Issuance of Fourteen Section 10(a)(1)(A) Enhancement of Survival Permits Associated with the Template Safe Harbor Agreement for Conservation Of Coho Salmon in the Shasta River, Klamath River Basin, California Environmental Assessment: Issuance of Fourteen 10(a)(1)(A) Enhancement of Survival Permits Associated with the Template Safe Harbor Agreement for the Conservation of Coho Salmon in the Shasta River

NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) proposes to enter into a Template Safe Harbor Agreement for Conservation of Coho Salmon in the Shasta River (Agreement; Exhibit A of the Forbearance Agreement (Watermaster District and SWCG 2020)), and 14 associated Site Plan Agreements. The parties to the Agreement would include the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), NMFS, and the landowners and irrigation districts listed in Table 1 (Applicants). Under the Agreement and Site Plan Agreements and pursuant to section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Endangered Species Act (ESA), NMFS would issue enhancement of survival permits (ESPs) to the Applicants. CDFW would participate both as a regulatory agency and as a property owner applying for an ESP for state lands covered by the Agreement (Big Springs Wildlife Area). All of the Applicants except CDFW formed a nonprofit 501(c)(5) called the Shasta Watershed Conservation Group (SWCG). The SWCG is comprised of representatives from Hidden Valley Ranch (HVR), Seldom Seen Ranch, Hole in the Ground Ranch, Shasta Springs Ranch, Cardoza Ranch, North Annex Property, Rice Livestock Company, Grenada Novy Ranch, NB Ranches, Inc., the Montague Water Conservation District (MWCD), and the Grenada Irrigation District (GID). The SWCG negotiated the Agreement with NMFS and CDFW. In addition, each Applicant would will enter into a Site Plan Agreement for their property that is subject to the Agreement (Enrolled Property). We refer to the combined extent of the Enrolled Properties that would be subject to the Agreement as the Covered Area (Figure 1).