[All] Fw: "jefferson salamander" in New Information Notice: Title: The Regional Municipality of Waterloo - Permit for activities with conditions to achieve overall benefit to the speci

Fri Nov 2 15:00:16 EDT 2018

Heads up folks. Public comments needed. 

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   ----- Forwarded Message ----- From: "Environmental Registry Alerts" <registryalerts at eco.on.ca> To: "Louisette Lanteigne" <water.lulu at yahoo.ca> Cc:  Sent: Fri, Nov 2, 2018 at 10:00 AM Subject: "jefferson salamander" in New Information Notice:                                                Title:                                                        The Regional Municipality of Waterloo - Permit for activities with conditions to achieve overall benefit to the speci    
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| “jefferson salamander” in New Information Notice: Title: The Regional Municipality of Waterloo - Permit for activities with conditions to achieve overall benefit to the speci |
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| Title:  | The Regional Municipality of Waterloo - Permit for activities with conditions to achieve overall benefit to the species � Endangered Species Act clause 17(2)(c) |
| Ministry:  | Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks |
| Notice Date:  | 2018-11-02 |
| URL:  | http://www.ebr.gov.on.ca/ERS-WEB-External/... |
| Registry #:  | 013-3959 |
| 3 Excerpts Mention “jefferson salamander”: |
| “... for which the permit is sought are animals.
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry is voluntarily posting this notice to advise the public of the notice and to invite the public to submit written comments to the contact person identified in this notice.
 Description 
The Regional Municipality of Waterloo has submitted an application in relation to an overall benefit permit under clause 17(2)(c) of the Endangered Species Act, 2007 with respect to Blanding’s Turtle, Jefferson Salamander and Unisexual Ambystoma (Jefferson Salamander dependent population) in order to widen Fischer-Hallman Road, between Bleams Road and Plains Road in the City of Kitchener. 
 Purpose of the notice 
The purpose of this notice is to ensure that the public is made aware of, and given an opportunity to comment on, the overall benefit permit proposal to widen Fischer-Hallman Road in the City of Kitchener, Ontario. The proposed permit would be issued under clause 17(2)(c) of the Endangered Species Act.

Decision 

This notice will be updated when more information is available.

Other Information 

The application to widen Fischer-Hallman Road in the City of Kitchener, Ontario has the potential to adversely affect Blanding’s Turtle, Jefferson Salamander and Unisexual Ambystoma (Jefferson Salamander dependent population) and their habitat. The proposed permit conditions would minimize adverse effects to the species and provide an overall benefit to the species. 

Blanding’s Turtle is listed on the Species at Risk in Ontario List, in Ontario Regulation 230/08 of the Endangered Species Act, as threatened. 

Jefferson Salamander and Unisexual Ambystoma (Jefferson Salamander dependent population) are listed on the Species at Risk in Ontario List as endangered. 

Subsection 9(1) of the Endangered Species Act provides for the protection of endangered, threatened (and extirpated) species on the Species at Risk in Ontario List. 

Habitat protection under subsection 10(1) of the Endangered Species Act applies to Blanding’s Turtle and Unisexual Ambystoma (Jefferson Salamander dependent population). Habitat protection under subsection -10(1) of the Endangered Species Act applies to Jefferson Salamander and the specific habitat of Jefferson Salamander has been prescribed by Ontario Regulation 242/08. 

The Minister may issue a permit under clause 17(2)(c) of the Endangered Species Act that authorizes a person to engage in an activity that would otherwise be prohibited by section 9 or 10 of the Endangered Species Act if the Minister is of the opinion that: 

(i) an overall benefit to the species will be achieved within a reasonable time through the conditions of the permit; 
(ii) reasonable alternatives...”
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| “...red Species Act involves undertaking actions to improve circumstances for the species in Ontario. Overall benefit is more than “no net loss” or an exchange of “like for like”. Overall benefit is grounded in the protection and recovery of the species at risk and must include more than mitigation measures or “replacing” what is lost. 

Reasonable alternatives are being considered, including ones that would not adversely affect Blanding’s Turtle, Jefferson Salamander and Unisexual Ambystoma (Jefferson Salamander dependent population) and may include: Not proceeding with the project; Leaving the road in the current state (example no changes in width) and performing road upgrades to the right of way; Proceeding with road widening, culvert replacement and construction of multi-use trails on either side of road; and Proceeding with road widening, culvert replacement and construction of multi-use trails on either side of road and adding structures which provide for the biological requirements of the species (example ecopassages, etc.). 
The best alternative that has been proposed includes proceeding with the development while incorporating design features to minimize adverse effects and achieve overall benefit for the species. 

Potential approaches to minimize adverse effects on individual members of Blanding’s Turtle, Jefferson Salamander and Unisexual Ambystoma (Jefferson Salamander dependent population) may include: 
 Adhering to timing windows for Blanding’s Turtle to avoid impacts to individuals; Undertaking awareness training for employees regarding the species; Stopping work immediately should the species be encountered; Installing exclusion fencing at the works site to prevent the species from entering the site; Installing, inspecting and retaining soil and erosion control measures, including taking appropriate remedial actions, for the d...” |
| “... overall benefit for Blanding’s Turtle may include: Installing turtle exclusion measures on the east side of Fisher-Hallman Road at Strasburg Creek to prevent turtle access to the road; and Creating and monitoring, to evaluate the effectiveness of five (5) turtle nesting habitat features (example artificial turtle nesting mounds) in an area known to support a Blanding’s Turtle population but with limited nesting habitat. 
Potential approaches to achieve an overall benefit for Jefferson Salamander and Unisexual Ambystoma (Jefferson Salamander dependent population) may include: 
 Managing and restoring 9.44 hectares of habitat for a known population of salamanders; Surveying all suitable habitat within the Regional Municipality of Waterloo-owned lands to document unknown populations; Developing a five-year monitoring program for extant populations focusing on site-specific and cumulative threats, impacts, and mitigation techniques, range expansion or retraction assessment of trends in habitat conditions over time; Installing educational signage to increase awareness of woodland-breeding amphibians; and Examining the feasibility of a recovery program through population augmentation. 
The Minister is required to consider any Government Response Statement to a recovery strategy published under subsection 11(8) of the Act. A Government Response Statement exists for Jefferson Salamander and will be considered before a decision is made whether or not to issue a permit. 

A Government Response Statement does not currently exist for Blanding’s Turtle or Unisexual Ambystoma (Jefferson Salamander dependent population). 

Please note that the posting of this on the Environmental Registry does not imply that a permit will be approved; a permit may only be issued where the legal requirements set out in clause 17(2)(c) of the Endangered Species Act have been satisfied. 

The following web-links provide additional information. 

Ontario's Species at Risk website 
http://www.mnr.gov.on.ca/en/Business/Species/index.html 

Endange...”
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|  The Environmental Commissioner of Ontario is not responsible for any consequences arising from missed Registry notices. Under the Environmental Bill of Rights, the Environmental Registry site at http://www.ebr.gov.on.ca/ is the authoritative source for public notices about environmental matters being proposed by Ontario government ministries.

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