National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration August 4, 2005 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) proposes to serve as the lead agency under NEPA in the preparation of a joint Environmental Impact Statement/ Environmental Impact Report (EIS/EIR) for the following project/proposed action: Adoption and implementation of the ``Settlement Agreement Regarding Water Rights of the Santa Clara Valley Water District On Coyote, Guadalupe, and Stevens Creeks,'' (Settlement Agreement), the State Water Resources Control Board's approval of modifications of the Santa Clara Valley Water District's (District) appropriative water rights to allow for implementation of the Settlement Agreement with supporting findings and implementation of those modifications, the District's adoption of a Conservation Plan (CP), NMFS's issuance of an incidental take permit (ITP) to the District, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's (USFWS) issuance of an ITP to the District, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' (Corps) issuance of a permit to the District, and the California Department of Fish and Game's issuance of an incidental take permit or consistency determination to the District. The project/proposed action is also known as ``FAHCE'' (Fisheries and Aquatic Habitat Collaborative Effort). The NMFS is the lead agency for this EIS, and the USFWS and the Corps are cooperating agencies. The District, a local public water agency, is the lead agency under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). A similar notice is being published by the District in accordance with CEQA. Comments and participation in the scoping process are encouraged.