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Programmatic Safe Harbor Agreement for Nevada Department of Wildlife, Clark County, NV
Note: EPA no longer updates this information, but it may be useful as a reference or resource.
[Federal Register: September 29, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 189)]
[Notices]
[Page 57558-57560]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr29se06-110]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
Programmatic Safe Harbor Agreement for Nevada Department of
Wildlife, Clark County, NV
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability, receipt of application.
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SUMMARY: Nevada Department of Wildlife (Applicant) has applied to the
Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) for an enhancement of survival
permit pursuant to section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Endangered Species Act of
1973, as amended (Act). The permit application includes a proposed
programmatic Safe Harbor Agreement (SHA) between the Applicant and the
Service. The SHA provides for voluntary habitat restoration,
maintenance, enhancement, or creation activities to enhance the
reintroduction and long-recovery of razorback sucker (Xyrauchen
texanus) and bonytail chub (Gila elegans) within Clark County, Nevada.
The proposed duration of both the SHA and permit is 50 years.
The Service has made a preliminary determination that the proposed
SHA and permit application are eligible for categorical exclusion under
the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). The basis for
this determination is contained in an Environmental
[[Page 57559]]
Action Statement, which also is available for public review.
DATES: Written comments must be received by 5 p.m. on October 30, 2006.
ADDRESSES: Comments should be addressed to Robert D. Williams, Field
Supervisor, Nevada Fish and Wildlife Office, 1340 Financial Boulevard,
Suite 234, Reno, Nevada, facsimile number (775) 861-6301 (see
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION, Public Review and Comment).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jody Brown, Fish and Wildlife
Biologist, at the above address or (775) 861-6300.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The primary objective of this SHA is to encourage voluntary habitat
restoration, maintenance, or enhancement activities to benefit the
razorback sucker and bonytail chub by relieving participating
landowners, who enter into the provisions of a Cooperative Agreement
with the Applicant, from any additional Section 9 liability under the
Endangered Species Act beyond that which exists at the time the
Cooperative Agreement is signed (``regulatory baseline''). A SHA
encourages landowners to conduct voluntary conservation activities and
assures them that they will not be subjected to increased listed
species restrictions should their beneficial stewardship efforts result
in increased listed species populations. Application requirements and
issuance criteria for enhancement of survival permits through SHAs are
found in 50 CFR 17.22 and 17.32(c). As long as enrolled landowners
allow the agreed upon conservation measures to be completed on their
property and maintain their baseline responsibilities, they may make
any other lawful use of the property during the permit term, even if
such use results in the take of individual razorback sucker or bonytail
chub or harm to their habitat.
Landowners within Clark County, Nevada, that have suitable aquatic
habitat for the rearing and long-term adult maintenance of razorback
sucker and bonytail chub may be enrolled with the Applicant under the
SHA. The landowner will receive a Certificate of Inclusion when they
sign a Cooperative Agreement. The Cooperative Agreement will include:
(1) A map of the property and its legal location; (2) a description of
the existing biological community including nonnative aquatic species
and sensitive or protected species if any; (3) the portion of the
property to be enrolled and its acreage; (4) a description of the
habitat types that occur on the portion of the property to be enrolled
including an accurate description of ponds or other aquatic habitats
and their characteristics; and (5) current land-use practices and
existing development, and the characteristics of water supplies to
aquatic habitats.
The Applicant, as the Permittee, will be responsible for annual
monitoring and reporting related to implementation of the SHA and
Cooperative Agreements and fulfillment of their provisions. As
specified in the SHA, the Applicant will issue yearly reports to the
Service related to implementation of the program.
Each Cooperative Agreement will cover conservation activities to
create, maintain, restore, or enhance habitat for razorback sucker and
bonytail chub and achieve species' recovery goals. Management
activities that are undertaken through Cooperative Agreements will
result in additional areas being available for the rearing of razorback
sucker and bonytail chub in protected habitats, which will provide
additional razorback sucker and bonytail chub of a suitable size for
release into the wild, and for the maintenance of adult refuge
populations. The overall goal of the Cooperative Agreements entered
into under this SHA is to produce conservation measures that are
mutually beneficial to the Cooperator and the long-term existence of
razorback sucker and bonytail chub.
The Service estimates it will take 2 years of implementing the SHA
to fully reach a net conservation benefit, given the probable species
response time for razorback sucker and bonytail chub to the planned
conservation measures. However, some level of benefits will likely
occur within a shorter time period. Each Cooperative Agreement will
stipulate that the conservation measures be implemented to provide good
habitat and positive stewardship for sites to be used for adult refuges
and for the rearing of subadult razorback sucker and bonytail chub
prior to their release to the wild.
After maintenance of the restored/created/enhanced razorback sucker
and bonytail chub habitat on the property for the agreed-upon term,
Cooperators may then conduct otherwise lawful activities on their
property that result in the partial or total elimination of the habitat
improvements and the incidental taking of Razorback sucker and bonytail
chub. However, the restrictions on returning a property to its original
baseline condition include: (1) The Cooperator must demonstrate that
baseline conditions were maintained and the conservation measures
necessary for achieving a net conservation benefit were carried out;
(2) the Applicant and the Service will be notified a minimum of 30 days
prior to the activity and given the opportunity to capture, rescue,
and/or relocate any Razorback sucker and bonytail chub; and (3) return
to baseline conditions must be completed within the 50-year term of the
permit issued to the Applicant. Cooperative Agreements may be extended
if the Applicant's permit is renewed and that renewal allows for such
an extension.
The Service has made a preliminary determination that approval of
this SHA qualifies as a categorical exclusion under the NEPA, as
provided by the Department of Interior Manual (516 DM 2 Appendix 1 and
516 DM 6 Appendix 1) based on the following criteria: (1)
Implementation of the SHA would result in minor or negligible effects
on federally listed, proposed, and candidate species and their
habitats; (2) implementation of the SHA would result in minor or
negligible effects on other environmental values or resources; and (3)
impacts of the SHA, considered together with the impacts of other past,
present, and reasonably foreseeable similarly situated projects, would
not result, over time, in cumulative effects to environmental values or
resources that would be considered significant. This is more fully
explained in our Environmental Action Statement.
Based upon this preliminary determination, we do not intend to
prepare further NEPA documentation. The Service will consider public
comments in making its final determination on whether to prepare such
additional documentation.
Public Review and Comments
Individuals wishing copies of the permit application, the
Environmental Action Statement, or copies of the full text of the SHA,
including a map of the proposed permit area, references, and legal
descriptions of the proposed permit area, should contact the office and
personnel listed in the ADDRESSES section or obtain copies from the Web
site at (http://www.fws.gov/nevada). Documents also will be available
for public inspection, by appointment, during normal business hours at
this office (see ADDRESSES).
The Service provides this notice pursuant to section 10(c) of the
Act and pursuant to implementing regulations for NEPA (40 CFR 1506.6).
Our practice is to make comments, including names, home addresses, home
phone numbers, and e-mail addresses of respondents,
[[Page 57560]]
available for public review. Individual respondents may request that we
withhold their names and /or homes addresses, etc., but if you wish us
to consider withholding this information you must state this
prominently at the beginning of your comments. In addition, you must
present a rationale for withholding this information. This rationale
must demonstrate that disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted
invasion of privacy. Unsupported assertions will not meet this burden.
In the absence of exceptional, documentable circumstances, this
information will be released. We will always make submissions from
organization or businesses, and from individuals identifying themselves
as representatives of or officials of organizations or businesses,
available for public inspection in their entirety.
Decision
We will evaluate the permit application, the SHA, and comments
submitted thereon to determine whether the application meets the
requirements of section 10(a) of the Act and NEPA regulations. If the
requirements are met, the Service will sign the proposed SHA and issue
an enhancement of survival permit under section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Act
to the Applicant for take of the razorback sucker and bonytail chub
incidental to otherwise lawful activities of the project. The Service
will not make a final decision until after the end of the 30-day
comment period and will fully consider all comments received during the
comment period.
Robert D. Williams,
Field Supervisor, Nevada Fish and Wildlife Office, Reno, Nevada.
[FR Doc. E6-16052 Filed 9-28-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P