[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 96 (Tuesday, May 20, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21503-21504]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office []
[FR Doc No: 2025-09003]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[Docket No. FWS-R8-ES-2025-0024; FF08ESMF00-256-FXES11140800000]
Chalan Solar and Storage Project, Kern County, California; Draft
Environmental Action Statement and Draft Habitat Conservation Plan
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for public comment.
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SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce
receipt of an application and draft habitat conservation plan from
Chalan Solar Storage, LLC (applicant) for an incidental take permit
(ITP) under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The applicant requests
the ITP to take the federally endangered San Joaquin kit fox (Vulpes
macrotis mutica) and giant kangaroo rat (Dipodomys ingens) incidental
to development activities in Kern County, California. We request public
comment on the application, which includes the applicant's draft
habitat conservation plan (HCP), and the Service's preliminary
determination that the proposed permitting action may be eligible for a
categorical exclusion pursuant to the Department of the Interior's
(DOI) National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations and the DOI
Departmental Manual. To make this preliminary determination, we
prepared a draft environmental action statement and low-effect
screening form, which are also available for public review. We invite
comment from the public and local, State, Tribal, and Federal agencies.
DATES: We must receive your written comments on or before June 20,
2025.
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 at in Docket No. FWS-
R8-ES-2025-0024.
Submitting Comments: To send written comments, please use one of
the following methods. Please note whether your comments are in
reference to the draft categorical exclusion, draft HCP, or both.
Internet: Submit comments at
under Docket No. FWS-R8-ES-2025-0024.
U.S. Mail: Public Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No.
FWS-R8-ES-2025-0024; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Headquarters, MS:
PRB/3W; 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803.
For more information, see Public Comments under SUPPLEMENTARY
INFORMATION.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Margaret Sepulveda, Senior Fish and
Wildlife Biologist, San Joaquin Valley Division, Sacramento Fish and
Wildlife Office, by phone at 916-414-6512. 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 Service announce the availability of
a low-effect screening form, prepared pursuant to the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et
seq.). This notice also announces the receipt of an application from
Chalan Solar Storage, LLC, for a 35-year ITP under the ESA, as amended
(16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). Application for the permit requires the
preparation of a HCP with measures to avoid, minimize, and mitigate the
impacts of incidental take to the maximum extent practicable. The
applicant prepared the draft Chalan Solar and Storage HCP pursuant to
section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA. The purpose of the low-effect screening
form is to assess the effects of issuing the permit and implementing
the draft HCP on the natural and human environment. We request public
comment on the application, which includes the applicant's HCP, and on
the Service's preliminary determination that this proposed ITP
qualifies as low effect and, thus, may qualify for a categorical
exclusion.
Background Information
Section 9 of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1538) prohibits the taking of fish
and wildlife species listed as endangered under section 4 of the ESA.
Section 4(d) of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1533(d)) allows the Service to
extend protections for endangered species to those listed as
threatened. Regulations governing permits for endangered and threatened
species are at 50 CFR 17.22 and 17.32, respectively. For more about the
Federal HCP program, go to /service/habitat-conservation-plans.
National Environmental Policy Act Compliance
The potential issuance of a permit triggers the need for compliance
with NEPA. The draft low-effect screening form was prepared to assess
whether issuing an ITP based on the draft HCP would result in more than
minor or negligible effects on the human environment.
Proposed Action
The Service proposes to issue an ITP to the applicant for a period
of 35 years for certain covered activities. The applicant has requested
an ITP for two covered species, the San Joaquin kit fox (Vulpes
macrotis mutica) and giant kangaroo rat (Dipodomys ingens), both of
which are listed as endangered under the ESA.
Habitat Conservation Plan Area
The geographic scope of the draft HCP encompasses approximately 878
acres (ac), including a 618-ac development area in Kern County and 260
ac of conservation lands located north of the development in Kings
County. The project would result in the construction, operation, and
decommissioning of a solar electrical generation and storage facility
located in northern Kern County, approximately 16 miles north of Lost
Hills, California.
Covered Activities
The applicant is requesting incidental take authorization for
covered activities including the construction, operation, maintenance,
and eventual decommissioning of the solar energy electrical generation
and storage facility (Proposed Project). The applicant is proposing to
implement several project design features, including best management
practices, as well as general and species-specific avoidance and
minimization measures to minimize the impacts of the take from the
covered activities.
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Our Preliminary Determination
The Service made a preliminary determination that the applicant's
Proposed Project and the proposed mitigation and minimization measures
would individually and cumulatively have a minor effect on the San
Joaquin kit fox, giant kangaroo rat, and the human environment.
Therefore, we have preliminarily determined that the proposed ESA
section 10(a)(1)(B) permit would be a low-effect ITP that individually
or cumulatively would have a minor effect on the San Joaquin kit fox
and giant kangaroo rat and may qualify for application of a categorical
exclusion. A low-effect ITP is one that would result in (1) minor or
nonsignificant effects on species covered in the HCP; (2)
nonsignificant effects on the human environment; and (3) impacts that,
when added together with the impacts of other past, present, and
reasonably foreseeable actions, would not result in significant
cumulative effects to the human environment.
Public Comments
We request data, comments, new information, or suggestions from the
public, other concerned governmental agencies, the scientific
community, Tribes, industry, or any other interested party on this
notice, the draft categorical exclusion, and the draft HCP. We
particularly seek comments on the following:
1. Biological information concerning the species;
2. Relevant data concerning the species;
3. Additional information concerning the range, distribution,
population size, and population trends of the species;
4. Current or planned activities in the area and their possible
impacts on the species;
5. The presence of archeological sites, buildings and structures,
historic events, sacred and traditional areas, and other historic
preservation concerns, which are required to be considered in project
planning by the National Historic Preservation Act; and
6. Any other environmental issues that should be considered with
regard to the proposed development and permit action.
Public Availability of Comments
Before including your address, phone number, email address, or
other personal identifying information in your comment, be aware that
your entire comment, including your personal identifying information,
may be made available to the public. If you submit a comment at , your entire comment, including any personal
identifying information, will be posted on the website. If you submit a
hardcopy comment that includes personal identifying information, such
as your address, phone number, or email address, you may request at the
top of your document that we withhold this information from public
review. However, 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.
Next Steps
The Service will evaluate the application and the comments to
determine whether to issue the requested ITP. We will also conduct an
intra-Service consultation pursuant to section 7 of the ESA to evaluate
the effects of the proposed take. After considering the preceding and
other matters, we will determine whether the permit issuance criteria
of section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA have been met. If met, the Service
will issue the ITP to the applicant.
Authority
The Service provides 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 NEPA (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and DOI's NEPA implementing
regulations (43 CFR part 46).
Amber Aguilera,
Acting Field Supervisor, Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office.
[FR Doc. 2025-09003 Filed 5-19-25; 8:45 am]
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