Receipt of Incidental Take Permit Application and Proposed Habitat Conservation Plan for the Sand Skink; Lake County, FL; Categorical Exclusion, 53514-53515 [2023-16936]
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53514
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 151 / Tuesday, August 8, 2023 / Notices
nearshore waters as Southwest stock
critical habitat, which occurs in
nearshore marine waters ranging from
the mean high tide line seaward for a
distance of 100 meters or to a water
depth of 20 meters (65.6 ft) (74 FR
51988).’’
Comment 20: In the Southwest SAR,
consider whether there was an actual
decline and then increase in the Bristol
Bay MU because although the
coefficients of variation (CVs) overlap
across all three Southwest stock
surveys, there are also differences
among the survey methods.
Service Response to Comment 20: The
Service agrees that there may not have
been an initial decline, and we have
revised our discussion regarding this
MU in the final revised SAR.
Comment 21: The Southwest stock
SAR states that: ‘‘The best available
information indicates that the
Southwest stock in the Aleutian
archipelago declined by up to 90
percent in the 1990s.’’ What is the
citation for the scientific literature that
support this statement?
Service Response to Comment 21: The
Service has added the citation Doroff et
al. 2003 as reference to support this
statement in the final revised SAR.
Comment 22: In the Southwest stock
SAR, the Service should add a
description of how mortality is
distributed across the management units
(MUs) (e.g., ∼90% of the human-caused
M/SI occurred around Kodiak, the MU
with the largest abundance), or a
qualitative sentence saying that
distribution of mortality across MUs is
something that the Service considered
but that it does not seem to be a
concern.
Service Response to Comment 22: The
Service added language to this final
revised SAR to explain that 96% of the
harvest occurs in the Kodiak, Kamishak,
Alaska Peninsula MUs, where most
people and sea otters are located.
ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
References
The complete list of references used
for each of these revised SARs is
available at https://www.regulations.gov
under Docket No. FWS–R7–ES–2022–
0155 and upon request from the Alaska
Marine Mammals Management Office
(see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
Authority
The authority for this action is the
Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972,
as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.).
Martha Williams,
Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2023–16935 Filed 8–7–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333–15–P
VerDate Sep<11>2014
20:00 Aug 07, 2023
Jkt 259001
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[Docket No. FWS–R4–ES–2023–0150;
FXES11140400000–234–FF04EF4000]
Receipt of Incidental Take Permit
Application and Proposed Habitat
Conservation Plan for the Sand Skink;
Lake County, FL; Categorical
Exclusion
Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request
for comments.
AGENCY:
We, the Fish and Wildlife
Service (Service), announce receipt of
an application from Helen Crittenden et
al. (Helen Crittenden, Alexander van
den Berg, and Nancy van den Berg;
applicants) for an incidental take permit
(ITP) under the Endangered Species Act.
The applicants request the ITP to take
the federally listed sand skink
incidental to the construction of a
residential development in Lake
County, Florida. We request public
comment on the application, which
includes the applicants’ proposed
habitat conservation plan (HCP), and on
the Service’s preliminary determination
that the proposed permitting action may
be eligible for a categorical exclusion
pursuant to the Council on
Environmental Quality’s National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
regulations, the Department of the
Interior’s (DOI) NEPA regulations, and
the DOI Departmental Manual. To make
this preliminary determination, we
prepared a draft environmental action
statement and low-effect screening form,
both of which are also available for
public review. We invite comment from
the public and local, State, Tribal, and
Federal agencies.
DATES: We must receive your written
comments on or before September 7,
2023.
SUMMARY:
Obtaining Documents: You
may obtain copies of the documents
online in Docket No. FWS–R4–ES–
2023–0150 at https://
www.regulations.gov.
Submitting Comments: If you wish to
submit comments on any of the
documents, you may do so in writing by
one of the following methods:
• Online: https://
www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments
on Docket No. FWS–R4–ES–2023–0150;
or
• U.S. mail: Public Comments
Processing, Attn: Docket No. FWS–R4–
ES–2023–0150; U.S. Fish and Wildlife
ADDRESSES:
PO 00000
Frm 00064
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Service, MS: PRB/3W, 5275 Leesburg
Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041–3803.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Erin
Gawera, by telephone at 904–731–3121
or via email at erin_gawera@fws.gov.
Individuals in the United States who are
deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have
a speech disability may dial 711 (TTY,
TDD, or TeleBraille) to access
telecommunications relay services.
Individuals outside the United States
should use the relay services offered
within their country to make
international calls to the point-ofcontact in the United States.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the
Fish and Wildlife Service (Service),
announce receipt of an application from
Helen Crittenden et al. (Helen
Crittenden, Alexander van den Berg,
and Nancy van den Berg) (applicants)
for an incidental take permit (ITP) under
the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as
amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).
The applicants request the ITP to take
federally listed sand skinks (Neoseps
reynoldsi) (skink) incidental to the
construction and operation of a
commercial and residential
development in Lake County, Florida.
We request public comment on the
application, which includes the
applicants’ habitat conservation plan
(HCP), and on the Service’s preliminary
determination that this proposed ITP
qualifies as ‘‘low effect,’’ and may
qualify for a categorical exclusion
pursuant to the Council on
Environmental Quality’s National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
regulations (40 CFR 1501.4), the
Department of the Interior’s (DOI) NEPA
regulations (43 CFR 46), and the DOI’s
Departmental Manual (516 DM
8.5(C)(2)). To make this preliminary
determination, we prepared a draft
environmental action statement and
low-effect screening form, both of which
are also available for public review.
Proposed Project
The applicants request a 5-year ITP to
take skinks via the conversion of
approximately 0.63 acres (ac) of
occupied nesting, foraging, and
sheltering skink habitat incidental to the
construction and operation of a
commercial and residential
development on 111.53-ac on parcel
numbers 22–21–25–0003–0000–1800,
22–21–25–0003–0000–1000, 22–21–25–
0003–0000–1901, 22–21–25–0003–
0000–1902, and 22–21–25–0003–0000–
1700 in Sections 21, 22, 27 and 28,
Township 21 South, Range 25 East, Lake
County, Florida. The applicants propose
to mitigate for take of the skinks by
purchasing credits equivalent to 1.26 ac
E:\FR\FM\08AUN1.SGM
08AUN1
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 151 / Tuesday, August 8, 2023 / Notices
of skink-occupied habitat within the
Lake Wales Ridge Conservation Bank or
another Service-approved conservation
bank. The Service would require the
applicants to purchase the credits prior
to engaging in any construction phase of
the project.
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 applicants’
proposed project, including the
construction of commercial and
residential buildings and associated
infrastructure (e.g., electric, water, and
sewer lines), would individually and
cumulatively have a minor effect on the
sand skink and the human environment.
Therefore, we have preliminarily
determined that the proposed ESA
section 10(a)(1)(B) permit would be a
low-effect ITP that individually or
cumulatively would have a minor effect
on the sand skink and may qualify for
application of a categorical exclusion
pursuant to the Council on
Environmental Quality’s NEPA
regulations, DOI’s NEPA regulations,
and the DOI Departmental Manual. A
low-effect incidental take permit is one
that would result in (1) minor or
nonsignificant effects on species
covered in the HCP; (2) nonsignificant
effects on the human environment; and
(3) impacts that, when added together
with the impacts of other past, present,
and reasonably foreseeable actions,
would not result in significant
cumulative effects to the human
environment.
ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
Next Steps
The Service will evaluate the
application and the comments to
determine whether to issue the
requested ITP. 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 preceding and other
matters, 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
PER0549463 to the applicants.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
20:00 Aug 07, 2023
Jkt 259001
Authority
Robert L. Carey,
Division Manager, Environmental Review,
Florida Ecological Services Office.
[FR Doc. 2023–16936 Filed 8–7–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333–15–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[Docket No. FWS–R4–ES–2023–0149;
FXES11140400000–234–FF04EF4000]
Receipt of Incidental Take Permit
Application and Proposed Habitat
Conservation Plan for the Florida
Scrub-Jay; Brevard County, FL;
Categorical Exclusion
Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request
for comment.
AGENCY:
We, the Fish and Wildlife
Service (Service), announce receipt of
an application from CenterPoint
Integrated Solutions, LLC (applicant) for
an incidental take permit (ITP) under
the Endangered Species Act. The
applicant requests the ITP to take the
federally threatened Florida scrub-jay
(Aphelocoma coerulescens) incidental
to the construction and operation of a
commercial development in Brevard
County, Florida. We request public
comment on the application, which
includes the applicant’s proposed
habitat conservation plan (HCP), and on
the Service’s preliminary determination
that the proposed permitting action may
be eligible for a categorical exclusion
pursuant to the Council on
Environmental Quality’s National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
regulations, the Department of the
Interior’s (DOI) NEPA regulations, and
the DOI Departmental Manual. To make
this preliminary determination, we
prepared a draft environmental action
statement and low-effect screening form,
both of which are also available for
public review. We invite comment from
the public and local, State, Tribal, and
Federal agencies.
DATES: We must receive your written
comments on or before September 7,
2023.
SUMMARY:
Frm 00065
Obtaining Documents: You
may obtain copies of the documents
online in Docket No. FWS–R4–ES–
2023–0149, at https://
www.regulations.gov.
Submitting Comments: If you wish to
submit comments on any of the
documents, you may do so in writing by
one of the following methods:
• Online: https://
www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments
on Docket No. FWS–R4–ES–2023–0149;
or
• U.S. mail: Public Comments
Processing; Attn: Docket No. FWS–R4–
ES–2023–0149; U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service; MS: PRB/3W; 5275 Leesburg
Pike; Falls Church, VA 22041–3803.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Alfredo Begazo, by telephone at 772–
469–4234, or via email at alfredo_
begazo@fws.gov. Individuals in the
United States who are deaf, deafblind,
hard of hearing, or have a speech
disability may dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or
TeleBraille) to access
telecommunications relay services.
Individuals outside the United States
should use the relay services offered
within their country to make
international calls to the point-ofcontact in the United States.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the
Fish and Wildlife Service (Service),
announce receipt of an application from
CenterPoint Integrated Solutions, LLC
(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 Florida
scrub-jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens;
scrub-jay) incidental to the construction
and operation of a commercial
development in Brevard County,
Florida. We request public comment on
the application, which includes the
applicant’s habitat conservation plan
(HCP), and on the Service’s preliminary
determination that this proposed ITP
qualifies as low effect, and may qualify
for a categorical exclusion pursuant to
the Council on Environmental Quality’s
National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA) regulations (40 CFR 1501.4), the
Department of the Interior’s (DOI) NEPA
regulations (43 CFR 46), and the DOI’s
Departmental Manual (516 DM
8.5(C)(2)). To make this preliminary
determination, we prepared a draft
environmental action statement and low
effect screening form, both of which are
also available for public review.
ADDRESSES:
The Service provides this notice
under section 10(c) of the Endangered
Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and
its implementing regulations (50 CFR
17.32) and the National Environmental
Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and
its implementing regulations (40 CFR
1500–1508 and 43 CFR 46).
PO 00000
53515
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Proposed Project
The applicant requests a 5-year ITP to
take scrub-jays via the conversion of
E:\FR\FM\08AUN1.SGM
08AUN1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 151 (Tuesday, August 8, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53514-53515]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-16936]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2023-0150; FXES11140400000-234-FF04EF4000]
Receipt of Incidental Take Permit Application and Proposed
Habitat Conservation Plan for the Sand Skink; Lake County, FL;
Categorical Exclusion
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce receipt
of an application from Helen Crittenden et al. (Helen Crittenden,
Alexander van den Berg, and Nancy van den Berg; applicants) for an
incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered Species Act. The
applicants request the ITP to take the federally listed sand skink
incidental to the construction of a residential development in Lake
County, Florida. We request public comment on the application, which
includes the applicants' proposed habitat conservation plan (HCP), and
on the Service's preliminary determination that the proposed permitting
action may be eligible for a categorical exclusion pursuant to the
Council on Environmental Quality's National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA) regulations, the Department of the Interior's (DOI) NEPA
regulations, and the DOI Departmental Manual. To make this preliminary
determination, we prepared a draft environmental action statement and
low-effect screening form, both of which are also available for public
review. We invite comment from the public and local, State, Tribal, and
Federal agencies.
DATES: We must receive your written comments on or before September 7,
2023.
ADDRESSES: Obtaining Documents: You may obtain copies of the documents
online in Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2023-0150 at https://www.regulations.gov.
Submitting Comments: If you wish to submit comments on any of the
documents, you may do so in writing by one of the following methods:
Online: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments on Docket No. FWS-R4-ES-2023-0150;
or
U.S. mail: Public Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No.
FWS-R4-ES-2023-0150; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS: PRB/3W, 5275
Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Erin Gawera, by telephone at 904-731-
3121 or via email at [email protected]. Individuals in the United
States who are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech
disability may dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access
telecommunications relay services. Individuals outside the United
States should use the relay services offered within their country to
make international calls to the point-of-contact in the United States.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service),
announce receipt of an application from Helen Crittenden et al. (Helen
Crittenden, Alexander van den Berg, and Nancy van den Berg)
(applicants) for an incidental take permit (ITP) under the Endangered
Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). The
applicants request the ITP to take federally listed sand skinks
(Neoseps reynoldsi) (skink) incidental to the construction and
operation of a commercial and residential development in Lake County,
Florida. We request public comment on the application, which includes
the applicants' habitat conservation plan (HCP), and on the Service's
preliminary determination that this proposed ITP qualifies as ``low
effect,'' and may qualify for a categorical exclusion pursuant to the
Council on Environmental Quality's National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA) regulations (40 CFR 1501.4), the Department of the Interior's
(DOI) NEPA regulations (43 CFR 46), and the DOI's Departmental Manual
(516 DM 8.5(C)(2)). To make this preliminary determination, we prepared
a draft environmental action statement and low-effect screening form,
both of which are also available for public review.
Proposed Project
The applicants request a 5-year ITP to take skinks via the
conversion of approximately 0.63 acres (ac) of occupied nesting,
foraging, and sheltering skink habitat incidental to the construction
and operation of a commercial and residential development on 111.53-ac
on parcel numbers 22-21-25-0003-0000-1800, 22-21-25-0003-0000-1000, 22-
21-25-0003-0000-1901, 22-21-25-0003-0000-1902, and 22-21-25-0003-0000-
1700 in Sections 21, 22, 27 and 28, Township 21 South, Range 25 East,
Lake County, Florida. The applicants propose to mitigate for take of
the skinks by purchasing credits equivalent to 1.26 ac
[[Page 53515]]
of skink-occupied habitat within the Lake Wales Ridge Conservation Bank
or another Service-approved conservation bank. The Service would
require the applicants to purchase the credits prior to engaging in any
construction phase of the project.
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
applicants' proposed project, including the construction of commercial
and residential buildings and associated infrastructure (e.g.,
electric, water, and sewer lines), would individually and cumulatively
have a minor effect on the sand skink and the human environment.
Therefore, we have preliminarily determined that the proposed ESA
section 10(a)(1)(B) permit would be a low-effect ITP that individually
or cumulatively would have a minor effect on the sand skink and may
qualify for application of a categorical exclusion pursuant to the
Council on Environmental Quality's NEPA regulations, DOI's NEPA
regulations, and the DOI Departmental Manual. A low-effect incidental
take permit is one that would result in (1) minor or nonsignificant
effects on species covered in the HCP; (2) nonsignificant effects on
the human environment; and (3) impacts that, when added together with
the impacts of other past, present, and reasonably foreseeable actions,
would not result in significant cumulative effects to the human
environment.
Next Steps
The Service will evaluate the application and the comments to
determine whether to issue the requested ITP. 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 preceding and
other matters, 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 PER0549463 to the applicants.
Authority
The Service provides this notice under section 10(c) of the
Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and its implementing
regulations (50 CFR 17.32) and the National Environmental Policy Act
(42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and its implementing regulations (40 CFR 1500-
1508 and 43 CFR 46).
Robert L. Carey,
Division Manager, Environmental Review, Florida Ecological Services
Office.
[FR Doc. 2023-16936 Filed 8-7-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P