Fish and Wildlife Service September 23, 2019 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, have received an application from M-Gopher, LLC, for an incidental take permit (ITP) pursuant to the Endangered Species Act. The ITP would authorize ``take'' of the Yelm subspecies of the Mazama pocket gopher, incidental to otherwise lawful activities during construction of a single-family home in Thurston County, Washington. The application includes a habitat conservation plan (HCP) with measures to minimize and mitigate the impacts of the taking of the Yelm pocket gopher. We have also prepared a draft environmental action statement (EAS) that includes our preliminary determination that the ITP decision may be eligible for categorical exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act. We provide this notice to open a public comment period and to invite comments from all interested parties regarding the above-referenced documents.