15032 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 54 / Friday, March 20, 2015 / Notices 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

[FWS–R3–ES–2015–N035; 

FXES11120300000–156–FF03E00000] 

Notice of Availability of Draft 

Environmental Assessment and 

Revised Multi-Species Habitat 

Conservation Plan; Receipt of 

Application for Incidental Take Permit 

Amendment; NiSource Inc. 

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of availability; request 

for public comment. 

SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service (Service), have received 

an application from NiSource Inc. and 

its subsidiary Columbia Pipeline Group 

(hereafter, NiSource), for an amendment 

to add the northern long-eared bat to its 

Endangered Species Act (ESA) 

incidental take permit (ITP). The 

application includes a revised Habitat 

Conservation Plan (HCP). The Service 

prepared an Environmental Assessment 

(EA). We request public comments on 

NiSource’s revised HCP and our draft 

EA. 

DATES: To ensure consideration, please 

send your written comments on or 

before April 20, 2015. 

ADDRESSES: Document availability: The 

permit application and associated 

documents are available for review, 

subject to the requirements of the 

Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a) and 

Freedom of Information Act, by any of 

the following methods: 

• Internet: You may access electronic 

copies on the Internet at http://

www.fws.gov/midwest/endangered/

permits/hcp/nisource/index.html. 

• U.S. Mail: You may obtain 

electronic copies on CD–ROM by 

submitting a request in writing to the 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service within 30 

days of the date of publication of this 

notice; see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT. 

• In-Person: Printed copies are 

available for public inspection and 

review (by appointment only), at the 

office listed under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT. 

Submitting Comments: Send written 

comments via U.S. mail to the Regional 

Director, Midwest Region, Attn: Thomas 

Magnuson, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service, Ecological Services, 5600 

American Blvd. West, Suite 990, 

Bloomington, MN 55437–1458, or by 

electronic mail to permitsR3ES@fws.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Karen Herrington, NiSource MSHCP 

Coordinator, by U.S. mail at U.S. Fish 

and Wildlife Service, 360 Pearson Ct., 

Saint Charles, MO 63304; or by phone 

at 612–713–5315. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We have 

received an application from NiSource 

for an amendment to its Endangered 

Species Act (ESA) incidental take 

permit (ITP), to add the northern longeared bat. The application includes a 

revised HCP, developed to satisfy the 

criteria listed in section 10(a)(1)(B) of 

the ESA pertaining to issuance of 

incidental take permits. If NiSource has 

met these criteria, and its HCP and 

supporting information are statutorily 

complete, an amended incidental take 

permit that includes the northern longeared bat will be issued. Issuances of 

ITPs by the Service are Federal actions 

subject to review under the National 

Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). To 

comply with NEPA, the Service 

prepared an EA, the purpose of which 

is to determine the significance of 

environmental impacts that could result 

from amending the NiSource ITP to 

include the northern long-eared bat, and 

through subsequent implementation of 

the revised NiSource HCP. 

We request public comments on 

NiSource’s revised HCP and our draft 

EA. For availability of these documents, 

see ADDRESSES. 

NiSource, headquartered in 

Merrillville, Indiana, is engaged in 

natural gas transmission, storage, and 

distribution across the eastern United 

States. In September 2013, the Service 

issued NiSource an ITP for 10 federally 

listed species that occur in portions of 

its 14-State operating territory. The 

permit allows NiSource to incidentally 

take these species while operating and 

maintaining its interstate natural gas 

pipeline infrastructure. After issuance of 

the ITP, the Service proposed listing the 

northern long-eared bat (Myotis 

septentrionalis) under the ESA. The 

northern long-eared bat was not 

included in the original NiSource HCP. 

On January 13, 2015, the Service 

received an application from NiSource 

to have the northern long-eared bat 

added to its ITP. The application 

includes a revised HCP that provides an 

analysis of NiSource activities across its 

14-State operating territory, which 

includes Delaware, Indiana, Kentucky, 

Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, New 

Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, 

Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and 

West Virginia. Northern long-eared bats 

are present in each of those 14 States. 

Based on the analysis in the revised 

HCP, certain NiSource activities (e.g., 

right-of-way maintenance, facility 

inspection, upgrade and replacement of 

pipelines, relocations, routine 

expansions, and mitigation) have the 

potential to impact the northern longeared bat. In particular, two NiSource 

activities will potentially cause take of 

northern long-eared bats: (1) Tree 

clearing in known and suitable summer, 

spring staging, and fall swarming 

habitat, and (2) ‘‘waste pit’’ construction 

in storage fields. NiSource mitigation 

directed at the Indiana bat will likely 

provide conservation benefits to the 

northern long-eared bat. The revised 

NiSource HCP identifies over 40 

conservation measures that NiSource 

will implement in each of those 14 

States to avoid, minimize, and mitigate 

potential impacts to northern long-eared 

bats. Beyond the ITP amendment 

request, there are no other changes to 

the NiSource HCP. 

Over the 49 year life of the permit, 

NiSource is requesting incidental take, 

primarily in the form of habitat 

harassment and harm, for no more than 

93,500 acres of habitat that could 

support up to 4,618 northern long-eared 

bats. After all practicable steps have 

been taken to avoid and minimize take, 

NiSource will fund mitigation projects 

to compensate for the impacts of its 

take. Such projects will include 

protecting high-quality northern longeared bat habitats, restoring and 

protecting degraded northern long-eared 

bat habitat, and potentially establishing 

new habitat. 

The NEPA process will culminate 

with a decision by the Service’s 

Regional Director on one of three 

alternatives found in Chapter 2 of the 

EA: (1) No Action (Status Quo); (2) 

Approve ITP Amendment Request 

(Applicant’s Preferred Alternative); (3) 

Approve ITP Amendment Request with 

Conditions (Service’s Preferred 

Alternative). Once an alternative is 

selected, the Regional Director will then 

decide whether issuance of an amended 

ITP to NiSource Inc., including 

subsequent implementation of its 

revised HCP, will significantly affect the 

quality of the human environment, as 

defined by the NEPA. 

Public Availability of Comments 

Written comments we receive become 

part of the public 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 the entire 

comment, including your personal 

identifying information, may be made 

available at any time. While you can ask 

us in your comment to withhold your 

personal identifying information from 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 54 / Friday, March 20, 2015 / Notices 15033 

public review, we cannot guarantee that 

we will be able to do so. 

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 under NEPA (42 U.S.C. 

4371 et seq.) and its implementing 

regulations (40 CFR 1506.6; 43 CFR part 

46). 

Dated: February 18, 2015. 

Lynn Lewis, 

Assistant Regional Director, Ecological 

Services, Midwest Region. 

[FR Doc. 2015–06396 Filed 3–19–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P 

INTERNATIONAL TRADE 

COMMISSION 

[Investigation No. 337–TA–888] 

Certain Silicon Microphone Packages 

and Products Containing Same: 

Commission Determination To Grant 

the Joint Motion To Terminate the 

Investigation on the Basis of 

Settlement; Termination of 

Investigation 

AGENCY: U.S. International Trade 

Commission. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that 

the U.S. International Trade 

Commission has determined to grant the 

joint motion to terminate the abovereferenced investigation based upon 

settlement. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Michael Liberman, Esq., Office of the 

General Counsel, U.S. International 

Trade Commission, 500 E Street SW., 

Washington, DC 20436, telephone (202) 

205–3115. Copies of non-confidential 

documents filed in connection with this 

investigation are or will be available for 

inspection during official business 

hours (8:45 a.m. to 5:15 p.m.) in the 

Office of the Secretary, U.S. 

International Trade Commission, 500 E 

Street SW., Washington, DC 20436, 

telephone (202) 205–2000. General 

information concerning the Commission 

may also be obtained by accessing its 

Internet server at http://www.usitc.gov. 

The public record for this investigation 

may be viewed on the Commission’s 

electronic docket (EDIS) at http://

edis.usitc.gov. Hearing-impaired 

persons are advised that information on 

this matter can be obtained by 

contacting the Commission’s TDD 

terminal on (202) 205–1810. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Commission instituted this investigation 

on July 26, 2013, based on a complaint 

filed by Knowles Electronics, LLC, of 

Itasca, Illinois. 78 Fed. Reg. 45272 (July 

26, 2013). The notice of investigation 

named GoerTek, Inc. of Weifang, China 

and GoerTek Electronics, Inc. of 

Sunnyvale, California as respondents. 

The Commission’s Office of Unfair 

Import Investigations is not a party to 

this investigation. The complaint 

alleged violations of section 337 in the 

importation into the United States, the 

sale for importation, and the sale within 

the United States after importation of 

silicon microphone packages and 

products containing the same, by reason 

of infringement of certain claims of U.S. 

Patent Nos. 7,439,616 (‘‘the ‘616 

patent’’); 8,018,049 (‘‘the ‘049 patent’’); 

and 8,121,331. Subsequently, the 

investigation was terminated as to 

claims 13 and 14 of the ‘616 patent and 

claim 24 of the ‘049 patent based on the 

withdrawal of complainant’s allegations 

as to those claims. See Notice (May 16, 

2014) (determining not to review Order 

No. 37 issued on April 17, 2014). 

The evidentiary hearing in this 

investigation was held from May 6 

through May 14, 2014. On August 29, 

2014, the ALJ issued the final initial 

determination (‘‘ID’’) finding a violation 

of section 337. Respondents and 

complainant (conditionally) petitioned 

for review of various portions of the 

final ID. The Commission determined to 

review the final ID in part, and issued 

a Notice dated November 6, 2014, 79 FR 

67446–48 (Nov. 13, 2014), in which the 

Commission specified the issues under 

review and the questions pertaining to 

such issues. The Commission received 

timely opening and reply briefs 

regarding the issues under review, as 

well as the issues of remedy, the public 

interest, and bonding, from both parties 

to the investigation. 

On February 11, 2015, the parties 

filed a ‘‘Joint Motion To Extend the 

Target Date by 10 Days’’ representing 

that an extension was necessary because 

the parties were ‘‘making progress on an 

agreement which, if signed, would 

resolve their dispute and permit 

termination of this investigation 

pursuant to 19 CFR 210.21.’’ Motion To 

Extend at 1. The Commission granted 

the joint motion extending the target 

date for completion of this investigation 

to March 16, 2015. See Commission 

Notice dated February 27, 2015. 

On February 25, 2015, the parties 

filed a ‘‘Joint Motion To Terminate 

Investigation No. 337–TA–888 on the 

Basis of Settlement.’’ 

Having examined the joint motion, 

the settlement agreement, and the 

record of this investigation, the 

Commission has determined to grant the 

joint motion to terminate the 

investigation. The Commission finds 

that this termination will not prejudice 

the public interest. 

The Commission has therefore 

terminated this investigation. The 

authority for the Commission’s 

determination is contained in section 

337 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as 

amended (19 U.S.C. 1337), and Part 210 

of the Commission’s Rules of Practice 

and Procedure (19 CFR part 210). 

By order of the Commission. 

Issued: March 16, 2015. 

Lisa R. Barton, 

Secretary to the Commission. 

[FR Doc. 2015–06381 Filed 3–19–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7020–02–P 

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE 

Notice of Lodging of Proposed 

Consent Decree Under the Clean Air 

Act 

On March 16, 2015, the Department of 

Justice lodged a proposed Consent 

Decree with the United States District 

Court for the Southern District of 

Indiana in the lawsuit entitled United 

States and the State of Indiana v. Exide 

Technologies, Civil Action No. 15–cv– 

433 (S.D. Ind.). 

A Complaint that was filed along with 

the proposed Consent Decree alleges 

that Exide Technologies (‘‘Exide’’) has 

violated the Clean Air Act and its 

implementing regulations, certain terms 

and conditions of Exide’s Clean Air Act 

Title V operating permit, and 

corresponding requirements under 

Indiana state law at its secondary lead 

smelting facility in Muncie, Indiana. 

The proposed Consent Decree would 

resolve the claims alleged in the 

Complaint in exchange for Exide’s 

commitment to make specific 

improvements to its air pollution 

control and monitoring systems at its 

Muncie facility, including installing a 

new furnace exhaust gas afterburner, 

and to pay civil penalties to the United 

States and the State. The penalties 

would be paid as allowed claims in 

Exide’s pending Chapter 11 bankruptcy 

proceeding, captioned In re Exide 

Technologies, No. 13–11482–KJC 

(Bankr. D. Del.). The Consent Decree 

would grant the United States and the 

State equivalent allowed penalty claims 

in the bankruptcy totaling $820,000, 

including a $246,000 allowed 

administrative expense claim and a 

$164,000 allowed general unsecured 

claim each for the United States and the 

State. 

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