the regulations governing the taking, importing, and exporting of 
endangered and threatened species (50 CFR parts 222-226).
    This incidental take permit is valid for 10 years and authorizes 
the incidental take of 206 green sea turtles (up to 24 severe injuries 
or mortalities), and 4 live Kemp's ridley sea turtles during the 10-
year duration of the permit. This permit covers incidental take from 
date of issuance through August 31, 2030 and will facilitate the rescue 
and rehabilitation of sea turtles found at the facility.
    The conservation plan includes several mitigation and monitoring 
measures which will offset the impact of the taking authorized by the 
incidental take permit. Facility employees will visually monitor the 
area surrounding the cribhouse, which includes the intake canal, 
bulkhead, and trash racks on a specific seasonal schedule to intercept 
sea turtle prior to impingement. Visual monitoring will last for at 
least 15 minutes during each monitoring event. Facility employees will 
use appropriate equipment (i.e., binoculars), as needed, to 
sufficiently identify sea turtles in the canal and bulkhead. Facility 
employees responsible for monitoring the intake canal must be trained 
upon hiring, and again annually, on the proper procedures required for 
the collection of sea turtles, as well as identification and proper 
recordkeeping procedures. Training records and materials must be kept 
on site for the duration of the incidental take permit. Facility 
employees must contact Texas Parks and Wildlife Hatchery staff 
immediately upon observation and/or collection of the animal. If Texas 
Parks and Wildlife Hatchery staff are not available to assist, facility 
employees must immediately contact the National Park Service, Texas Sea 
Turtle Stranding and Salvage Network. Facility employees must follow 
any instructions provided by Texas Parks and Wildlife Hatchery staff or 
the National Park Service regarding the collection, handling, and 
holding of the animal until the animal is transferred to the Texas Sea 
Turtle Stranding and Salvage Network. Facility employees must also 
record details on the take, including, where the animal was found on 
facility property, species, condition of the animal, disposition, and 
any other pertinent details of the circumstances of the taking, which 
will be provided to NMFS.

Criteria for Issuing an Incidental Take Permit

    Issuance criteria are described in ESA section 10(a)(2)(B) and its 
implementing regulations (50 CFR 222.307(c)(2)). According to the ESA, 
NMFS shall issue the requested incidental take permit, if NMFS finds 
that the following criteria are met:
    (i) The taking will be incidental;
    (ii) The applicant will, to the maximum extent practicable, 
minimize and mitigate the impacts of such taking;
    (iii) The applicant will ensure that adequate funding for the plan 
will be provided;

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    (iv) The taking will not appreciably reduce the likelihood of the 
survival and recovery of the species in the wild; and
    (v) The measures, if any, required under subparagraph (A)(iv) will 
be met, and NMFS has received such other assurances as it may require 
that the plan will be implemented.
    NMFS found that Barney Davis met the criteria for the issuance of 
an incidental take permit, and as such, NMFS issued an incidental take 
permit to Barney Davis for the incidental take of green and Kemp's 
ridley sea turtles during the operation of their facility.

    Dated: August 6, 2020.
Donna S. Wieting,
Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
[FR Doc. 2020-17519 Filed 8-10-20; 8:45 am]
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