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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 164 / Friday, August 27, 2021 / Notices
Proposed Action Alternative Under the proposed action alternative, the Service would issue an ITP to the applicants for a period of 6
years for certain covered activities described below. The applicants have requested an ITP for two covered species described below, which are listed as threatened under the ESA.

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Covered Activities The proposed ESA section 10 ITP
would allow take of two covered species from covered activities in the proposed HCP area. The applicants are requesting incidental take authorization to complete the decommissioning and removal of a wind energy project originally installed in the 1980s and 1990s. The applicants have completed non-ground-disturbing work, including the removal of wind turbine blades, nacelles, turbine towers, transformers, meteorological masts, and other minor aboveground facilities. Under the HCP, the applicants would complete the decommissioning and removal of approximately 14 miscellaneous concrete pads, 17 junction boxes, 308
turbine foundations, 41 concrete padmount transformer pads, and would restore approximately 14.7 miles of access roads. The applicants seeks a 6-year permit to match the projected time necessary to complete the activities associated with this proposed decommissioning and reclamation project, including ground-disturbing activities, and remedial actions, if necessary, to ensure restoration of the project site.
The applicants propose actions to avoid, minimize, and mitigate the effects to the Covered Species associated with the Covered Activities through the implementation of the HCP. The proposed mitigation measures in the HCP closely follow the avoidance and minimization measures outlined in the East Alameda Conservation Strategy EACCS. The measures generally require preconstruction surveys;
avoidance and monitoring during construction; and best management practices for restoration of Covered Species habitat.
Covered Species The California tiger salamander Ambystoma californiense central California distinct population segment, and the California red-legged frog Rana draytonii, both federally listed as threatened, are proposed to be included as covered species in the proposed HCP.
Alternatives In addition to the proposed action alternative in the applicants HCP, as
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required by the ESA, the HCP considers several alternatives to such actions potential taking: 1 The No-Take Alternative; 2 the Reduced Take Alternative, and 3 an Other Alternative.
No-Action Alternative Under the no-action alternative, the Service would not issue an ITP to the applicants, and the reclamation would not be completed. The no-action alternative is not feasible, based on the purpose and need of the project. The existing wind energy project has been partially decommissioned, but the applicants are responsible for comprehensive decommissioning and reclamation activities. Ground disturbance during the final phases of decommissioning/reclamation activities is unavoidable, along with plausible incidental take of covered species. For these reasons, the no-action alternative has been rejected.
Reduced Take Alternative Under the reduced take alternative, the applicants considered only removing turbine foundations that were located further away from aquatic habitat for the covered species. The Service would issue a permit, and the applicants would implement the proposed mitigation measures. While this reduced take alternative would reduce the amount of California tiger salamander and California red-legged frog habitat affected, it was determined to be infeasible because the applicants have previous agreements with the landowner to remove all project components during decommissioning.
The applicants would not be able to meet their obligations with landowners under this alternative, so the reduced take alternative was rejected.
Other Alternative The applicants also considered restoring fewer miles of roads as an alternative. The Service would issue a permit, and the applicants would implement the proposed mitigation measures. While this other alternative would reduce by a very small amount the amount of California tiger salamander and California red-legged frog habitat initially affected, the longterm value of rehabilitating areas for future habitat would be lost.
Additionally, it was determined to be generally infeasible because the applicants have previous agreements with the landowner to remove all project components during decommissioning. So for these reasons, the reduced take alternative was rejected.

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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 CatEx, 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 subject area and their possible impacts on the species; and 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, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire commentincluding your personal identifying informationmight 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 ITP 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 to determine whether the application meets the requirements of section 10a 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 California tiger salamander and California red-legged frog from the
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