Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Target and Missile Launch Activities at San Nicolas Island, CA, 53408-53409 [E8-21598]
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53408
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 180 / Tuesday, September 16, 2008 / Notices
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of public meeting, public
hearing, and scoping meetings.
NMFS will hold a 3-day
Atlantic Highly Migratory Species
(HMS) Advisory Panel (AP) meeting in
September and October 2008. The intent
of the meeting is to consider options for
the conservation and management of
Atlantic HMS. The meeting is open to
the public. A public hearing and
scoping meetings will be held in
conjunction with the AP meeting.
DATES: The AP meeting will be held
from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesday,
September 30, 2008, from 8:30 a.m. to
6 p.m. on Wednesday, October 1, 2008;
and from 8:30 a.m. to 12 noon on
Thursday, October 2, 2008. See
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for public
hearing and scoping meeting dates,
times, and locations.
ADDRESSES: All meetings will be held at
the Crowne Plaza Hotel, 8777 Georgia
Avenue, Silver Spring, MD 20910.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Othel Freeman or Chris Rilling at 301–
713–2347.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
Magnuson–Stevens Fishery
Conservation and Management Act, 16
U.S.C. 1801 et seq., as amended by the
Sustainable Fisheries Act, Public Law
104–297, provided for the establishment
of an AP to assist in the collection and
evaluation of information relevant to the
development of any Fishery
Management Plan (FMP) for HMS.
NMFS consults with and considers the
comments and views of AP members
when preparing and implementing
FMPs or FMP amendments for Atlantic
tunas, swordfish, billfish, and sharks.
The AP has previously consulted with
NMFS on: the HMS FMP (April 1999),
Amendment 1 to the HMS FMP
(December 2003), Amendment 1 to the
Billfish FMP (April 1999), the
Consolidated HMS FMP (October 2006),
and Amendments 1 and 2 to the
Consolidated HMS FMP (April 2008).
The September and October 2008 AP
meeting will focus on conservation and
management options for Atlantic tunas,
swordfish, billfish, and sharks. NMFS is
considering several amendments to the
2006 Consolidated HMS FMP, including
an amendment to update essential fish
habitat, an amendment to rebuild
blacknose sharks which are overfished
with overfishing occurring, and an
amendment to improve permitting and
reporting and address other relevant
management issues in Caribbean HMS
fisheries. As listed in the table below,
NMFS will hold a public hearing and
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SUMMARY:
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13:43 Sep 15, 2008
Jkt 214001
scoping meetings to receive comments
from the AP and members of the public.
Public Hearing and
Scoping
Meetings
Date
Location
Public hearing for Essential Fish
Habitat Draft
Amendment
1 to the Consolidated
HMS FMP
September
30, 2008;
3:30–4:30
p.m.
Crowne
Plaza Hotel,
8777 Georgia Ave., Silver Spring,
MD 20910
Scoping
meeting for
Small Coastal Shark
Draft Amendment 3 to the
Consolidated
HMS FMP
October 1,
2008; 3:30–
4:30 p.m.
Crowne
Plaza Hotel,
8777 Georgia Ave., Silver Spring,
MD 20910
Scoping
meeting for
Caribbean
Draft Amendment 4 to the
Consolidated
HMS FMP
October 2,
2008; 8:30–
9:30 a.m.
Crowne
Plaza Hotel,
8777 Georgia Ave., Silver Spring,
MD 20910
Special Accommodations
This meeting is physically accessible
to people with disabilities. Requests for
sign language interpretation or other
auxiliary aids should be directed to
Othel Freeman at (301) 713–2347, at
least 7 days prior to the meeting.
Dated: September 11, 2008.
James P. Burgess
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E8–21596 Filed 9–15–08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–S
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
RIN 0648–XK34
Taking and Importing Marine
Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals
Incidental to Target and Missile
Launch Activities at San Nicolas
Island, CA
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; receipt of application for
letter of authorization; request for
comments and information.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: NMFS has received a request
from the U.S. Navy (Navy) for
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
authorization for the take of marine
mammals incidental to vehicle launches
from San Nicolas Island (SNI),
California, for the period 2009 2014.
Pursuant to the Marine Mammal
Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is
announcing receipt of the Navy’s
request for the development and
implementation of regulations
governing the incidental taking of
marine mammals and inviting
information, suggestions, and comments
on the Navy’s application and request.
DATES: Comments and information must
be received no later than October 16,
2008.
ADDRESSES: Comments on the
application should be addressed to P.
Michael Payne, Chief, Permits,
Conservation and Education Division,
Office of Protected Resources, National
Marine Fisheries Service, 1315 EastWest Highway, Silver Spring, MD
20910–3225. The mailbox address for
providing email comments is
PR1.0648XK34@noaa.gov. Comments
sent via e-mail, including all
attachments, must not exceed a 10–
megabyte file size.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Candace Nachman, Office of Protected
Resources, NMFS, (301) 713–2289, ext.
156.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Availability
A copy of the Navy’s application may
be obtained by writing to the address
specified above (ADDRESSES),
telephoning the contact listed above
(FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT), or
visiting the internet at https://
www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/permits/
incidental.htm. The Navy’s Final
Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS)
for the Point Mugu Sea Range was made
available to the public in March, 2002.
To obtain a copy of the FEIS, contact
Steven Schwartz, Naval Air Warfare
Center Weapons Division (NAWCWD),
via email at steven.schwartz@navy.mil.
Background
Sections 101(a)(5)(A) and (D) of the
MMPA (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.) direct
the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary)
to allow, upon request, the incidental,
but not intentional taking of marine
mammals by U.S. citizens who engage
in a specified activity (other than
commercial fishing) if certain findings
are made and regulations are issued or,
if the taking is limited to harassment,
notice of a proposed authorization is
provided to the public for review.
Authorization for incidental takings
may be granted if NMFS finds that the
taking will have a negligible impact on
E:\FR\FM\16SEN1.SGM
16SEN1
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 180 / Tuesday, September 16, 2008 / Notices
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 and if the permissible
methods of taking and requirements
pertaining to the mitigation, monitoring
and reporting of such taking are set
forth.
NMFS has defined ‘‘negligible
impact’’ in 50 CFR 216.103 as:
an impact resulting from the specified
activity that cannot be reasonably
expected to, and is not reasonably likely
to, adversely affect the species or stock
through effects on annual rates of
recruitment or survival.
With respect to military readiness
activities, the MMPA defines
‘‘harassment’’ as:
(i) any act that injures or has the
significant potential to injure a marine
mammal or marine mammal stock in the
wild [Level A Harassment]; or (ii) any
act that disturbs or is likely to disturb
a marine mammal or marine mammal
stock in the wild by causing disruption
of natural behavioral patterns,
including, but not limited to, migration,
surfacing, nursing, breeding, feeding, or
sheltering, to a point where such
behavioral patterns are abandoned or
significantly altered [Level B
Harassment].
ebenthall on PROD1PC60 with NOTICES
Summary of Request
On September 3, 2008, NMFS
received an application from the Navy
requesting authorization for the take of
three pinniped species incidental to
vehicle launches to be conducted from
the western part of SNI (see pages 3–4
of the application), over the course of 5
years. These activities are classified as
military readiness activities. The Navy
plans to launch up to 40 vehicles from
SNI per year, with up to 10 launches per
year during nighttime hours. The Navy
states that these activities may have
both acoustic and non-acoustic effects
on pinnipeds. Aircraft and helicopter
flights between the Pt Mugu airfield on
the mainland, the airfield on SNI, and
the target sites in the Sea Range will be
a routine part of a planned launch
operation. These flights generally do not
pass at low levels over the beaches
where pinnipeds are expected to be
hauled out. The Navy requests
authorization to take three species of
pinnipeds by Level B Harassment:
harbor seals, northern elephant seals,
and California sea lions. Injury or
mortality is unlikely during launch
activities, and take by Level A
harassment (including injury) or
mortality is not requested in the Navy’s
application.
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13:43 Sep 15, 2008
Jkt 214001
Specified Activities
The Navy issued a FEIS, which
analyzed the effects on the human
environment of implementing their
preferred alternative (among other
alternatives), which includes
conducting five general categories of
tests to evaluate sea, land, and air
weapons systems (i.e., air-to-air tests,
air-to-surface tests, surface-to-air tests,
surface-to-surface tests, and subsurfaceto-surface tests) and three general
categories of training (i.e., fleet training
exercises, small-scale amphibious
warfare training, and special warfare
training). NAWCWD plans to continue a
launch program for missiles and targets
from several launch sites on SNI, the
purpose of which is to support test and
training activities associated with
operations on the NAWCWD Point
Mugu Sea Range.
Information Solicited
Interested persons may submit
information, suggestions, and comments
concerning the Navy’s request
(ADDRESSES). All information,
suggestions, and comments related to
the Navy’s request and NMFS’ potential
development and implementation of
regulations governing the incidental
taking of marine mammals by the Navy
on SNI will be considered by NMFS in
developing regulations governing the
issuance of letters of authorization.
Dated: September 10, 2008.
Helen M. Golde,
Deputy Director, Office of Protected
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E8–21598 Filed 9–15–08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–S
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Submission for OMB Review;
Comment Request
Department of Education.
The IC Clearance Official,
Regulatory Information Management
Services, Office of Management invites
comments on the submission for OMB
review as required by the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995.
DATES: Interested persons are invited to
submit comments on or before October
16, 2008.
ADDRESSES: Written comments should
be addressed to the Office of
Information and Regulatory Affairs,
Attention: Education Desk Officer,
Office of Management and Budget, 725
17th Street, NW., Room 10222,
Washington, DC 20503. Commenters are
encouraged to submit responses
electronically by e-mail to
AGENCY:
SUMMARY:
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
53409
oira_submission@omb.eop.gov or via fax
to (202) 395–6974. Commenters should
include the following subject line in
their response ‘‘Comment: [insert OMB
number], [insert abbreviated collection
name, e.g., ‘‘Upward Bound
Evaluation’’]. Persons submitting
comments electronically should not
submit paper copies.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section
3506 of the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35) requires
that the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) provide interested
Federal agencies and the public an early
opportunity to comment on information
collection requests. OMB may amend or
waive the requirement for public
consultation to the extent that public
participation in the approval process
would defeat the purpose of the
information collection, violate State or
Federal law, or substantially interfere
with any agency’s ability to perform its
statutory obligations. The IC Clearance
Official, Regulatory Information
Management Services, Office of
Management, publishes that notice
containing proposed information
collection requests prior to submission
of these requests to OMB. Each
proposed information collection,
grouped by office, contains the
following: (1) Type of review requested,
e.g., new, revision, extension, existing
or reinstatement; (2) Title; (3) Summary
of the collection; (4) Description of the
need for, and proposed use of, the
information; (5) Respondents and
frequency of collection; and (6)
Reporting and/or Recordkeeping
burden. OMB invites public comment.
Dated: September 10, 2008.
Angela C. Arrington,
IC Clearance Official, Regulatory Information
Management Services, Office of Management.
Office of Planning, Evaluation and
Policy Development
Type of Review: New Collection.
Title: The Evaluation of the
Implementation of the Rural and Low
Income Schools (RLIS) Program.
Frequency: Annually.
Affected Public: State, Local, or Tribal
Gov’t, SEAs or LEAs.
Reporting and Recordkeeping Hour
Burden:
Responses: 666.
Burden Hours: 250.
Abstract: This OMB package requests
clearance for data collection
instruments to be used in the Evaluation
of the Implementation of the Rural and
Low-Income Schools (RLIS) Program
which will be administered by Berkeley
Policy Associates (BPA). The purpose of
the study is to obtain information useful
E:\FR\FM\16SEN1.SGM
16SEN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 180 (Tuesday, September 16, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53408-53409]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-21598]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-XK34
Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals
Incidental to Target and Missile Launch Activities at San Nicolas
Island, CA
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; receipt of application for letter of authorization;
request for comments and information.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: NMFS has received a request from the U.S. Navy (Navy) for
authorization for the take of marine mammals incidental to vehicle
launches from San Nicolas Island (SNI), California, for the period 2009
2014. Pursuant to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is
announcing receipt of the Navy's request for the development and
implementation of regulations governing the incidental taking of marine
mammals and inviting information, suggestions, and comments on the
Navy's application and request.
DATES: Comments and information must be received no later than October
16, 2008.
ADDRESSES: Comments on the application should be addressed to P.
Michael Payne, Chief, Permits, Conservation and Education Division,
Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service, 1315
East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910-3225. The mailbox address
for providing email comments is PR1.0648XK34@noaa.gov. Comments sent
via e-mail, including all attachments, must not exceed a 10-megabyte
file size.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Candace Nachman, Office of Protected
Resources, NMFS, (301) 713-2289, ext. 156.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Availability
A copy of the Navy's application may be obtained by writing to the
address specified above (ADDRESSES), telephoning the contact listed
above (FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT), or visiting the internet at
https://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/permits/incidental.htm. The Navy's Final
Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the Point Mugu Sea Range was
made available to the public in March, 2002. To obtain a copy of the
FEIS, contact Steven Schwartz, Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons
Division (NAWCWD), via email at steven.schwartz@navy.mil.
Background
Sections 101(a)(5)(A) and (D) of the MMPA (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.)
direct the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) to allow, upon request,
the incidental, but not intentional taking of marine mammals by U.S.
citizens who engage in a specified activity (other than commercial
fishing) if certain findings are made and regulations are issued or, if
the taking is limited to harassment, notice of a proposed authorization
is provided to the public for review.
Authorization for incidental takings may be granted if NMFS finds
that the taking will have a negligible impact on
[[Page 53409]]
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 and
if the permissible methods of taking and requirements pertaining to the
mitigation, monitoring and reporting of such taking are set forth.
NMFS has defined ``negligible impact'' in 50 CFR 216.103 as:
an impact resulting from the specified activity that cannot be
reasonably expected to, and is not reasonably likely to, adversely
affect the species or stock through effects on annual rates of
recruitment or survival.
With respect to military readiness activities, the MMPA defines
``harassment'' as:
(i) any act that injures or has the significant potential to injure
a marine mammal or marine mammal stock in the wild [Level A
Harassment]; or (ii) any act that disturbs or is likely to disturb a
marine mammal or marine mammal stock in the wild by causing disruption
of natural behavioral patterns, including, but not limited to,
migration, surfacing, nursing, breeding, feeding, or sheltering, to a
point where such behavioral patterns are abandoned or significantly
altered [Level B Harassment].
Summary of Request
On September 3, 2008, NMFS received an application from the Navy
requesting authorization for the take of three pinniped species
incidental to vehicle launches to be conducted from the western part of
SNI (see pages 3-4 of the application), over the course of 5 years.
These activities are classified as military readiness activities. The
Navy plans to launch up to 40 vehicles from SNI per year, with up to 10
launches per year during nighttime hours. The Navy states that these
activities may have both acoustic and non-acoustic effects on
pinnipeds. Aircraft and helicopter flights between the Pt Mugu airfield
on the mainland, the airfield on SNI, and the target sites in the Sea
Range will be a routine part of a planned launch operation. These
flights generally do not pass at low levels over the beaches where
pinnipeds are expected to be hauled out. The Navy requests
authorization to take three species of pinnipeds by Level B Harassment:
harbor seals, northern elephant seals, and California sea lions. Injury
or mortality is unlikely during launch activities, and take by Level A
harassment (including injury) or mortality is not requested in the
Navy's application.
Specified Activities
The Navy issued a FEIS, which analyzed the effects on the human
environment of implementing their preferred alternative (among other
alternatives), which includes conducting five general categories of
tests to evaluate sea, land, and air weapons systems (i.e., air-to-air
tests, air-to-surface tests, surface-to-air tests, surface-to-surface
tests, and subsurface-to-surface tests) and three general categories of
training (i.e., fleet training exercises, small-scale amphibious
warfare training, and special warfare training). NAWCWD plans to
continue a launch program for missiles and targets from several launch
sites on SNI, the purpose of which is to support test and training
activities associated with operations on the NAWCWD Point Mugu Sea
Range.
Information Solicited
Interested persons may submit information, suggestions, and
comments concerning the Navy's request (ADDRESSES). All information,
suggestions, and comments related to the Navy's request and NMFS'
potential development and implementation of regulations governing the
incidental taking of marine mammals by the Navy on SNI will be
considered by NMFS in developing regulations governing the issuance of
letters of authorization.
Dated: September 10, 2008.
Helen M. Golde,
Deputy Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E8-21598 Filed 9-15-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S
