Notice of Intent to Conduct Public Scoping Meetings and to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement Related to the Makah Tribe's Continuation of Treaty Right Hunting of Gray Whales, 49911-49914 [05-16940]
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Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 164 / Thursday, August 25, 2005 / Notices
unknown, to bring about acts that
constituted a violation of the
Regulations when it agreed to
participate in the export of the furnace
referenced above to BRIMT in China
without the Department of Commerce
license required by Section 744.3 of the
Regulations. In furtherance of the
conspiracy, Sunford and its coconspirators agreed to conceal the
identity of the actual end-user and of
the item being exported in an attempt to
circumvent the license requirement
described in Section 744.3 of the
Regulations.
3. One violation of 15 CFR 764.2(b)—
Causing an Export to China Without the
Required Department of Commerce
License. Beginning on or about
November 23, 1998 and continuing to
on or about July 20, 1999, Sunford
caused the export of the furnace
described above to BRIMT in China
without the required Department of
Commerce license. Specifically, Sunford
ordered, bought, financed, and/or
forwarded the industrial furnace
described above, thereby causing the
furnace to be exported to BRIMT in
China despite the fact that the
Department of Commerce license
required by Section 744.3 of the
Regulations had not been obtained.
Whereas, BIS and Sunford have
entered into a Settlement Agreement
pursuant to Section 766.18(b) of the
Regulations whereby they agreed to
settle this matter in accordance with the
terms and conditions set forth therein,
and
Whereas I have approved of the terms
of such Settlement Agreement;
It is therefore ordered:
First, that a civil penalty of $33,000 is
assessed against Sunford, which shall be
paid to the U.S. Department of
Commerce within 30 days from the date
of entry of this Order. Payment shall be
made in the manner specified in the
attached instructions.
Second, that, pursuant to the Debt
Collection Act of 1982, as amended (31
U.S.C. 3701–3720E (2000)), the civil
penalty owed under this Order accrues
interest as more fully described in the
attached Notice, and, if payment is not
made by the due date specified herein,
Sunford will be assessed, in addition to
the full amount of the civil penalty and
interest, a penalty charge and an
administrative charge, as more fully
described in the attached Notice.
Third, that the timely payment of the
civil penalty set forth above is hereby
made a condition to the granting,
restoration, or continuing validity of any
export license, license exception,
permission, or privilege granted, or to be
granted, to Sunford, Accordingly, if
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Sunford should fail to pay the civil
penalty in a timely manner, the
undersigned may enter an Order
denying all of Sunford’s export
privileges for a period of one year from
the date of entry of this Order.
Fourth, for a period of three years
from the date of entry of the Order,
Sunford Trading, Ltd., Room 2208, 22/
F, 118 Connaught Road West, Hong
Kong, China, its successors or assigns,
and when acting for or on behalf of
Sunford, its officers, representatives,
agents, or employees (‘‘Denied Person’’)
may not participate, directly or
indirectly, in any way in any transaction
involving any commodity, software or
technology (hereinafter collectively
referred to as ‘‘item’’) exported or to be
exported from the United States that is
subject to the Regulations, or in any
other activity subject to the Regulations,
including, but not limited to:
A. Applying for, obtaining or using
any license, License Exception, or
export control document;
B. Carrying on negotiations
concerning, or ordering, buying,
receiving, using, selling, delivering,
storing, disposing of, forwarding,
transporting, financing, or otherwise
servicing in any way, any transaction
involving any item exported or to be
exported from the United States that is
subject to the Regulations, or in any
other activity subject to the Regulations;
or
C. Benefitting in any way from any
transaction involving any item exported
or to be exported from the United States
that is subject to the Regulations, or in
any other activity subject to the
Regulations.
Fifth, that no person may, directly or
indirectly, do any of the following:
A. Export or reexport to or on behalf
of the Denied Person any item subject to
the Regulations;
B. Take any action that facilitates the
acquisition or attempted acquisition by
the Denied Person of the ownership,
possession, or control of any item
subject to the Regulations that has been
or will be exported from the United
States, including financing or other
support activities related to a
transaction whereby the Denied Person
acquires or attempts to acquire such
ownership, possession or control;
C. Take any action to acquire from or
to facilitate the acquisition or attempted
acquisition from the Denied Person of
any item subject to the Regulations that
has been exported from the United
States;
D. Obtain from the Denied Person in
the United States any item subject to the
Regulations with knowledge or reason
to know that the item will be, or is
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49911
intended to be, exported from the
United States; or
E. Engage in any transaction to service
any item subject to the Regulations that
has been or will be exported from the
United States and which is owned,
possessed or controlled by the Denied
Person, or service any item, of whatever
origin, that is owned, possessed or
controlled by the Denied Person if such
service involves the use of any item
subject to the Regulations that has been
or will be exported from the United
States. For purposes of this paragraph,
servicing means installation,
maintenance, repair, modification or
testing.
Sixth, that, to prevent evasion of this
Order, BIS, after notice and opportunity
for comment as provided in Section
766.23 of the Regulations, may make
any person, firm, corporation, or
business organization related to Sunford
by affiliation, ownership, control, or
position of responsibility in the conduct
of trade or related services subject to the
provisions of this Order.
Seventh, that this Order does not
prohibit any export, reexport, or other
transaction subject to the Regulations
where the only items involved that are
subject to the Regulations are the
foreign-produced direct product of U.S.origin technology.
Eighth, that the charging letter, the
Settlement Agreement, this Order, and
the record of this case as defined by
Section 766.20 of the Regulations shall
be made available to the public.
Ninth, that the administrative law
judge shall be notified that this case is
withdrawn from adjudication.
This Order, which constitutes the
final agency action in this matter, is
effective upon publication in the
Federal Register.
Entered this 18th day of August 2005.
Wendy Wysong,
Acting Assistant Secretary of Commerce for
Export Enforcement.
[FR Doc. 05–16885 Filed 8–24–05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–DT–M
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
[I.D. 081905B]
Notice of Intent to Conduct Public
Scoping Meetings and to Prepare an
Environmental Impact Statement
Related to the Makah Tribe’s
Continuation of Treaty Right Hunting
of Gray Whales
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
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Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 164 / Thursday, August 25, 2005 / Notices
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; scoping meetings.
SUMMARY: We intend to conduct public
scoping meetings to gather information
to prepare an Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS) pursuant to the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA),
related to the Makah Tribe’s request that
NMFS waive the take moratorium of the
Marine Mammal Protection Act
(MMPA) to allow for treaty right
hunting of eastern North Pacific gray
whales in usual and accustomed
grounds off the coast of Washington
State. This notice briefly describes the
background of the Makah’s request for
waiver; gives dates, times, and locations
of public scoping meetings; identifies a
set of preliminary alternatives to serve
as a starting point for discussions; and
terminates the prior notice of intent to
prepare an EIS on a similar action.
DATES: Three public scoping meetings
are scheduled:
1. October 5, 2005, Neah Bay, WA.
2. October 6, 2005, Port Angeles, WA.
3. October 11, 2005, Seattle, WA.
See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for
specific times and locations of the
public meetings.
In addition to the meetings, written or
electronic comments from all interested
parties are encouraged and must be
received no later than 5 p.m. PDT
October 24, 2005.
ADDRESSES: All comments concerning
preparation of the EIS and NEPA
process should be addressed to:
Kassandra Brown, NMFS Northwest
Region, Building 1, 7600 Sand Point
Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115. Comments
may also be submitted via fax (206)5266426, Attn: Makah Tribe Whale Hunt
EIS, or by electronic mail to
MakahEIS.nwr@noaa.gov with a subject
line containing the document identifier:
Makah Whale EIS.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Kassandra Brown, NMFS Northwest
Region, (206)526–4348.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Public Scoping Meetings
Specific Times and Locations
Public scoping meetings will be held
at the following addresses and times:
1. October 5, 2005, 6:30 p.m. – 9:30
p.m., Makah Tribal Council Community
Hall, 81 3rd Avenue (Makah Passage),
Neah Bay, WA.
2. October 6, 2005, 6:30 p.m. – 9:30
p.m., Vern Burton Memorial
Community Center, 308 East 4th Street
(corner of 4th Street and Peabody Street),
Port Angeles, WA.
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3. October 11, 2005, 6:30 p.m. – 10
p.m., South Lake Union Park, 860 Terry
Avenue North (The Naval Reserve
Building), Seattle, WA.
The meeting format has been designed
so that the public can constructively
assist NMFS in development of the draft
EIS, and will generally include
presentations and small group work
sessions. More details regarding meeting
format will be posted under the ‘‘gray
whale’’ link at https://www.nwr.noaa.gov
by mid-September 2005.
Reasonable Accommodation
Persons needing reasonable
accommodations to attend and
participate in the public meetings
should contact Kassandra Brown (see
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). To
allow sufficient time to process
requests, please call at least 10 business
days prior to the relevant meeting(s).
Information regarding the Makah’s
request is available in alternative
formats upon request.
Background
The Makah Indian Tribe of
Washington State (Makah) seeks to
continue its subsistence hunt(s) of
eastern North Pacific (ENP) gray whales,
a tradition dating back at least 1,500
years. The Makah’s right to hunt whales
at usual and accustomed grounds and
stations off the coast of Washington was
secured in Article 4 of the 1855 Treaty
of Neah Bay in exchange for most of the
land in the Olympic Peninsula. The
Treaty of Neah Bay is the primary
instrument defining the legal
relationship between the United States
Government and the Makah.
The Makah hunted whales until the
1920s when commercial whaling had
drastically reduced the numbers of ENP
gray whales available to the Makah
hunters for harvest. Prior to enactment
of the Endangered Species Act (of 1973
16 U.S.C. 1351 et seq.), the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service included gray
whales (among several genera of baleen
whales) on its 1970 list of endangered
species (35 FR 8491, June 2, 1970). The
ENP distinct population segment was
subsequently delisted on June 16, 1994
(59 FR 31094). In 1999, Makah hunters
killed one ENP gray whale pursuant to
an aboriginal subsistence harvest quota
granted for 1998 through 2002 by the
International Whaling Commission
(IWC) and domestically implemented by
NMFS under the Whaling Convention
Act (WCA)(16 U.S.C. 916 et seq.). Due
to a series of lawsuits, no whales were
hunted by the Makah for the remainder
of the 1998 through 2002 quota.
In May 2002, the IWC approved
another aboriginal subsistence harvest
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quota of 620 gray whales for 2003
through 2007, on the basis of a joint
request by the Russian Federation
(approved for 600 whales) and the
United States (approved for 20 whales).
The United States’ request was made on
behalf of the Makah. On March 6, 2003
NMFS initiated an EIS to assess the
environmental impacts of allocating the
2003 through 2007 quota to the Makah
by soliciting comments and information
to facilitate the environmental analysis
(68 FR 10703). Due to litigation
(described below), NMFS did not
complete the EIS and did not allocate
the quota under the WCA. The Makah
have not conducted subsistence hunts to
date under the 2003 through 2007 IWC
quota.
On June 7, 2004, the Ninth Circuit
Court of Appeals in the second
amended version of Anderson v. Evans,
371 F.3d 475, held that the Tribe, to
pursue any treaty rights for whaling,
must comply with the process
prescribed in the MMPA (16 U.S.C.
1361 et seq.) for authorizing ‘‘take’’ of
marine mammals otherwise prohibited
by a moratorium in section 101(a)(16
U.S.C. 1371(a)). The term ≥take≥ means
to harass, hunt, capture, or kill, or
attempt to harass, hunt, capture, or kill
any marine mammal (16 U.S.C.
1362(13)). Subsequent to the Anderson
v. Evans ruling, the Makah submitted a
request for a limited waiver of the
moratorium on taking marine mammals,
which we received on February 14,
2005. We published notice of
availability of the waiver request for
public inspection on March 3, 2005 (70
FR 10369), available online at https://
www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/international/
makah (soon to be available on the
NMFS Northwest Region website under
the ‘‘gray whale’’ link at https://
www.nwr.noaa.gov).
To exercise subsistence hunting treaty
rights of gray whales, the Makah Tribe
must undergo three separate but related
processes: (1) The United States must
obtain an aboriginal subsistence quota
from the IWC on the Makah Tribe’s
behalf, (2) NMFS must decide whether
to waive the MMPA take moratorium for
the Makah Tribe, including conducting
a NEPA review and issuing possible
regulations and permits (see Proposed
Action for more details), and (3) NMFS
must allocate the IWC quota under the
WCA. More information regarding these
processes will soon be available to the
public under the NMFS Northwest
Region website ‘‘gray whale’’ link at
https://www.nwr.noaa.gov. The NEPA
review initiated by this notice of intent
is to comply with process number (2)
described above, which requires
preparation of a site-specific EIS related
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Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 164 / Thursday, August 25, 2005 / Notices
to the Makah Tribe’s request for a
waiver of the MMPA take moratorium.
Proposed Action
The Makah’s proposed action is to
hunt up to 20 ENP gray whales during
a 5-year period, subject to a maximum
of five gray whales in any calendar year,
within its adjudicated usual and
accustomed grounds (See, United States
v. Washington, 626 F.Supp. 1405, 1467
(W.D. Wash 1985)), subject to quotas
granted by the IWC. The Makah
proposes to hunt up to seven gray
whales per year. The Makah’s proposal
to continue subsistence hunting of gray
whales includes other standards for
hunting, such as: (1) time and area
restrictions designed to avoid any
intentional harvest of gray whales
comprising the Pacific Coast Feeding
Aggregation (PCFA), (2) monitoring and
adaptive management measures to
ensure that any incidental harvest of
gray whales from the PCFA remains at
or below the annual strike limit, (3)
measures to ensure that hunting is
conducted in the most humane manner
practicable, consistent with continued
use of traditional hunting methods, and
(4) measures to protect public safety.
The full waiver request is posted online
at https://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/
international/makah, and will soon be
available at NMFS Northwest Region’s
website at https://www.nwr.noaa.gov
under the ‘‘gray whale’’ link.
Based on the Makah’s waiver request,
the Federal action consists of three
parts: (1) Waiving the moratorium on
take of marine mammals under section
101(a)(3)(A)(16 U.S.C. 1371(3)(A)) of the
MMPA, and subsequently (2)
promulgating hunting regulations
implementing the waiver in accordance
with section 103 (16 U.S.C. 1373) of the
MMPA, and (3) issuing any necessary
permit(s) to the Makah for whale
hunting.
If NMFS waives the MMPA take
moratorium and issues the necessary
regulations and permit(s), the Makah
would be allowed to continue
subsistence hunting of ENP gray whales,
subject to IWC quotas and allocation of
those quotas under the WCA. The NEPA
review initiated by this notice of intent,
therefore, involves preparation of a sitespecific EIS related to the Makah Tribe’s
proposed action of continuing treaty
right subsistence ENP whale hunting
(i.e., request for a waiver of the MMPA
take moratorium), and alternatives to
the waiver request.
Alternatives
Pursuant to NEPA, which requires
Federal agencies to conduct an
environmental analysis of proposed
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actions to determine if the actions may
affect the human environment, and in
recognition of the Ninth Circuit Court of
Appeals ruling in Anderson v. Evans,
we intend to conduct public scoping
meetings and to prepare an EIS. Under
NEPA, a reasonable range of alternatives
to a proposed action must be developed
and considered in our environmental
review. Alternatives considered for
analysis in this EIS may include:
variations in the scope of the hunting
activities, variations in the hunting
location, or a combination of these
elements. In addition, the EIS will
identify potentially significant direct,
indirect, and cumulative impacts on
geology and soils, air quality, water
quality, other fish and wildlife species
and their habitat, vegetation,
socioeconomics/tourism, treaty rights
and Federal trust responsibilities,
environmental justice, cultural
resources, noise, aesthetics,
transportation, public services, and
human health and safety, and other
environmental issues that could occur
with the implementation of the Makah’s
proposed action and alternatives. For all
potentially significant impacts, the EIS
will identify avoidance, minimization,
and mitigation measures to reduce these
impacts, where feasible, to a level below
significance.
We have identified the following
preliminary alternatives for public
comment during the public scoping
period, and encourage information on
additional alternatives to consider:
Alternative 1: No Action - Under the
No Action Alternative, we would not
approve the requested whale hunting,
would not grant the waiver of the
moratorium on take under the MMPA,
nor issue the necessary regulations and
permits.
Alternative 2: The Proposed Action Under the proposed action, the Makah
Tribe would be allowed to continue
treaty right subsistence hunting of gray
whales imposing time and area
restrictions designed to target migrating
whales and to avoid any intentional
harvest of whales from the PCFA. We
would grant the waiver of the
moratorium on take under the MMPA
and issue the necessary regulations and
permits.
Alternative 3: The proposed action
would be modified to allow limited take
of gray whales from the PCFA during
hunts.
Alternative 4: The proposed action
would be modified to remove time and
area restrictions from the hunts.
Alternative 5: The proposed action
would be modified to allow hunting to
target migrating whales, imposing time
and area restrictions different than those
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49913
contained in the proposed action that
would maximize the likelihood of
taking a migrating whale (and minimize
the likelihood of taking a PCFA whale).
Request for Comments
We provide this notice to: (1) Advise
other agencies and the public of our
intentions, (2) obtain suggestions and
information on the scope of issues to
include in the EIS, (3) terminate the
prior notice of intent to prepare an EIS
on allocation of the 2003 through 2007
quota (68 FR 10703) published on
March 6, 2003. Comments and
suggestions received during the prior
public comment period for the 2003
through 2007 quota allocation (March 6
through April 21, 2003), will be
considered in developing the current
EIS. Other comments and suggestions
are invited from all interested parties to
ensure that the full range of issues
related to the Makah’s waiver request
and all significant issues are identified.
We request that comments be as specific
as possible. We seek public input on the
scope of the required NEPA analysis,
including the range of reasonable
alternatives; associated impacts of any
alternatives on the human environment,
including geology and soils, air quality,
water quality, other fish and wildlife
species and their habitat, vegetation,
socioeconomics/tourism, treaty rights
and Federal trust responsibilities,
environmental justice, cultural
resources, noise, aesthetics,
transportation, public services, and
human health and safety; and suitable
mitigation measures.
Comments concerning this
environmental review process should be
directed to NMFS (see ADDRESSES). See
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT for
questions. All comments and material
received, including names and
addresses, will become part of the
administrative record and may be
released to the public.
Authority
The environmental review of
continuation of the Makah subsistence
gray whale hunting will be conducted
under the authority and in accordance
with the requirements of NEPA, Council
on Environmental Quality Regulations
(40 CFR 1500-1508), other applicable
Federal laws and regulations, and
policies and procedures of NMFS for
compliance with those regulations. This
notice is being furnished in accordance
with 40 CFR 1501.7 to obtain
suggestions and information from other
agencies and the public on the scope of
issues and alternatives to be addressed
in the EIS.
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Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 164 / Thursday, August 25, 2005 / Notices
Dated: August 19, 2005.
William T. Hogarth,
Assistant Administrator for Fisheries,
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 05–16940 Filed 8–24–05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–S
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
[I.D. 080405A]
Taking and Importing Marine
Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals
Incidental to Navy Operations of
Surveillance Towed Array Sensor
System Low Frequency Active Sonar
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; issuance of two Letters
of Authorization.
SUMMARY: In accordance with the
Marine Mammal Protection Act
(MMPA), as amended, and
implementing regulations, notification
is hereby given that NMFS has issued
two 1–year Letters of Authorization
(LOAs) to take marine mammals by
harassment incidental to the U.S. Navy’s
operation of Surveillance Towed Array
Sensor System Low Frequency Active
(SURTASS LFA) sonar operations to the
Chief of Naval Operations, Department
of the Navy, 2000 Navy Pentagon,
Washington, D.C., and persons
operating under his authority.
DATES: Effective from August 16, 2005,
through August 15, 2006.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the LOAs and the
Navy’s March 31, 2005 application,
which contains a list of references used
in this document, are available by
writing to Steve Leathery, Chief,
Permits, Conservation, and Education
Division, Office of Protected Resources,
National Marine Fisheries Service, 1315
East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD
20910–3225, by telephoning the contact
listed here (see FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT), or online at:
https://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/protlres/
PR2/SmalllTake/
smalltakelinfo.htm#applications.
Documents cited in this notice may be
viewed, by appointment, during regular
business hours, at the aforementioned
address.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jolie
Harrison (ext 166) or Kenneth
Hollingshead (ext 128), Office of
Protected Resources, NMFS, (301) 713–
2289.
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SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Section 101(a)(5)(A) of the MMPA (16
U.S.C. 1361 et seq.) directs the Secretary
of Commerce to allow, upon request, the
incidental, but not intentional taking of
small numbers of marine mammals by
U.S. citizens who engage in a specified
activity (other than commercial fishing)
within a specified geographical region if
certain findings are made and
regulations are issued.
Authorization may be granted for
periods of 5 years or less if NMFS finds
that the taking will have no more than
a negligible impact on the species or
stock(s), and will not have an
unmitigable adverse impact on the
availability of the species or stock(s) for
subsistence uses. In addition, NMFS
must prescribe regulations that include
permissible methods of taking and other
means effecting the least practicable
adverse impact on the species and its
habitat, and on the availability of the
species for subsistence uses, paying
particular attention to rookeries, mating
grounds, and areas of similar
significance. The regulations must
include requirements pertaining to the
monitoring and reporting of such taking.
Regulations governing the taking of
marine mammals incidental to the U.S.
Navy’s operation of SURTASS LFA
sonar were published on July 16, 2002
(67 FR 46712), and remain in effect until
August 15, 2007. For detailed
information on this action, please refer
to that document. These regulations
include mitigation, monitoring, and
reporting requirements for the
incidental taking of marine mammals by
the SURTASS LFA sonar system.
On November 24, 2003, the President
signed into law the National Defense
Authorization Act of 2004 (NDAA)
(Public Law 108–136). Included in this
law were amendments to the MMPA
that apply where a ‘‘military readiness
activity’’ is concerned. Of specific
importance for the SURTASS LFA sonar
take authorization, the NDAA amended
section 101(a)(5) of the MMPA to
exempt military readiness activities
from the ‘‘specified geographical
region’’ and ‘‘small numbers’’
requirements. The term ‘‘military
readiness activity’’ is defined in Public
Law 107–314 (16 U.S.C. 703 note) to
include all training and operations of
the Armed Forces that relate to combat;
and the adequate and realistic testing of
military equipment, vehicles, weapons
and sensors for proper operation and
suitability for combat use. The term
expressly does not include the routine
operation of installation operating
support functions, such as military
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offices, military exchanges,
commissaries, water treatment facilities,
storage facilities, schools, housing,
motor pools, laundries, morale, welfare
and recreation activities, shops, and
mess halls; the operation of industrial
activities; or the construction or
demolition of facilities used for a
military readiness activity.
NMFS published a proposed rule to
amend its SURTASS LFA sonar final
rule and regulations, to implement
provisions of the NDAA (69 FR 38873;
June 29, 2004). The public comment
period ended on July 29, 2004. NMFS
has not issued a final rule as of the date
of this notice.
Summary of LOA Request
NMFS received an application from
the U.S. Navy for two LOAs, one
covering the R/V Cory Chouest and one
the USNS IMPECCABLE, under the
regulations issued on July 16, 2002 (67
FR 46712). The Navy requested that the
LOAs become effective on August 16,
2005. The application requested
authorization, for a period not to exceed
1 year, to take, by harassment, marine
mammals incidental to employment of
the SURTASS LFA sonar system for
training, testing and routine military
operations on the aforementioned ships.
The application’s take estimates are
based on 16 nominal 9–day active sonar
missions (or equivalent shorter
missions) between both vessels,
regardless of which vessel is performing
a specific mission, not to exceed a total
of 432 hours of LFA sonar transmission
time combined for both vessels.
The specified geographic regions
identified in the application in which
the Navy proposes to operate SURTASS
LFA sonar are the following
oceanographic provinces described in
Longhurst (1998) and identified in 50
CFR 216.180(a): the Archipelagic Deep
Basins Province, the Western Pacific
Warm Pool Province, and the North
Pacific Tropical Gyre West Province, all
within the Pacific Trade Wind Biome;
the Kuroshio Current Province and the
Northern Pacific Transition Zone
Province within the Pacific Westerly
Winds Biome; the North Pacific
Epicontinental Sea Province within the
Pacific Polar Biome; and the China Sea
Coastal Province within the North
Pacific Coastal Biome. The operational
areas proposed in the Navy’s
application are portions of the provinces
but do not encompass the entire area of
the provinces. Due to critical naval
warfare requirements, the U.S. Navy has
identified the necessity for both
SURTASS LFA sonar vessels to be
stationed in the North Pacific Ocean
during fiscal year 2006.
E:\FR\FM\25AUN1.SGM
25AUN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 164 (Thursday, August 25, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49911-49914]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-16940]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[I.D. 081905B]
Notice of Intent to Conduct Public Scoping Meetings and to
Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement Related to the Makah Tribe's
Continuation of Treaty Right Hunting of Gray Whales
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
[[Page 49912]]
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; scoping meetings.
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SUMMARY: We intend to conduct public scoping meetings to gather
information to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) pursuant
to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), related to the Makah
Tribe's request that NMFS waive the take moratorium of the Marine
Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) to allow for treaty right hunting of
eastern North Pacific gray whales in usual and accustomed grounds off
the coast of Washington State. This notice briefly describes the
background of the Makah's request for waiver; gives dates, times, and
locations of public scoping meetings; identifies a set of preliminary
alternatives to serve as a starting point for discussions; and
terminates the prior notice of intent to prepare an EIS on a similar
action.
DATES: Three public scoping meetings are scheduled:
1. October 5, 2005, Neah Bay, WA.
2. October 6, 2005, Port Angeles, WA.
3. October 11, 2005, Seattle, WA.
See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for specific times and locations of
the public meetings.
In addition to the meetings, written or electronic comments from
all interested parties are encouraged and must be received no later
than 5 p.m. PDT October 24, 2005.
ADDRESSES: All comments concerning preparation of the EIS and NEPA
process should be addressed to: Kassandra Brown, NMFS Northwest Region,
Building 1, 7600 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115. Comments may
also be submitted via fax (206)526-6426, Attn: Makah Tribe Whale Hunt
EIS, or by electronic mail to MakahEIS.nwr@noaa.gov with a subject line
containing the document identifier: Makah Whale EIS.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kassandra Brown, NMFS Northwest
Region, (206)526-4348.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Public Scoping Meetings
Specific Times and Locations
Public scoping meetings will be held at the following addresses and
times:
1. October 5, 2005, 6:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m., Makah Tribal Council
Community Hall, 81 3\rd\ Avenue (Makah Passage), Neah Bay, WA.
2. October 6, 2005, 6:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m., Vern Burton Memorial
Community Center, 308 East 4\th\ Street (corner of 4\th\ Street and
Peabody Street), Port Angeles, WA.
3. October 11, 2005, 6:30 p.m. - 10 p.m., South Lake Union Park,
860 Terry Avenue North (The Naval Reserve Building), Seattle, WA.
The meeting format has been designed so that the public can
constructively assist NMFS in development of the draft EIS, and will
generally include presentations and small group work sessions. More
details regarding meeting format will be posted under the ``gray
whale'' link at https://www.nwr.noaa.gov by mid-September 2005.
Reasonable Accommodation
Persons needing reasonable accommodations to attend and participate
in the public meetings should contact Kassandra Brown (see FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT). To allow sufficient time to process requests,
please call at least 10 business days prior to the relevant meeting(s).
Information regarding the Makah's request is available in alternative
formats upon request.
Background
The Makah Indian Tribe of Washington State (Makah) seeks to
continue its subsistence hunt(s) of eastern North Pacific (ENP) gray
whales, a tradition dating back at least 1,500 years. The Makah's right
to hunt whales at usual and accustomed grounds and stations off the
coast of Washington was secured in Article 4 of the 1855 Treaty of Neah
Bay in exchange for most of the land in the Olympic Peninsula. The
Treaty of Neah Bay is the primary instrument defining the legal
relationship between the United States Government and the Makah.
The Makah hunted whales until the 1920s when commercial whaling had
drastically reduced the numbers of ENP gray whales available to the
Makah hunters for harvest. Prior to enactment of the Endangered Species
Act (of 1973 16 U.S.C. 1351 et seq.), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service included gray whales (among several genera of baleen whales) on
its 1970 list of endangered species (35 FR 8491, June 2, 1970). The ENP
distinct population segment was subsequently delisted on June 16, 1994
(59 FR 31094). In 1999, Makah hunters killed one ENP gray whale
pursuant to an aboriginal subsistence harvest quota granted for 1998
through 2002 by the International Whaling Commission (IWC) and
domestically implemented by NMFS under the Whaling Convention Act
(WCA)(16 U.S.C. 916 et seq.). Due to a series of lawsuits, no whales
were hunted by the Makah for the remainder of the 1998 through 2002
quota.
In May 2002, the IWC approved another aboriginal subsistence
harvest quota of 620 gray whales for 2003 through 2007, on the basis of
a joint request by the Russian Federation (approved for 600 whales) and
the United States (approved for 20 whales). The United States' request
was made on behalf of the Makah. On March 6, 2003 NMFS initiated an EIS
to assess the environmental impacts of allocating the 2003 through 2007
quota to the Makah by soliciting comments and information to facilitate
the environmental analysis (68 FR 10703). Due to litigation (described
below), NMFS did not complete the EIS and did not allocate the quota
under the WCA. The Makah have not conducted subsistence hunts to date
under the 2003 through 2007 IWC quota.
On June 7, 2004, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in the second
amended version of Anderson v. Evans, 371 F.3d 475, held that the
Tribe, to pursue any treaty rights for whaling, must comply with the
process prescribed in the MMPA (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.) for authorizing
``take'' of marine mammals otherwise prohibited by a moratorium in
section 101(a)(16 U.S.C. 1371(a)). The term take
means to harass, hunt, capture, or kill, or attempt to harass, hunt,
capture, or kill any marine mammal (16 U.S.C. 1362(13)). Subsequent to
the Anderson v. Evans ruling, the Makah submitted a request for a
limited waiver of the moratorium on taking marine mammals, which we
received on February 14, 2005. We published notice of availability of
the waiver request for public inspection on March 3, 2005 (70 FR
10369), available online at https://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/international/
makah (soon to be available on the NMFS Northwest Region website under
the ``gray whale'' link at https://www.nwr.noaa.gov).
To exercise subsistence hunting treaty rights of gray whales, the
Makah Tribe must undergo three separate but related processes: (1) The
United States must obtain an aboriginal subsistence quota from the IWC
on the Makah Tribe's behalf, (2) NMFS must decide whether to waive the
MMPA take moratorium for the Makah Tribe, including conducting a NEPA
review and issuing possible regulations and permits (see Proposed
Action for more details), and (3) NMFS must allocate the IWC quota
under the WCA. More information regarding these processes will soon be
available to the public under the NMFS Northwest Region website ``gray
whale'' link at https://www.nwr.noaa.gov. The NEPA review initiated by
this notice of intent is to comply with process number (2) described
above, which requires preparation of a site-specific EIS related
[[Page 49913]]
to the Makah Tribe's request for a waiver of the MMPA take moratorium.
Proposed Action
The Makah's proposed action is to hunt up to 20 ENP gray whales
during a 5-year period, subject to a maximum of five gray whales in any
calendar year, within its adjudicated usual and accustomed grounds
(See, United States v. Washington, 626 F.Supp. 1405, 1467 (W.D. Wash
1985)), subject to quotas granted by the IWC. The Makah proposes to
hunt up to seven gray whales per year. The Makah's proposal to continue
subsistence hunting of gray whales includes other standards for
hunting, such as: (1) time and area restrictions designed to avoid any
intentional harvest of gray whales comprising the Pacific Coast Feeding
Aggregation (PCFA), (2) monitoring and adaptive management measures to
ensure that any incidental harvest of gray whales from the PCFA remains
at or below the annual strike limit, (3) measures to ensure that
hunting is conducted in the most humane manner practicable, consistent
with continued use of traditional hunting methods, and (4) measures to
protect public safety. The full waiver request is posted online at
https://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/international/makah, and will soon be
available at NMFS Northwest Region's website at https://www.nwr.noaa.gov
under the ``gray whale'' link.
Based on the Makah's waiver request, the Federal action consists of
three parts: (1) Waiving the moratorium on take of marine mammals under
section 101(a)(3)(A)(16 U.S.C. 1371(3)(A)) of the MMPA, and
subsequently (2) promulgating hunting regulations implementing the
waiver in accordance with section 103 (16 U.S.C. 1373) of the MMPA, and
(3) issuing any necessary permit(s) to the Makah for whale hunting.
If NMFS waives the MMPA take moratorium and issues the necessary
regulations and permit(s), the Makah would be allowed to continue
subsistence hunting of ENP gray whales, subject to IWC quotas and
allocation of those quotas under the WCA. The NEPA review initiated by
this notice of intent, therefore, involves preparation of a site-
specific EIS related to the Makah Tribe's proposed action of continuing
treaty right subsistence ENP whale hunting (i.e., request for a waiver
of the MMPA take moratorium), and alternatives to the waiver request.
Alternatives
Pursuant to NEPA, which requires Federal agencies to conduct an
environmental analysis of proposed actions to determine if the actions
may affect the human environment, and in recognition of the Ninth
Circuit Court of Appeals ruling in Anderson v. Evans, we intend to
conduct public scoping meetings and to prepare an EIS. Under NEPA, a
reasonable range of alternatives to a proposed action must be developed
and considered in our environmental review. Alternatives considered for
analysis in this EIS may include: variations in the scope of the
hunting activities, variations in the hunting location, or a
combination of these elements. In addition, the EIS will identify
potentially significant direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts on
geology and soils, air quality, water quality, other fish and wildlife
species and their habitat, vegetation, socioeconomics/tourism, treaty
rights and Federal trust responsibilities, environmental justice,
cultural resources, noise, aesthetics, transportation, public services,
and human health and safety, and other environmental issues that could
occur with the implementation of the Makah's proposed action and
alternatives. For all potentially significant impacts, the EIS will
identify avoidance, minimization, and mitigation measures to reduce
these impacts, where feasible, to a level below significance.
We have identified the following preliminary alternatives for
public comment during the public scoping period, and encourage
information on additional alternatives to consider:
Alternative 1: No Action - Under the No Action Alternative, we
would not approve the requested whale hunting, would not grant the
waiver of the moratorium on take under the MMPA, nor issue the
necessary regulations and permits.
Alternative 2: The Proposed Action - Under the proposed action, the
Makah Tribe would be allowed to continue treaty right subsistence
hunting of gray whales imposing time and area restrictions designed to
target migrating whales and to avoid any intentional harvest of whales
from the PCFA. We would grant the waiver of the moratorium on take
under the MMPA and issue the necessary regulations and permits.
Alternative 3: The proposed action would be modified to allow
limited take of gray whales from the PCFA during hunts.
Alternative 4: The proposed action would be modified to remove time
and area restrictions from the hunts.
Alternative 5: The proposed action would be modified to allow
hunting to target migrating whales, imposing time and area restrictions
different than those contained in the proposed action that would
maximize the likelihood of taking a migrating whale (and minimize the
likelihood of taking a PCFA whale).
Request for Comments
We provide this notice to: (1) Advise other agencies and the public
of our intentions, (2) obtain suggestions and information on the scope
of issues to include in the EIS, (3) terminate the prior notice of
intent to prepare an EIS on allocation of the 2003 through 2007 quota
(68 FR 10703) published on March 6, 2003. Comments and suggestions
received during the prior public comment period for the 2003 through
2007 quota allocation (March 6 through April 21, 2003), will be
considered in developing the current EIS. Other comments and
suggestions are invited from all interested parties to ensure that the
full range of issues related to the Makah's waiver request and all
significant issues are identified. We request that comments be as
specific as possible. We seek public input on the scope of the required
NEPA analysis, including the range of reasonable alternatives;
associated impacts of any alternatives on the human environment,
including geology and soils, air quality, water quality, other fish and
wildlife species and their habitat, vegetation, socioeconomics/tourism,
treaty rights and Federal trust responsibilities, environmental
justice, cultural resources, noise, aesthetics, transportation, public
services, and human health and safety; and suitable mitigation
measures.
Comments concerning this environmental review process should be
directed to NMFS (see ADDRESSES). See FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
for questions. All comments and material received, including names and
addresses, will become part of the administrative record and may be
released to the public.
Authority
The environmental review of continuation of the Makah subsistence
gray whale hunting will be conducted under the authority and in
accordance with the requirements of NEPA, Council on Environmental
Quality Regulations (40 CFR 1500-1508), other applicable Federal laws
and regulations, and policies and procedures of NMFS for compliance
with those regulations. This notice is being furnished in accordance
with 40 CFR 1501.7 to obtain suggestions and information from other
agencies and the public on the scope of issues and alternatives to be
addressed in the EIS.
[[Page 49914]]
Dated: August 19, 2005.
William T. Hogarth,
Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries
Service.
[FR Doc. 05-16940 Filed 8-24-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S
