Proposed Multi-Bat Species General Conservation Plan for Routine Development Projects in New York, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia; Draft Environmental Assessment, 85981-85983 [2024-25089]
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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 209 / Tuesday, October 29, 2024 / Notices
anonymous comment in response to that
notice which did not address the
information collection requirements;
therefore, no response is required.
We are especially interested in public
comment addressing the following:
(1) Whether or not the collection of
information is necessary for the proper
performance of the functions of the
agency, including whether or not the
information will have practical utility;
(2) The accuracy of our estimate of the
burden for this collection of
information, including the validity of
the methodology and assumptions used;
(3) Ways to enhance the quality,
utility, and clarity of the information to
be collected; and
(4) How might the agency minimize
the burden of the collection of
information on those who are to
respond, including through the use of
appropriate automated, electronic,
mechanical, or other technological
collection techniques or other forms of
information technology, e.g., permitting
electronic submission of response.
Comments that you submit in
response to this notice are a matter of
public record. We will include or
summarize each comment in our request
to OMB to approve this ICR. 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
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While you can ask us in your comment
to withhold your personal identifying
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Abstract: The Migratory Bird Treaty
Act (MBTA; 16 U.S.C. 703 et seq.)
prohibits the unauthorized take of
migratory birds and authorizes the
Secretary of the Interior to regulate take
of migratory birds in the United States.
Under this authority, we control the
hunting of migratory game birds through
regulations in 50 CFR part 20. On
January 1, 1991, we banned lead shot for
hunting waterfowl and coots in the
United States.
This is a non-form collection.
Regulations at 50 CFR 20.134 outline
the application and approval process for
new types of nontoxic shot. When
considering approval of a candidate
material as nontoxic, we must ensure
that it is not hazardous in the
environment and that secondary
exposure (ingestion of spent shot or its
components) is not a hazard to
migratory birds. To make that decision,
we require each applicant to provide
information about the solubility and
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17:34 Oct 28, 2024
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toxicity of the candidate material.
Additionally, for law enforcement
purposes, a noninvasive field detection
device must be available to distinguish
candidate shot from lead shot. This
information constitutes the bulk of an
application for approval of nontoxic
shot. The Director uses the data in the
application to decide whether to
approve a material as nontoxic.
Title of Collection: Approval
Procedures for Nontoxic Shot and Shot
Coatings (50 CFR 20.134).
OMB Control Number: 1018–0067.
Form Number: None.
Type of Review: Extension of a
currently approved collection.
Respondents/Affected Public:
Businesses that produce and/or market
approved nontoxic shot types or
nontoxic shot coatings.
Total Estimated Number of Annual
Respondents: 1.
Total Estimated Number of Annual
Responses: 1.
Estimated Completion Time per
Response: 3,200 hours.
Total Estimated Number of Annual
Burden Hours: 3,200 hours.
Respondent’s Obligation: Required to
obtain or retain a benefit.
Frequency of Collection: On occasion.
Total Estimated Annual Nonhour
Burden Cost: $26,630 ($1,630
application processing fee and $25,000
for solubility testing).
An agency may not conduct or
sponsor and a person is not required to
respond to a collection of information
unless it displays a currently valid OMB
control number.
The authority for this action is the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44
U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).
Madonna Baucum,
Information Collection Clearance Officer, U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2024–25112 Filed 10–28–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333–15–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS–R5–ES–2024–0039;
FXES11140500000–245–FF05E00000]
Proposed Multi-Bat Species General
Conservation Plan for Routine
Development Projects in New York,
Pennsylvania, and West Virginia; Draft
Environmental Assessment
Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request
for comments.
AGENCY:
We, the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service (Service), announce the
SUMMARY:
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85981
availability for public comment of a
proposed general conservation plan
(GCP), as well as an associated draft
environmental assessment, for routine
development projects in New York,
Pennsylvania, and West Virginia that
impact the federally listed Indiana bat
(Myotis sodalis) and/or northern longeared bat (Myotis septentrionalis), and/
or the proposed to be listed tricolored
bat (Perimyotis subflavus). We invite
comments from the public and local,
State, Tribal, and Federal agencies.
DATES: We will accept comments
received or postmarked on or before
November 29, 2024. Comments
submitted online at https://
www.regulations.gov (see ADDRESSES)
must be received by 11:59 p.m. eastern
time on November 29, 2024.
ADDRESSES:
Obtaining documents: The documents
this notice announces, as well as any
comments and other materials that we
receive, will be available for public
inspection online in Docket No. FWS–
R5–ES–2024–0039 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–R5–ES–2024–0039.
• U.S. Mail: Public Comments
Processing; Attn: Docket No. FWS–R5–
ES–2024–0039; U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service Headquarters, MS: PRB/3W;
5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA
22041–3803.
We will post all comments on https://
www.regulations.gov. This generally
means that we will post any personal
information you provide us (see Public
Availability of Comments under
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for more
information).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Eric
Tattersall, by telephone at 413–253–
8630. 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
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service),
announce the availability of a proposed
general conservation plan (GCP), as well
as an associated draft environmental
assessment (EA), for routine
development projects in New York,
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85982
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 209 / Tuesday, October 29, 2024 / Notices
Pennsylvania, and West Virginia that
may impact Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis),
northern long-eared bat (Myotis
septentrionalis), and/or tricolored bat
(Perimyotis subflavus). We invite
comments from the public and local,
State, Tribal, and Federal agencies.
We developed and now make
available the GCP to provide a
streamlined mechanism to assist future
individual applicants engaged in certain
otherwise lawful routine development
projects to meet statutory and regulatory
requirements of a habitat conservation
plan for issuance of an incidental take
permit under section 10(a)(1)(B) of the
Endangered Species Act of 1973, as
amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.),
while promoting conservation of the
Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis), the
northern long-eared bat (Myotis
septentrionalis), and the tricolored bat
(Perimyotis subflavus). The GCP
includes measures to minimize and
mitigate impacts to the covered species.
Permits issued under the GCP would
authorize incidental take of the covered
species for up to 15 years after the GCP
becomes effective. We developed the
GCP in accordance with section
10(a)(2)(A) of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1531
et seq.).
We prepared the draft EA in
accordance with the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969
(NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) to
evaluate the potential effects to the
natural and human environment
resulting from issuing permits under the
GCP.
Background
Section 9 of the ESA and its
implementing regulations prohibit the
‘‘take’’ of animal species listed as
endangered or threatened. Take is
defined under the ESA as to ‘‘harass,
harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill,
trap, capture, or collect, or to attempt to
engage in any such conduct’’ (16 U.S.C.
1532). However, under section
10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA, we may issue
permits to authorize take of listed
species that is incidental to, and not the
purpose of, carrying out an otherwise
lawful activity (i.e., ‘‘incidental taking’’
(50 CFR 17.3)). Regulations governing
permits for the incidental taking of
endangered and threatened species,
respectively, are found in the Code of
Federal Regulations at 50 CFR 17.22 and
50 CFR 17.32.
Proposed Action
The proposed action is approval of
the GCP that has been prepared by the
Service in accordance with section
10(a)(2)(A) of the ESA to provide a more
efficient and standardized mechanism
for proponents engaged in certain
otherwise lawful routine development
projects on non-Federal lands. The
proposed GCP describes the routine
development activities for which the
plan establishes associated conservation
measures an applicant would agree to
undertake first to avoid and then to
minimize and mitigate for the impacts
of the incidental take of the listed (and
proposed) bat species to the maximum
extent practicable, and to ensure that
incidental take will not appreciably
reduce the likelihood of the survival
and recovery of these species in the
wild. The GCP would allow private
individuals, local and State agencies,
and other non-Federal entities to meet
the statutory and regulatory
requirements of the ESA by applying for
a permit and complying with the
requirements of the GCP, including all
applicable avoidance, minimization,
and mitigation actions. We propose that
applications for projects falling within
the GCP and which adopt all applicable
plan requirements would meet the
permit issuance criteria as required by
section 10(a)(2)(B) of the ESA, thereby
enabling the establishment of a
programmatic permitting and
conservation process to address a
defined suite of project types impacting
defined listed species within a defined
planning area. The GCP would be
available for adoption and use by
eligible applicants for a period of 10
years. Individual permits issued through
the streamlined GCP process may be
authorized for a term of up to 5 years.
Therefore, permittees would have up to
5 years to complete their projects, even
if the permit is issued in the final year
(i.e., year 10) of the GCP. If a project
proponent is unable to complete their
covered activities during the duration of
their permit, they can request a permit
renewal (for up to 5 additional years)
from the Service.
Covered Species
The proposed GCP would cover the
bat species in table 1.
TABLE 1—BAT SPECIES COVERED IN THE PROPOSED GENERAL CONSERVATION PLAN
Common name
Scientific name
Indiana bat ........................................................................
Northern long-eared bat ...................................................
Tricolored bat ...................................................................
Myotis sodalis ..................................................................
Myotis septentrionalis ......................................................
Perimyotis subflavus ........................................................
khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
National Environmental Policy Act
Compliance
The draft EA provides the required
NEPA documentation for the proposed
Federal action (approval of a
conservation plan and subsequent
issuance of permits pursuant to section
10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA), providing
information on the environmental
baseline and a discussion of impacts to
the human and natural environment
that may occur as a result of
implementation of the GCP.
Importantly, the scope of the EA is
limited to evaluation of the proposed
GCP as a mechanism to standardize
permit issuance for covered activities;
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this EA neither evaluates nor results in
approval of the routine development
activities. Land use approval(s) for
individual projects would continue to
be the responsibility of the local or State
agency(ies) that have appropriate
jurisdiction(s) over individual projects.
A section 10(a)(1)(B) incidental take
permit issued by the Service does not
authorize the covered activities
themselves; rather, it authorizes only
the take of covered species resulting
from those activities.
We are also considering a no-action
alternative to the proposed action in the
EA. Under this no-action alternative, the
Service would not approve the proposed
GCP as a standardized mechanism for
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Federal listing status
Endangered.
Endangered.
Proposed endangered.
compliance with section 10 of the ESA.
Project proponents planning to conduct
otherwise lawful routine development
activities involving potential impacts to
Indiana bat, northern long-eared bat,
and/or tricolored bat would continue to
develop project-specific HCPs in order
to apply for and obtain permits
authorizing those species to be taken.
Public Availability of Comments
All comments received, including
names and addresses, will become part
of the administrative record associated
with this action. If you submit a
comment via https://
www.regulations.gov, your entire
comment, including any personal
E:\FR\FM\29OCN1.SGM
29OCN1
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 209 / Tuesday, October 29, 2024 / Notices
identifying information such as your
address, phone number, and email
address, will be posted on the website.
If you submit a hardcopy comment
that includes personal identifying
information, you may request at the top
of your document that we withhold this
information from public review.
However, we cannot guarantee that we
will be able to do so. We will post all
hardcopy comments on https://
www.regulations.gov.
Next Steps
The Service will evaluate the
comments received to determine
whether the GCP meets the
requirements of section 10(a) of the ESA
(16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). 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)(l)(B) of
the ESA have been met. If met, the
Service will implement the GCP and
issue ITPs to qualified applicants that
agree to comply with all avoidance,
minimization, and mitigation actions
that apply to their proposed projects.
Authority
We provide this notice under section
10(c) of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.)
and its implementing regulations (50
CFR 17.22 and 17.32) and NEPA (42
U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and its
implementing regulations (40 CFR
1500–1508 and 43 CFR 46).
Sharon Marino,
Assistant Regional Director, Ecological
Services, Northeast Region.
[FR Doc. 2024–25089 Filed 10–28–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333–15–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[BLM_NV_FRN_4500183156]
Notice of Availability of the Record of
Decision for the Rhyolite Ridge
Lithium-Boron Project, Esmeralda
County, NV
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
AGENCY:
The Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) announces the
availability of the Record of Decision
(ROD) for the Final Environmental
Impact Statement (EIS) for the Rhyolite
Ridge Lithium-Boron Project (Project)
located in Esmeralda County, Nevada.
The ROD constitutes the decision of the
SUMMARY:
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BLM to approve the plan of operations
for the Project.
DATES: The Acting Deputy Secretary of
the Interior signed the ROD on October
24, 2024.
ADDRESSES: The ROD is available online
at https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanningui/project/2012309/510.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Scott Distel, Project Manager, telephone
(775) 635–4000; address 50 Bastian
Road, Battle Mountain, NV 89820; email
BLM_NV_BMDO_P&EC_NEPA@blm.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 for
contacting Mr. Distel. 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: The
authorized officer for this action has
reviewed the environmental analysis in
the Final EIS and has selected the North
and South Overburden Storage Facility
Alternative (Preferred Alternative/
Selected Alternative), along with the
applicable Applicant-Committed
Environmental Protection Measures
(ACEPMs) specified in Sections 2.1.13
and 2.2.2 of the Final EIS. The BLM’s
selection is based on the environmental
analysis in the Final EIS, which was
published on September 20, 2024. There
were no substantial changes to the Final
EIS during the 30-day public availability
period following publication. An errata
sheet was issued following the Final EIS
correcting Final EIS Page 4–41, fifth
paragraph, line 8, from ‘‘approximately
100 feet’’ to ‘‘approximately 25 feet.’’
The ROD approves the plan of
operations for the Project
(NVNV106205338) submitted to the
BLM pursuant to 43 CFR 3809 and 3715,
and the analysis in the Final EIS. The
BLM has considered the analysis of the
effectiveness of the mitigation measures,
and has determined that
implementation of the ROD, with the
identified mitigation measures, will not
cause unnecessary or undue degradation
of the public lands and is consistent
with applicable legal requirements.
In accordance with 40 CFR 1505.2(c),
the mitigation measures and ACEPMs
represent practicable means to avoid or
minimize environmental harm from the
BLM’s Selected Alternative. The
ACEPMs, which were developed to
avoid or minimize environmental
impacts resulting from the Selected
Alternative, are part of the Plan. All
ACEPMs were designed to avoid or
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85983
minimize environmental impacts to
resources affected by the Plan. All
mitigation within the BLM’s authority
will be implemented and enforced.
The ROD is conditioned on
compliance with the Biological Opinion
issued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service (USFWS) provided in Appendix
A of the ROD and all other necessary
local, State, and Federal approvals,
authorizations, and permits. Other
agencies, including but not limited to
Esmeralda County and USFWS, are
responsible for issuing and enforcing
their own decisions and applicable
authorizations for the Project.
Approval of the Project constitutes the
final decision of the Department of the
Interior (DOI) and, in accordance with
the regulations at 43 CFR 4.410(a)(3)
and Blue Star, Inc., 41 IBLA 333 (1979),
is not subject to administrative appeal
under DOI regulations at 43 CFR part 4.
(Authority: 40 CFR 1501.9)
Laura Daniel-Davis,
Acting Deputy Secretary of the Interior.
[FR Doc. 2024–25096 Filed 10–28–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4331–21–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
[NPS–WASO–NRNHL–DTS#-38984;
PPWOCRADI0, PCU00RP14.R50000]
National Register of Historic Places;
Notification of Pending Nominations
and Related Actions
National Park Service, Interior.
Notice.
AGENCY:
ACTION:
The National Park Service is
soliciting electronic comments on the
significance of properties nominated
before October 19, 2024, for listing or
related actions in the National Register
of Historic Places.
DATES: Comments should be submitted
electronically by November 13, 2024.
ADDRESSES: Comments are encouraged
to be submitted electronically to
National_Register_Submissions@
nps.gov with the subject line ‘‘Public
Comment on <property or proposed
district name, (County) State>.’’ If you
have no access to email, you may send
them via U.S. Postal Service and all
other carriers to the National Register of
Historic Places, National Park Service,
1849 C Street NW, MS 7228,
Washington, DC 20240.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Sherry A. Frear, Chief, National Register
of Historic Places/National Historic
Landmarks Program, 1849 C Street NW,
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\29OCN1.SGM
29OCN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 209 (Tuesday, October 29, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 85981-85983]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-25089]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R5-ES-2024-0039; FXES11140500000-245-FF05E00000]
Proposed Multi-Bat Species General Conservation Plan for Routine
Development Projects in New York, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia;
Draft Environmental Assessment
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the
availability for public comment of a proposed general conservation plan
(GCP), as well as an associated draft environmental assessment, for
routine development projects in New York, Pennsylvania, and West
Virginia that impact the federally listed Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis)
and/or northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis), and/or the
proposed to be listed tricolored bat (Perimyotis subflavus). We invite
comments from the public and local, State, Tribal, and Federal
agencies.
DATES: We will accept comments received or postmarked on or before
November 29, 2024. Comments submitted online at https://www.regulations.gov (see ADDRESSES) must be received by 11:59 p.m.
eastern time on November 29, 2024.
ADDRESSES:
Obtaining documents: The documents this notice announces, as well
as any comments and other materials that we receive, will be available
for public inspection online in Docket No. FWS-R5-ES-2024-0039 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-R5-ES-2024-0039.
U.S. Mail: Public Comments Processing; Attn: Docket No.
FWS-R5-ES-2024-0039; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Headquarters, MS:
PRB/3W; 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
We will post all comments on https://www.regulations.gov. This
generally means that we will post any personal information you provide
us (see Public Availability of Comments under SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
for more information).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Eric Tattersall, by telephone at 413-
253-8630. 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 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
(Service), announce the availability of a proposed general conservation
plan (GCP), as well as an associated draft environmental assessment
(EA), for routine development projects in New York,
[[Page 85982]]
Pennsylvania, and West Virginia that may impact Indiana bat (Myotis
sodalis), northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis), and/or
tricolored bat (Perimyotis subflavus). We invite comments from the
public and local, State, Tribal, and Federal agencies.
We developed and now make available the GCP to provide a
streamlined mechanism to assist future individual applicants engaged in
certain otherwise lawful routine development projects to meet statutory
and regulatory requirements of a habitat conservation plan for issuance
of an incidental take permit under section 10(a)(1)(B) of the
Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et
seq.), while promoting conservation of the Indiana bat (Myotis
sodalis), the northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis), and the
tricolored bat (Perimyotis subflavus). The GCP includes measures to
minimize and mitigate impacts to the covered species. Permits issued
under the GCP would authorize incidental take of the covered species
for up to 15 years after the GCP becomes effective. We developed the
GCP in accordance with section 10(a)(2)(A) of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1531
et seq.).
We prepared the draft EA in accordance with the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) to
evaluate the potential effects to the natural and human environment
resulting from issuing permits under the GCP.
Background
Section 9 of the ESA and its implementing regulations prohibit the
``take'' of animal species listed as endangered or threatened. Take is
defined under the ESA as to ``harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound,
kill, trap, capture, or collect, or to attempt to engage in any such
conduct'' (16 U.S.C. 1532). However, under section 10(a)(1)(B) of the
ESA, we may issue permits to authorize take of listed species that is
incidental to, and not the purpose of, carrying out an otherwise lawful
activity (i.e., ``incidental taking'' (50 CFR 17.3)). Regulations
governing permits for the incidental taking of endangered and
threatened species, respectively, are found in the Code of Federal
Regulations at 50 CFR 17.22 and 50 CFR 17.32.
Proposed Action
The proposed action is approval of the GCP that has been prepared
by the Service in accordance with section 10(a)(2)(A) of the ESA to
provide a more efficient and standardized mechanism for proponents
engaged in certain otherwise lawful routine development projects on
non-Federal lands. The proposed GCP describes the routine development
activities for which the plan establishes associated conservation
measures an applicant would agree to undertake first to avoid and then
to minimize and mitigate for the impacts of the incidental take of the
listed (and proposed) bat species to the maximum extent practicable,
and to ensure that incidental take will not appreciably reduce the
likelihood of the survival and recovery of these species in the wild.
The GCP would allow private individuals, local and State agencies, and
other non-Federal entities to meet the statutory and regulatory
requirements of the ESA by applying for a permit and complying with the
requirements of the GCP, including all applicable avoidance,
minimization, and mitigation actions. We propose that applications for
projects falling within the GCP and which adopt all applicable plan
requirements would meet the permit issuance criteria as required by
section 10(a)(2)(B) of the ESA, thereby enabling the establishment of a
programmatic permitting and conservation process to address a defined
suite of project types impacting defined listed species within a
defined planning area. The GCP would be available for adoption and use
by eligible applicants for a period of 10 years. Individual permits
issued through the streamlined GCP process may be authorized for a term
of up to 5 years. Therefore, permittees would have up to 5 years to
complete their projects, even if the permit is issued in the final year
(i.e., year 10) of the GCP. If a project proponent is unable to
complete their covered activities during the duration of their permit,
they can request a permit renewal (for up to 5 additional years) from
the Service.
Covered Species
The proposed GCP would cover the bat species in table 1.
Table 1--Bat Species Covered in the Proposed General Conservation Plan
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Common name Scientific name Federal listing status
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Indiana bat............................ Myotis sodalis............ Endangered.
Northern long-eared bat................ Myotis septentrionalis.... Endangered.
Tricolored bat......................... Perimyotis subflavus...... Proposed endangered.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
National Environmental Policy Act Compliance
The draft EA provides the required NEPA documentation for the
proposed Federal action (approval of a conservation plan and subsequent
issuance of permits pursuant to section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA),
providing information on the environmental baseline and a discussion of
impacts to the human and natural environment that may occur as a result
of implementation of the GCP. Importantly, the scope of the EA is
limited to evaluation of the proposed GCP as a mechanism to standardize
permit issuance for covered activities; this EA neither evaluates nor
results in approval of the routine development activities. Land use
approval(s) for individual projects would continue to be the
responsibility of the local or State agency(ies) that have appropriate
jurisdiction(s) over individual projects. A section 10(a)(1)(B)
incidental take permit issued by the Service does not authorize the
covered activities themselves; rather, it authorizes only the take of
covered species resulting from those activities.
We are also considering a no-action alternative to the proposed
action in the EA. Under this no-action alternative, the Service would
not approve the proposed GCP as a standardized mechanism for compliance
with section 10 of the ESA. Project proponents planning to conduct
otherwise lawful routine development activities involving potential
impacts to Indiana bat, northern long-eared bat, and/or tricolored bat
would continue to develop project-specific HCPs in order to apply for
and obtain permits authorizing those species to be taken.
Public Availability of Comments
All comments received, including names and addresses, will become
part of the administrative record associated with this action. If you
submit a comment via https://www.regulations.gov, your entire comment,
including any personal
[[Page 85983]]
identifying information such as your address, phone number, and email
address, will be posted on the website.
If you submit a hardcopy comment that includes personal identifying
information, you may request at the top of your document that we
withhold this information from public review. However, we cannot
guarantee that we will be able to do so. We will post all hardcopy
comments on https://www.regulations.gov.
Next Steps
The Service will evaluate the comments received to determine
whether the GCP meets the requirements of section 10(a) of the ESA (16
U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). 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)(l)(B)
of the ESA have been met. If met, the Service will implement the GCP
and issue ITPs to qualified applicants that agree to comply with all
avoidance, minimization, and mitigation actions that apply to their
proposed projects.
Authority
We provide this notice under section 10(c) of the ESA (16 U.S.C.
1531 et seq.) and its implementing regulations (50 CFR 17.22 and 17.32)
and NEPA (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and its implementing regulations (40
CFR 1500-1508 and 43 CFR 46).
Sharon Marino,
Assistant Regional Director, Ecological Services, Northeast Region.
[FR Doc. 2024-25089 Filed 10-28-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P
