Incidental Take Notice For Racine County

MADISON, Wis. – The Racine West 6th Street Sewer Relocation Project may result in the incidental taking of a rare snake under a permit the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) proposes to issue for the project. Incidental take refers to the unintentional loss of individual endangered or threatened animals or plants that does not put the overall population of the species at risk.

The City of Racine proposes to relocate a sewer interceptor in preparation for a future demolition and reconstruction of the 6th Street Bridge. The sewer relocation project includes both abandoning an old sewer pipe and installing a new 30-inch interceptor sewer. The total length of the project is approximately 446 feet, with most of the project occurring in developed areas containing gravel and pavement. A small amount of the project will extend into forested riparian habitat adjacent to the Root River to install a new manhole.

The presence of the state endangered queensnake has been confirmed in the vicinity of the project site. DNR staff determined that the proposed project may result in the incidental taking of some snakes.

The department has concluded that the proposed project is not likely to appreciably reduce the likelihood of the survival or recovery of the species within the state, the whole plant-animal community of which it is a part or the habitat that is critical to its existence.

The conservation measures to minimize the adverse effect on the endangered species will be incorporated into the proposed Incidental Take Permit. Copies of the jeopardy assessment and background information on the queensnake are available on the DNR’s incidental take public notice webpage or upon request from Rori Paloski, DNR Conservation Biologist (608-264-6040 or rori.paloski@wi.gov).

The public is encouraged to submit written or verbal comments regarding project-related impacts to the queensnake by April 28, 2021 to:

Department of Natural Resources C/O Rori Paloski, DNR Conservation Biologist 101 S. Webster St. P.O. Box 7921 Madison, WI 53707 rori.paloski@wi.gov or 608-264-6040

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. It has not been verified for its accuracy or completeness.