Great Plains Wind Energy Habitat Conservation Plan

WIND WILDLIFE RESEARCH MEETING IX November 27-30, 2012

Denver

K. Tyrell, K. Mertz (BHE Environmental) A. Arnold, E. Kimbrell (Kearns & West)

Great Plains Wind Energy (GPWE)

Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP)

Part 1: Collaborative landscape, conservation approach, and benefits of the GPWE HCP

Part 2: Modeling potential impacts to migratory whooping cranes from wind power development

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GPWE HCP

Background, History, Participants Conservation Benefits Overview of the Habitat

Conservation Plan (HCP) Milestones and Schedule

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GPWE Background Evaluate & respond to potential impacts to federally-listed species from future development of wind energy facilities in a nine-state, 470 county, 26 million-acre, 200-mile wide region of the central US, extending from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico.

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Draft HCP Plan Area

Introductions & Participants Wind Energy Whooping Crane Action Group (WEWAG)

Convener: American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) 17 Companies (Acciona, North America; Allete, Inc.; Alternity Wind Power; BP

Alternative Energy; CPV Renewable Energy Company, LLC; Duke Wind Energy; Element Power; EDP Renewables North America LLC; EDF Renewable Energy; Iberdrola Renewables; Infinity Wind Power; MAP Royalty; NextEra Energy Resources; RES Americas; TerraGen; Trade Wind Energy; and Wind Capital Group)

Technical Team: BHE Environmental, Inc.; WEST Inc.; with technical

assistance from Sutton Avian Research Center and Platte River Whooping Crane Maintenance Trust Facilitator: Kearns & West

Legal Team: Crowell & Moring LLC; and Sedgwick Law, LLC

Ongoing coordination with US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and with

state wildlife agencies

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Collaboration as a Key to Success

Wind companies organized through affiliation with AWEA to develop a landscape-level HCP

Throughout development of the HCP, industry has been collaborating with the USFWS as well as each of the state wildlife agencies included in this plan area.

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Mission Statement

“…to work cooperatively, to exercise flexibility and ingenuity, and to devote the necessary resources to craft a scientifically and legally defensible HCP that provides a means for reasonable wind power development in the planning area, that will support the survival and recovery of the species covered in the HCP.” (December 2009).

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GPWE HCP Conservation Benefits Comprehensive, integrated approach for species

conservation

Scientific rigor and the best available biological information used to develop and maintain the conservation program

Clearly-stated biological goals and objectives developed by species experts and scientists and supported by industry, federal and state wildlife agencies, and conservation groups

Both impacts and conservation measures are considered across a significant portion of the species’ ranges

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GPWE HCP Conservation Benefits Conservation program will be comprehensively

evaluated and carefully monitored, and conservation measures will be adjusted to ensure ongoing effectiveness and compliance

Provides a centralized structure for accumulating, communicating, and benefiting from experience

Use of funds from multiple stakeholders will be leveraged to maximize conservation benefits, supported by long-term financial and legal commitment

Reduces effort of project-specific permitting, and the related cost and administrative burden on a resource-constrained federal agency

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Overview of the GPWE HCP

Purpose and Need Covered Species Plan Area Permit Duration Covered Activities Impact Assessment Biological Goals and Objectives and

Conservation Measures Monitoring and Adaptive Management

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Purpose and Need

Development of wind energy in the Great Plains

Conservation of covered species Efficient and effective Endangered

Species Act (ESA) administration Section 10 ESA regulatory assurances

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Scope of the HCP The HCP will have a 45-year duration; incidental take

permit(s) will address covered species during a 30-year project lifecycle

Covered Species Whooping crane (WHCR) Lesser prairie-chicken (LEPC) Interior least tern (INLT) Piping plover (PIPL) Other federally-listed species

addressed by avoidance or compliance on project-specific basis

Covered Activities Construction Operation

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Conservation Plan

Existing conditions Proposed activities, impact assessment,

take determination Project risk Biological goals and objectives Minimization and mitigation Monitoring and adaptive management

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Modeling Approach

Developed using best available scientific information about species behavior and presence

Predicts where migration stopover is likely to occur (in addition to areas of observed stopover)

Allows for unpredictability of facility build-out over a geographically large area

Addresses the dynamic nature of habitat change over time

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Milestones and Schedule

(Note: This schedule is tentative and subject to change)

2009 to 2013: WEWAG develops Draft HCP, in coordination with USFWS and state wildlife agencies

Fall 2013: Public Comment Period on Draft HCP

Summer 2014: Final HCP is published

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Questions? For questions related to WEWAG, please contact John Anderson at janderson@awea.org or 202-383-2516 Download the Great Plains Wind Energy HCP Fact Sheet at http://www.greatplainswindhcp.org/documents/fact_sheet.pdf See the USFWS HCP website at http://www.fws.gov/midwest/endangered/permits/hcp/hcp_wofactsheet.html Please see www.fws.gov/southwest for information on the NEPA process (then click on "Great Plains Wind Energy" in column on right side of page) Visit the USFWS Endangered Species Webpage at http://www.fws.gov/endangered/

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