Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf of Mexico, 33704-33705 [2011-14312]
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33704
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 111 / Thursday, June 9, 2011 / Notices
authority of the Endangered Species Act
of 1973, as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C.
1531 et seq.) and the regulations
governing the taking, importing, and
exporting of endangered and threatened
species (50 CFR 222–226).
The applicant proposes a five-year
scientific research permit characterizing
the habitat use, population abundance,
reproduction, juvenile recruitment, age
and growth, temporal and spatial
distribution, diet selectivity, and
contaminant load of shortnose sturgeon
captured from the Hudson River Estuary
from New York Harbor to Troy Dam.
Anchored and drift gill nets and trawl
nets would be used to capture up to 240
and 2,340 shortnose sturgeon in year
one through three and year four and
five, respectively. Other research
activities would include: measuring,
weighing; tagging unmarked individuals
with passive integrated transponder
tags, and dart tags; and genetic tissue
sampling. A first subset of fish would be
anesthetized and tagged with acoustic
transmitters; a second subset would
have fin rays sampled for ageing; and a
third subset of fish would be gastrically
lavaged for diet analysis, as well as have
blood samples taken for contaminant
testing. A total of nine unintended
mortalities are requested over the life of
the permit.
Dated: June 3, 2011.
P. Michael Payne,
Chief, Permits, Conservation and Education
Division, Office of Protected Resources,
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2011–14333 Filed 6–8–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
RIN 0648–XA436
Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals;
Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental
to the Explosive Removal of Offshore
Structures in the Gulf of Mexico
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
AGENCY:
Company
El Paso ..............................
El Paso ..............................
VerDate Mar<15>2010
Notice; issuance of letters of
authorization.
ACTION:
In accordance with the
Marine Mammal Protection Act
(MMPA) and implementing regulations,
notification is hereby given that NMFS
has issued one-year Letters of
Authorization (LOA) to take marine
mammals incidental to the explosive
removal of offshore oil and gas
structures (EROS) in the Gulf of Mexico.
DATES: These authorizations are
effective from July 1, 2011 through June
30, 2012, and September 3, 2011
through September 2, 2012.
ADDRESSES: The application and LOAs
are available for review by writing to P.
Michael Payne, Chief, Permits,
Conservation, and Education Division,
Office of Protected Resources, National
Marine Fisheries Service, 1315 EastWest Highway, Silver Spring, MD
20910–3235 or by telephoning the
contact listed here (see FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT), or online at:
https://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/permits/
incidental.htm. Documents cited in this
notice may be viewed, by appointment,
during regular business hours, at the
aforementioned address.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Howard Goldstein or Jolie Harrison,
Office of Protected Resources, NMFS,
301–713–2289.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section
101(a)(5)(A) of the MMPA (16 U.S.C.
1361 et seq.) directs the Secretary of
Commerce (who has delegated the
authority to NMFS) to allow, upon
request, the incidental, but not
intentional, taking of small numbers of
marine mammals by United States
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. Under the
MMPA, the term ‘‘take’’ means to harass,
hunt, capture, or kill or to attempt to
harass, hunt, capture, or kill any marine
mammal.
Authorization for incidental taking, in
the form of annual LOAs, may be
granted by NMFS for periods up to five
years if NMFS finds, after notice and
opportunity for public comment, that
the taking will have a negligible impact
on the species or stock(s) of marine
mammals, and will not have an
SUMMARY:
Ship Shoal Area, Block
278, Platform A.
West Cameron Area,
Block 150, Platform F.
Jkt 223001
PO 00000
Reporting
NMFS regulations require timely
receipt of reports for activities
conducted under the previously issued
LOA and a determination that the
required mitigation, monitoring and
reporting were undertaken. NMFS
Galveston Laboratory’s Platform
Removal Observer Program (PROP) has
provided reports for El Paso and EOG
Resources removal of offshore structures
in 2010. NMFS PROP observers reported
the following during El Paso and EOG
Resources’ EROS operations in 2010 to
2011:
Biological impacts
observed to marine
mammals
Dates
Marine mammal sightings
(individuals)
August 14 to 23, 2010 ......
None ..................................
None.
August 20 to 21, 2010 ......
Bottlenose Dolphins (12) ..
None.
Structure
17:56 Jun 08, 2011
unmitigable adverse impact on the
availability of the species or stock(s) for
subsistence uses (where relevant). In
addition, NMFS must prescribe
regulations that include permissible
methods of taking and other means of
effecting the least practicable adverse
impact on the species and its habitat
(i.e., mitigation), and on the availability
of the species for subsistence uses,
paying particular attention to rookeries,
mating rounds, and areas of similar
significance. The regulations also must
include requirements pertaining to the
monitoring and reporting of such taking.
Regulations governing the taking of
marine mammals incidental to EROS
were published on June 19, 2008 (73 FR
34875), and remain in effect through
July 19, 2013. For detailed information
on this action, please refer to that
Federal Register notice. The species
that applicants may take in small
numbers during EROS activities are
bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops
truncatus), Atlantic spotted dolphins
(Stenella frontalis), pantropical spotted
dolphins (Stenella attenuata), Clymene
dolphins (Stenella clymene), striped
dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba),
spinner dolphins (Stenella longirostris),
rough-toothed dolphins (Steno
bredanensis), Risso’s dolphins
(Grampus griseus), melon-headed
whales (Peponocephala electra), shortfinned pilot whales (Globicephala
macrorhynchus), and sperm whales
(Physeter macrocephalus). NMFS
received requests for LOAs from El Paso
Exploration & Production Company,
L.P. (El Paso) and EOG Resources, Inc.
(EOG Resources) for activities covered
by EROS regulations.
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33705
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 111 / Thursday, June 9, 2011 / Notices
Company
El Paso ..............................
EOG Resources ................
EOG Resources ................
EOG Resources ................
South Timbalier Area,
Block 212, Platform C.
Viosca Knoll Area, Block
31, Platform A.
Viosca Knoll Area, Block
74, Platform 2.
Viosca Knoll Area, Block
124, Platform A.
Pursuant to these regulations, NMFS
has issued an LOA to El Paso and EOG
Resources. Issuance of the LOAs is
based on a finding made in the
preamble to the final rule that the total
taking by these activities (with
monitoring, mitigation, and reporting
measures) will result in no more than a
negligible impact on the affected species
or stock(s) of marine mammals and will
not have an unmitigable adverse impact
on subsistence uses. NMFS will review
reports to ensure that the applicants are
in compliance with meeting the
requirements contained in the
implementing regulations and LOA,
including monitoring, mitigation, and
reporting requirements.
Dated: June 3, 2011.
Helen M. Golde,
Deputy Director, Office of Protected
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2011–14312 Filed 6–8–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
RIN 0648–XA476
Pacific Fishery Management Council;
Public Meeting
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of a public meeting.
AGENCY:
The Pacific Fishery
Management Council’s (Pacific Council)
Tule Chinook Workgroup (TCW) will
hold a meeting to review work products
and develop an abundance-based
harvest management approach for
Columbia River natural tule Chinook.
This meeting of the TCW is open to the
public.
DATES: The meeting will be held
Thursday, July 14, 2011, from 9 a.m. to
4 p.m.
ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at
the Pacific Fishery Management
mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
SUMMARY:
VerDate Mar<15>2010
17:56 Jun 08, 2011
Jkt 223001
Biological impacts
observed to marine
mammals
Dates
Marine mammal sightings
(individuals)
August 23 to 26, 2010 ......
None ..................................
None.
September 9 to 12, 18, 20
to 22, 2010.
September 1 to 4, 2010 ....
None ..................................
None.
None ..................................
None.
September 5 to 8, 2010 ....
None ..................................
None.
Structure
Council, 7700 NE. Ambassador Place,
Suite 101, Portland, OR 97220–1384;
telephone: (503) 820–2280.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.
Chuck Tracy, Salmon Management Staff
Officer, Pacific Fishery Management
Council; telephone: (503) 820–2280.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
meeting of the TCW will involve review
of initial work products and refining
future work plans. Eventually, TCW
work products will be reviewed by the
Pacific Council, and if approved, would
be submitted to NMFS for possible
consideration in the next Lower
Columbia River tule biological opinion
for ocean salmon seasons in 2012 and
beyond, and distributed to State and
Federal recovery planning processes. In
the event that a usable approach
emerges from this process, the Pacific
Council may consider a fishery
management plan (FMP) amendment
process beginning after November 2011
to adopt the approach as a formal
conservation objective in the Salmon
FMP.
Although non-emergency issues not
contained in the meeting agenda may
come before the TCW for discussion,
those issues may not be the subject of
formal action during this meeting.
Action will be restricted to those issues
specifically listed in this notice and any
issues arising after publication of this
notice that require emergency action
under Section 305(c) of the MagnusonStevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act, provided the public
has been notified of the intent to take
final action to address the emergency.
Special Accommodations
The meeting is physically accessible
to people with disabilities. Requests for
sign language interpretation or other
auxiliary aids should be directed to Mr.
Kris Kleinschmidt at (503) 820–2280 at
least 5 days prior to the meeting date.
Dated: June 6, 2011.
Tracey L. Thompson,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2011–14240 Filed 6–8–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
PO 00000
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
RIN 0648–XA255
Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to
Specified Activities; Marine
Geophysical Survey in the Central Gulf
of Alaska, June 2011
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; issuance of an incidental
take authorization (ITA).
AGENCY:
In accordance with the
Marine Mammal Protection Act
(MMPA) regulation, notification is
hereby given that NMFS has issued an
Incidental Harassment Authorization
(IHA) to the U.S. Geological Survey
(USGS) to take marine mammals, by
Level B harassment, incidental to
conducting a marine geophysical survey
in the central Gulf of Alaska (GOA),
June 2011.
DATES: Effective June 5 through July 25,
2011.
ADDRESSES: A copy of the IHA and
application are available by writing 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
or by telephoning the contacts listed
here.
A copy of the application containing
a list of the references used in this
document may be obtained by writing to
the above address, telephoning the
contact listed here (see FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT) or visiting the
Internet at: https://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/
pr/permits/incidental.htm#applications.
The following associated documents are
also available at the same Internet
address: Environmental Assessment
(EA), prepared by USGS. The NMFS
Biological Opinion will be available
online at: https://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/
consultation/opinions.htm. Documents
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\09JNN1.SGM
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 111 (Thursday, June 9, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33704-33705]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-14312]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-XA436
Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals; Taking of Marine Mammals
Incidental to the Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures in the Gulf
of Mexico
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; issuance of letters of authorization.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and
implementing regulations, notification is hereby given that NMFS has
issued one-year Letters of Authorization (LOA) to take marine mammals
incidental to the explosive removal of offshore oil and gas structures
(EROS) in the Gulf of Mexico.
DATES: These authorizations are effective from July 1, 2011 through
June 30, 2012, and September 3, 2011 through September 2, 2012.
ADDRESSES: The application and LOAs are available for review by writing
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 20910-3235 or by
telephoning the contact listed here (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT), or online at: https://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/permits/incidental.htm. Documents cited in this notice may be viewed, by
appointment, during regular business hours, at the aforementioned
address.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Howard Goldstein or Jolie Harrison,
Office of Protected Resources, NMFS, 301-713-2289.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 101(a)(5)(A) of the MMPA (16 U.S.C.
1361 et seq.) directs the Secretary of Commerce (who has delegated the
authority to NMFS) to allow, upon request, the incidental, but not
intentional, taking of small numbers of marine mammals by United States
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. Under the MMPA, the term ``take''
means to harass, hunt, capture, or kill or to attempt to harass, hunt,
capture, or kill any marine mammal.
Authorization for incidental taking, in the form of annual LOAs,
may be granted by NMFS for periods up to five years if NMFS finds,
after notice and opportunity for public comment, that the taking will
have a negligible impact on the species or stock(s) of marine mammals,
and will not have an unmitigable adverse impact on the availability of
the species or stock(s) for subsistence uses (where relevant). In
addition, NMFS must prescribe regulations that include permissible
methods of taking and other means of effecting the least practicable
adverse impact on the species and its habitat (i.e., mitigation), and
on the availability of the species for subsistence uses, paying
particular attention to rookeries, mating rounds, and areas of similar
significance. The regulations also must include requirements pertaining
to the monitoring and reporting of such taking.
Regulations governing the taking of marine mammals incidental to
EROS were published on June 19, 2008 (73 FR 34875), and remain in
effect through July 19, 2013. For detailed information on this action,
please refer to that Federal Register notice. The species that
applicants may take in small numbers during EROS activities are
bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus), Atlantic spotted dolphins
(Stenella frontalis), pantropical spotted dolphins (Stenella
attenuata), Clymene dolphins (Stenella clymene), striped dolphins
(Stenella coeruleoalba), spinner dolphins (Stenella longirostris),
rough-toothed dolphins (Steno bredanensis), Risso's dolphins (Grampus
griseus), melon-headed whales (Peponocephala electra), short-finned
pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus), and sperm whales (Physeter
macrocephalus). NMFS received requests for LOAs from El Paso
Exploration & Production Company, L.P. (El Paso) and EOG Resources,
Inc. (EOG Resources) for activities covered by EROS regulations.
Reporting
NMFS regulations require timely receipt of reports for activities
conducted under the previously issued LOA and a determination that the
required mitigation, monitoring and reporting were undertaken. NMFS
Galveston Laboratory's Platform Removal Observer Program (PROP) has
provided reports for El Paso and EOG Resources removal of offshore
structures in 2010. NMFS PROP observers reported the following during
El Paso and EOG Resources' EROS operations in 2010 to 2011:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Marine mammal Biological impacts
Company Structure Dates sightings observed to marine
(individuals) mammals
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
El Paso......................... Ship Shoal Area, August 14 to 23, None.............. None.
Block 278, 2010.
Platform A.
El Paso......................... West Cameron Area, August 20 to 21, Bottlenose None.
Block 150, 2010. Dolphins (12).
Platform F.
[[Page 33705]]
El Paso......................... South Timbalier August 23 to 26, None.............. None.
Area, Block 212, 2010.
Platform C.
EOG Resources................... Viosca Knoll Area, September 9 to 12, None.............. None.
Block 31, 18, 20 to 22,
Platform A. 2010.
EOG Resources................... Viosca Knoll Area, September 1 to 4, None.............. None.
Block 74, 2010.
Platform 2.
EOG Resources................... Viosca Knoll Area, September 5 to 8, None.............. None.
Block 124, 2010.
Platform A.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pursuant to these regulations, NMFS has issued an LOA to El Paso
and EOG Resources. Issuance of the LOAs is based on a finding made in
the preamble to the final rule that the total taking by these
activities (with monitoring, mitigation, and reporting measures) will
result in no more than a negligible impact on the affected species or
stock(s) of marine mammals and will not have an unmitigable adverse
impact on subsistence uses. NMFS will review reports to ensure that the
applicants are in compliance with meeting the requirements contained in
the implementing regulations and LOA, including monitoring, mitigation,
and reporting requirements.
Dated: June 3, 2011.
Helen M. Golde,
Deputy Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2011-14312 Filed 6-8-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P