Incidental Take Notice For Sauk County

MADISON, Wis. – The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) proposes to issue a permit for the incidental taking of a rare turtle, which may result from the town of Spring Green project along Kennedy Road in Sauk County.

Incidental take refers to the unintentional loss of individual endangered or threatened animals or plants that does not put the species' overall population at risk.

The town of Spring Green project will consist of reconditioning the existing pavement structure by adding base aggregate, milling, and relaying the existing asphalt and placing new asphalt. The project also includes realigning the curve at Kennedy Road/County Line Road. Spot drainage/ditching will be improved throughout the project limits. The existing roadway shoulder varies from 0’-4’ wide. The proposed roadway shoulder will be widened to 5’ wide to provide a 4’ paved bike lane with 1’ aggregate shoulder on both sides of the roadway.

The presence of the state endangered ornate box turtle is confirmed in the vicinity of the project site. DNR staff determined that the proposed project may result in the incidental taking of some turtles.

The DNR concludes 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 of or the habitat that is critical to its existence.

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 ornate box turtle are available by visiting the DNR Incidental Take Public Notices webpage or upon request from DNR Conservation Biologist Stacy Rowe at stacy.rowe@wisconsin.gov or 608-228-9796.

The public is encouraged to submit written comments regarding project-related impacts to the ornate box turtle by June 16, 2023 to:

Department of Natural Resources
c/o Stacy Rowe, DNR Conservation Biologist
2514 Morse St.
Janesville, WI 53545
Stacy.Rowe@wisconsin.gov or 608-228-9796