The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutCOR-17-110296 ��NT OfT r 0..,-_--Q \f/�y„F, FISHs,IC yes 41-Flri,4) ,_., M United States Department of the Interior r71.4 w Kit = r !.',0.ii. Lt sf . i .h � t9 FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE 'may* Pacific Islands Fish and Wildlife Office 300 Ala Moana Boulevard, Room 3-122 Honolulu, Hawaii 96850 In Reply Refer To: MAR 0 6 2017 01 EPIF00-2017-TA-0155 Mr. Michael Yee Planning Director 74-5044 Ane Keohokalole Hwy Kailua-Kona, Hawaii 96740 Subject: Technical Assistance for the Construction of a Telecommunication Facility, Consisting of a 60-foot Monopalm and Related Infrastructure in Waikoloa, County of Hawaii. Dear Mr Yee: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service)received your correspondence on February 16, 2017, requesting review of a proposed 60-foot monopalm (associated with infrastructure), proposed by Verizon Wireless in Waikoloa(Tax Map Key: 6-8-002:031). The Service offers the following comments to assist you in your planning process so that impacts to trust resources can be avoided through site preparation, construction, and operation. Our comments are provided under the authorities of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA), as amended (16 U.S.0 1531 et seq.). Based on information you provided in the Use Permit Application and pertinent information in our files, including data compiled by the Hawaii Biodiversity and Mapping Project, there are five listed animal species in the vicinity of the project area: The federally endangered Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus seinotus), Hawaiian hawk(Buteo solitarius), the Hawaiian petrel (Pterodroina sandwichensis),band-rumped storm-petrel (Oceanodroina castro), and the threatened Newell's shearwater (Puffinus auricularis newelli), may transit the project area flying to upland breeding colonies. There are also two endangered insects, the yellow-faced bee (Hylaeus spp.) and the Blackburn's sphinx moth (Manduca blackburni). The Service recommends the following measures to avoid and minimize project impacts to the following listed species: Hawaiian hoary bat The endangered Hawaiian hoary bat may be present within the proposed project area. The Hawaiian hoary bat roosts in both exotic and native woody vegetation and will leave young unattended in "nursery" trees and shrubs when they forage. If trees or shrubs suitable for bat SCANNED MAR - 9 017 By: 110296 Mr. Michael Yee 2 roosting are cleared during the pupping season, there is a risk that young bats could inadvertently be harmed or killed. To minimize impacts to the endangered Hawaiian hoary bat, woody plants greater than 15 feet (4.6 meters)tall should not be disturbed, removed, or trimmed during the bat birthing and pup rearing season (June 1 through September 15). Additionally, Hawaiian hoary bats forage for insects from as low as three feet to higher than 500 feet(152 meters) above the ground. When barbed wire is used in fencing, Hawaiian hoary bats can become entangled. Therefore, the Service recommends barbed wire not be used for fencing. Hawaiian hawk The Hawaiian hawk is known to occur across a broad range of forest habitats throughout the Island of Hawaii. Loud, irregular and unpredictable activities, such as using heavy equipment or building a structure, near an endangered Hawaiian hawk nest may cause nest failure. Harassment of Hawaiian hawk nesting sites can alter feeding and breeding patterns or result in nest or chick abandonment. Nest disturbance can also increase exposure of chicks and juveniles to inclement weather or predators. Ground clearing or construction should not occur within 1,600 feet of any Hawaiian hawk nest during the Hawaiian hawk breeding season (March through September). If work must be conducted during the March through September Hawaiian hawk breeding season, a qualified ornithologist should conduct a nest search of the project footprint and surrounding areas immediately prior to the start of construction activities. Pre- disturbance surveys for Hawaiian hawks are only valid for 14 days. If disturbance for the specific location does not occur within 14 days of the survey, another survey will be conducted. Hawaiian petrel,Newell's shearwater, and band-rumped storm petrel Hawaiian seabirds may traverse the project area at night during the breeding season. Outdoor lighting could result in seabird disorientation, fallout, and injury or mortality. Seabirds are attracted to lights and after circling the lights they may collide with nearby wires, buildings, or other structures or they may land on the ground due to exhaustion. Downed seabirds are subject to increased mortality due to collision with automobiles, starvation, and predation by dogs, cats, and other predators. Young birds (fledglings) traversing the project area between September 15 and December 1.5, in their first flights from their mountain nests to the sea, are particularly vulnerable. To minimize potential project impacts to seabirds during their breeding season, all outdoor lights should be fully shielded so the bulb can only be seen from below bulb height and only used when necessary. Automatic motion sensor switches and controls should be installed on all outdoor lights or lights should be turned off when human activity is not occurring in the lighted area. Any increase in night-time lighting, particularly during each year's peak fallout period (September 15 through December 15), could result in seabird injury or mortality. Nighttime construction should be avoided during the seabird fledging period, September 15 through December 15. Yellow-faced Bees Habitat destruction and modification and land use conversion leads to fragmentation of foraging and nesting areas of these yellow-faced bee species. Habitat destruction and modification by nonnative plants adversely impact native Hawaiian plant species by modifying the availability of light, altering soil-water regimes, modifying nutrient cycling, altering the fire characteristics (increasing the fire cycle), and ultimately converting native dominated plant communities to nonnative plant communities; such habitat destruction and modification result in removal of food sources and nesting sites for the listed yellow-faced bee. To minimize potential adverse effects Mr. Michael Yee 3 to these species, we recommend you restrict vehicle use to existing roads and trails. If vegetation must be cut or removed from an area outside existing developed ground, a survey should be conducted on the proposed project site for Hylaeus nests and avoid disturbance to the nest site. Avoid cutting or removing plants in the Sida genus (ilima). Restore cleared areas using native vegetation where possible. Blackburn's sphinx moth The Blackburn's sphinx moth occur on the islands of Maui, Lanai, Kahoolawe, and the Island of Hawaii. The adult moth feeds on nectar from native plants including beach morning glory (Ipomoea pes-caprae), iliee (Plumbago zeylanica), maiapilo (Capparis sandwichiana). Blackburn's sphinx moth larvae feed upon non-native tree tobacco (Nicotiana glauca), which occupies disturbed areas such as open fields and roadway margins, and the native aiea (Nothocestrum spp.). We recommend that a biologist with Blackburn's sphinx moth experience survey the project area for the presence of adult and larval host plants. To pupate, Blackburn's sphinx moth larvae burrow into the soil near host plants and can remain in a state of torpor for up to a year (or more) before emerging from the soil. To minimize the potential for the project to adversely impact the Blackburn's sphinx moth, host plants should not be cut or removed and the soil within 33 feet(10 meters) of the host plants should not be disturbed. If occupied host plants are found within the project area, we recommend you contact us as soon as possible so we may assist you with additional measures to avoid impacts to this species in your project description. If the proposed project requires gravel or dirt fill to be used at the location, the Service recommends getting the fill from a source that is certified weed free or a plant survey be conducted around the area where the fill will be extracted. The survey is a measure to avoid spreading non-native tree tobacco and other invasive plant species from where the fill is removed to the proposed project area. Non-native tree tobacco and other invasive species seeds could be found in the fill and unknowingly spread to the project area thus attracting Blackburn's sphinx moth to the project site and increasing the risk of future take. Thank you for participating with us in the protection of our endangered species. If you have any further questions or concerns regarding this consultation, please contact Eldridge Naboa, Fish and Wildlife Biologist, 808-792-9451, e-mail: eldridge_naboa@fws.gov. When referring to this project, please include this reference number: 01EPIF00-2017-TA-0155. Sincerely, M chelle Bogardus Island Team Manager Maui Nui and Hawaii Island