Notice of the Availability of a Draft Environmental Assessment, 50412-50413 [07-4267]
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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 169 / Friday, August 31, 2007 / Notices
1. Applicant: Andrea Polli, 43–01 21st
Street, #300, Long Island City, NY
11101.
Permit Application No.: 2008–001.
Activity for Which Permit Is
Requested: Enter Antarctic Specially
Protected Areas. The applicant is a
participant in the Artists and Writers
Program and will work with scientists
gathering and modeling environmental
data as part of the McMurdo Dry Valleys
Long Term Ecological Research Project.
One aspect of the project relates to the
history of the area. Therefore the
applicant wishes to visit the McMurdo
Sound area historic huts at Discovery
Hut (ASPA #158), Cape Evans (ASPA
#155) and Cape Royds (ASPA #157) for
video and photographic documentation.
Location: Discovery Hut (ASPA #158),
Cape Evans (ASPA #155) and Cape
Royds (ASPA #157).
Dates: December 1, 2007 to January
10, 2008.
2. Applicant: Robert A. Garrott,
Ecology Department, Montana State
University, 310 Lewis Hall, Bozeman,
MT 59715.
Permit Application No.: 2008–016.
Activity for Which Permit Is
Requested: Take, Import into the U.S.A.
and Enter Antarctic Specially Protected
Area (ASPA). The applicant plans to
capture, tag, weigh and collect small
skin and muscle samples from up to 280
adult and pup Weddell seals, in order
to evaluate how temporal variation in
the marine environment affects a longlived mammal’s population dynamics.
In addition, the applicant proposes to
visit the White Island Antarctic
Specially Protected Area (ASPA #137)
to census and tag seals in this isolated
colony.
Location: McMurdo Sound sea ice
and Northwest White Island (ASPA
#127).
Dates: October 1, 2007 to February 15,
2012.
Nadene G. Kennedy,
Permit Officer, Office of Polar Programs.
[FR Doc. E7–17234 Filed 8–30–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7555–01–P
NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Notice of the Availability of a Draft
Environmental Assessment
National Science Foundation.
Notice of availability of a draft
Environmental Assessment for proposed
activities in the Eastern Pacific Ocean
and Caribbean Sea near Central
America.
AGENCY:
sroberts on PROD1PC70 with NOTICES
ACTION:
SUMMARY: The National Science
Foundation (NSF) gives notice of the
VerDate Aug<31>2005
00:43 Aug 31, 2007
Jkt 211001
availability of a draft Environmental
Assessment (EA) for proposed activities
in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and
Caribbean Sea near Central America.
The Division of Ocean Sciences in the
Directorate for Geosciences (GEO/OCE)
has prepared a draft Environmental
Assessment for a marine geophysical
survey by the Research Vessel Marcus G
Langseth in the Eastern Pacific Ocean
and Caribbean Sea near Central
America, in the Exclusive Economic
Zones of Costa Rica and Nicaragua
(water depths from <100 meters to
>2500 meters) during January–March
2008, The draft Environmental
Assessment is available for public
review for a 30-day period.
DATES: Comments must be submitted on
or before October 1, 2007.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the draft
Environmental Assessment are available
upon request from: Dr. William Lang,
National Science Foundation, Division
of Ocean Sciences, 4201 Wilson Blvd.,
Suite 725, Arlington, VA 22230.
Telephone: (703) 292–7857. The draft is
also available on the agency’s Web site
at: https://www.nsf.gov/geo/oce/pubs/
MGL_Central_America_2008_EA.pdf.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: LamontDoherty Earth Observatory (LDEO), with
research funding from the NSF, plans to
conduct a marine seismic survey in the
Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean
Sea near Central America during 2008.
The research program will take place in
the Exclusive Economic Zones of Costa
Rica and Nicaragua. The surveys will
use a towed airgun array consisting of
up to 36 operating airguns with a
maximum discharge volume of ~6600
in3. They will take place in waters from
<100 meters to >2500 meters deep.
LDEO plans to conduct this seismic
survey as part of the ‘‘Subduction
Factory,’’ or ‘‘SubFac’’ initiative of
NSF’s MARGINS program. The SubFac
initiative will determine the inputs,
outputs, and controlling processes of
subduction zone systems by obtaining
seismic measurements of magma flux,
are composition, and lower-plate
serpentinization at the Central
American Focus Site. Subduction zones,
which mark sites of convective
downwelling of the Earth’s lithosphere,
exist at convergent plate boundaries
where one plate of oceanic lithosphere
converges with another plate and sinks
below into the mantle. It is at these
subduction zones that the oceanic crust
and associated sediments are recycled
into the deep mantle. Although this
mixing of the Earth’s crustal and
oceanic materials produces ore deposits
and new continental crust in the long
term, the immediate result is geological
PO 00000
Frm 00091
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
activity often expressed as deep, very
intense earthquakes and extensive
volcanism.
The seismic survey will investigate
the volcanic are, back are, and
downgoing plate in the Costa Rican
portion of the Central American Focus
Site. The study focuses on the central
Costa Rican segment of the are, the site
of important transitions in lava
chemistry, because the narrow isthmus
~150 km or 93 mi wide) is well-suited
for detailed seismic imaging using
onshore-offshore techniques. A systemic
understanding of subduction must
include a thorough knowledge of the
volcanic are, which in turn is essential
in understanding the geochemical
recycling processes of the Central
American SubFac.
To investigate the Central American
SubFac, seismic survey transects are
proposed across the isthmus in Costa
Rica, along the Costa Rican arc and
back-arc, the outer rise of the Cocos
Plate, and the Nicaragua Rise. The crossarc transect will involve use of seismic
sources in both the Pacific and
Caribbean. To understand arc-building
processes, the delineation of lateral
heterogeneity in crustal thickness and
velocity at scales of tens of kilometers
is required, both across and along-arc. In
order to achieve this, the study will
acquire (1) A double-side, onshoreoffshore cross-arc profile, (2) an alongarc refraction line, (3) an array of
seismometers in the arc to record all
onshore and offshore shots and to allow
3-dimensional (3D) tomography, and (4)
a refraction survey across the outer rise
of the downgoing Cocos Plate.
The marine program will consist of
∼2149 km of unique survey lines—753
km in the Caribbean and 1396 km in the
Pacific. With the exception of two lines
located in shallow to intermediatedepth water, all lines will be shot twice,
once at a ∼50-m (20-s) shot spacing for
multichannel seismic (MCS) data and
once at a ∼200-m (80-s) shot spacing for
ocean bottom seismometer (OBS)
refraction data, for a total of ∼3980 km
of survey lines. There will be additional
operations associated with equipment
testing, startup, line changes, and repeat
coverage of any areas where initial data
quality is sub-standard.
LDEO has applied for the issuance of
an Incidental Harassment Authorization
(IHA) from the National Marine
Fisheries Service (NMFS) to authorize
the incidental harassment of small
numbers of marine mammals during the
seismic survey. The information in this
Environmental Assessment supports the
IHA permit application process,
provides information on marine species
not covered by the IHA, and addresses
E:\FR\FM\31AUN1.SGM
31AUN1
sroberts on PROD1PC70 with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 169 / Friday, August 31, 2007 / Notices
the requirements of Executive Order
12114, ‘‘Environmental Effects Abroad
of Major Federal Actions’’. Alternatives
addressed in this EA consist of a
corresponding seismic survey at a
different time, along with issuance of an
associated IHA; and the no action
alternative, with no IHA and no seismic
survey.
Numerous species of marine
mammals occur off Central America.
Several of the cetacean species are listed
as endangered under the U.S.
Endangered Species Act (ESA),
including humpback, sei, fin, blue, and
sperm whales. In addition, the
endangered West Indian manatee is
known to occur in shallow waters along
the Caribbean coast of Central America.
Sea turtle species known to occur in
Central America include the endangered
leatherback and hawksbill turtles, the
threatened loggerhead turtle, the green
turtle (considered endangered in the
breeding colony of Florida and the
Pacific coast of Mexico and threatened
elsewhere), and the olive ridley turtle
(designated as endangered in the
breeding colony of the Pacific coast of
Mexico and threatened elsewhere). The
Kemp’s ridley turtle may also occur in
the Caribbean.
The potential impacts of the seismic
surveys would be primarily a result of
the operation of airguns, although a
multi-beam sonar and a sub-bottom
profiler will also be operated. Impacts
may include increased marine noise and
resultant avoidance behavior by marine
mammals, sea turtles, and fish; and
other forms of disturbance. The
operations of the project vessel during
the study would also a minor increase
in the amount of vessel traffic. An
integral part of the planned survey is a
monitoring and mitigation program
designed to minimize the impacts of the
proposed activities on marine mammals
and sea turtles that may be present
during the proposed research, and to
document the nature and extent of any
effects. Injurious impacts to marine
mammals and sea turtles have not been
proven to occur near airgun arrays;
however the planned monitoring and
mitigation measures would minimize
the possibility of such effects should
they otherwise occur.
Protection measures designed to
mitigate the potential environmental
impacts will include the following: A
minimum of one dedicated marine
mammal observer maintaining a visual
watch during all daytime airgun
operations, and two observers for 30
min before start up. A passive acoustic
monitoring (PAM) array will be
monitored 24 h per day while at the
survey area during airgun operations
VerDate Aug<31>2005
00:43 Aug 31, 2007
Jkt 211001
and during most times when the
Langseth is underway while the airguns
are not operating. The use of ramp-up,
as well as implementation of powerdown or shut-down procedures when
animals approach a designated
exclusion zone (EZ) are also important
mitigation measures. LDEO and its
contractors are committed to apply
those measures in order to minimize
disturbance of marine mammals and sea
turtles, and also to minimize the risk of
injuries or of other environmental
impacts.
With the planned monitoring and
mitigation measures, unavoidable
impacts to each of the species of marine
mammal that might be encountered are
expected to be limited to short-term
localized changes in behavior and
distribution near the seismic vessel. At
most, such effects may be interpreted as
falling within the Marine Mammal
Protection Act (MMPA) definition of
‘‘Level B Harassment’’ for those species
managed by NMFS. No long-term or
significant effects are expected on
individual marine mammals, or the
populations to which they belong, or
their habitats. The agency is currently
consulting with the NMFS regarding
species within their jurisdiction
potentially affected by this proposed
activity.
Copies of the draft EA, titled
‘‘Environmental Assessment of a Marine
Geophysical Survey by the R/V Marcus
G. Langseth off Central America,
January–March 2008,’’ are available
upon request from: Dr. William Lang,
National Science Foundation, Division
of Ocean Sciences, 4201 Wilson Blvd.,
Suite 725, Arlington, VA 22230.
Telephone: (703) 292–7857 or at the
agency’s Web site at: https://
www.nsf.gov/geo/oce/pubs/
MGI_Central_America_2008_EA.pdf.
The NSF invites interested members of
the public to provide written comments
on this draft EA.
Dated: August 27, 2007.
Dr. Alexander Shor,
Program Director, Oceanographic
Instrumentation and Technical Services,
Division of Ocean Sciences, National Science
Foundation.
[FR Doc. 07–4267 Filed 8–30–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7555–01–M
NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Advisory Committee for Environmental
Research and Education; Notice of
Meeting
In accordance with the Federal
Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92–
463, as amended), the National Science
PO 00000
Frm 00092
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
50413
Foundation announces the following
meeting:
Name: Advisory Committee for
Environmental Research and Education
(9487).
Dates: October 17, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. and
October 18, 2007, 9 a.m.–2:30 p.m.
Place: Stafford I, Room 1235, National
Science Foundation, 4201 Wilson Blvd.,
Arlington, Virginia 22230.
Type of Meeting: Open.
For Further Information Contact: Alan
Tessier, National Science Foundation, 4201
Wilson Blvd., Suite 635, Arlington, Virginia
22230, Phone: 703–292–7198.
If you are attending the meeting and need
access to the NSF, please contact the
individual listed above so your name may be
added to the building access list.
Minutes: May be obtained from the contact
person listed above.
Purpose of Meeting: To provide advice,
recommendations, and oversight concerning
support for environmental research and
education.
Agenda:
October 17
Introduction of New Members
Update on recent NSF environmental
activities
Joint Session with NSF Advisory
Committee on Geosciences
October 18
Discussion of Future AC/ERE activities
Meeting with the Director (or
Representative)
Establishment of AC/ERE Task Groups
Dated: August 28, 2007.
Susanne Bolton,
Committee Management Officer.
[FR Doc. E7–17342 Filed 8–30–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7555–01–P
NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Advisory Committee for Geosciences;
Notice of Meeting
In accordance with the Federal
Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92–
463, as amended), the National Science
Foundation announces the following
meeting:
Name: Advisory Committee for
Geosciences (1755).
Dates: October 17, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. and
October 18, 2007, 9 a.m.–2:30 p.m.
Place: Stafford I, Room 375, National
Science Foundation, 4201 Wilson Blvd.,
Arlington, Virginia 22230.
Type of Meeting: Open.
For Further Information Contact: Melissa
Lane, National Science Foundation, 4201
Wilson Blvd., Suite 705, Arlington, Virginia
22230, Phone: 703–292–8500.
If you are attending the meeting and need
access to the NSF, please contact the
individual listed above so your name may be
added to the building access list.
Minutes: May be obtained from the contact
person listed above.
E:\FR\FM\31AUN1.SGM
31AUN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 169 (Friday, August 31, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50412-50413]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 07-4267]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Notice of the Availability of a Draft Environmental Assessment
AGENCY: National Science Foundation.
ACTION: Notice of availability of a draft Environmental Assessment for
proposed activities in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea near
Central America.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The National Science Foundation (NSF) gives notice of the
availability of a draft Environmental Assessment (EA) for proposed
activities in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea near Central
America.
The Division of Ocean Sciences in the Directorate for Geosciences
(GEO/OCE) has prepared a draft Environmental Assessment for a marine
geophysical survey by the Research Vessel Marcus G Langseth in the
Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea near Central America, in the
Exclusive Economic Zones of Costa Rica and Nicaragua (water depths from
<100 meters to >2500 meters) during January-March 2008, The draft
Environmental Assessment is available for public review for a 30-day
period.
DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before October 1, 2007.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the draft Environmental Assessment are available
upon request from: Dr. William Lang, National Science Foundation,
Division of Ocean Sciences, 4201 Wilson Blvd., Suite 725, Arlington, VA
22230. Telephone: (703) 292-7857. The draft is also available on the
agency's Web site at: https://www.nsf.gov/geo/oce/pubs/MGL_Central_
America_2008_EA.pdf.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (LDEO),
with research funding from the NSF, plans to conduct a marine seismic
survey in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea near Central
America during 2008. The research program will take place in the
Exclusive Economic Zones of Costa Rica and Nicaragua. The surveys will
use a towed airgun array consisting of up to 36 operating airguns with
a maximum discharge volume of ~6600 in\3\. They will take place in
waters from <100 meters to >2500 meters deep.
LDEO plans to conduct this seismic survey as part of the
``Subduction Factory,'' or ``SubFac'' initiative of NSF's MARGINS
program. The SubFac initiative will determine the inputs, outputs, and
controlling processes of subduction zone systems by obtaining seismic
measurements of magma flux, are composition, and lower-plate
serpentinization at the Central American Focus Site. Subduction zones,
which mark sites of convective downwelling of the Earth's lithosphere,
exist at convergent plate boundaries where one plate of oceanic
lithosphere converges with another plate and sinks below into the
mantle. It is at these subduction zones that the oceanic crust and
associated sediments are recycled into the deep mantle. Although this
mixing of the Earth's crustal and oceanic materials produces ore
deposits and new continental crust in the long term, the immediate
result is geological activity often expressed as deep, very intense
earthquakes and extensive volcanism.
The seismic survey will investigate the volcanic are, back are, and
downgoing plate in the Costa Rican portion of the Central American
Focus Site. The study focuses on the central Costa Rican segment of the
are, the site of important transitions in lava chemistry, because the
narrow isthmus ~150 km or 93 mi wide) is well-suited for detailed
seismic imaging using onshore-offshore techniques. A systemic
understanding of subduction must include a thorough knowledge of the
volcanic are, which in turn is essential in understanding the
geochemical recycling processes of the Central American SubFac.
To investigate the Central American SubFac, seismic survey
transects are proposed across the isthmus in Costa Rica, along the
Costa Rican arc and back-arc, the outer rise of the Cocos Plate, and
the Nicaragua Rise. The cross-arc transect will involve use of seismic
sources in both the Pacific and Caribbean. To understand arc-building
processes, the delineation of lateral heterogeneity in crustal
thickness and velocity at scales of tens of kilometers is required,
both across and along-arc. In order to achieve this, the study will
acquire (1) A double-side, onshore-offshore cross-arc profile, (2) an
along-arc refraction line, (3) an array of seismometers in the arc to
record all onshore and offshore shots and to allow 3-dimensional (3D)
tomography, and (4) a refraction survey across the outer rise of the
downgoing Cocos Plate.
The marine program will consist of ~2149 km of unique survey
lines--753 km in the Caribbean and 1396 km in the Pacific. With the
exception of two lines located in shallow to intermediate-depth water,
all lines will be shot twice, once at a ~50-m (20-s) shot spacing for
multichannel seismic (MCS) data and once at a ~200-m (80-s) shot
spacing for ocean bottom seismometer (OBS) refraction data, for a total
of ~3980 km of survey lines. There will be additional operations
associated with equipment testing, startup, line changes, and repeat
coverage of any areas where initial data quality is sub-standard.
LDEO has applied for the issuance of an Incidental Harassment
Authorization (IHA) from the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)
to authorize the incidental harassment of small numbers of marine
mammals during the seismic survey. The information in this
Environmental Assessment supports the IHA permit application process,
provides information on marine species not covered by the IHA, and
addresses
[[Page 50413]]
the requirements of Executive Order 12114, ``Environmental Effects
Abroad of Major Federal Actions''. Alternatives addressed in this EA
consist of a corresponding seismic survey at a different time, along
with issuance of an associated IHA; and the no action alternative, with
no IHA and no seismic survey.
Numerous species of marine mammals occur off Central America.
Several of the cetacean species are listed as endangered under the U.S.
Endangered Species Act (ESA), including humpback, sei, fin, blue, and
sperm whales. In addition, the endangered West Indian manatee is known
to occur in shallow waters along the Caribbean coast of Central
America. Sea turtle species known to occur in Central America include
the endangered leatherback and hawksbill turtles, the threatened
loggerhead turtle, the green turtle (considered endangered in the
breeding colony of Florida and the Pacific coast of Mexico and
threatened elsewhere), and the olive ridley turtle (designated as
endangered in the breeding colony of the Pacific coast of Mexico and
threatened elsewhere). The Kemp's ridley turtle may also occur in the
Caribbean.
The potential impacts of the seismic surveys would be primarily a
result of the operation of airguns, although a multi-beam sonar and a
sub-bottom profiler will also be operated. Impacts may include
increased marine noise and resultant avoidance behavior by marine
mammals, sea turtles, and fish; and other forms of disturbance. The
operations of the project vessel during the study would also a minor
increase in the amount of vessel traffic. An integral part of the
planned survey is a monitoring and mitigation program designed to
minimize the impacts of the proposed activities on marine mammals and
sea turtles that may be present during the proposed research, and to
document the nature and extent of any effects. Injurious impacts to
marine mammals and sea turtles have not been proven to occur near
airgun arrays; however the planned monitoring and mitigation measures
would minimize the possibility of such effects should they otherwise
occur.
Protection measures designed to mitigate the potential
environmental impacts will include the following: A minimum of one
dedicated marine mammal observer maintaining a visual watch during all
daytime airgun operations, and two observers for 30 min before start
up. A passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) array will be monitored 24 h
per day while at the survey area during airgun operations and during
most times when the Langseth is underway while the airguns are not
operating. The use of ramp-up, as well as implementation of power-down
or shut-down procedures when animals approach a designated exclusion
zone (EZ) are also important mitigation measures. LDEO and its
contractors are committed to apply those measures in order to minimize
disturbance of marine mammals and sea turtles, and also to minimize the
risk of injuries or of other environmental impacts.
With the planned monitoring and mitigation measures, unavoidable
impacts to each of the species of marine mammal that might be
encountered are expected to be limited to short-term localized changes
in behavior and distribution near the seismic vessel. At most, such
effects may be interpreted as falling within the Marine Mammal
Protection Act (MMPA) definition of ``Level B Harassment'' for those
species managed by NMFS. No long-term or significant effects are
expected on individual marine mammals, or the populations to which they
belong, or their habitats. The agency is currently consulting with the
NMFS regarding species within their jurisdiction potentially affected
by this proposed activity.
Copies of the draft EA, titled ``Environmental Assessment of a
Marine Geophysical Survey by the R/V Marcus G. Langseth off Central
America, January-March 2008,'' are available upon request from: Dr.
William Lang, National Science Foundation, Division of Ocean Sciences,
4201 Wilson Blvd., Suite 725, Arlington, VA 22230. Telephone: (703)
292-7857 or at the agency's Web site at: https://www.nsf.gov/geo/oce/
pubs/MGI_Central_America_2008_EA.pdf. The NSF invites interested
members of the public to provide written comments on this draft EA.
Dated: August 27, 2007.
Dr. Alexander Shor,
Program Director, Oceanographic Instrumentation and Technical Services,
Division of Ocean Sciences, National Science Foundation.
[FR Doc. 07-4267 Filed 8-30-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7555-01-M
