Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Enhancement of Survival Permit Application; Programmatic Safe Harbor Agreement and Candidate Conservation Agreement With Assurances for 14 Aquatic Species and Associated Categorical Exclusion; State of Kansas
| Citation | 86 FR 51366 |
| Record Number | 2021-19916 |
| Published date | 15 September 2021 |
| Section | Notices |
| Court | Fish And Wildlife Service |
51366
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 176 / Wednesday, September 15, 2021 / Notices
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[Docket No. FWS–R6–ES–2021–0056;
FF06E21000 212 FXES11140600000]
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife
and Plants; Enhancement of Survival
Permit Application; Programmatic Safe
Harbor Agreement and Candidate
Conservation Agreement With
Assurances for 14 Aquatic Species
and Associated Categorical Exclusion;
State of Kansas
AGENCY
: Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
ACTION
: Notice of availability; request
for comments.
SUMMARY
: We, the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service (Service), are
announcing the availability of
documents related to an application for
an enhancement of survival permit
(permit) under the Endangered Species
Act. The Kansas Department of Wildlife
and Parks has applied for a permit
associated with the implementation of a
programmatic safe harbor agreement
(SHA) and candidate conservation
agreement with assurances (CCAA) for
14 aquatic species in Kansas. The
documents available for review and
comment are the applicant’s
programmatic SHA/CCAA, which is
part of the permit application, and our
draft environmental action statement
and low-effect screening form, which
support a categorical exclusion under
the National Environmental Policy Act.
We invite comments from the public
and Federal, Tribal, State, and local
governments.
DATES
: We will accept comments
received or postmarked on or before
October 15, 2021. Comments submitted
online at Regulations.gov (see
ADDRESSES
) must be received by 11:59
p.m. Eastern Time on October 15, 2021.
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–R6–ES–2021–0056 at
http://www.regulations.gov.
Submitting Comments: To submit
written comments, please use one of the
following methods, and note that your
information requests or comments are in
reference to the Kansas Aquatic SHA/
CCAA.
•Online: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting
comments to Docket Number FWS–R6–
ES–2021–0056.
•U.S. Mail: Public Comments
Processing, Attn: Docket No. FWS–R6–
ES–2021–0056; U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service Headquarters, MS: PRB/3W;
5275 Leesburg Pike; Falls Church, VA
22041–3803.
We request that you send comments
by only one of the methods described
above.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
:
Gibran Suleiman, by phone at 785–539–
3474, extension 114, by email at gibran_
suleiman@fws.gov, or via the Federal
Relay Service at 800–877–8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
: We, the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service),
have received an application from
Kansas Department of Wildlife and
Parks (KDWP, applicant). The applicant
has applied for a 50-year enhancement
of survival permit (permit) under the
Endangered Species Act of 1973, as
amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).
The application addresses the potential
take of five aquatic species associated
with the implementation of a
programmatic safe harbor agreement
(SHA) and nine aquatic species
associated with the implementation of a
programmatic candidate conservation
agreement with assurances (CCAA) on
non-Federal lands in the State of
Kansas. The documents available for
review and comment are the applicant’s
programmatic SHA/CCAA, which is
part of the permit application, and our
draft environmental action statement
and low-effect screening form, which
support a categorical exclusion under
the National Environmental Policy Act.
We invite comments on all of the
documents from the public and Federal,
Tribal, State, and local governments.
Safe Harbor Agreements and Candidate
Conservation Agreements With
Assurances
A SHA is an agreement between the
Service, partners, and landowners, for
voluntary management of non-Federal
lands to contribute towards recovery of
an ESA-listed species in a manner that
is consistent with the Service’s policy
on SHAs (64 FR 32717, June 17, 1999)
and applicable regulations. A CCAA is
an agreement between the Service,
partners, and landowners for voluntary
management of non-Federal lands to
remove or reduce key threats to species
that may become listed under the ESA,
in a manner that is consistent with the
Service’s policy on CCAAs (81 FR
95164, December 27, 2016) and
applicable regulations. In return for
implementing conservation measures in
a SHA/CCAA, the Service gives
participants assurances that the Service
will not impose land, water, or resource
use restrictions or conservation
requirements on ESA-listed species, or
those that may become listed, beyond
those agreed to in the SHA/CCAA.
Applicant’s Programmatic Safe Harbor
Agreement/Candidate Conservation
Agreement With Assurances
The KDWP has submitted this
programmatic SHA/CCAA to facilitate
the reintroduction and implementation
of conservation measures for the
covered species on non-Federal lands in
Kansas. The documents available for
review and comment are the applicant’s
programmatic SHA/CCAA, which is
part of the permit application, and our
draft environmental action statement
and low-effect screening form, which
support a categorical exclusion under
the National Environmental Policy Act.
To enroll in the programmatic SHA/
CCAA, a non-Federal landowner would
enter into a landowner agreement with
KDWP to enroll all or a portion of their
property under the SHA and/or CCAA.
Upon signature by both parties, KDWP
would issue a certificate of inclusion to
the non-Federal landowner, extending
assurances and take authorization to the
participating landowner for the
appropriate covered species. The
requested permit duration is for 50 years
from permit issuance. Proposed
conservation measures include the
introduction, reintroduction,
augmentation, or translocation of the
covered species, and protection or
enhancement of aquatic, wetland,
riparian, or adjacent upland habitats for
the covered species. Conservation
measures would be site-specific and
developed by the participating
landowner and KDWP. Incidental take
of covered species may occur as a result
of the implementation of conservation
measures or ongoing land management
activities on the enrolled lands.
Covered Species
The five ESA-listed species included
as covered species in the SHA are the
Federally threatened Neosho madtom
(Noturus placidus), Arkansas River
shiner (Notropis girardi), and rabbitsfoot
(Quadrula cylindrica cylindrica) and the
Federally endangered Topeka shiner
(Notropis topeka) and Neosho mucket
(Lampsilis rafinesqueana). The covered
species included in the CCAA are the
alligator snapping turtle (Macrochelys
temminckii), peppered chub
(Macrhybopsis tetranema), plains
minnow (Hybognathus placitus), silver
chub (Macrhybopsis storeriana),
hornyhead chub (Nocomis biguttatus),
butterfly mussel (Ellipsaria lineolata),
fluted shell (Lasmigona costata),
cylindrical papershell (Anodontoides
ferussacianus), and flat floater
(Anodonta suborbiculata).
VerDate Sep<11>2014 17:08 Sep 14, 2021 Jkt 253001 PO 00000 Frm 00029 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 E:\FR\FM\15SEN1.SGM 15SEN1
khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
51367
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 176 / Wednesday, September 15, 2021 / Notices
Public Availability of Comments
Written comments we receive become
part of the administrative record
associated with this action. 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
be made publicly available at any time.
While you can request in your comment
that we withhold your personal
identifying information from public
review, we cannot guarantee that we
will be able to do so. All submissions
from organizations or businesses, and
from individuals identifying themselves
as representatives or officials of
organizations or businesses, will be
made available for public disclosure in
their entirety.
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
1506.6 and 43 CFR 46).
Stephen Small,
Assistant Regional Director, Ecological
Services, Mountain-Prairie Region.
[FR Doc. 2021–19916 Filed 9–14–21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333–15–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS–R3–ES–2021–0062;
FXES11140300000–212]
Draft Environmental Assessment;
Receipt of an Application for an
Incidental Take Permit and Habitat
Conservation Plan for Five Bat
Species, Missouri
AGENCY
: Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
ACTION
: Notice of availability; request
for comment and information.
SUMMARY
: We, the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service, have received an
application from the Missouri
Department of Conservation (applicant)
for an incidental take permit (ITP) under
the Endangered Species Act. If
approved, the permit would be for a 50-
year period and would authorize the
incidental take of two endangered
species, the Indiana bat and the gray bat;
one threatened species, the northern
long-eared bat; and two species
petitioned for Federal listing, the little
brown bat and the tricolored bat. The
applicant has prepared a habitat
conservation plan (HCP) to cover a suite
of activities associated with continued
forest and habitat management within
the State of Missouri.
DATES
: We will accept comments
received or postmarked on or before
October 15, 2021.
ADDRESSES
: Document availability:
Electronic copies of the documents this
notice announces, along with public
comments received, will be available
online in Docket No. FWS–R3–ES–
2021–0062 at http://
www.regulations.gov.
Comment submission: In your
comment, please specify whether your
comment addresses the proposed HCP,
draft EA, or any combination of the
aforementioned documents, or other
supporting documents. You may submit
written comments by one of the
following methods:
•Online: http://www.regulations.gov.
Search for and submit comments on
Docket No. FWS–R3–ES–2021–0062.
•U.S. mail: Send comments to Public
Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No.
FWS–R3–ES–2021–0062; U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service; 5275 Leesburg Pike,
MS: PRB/3W; Falls Church, VA 22041–
3803.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
: John
Weber, Deputy Field Supervisor,
Missouri Ecological Services Field
Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
101 Park DeVille Drive, Suite A,
Columbia, MO 65203; telephone: 573–
234–2132.
Individuals who are hearing impaired
or speech impaired may call the Federal
Relay Service at 1–800–877–8339 for
TTY assistance.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
: We make
available for public comment the
applicant’s habitat conservation plan
(HCP) and announce the availability of
a draft environmental assessment,
which has been prepared in response to
the permit application in accordance
with the requirements of the National
Environmental Policy Act. We invite the
public and local, State, Tribal, and
Federal agencies to comment on these
applications. Before issuing any of the
requested permits, we will take into
consideration any information that we
receive during the public comment
period.
We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service (Service), have received an
application from the Missouri
Department of Conservation (applicant)
for an incidental take permit (ITP) under
the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as
amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.),
for its habitat conservation plan (HCP)
for the for the Indiana bat, gray bat,
northern long-eared bat, little brown bat,
and tricolored bat (covered species).
The applicant conducts habitat and
forest management activities statewide
in Missouri; the application covers
nearly the entire State, except for lands
owned and managed by other Federal
and State entities, and would consist of
approximately 42 million acres of
covered species habitat. The applicant
has prepared a habitat conservation plan
that describes the continued habitat and
forest management operations and
measures that the applicant would
implement to avoid, minimize, and
mitigate incidental take of the covered
species. The HCP proposes to restore,
enhance, and maintain more than 1
million acres of covered species habitat
and has dedicated 28,000 acres of State-
owned land specifically for the
enhanced restoration, management, and
permanent protection of priority bat
management zones to further offset
impacts to the covered species. If
approved, the ITP would be for a 50-
year period and would authorize the
incidental take of two endangered
species, the Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis)
and the gray bat (Myotis grisescens); one
threatened species, the northern long-
eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis); and
two species petitioned for Federal
listing, the little brown bat (Myotis
lucifugus) and the tricolored bat
(Perimyostis subflavus). The applicant
has prepared an HCP that describes the
actions and measures that the applicant
would implement to avoid, minimize,
and mitigate incidental take of Indiana
bat, gray bat, northern long-eared bat,
little brown bat, and tricolored bat. We
also announce the availability of a draft
environmental assessment (EA), which
has been prepared in response to the
permit application in accordance with
the requirements of the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA; 42
U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). We request public
comment on the application and
associated documents.
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 ‘‘listed animal
species,’’ or to attempt to engage in such
conduct’’ (16 U.S.C. 1538). However,
under section 10(a) of the ESA, we may
issue permits to authorize incidental
take of listed species. ‘‘Incidental take’’
is defined by the ESA as take that is
incidental to, and not the purpose of,
carrying out an otherwise lawful activity
VerDate Sep<11>2014 17:08 Sep 14, 2021 Jkt 253001 PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 E:\FR\FM\15SEN1.SGM 15SEN1
khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
