Legalectric

                Photo by Marie McNamara

Beginning of review by USFWS of impacts of take permits for wind projects (where death is presumed and project is given permit despite protected species kills).  SPREAD THE WORD!

Just in from USFWS:

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Hosts Public Information Meetings in Eight Midwest States

for Regional Wind Energy Habitat Conservation Plan

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is inviting public input as it develops an environmental impact statement on the potential impacts of issuing incidental take permits for covered species under the draft Midwest Wind Energy Multi-species Habitat Conservation Plan.

Public meetings will be held from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. local time at the following locations:

• July 13 – Minneapolis, Minnesota. Elliot Recreation Center, 1000 E. 14^th St. 55404
• July 14 – Madison, Wisconsin. Warner Park Community Recreation Center, 1625 Northport Drive, 53704
• July 15 – Ames, Iowa.  Iowa State Memorial Union, Campanile Room, 2229 Lincoln Way, 50011
• July 16 – Columbia, Missouri. Battle High School Commons, 7575 E. St. Charles Road, 65202
• July 20 – Lansing, Michigan. Letts Community Center Gymnasium, 1220 W. Kalamazoo Street 48915
• July 21 – Columbus, Ohio. Columbus Downtown High School Commons,364 South 4^th Street 43215
• July 22 – Indianapolis, Indiana. World Sports Park Ballroom, 1313 South Post Road, 46239
• July 23 – Bloomington, Illinois. Illinois Wesleyan University, Memorial Center, Young Main Lounge, 104 E. University Avenue, 61701

The first hour of each meeting will be an informal open house, followed by a brief presentation at approximately 6:00 p.m.  After the presentation, the informal open house will resume.

The Service also will host an online public meeting on Tuesday, July 28, 2015, at 1 p.m. CT.  To participate, you can call a toll-free number and join a web conference:

·         Log on to http://www.mymeetings.com/nc/join.php?i=741848583&p=&t=c  to view a Service presentation about the Midwest Wind Energy Multi-Species Habitat Conservation Plan and scoping for the Environmental Impact Statement.

·         To listen to the presentation and ask questions, call toll-free 1-888-324-7813. Enter passcode 9116767# to join the call.

For more information on this meeting, go to http://www.midwestwindenergyhcpeis.org

The draft plan is being prepared by the Service and their planning partners, including state wildlife agencies for seven of the eight states within the plan area, the American Wind Energy Association, a consortium of wind energy companies and The Conservation Fund.  States within the plan area include Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio and Wisconsin.

The plan addresses incidental take of eight species that may be injured or killed at wind turbine facilities. The covered species include Indiana bat, northern long-eared bat, Kirtland’s warbler, Great Lakes and northern Great Plains populations of the piping plover, and least tern, all listed under the Endangered Species Act. Also covered are the bald eagle, protected by the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, and the little brown bat, a species of concern.

Habitat conservation plans are agreements between a private landowner or a non-federal company or group and the Service, allowing permit applicants to undertake otherwise lawful activities on their property that may result in the incidental death, injury or harassment of covered species; the applicant agrees to conservation measures designed to minimize and mitigate the impact of those actions.

Individuals unable to attend the meetings may submit comments and materials through August 11, 2015, by any of the following methods:

U.S. Mail:

Regional Director, Attn: Rick Amidon

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Ecological Services

5600 American Blvd. West, Suite 990

Bloomington, MN 55437-1458 

Electronically:

Visit the Federal eRulemaking Portal:  www.regulations.gov. In the search box enter (Docket Number FWS-R3-ES-2015-0033).

More information about the draft EIS for the proposed Midwest Wind Multi-species Habitat Conservation Plan can be found at http://midwestwindenergyhcpeis.org.  Information about endangered species in the Midwest can be found at www.fws.gov/midwest/endangered.

Additional opportunities for public comment during development of the environmental impact statement will be provided when the draft statement is released for public comment, which is anticipated for early spring of 2016.

If you have any questions, please contact Rick Amidon (Phone: 612-713-5164 – Email: rick_amidon@fws.gov).

—
Kim Mitchell

Ecological Services

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

5600 American Blvd. East, Suite 990

Bloomington, MN 55437

612-713-5337

Kim_Mitchell@fws.gov

www.fws.gov/midwest/endangered