WTCPUA Habitat Conservation Plan
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HABITAT CONSERVATION PLAN FOR THE WEST TRAVIS COUNTY PUBLIC UTILITY AGENCY RAW WATER TRANSMISSION MAIN Travis County, Texas February 2018 Submitted to: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Austin Ecological Services Field Office 10711 Burnet Road, Suite 200 Austin, Texas 78758 On Behalf of: West Travis County Public Utility Agency 12117 Bee Cave Road, Bldg. 3, Ste. 120 Bee Cave, Texas 78738 By: aci consulting 1001 Mopac Circle Austin, Texas 78746 aci Project No.: 27-14-081 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.0 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 1 2.0 Proposed Project, Plan Area, Permit Area, and Covered Activities ......................... 2 2.1 Proposed Project ............................................................................................................ 2 2.2 Plan Area ........................................................................................................................ 4 2.3 Permit Area .................................................................................................................... 4 2.4 Description of Covered Activities ............................................................................... 7 3.0 Species Addressed by the Habitat Conservation Plan ............................................... 9 3.1 Covered Species - Golden-cheeked Warbler ........................................................... 13 3.2 Other Federally Listed Species in Travis County ................................................... 14 4.0 Take Assessment ............................................................................................................ 27 4.1 Take Rationale.............................................................................................................. 27 4.2 Effects on Covered Species ........................................................................................ 28 5.0 Conservation Program .................................................................................................. 29 5.1 Biological Goals and Objectives ................................................................................ 29 5.2 Minimization, Avoidance, and Mitigation Measures ............................................ 30 5.3 Changed Circumstances and Unforeseen Circumstances ..................................... 31 5.4 Adaptive Management ............................................................................................... 33 5.5 Additional Conservation Measures .......................................................................... 34 5.6 Reporting ...................................................................................................................... 34 6.0 Permit Duration.............................................................................................................. 35 7.0 Funding Plan .................................................................................................................. 35 8.0 Alternatives Analysis .................................................................................................... 36 8.1 Proposed Project (Alternative 1) Effects .................................................................. 37 8.2 Alternative 2 Effects .................................................................................................... 37 8.3 Alternative 3 Effects .................................................................................................... 38 8.4 Alternative 4 Effects .................................................................................................... 39 8.5 No-Build Alternative .................................................................................................. 41 9.0 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 42 10.0 References ....................................................................................................................... 44 WTCPUA Raw Water Transmission Main i February 2018 Habitat Conservation Plan aci Project No.: 27-14-081 LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Impact types within the GCWA preserve ................................................................. 6 Table 2: Impacts within Preserve, Macrosite and GCWA Occupied Habitat ..................... 9 Table 3: Candidate, Threatened, and Endangered Species of Potential Occurrence in Travis County ............................................................................................................................. 12 Table 4: Acreage within Preserve, Macrosite and GCWA Occupied Habitat by Alternative .................................................................................................................................. 36 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Plan Area Figure 2: South Lake Austin Macrosite of the BCP Figure 3: Proposed Raw Water Lines Figure 4: Permit Area Figure 5: GCWA Habitat (SWCA 1993) Figure 6: aci GCWA Habitat Figure 7: Direct Impact Areas Figure 8: Total Impact Area Figure 9: Veni and Associates Karst Zones Figure 10: Alternative 2 Impacts Figure 11: Alternative 3 Impacts Figure 12: Alternative 4 Impacts LIST OF APPENDICES Appendix A: Lake Pointe Incidental Take Permit No: PRT-782186 issued February 15, 1994 Appendix B: Lake Pointe IV Incidental Take Permit No: PRT-817371 issued December 18, 1996 Appendix C: Balcones Canyonlands Preserve, Land Management Plan, Tier II-C, South Lake Austin Macrosite Appendix D: Lake Pointe Environmental Assessment Appendix E: Lake Pointe Habitat Conservation Plan Appendix F: aci consulting Habitat Assessment Appendix G: USFWS SW Parkway 20-inch Transmission Main Correspondence WTCPUA Raw Water Transmission Main ii February 2018 Habitat Conservation Plan aci Project No.: 27-14-081 Appendix H: Memorandum of Understanding Between U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and The Lower Colorado River Authority for The Purpose of Providing Surface Water for Residents in Western Travis and Northern Hays Counties WTCPUA Raw Water Transmission Main iii February 2018 Habitat Conservation Plan aci Project No.: 27-14-081 Executive Summary The West Travis County Public Utility Agency (WTCPUA) is requesting an Endangered Species Act Section 10(a)(1)(B) incidental take permit for impacts associated with construction of the WTCPUA Raw Water Transmission Main to a federally listed endangered species, golden-cheeked warbler (Setophaga chrysoparia) (GCWA). The Section 10(a)(1)(B) incidental take permit will authorize the construction, operation, and maintenance of a new raw water transmission main within areas established as GCWA preserve and occupied habitat. Additionally, WTCPUA is requesting incidental take authorization for the operation and maintenance of an existing raw water line, along with an existing raw water intake facility, electric powerlines, and access road. This document serves as the Habitat Conservation Plan for the requested authorization. The proposed project is near the Lake Pointe development in Bee Cave, Texas, and would be constructed from an existing pump station on Lake Austin and extend to the existing Uplands Water Treatment Facility at Ranch-to-Market (RM) 2244, approximately 0.3 mile east of the intersection of Texas State Highway 71 and RM 2244 in Bee Cave, Texas. The proposed project will be partially located within an existing preserve for golden-cheeked warbler that mitigated the effects of the Lake Pointe Development permitted under a prior Section (a)(1)(B) incidental take permit. The proposed construction of the raw water transmission main (raw water line) is to supplement and provide redundancy to an existing raw water line via parallel capacity to an existing water line that connects the pump station with the water treatment facility. The existing water line is over 30 years old and was constructed and operational prior to the federal listing of the golden-cheeked warbler as endangered. In early October 2015, the existing line ruptured causing the entire WTCPUA service area to enter emergency Stage 4 water restrictions while the failure was being repaired. During the repair process, approximately 0.1 acre of Ashe juniper vegetation, which was identified as non-habitat for the GCWA in the previous Lake Pointe Section 10(a)(1)(B) incidental take permit, was removed. This clearing activity was conducted outside of the breeding season and in an area that is not GCWA habitat; therefore, it is unlikely this clearing had any effect on the GCWA. U.S. Fish and Wildlife was notified of the line failure and repair. USFWS requested that the clearing and future maintenance of the existing water line be included in the current habitat conservation WTCPUA Raw Water Transmission Main iv February 2018 Habitat Conservation Plan aci Project No.: 27-14-081 plan. The incidental take of GCWA associated with the operation and maintenance of the existing water line, along with the raw water intake facility, electric powerlines, and access road, was previously allowed for under the implementing agreement associated with an Incidental Take Permit for the Lake Pointe Development, which expired in 2009. The WTCPUA will include the future operation and maintenance of the existing line into this habitat conservation plan to extend the duration of incidental take coverage resulting from those activities. The proposed WTCPUA raw water line will be constructed to provide redundancy and is part of an approved 10-year Capital