Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 11 / Wednesday, January 17, 2024 / Notices 2975 

habitat for the Central California tiger 

salamander and California red-legged 

frog, denning and dispersal habitat for 

the San Joaquin kit fox, and foraging 

habitat for the golden eagle; 

8. Information on how to incorporate 

climate change into an adaptive 

management plan at the mitigation 

permit area for the benefit of the Central 

California tiger salamander, California 

red-legged frog, San Joaquin kit fox, 

monarch butterfly, and golden eagle; 

9. Information on the effects of 

photovoltaic solar panels on annual 

grassland habitat quality, burrowing 

mammal activity, amphibians (e.g., 

Central California tiger salamander and 

California red-legged frog), pollinators 

(e.g., monarch butterfly and Crotch’s 

bumble bee), golden eagles, and 

microclimatic effects underneath the 

solar panels; 

10. Information on the effects of sheep 

grazing and chicken rearing on 

pollinators (e.g., monarch butterfly and 

Crotch’s bumble bee), amphibians (e.g., 

Central California tiger salamander and 

California red-legged frog), and golden 

eagles; 

11. 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 

12. 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, or other personal identifying 

information in your comment, you 

should be aware that your entire 

comment—including your personal 

identifying information—might be made 

publicly available at any time. While 

you can ask us in your comment to 

withhold your personal identifying 

information from public review, we 

cannot guarantee that we will be able to 

do so. 

Next Steps 

Issuance of an incidental take permit 

is a Federal proposed action subject to 

compliance with NEPA and section 7 of 

the ESA. We will evaluate the 

application, associated documents, and 

any public comments we receive as part 

of our NEPA compliance process to 

determine whether the application 

meets the requirements of section 10(a) 

of the ESA. If we determine that those 

requirements are met, we will conduct 

an intra-Service consultation under 

section 7 of the ESA for the Federal 

action for the potential issuance of an 

ITP. If the intra-Service consultation 

confirms that issuance of the ITP will 

not jeopardize the continued existence 

of any endangered or threatened 

species, or destroy or adversely modify 

critical habitat, we will issue a permit 

to the applicant for the incidental take 

of the covered species. 

Authority 

We publish this notice under the 

National Environmental Policy Act of 

1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 

seq.), and its implementing regulations 

at 40 CFR 1500–1508, as well as in 

compliance with section 10(c) of the 

Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 

et seq.) and its implementing 

regulations at 50 CFR 17.32(b)(1) (ii), 

and the Eagle Act (16 U.S.C. 668–668d 

and 50 CFR 22.80) regulations at 50 CFR 

22.10 which allow the Service to cover 

eagles under an HCP Section 10(a)(1)(B) 

ITP. Criteria for issuance of an eagle 

permit are codified in 50 CFR 22.80(f). 

Michael Fris, 

Field Supervisor, Sacramento Fish and 

Wildlife Office. 

[FR Doc. 2024–00755 Filed 1–16–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4333–15–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

[FWS–R2–ES–2023–0230; 

FXES1114020000–245–FF02ENEH00] 

Application for an Amendment to an 

Incidental Take Permit; Cibolo Canyon 

Master Phase II Environmental 

Assessment and Habitat Conservation 

Plan for the Golden-Cheeked Warbler 

in Bexar County, Texas 

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of availability; request 

for comments. 

SUMMARY: TF Cibolo Canyons, LP 

(applicant) has applied to the U.S. Fish 

and Wildlife Service (Service) for an 

amendment to their existing incidental 

take permit (ITP) supported by the 

proposed amendment to the Habitat 

Conservation Plan for a portion of the 

Cibolo Canyon Property (Master Phase 

II) (HCP) pursuant to the Endangered 

Species Act. The requested amendment 

to the ITP, if approved, would continue 

authorization of incidental take of the 

golden-cheeked warbler (Setophaga 

chrysoparia). The application package 

includes the proposed changes to the 

HCP and a draft screening form that has 

been prepared to evaluate the ITP 

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 

documents. 

DATES: Submission of comments: We 

will accept comments received or 

postmarked on or before February 16, 

2024. 

ADDRESSES: 

Obtaining documents: You may 

obtain copies of the ITP amendment 

application, proposed revisions to the 

HCP, draft screening form, or other 

related documents online in Docket No. 

FWS–R2–ES–2023–0230 at https://

www.regulations.gov. Other related 

information may be obtained online at 

https://www.fws.gov/library/collections/ 

texas-habitat-conservation-plans. 

Submitting comments: You may 

submit written comments by one of the 

following methods: 

• Internet: https://

www.regulations.gov. Search for and 

submit comments on Docket No. FWS– 

R2–ES–2023–0230; or 

• U.S. mail: Public Comments 

Processing, Attn: Docket No. FWS–R2– 

ES–2023–0230; U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service, MS: PRB/3W, 5275 Leesburg 

Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041–3803. 

Please note which documents your 

comment references. For more 

information, see Public Availability of 

Comments. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Karen Myers, Field Supervisor, Austin 

Ecological Services Field Office, Austin, 

Texas; telephone (512) 937–7371. 

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-ofcontact in the United States. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), 

have received and make available a 

proposed amendment to the Habitat 

Conservation Plan for a portion of the 

Cibolo Canyon Property (Master Phase 

II) (HCP) in Bexar County, Texas, and an 

associated draft screening form. TF 

Cibolo Canyons, LP (applicant) has 

applied for an amended incidental take 

permit (ITP) (TE102437–0) supported by 

the proposed amendment to their HCP. 

If approved, the amended permit would 

continue for the remainder of the 30 

years of the original permit to authorize 

incidental take of the federally listed, 

endangered golden-cheeked warbler 


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2976 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 11 / Wednesday, January 17, 2024 / Notices 

(Setophaga chrysoparia; warbler) under 

the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as 

amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). 

The permit would continue to authorize 

incidental take of the species resulting 

from vegetation clearing for 

construction of homes, apartments, and 

other such facilities. 

In addition, in accordance with the 

requirements of the National 

Environmental Policy Act of 1969 

(NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), we 

advise the public that: 

1. We have prepared a draft NEPA 

screening form to evaluate the proposed 

amendment to the HCP and potential 

ITP issuance. We are accepting 

comments on the proposed amendment 

to the HCP and draft NEPA screening 

form. 

2. The applicant and the Service have 

developed the proposed amendment to 

the HCP, which describes the measures 

the applicant has volunteered to take to 

meet the issuance criteria for a 

10(a)(1)(B) ITP associated with the HCP. 

The issuance criteria are found at 50 

CFR 17.22(b)(2). 

3. The HCP would be implemented by 

the applicant and would remain 

effective until the expiration of the HCP 

and associated ITP. 

4. As described in the HCP, the 

potential incidental take of the warbler 

could result from otherwise lawful 

activities covered by the HCP. 

Background 

Section 9 of the ESA and our 

implementing regulations at 50 CFR part 

17 prohibit the ‘‘take’’ of fish or wildlife 

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(19)). 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. 

Regulations governing such take of 

endangered and threatened species are 

found at 50 CFR 17.21–22 and 50 CFR 

17.31–32, respectively. 

Proposed Action 

The proposed action involves the 

issuance of an amended 10(a)(1)(B) ITP 

to TF Cibolo Canyons, LP and approval 

of the proposed amendment to the HCP. 

The ITP would cover incidental ‘‘take’’ 

of the species associated with vegetation 

clearing and construction of homes, 

apartments, and other such facilities as 

described in the ITP and HCP. 

The existing ITP expires February 18, 

2036, and no extension has been 

requested. The original permit 

authorized incidental take of the species 

on 846 acres (ac) and resulted in 768 ac 

of mitigation on site (May 2, 2005; 70 FR 

22682). The proposed amendment 

would add 144 ac of the original 

development area to the mitigation 

lands in exchange for an unoccupied 30- 

ac tract of the original preserve area, 

which would reduce the development 

area from 846 ac to 732 ac and increase 

the preserve area from 768 ac to 882 ac. 

The 144 acres being added to the 

preserve has sufficient habitat to 

support warblers periodically, while the 

30 acres being removed does not contain 

warbler habitat and, therefore, does not 

support warblers. The proposed swap 

will result in less edge-to-area ratio in 

the preserve area, a reduction in the 

amount of habitat loss and take of the 

warbler due to the implementation of 

the HCP and will provide contiguity 

between two occupied portions of the 

preserve. 

To meet the requirements of a section 

10(a)(1)(B) ITP, the applicant would 

continue to implement the amended 

HCP. The HCP describes the 

conservation measures the applicant has 

agreed to undertake to minimize and 

mitigate incidental take, to the 

maximum extent practicable and 

ensures that incidental take will not 

appreciably reduce the likelihood of the 

survival and recovery of species in the 

wild. 

Next Steps 

We will evaluate the ITP application, 

proposed amendment to the HCP, draft 

NEPA screening form, and comments 

we receive to determine whether the 

HCP application meets the requirements 

of the ESA, NEPA, and implementing 

regulations. If we determine that all 

requirements are met, we will approve 

the proposed amendment to the HCP 

and issue the amended ITP to the 

applicant under section 10(a)(1)(B) of 

the ESA in accordance with the terms of 

the HCP and specific terms and 

conditions of the authorizing ITP. We 

will not make our final decision until 

after the 30-day comment period ends, 

and we have fully considered all 

comments received during the public 

comment period. 

Public Availability of Comments 

All comments we receive become part 

of the public record associated with this 

action. Requests for copies of comments 

will be handled in accordance with the 

Freedom of Information Act, NEPA, and 

Service and Department of the Interior 

policies and procedures. 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 ask us to 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 the 

authority of 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. 4371 et 

seq.) and its implementing regulations 

(40 CFR 1506.6). 

Jeffrey Fleming, 

Regional Director, Southwest Region, U.S. 

Fish and Wildlife Service. 

[FR Doc. 2024–00752 Filed 1–16–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4333–15–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Bureau of Land Management 

[BLM_MT_FRN_MO#4500172285] 

Notice of Proposed Withdrawal 

Extension and Public Meeting, Pryor 

Mountain Wild Horse Range; Wyoming 

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed withdrawal 

extension. 

SUMMARY: The Secretary of the Interior 

proposes to extend Public Land Order 

(PLO) No. 7628 for an additional 20-year 

term. PLO No. 7628 withdrew 1,960.10 

acres of public lands in Big Horn 

County, Wyoming, from settlement, 

sale, location, or entry under the general 

land laws, including the United States 

mining laws, subject to valid existing 

rights, to protect the Pryor Mountain 

Wild Horse Range. The withdrawal 

created by PLO No. 7628 will expire on 

March 7, 2025, unless extended. This 

notice announces to the public the 

opportunity to comment on the proposal 

and announces the date, time, and 

location of the public meeting to be held 

in conjunction with this withdrawal 

extension application. 


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