[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 139 (Wednesday, July 23, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34669-34670]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office []
[FR Doc No: 2025-13815]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R1-ES-2025-N021; FXES11140100000-256-FF01E0000]
Pierce County Planning and Public Works Flood Risk Reduction
Structures Maintenance and Operations Habitat Conservation Plan and
Environmental Assessment; Receipt of Incidental Take Permit Application
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), have received an
incidental take permit (ITP) application from the Pierce County
Department of Planning and Public Works (Pierce County; applicant),
including a habitat conservation plan (HCP) for maintenance and
operations of flood risk reduction structures in Pierce County,
Washington. Pierce County submitted an ITP application and HCP pursuant
to the Endangered Species Act. The National Marine Fisheries Service
(NMFS) also received an ITP application from Pierce County and,
concurrent with this notice, has also published a notice of
availability for comment on the ITP application, the applicant's HCP,
and, as the lead Federal agency under the National Environmental Policy
Act, a draft environmental assessment (draft EA) analyzing the
potential effects of issuance of the respective ITPs. We invite the
public and local, State, Tribal, and Federal agencies to comment on
these documents.
DATES: Written comments must be received by no later than 5 p.m.
Pacific Standard Time on August 22, 2025. Any comments received after
the closing date may not be considered in the final decision on these
actions.
ADDRESSES:
Obtaining documents: The HCP and draft EA are available on
the internet at: .
Submitting comments: Submit comments in writing via email
to [email protected]. Include the following in the email subject
line: ``Comments on Pierce County HCP/Draft EA.'' Please specify
whether your comments are associated with the HCP or the draft EA, and
refer to the specific page and line number of the document on which you
are commenting. FWS and NMFS will consider all relevant comments
submitted in response to the respective notices of availability. There
is no need to submit identical comments in response to both notices
(see also Public Availability of Comments).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joshua Emery, Washington Fish and
Wildlife, by email at [email protected]. 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
(FWS), have received an incidental take permit (ITP) application from
the Pierce County Department of Planning and Public Works (Pierce
County; applicant), including a habitat conservation plan (HCP) for
maintenance and operations of flood risk reduction structures in Pierce
County, Washington. Pierce County submitted an ITP application and HCP
pursuant to section 10(a)(1)(B) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973,
as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). The permit, if issued, would
authorize incidental take of species under FWS jurisdiction resulting
from the maintenance and operation of levees and other flood control
structures, and conservation activities described in the HCP, for a
permit term of 30 years.
The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) also received an ITP
application and, concurrent with this notice, has also published a
notice of the availability for comment on that ITP application, the HCP
and, as the lead Federal agency under the National Environmental Policy
Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), a draft
environmental assessment (draft EA) analyzing the potential effects of
issuance of the respective ITPs. FWS is a cooperating agency under NEPA
for this proposed action. Both notices are soliciting public comments
through a single process, described below. Species Included in the
Habitat Conservation Plan Pierce County's HCP includes one ESA-listed
species that is under the jurisdiction of FWS, and three ESA-listed
species that are under the jurisdiction of NMFS. The HCP also includes
4 species not listed under the ESA.
Table 1--Species Included in Habitat Conservation Plan
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Species name Scientific name Status
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ESA-Listed Species Under FWS
Jurisdiction:
Bull trout........................ Salvelinus confluentus........................ Threatened.
ESA-Listed Species Under NMFS
Jurisdiction:
Chinook salmon.................... Oncorhynchus tshawytscha...................... Threatened (Puget Sound
evolutionarily
significant unit).
Steelhead......................... Oncorhynchus mykiss........................... Threatened (Puget Sound
distinct population
segment).
Non-ESA-Listed Species:
Coho salmon....................... Oncorhynchus kisutch.......................... Not listed (Puget Sound/
Strait of Georgia
evolutionarily
significant unit).
Pacific lamprey................... Lampetra tridentata........................... Not listed.
River lamprey..................... Entosphenus tridentatus....................... Not listed.
Western brook lamprey............. Lampetra richardsoni.......................... Not listed.
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[[Page 34670]]
Background
Section 9 of the ESA prohibits the taking of a species listed as
endangered or threatened. The ESA defines ``take'' to mean to harass,
harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or
to attempt to engage in any such conduct. The FWS may issue permits,
under limited circumstances, to take listed species incidental to
otherwise lawful activities pursuant to section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA
and implementing regulations (50 CFR 17.22(b) and 17.32(b)).
On November 1, 2024, the FWS and NMFS received separate ITP
applications from Pierce County, in accordance with the requirements of
the ESA. Pierce County prepared an HCP in support of its applications
and is seeking 30-year ITPs for incidental take of seven covered
species. The ITPs, if issued would authorize take of the covered
species that may occur incidental to the maintenance and operations
activities associated with Pierce County-owned flood risk reduction
structures, and conservation activities described in the HCP, in and
along the Puyallup, White, and Nisqually Rivers in Pierce County,
Washington (covered activities). Authorization for take of the three
species not currently listed under the ESA would be included in the ITP
proposed for issuance by FWS; the take authorization would go into
effect for one or more of the species if the FWS lists the species
during the permit term. The HCP addresses potential impacts that will
likely result from the taking of covered species and describes the
steps the applicant will undertake to avoid, minimize, and mitigate
such impacts.
The HCP also describes alternatives considered by the applicants,
monitoring protocols, funding assurances, and procedures to account for
unforeseen or extraordinary circumstances.
The proposed issuance of the ITPs is considered a Federal action
under NEPA, and NMFS prepared a draft EA to analyze the potential
impacts on the human environment in accordance with the requirements of
NEPA, with input from FWS as a cooperating agency. Further information
regarding the draft EA is described in the NMFS notice of availability.
Next Steps
After the public comment period ends (see DATES), FWS and NMFS will
each evaluate the permit applications, associated documents, and any
comments received to make their permit decisions based on the statutory
and regulatory criteria of the ESA. Each agency will document its
determination independently in separate ESA section 10 findings
documents and ESA section 7 biological opinions. NMFS will also
finalize the EA and determine whether the proposed action warrants a
finding of no significant impact, or whether an environmental impact
statement should be prepared pursuant to NEPA.
Public Availability of Comments
The HCP and draft EA are available for public review and comment.
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. Moreover, 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
The Service provides this notice under section 10(c) of the
Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and its implementing
regulations (50 CFR 17.22, and 50 CFR 17.32).
Bridget Fahey,
Acting Regional Director, Pacific Region, U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service.
[FR Doc. 2025-13815 Filed 7-22-25; 8:45 am]
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