Today, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (“Service”) published notice in the Federal Register announcing that it intends to prepare a programmatic environmental impact statement to evaluate the effects of a program that would authorize incidental take under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (“MBTA”). Although the Service has MBTA regulations that authorize the issuance of permits to take migratory birds for specific purposes (e.g. scientific collection, bird banding and marking, raptor propagation), there is presently no permit to authorize take that occurs incidental to, and which is not the purpose of, an otherwise lawful activity. Companies potentially impacted include those involved in the oil and gas sector, telecommunications, energy transmission infrastructure, and solar and wind energy generation.

Through this rulemaking, the Service will evaluate various approaches to regulating incidental take of migratory birds, including:
Continue Reading USFWS to Evaluate New Incidental Take Permitting Program Under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act