Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Seattle Multimodal Construction Project in Washington State, 31579-31592 [2017-14261]
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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 129 / Friday, July 7, 2017 / Notices
on both the RFA section 610 notice and
this notice will inform NMFS’
regulatory reviews required under
relevant Executive Orders, including
E.O 13771, ‘‘Reducing Regulation and
Controlling Regulatory Costs,’’ and E.O.
13777, ‘‘Enforcing the Regulatory
Reform Agenda.’’
Finally, comments related to statutory
changes will not be considered as part
of this notice; however, NMFS and/or
NOS will take them into account in the
future if needed.
Dated: June 30, 2017.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for
Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2017–14167 Filed 7–6–17; 8:45 am]
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RIN 0648–XF522
Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management
Council (MAFMC); Meeting
National Marine Fisheries
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Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; public meeting.
AGENCY:
The Mid-Atlantic Fishery
Management Council’s (MAFMC’s)
Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea
Bass Monitoring Committee (MC) will
hold a public meeting.
DATES: The meeting will be held on
Monday, July 24, 2017, from 1 p.m. to
5 p.m. For agenda details, see
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held
via webinar with a telephone-only
connection option. Details on webinar
registration and telephone-only
connection details will be available at:
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Council address: Mid-Atlantic Fishery
Management Council, 800 N. State
Street, Suite 201, Dover, DE 19901;
telephone: (302) 674–2331;
www.mafmc.org.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
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Director, Mid-Atlantic Fishery
Management Council, telephone: (302)
526–5255.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea
Bass Monitoring Committee will meet
from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. to review and
discuss previously implemented 2018
commercial and recreational Annual
asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with NOTICES
SUMMARY:
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Catch Limits (ACLs) and Annual Catch
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changes to the implemented 2018 ACLs
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materials will be posted to https://
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sign language interpretation or other
auxiliary aids should be directed to M.
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days prior to the meeting date.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: July 3, 2017.
Tracey L. Thompson,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2017–14268 Filed 7–6–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
RIN 0648–XF250
Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to
Specified Activities; Taking Marine
Mammals Incidental to Seattle
Multimodal Construction Project in
Washington State
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; issuance of an incidental
harassment authorization.
AGENCY:
In accordance with the
regulations implementing the Marine
Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) as
amended, notification is hereby given
that we have issued an incidental
harassment authorization (IHA) to
SUMMARY:
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31579
Washington State Department of
Transportation (WSDOT) to take small
numbers of marine mammals, by
harassment, incidental to Seattle
Multimodal Construction Project in
Washington State.
DATES: This authorization is effective
from August 1, 2017, through July 31,
2018.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Shane Guan, Office of Protected
Resources, NMFS, (301) 427–8401.
Electronic copies of the application and
supporting documents, as well as the
issued IHA, may be obtained online at:
www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/permits/
incidental/construction.htm. In case of
problems accessing these documents,
please call the contact listed above.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Sections 101(a)(5)(A) and (D) of the
MMPA (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.) direct
the Secretary of Commerce to allow,
upon request by U.S. citizens who
engage in a specified activity (other than
commercial fishing) within a specified
area, the incidental, but not intentional,
taking of small numbers of marine
mammals, provided that certain
findings are made and the necessary
prescriptions are established.
The incidental taking of small
numbers of marine mammals shall be
allowed if NMFS (through authority
delegated by the Secretary) finds that
the total taking by the specified activity
during the specified time period will (i)
have a negligible impact on the species
or stock(s) and (ii) not have an
unmitigable adverse impact on the
availability of the species or stock(s) for
subsistence uses (where relevant).
Further, the permissible methods of
taking, as well as the other means of
effecting the least practicable adverse
impact on the species or stock and its
habitat (i.e., mitigation) must be
prescribed. Last, requirements
pertaining to the monitoring and
reporting of such taking must be set
forth.
Where there is the potential for
serious injury or death, the allowance of
incidental taking requires promulgation
of regulations under MMPA section
101(a)(5)(A). Subsequently, a Letter (or
Letters) of Authorization may be issued
as governed by the prescriptions
established in such regulations,
provided that the level of taking will be
consistent with the findings made for
the total taking allowable under the
specific regulations. Under MMPA
section 101(a)(5)(D), NMFS may
authorize incidental taking by
harassment only (i.e., no serious injury
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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 129 / Friday, July 7, 2017 / Notices
or mortality), for periods of not more
than one year, pursuant to requirements
and conditions contained within an
IHA. The promulgation of regulations or
issuance of IHAs (with their associated
prescribed mitigation, monitoring, and
reporting) requires notice and
opportunity for public comment.
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.
Except with respect to certain
activities not pertinent here, section
3(18) of the MMPA defines
‘‘harassment’’ as: Any act of pursuit,
torment, or annoyance which (i) has the
potential to injure a marine mammal or
marine mammal stock in the wild (Level
A harassment); or (ii) has the potential
to disturb a marine mammal or marine
mammal stock in the wild by causing
disruption of behavioral patterns,
including, but not limited to, migration,
breathing, nursing, breeding, feeding, or
sheltering (Level B harassment).
asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with NOTICES
National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA)
Issuance of an MMPA 101(a)(5)
authorization requires compliance with
the National Environmental Policy Act.
NMFS determined the issuance of the
IHA is consistent with categories of
activities identified in CE B4 (issuance
of incidental harassment authorizations
under section 101(a)(5)(A) and (D) of the
MMPA for which no serious injury or
mortality is anticipated) of the
Companion Manual for NAO 216–6A
and we have not identified any
extraordinary circumstances listed in
Chapter 4 of the Companion Manual for
NAO 216–6A that would preclude this
categorical exclusion.
Summary of Request
On July 28, 2016, WSDOT submitted
a request to NMFS requesting an IHA for
the harassment of small numbers of 11
marine mammal species incidental to
construction associated with the Seattle
Multimodal Project at Colman Dock,
Seattle, Washington, between August 1,
2017 and July 31, 2018. NMFS initially
determined the IHA application was
complete on September 1, 2016.
However, WSDOT notified NMFS in
November 2016 that the scope of its
activities had changed. WSDOT stated
that instead of using vibratory hammers
for the majority of in-water pile driving
and using impact hammer for proofing,
it would be required to use impact
hammers to drive a large number of
piles completely due to sediment
conditions at Colman Dock. On March
2, 2017, WSDOT submitted a revised
IHA application with updated project
description. NMFS determined that the
revised IHA application was complete
on March 3, 2017.
In the IHA issued to WSDOT, NMFS
authorized the Level A and Level B
harassment of the following seven
marine mammal species/stocks: Harbor
seal (Phoca vitulina), California sea lion
(Zalophus californianus), Steller sea
lion (Eumetopias jubatus), killer whale
(Orcinus orca), gray whale (Eschrichtius
robustus), harbor porpoise (Phocoena
phocoena), and Dall’s porpoise (P.
dalli).
Description of Specified Activities
Overview
WSDOT is proposing to preserve the
Seattle Ferry Terminal at Colman Dock.
The project will reconfigure the dock
while maintaining approximately the
same vehicle holding capacity as
current conditions. The reconfiguration
would increase total permanent
overwater coverage (OWC) by about
5,400 square feet (ft2) (about 1.7 percent
more than existing overwater coverage
at the site), due to the new walkway
from the King County Passenger Only
Ferry (POF) facility to Alaskan Way and
new stairways and elevators from the
POF to the upper level of the terminal.
The additional 5,400 ft2 will be
mitigated by removing a portion of Pier
48, a condemned timber structure.
The project will remove the northern
timber trestle and replace a portion of it
with a new concrete trestle. The area
from Marion Street to the north edge of
the property will not be rebuilt and will
become, after demolition, a new area of
open water. A section of fill contained
behind a bulkhead underneath the
northeast section of the dock will also
be removed.
WSDOT will construct a new steel
and concrete trestle from Columbia
Street northward to Marion Street.
Construction of the reconfigured dock
will narrow (reduce) the OWC along the
shoreline (at the landward edge) by 180
linear feet at the north end of the site,
while 30 linear feet of new trestle would
be constructed along the shoreline at the
south end of the site. The net reduction
of OWC in the nearshore zone is 150
linear feet.
The purpose of the Seattle
Multimodal Project at Colman Dock is to
preserve the transportation function of
an aging, deteriorating and seismically
deficient facility to continue providing
safe and reliable service. The project
will also address existing safety
concerns related to conflicts between
vehicles and pedestrian traffic and
operational inefficiencies.
Details of the WSDOT’s construction
activities are provided in the IHA
application and in the Federal Register
notice for the proposed IHA (82 FR
15497; March 29, 2017).
Dates and Duration
Due to NMFS and the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service (USFWS) in-water
work timing restrictions to protect
Endangered Species Act (ESA) listed
salmonids, planned WSDOT in-water
construction at this location is limited
each year to July 16 through February
15. For this project, in-water
construction is planned to take place
between August 1, 2017 and February
15, 2018.
The total worst-case time for pile
installation and removal is expected to
be 83 working days (Table 1).
• Vibratory driving of each of the 101
24-inch (in) steel pile will take
approximately 20 minutes, with a
maximum of 16 piles installed per day
over 7 days.
• Vibratory removal of 103 temporary
24-in diameter steel piles will take
approximately 20 minutes per pile, with
maximum 16 piles removed per day
over 8 days.
• Impact driving (3,000 strikes per
pile) of 14 30-in and 201 36-in diameter
steel piles will take approximately 45
minutes per pile, with maximum 8 piles
per day for a total of 28 days.
• Vibratory driving of 17 30- and 205
36-in diameter steel piles will take 45
minutes per pile, with maximum 8 piles
per day over a total of 29 days.
• Vibratory removal of 4-in timber
piles will take approximately 15
minutes per pile, with approximately 20
piles removed per day for 11 days.
TABLE 1—SUMMARY OF IN-WATER PILE DRIVING DURATIONS
Pile size
(inch)
Method
Pile type
Vibratory removal ............................
Vibratory removal ............................
Timber ................
Steel ...................
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Pile number
14
24
Fmt 4703
215
103
Sfmt 4703
Time to vibratory drive per pile/
strikes to impact drive per pile
900 seconds ...................................
1,200 seconds ................................
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Duration
(days)
11
8
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 129 / Friday, July 7, 2017 / Notices
31581
TABLE 1—SUMMARY OF IN-WATER PILE DRIVING DURATIONS—Continued
Method
Vibratory driving ..............................
Vibratory driving ..............................
Vibratory driving ..............................
Impact driving ..................................
Impact driving ..................................
Total .........................................
Steel
Steel
Steel
Steel
Steel
Duration
(days)
101
17
205
14
201
1,200
1,200
1,200
3,000
3,000
seconds ................................
seconds ................................
seconds ................................
strikes ...................................
strikes ...................................
7
3
26
2
26
............................
........................
856
........................................................
83
Detailed Description of In-Water Pile
Driving Associated With Seattle
Multimodal Project
The proposed project has two
elements involving noise production
that may affect marine mammals:
Vibratory hammer driving and removal,
and impact hammer driving.
Details of pile driving activities are
provided below:
• The 14-in timber piles will be
removed with a vibratory hammer
(Table 1).
• The 24-in temporary piles will be
installed and removed with a vibratory
hammer (no proofing) (Table 1).
• Some of the permanent 30- and 36in steel piles would be installed with a
vibratory hammer, and some would be
installed with impact hammer (Table 1).
Details of the in-water impact pile
driving and vibratory pile driving and
removal activities are provided in the
Federal Register notice for the proposed
IHA (82 FR 15497; March 29, 2017). No
changes are made since the proposed
IHA was published.
Comments and Responses
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Time to vibratory drive per pile/
strikes to impact drive per pile
24
30
36
30
36
The proposed activities will occur at
the Seattle Ferry Terminal at Colman
Dock, located in the City of Seattle,
Washington (see Figure 1–2 of the IHA
application).
A notice of NMFS’ proposal to issue
an IHA was published in the Federal
Register on March 29, 2017 (82 FR
15497). During the 30-day public
comment period, NMFS received a
comment letter from the Marine
Mammal Commission (Commission). No
other comments were received. Specific
comments and responses are provided
below.
Comment 1: The Commission noted
that several typographic and analytical
errors in the Federal Register notice for
the proposed IHA. These errors include:
(1) Level B harassment for Steller sea
lion and Dall’s porpoise should be 116
and 143, instead of 114 and 137,
respectively; (2) daily maximum
number of observed harbor seal and
20:56 Jul 06, 2017
Pile number
...................
...................
...................
...................
...................
Specified Geographic Region
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Pile size
(inch)
Pile type
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California sea lion in the project vicinity
should be 13 and 47, respectively. This
would result the estimated Level A and
Level B takes of harbor seals to be 364
and 715, respectively; the estimated
Level B take of California sea lion to be
3,901; and (3) The most recent harbor
porpoise density of 0.69 animal/square
kilometer (km2) from Jefferson et al.
(2016) should be used to calculate
harbor porpoise takes.
Response: NMFS agrees with the
Commission’s assessment and made
corrections to these errors. Specifically,
(1) The estimated Level B takes of
Steller sea lion and Dall’s porpoise are
corrected to 116 and 143, respectively;
(2) Used corrected daily maximum
number of observed harbor seal and
California sea lions to calculate
estimated takes, which resulted Level A
and Level B takes of harbor seals to be
364 and 715 animals, respectively; and
Level B take of California sea lion to be
3,901 animals; and (3) The most recent
harbor porpoise density of 0.69 animal/
km2 from Jefferson et al. (2016) was
used to correct harbor porpoise takes,
which result estimated 233 Level A and
2,056 Level B takes. All these
corrections are included in this
document in the Estimated Takes
section. The increased takes do not
affect our initial analysis of negligible
impact determination and small number
conclusion as discussed later in this
document.
Comment 2: The Commission states
that it is concerned regarding NMFS
appropriateness of the manner in which
Level A harassment zones are estimated.
The Commission points out that for
impact driving of 30- and 36-in piles
using three hammers concurrently, the
Level A harassment zones for both lowand high-frequency cetaceans were
estimated to be much greater (1.85 and
2.84 km, respectively) than the Level B
harassment zone (1.20 km). The
Commission recommends that NMFS
consult with both internal and external
scientists and acousticians to determine
the relevant accumulation time that
could result Level A harassment based
on associated permanent threshold shift
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(PTS) from cumulative sound exposure
levels (SELcum).
Response: NMFS understands the
Commission’s concern and is
continuing working to improve Level A
harassment zone estimation based on
realistic noise propagation models and
energy accumulation scheme. At
current, Level A harassment zones are
based on exposure of SELcum over a
period of one working day’s pile driving
duration or instantaneous peak sound
pressure level (SPL), while Level B
harassment zones are based on
instantaneous root-mean-squared SPL
that contains 90 percent of acoustic
energy. The difference in the metrics
between SEL and SPL in assessing Level
A and Level B harassments is the notion
that prolonged exposure of intense noise
could lead to PTS if the animal chooses
to stay within the injury zone. The
process of impact assessments will
continue to evolve as more scientific
data become available.
Description of Marine Mammals in the
Area of Specified Activities
The marine mammal species under
NMFS jurisdiction that have the
potential to occur in the proposed
construction area include Pacific harbor
seal (Phoca vitulina), California sea lion
(Zalophus californianus), northern
elephant seal (Mirounga angustirostris),
Steller sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus),
killer whale (Orcinus orca), long-beaked
common dolphin (Delphis capensis),
gray whale (Eschrichtius robustus),
humpback whale (Megaptera
novaeangliae), minke whale
(Balaenoptera acutorostrata), harbor
porpoise (Phocoena phocoena), and
Dall’s porpoise (P. dalli). A list of
marine mammals that have the potential
to occur in the vicinity of the action and
their legal status under the MMPA and
ESA are provided in Table 2. Among
these species, northern elephant seal,
minke whale, and long-beaked common
dolphin are extralimital in the proposed
project area. NMFS does not consider
take is likely to occur for these species.
Therefore, these species are not
discussed further in this document.
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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 129 / Friday, July 7, 2017 / Notices
TABLE 2—MARINE MAMMAL SPECIES POTENTIALLY PRESENT IN REGION OF ACTIVITY
Species
ESA status
MMPA status
Occurrence
Harbor Seal .............................................................................
California Sea Lion .................................................................
Northern Elephant Seal ..........................................................
Steller Sea Lion (eastern DPS) ..............................................
Harbor Porpoise ......................................................................
Dall’s Porpoise ........................................................................
Killer Whale (Southern Resident) ...........................................
Killer Whale (West Coast transient) .......................................
Long-beaked Common Dolphin ..............................................
Gray Whale .............................................................................
Humpback Whale ...................................................................
Minke Whale ...........................................................................
Not listed ................
Not listed ................
Not listed ................
Not listed ................
Not listed ................
Not listed ................
Endangered ...........
Not listed ................
Not listed ................
Not listed ................
Endangered ...........
Not listed ................
Non-depleted .........
Non-depleted .........
Non-depleted .........
Non-depleted .........
Non-depleted .........
Non-depleted .........
Depleted ................
Non-depleted .........
Non-depleted .........
Non-depleted .........
Depleted ................
Non-depleted .........
Frequent ................
Frequent ................
Extralimital .............
Rare .......................
Frequent ................
Occasional .............
Occasional .............
Occasional .............
Extralimital .............
Occasional .............
Rare .......................
Extralimital .............
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General information on the marine
mammal species found in Washington
coastal waters can be found in Caretta
et al. (2016), which is available online
at: https://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/sars/
pdf/pacific2015_final.pdf. Refer to that
document for information on these
species. Specific information
concerning these species in the vicinity
of the proposed action area is provided
in detail in the WSDOT’s IHA
application and in the Federal Register
notice for the proposed IHA (82 FR
15497; March 29, 2017).
Potential Effects of Specified Activities
on Marine Mammals and Their Habitat
This section includes a summary and
discussion of the ways that components
of the specified activity may impact
marine mammals and their habitat. The
‘‘Estimated Take’’ section later in this
document will include a quantitative
analysis of the number of individuals
that are expected to be taken by this
activity. The ‘‘Negligible Impact
Analyses and Determination’’ section
will consider the content of this section,
the ‘‘Estimated Take by Incidental
Harassment’’ section, and the
‘‘Mitigation’’ section, to draw
conclusions regarding the likely impacts
of these activities on the reproductive
success or survivorship of individuals
and how those impacts on individuals
are likely to impact marine mammal
species or stocks.
When considering the influence of
various kinds of sound on the marine
environment, it is necessary to
understand that different kinds of
marine life are sensitive to different
frequencies of sound. Based on available
behavioral data, audiograms derived
using auditory evoked potentials,
anatomical modeling, and other data,
NMFS (2016) designated five ‘‘marine
mammal hearing groups’’ for marine
mammals and estimate the lower and
upper frequencies of hearing of the
groups. The marine mammal groups and
the associated frequencies are indicated
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below (though animals are less sensitive
to sounds at the outer edge of their
functional range and most sensitive to
sounds of frequencies within a smaller
range somewhere in the middle of their
hearing range):
• Low frequency cetaceans (13
species of mysticetes): Functional
hearing is estimated to occur between
approximately 7 hertz (Hz) and 35
kilohertz (kHz);
• Mid-frequency cetaceans (32
species of dolphins, seven species of
larger toothed whales, and 19 species of
beaked and bottlenose whales):
Functional hearing is estimated to occur
between approximately 150 Hz and 160
kHz;
• High frequency cetaceans (eight
species of true porpoises, seven species
of river dolphins, Kogia, the franciscana,
and four species of cephalorhynchids):
Functional hearing is estimated to occur
between approximately 275 Hz and 160
kHz;
• Phocid pinnipeds in Water:
Functional hearing is estimated to occur
between approximately 50 Hz and 86
kHz; and
• Otariid pinnipeds in Water:
Functional hearing is estimated to occur
between approximately 60 Hz and 39
kHz.
As mentioned previously in this
document, eight marine mammal
species (five cetacean and three
pinniped species) are likely to occur in
the vicinity of the Seattle pile driving/
removal area. Of the five cetacean
species, two belong to the lowfrequency cetacean group (gray and
humpback whales), one is a midfrequency cetacean (killer whale), and
two high-frequency cetacean (harbor
and Dall’s porpoises). One species of
pinniped is phocid (harbor seal), and
two species of pinniped are otariid
(California and Steller sea lions). A
species’ functional hearing group is a
consideration when we analyze the
effects of exposure to sound on marine
mammals.
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Abundance
Unk
296,750
179,000
71,256
11,233
25,750
78
243
101,305
20,990
1,918
636
The WSDOT’s Seattle Colman ferry
terminal construction work using inwater pile driving and pile removal
could adversely affect marine mammal
species and stocks by exposing them to
elevated noise levels in the vicinity of
the activity area.
Exposure to high intensity sound for
a sufficient duration may result in
auditory effects such as a noise-induced
threshold shift—an increase in the
auditory threshold after exposure to
noise (Finneran et al., 2005). Factors
that influence the amount of threshold
shift include the amplitude, duration,
frequency content, temporal pattern,
and energy distribution of noise
exposure. The magnitude of hearing
threshold shift normally decreases over
time following cessation of the noise
exposure. The amount of threshold shift
just after exposure is the initial
threshold shift. If the threshold shift
eventually returns to zero (i.e., the
threshold returns to the pre-exposure
value), it is a temporary threshold shift
(TTS) (Southall et al., 2007).
Threshold Shift (noise-induced loss of
hearing)—When animals exhibit
reduced hearing sensitivity (i.e., sounds
must be louder for an animal to detect
them) following exposure to an intense
sound or sound for long duration, it is
referred to as a noise-induced threshold
shift (TS). An animal can experience
TTS or permanent threshold shift (PTS).
TTS can last from minutes or hours to
days (i.e., there is complete recovery),
can occur in specific frequency ranges
(i.e., an animal might only have a
temporary loss of hearing sensitivity
between the frequencies of 1 and 10
kHz), and can be of varying amounts (for
example, an animal’s hearing sensitivity
might be reduced initially by only 6
decibel (dB) or reduced by 30 dB). PTS
is permanent, but some recovery is
possible. PTS can also occur in a
specific frequency range and amount as
mentioned above for TTS.
For cetaceans, published data are
limited to the captive bottlenose
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dolphin, beluga, harbor porpoise, and
Yangtze finless porpoise (Finneran et
al., 2000, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2010a,
2010b; Finneran and Schlundt, 2010;
Lucke et al., 2009; Mooney et al., 2009a,
2009b; Popov et al., 2011a, 2011b;
Kastelein et al., 2012a; Schlundt et al.,
2000; Nachtigall et al., 2003, 2004). For
pinnipeds in water, data are limited to
measurements of TTS in harbor seals, an
elephant seal, and California sea lions
(Kastak et al., 1999, 2005; Kastelein et
al., 2012b).
Lucke et al. (2009) found a TS of a
harbor porpoise after exposing it to
airgun noise with a received sound
pressure level (SPL) at 200.2 dB (peakto-peak) re: 1 micropascal (mPa), which
corresponds to a sound exposure level
of 164.5 dB re: 1 mPa2 s after integrating
exposure. NMFS currently uses the rootmean-square (rms) of received SPL at
180 dB and 190 dB re: 1 mPa as the
threshold above which PTS could occur
for cetaceans and pinnipeds,
respectively. Because the airgun noise is
a broadband impulse, one cannot
directly determine the equivalent of rms
SPL from the reported peak-to-peak
SPLs. However, applying a conservative
conversion factor of 16 dB for
broadband signals from seismic surveys
(McCauley, et al., 2000) to correct for
the difference between peak-to-peak
levels reported in Lucke et al. (2009)
and rms SPLs, the rms SPL for TTS
would be approximately 184 dB re: 1
mPa, and the received levels associated
with PTS (Level A harassment) would
be higher. However, NMFS recognizes
that TTS of harbor porpoises is lower
than other cetacean species empirically
tested (Finneran & Schlundt 2010;
Finneran et al., 2002; Kastelein and
Jennings 2012).
Marine mammal hearing plays a
critical role in communication with
conspecifics, and interpretation of
environmental cues for purposes such
as predator avoidance and prey capture.
Depending on the degree (elevation of
threshold in dB), duration (i.e., recovery
time), and frequency range of TTS, and
the context in which it is experienced,
TTS can have effects on marine
mammals ranging from discountable to
serious (similar to those discussed in
auditory masking, below). For example,
a marine mammal may be able to readily
compensate for a brief, relatively small
amount of TTS in a non-critical
frequency range that occurs during a
time where ambient noise is lower and
there are not as many competing sounds
present. Alternatively, a larger amount
and longer duration of TTS sustained
during time when communication is
critical for successful mother/calf
interactions could have more serious
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impacts. Also, depending on the degree
and frequency range, the effects of PTS
on an animal could range in severity,
although it is considered generally more
serious because it is a permanent
condition. Of note, reduced hearing
sensitivity as a simple function of aging
has been observed in marine mammals,
as well as humans and other taxa
(Southall et al., 2007), so one can infer
that strategies exist for coping with this
condition to some degree, though likely
not without cost.
In addition, chronic exposure to
excessive, though not high-intensity,
noise could cause masking at particular
frequencies for marine mammals that
utilize sound for vital biological
functions (Clark et al., 2009). Acoustic
masking is when other noises such as
from human sources interfere with
animal detection of acoustic signals
such as communication calls,
echolocation sounds, and
environmental sounds important to
marine mammals. Therefore, under
certain circumstances, marine mammals
whose acoustical sensors or
environment are being severely masked
could also be impaired from maximizing
their performance fitness in survival
and reproduction.
Masking occurs at the frequency band
that the animals utilize. Therefore, since
noise generated from vibratory pile
driving activity is mostly concentrated
at low frequency ranges, it may have
less effect on high frequency
echolocation sounds by odontocetes
(toothed whales). However, lower
frequency man-made noises are more
likely to affect detection of
communication calls and other
potentially important natural sounds
such as surf and prey noise. It may also
affect communication signals when they
occur near the noise band and thus
reduce the communication space of
animals (e.g., Clark et al., 2009) and
cause increased stress levels (e.g., Foote
et al., 2004; Holt et al., 2009).
Unlike TS, masking, which can occur
over large temporal and spatial scales,
can potentially affect the species at
population, community, or even
ecosystem levels, as well as individual
levels. Masking affects both senders and
receivers of the signals and could have
long-term chronic effects on marine
mammal species and populations.
Recent science suggests that low
frequency ambient sound levels have
increased by as much as 20 dB (more
than three times in terms of SPL) in the
world’s ocean from pre-industrial
periods, and most of these increases are
from distant shipping (Hildebrand
2009). For WSDOT’s Seattle Colman
Ferry Terminal construction activities,
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noises from vibratory pile driving and
pile removal contribute to the elevated
ambient noise levels in the project area,
thus increasing potential for or severity
of masking. Baseline ambient noise
levels in the vicinity of project area are
high due to ongoing shipping,
construction and other activities in the
Puget Sound.
Finally, marine mammals’ exposure to
certain sounds could lead to behavioral
disturbance (Richardson et al., 1995),
such as: Changing durations of surfacing
and dives, number of blows per
surfacing, or moving direction and/or
speed; reduced/increased vocal
activities; changing/cessation of certain
behavioral activities (such as socializing
or feeding); visible startle response or
aggressive behavior (such as tail/fluke
slapping or jaw clapping); avoidance of
areas where noise sources are located;
and/or flight responses (e.g., pinnipeds
flushing into water from haulouts or
rookeries).
The onset of behavioral disturbance
from anthropogenic noise depends on
both external factors (characteristics of
noise sources and their paths) and the
receiving animals (hearing, motivation,
experience, demography) and is also
difficult to predict (Southall et al.,
2007). Currently NMFS uses a received
level of 160 dB re 1 mPa (rms) to predict
the onset of behavioral harassment from
impulse noises (such as impact pile
driving), and 120 dB re 1 mPa (rms) for
continuous noises (such as vibratory
pile driving). For the WSDOT’s Seattle
Colman Ferry Terminal construction
activities, both of these noise levels are
considered for effects analysis because
WSDOT plans to use both impact and
vibratory pile driving, as well as
vibratory pile removal.
The biological significance of many of
these behavioral disturbances is difficult
to predict, especially if the detected
disturbances appear minor. However,
the consequences of behavioral
modification could be biologically
significant if the change affects growth,
survival, and/or reproduction, which
depends on the severity, duration, and
context of the effects.
Potential Effects on Marine Mammal
Habitat
The primary potential impacts to
marine mammal habitat are associated
with elevated sound levels produced by
pile driving and removal associated
with marine mammal prey species.
However, other potential impacts to the
surrounding habitat from physical
disturbance are also possible. These
potential effects are discussed below.
SPLs from impact pile driving have
the potential to injure or kill fish in the
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immediate area. These few isolated fish
mortality events are not anticipated to
have a substantial effect on prey species
population or their availability as a food
resource for marine mammals.
Studies also suggest that larger fish
are generally less susceptible to death or
injury than small fish. Moreover,
elongated forms that are round in cross
section are less at risk than deep-bodied
forms. Orientation of fish relative to the
shock wave may also affect the extent of
injury. Open water pelagic fish (e.g.,
mackerel) seem to be less affected than
reef fishes. The results of most studies
are dependent upon specific biological,
environmental, explosive, and data
recording factors.
The huge variation in fish
populations, including numbers,
species, sizes, and orientation and range
from the detonation point, makes it very
difficult to accurately predict mortalities
at any specific site of detonation. Most
fish species experience a large number
of natural mortalities, especially during
early life-stages, and any small level of
mortality caused by the WSDOT’s
impact pile driving will likely be
insignificant to the population as a
whole.
For non-impulsive sound such as that
of vibratory pile driving, experiments
have shown that fish can sense both the
strength and direction of sound
(Hawkins 1981). Primary factors
determining whether a fish can sense a
sound signal, and potentially react to it,
are the frequency of the signal and the
strength of the signal in relation to the
natural background noise level.
The level of sound at which a fish
will react or alter its behavior is usually
well above the detection level. Fish
have been found to react to sounds
when the sound level increased to about
20 dB above the detection level of 120
dB (Ona 1988); however, the response
threshold can depend on the time of
year and the fish’s physiological
condition (Engas et al., 1993).
During construction activity at
Colman Dock, only a small fraction of
the available habitat would be
ensonified at any given time.
Disturbance to fish species would be
short-term and fish would return to
their pre-disturbance behavior once the
pile driving activity ceases. Thus, the
proposed construction would have
little, if any, impact on the abilities of
marine mammals to feed in the area
where construction work is planned.
Finally, the time of the proposed
construction activity would avoid the
spawning season of the ESA-listed
salmonid species between March and
July.
Short-term turbidity is a water quality
effect of most in-water work, including
pile driving.
Cetaceans are not expected to be close
enough to the Colman terminal to
experience turbidity, and any pinnipeds
will be transiting the terminal area and
could avoid localized areas of turbidity.
Therefore, the impact from increased
turbidity levels is expected to be
discountable to marine mammals.
For these reasons, WSDOT’s proposed
Seattle Multimodal construction at
Colman Dock is not expected to have
adverse effects to marine mammal
habitat in the area.
where p(t) is acoustic pressure in pascal
or micropascal, and pref is reference
acoustic pressure equal to 1 mPa.
The cumulative SEL is the total sound
exposure over the entire duration of a
given day’s pile driving activity,
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Estimated Take
This section includes an estimate of
the number of incidental ‘‘takes’’ likely
to occur pursuant to this IHA, which
will inform both NMFS’ consideration
of whether the number of takes is
‘‘small’’ and the negligible impact
determination.
Harassment is the only means of take
expected to result from these activities.
Except with respect to certain activities
not pertinent here, the MMPA defines
‘‘harassment’’ as: Any act of pursuit,
torment, or annoyance which (i) has the
potential to injure a marine mammal or
marine mammal stock in the wild (Level
A harassment); or (ii) has the potential
to disturb a marine mammal or marine
mammal stock in the wild by causing
disruption of behavioral patterns,
including, but not limited to, migration,
breathing, nursing, breeding, feeding, or
sheltering (Level B harassment).
As described previously in the section
Potential Effects of Specified Activities
on Marine Mammals and their Habitat,
no incidental take is anticipated to
result from effects on prey species or as
a result of turbidity. Level B Harassment
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is expected to occur as discussed below
and is authorized in the numbers
identified below.
As described below, a small number
of takes by Level A Harassment are
authorized, as the calculation show that
Level A takes could occur.
The death of a marine mammal is also
a type of incidental take. However, as
described previously, no mortality is
anticipated or authorized to result from
this activity.
Basis for Takes
Take estimates are based on average
marine mammal density in the project
area multiplied by the area size of
ensonified zones within which received
noise levels exceed certain thresholds
(i.e., Level A and/or Level B
harassment) from specific activities,
then multiplied by the total number of
days such activities would occur.
Certain adjustments were made for
marine mammals whose local
abundance are known through longterm monitoring efforts. Therefore, their
local abundance data are used for take
calculation instead of general animal
density (see below).
Basis for Threshold Calculation
As discussed above, in-water pile
removal and pile driving (vibratory and
impact) generate loud noises that could
potentially harass marine mammals in
the vicinity of WSDOT’s proposed
Seattle Multimodal Project at Colman
Dock.
Under the NMFS’ Technical Guidance
for Assessing the Effects of
Anthropogenic Sound on Marine
Mammal Hearing (Guidance), dual
criteria are used to assess marine
mammal auditory injury (Level A
harassment) as a result of noise
exposure (NMFS 2016). The dual
criteria under the Guidance provide
onset thresholds in instantaneous peak
SPLs (Lpk) as well as 24-hr cumulative
sound exposure levels (SELcum or LE)
that could cause PTS to marine
mammals of different hearing groups.
The peak SPL is the highest positive
value of the noise field, log transformed
to dB in reference to 1 mPa.
specifically, pile driving occurring
within a 24-hr period.
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where p(t) is acoustic pressure in pascal
or micropascal, pref is reference acoustic
pressure equals to 1 mPa, t1 marks the
beginning of the time, and t2 the end of
time.
For onset of Level B harassment,
NMFS continues to use the root-meansquare (rms) sound pressure level
(SPLrms) at 120 dB re 1 mPa and 160 dB
re 1 mPa as the received levels from nonimpulse (vibratory pile driving and
removal) and impulse sources (impact
pile driving) underwater, respectively.
The SPLrms for pulses (such as those
from impact pile driving) should
contain 90 percent of the pulse energy,
and is calculated by
where p(t) is acoustic pressure in pascal
or micropascal, pref is reference acoustic
pressure equals to 1 mPa, t1 marks the
beginning of the time, and t2 the end of
time. In the case of an impulse noise, t1
marks the time of 5 percent of the total
energy window, and t2 the time of 95
percent of the total energy window.
Table 3 summarizes the current
NMFS marine mammal take criteria.
TABLE 3—CURRENT ACOUSTIC EXPOSURE CRITERIA FOR NON-EXPLOSIVE SOUND UNDERWATER
PTS onset thresholds
Behavioral thresholds
Hearing group
Impulsive
Low-Frequency (LF) Cetaceans ....................
Mid-Frequency (MF) Cetaceans ....................
High-Frequency (HF) Cetaceans ...................
Phocid Pinnipeds (PW) ..................................
(Underwater) ..................................................
Otariid Pinnipeds (OW) ..................................
(Underwater) ..................................................
Non-impulsive
Lpk,flat: 219 dB ............
LE,LF,24h: 183 dB ........
Lpk,flat: 230 dB ............
LE,MF,24h: 185 dB .......
Lpk,flat: 202 dB ............
LE,HF,24h: 155 dB .......
Lpk,flat: 218 dB ............
LE,PW,24h: 185 dB .......
Lpk,flat: 232 dB ............
LE,OW,24h: 203 dB ......
Impulsive
Non-impulsive
LE,LF,24h: 199 dB.
LE,MF,24h: 198 dB.
LE,HF,24h: 173 dB .......
Lrms,flat: 160 dB ..........
Lrms,flat: 120 dB.
LE,PW,24h: 201 dB.
LE,OW,24h: 219 dB.
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Source Levels
The project includes vibratory
removal of 14-in timber piles, vibratory
driving and removal of 24-in steel piles,
vibratory driving of 30- and 36-in steel
piles, and impact pile driving of 30- and
36-in steel piles. In February of 2016,
WSDOT conducted a test pile project at
Colman Dock in order to gather data to
select the appropriate piles for the
project. The test pile project measured
impact pile driving of 24- and 36-in
steel piles. The measured results from
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the project are used here to provide
source levels for the prediction of
isopleths ensonified over thresholds for
the Seattle project. The results show
that the SPLrms for impact pile driving
of 36-in steel pile is 189 dB re 1 mPa at
14 m from the pile (WSDOT 2016b).
This value is also used for impact
driving of the 30-in steel piles, which is
a precautionary approach.
Source level of vibratory pile driving
of 36-in steel piles is based on test pile
driving at Port Townsend in 2010
(Laughlin 2011). Recordings of vibratory
pile driving were made at a distance of
10 m from the pile. The results show
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that the SPLrms for vibratory pile driving
of 36-in steel pile was 177 dB re 1 mPa
(WSDOT 2016a).
Up to three pile installation crews
may be active during the day within the
project footprint. Each crew will use one
vibratory and one impact hammer, and
it is possible that more than 1 hammer,
up to 3 impact and/or vibratory
hammers, could be conducted
concurrently for driving the 24-, 30-,
and 36-in piles. Overlapping noise
fields created by multiple hammer use
are handled differently for impact and
vibratory hammers. When more than
one impact hammer is being used close
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Sound Levels and Acoustic Modeling for
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EN07JY17.002</GPH>
* Dual metric acoustic thresholds for impulsive sounds: Use whichever results in the largest isopleth for calculating PTS onset. If a non-impulsive sound has the potential of exceeding the peak sound pressure level thresholds associated with impulsive sounds, these thresholds should
also be considered.
Note: Peak sound pressure (Lpk) has a reference value of 1 μPa, and cumulative sound exposure level (LE) has a reference value of 1μPa2s.
In this Table, thresholds are abbreviated to reflect American National Standards Institute standards (ANSI 2013). However, peak sound pressure
is defined by ANSI as incorporating frequency weighting, which is not the intent for this Technical Guidance. Hence, the subscript ‘‘flat’’ is being
included to indicate peak sound pressure should be flat weighted or unweighted within the generalized hearing range. The subscript associated
with cumulative sound exposure level thresholds indicates the designated marine mammal auditory weighting function (LF, MF, and HF
cetaceans, and PW and OW pinnipeds) and that the recommended accumulation period is 24 hours. The cumulative sound exposure level
thresholds could be exceeded in a multitude of ways (i.e., varying exposure levels and durations, duty cycle). When possible, it is valuable for
action proponents to indicate the conditions under which these acoustic thresholds will be exceeded.
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enough to another impact hammer, the
cumulative acoustic energy is accounted
for by including all hammer strikes.
When more than one vibratory hammer
is being used close enough to another
vibratory hammer to create overlapping
noise fields, additional sound levels are
added to account for the overlap,
creating a larger zone of influence (ZOI).
A simplified nomogram method (Kinsler
et al., 2000) is proposed to account for
the addition of noise source levels for
multiple vibratory hammers, as shown
in Table 4. Using this method, the
source levels of 24-, 30-, and 36-in piles
during vibratory pile driving are
adjusted to 182 dB re 1 mPa (at 10 m).
TABLE 4—MULTIPLE SOUND LEVEL
ADDITION—Continued
Add the
following to
the higher
level
(dB)
When two sound
levels differ by
4–9 dB ..................................
>10 dB ..................................
1
0
guidance (NMFS 2016) was used to
determine these zones.
These source levels are used to
compute the Level A ensonified zones
and to estimate the Level B harassment
zones. For Level A harassment zones,
zones calculated using cumulative SEL
are all larger than those calculated using
SPLpeak, therefore, only zones based on
cumulative SEL for Level A harassment
are used.
3
2
For vibratory pile removal, vibratory
pile driving data were used as proxies
because we conservatively consider
noises from pile removal would be the
same as those from pile driving.
The source level of vibratory removal
of 14-in timber piles were based on
measurements conducted at the Port
Townsend Ferry Terminal during
vibratory removal of a 12-in timber pile
by WSDOT (Laughlin 2011). The
recorded source level is 152 dB re 1 mPa
at 16 m from the pile. In the absence of
spectral data for timber pile vibratory
driving, the weighting factor adjustment
(WFA) recommended by NMFS acoustic
Calculation and modeling of
applicable ensonified zones are based
on source measurements of comparable
types and sizes of piles driven by
different methods (impact vs. vibratory
hammers) either during the Colman test
pile driving or at a different location
within the Puget Sound. As mentioned
earlier, isopleths for injury zones are
based on cumulative SEL (LE) criteria.
For peak SPL (Lpk), distances to
marine mammal injury thresholds were
calculated using a simple geometric
spreading model using a transmission
loss coefficient of 15:
where SLMeasure is the measured source
level in dB re 1 mPa, EL is the specific
received level of threshold, DMeasure is
the distance (m) from the source where
measurements were taken, and R is the
distance (radius) of the isopleth to the
source in meters.
For cumulative SEL (LE), distances to
marine mammal exposure thresholds
were computed using spectral modeling
that incorporates frequency specific
absorption. First, representative pile
driving sounds recorded during test pile
driving with impact and vibratory
hammers were used to generate power
spectral densities (PSDs), which
describe the distribution of power into
frequency components composing that
sound, in 1-Hz bins. Parserval’s
theorem, which states that the sum of
the square of a function is equal to the
sum of the square of its transform, was
applied to ensure that all energies
within a strike (for impact pile driving)
or a given period of time (for vibratory
pile driving) were captured through the
fast Fourier transform, an algorithm that
converts the signal from its original
domain (in this case, time series) to a
representation in frequency domain. For
impact pile driving, broadband PSDs
were generated from SPLrms time series
of a total of 270 strikes with a time
window that contains 90 percent of
pulse energy. For vibratory pile driving,
broadband PSDs were generated from a
series of continuous 1-second SEL.
Broadband PSDs were then adjusted
based on weighting functions of marine
mammal hearing groups (Finneran
2016) by using the weighting function as
a band-pass filter. For impact pile
driving, cumulative exposures (Esum)
were computed by multiplying the
single rms pressure squared by rms
pulse duration for the specific strike,
then by the number of strikes (provided
in Table 1) required to drive one pile,
then by the number of piles to be driven
in a given day, as shown in the equation
below:
where prms,i is the rms pressure, t is the
rms pulse duration for the specific
strike, Ns is the anticipated number of
strikes (provided in Table 1) needed to
install one pile, and N is the number of
total piles to be installed.
For vibratory pile driving, cumulative
exposures were computed by summing
1-second noise exposure by the duration
needed to drive on pile (provided in
Table 1), then by the number of piles to
be driven in a given day, as shown in
the equation below:
Add the
following to
the higher
level
(dB)
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0–1 dB ..................................
2–3 dB ..................................
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levels differ by
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TABLE 4—MULTIPLE SOUND LEVEL
ADDITION
Estimating Injury Zones
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where E1s is the 1-second noise
exposure, and Dt is the duration
(provided in Table 1) need to install 1
pile by vibratory piling.
Frequency-specific transmission
losses, TL(f), were then computed using
practical spreading along with
frequency-specific absorption
coefficients that were computed with
nominal seawater properties (i.e.,
salinity = 35 psu, pH = 8.0) at 15°C at
the surface by
where a(f) is dB/km, and R is the
distance (radius) of the specific isopleth
to the source in meters. For broadband
sources such as those from pile driving,
the transmission loss is the summation
of the frequency-specific results.
spreading equation as shown in
Equation (4).
For Level B harassment zones from
vibratory pile driving of 30-in and 36in piles, the ensonified zones are
calculated based on practical spreading
of back-calculated source level of 36-in
pile driving adjusted for 3 hammers
operating concurrently by adding 5 dB.
The results show that the 120 dB re 1
mPa isopleth is at 13.6 km. For Level B
harassment zone from vibratory pile
driving of 24-in and 36-in piles, WSDOT
conducted site measurements during
Seattle test pile driving project using 24-
in and 36-in steel piles. The results
show that underwater noise cannot be
detected at a distance of 5 km (3 mi) and
6.88 km (4.3 mi) for the 24-in and 36in steel piles, respectively. Since this
measurement was based on pile driving
using 1 hammer, the Level B harassment
zone for 24- and 36-in steel pile is
adjusted by factoring in a 5 dB
difference (see above) using the
following equation, based on the inverse
law of acoustic propagation (i.e., dB
difference in transmission loss is the
inverse of distance difference in
logarithm):
in steel pile and 6.88 km for the 36-in
steel pile.
The result show that when using 3
vibratory hammers concurrently, the
distance from the pile to where pile
noise is no longer audible is 11 km for
the 24-in steel pile and 14.8 km for the
36-in steel pile. Since the landmass
intercepts the water at 13.6 km, this
distance is used as the Level B
harassment distance for the 36-in steel
pile.
A summary of the measured and
modeled harassment zones is provided
in Table 5.
Approach to Estimate Behavioral Zones
As mentioned earlier, isopleths to
Level B behavioral zones are based on
root-mean-square SPL (SPLrms) that are
specific for impulse (impact pile
driving) and non-impulse (vibratory pile
driving) sources. Distances to marine
mammal behavior thresholds were
calculated using a simple geometric
where dBdifference is the 5 dB difference,
R3-hammer is the distance from the pile
where piling noise is no longer audible,
and R1-hammer is the measured distance
from the pile where piling noise is no
longer audible, which is 5 km for the 24-
TABLE 5—DISTANCES TO HARASSMENT ZONES
Injury zone (m)
Behavior zone
(m)
Vibratory 14″
Vibratory 24″
Vibratory 30″
Impact 30″ &
timber .................................
steel ...................................
& 36″ steel .........................
36″ steel .............................
8
255
285
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Estimated Takes From Proposed
Construction Activity
Incidental take is estimated for each
species by estimating the likelihood of
a marine mammal being present within
a Level A or Level B harassment zone
during active pile driving or removal.
The Level A calculation includes a
duration component, along with an
assumption (which can lead to
overestimates in some cases) that
animals within the zone stay in that area
for the whole duration of the pile
driving activity within a day. For all
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MF cetacean
HF cetacean
0.7
65
65
75
11.9
1,365
1,455
2,835
marine mammal species except harbor
seals and California sea lions, estimated
takes are calculated based on ensonified
area for a specific pile driving activity
multiplied by the marine mammal
density in the action area, multiplied by
the number of pile driving (or removal)
days. Marine mammal density data for
all animals except harbor porpoise are
from the U.S. Navy Marine Species
Density Database (Navy 2015). Harbor
porpoise density is based on a recent
study by Jefferson et al. (2016) for the
Seattle area near the Colman Dock.
Harbor seal and California sea lion takes
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Phocid
Otariid
4.9
115
125
465
0.3
10
10
35
2,175
11,000
13,600
1,200
are based on observations near Seattle,
since these data provide the best
information on distribution and
presence of these species that are often
associated with nearby haulouts (see
below). A summary of marine mammal
density, days and Level A and Level B
harassment areas from different pile
driving and removal activities is
provided in Table 6.
E:\FR\FM\07JYN1.SGM
07JYN1
EN07JY17.007</GPH>
LF cetacean
EN07JY17.006</GPH>
Pile type, size & pile driving method
31588
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 129 / Friday, July 7, 2017 / Notices
TABLE 6—SUMMARY OF MARINE MAMMAL DENSITY, DAYS AND LEVEL A AND LEVEL B ENSONIFIED AREAS FROM
DIFFERENT PILE DRIVING AND REMOVAL ACTIVITIES
Density
(km-2)
Vibratory 14-in
timber
Vibratory 24-in
steel
Vibratory 30-in
steel
Vibratory 36-in
steel
Impact 30-in
steel
Impact 36-in
steel
11
Species
15
3
26
2
26
Days
Level A Areas (m2)
Pacific harbor seal .......
California sea lion ........
Steller sea lion .............
Killer whale, transient ...
Killer whale, Southern
Resident ...................
Gray whale ...................
Humpback whale .........
Harbor porpoise ...........
Dall’s porpoise .............
1.219000
0.12660
0.036800
0.002373
50
0.126
0.126
50
41,548
314
314
13,273
49,087
314
314
13,273
49,087
314
314
13,273
394,075
3,849
3,849
17,672
394,075
3,849
3,849
17,672
0.020240
0.000510
0.00070
0.156000
0.047976
50
154
154
13,273
13,273
13,273
153,311
153,311
2,547,906
2,547,906
13,273
189,384
189,384
2,678,940
2,678,940
13,273
189,384
189,384
2,678,940
2,678,940
17,672
4,129,836
4,129,836
8,190,639
8,190,639
17,672
4,129,836
4,129,836
8,190,639
8,190,639
Level B Areas (m2)
Pacific harbor seal .......
California sea lion ........
Steller sea lion .............
Killer whale, transient ...
Killer whale, Southern
Resident ...................
Gray whale ...................
Humpback whale .........
Harbor porpoise ...........
Dall’s porpoise .............
1.219000
0.12660
0.036800
0.020240
5,419,792
5,419,792
5,419,792
5,419,792
58,338,838
58,338,838
58,338,838
58,338,838
74,290,934
74,290,934
74,290,934
74,290,934
74,290,934
74,290,934
74,290,934
74,290,934
1,926,124
1,926,124
1,926,124
1,926,124
1,926,124
1,926,124
1,926,124
1,926,124
0.002373
0.000510
0.00070
0.69
0.047976
5,419,792
5,419,792
5,419,792
5,419,792
5,419,792
58,338,838
58,338,838
58,338,838
58,338,838
58,338,838
74,290,934
74,290,934
74,290,934
74,290,934
74,290,934
74,290,934
74,290,934
74,290,934
74,290,934
74,290,934
1,926,124
1,926,124
1,926,124
1,926,124
1,926,124
1,926,124
1,926,124
1,926,124
1,926,124
1,926,124
The Level A take total was further
adjusted by subtracting animals
expected to occur within the exclusion
zone, where pile driving activities are
suspended when an animal is observed
in or approaching the zone (see
Mitigation section). Further, the number
of Level B takes was adjusted to exclude
those already counted for Level A takes.
The harbor seal take estimate is based
on local seal abundance information off
the Seattle area from WSDOT’s Seattle
Colman test pile project in 2016. Marine
mammal visual monitoring during the
10-day period of the project indicates
that a maximum of 13 harbor seals were
observed in the general area of the
Colman Dock project (WSDOT 2012).
Based on a total of 83 pile-driving days
for the WSDOT Seattle Colman Dock
project, it is estimated that up to 1,079
harbor seals could be exposed to noise
levels associated with ‘‘take.’’ Since 28
days would involve impact pile driving
of 30-in and 36-in steel piles with Level
A zones beyond shutdown zones (465 m
vs 160 m shutdown zone), we consider
that 364 harbor seals exposed during
these 28 days would experience Level A
harassment.
The California sea lion take estimate
is based on local sea lion abundance
information from the Seattle’s Elliott
Bay Sea Wall Project (City of Seattle
2014). Marine mammal visual
monitoring during the Sea Wall Project
indicates that up to 47 sea lions were
observed in the general area of the
Colman Dock project at any given time
(City of Seattle 2014). Based on a total
of 83 pile driving days for the WSDOT
Seattle Colman Dock project, it is
estimated that up to 3,901 California sea
lions could be exposed to noise levels
associated with ‘‘take’’. Since the Level
A zones of otariids are all very small
(<35m, Table 5), we do not consider it
likely that any sea lions would be taken
by Level A harassment. Therefore, all
California sea lion takes estimated here
are expected to be taken by Level B
harassment.
A summary of estimated marine
mammal takes is listed in Table 7.
TABLE 7—ESTIMATED NUMBERS OF MARINE MAMMALS THAT MAY BE EXPOSED TO RECEIVED NOISE LEVELS THAT CAUSE
LEVEL A OR LEVEL B HARASSMENT
Estimated
Level A take
asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with NOTICES
Species
Pacific harbor seal ...............................................................
California sea lion ................................................................
Steller sea lion .....................................................................
Killer whale, transient ...........................................................
Killer whale, Southern Resident ..........................................
Gray whale ...........................................................................
Humpback whale .................................................................
Harbor porpoise ...................................................................
Dall’s porpoise .....................................................................
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Estimated
Level B take
364
0
0
0
0
1
0
233
16
Fmt 4703
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Estimated
total take
715
3,901
116
7
0
15
0
2,056
137
E:\FR\FM\07JYN1.SGM
1,079
3,901
116
7
0
16
0
2,289
153
07JYN1
Abundance
11,036
296,750
71,562
243
78
20,990
1,918
11,233
25,750
Percentage
9.77
1.31
0.16
3
0
0.08
0
20.37
0.59
31589
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 129 / Friday, July 7, 2017 / Notices
Mitigation
Under section 101(a)(5)(D) of the
MMPA, NMFS shall prescribe the
‘‘permissible methods of taking by
harassment pursuant to such activity,
and other means of effecting the least
practicable impact on such species or
stock and its habitat, paying particular
attention to rookeries, mating grounds,
and areas of similar significance, and on
the availability of such species or stock
for taking for subsistence uses.’’
To ensure that the ‘‘least practicable
adverse impact’’ will be achieved,
NMFS evaluates mitigation measures in
consideration of the following factors in
relation to one another: The manner in
which, and the degree to which, the
successful implementation of the
measure(s) is expected to reduce
impacts to marine mammals, marine
mammal species or stocks, their habitat,
and their availability for subsistence
uses (latter where relevant); the proven
or likely efficacy of the measures; and
the practicability of the measures for
applicant implementation.
For WSDOT’s proposed Seattle
Multimodal Project at Colman Dock,
WSDOT worked with NMFS and
prescribed the following mitigation
measures to minimize the potential
impacts to marine mammals in the
project vicinity. The primary purposes
of these mitigation measures are to
minimize sound levels from the
activities, to monitor marine mammals
within designated ZOIs and exclusion
zones corresponding to NMFS’ current
Level B and Level A harassment
thresholds and, to implement shutdown measures for certain marine
mammal species when they are detected
approaching the exclusion zones or
actual take numbers are approaching the
authorized take numbers.
Time Restriction
Work would occur only during
daylight hours, when visual monitoring
of marine mammals can be conducted.
In addition, all in-water construction
will be limited to the period between
August 1, 2017, and February 15, 2018.
Use of Noise Attenuation Devices
To reduce impact on marine
mammals, WSDOT shall use a marine
pile driving energy attenuator (i.e., air
bubble curtain system), or other equally
effective sound attenuation method
(e.g., dewatered cofferdam) for all
impact pile driving.
Establishing and Monitoring Level A,
Level B Harassment Zones, and
Exclusion Zones
Before the commencement of in-water
construction activities, which include
impact pile driving and vibratory pile
driving and pile removal, WSDOT shall
establish Level A harassment zones
where received underwater SPLs or
SELcum could cause PTS (see above).
WSDOT shall also establish Level B
harassment zones where received
underwater SPLs are higher than 160
dBrms and 120 dBrms re 1 mPa for impulse
noise sources (impact pile driving) and
non-impulses noise sources (vibratory
pile driving and pile removal),
respectively.
WSDOT shall establish a maximum
160-m Level A exclusion zone for all
marine mammals. For Level A
harassment zones that are smaller than
160 m from the source, WSDOT shall
establish exclusion zones that
correspond to the estimated Level A
harassment distances, but shall not be
less than 10 m.
A summary of exclusion zones is
provided in Tables 8a and 8b.
TABLE 8a—EXCLUSION ZONES FOR VARIOUS PILE DRIVING ACTIVITIES AND MARINE MAMMAL HEARING GROUPS (FOR
NON-ESA-LISTED SPECIES)
Exclusion zone (m)
Pile type, size & pile driving method
LF cetacean
14″
24″
30″
30″
timber pile, vibratory ......................................................
steel pile, vibratory ........................................................
& 36″ steel pile, vibratory ..............................................
& 36″ steel pile, impact .................................................
MF cetacean
10
255
285
500
HF cetacean
10
65
65
75
12
160
160
160
Phocid
Otariid
10
115
125
160
10
10
10
35
TABLE 8b—EXCLUSION ZONES FOR VARIOUS PILE DRIVING ACTIVITIES AND ESA-LISTED MARINE MAMMAL SPECIES
Exclusion zone (m)
Pile type, size & pile driving method
asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with NOTICES
14″
24″
30″
30″
Humpback
whale
timber pile, vibratory ..........................................................................................................................................
steel pile, vibratory ............................................................................................................................................
& 36″ steel pile, vibratory ..................................................................................................................................
& 36″ steel pile, impact .....................................................................................................................................
NMFS-approved protected species
observers (PSO) shall conduct an initial
survey of the exclusion zones to ensure
that no marine mammals are seen
within the zones before impact pile
driving of a pile segment begins. If
marine mammals are found within the
exclusion zone, pile driving of the
segment will be delayed until they move
out of the area. If a marine mammal is
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seen above water and then dives below,
the contractor will wait 30 minutes. If
no marine mammals are seen by the
observer in that time it can be assumed
that the animal has moved beyond the
exclusion zone.
If pile driving of a segment ceases for
30 minutes or more and a marine
mammal is sighted within the
designated exclusion zone prior to
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2,175
11,000
13,600
1,845
Southern
resident
killer
whale
2,175
11,000
13,600
1,200
commencement of pile driving, the
observer(s) must notify the pile driving
operator (or other authorized
individual) immediately and continue
to monitor the exclusion zone.
Operations may not resume until the
marine mammal has exited the
exclusion zone or 30 minutes have
elapsed since the last sighting.
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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 129 / Friday, July 7, 2017 / Notices
Soft Start
A ‘‘soft-start’’ technique is intended to
allow marine mammals to vacate the
area before the impact pile driver
reaches full power. Whenever there has
been downtime of 30 minutes or more
without impact pile driving, the
contractor will initiate the driving with
ramp-up procedures described below.
Soft start for impact hammers requires
contractors to provide an initial set of
three strikes from the impact hammer at
40 percent energy, followed by a
1-minute waiting period, then two
subsequent three-strike sets. Each day,
WSDOT will use the soft-start technique
at the beginning of impact pile driving,
or if pile driving has ceased for more
than 30 minutes.
Shutdown Measures
asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with NOTICES
WSDOT shall implement shutdown
measures if a marine mammal is
detected within an exclusion zone or is
about to enter an exclusion zone listed
in Tables 8a and 8b.
WSDOT shall also implement
shutdown measures if southern resident
killer whales or humpback whales are
sighted within the vicinity of the project
area and are approaching the Level B
harassment zone (ZOI) during in-water
construction activities.
If a killer whale approaches the ZOI
during pile driving or removal, and it is
unknown whether it is a Southern
Resident killer whale or a transient
killer whale, it shall be assumed to be
a Southern Resident killer whale and
WSDOT shall implement the shutdown
measure.
If a Southern Resident killer whale, an
unidentified killer whale, or a
humpback whale enters the ZOI
undetected, in-water pile driving or pile
removal shall be suspended until the
whale exits the ZOI to avoid further
Level B harassment.
Further, WSDOT shall implement
shutdown measures if the number of
authorized takes for any particular
species reaches the limit under the IHA
and if such marine mammals are sighted
within the vicinity of the project area
and are approaching the Level B
harassment zone during in-water
construction activities.
Coordination With Local Marine
Mammal Research Network
Prior to the start of pile driving for the
day, the Orca Network and/or Center for
Whale Research will be contacted by
WSDOT to find out the location of the
nearest marine mammal sightings. The
Orca Sightings Network consists of a list
of over 600 (and growing) residents,
scientists, and government agency
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personnel in the U.S. and Canada.
Sightings are called or emailed into the
Orca Network and immediately
distributed to other sighting networks
including: The NMFS Northwest
Fisheries Science Center, the Center for
Whale Research, Cascadia Research, the
Whale Museum Hotline and the British
Columbia Sightings Network.
Sightings information collected by the
Orca Network includes detection by
hydrophone. The SeaSound Remote
Sensing Network is a system of
interconnected hydrophones installed
in the marine environment of Haro
Strait (west side of San Juan Island) to
study orca communication, in-water
noise, bottom fish ecology and local
climatic conditions. A hydrophone at
the Port Townsend Marine Science
Center measures average in-water sound
levels and automatically detects
unusual sounds. These passive acoustic
devices allow researchers to hear when
different marine mammals come into
the region. This acoustic network,
combined with the volunteer
(incidental) visual sighting network
allows researchers to document
presence and location of various marine
mammal species.
With this level of coordination in the
region of activity, WSDOT will be able
to get real-time information on the
presence or absence of whales before
starting any pile driving.
Based on our evaluation of the
mitigation measures described above,
NMFS has determined that the
prescribed mitigation measures provide
the means effecting the least practicable
adverse impact on the affected species
or stocks and their habitat, paying
particular attention to rookeries, mating
grounds, and areas of similar
significance.
Monitoring and Reporting
In order to issue an IHA for an
activity, Section 101(a)(5)(D) of the
MMPA states that NMFS must set forth,
requirements pertaining to the
monitoring and reporting of such taking.
The MMPA implementing regulations at
50 CFR 216.104(a)(13) indicate that
requests for authorizations must include
the suggested means of accomplishing
the necessary monitoring and reporting
that will result in increased knowledge
of the species and of the level of taking
or impacts on populations of marine
mammals that are expected to be
present in the proposed action area.
Effective reporting is critical to both
compliance and ensuring that the most
value is obtained from the required
monitoring.
Monitoring and reporting
requirements prescribed by NMFS
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should contribute to improved
understanding of one or more of the
following:
• Occurrence of marine mammal
species or stocks in the action area (e.g.,
presence, abundance, distribution,
density);
• Nature, scope, or context of likely
marine mammal exposure to potential
stressors/impacts (individual or
cumulative, acute or chronic), through
better understanding of: (1) Action or
environment (e.g., source
characterization, propagation, ambient
noise); (2) affected species (e.g., life
history, dive patterns); (3) co-occurrence
of marine mammal species with the
action; or (4) biological or behavioral
context of exposure (e.g., age, calving or
feeding areas);
• Individual marine mammal
responses (behavioral or physiological)
to acoustic stressors (acute, chronic, or
cumulative), other stressors, or
cumulative impacts from multiple
stressors;
• How anticipated responses to
stressors impact either: (1) Long-term
fitness and survival of individual
marine mammals; or (2) populations,
species, or stocks;
• Effects on marine mammal habitat
(e.g., marine mammal prey species,
acoustic habitat, or other important
physical components of marine
mammal habitat); and
• Mitigation and monitoring
effectiveness.
Monitoring Measures
WSDOT shall employ NMFSapproved PSOs to conduct marine
mammal monitoring for its Seattle
Multimodal Project. The PSOs will
observe and collect data on marine
mammals in and around the project area
for 30 minutes before, during, and for 30
minutes after all pile removal and pile
installation work. NMFS-approved
PSOs shall meet the following
requirements:
1. Independent observers (i.e., not
construction personnel) are required;
2. At least one observer must have
prior experience working as an observer;
3. Other observers may substitute
education (undergraduate degree in
biological science or related field) or
training for experience;
4. Where a team of three or more
observers are required, one observer
should be designated as lead observer or
monitoring coordinator. The lead
observer must have prior experience
working as an observer; and
5. NMFS will require submission and
approval of observer CVs.
Monitoring of marine mammals
around the construction site shall be
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07JYN1
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 129 / Friday, July 7, 2017 / Notices
conducted using high-quality binoculars
(e.g., Zeiss, 10 x 42 power). Due to the
different sizes of ZOIs from different
pile sizes, several different ZOIs and
different monitoring protocols
corresponding to a specific pile size will
be established.
• During 14-in timber pile removal,
two land-based PSOs will monitor the
exclusion zones and Level B harassment
zone.
• During impact pile driving of 30-in
and 36-in steel piles, 4 land-based PSOs
will monitor the Level A and Level B
harassment zones.
• During vibratory pile driving of 24in, 30-in, and 36-in steel piles, 5 landbased PSOs and two vessel-based PSOs
on ferries will monitor the Level A and
Level B harassment zones.
• If the sound source verification
(SSV) measurements show that Level B
harassment distance for the vibratory
pile driving of 24-in, 30-in, and 36-in
steel piles is less than 10 km,
monitoring efforts listed above can be
reduced to 4 land-based PSOs and one
vessel-based PSO on a ferry.
• If the sound source verification
(SSV) measurements show that Level B
harassment distance for the vibratory
pile driving of 24-in, 30-in, and 36-in
steel piles is less than 10 km, 4 landbased PSOs and one vessel-based PSO
on a ferry will monitor the Level A and
level B harassment zones.
Locations of the land-based PSOs and
routes of monitoring vessels are shown
in WSDOT’s Marine Mammal
Monitoring Plan, which is available
online at www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/
permits/incidental/construction.htm.
To verify the required monitoring
distance, the exclusion zones and ZOIs
will be determined by using a range
finder or hand-held global positioning
system device.
In addition, WSDOT shall conduct
SSV measurements when conduction
vibratory pile driving of 24-in, 30-in,
and 36-in steel piles using more than
one hammer.
asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with NOTICES
Reporting Measures
WSDOT will be required to submit a
draft monitoring report within 90 days
after completion of the construction
work or the expiration of the IHA,
whichever comes earlier. This report
would detail the monitoring protocol,
summarize the data recorded during
monitoring, and estimate the number of
marine mammals that may have been
harassed. NMFS would have an
opportunity to provide comments on the
report, and if NMFS has comments,
WSDOT would address the comments
and submit a final report to NMFS
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20:56 Jul 06, 2017
Jkt 241001
within 30 days after receiving NMFS’
comments.
In addition, NMFS would require
WSDOT to notify NMFS’ Office of
Protected Resources and NMFS’ West
Coast Stranding Coordinator within 48
hours of sighting an injured or dead
marine mammal in the construction site.
WSDOT shall provide NMFS and the
Stranding Network with the species or
description of the animal(s), the
condition of the animal(s) (including
carcass condition, if the animal is dead),
location, time of first discovery,
observed behaviors (if alive), and photo
or video (if available).
In the event that WSDOT finds an
injured or dead marine mammal that is
not in the construction area, WSDOT
would report the same information as
listed above to NMFS within 48 hours
of sighting.
Negligible Impact Analysis and
Determination
NMFS has defined negligible impact
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
(50 CFR 216.103). A negligible impact
finding is based on the lack of likely
adverse effects on annual rates of
recruitment or survival (i.e., populationlevel effects). An estimate of the number
of takes, alone, is not enough
information on which to base an impact
determination. In addition to
considering the number of marine
mammals that might be ‘‘taken’’ through
harassment, NMFS considers other
factors, such as the likely nature of any
responses (e.g., intensity, duration), the
context of any responses (e.g., critical
reproductive time or location,
migration, etc.), as well as effects on
habitat, the status of the affected stocks,
and the likely effectiveness of the
mitigation. Consistent with the 1989
preamble for NMFS’s implementing
regulations (54 FR 40338; September 29,
1989), the impacts from other past and
ongoing anthropogenic activities are
incorporated into these analyses via
their impacts on the environmental
baseline (e.g., as reflected in the
regulatory status of the species,
population size and growth rate where
known, ongoing sources of humancaused mortality, or ambient noise
levels).
To avoid repetition, this introductory
discussion of our analyses applies to all
the species listed in Table 7, given that
the anticipated effects of WSDOT’s
Seattle Multimodal Project at Colman
Dock activities involving pile driving
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31591
and pile removal on marine mammals
are expected to be relatively similar in
nature. There is no information about
the nature or severity of the impacts, or
the size, status, or structure of any
species or stock that would lead to a
different analysis by species for this
activity, or else species-specific factors
would be identified and analyzed.
Although a few marine mammal
species (364 harbor seals, 1 gray whale,
233 harbor porpoises, and 16 Dall’s
porpoise) are estimated to experience
Level A harassment in the form of PTS
if they stay within the Level A
harassment zone during the entire pile
driving for the day, the degree of injury
is expected to be mild and is not likely
to affect the reproduction or survival of
the individual animals. It is expected
that, if hearing impairments occurs,
most likely the affected animal would
lose a few dB in its hearing sensitivity,
which in most cases is not likely to
affect its survival and recruitment.
Hearing impairment that occur for these
individual animals would be limited to
the dominant frequency of the noise
sources, i.e., in the low-frequency region
below 2 kHz. Therefore, the degree of
PTS is not likely to affect the
echolocation performance of the two
porpoise species, which use frequencies
mostly above 100 kHz. Nevertheless, for
all marine mammal species, it is known
that in general animals avoid areas
where sound levels could cause hearing
impairment. Therefore, it is not likely
that an animal would stay in an area
with intense noise that could cause
severe levels of hearing damage. In
addition, even if an animal receives a
TTS, the TTS would be a one-time event
from the exposure, making it unlikely
that the TTS would evolve into PTS.
Furthermore, Level A take estimates are
based on the assumption that the
animals are randomly distributed in the
project area and would not avoid
intense noise levels that could cause
TTS or PTS. In reality, animals tend to
avoid areas where noise levels are high
(Richardson et al. 1995).
For these species and the rest of the
three marine mammal species, takes that
are anticipated and authorized are
expected to be limited to short-term
Level B harassment (behavioral and
TTS). Marine mammals present in the
vicinity of the action area and taken by
Level B harassment would most likely
show overt brief disturbance (startle
reaction) and avoidance of the area from
elevated noise levels during pile driving
and pile removal and the implosion
noise. A few marine mammals could
experience TTS if they occur within the
Level B TTS ZOI. However, as discussed
earlier in this document, TTS is a
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asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with NOTICES
temporary loss of hearing sensitivity
when exposed to loud sound, and the
hearing threshold is expected to recover
completely within minutes to hours.
Therefore, it is not considered an injury.
The project also is not expected to
have significant adverse effects on
affected marine mammals’ habitat, as
analyzed in detail in the ‘‘Anticipated
Effects on Marine Mammal Habitat’’
section. There is no ESA designated
critical area in the vicinity of the Seattle
Multimodal Project at Colman Dock
area. The project activities would not
permanently modify existing marine
mammal habitat. The activities may kill
some fish and cause other fish to leave
the area temporarily, thus impacting
marine mammals’ foraging
opportunities in a limited portion of the
foraging range. However, because of the
short duration of the activities and the
relatively small area of the habitat that
may be affected, the impacts to marine
mammal habitat are not expected to
cause significant or long-term negative
consequences. Therefore, given the
consideration of potential impacts to
marine mammal prey species and their
physical environment, WSDOT’s
proposed construction activity at
Colman Dock would not adversely affect
marine mammal habitat.
• Injury—only 4 species of marine
mammals would experience Level A
affects in the form of mild PTS, which
is expected to be of small degree.
• Behavioral disturbance—seven
species/stocks of marine mammals
would experience behavioral
disturbance and TTS from the WSDOT’s
Seattle Colman Dock project. However,
as discussed earlier, the area to be
affected is small and the duration of the
project is short. Therefore, the overall
impacts are expected to be insignificant.
Based on the analysis contained
herein of the likely effects of the
specified activity on marine mammals
and their habitat, and taking into
consideration the implementation of the
monitoring and mitigation measures,
NMFS finds that the total take from the
proposed activity will have a negligible
impact on all affected marine mammal
species or stocks.
Small Numbers
As noted above, only small numbers
of incidental take may be authorized
under Section 101(a)(5)(D) of the MMPA
for specified activities other than
military readiness activities. The MMPA
does not define small numbers and so,
in practice, NMFS compares the number
of individuals anticipated to be taken to
the most appropriate estimation of the
relevant species or stock size in our
determination of whether an
VerDate Sep<11>2014
20:56 Jul 06, 2017
Jkt 241001
authorization would be limited to small
numbers of marine mammals.
The takes represent less than 21
percent of all populations or stocks with
known abundance potentially impacted
(see Table 7 in this document). These
take estimates represent the percentage
of each species or stock that could be
taken by both Level A and Level B
harassments. In general, the numbers of
marine mammals estimated to be taken
are small proportions of the total
populations of the affected species or
stocks.
Based on the analysis contained
herein of the proposed activity
(including the precribed mitigation and
monitoring measures) and the
anticipated take of marine mammals,
NMFS finds that small numbers of each
species or stock will be taken relative to
the population size of the affected
species or stocks.
Unmitigable Adverse Impact
Subsistence Analysis and
Determination
There are no relevant subsistence uses
of the affected marine mammal stocks or
species implicated by this action.
Therefore, NMFS has determined that
the total taking of affected species or
stocks would not have an unmitigable
adverse impact on the availability of
such species or stocks for taking for
subsistence purposes.
Endangered Species Act (ESA)
Issuance of an MMPA authorization
requires compliance with the ESA for
any species that are listed or proposed
as threatened or endangered.
The MMPA California-OregonWashington stock of humpback whale
and the Southern Resident stock of
killer whale are the only marine
mammal species listed under the ESA
that could occur in the vicinity of
WSDOT’s proposed construction
projects. Two DPSs of humpback
whales, the Mexico DPS and the Central
America DPS, are listed as threatened
and endangered under the ESA,
respectively. NMFS worked with
WSDOT to implement shutdown
measures in the IHA that would avoid
takes of both SR killer whale and
humpback whales. Therefore, NMFS
determined that no ESA-listed marine
mammal species would be affected as a
result of WSDOT’s Seattle Colman Dock
construction project.
Authorization
As a result of these determinations,
NMFS has issued an IHA to the
Washington State Department of
Transportation for conducting ferry
terminal construction at Colman Dock
PO 00000
Frm 00045
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
in Seattle Washington, provided the
previously described mitigation,
monitoring, and reporting requirements
are incorporated.
Dated: July 3, 2017.
Donna S. Wieting,
Director, Office of Protected Resources,
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2017–14261 Filed 7–6–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
[EPA–HQ–OPPT–2017–0327; FRL–9963–57]
Scopes of the Risk Evaluations To Be
Conducted for the First Ten Chemical
Substances Under the Toxic
Substances Control Act; Notice of
Availability
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
AGENCY:
ACTION:
Notice.
As required by the Toxic
Substances Control Act (TSCA), which
was amended by the Frank R.
Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st
Century Act in June 2016, EPA is
announcing the availability of the scope
documents for the risk evaluations to be
conducted for the first ten (10) chemical
substances. Each scope includes the
hazards, exposures, conditions of use,
and the potentially exposed or
susceptible subpopulations the EPA
expects to consider in conducting the
risk evaluation. EPA is also re-opening
existing dockets for the first 10
chemicals to allow for the public to
provide additional data or information
that could be useful to the Agency in
conducting problem formulation, the
next step in the process of conducting
the risk evaluations for these chemicals.
SUMMARY:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
For technical information contact:
Christina Motilall, Risk Assessment
Division, Office of Pollution Prevention
and Toxics, Environmental Protection
Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW.,
Washington, DC 20460–0001; telephone
number: (202) 564–1287; email address:
motilall.christina@epa.gov.
For general information contact: The
TSCA-Hotline, ABVI-Goodwill, 422
South Clinton Ave., Rochester, NY
14620; telephone number: (202) 554–
1404; email address: TSCA-Hotline@
epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
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[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 129 (Friday, July 7, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31579-31592]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-14261]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-XF250
Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities;
Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Seattle Multimodal Construction
Project in Washington State
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; issuance of an incidental harassment authorization.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In accordance with the regulations implementing the Marine
Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) as amended, notification is hereby given
that we have issued an incidental harassment authorization (IHA) to
Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) to take small
numbers of marine mammals, by harassment, incidental to Seattle
Multimodal Construction Project in Washington State.
DATES: This authorization is effective from August 1, 2017, through
July 31, 2018.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shane Guan, Office of Protected
Resources, NMFS, (301) 427-8401. Electronic copies of the application
and supporting documents, as well as the issued IHA, may be obtained
online at: www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/permits/incidental/construction.htm. In
case of problems accessing these documents, please call the contact
listed above.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Sections 101(a)(5)(A) and (D) of the MMPA (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.)
direct the Secretary of Commerce to allow, upon request by U.S.
citizens who engage in a specified activity (other than commercial
fishing) within a specified area, the incidental, but not intentional,
taking of small numbers of marine mammals, provided that certain
findings are made and the necessary prescriptions are established.
The incidental taking of small numbers of marine mammals shall be
allowed if NMFS (through authority delegated by the Secretary) finds
that the total taking by the specified activity during the specified
time period will (i) have a negligible impact on the species or
stock(s) and (ii) not have an unmitigable adverse impact on the
availability of the species or stock(s) for subsistence uses (where
relevant). Further, the permissible methods of taking, as well as the
other means of effecting the least practicable adverse impact on the
species or stock and its habitat (i.e., mitigation) must be prescribed.
Last, requirements pertaining to the monitoring and reporting of such
taking must be set forth.
Where there is the potential for serious injury or death, the
allowance of incidental taking requires promulgation of regulations
under MMPA section 101(a)(5)(A). Subsequently, a Letter (or Letters) of
Authorization may be issued as governed by the prescriptions
established in such regulations, provided that the level of taking will
be consistent with the findings made for the total taking allowable
under the specific regulations. Under MMPA section 101(a)(5)(D), NMFS
may authorize incidental taking by harassment only (i.e., no serious
injury
[[Page 31580]]
or mortality), for periods of not more than one year, pursuant to
requirements and conditions contained within an IHA. The promulgation
of regulations or issuance of IHAs (with their associated prescribed
mitigation, monitoring, and reporting) requires notice and opportunity
for public comment.
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.
Except with respect to certain activities not pertinent here,
section 3(18) of the MMPA defines ``harassment'' as: Any act of
pursuit, torment, or annoyance which (i) has the potential to injure a
marine mammal or marine mammal stock in the wild (Level A harassment);
or (ii) has the potential to disturb a marine mammal or marine mammal
stock in the wild by causing disruption of behavioral patterns,
including, but not limited to, migration, breathing, nursing, breeding,
feeding, or sheltering (Level B harassment).
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
Issuance of an MMPA 101(a)(5) authorization requires compliance
with the National Environmental Policy Act.
NMFS determined the issuance of the IHA is consistent with
categories of activities identified in CE B4 (issuance of incidental
harassment authorizations under section 101(a)(5)(A) and (D) of the
MMPA for which no serious injury or mortality is anticipated) of the
Companion Manual for NAO 216-6A and we have not identified any
extraordinary circumstances listed in Chapter 4 of the Companion Manual
for NAO 216-6A that would preclude this categorical exclusion.
Summary of Request
On July 28, 2016, WSDOT submitted a request to NMFS requesting an
IHA for the harassment of small numbers of 11 marine mammal species
incidental to construction associated with the Seattle Multimodal
Project at Colman Dock, Seattle, Washington, between August 1, 2017 and
July 31, 2018. NMFS initially determined the IHA application was
complete on September 1, 2016. However, WSDOT notified NMFS in November
2016 that the scope of its activities had changed. WSDOT stated that
instead of using vibratory hammers for the majority of in-water pile
driving and using impact hammer for proofing, it would be required to
use impact hammers to drive a large number of piles completely due to
sediment conditions at Colman Dock. On March 2, 2017, WSDOT submitted a
revised IHA application with updated project description. NMFS
determined that the revised IHA application was complete on March 3,
2017.
In the IHA issued to WSDOT, NMFS authorized the Level A and Level B
harassment of the following seven marine mammal species/stocks: Harbor
seal (Phoca vitulina), California sea lion (Zalophus californianus),
Steller sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus), killer whale (Orcinus orca),
gray whale (Eschrichtius robustus), harbor porpoise (Phocoena
phocoena), and Dall's porpoise (P. dalli).
Description of Specified Activities
Overview
WSDOT is proposing to preserve the Seattle Ferry Terminal at Colman
Dock. The project will reconfigure the dock while maintaining
approximately the same vehicle holding capacity as current conditions.
The reconfiguration would increase total permanent overwater coverage
(OWC) by about 5,400 square feet (ft\2\) (about 1.7 percent more than
existing overwater coverage at the site), due to the new walkway from
the King County Passenger Only Ferry (POF) facility to Alaskan Way and
new stairways and elevators from the POF to the upper level of the
terminal. The additional 5,400 ft\2\ will be mitigated by removing a
portion of Pier 48, a condemned timber structure.
The project will remove the northern timber trestle and replace a
portion of it with a new concrete trestle. The area from Marion Street
to the north edge of the property will not be rebuilt and will become,
after demolition, a new area of open water. A section of fill contained
behind a bulkhead underneath the northeast section of the dock will
also be removed.
WSDOT will construct a new steel and concrete trestle from Columbia
Street northward to Marion Street. Construction of the reconfigured
dock will narrow (reduce) the OWC along the shoreline (at the landward
edge) by 180 linear feet at the north end of the site, while 30 linear
feet of new trestle would be constructed along the shoreline at the
south end of the site. The net reduction of OWC in the nearshore zone
is 150 linear feet.
The purpose of the Seattle Multimodal Project at Colman Dock is to
preserve the transportation function of an aging, deteriorating and
seismically deficient facility to continue providing safe and reliable
service. The project will also address existing safety concerns related
to conflicts between vehicles and pedestrian traffic and operational
inefficiencies.
Details of the WSDOT's construction activities are provided in the
IHA application and in the Federal Register notice for the proposed IHA
(82 FR 15497; March 29, 2017).
Dates and Duration
Due to NMFS and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in-water
work timing restrictions to protect Endangered Species Act (ESA) listed
salmonids, planned WSDOT in-water construction at this location is
limited each year to July 16 through February 15. For this project, in-
water construction is planned to take place between August 1, 2017 and
February 15, 2018.
The total worst-case time for pile installation and removal is
expected to be 83 working days (Table 1).
Vibratory driving of each of the 101 24-inch (in) steel
pile will take approximately 20 minutes, with a maximum of 16 piles
installed per day over 7 days.
Vibratory removal of 103 temporary 24-in diameter steel
piles will take approximately 20 minutes per pile, with maximum 16
piles removed per day over 8 days.
Impact driving (3,000 strikes per pile) of 14 30-in and
201 36-in diameter steel piles will take approximately 45 minutes per
pile, with maximum 8 piles per day for a total of 28 days.
Vibratory driving of 17 30- and 205 36-in diameter steel
piles will take 45 minutes per pile, with maximum 8 piles per day over
a total of 29 days.
Vibratory removal of 4-in timber piles will take
approximately 15 minutes per pile, with approximately 20 piles removed
per day for 11 days.
Table 1--Summary of In-Water Pile Driving Durations
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Time to
vibratory drive
Pile size per pile/ Duration
Method Pile type (inch) Pile number strikes to (days)
impact drive
per pile
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Vibratory removal............ Timber.......... 14 215 900 seconds.... 11
Vibratory removal............ Steel........... 24 103 1,200 seconds.. 8
[[Page 31581]]
Vibratory driving............ Steel........... 24 101 1,200 seconds.. 7
Vibratory driving............ Steel........... 30 17 1,200 seconds.. 3
Vibratory driving............ Steel........... 36 205 1,200 seconds.. 26
Impact driving............... Steel........... 30 14 3,000 strikes.. 2
Impact driving............... Steel........... 36 201 3,000 strikes.. 26
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total.................... ................ .............. 856 ............... 83
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Specified Geographic Region
The proposed activities will occur at the Seattle Ferry Terminal at
Colman Dock, located in the City of Seattle, Washington (see Figure 1-2
of the IHA application).
Detailed Description of In-Water Pile Driving Associated With Seattle
Multimodal Project
The proposed project has two elements involving noise production
that may affect marine mammals: Vibratory hammer driving and removal,
and impact hammer driving.
Details of pile driving activities are provided below:
The 14-in timber piles will be removed with a vibratory
hammer (Table 1).
The 24-in temporary piles will be installed and removed
with a vibratory hammer (no proofing) (Table 1).
Some of the permanent 30- and 36-in steel piles would be
installed with a vibratory hammer, and some would be installed with
impact hammer (Table 1).
Details of the in-water impact pile driving and vibratory pile
driving and removal activities are provided in the Federal Register
notice for the proposed IHA (82 FR 15497; March 29, 2017). No changes
are made since the proposed IHA was published.
Comments and Responses
A notice of NMFS' proposal to issue an IHA was published in the
Federal Register on March 29, 2017 (82 FR 15497). During the 30-day
public comment period, NMFS received a comment letter from the Marine
Mammal Commission (Commission). No other comments were received.
Specific comments and responses are provided below.
Comment 1: The Commission noted that several typographic and
analytical errors in the Federal Register notice for the proposed IHA.
These errors include: (1) Level B harassment for Steller sea lion and
Dall's porpoise should be 116 and 143, instead of 114 and 137,
respectively; (2) daily maximum number of observed harbor seal and
California sea lion in the project vicinity should be 13 and 47,
respectively. This would result the estimated Level A and Level B takes
of harbor seals to be 364 and 715, respectively; the estimated Level B
take of California sea lion to be 3,901; and (3) The most recent harbor
porpoise density of 0.69 animal/square kilometer (km\2\) from Jefferson
et al. (2016) should be used to calculate harbor porpoise takes.
Response: NMFS agrees with the Commission's assessment and made
corrections to these errors. Specifically, (1) The estimated Level B
takes of Steller sea lion and Dall's porpoise are corrected to 116 and
143, respectively; (2) Used corrected daily maximum number of observed
harbor seal and California sea lions to calculate estimated takes,
which resulted Level A and Level B takes of harbor seals to be 364 and
715 animals, respectively; and Level B take of California sea lion to
be 3,901 animals; and (3) The most recent harbor porpoise density of
0.69 animal/km\2\ from Jefferson et al. (2016) was used to correct
harbor porpoise takes, which result estimated 233 Level A and 2,056
Level B takes. All these corrections are included in this document in
the Estimated Takes section. The increased takes do not affect our
initial analysis of negligible impact determination and small number
conclusion as discussed later in this document.
Comment 2: The Commission states that it is concerned regarding
NMFS appropriateness of the manner in which Level A harassment zones
are estimated. The Commission points out that for impact driving of 30-
and 36-in piles using three hammers concurrently, the Level A
harassment zones for both low- and high-frequency cetaceans were
estimated to be much greater (1.85 and 2.84 km, respectively) than the
Level B harassment zone (1.20 km). The Commission recommends that NMFS
consult with both internal and external scientists and acousticians to
determine the relevant accumulation time that could result Level A
harassment based on associated permanent threshold shift (PTS) from
cumulative sound exposure levels (SELcum).
Response: NMFS understands the Commission's concern and is
continuing working to improve Level A harassment zone estimation based
on realistic noise propagation models and energy accumulation scheme.
At current, Level A harassment zones are based on exposure of
SELcum over a period of one working day's pile driving
duration or instantaneous peak sound pressure level (SPL), while Level
B harassment zones are based on instantaneous root-mean-squared SPL
that contains 90 percent of acoustic energy. The difference in the
metrics between SEL and SPL in assessing Level A and Level B
harassments is the notion that prolonged exposure of intense noise
could lead to PTS if the animal chooses to stay within the injury zone.
The process of impact assessments will continue to evolve as more
scientific data become available.
Description of Marine Mammals in the Area of Specified Activities
The marine mammal species under NMFS jurisdiction that have the
potential to occur in the proposed construction area include Pacific
harbor seal (Phoca vitulina), California sea lion (Zalophus
californianus), northern elephant seal (Mirounga angustirostris),
Steller sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus), killer whale (Orcinus orca),
long-beaked common dolphin (Delphis capensis), gray whale (Eschrichtius
robustus), humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae), minke whale
(Balaenoptera acutorostrata), harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena), and
Dall's porpoise (P. dalli). A list of marine mammals that have the
potential to occur in the vicinity of the action and their legal status
under the MMPA and ESA are provided in Table 2. Among these species,
northern elephant seal, minke whale, and long-beaked common dolphin are
extralimital in the proposed project area. NMFS does not consider take
is likely to occur for these species. Therefore, these species are not
discussed further in this document.
[[Page 31582]]
Table 2--Marine Mammal Species Potentially Present in Region of Activity
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Species ESA status MMPA status Occurrence Abundance
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Harbor Seal...................... Not listed......... Non-depleted....... Frequent........... Unk
California Sea Lion.............. Not listed......... Non-depleted....... Frequent........... 296,750
Northern Elephant Seal........... Not listed......... Non-depleted....... Extralimital....... 179,000
Steller Sea Lion (eastern DPS)... Not listed......... Non-depleted....... Rare............... 71,256
Harbor Porpoise.................. Not listed......... Non-depleted....... Frequent........... 11,233
Dall's Porpoise.................. Not listed......... Non-depleted....... Occasional......... 25,750
Killer Whale (Southern Resident). Endangered......... Depleted........... Occasional......... 78
Killer Whale (West Coast Not listed......... Non-depleted....... Occasional......... 243
transient).
Long-beaked Common Dolphin....... Not listed......... Non-depleted....... Extralimital....... 101,305
Gray Whale....................... Not listed......... Non-depleted....... Occasional......... 20,990
Humpback Whale................... Endangered......... Depleted........... Rare............... 1,918
Minke Whale...................... Not listed......... Non-depleted....... Extralimital....... 636
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General information on the marine mammal species found in
Washington coastal waters can be found in Caretta et al. (2016), which
is available online at: https://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/sars/pdf/pacific2015_final.pdf. Refer to that document for information on these
species. Specific information concerning these species in the vicinity
of the proposed action area is provided in detail in the WSDOT's IHA
application and in the Federal Register notice for the proposed IHA (82
FR 15497; March 29, 2017).
Potential Effects of Specified Activities on Marine Mammals and Their
Habitat
This section includes a summary and discussion of the ways that
components of the specified activity may impact marine mammals and
their habitat. The ``Estimated Take'' section later in this document
will include a quantitative analysis of the number of individuals that
are expected to be taken by this activity. The ``Negligible Impact
Analyses and Determination'' section will consider the content of this
section, the ``Estimated Take by Incidental Harassment'' section, and
the ``Mitigation'' section, to draw conclusions regarding the likely
impacts of these activities on the reproductive success or survivorship
of individuals and how those impacts on individuals are likely to
impact marine mammal species or stocks.
When considering the influence of various kinds of sound on the
marine environment, it is necessary to understand that different kinds
of marine life are sensitive to different frequencies of sound. Based
on available behavioral data, audiograms derived using auditory evoked
potentials, anatomical modeling, and other data, NMFS (2016) designated
five ``marine mammal hearing groups'' for marine mammals and estimate
the lower and upper frequencies of hearing of the groups. The marine
mammal groups and the associated frequencies are indicated below
(though animals are less sensitive to sounds at the outer edge of their
functional range and most sensitive to sounds of frequencies within a
smaller range somewhere in the middle of their hearing range):
Low frequency cetaceans (13 species of mysticetes):
Functional hearing is estimated to occur between approximately 7 hertz
(Hz) and 35 kilohertz (kHz);
Mid-frequency cetaceans (32 species of dolphins, seven
species of larger toothed whales, and 19 species of beaked and
bottlenose whales): Functional hearing is estimated to occur between
approximately 150 Hz and 160 kHz;
High frequency cetaceans (eight species of true porpoises,
seven species of river dolphins, Kogia, the franciscana, and four
species of cephalorhynchids): Functional hearing is estimated to occur
between approximately 275 Hz and 160 kHz;
Phocid pinnipeds in Water: Functional hearing is estimated
to occur between approximately 50 Hz and 86 kHz; and
Otariid pinnipeds in Water: Functional hearing is
estimated to occur between approximately 60 Hz and 39 kHz.
As mentioned previously in this document, eight marine mammal
species (five cetacean and three pinniped species) are likely to occur
in the vicinity of the Seattle pile driving/removal area. Of the five
cetacean species, two belong to the low-frequency cetacean group (gray
and humpback whales), one is a mid-frequency cetacean (killer whale),
and two high-frequency cetacean (harbor and Dall's porpoises). One
species of pinniped is phocid (harbor seal), and two species of
pinniped are otariid (California and Steller sea lions). A species'
functional hearing group is a consideration when we analyze the effects
of exposure to sound on marine mammals.
The WSDOT's Seattle Colman ferry terminal construction work using
in-water pile driving and pile removal could adversely affect marine
mammal species and stocks by exposing them to elevated noise levels in
the vicinity of the activity area.
Exposure to high intensity sound for a sufficient duration may
result in auditory effects such as a noise-induced threshold shift--an
increase in the auditory threshold after exposure to noise (Finneran et
al., 2005). Factors that influence the amount of threshold shift
include the amplitude, duration, frequency content, temporal pattern,
and energy distribution of noise exposure. The magnitude of hearing
threshold shift normally decreases over time following cessation of the
noise exposure. The amount of threshold shift just after exposure is
the initial threshold shift. If the threshold shift eventually returns
to zero (i.e., the threshold returns to the pre-exposure value), it is
a temporary threshold shift (TTS) (Southall et al., 2007).
Threshold Shift (noise-induced loss of hearing)--When animals
exhibit reduced hearing sensitivity (i.e., sounds must be louder for an
animal to detect them) following exposure to an intense sound or sound
for long duration, it is referred to as a noise-induced threshold shift
(TS). An animal can experience TTS or permanent threshold shift (PTS).
TTS can last from minutes or hours to days (i.e., there is complete
recovery), can occur in specific frequency ranges (i.e., an animal
might only have a temporary loss of hearing sensitivity between the
frequencies of 1 and 10 kHz), and can be of varying amounts (for
example, an animal's hearing sensitivity might be reduced initially by
only 6 decibel (dB) or reduced by 30 dB). PTS is permanent, but some
recovery is possible. PTS can also occur in a specific frequency range
and amount as mentioned above for TTS.
For cetaceans, published data are limited to the captive bottlenose
[[Page 31583]]
dolphin, beluga, harbor porpoise, and Yangtze finless porpoise
(Finneran et al., 2000, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2010a, 2010b; Finneran
and Schlundt, 2010; Lucke et al., 2009; Mooney et al., 2009a, 2009b;
Popov et al., 2011a, 2011b; Kastelein et al., 2012a; Schlundt et al.,
2000; Nachtigall et al., 2003, 2004). For pinnipeds in water, data are
limited to measurements of TTS in harbor seals, an elephant seal, and
California sea lions (Kastak et al., 1999, 2005; Kastelein et al.,
2012b).
Lucke et al. (2009) found a TS of a harbor porpoise after exposing
it to airgun noise with a received sound pressure level (SPL) at 200.2
dB (peak-to-peak) re: 1 micropascal ([mu]Pa), which corresponds to a
sound exposure level of 164.5 dB re: 1 [mu]Pa\2\ s after integrating
exposure. NMFS currently uses the root-mean-square (rms) of received
SPL at 180 dB and 190 dB re: 1 [mu]Pa as the threshold above which PTS
could occur for cetaceans and pinnipeds, respectively. Because the
airgun noise is a broadband impulse, one cannot directly determine the
equivalent of rms SPL from the reported peak-to-peak SPLs. However,
applying a conservative conversion factor of 16 dB for broadband
signals from seismic surveys (McCauley, et al., 2000) to correct for
the difference between peak-to-peak levels reported in Lucke et al.
(2009) and rms SPLs, the rms SPL for TTS would be approximately 184 dB
re: 1 [mu]Pa, and the received levels associated with PTS (Level A
harassment) would be higher. However, NMFS recognizes that TTS of
harbor porpoises is lower than other cetacean species empirically
tested (Finneran & Schlundt 2010; Finneran et al., 2002; Kastelein and
Jennings 2012).
Marine mammal hearing plays a critical role in communication with
conspecifics, and interpretation of environmental cues for purposes
such as predator avoidance and prey capture. Depending on the degree
(elevation of threshold in dB), duration (i.e., recovery time), and
frequency range of TTS, and the context in which it is experienced, TTS
can have effects on marine mammals ranging from discountable to serious
(similar to those discussed in auditory masking, below). For example, a
marine mammal may be able to readily compensate for a brief, relatively
small amount of TTS in a non-critical frequency range that occurs
during a time where ambient noise is lower and there are not as many
competing sounds present. Alternatively, a larger amount and longer
duration of TTS sustained during time when communication is critical
for successful mother/calf interactions could have more serious
impacts. Also, depending on the degree and frequency range, the effects
of PTS on an animal could range in severity, although it is considered
generally more serious because it is a permanent condition. Of note,
reduced hearing sensitivity as a simple function of aging has been
observed in marine mammals, as well as humans and other taxa (Southall
et al., 2007), so one can infer that strategies exist for coping with
this condition to some degree, though likely not without cost.
In addition, chronic exposure to excessive, though not high-
intensity, noise could cause masking at particular frequencies for
marine mammals that utilize sound for vital biological functions (Clark
et al., 2009). Acoustic masking is when other noises such as from human
sources interfere with animal detection of acoustic signals such as
communication calls, echolocation sounds, and environmental sounds
important to marine mammals. Therefore, under certain circumstances,
marine mammals whose acoustical sensors or environment are being
severely masked could also be impaired from maximizing their
performance fitness in survival and reproduction.
Masking occurs at the frequency band that the animals utilize.
Therefore, since noise generated from vibratory pile driving activity
is mostly concentrated at low frequency ranges, it may have less effect
on high frequency echolocation sounds by odontocetes (toothed whales).
However, lower frequency man-made noises are more likely to affect
detection of communication calls and other potentially important
natural sounds such as surf and prey noise. It may also affect
communication signals when they occur near the noise band and thus
reduce the communication space of animals (e.g., Clark et al., 2009)
and cause increased stress levels (e.g., Foote et al., 2004; Holt et
al., 2009).
Unlike TS, masking, which can occur over large temporal and spatial
scales, can potentially affect the species at population, community, or
even ecosystem levels, as well as individual levels. Masking affects
both senders and receivers of the signals and could have long-term
chronic effects on marine mammal species and populations. Recent
science suggests that low frequency ambient sound levels have increased
by as much as 20 dB (more than three times in terms of SPL) in the
world's ocean from pre-industrial periods, and most of these increases
are from distant shipping (Hildebrand 2009). For WSDOT's Seattle Colman
Ferry Terminal construction activities, noises from vibratory pile
driving and pile removal contribute to the elevated ambient noise
levels in the project area, thus increasing potential for or severity
of masking. Baseline ambient noise levels in the vicinity of project
area are high due to ongoing shipping, construction and other
activities in the Puget Sound.
Finally, marine mammals' exposure to certain sounds could lead to
behavioral disturbance (Richardson et al., 1995), such as: Changing
durations of surfacing and dives, number of blows per surfacing, or
moving direction and/or speed; reduced/increased vocal activities;
changing/cessation of certain behavioral activities (such as
socializing or feeding); visible startle response or aggressive
behavior (such as tail/fluke slapping or jaw clapping); avoidance of
areas where noise sources are located; and/or flight responses (e.g.,
pinnipeds flushing into water from haulouts or rookeries).
The onset of behavioral disturbance from anthropogenic noise
depends on both external factors (characteristics of noise sources and
their paths) and the receiving animals (hearing, motivation,
experience, demography) and is also difficult to predict (Southall et
al., 2007). Currently NMFS uses a received level of 160 dB re 1 [mu]Pa
(rms) to predict the onset of behavioral harassment from impulse noises
(such as impact pile driving), and 120 dB re 1 [mu]Pa (rms) for
continuous noises (such as vibratory pile driving). For the WSDOT's
Seattle Colman Ferry Terminal construction activities, both of these
noise levels are considered for effects analysis because WSDOT plans to
use both impact and vibratory pile driving, as well as vibratory pile
removal.
The biological significance of many of these behavioral
disturbances is difficult to predict, especially if the detected
disturbances appear minor. However, the consequences of behavioral
modification could be biologically significant if the change affects
growth, survival, and/or reproduction, which depends on the severity,
duration, and context of the effects.
Potential Effects on Marine Mammal Habitat
The primary potential impacts to marine mammal habitat are
associated with elevated sound levels produced by pile driving and
removal associated with marine mammal prey species. However, other
potential impacts to the surrounding habitat from physical disturbance
are also possible. These potential effects are discussed below.
SPLs from impact pile driving have the potential to injure or kill
fish in the
[[Page 31584]]
immediate area. These few isolated fish mortality events are not
anticipated to have a substantial effect on prey species population or
their availability as a food resource for marine mammals.
Studies also suggest that larger fish are generally less
susceptible to death or injury than small fish. Moreover, elongated
forms that are round in cross section are less at risk than deep-bodied
forms. Orientation of fish relative to the shock wave may also affect
the extent of injury. Open water pelagic fish (e.g., mackerel) seem to
be less affected than reef fishes. The results of most studies are
dependent upon specific biological, environmental, explosive, and data
recording factors.
The huge variation in fish populations, including numbers, species,
sizes, and orientation and range from the detonation point, makes it
very difficult to accurately predict mortalities at any specific site
of detonation. Most fish species experience a large number of natural
mortalities, especially during early life-stages, and any small level
of mortality caused by the WSDOT's impact pile driving will likely be
insignificant to the population as a whole.
For non-impulsive sound such as that of vibratory pile driving,
experiments have shown that fish can sense both the strength and
direction of sound (Hawkins 1981). Primary factors determining whether
a fish can sense a sound signal, and potentially react to it, are the
frequency of the signal and the strength of the signal in relation to
the natural background noise level.
The level of sound at which a fish will react or alter its behavior
is usually well above the detection level. Fish have been found to
react to sounds when the sound level increased to about 20 dB above the
detection level of 120 dB (Ona 1988); however, the response threshold
can depend on the time of year and the fish's physiological condition
(Engas et al., 1993).
During construction activity at Colman Dock, only a small fraction
of the available habitat would be ensonified at any given time.
Disturbance to fish species would be short-term and fish would return
to their pre-disturbance behavior once the pile driving activity
ceases. Thus, the proposed construction would have little, if any,
impact on the abilities of marine mammals to feed in the area where
construction work is planned.
Finally, the time of the proposed construction activity would avoid
the spawning season of the ESA-listed salmonid species between March
and July.
Short-term turbidity is a water quality effect of most in-water
work, including pile driving.
Cetaceans are not expected to be close enough to the Colman
terminal to experience turbidity, and any pinnipeds will be transiting
the terminal area and could avoid localized areas of turbidity.
Therefore, the impact from increased turbidity levels is expected to be
discountable to marine mammals.
For these reasons, WSDOT's proposed Seattle Multimodal construction
at Colman Dock is not expected to have adverse effects to marine mammal
habitat in the area.
Estimated Take
This section includes an estimate of the number of incidental
``takes'' likely to occur pursuant to this IHA, which will inform both
NMFS' consideration of whether the number of takes is ``small'' and the
negligible impact determination.
Harassment is the only means of take expected to result from these
activities. Except with respect to certain activities not pertinent
here, the MMPA defines ``harassment'' as: Any act of pursuit, torment,
or annoyance which (i) has the potential to injure a marine mammal or
marine mammal stock in the wild (Level A harassment); or (ii) has the
potential to disturb a marine mammal or marine mammal stock in the wild
by causing disruption of behavioral patterns, including, but not
limited to, migration, breathing, nursing, breeding, feeding, or
sheltering (Level B harassment).
As described previously in the section Potential Effects of
Specified Activities on Marine Mammals and their Habitat, no incidental
take is anticipated to result from effects on prey species or as a
result of turbidity. Level B Harassment is expected to occur as
discussed below and is authorized in the numbers identified below.
As described below, a small number of takes by Level A Harassment
are authorized, as the calculation show that Level A takes could occur.
The death of a marine mammal is also a type of incidental take.
However, as described previously, no mortality is anticipated or
authorized to result from this activity.
Basis for Takes
Take estimates are based on average marine mammal density in the
project area multiplied by the area size of ensonified zones within
which received noise levels exceed certain thresholds (i.e., Level A
and/or Level B harassment) from specific activities, then multiplied by
the total number of days such activities would occur. Certain
adjustments were made for marine mammals whose local abundance are
known through long-term monitoring efforts. Therefore, their local
abundance data are used for take calculation instead of general animal
density (see below).
Basis for Threshold Calculation
As discussed above, in-water pile removal and pile driving
(vibratory and impact) generate loud noises that could potentially
harass marine mammals in the vicinity of WSDOT's proposed Seattle
Multimodal Project at Colman Dock.
Under the NMFS' Technical Guidance for Assessing the Effects of
Anthropogenic Sound on Marine Mammal Hearing (Guidance), dual criteria
are used to assess marine mammal auditory injury (Level A harassment)
as a result of noise exposure (NMFS 2016). The dual criteria under the
Guidance provide onset thresholds in instantaneous peak SPLs
(Lpk) as well as 24-hr cumulative sound exposure levels
(SELcum or LE) that could cause PTS to marine
mammals of different hearing groups. The peak SPL is the highest
positive value of the noise field, log transformed to dB in reference
to 1 [mu]Pa.
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN07JY17.000
where p(t) is acoustic pressure in pascal or micropascal, and
pref is reference acoustic pressure equal to 1 [mu]Pa.
The cumulative SEL is the total sound exposure over the entire
duration of a given day's pile driving activity, specifically, pile
driving occurring within a 24-hr period.
[[Page 31585]]
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN07JY17.001
where p(t) is acoustic pressure in pascal or micropascal,
pref is reference acoustic pressure equals to 1 [mu]Pa,
t1 marks the beginning of the time, and t2 the
end of time.
For onset of Level B harassment, NMFS continues to use the root-
mean-square (rms) sound pressure level (SPLrms) at 120 dB re
1 [mu]Pa and 160 dB re 1 [mu]Pa as the received levels from non-impulse
(vibratory pile driving and removal) and impulse sources (impact pile
driving) underwater, respectively. The SPLrms for pulses
(such as those from impact pile driving) should contain 90 percent of
the pulse energy, and is calculated by
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN07JY17.002
where p(t) is acoustic pressure in pascal or micropascal,
pref is reference acoustic pressure equals to 1 [mu]Pa,
t1 marks the beginning of the time, and t2 the
end of time. In the case of an impulse noise, t1 marks the
time of 5 percent of the total energy window, and t2 the
time of 95 percent of the total energy window.
Table 3 summarizes the current NMFS marine mammal take criteria.
Table 3--Current Acoustic Exposure Criteria for Non-Explosive Sound Underwater
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PTS onset thresholds Behavioral thresholds
Hearing group -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Impulsive Non-impulsive Impulsive Non-impulsive
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Low-Frequency (LF) Cetaceans.... Lpk,flat: 219 dB.. LE,LF,24h: 199 dB.
LE,LF,24h: 183 dB.
Mid-Frequency (MF) Cetaceans.... Lpk,flat: 230 dB.. LE,MF,24h: 198 dB.
LE,MF,24h: 185 dB.
High-Frequency (HF) Cetaceans... Lpk,flat: 202 dB.. LE,HF,24h: 173 dB. Lrms,flat: 160 dB. Lrms,flat: 120 dB.
LE,HF,24h: 155 dB.
Phocid Pinnipeds (PW)........... Lpk,flat: 218 dB.. LE,PW,24h: 201 dB.
(Underwater).................... LE,PW,24h: 185 dB.
Otariid Pinnipeds (OW).......... Lpk,flat: 232 dB.. LE,OW,24h: 219 dB.
(Underwater).................... LE,OW,24h: 203 dB.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Dual metric acoustic thresholds for impulsive sounds: Use whichever results in the largest isopleth for
calculating PTS onset. If a non-impulsive sound has the potential of exceeding the peak sound pressure level
thresholds associated with impulsive sounds, these thresholds should also be considered.
Note: Peak sound pressure (Lpk) has a reference value of 1 [mu]Pa, and cumulative sound exposure level (LE) has
a reference value of 1[mu]Pa2s. In this Table, thresholds are abbreviated to reflect American National
Standards Institute standards (ANSI 2013). However, peak sound pressure is defined by ANSI as incorporating
frequency weighting, which is not the intent for this Technical Guidance. Hence, the subscript ``flat'' is
being included to indicate peak sound pressure should be flat weighted or unweighted within the generalized
hearing range. The subscript associated with cumulative sound exposure level thresholds indicates the
designated marine mammal auditory weighting function (LF, MF, and HF cetaceans, and PW and OW pinnipeds) and
that the recommended accumulation period is 24 hours. The cumulative sound exposure level thresholds could be
exceeded in a multitude of ways (i.e., varying exposure levels and durations, duty cycle). When possible, it
is valuable for action proponents to indicate the conditions under which these acoustic thresholds will be
exceeded.
Sound Levels and Acoustic Modeling for the Proposed Construction
Activity
Source Levels
The project includes vibratory removal of 14-in timber piles,
vibratory driving and removal of 24-in steel piles, vibratory driving
of 30- and 36-in steel piles, and impact pile driving of 30- and 36-in
steel piles. In February of 2016, WSDOT conducted a test pile project
at Colman Dock in order to gather data to select the appropriate piles
for the project. The test pile project measured impact pile driving of
24- and 36-in steel piles. The measured results from the project are
used here to provide source levels for the prediction of isopleths
ensonified over thresholds for the Seattle project. The results show
that the SPLrms for impact pile driving of 36-in steel pile
is 189 dB re 1 [micro]Pa at 14 m from the pile (WSDOT 2016b). This
value is also used for impact driving of the 30-in steel piles, which
is a precautionary approach.
Source level of vibratory pile driving of 36-in steel piles is
based on test pile driving at Port Townsend in 2010 (Laughlin 2011).
Recordings of vibratory pile driving were made at a distance of 10 m
from the pile. The results show that the SPLrms for
vibratory pile driving of 36-in steel pile was 177 dB re 1 [micro]Pa
(WSDOT 2016a).
Up to three pile installation crews may be active during the day
within the project footprint. Each crew will use one vibratory and one
impact hammer, and it is possible that more than 1 hammer, up to 3
impact and/or vibratory hammers, could be conducted concurrently for
driving the 24-, 30-, and 36-in piles. Overlapping noise fields created
by multiple hammer use are handled differently for impact and vibratory
hammers. When more than one impact hammer is being used close
[[Page 31586]]
enough to another impact hammer, the cumulative acoustic energy is
accounted for by including all hammer strikes. When more than one
vibratory hammer is being used close enough to another vibratory hammer
to create overlapping noise fields, additional sound levels are added
to account for the overlap, creating a larger zone of influence (ZOI).
A simplified nomogram method (Kinsler et al., 2000) is proposed to
account for the addition of noise source levels for multiple vibratory
hammers, as shown in Table 4. Using this method, the source levels of
24-, 30-, and 36-in piles during vibratory pile driving are adjusted to
182 dB re 1 [micro]Pa (at 10 m).
Table 4--Multiple Sound Level Addition
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Add the
following to
When two sound levels differ by the higher
level (dB)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
0-1 dB.................................................. 3
2-3 dB.................................................. 2
4-9 dB.................................................. 1
>10 dB.................................................. 0
------------------------------------------------------------------------
For vibratory pile removal, vibratory pile driving data were used
as proxies because we conservatively consider noises from pile removal
would be the same as those from pile driving.
The source level of vibratory removal of 14-in timber piles were
based on measurements conducted at the Port Townsend Ferry Terminal
during vibratory removal of a 12-in timber pile by WSDOT (Laughlin
2011). The recorded source level is 152 dB re 1 [micro]Pa at 16 m from
the pile. In the absence of spectral data for timber pile vibratory
driving, the weighting factor adjustment (WFA) recommended by NMFS
acoustic guidance (NMFS 2016) was used to determine these zones.
These source levels are used to compute the Level A ensonified
zones and to estimate the Level B harassment zones. For Level A
harassment zones, zones calculated using cumulative SEL are all larger
than those calculated using SPLpeak, therefore, only zones
based on cumulative SEL for Level A harassment are used.
Estimating Injury Zones
Calculation and modeling of applicable ensonified zones are based
on source measurements of comparable types and sizes of piles driven by
different methods (impact vs. vibratory hammers) either during the
Colman test pile driving or at a different location within the Puget
Sound. As mentioned earlier, isopleths for injury zones are based on
cumulative SEL (LE) criteria.
For peak SPL (Lpk), distances to marine mammal injury
thresholds were calculated using a simple geometric spreading model
using a transmission loss coefficient of 15:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN07JY17.003
where SLMeasure is the measured source level in dB re 1 [micro]Pa, EL
is the specific received level of threshold, DMeasure is the distance
(m) from the source where measurements were taken, and R is the
distance (radius) of the isopleth to the source in meters.
For cumulative SEL (LE), distances to marine mammal exposure
thresholds were computed using spectral modeling that incorporates
frequency specific absorption. First, representative pile driving
sounds recorded during test pile driving with impact and vibratory
hammers were used to generate power spectral densities (PSDs), which
describe the distribution of power into frequency components composing
that sound, in 1-Hz bins. Parserval's theorem, which states that the
sum of the square of a function is equal to the sum of the square of
its transform, was applied to ensure that all energies within a strike
(for impact pile driving) or a given period of time (for vibratory pile
driving) were captured through the fast Fourier transform, an algorithm
that converts the signal from its original domain (in this case, time
series) to a representation in frequency domain. For impact pile
driving, broadband PSDs were generated from SPLrms time
series of a total of 270 strikes with a time window that contains 90
percent of pulse energy. For vibratory pile driving, broadband PSDs
were generated from a series of continuous 1-second SEL. Broadband PSDs
were then adjusted based on weighting functions of marine mammal
hearing groups (Finneran 2016) by using the weighting function as a
band-pass filter. For impact pile driving, cumulative exposures (Esum)
were computed by multiplying the single rms pressure squared by rms
pulse duration for the specific strike, then by the number of strikes
(provided in Table 1) required to drive one pile, then by the number of
piles to be driven in a given day, as shown in the equation below:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN07JY17.004
where prms,i is the rms pressure, [tau] is the rms pulse duration for
the specific strike, Ns is the anticipated number of strikes (provided
in Table 1) needed to install one pile, and N is the number of total
piles to be installed.
For vibratory pile driving, cumulative exposures were computed by
summing 1-second noise exposure by the duration needed to drive on pile
(provided in Table 1), then by the number of piles to be driven in a
given day, as shown in the equation below:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN07JY17.005
[[Page 31587]]
where E1s is the 1-second noise exposure, and [Delta]t is
the duration (provided in Table 1) need to install 1 pile by vibratory
piling.
Frequency-specific transmission losses, TL(f), were then computed
using practical spreading along with frequency-specific absorption
coefficients that were computed with nominal seawater properties (i.e.,
salinity = 35 psu, pH = 8.0) at 15[deg]C at the surface by
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN07JY17.006
where a(f) is dB/km, and R is the distance (radius) of the specific
isopleth to the source in meters. For broadband sources such as those
from pile driving, the transmission loss is the summation of the
frequency-specific results.
Approach to Estimate Behavioral Zones
As mentioned earlier, isopleths to Level B behavioral zones are
based on root-mean-square SPL (SPLrms) that are specific for
impulse (impact pile driving) and non-impulse (vibratory pile driving)
sources. Distances to marine mammal behavior thresholds were calculated
using a simple geometric spreading equation as shown in Equation (4).
For Level B harassment zones from vibratory pile driving of 30-in
and 36-in piles, the ensonified zones are calculated based on practical
spreading of back-calculated source level of 36-in pile driving
adjusted for 3 hammers operating concurrently by adding 5 dB. The
results show that the 120 dB re 1 [micro]Pa isopleth is at 13.6 km. For
Level B harassment zone from vibratory pile driving of 24-in and 36-in
piles, WSDOT conducted site measurements during Seattle test pile
driving project using 24-in and 36-in steel piles. The results show
that underwater noise cannot be detected at a distance of 5 km (3 mi)
and 6.88 km (4.3 mi) for the 24-in and 36-in steel piles, respectively.
Since this measurement was based on pile driving using 1 hammer, the
Level B harassment zone for 24- and 36-in steel pile is adjusted by
factoring in a 5 dB difference (see above) using the following
equation, based on the inverse law of acoustic propagation (i.e., dB
difference in transmission loss is the inverse of distance difference
in logarithm):
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN07JY17.007
where dBdifference is the 5 dB difference, R3-hammer is the
distance from the pile where piling noise is no longer audible, and
R1-hammer is the measured distance from the pile where
piling noise is no longer audible, which is 5 km for the 24-in steel
pile and 6.88 km for the 36-in steel pile.
The result show that when using 3 vibratory hammers concurrently,
the distance from the pile to where pile noise is no longer audible is
11 km for the 24-in steel pile and 14.8 km for the 36-in steel pile.
Since the landmass intercepts the water at 13.6 km, this distance is
used as the Level B harassment distance for the 36-in steel pile.
A summary of the measured and modeled harassment zones is provided
in Table 5.
Table 5--Distances to Harassment Zones
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Injury zone (m)
Pile type, size & pile driving method -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Behavior zone
LF cetacean MF cetacean HF cetacean Phocid Otariid (m)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Vibratory 14'' timber................................... 8 0.7 11.9 4.9 0.3 2,175
Vibratory 24'' steel.................................... 255 65 1,365 115 10 11,000
Vibratory 30'' & 36'' steel............................. 285 65 1,455 125 10 13,600
Impact 30'' & 36'' steel................................ 1,845 75 2,835 465 35 1,200
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Estimated Takes From Proposed Construction Activity
Incidental take is estimated for each species by estimating the
likelihood of a marine mammal being present within a Level A or Level B
harassment zone during active pile driving or removal. The Level A
calculation includes a duration component, along with an assumption
(which can lead to overestimates in some cases) that animals within the
zone stay in that area for the whole duration of the pile driving
activity within a day. For all marine mammal species except harbor
seals and California sea lions, estimated takes are calculated based on
ensonified area for a specific pile driving activity multiplied by the
marine mammal density in the action area, multiplied by the number of
pile driving (or removal) days. Marine mammal density data for all
animals except harbor porpoise are from the U.S. Navy Marine Species
Density Database (Navy 2015). Harbor porpoise density is based on a
recent study by Jefferson et al. (2016) for the Seattle area near the
Colman Dock. Harbor seal and California sea lion takes are based on
observations near Seattle, since these data provide the best
information on distribution and presence of these species that are
often associated with nearby haulouts (see below). A summary of marine
mammal density, days and Level A and Level B harassment areas from
different pile driving and removal activities is provided in Table 6.
[[Page 31588]]
Table 6--Summary of Marine Mammal Density, Days and Level A and Level B Ensonified Areas From Different Pile Driving and Removal Activities
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Density (km- Vibratory 14- Vibratory 24- Vibratory 30- Vibratory 36- Impact 30-in Impact 36-in
Species 2) in timber in steel in steel in steel steel steel
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Days .............. 11 15 3 26 2 26
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Level A Areas (m\2\)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pacific harbor seal..................... 1.219000 50 41,548 49,087 49,087 394,075 394,075
California sea lion..................... 0.12660 0.126 314 314 314 3,849 3,849
Steller sea lion........................ 0.036800 0.126 314 314 314 3,849 3,849
Killer whale, transient................. 0.002373 50 13,273 13,273 13,273 17,672 17,672
Killer whale, Southern Resident......... 0.020240 50 13,273 13,273 13,273 17,672 17,672
Gray whale.............................. 0.000510 154 153,311 189,384 189,384 4,129,836 4,129,836
Humpback whale.......................... 0.00070 154 153,311 189,384 189,384 4,129,836 4,129,836
Harbor porpoise......................... 0.156000 13,273 2,547,906 2,678,940 2,678,940 8,190,639 8,190,639
Dall's porpoise......................... 0.047976 13,273 2,547,906 2,678,940 2,678,940 8,190,639 8,190,639
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Level B Areas (m\2\)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pacific harbor seal..................... 1.219000 5,419,792 58,338,838 74,290,934 74,290,934 1,926,124 1,926,124
California sea lion..................... 0.12660 5,419,792 58,338,838 74,290,934 74,290,934 1,926,124 1,926,124
Steller sea lion........................ 0.036800 5,419,792 58,338,838 74,290,934 74,290,934 1,926,124 1,926,124
Killer whale, transient................. 0.020240 5,419,792 58,338,838 74,290,934 74,290,934 1,926,124 1,926,124
Killer whale, Southern Resident......... 0.002373 5,419,792 58,338,838 74,290,934 74,290,934 1,926,124 1,926,124
Gray whale.............................. 0.000510 5,419,792 58,338,838 74,290,934 74,290,934 1,926,124 1,926,124
Humpback whale.......................... 0.00070 5,419,792 58,338,838 74,290,934 74,290,934 1,926,124 1,926,124
Harbor porpoise......................... 0.69 5,419,792 58,338,838 74,290,934 74,290,934 1,926,124 1,926,124
Dall's porpoise......................... 0.047976 5,419,792 58,338,838 74,290,934 74,290,934 1,926,124 1,926,124
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Level A take total was further adjusted by subtracting animals
expected to occur within the exclusion zone, where pile driving
activities are suspended when an animal is observed in or approaching
the zone (see Mitigation section). Further, the number of Level B takes
was adjusted to exclude those already counted for Level A takes.
The harbor seal take estimate is based on local seal abundance
information off the Seattle area from WSDOT's Seattle Colman test pile
project in 2016. Marine mammal visual monitoring during the 10-day
period of the project indicates that a maximum of 13 harbor seals were
observed in the general area of the Colman Dock project (WSDOT 2012).
Based on a total of 83 pile-driving days for the WSDOT Seattle Colman
Dock project, it is estimated that up to 1,079 harbor seals could be
exposed to noise levels associated with ``take.'' Since 28 days would
involve impact pile driving of 30-in and 36-in steel piles with Level A
zones beyond shutdown zones (465 m vs 160 m shutdown zone), we consider
that 364 harbor seals exposed during these 28 days would experience
Level A harassment.
The California sea lion take estimate is based on local sea lion
abundance information from the Seattle's Elliott Bay Sea Wall Project
(City of Seattle 2014). Marine mammal visual monitoring during the Sea
Wall Project indicates that up to 47 sea lions were observed in the
general area of the Colman Dock project at any given time (City of
Seattle 2014). Based on a total of 83 pile driving days for the WSDOT
Seattle Colman Dock project, it is estimated that up to 3,901
California sea lions could be exposed to noise levels associated with
``take''. Since the Level A zones of otariids are all very small (<35m,
Table 5), we do not consider it likely that any sea lions would be
taken by Level A harassment. Therefore, all California sea lion takes
estimated here are expected to be taken by Level B harassment.
A summary of estimated marine mammal takes is listed in Table 7.
Table 7--Estimated Numbers of Marine Mammals That May Be Exposed to Received Noise Levels That Cause Level A or
Level B Harassment
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Estimated Estimated Estimated
Species Level A take Level B take total take Abundance Percentage
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pacific harbor seal............. 364 715 1,079 11,036 9.77
California sea lion............. 0 3,901 3,901 296,750 1.31
Steller sea lion................ 0 116 116 71,562 0.16
Killer whale, transient......... 0 7 7 243 3
Killer whale, Southern Resident. 0 0 0 78 0
Gray whale...................... 1 15 16 20,990 0.08
Humpback whale.................. 0 0 0 1,918 0
Harbor porpoise................. 233 2,056 2,289 11,233 20.37
Dall's porpoise................. 16 137 153 25,750 0.59
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[[Page 31589]]
Mitigation
Under section 101(a)(5)(D) of the MMPA, NMFS shall prescribe the
``permissible methods of taking by harassment pursuant to such
activity, and other means of effecting the least practicable impact on
such species or stock and its habitat, paying particular attention to
rookeries, mating grounds, and areas of similar significance, and on
the availability of such species or stock for taking for subsistence
uses.''
To ensure that the ``least practicable adverse impact'' will be
achieved, NMFS evaluates mitigation measures in consideration of the
following factors in relation to one another: The manner in which, and
the degree to which, the successful implementation of the measure(s) is
expected to reduce impacts to marine mammals, marine mammal species or
stocks, their habitat, and their availability for subsistence uses
(latter where relevant); the proven or likely efficacy of the measures;
and the practicability of the measures for applicant implementation.
For WSDOT's proposed Seattle Multimodal Project at Colman Dock,
WSDOT worked with NMFS and prescribed the following mitigation measures
to minimize the potential impacts to marine mammals in the project
vicinity. The primary purposes of these mitigation measures are to
minimize sound levels from the activities, to monitor marine mammals
within designated ZOIs and exclusion zones corresponding to NMFS'
current Level B and Level A harassment thresholds and, to implement
shut-down measures for certain marine mammal species when they are
detected approaching the exclusion zones or actual take numbers are
approaching the authorized take numbers.
Time Restriction
Work would occur only during daylight hours, when visual monitoring
of marine mammals can be conducted. In addition, all in-water
construction will be limited to the period between August 1, 2017, and
February 15, 2018.
Use of Noise Attenuation Devices
To reduce impact on marine mammals, WSDOT shall use a marine pile
driving energy attenuator (i.e., air bubble curtain system), or other
equally effective sound attenuation method (e.g., dewatered cofferdam)
for all impact pile driving.
Establishing and Monitoring Level A, Level B Harassment Zones, and
Exclusion Zones
Before the commencement of in-water construction activities, which
include impact pile driving and vibratory pile driving and pile
removal, WSDOT shall establish Level A harassment zones where received
underwater SPLs or SELcum could cause PTS (see above).
WSDOT shall also establish Level B harassment zones where received
underwater SPLs are higher than 160 dBrms and 120
dBrms re 1 [mu]Pa for impulse noise sources (impact pile
driving) and non-impulses noise sources (vibratory pile driving and
pile removal), respectively.
WSDOT shall establish a maximum 160-m Level A exclusion zone for
all marine mammals. For Level A harassment zones that are smaller than
160 m from the source, WSDOT shall establish exclusion zones that
correspond to the estimated Level A harassment distances, but shall not
be less than 10 m.
A summary of exclusion zones is provided in Tables 8a and 8b.
Table 8a--Exclusion Zones for Various Pile Driving Activities and Marine Mammal Hearing Groups (for Non-ESA-
Listed Species)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Exclusion zone (m)
Pile type, size & pile driving -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
method LF cetacean MF cetacean HF cetacean Phocid Otariid
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
14'' timber pile, vibratory..... 10 10 12 10 10
24'' steel pile, vibratory...... 255 65 160 115 10
30'' & 36'' steel pile, 285 65 160 125 10
vibratory......................
30'' & 36'' steel pile, impact.. 500 75 160 160 35
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Table 8b--Exclusion Zones for Various Pile Driving Activities and ESA-
Listed Marine Mammal Species
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Exclusion zone (m)
-------------------------------
Pile type, size & pile driving method Southern
Humpback whale resident
killer whale
------------------------------------------------------------------------
14'' timber pile, vibratory............. 2,175 2,175
24'' steel pile, vibratory.............. 11,000 11,000
30'' & 36'' steel pile, vibratory....... 13,600 13,600
30'' & 36'' steel pile, impact.......... 1,845 1,200
------------------------------------------------------------------------
NMFS-approved protected species observers (PSO) shall conduct an
initial survey of the exclusion zones to ensure that no marine mammals
are seen within the zones before impact pile driving of a pile segment
begins. If marine mammals are found within the exclusion zone, pile
driving of the segment will be delayed until they move out of the area.
If a marine mammal is seen above water and then dives below, the
contractor will wait 30 minutes. If no marine mammals are seen by the
observer in that time it can be assumed that the animal has moved
beyond the exclusion zone.
If pile driving of a segment ceases for 30 minutes or more and a
marine mammal is sighted within the designated exclusion zone prior to
commencement of pile driving, the observer(s) must notify the pile
driving operator (or other authorized individual) immediately and
continue to monitor the exclusion zone. Operations may not resume until
the marine mammal has exited the exclusion zone or 30 minutes have
elapsed since the last sighting.
[[Page 31590]]
Soft Start
A ``soft-start'' technique is intended to allow marine mammals to
vacate the area before the impact pile driver reaches full power.
Whenever there has been downtime of 30 minutes or more without impact
pile driving, the contractor will initiate the driving with ramp-up
procedures described below.
Soft start for impact hammers requires contractors to provide an
initial set of three strikes from the impact hammer at 40 percent
energy, followed by a 1-minute waiting period, then two subsequent
three-strike sets. Each day, WSDOT will use the soft-start technique at
the beginning of impact pile driving, or if pile driving has ceased for
more than 30 minutes.
Shutdown Measures
WSDOT shall implement shutdown measures if a marine mammal is
detected within an exclusion zone or is about to enter an exclusion
zone listed in Tables 8a and 8b.
WSDOT shall also implement shutdown measures if southern resident
killer whales or humpback whales are sighted within the vicinity of the
project area and are approaching the Level B harassment zone (ZOI)
during in-water construction activities.
If a killer whale approaches the ZOI during pile driving or
removal, and it is unknown whether it is a Southern Resident killer
whale or a transient killer whale, it shall be assumed to be a Southern
Resident killer whale and WSDOT shall implement the shutdown measure.
If a Southern Resident killer whale, an unidentified killer whale,
or a humpback whale enters the ZOI undetected, in-water pile driving or
pile removal shall be suspended until the whale exits the ZOI to avoid
further Level B harassment.
Further, WSDOT shall implement shutdown measures if the number of
authorized takes for any particular species reaches the limit under the
IHA and if such marine mammals are sighted within the vicinity of the
project area and are approaching the Level B harassment zone during in-
water construction activities.
Coordination With Local Marine Mammal Research Network
Prior to the start of pile driving for the day, the Orca Network
and/or Center for Whale Research will be contacted by WSDOT to find out
the location of the nearest marine mammal sightings. The Orca Sightings
Network consists of a list of over 600 (and growing) residents,
scientists, and government agency personnel in the U.S. and Canada.
Sightings are called or emailed into the Orca Network and immediately
distributed to other sighting networks including: The NMFS Northwest
Fisheries Science Center, the Center for Whale Research, Cascadia
Research, the Whale Museum Hotline and the British Columbia Sightings
Network.
Sightings information collected by the Orca Network includes
detection by hydrophone. The SeaSound Remote Sensing Network is a
system of interconnected hydrophones installed in the marine
environment of Haro Strait (west side of San Juan Island) to study orca
communication, in-water noise, bottom fish ecology and local climatic
conditions. A hydrophone at the Port Townsend Marine Science Center
measures average in-water sound levels and automatically detects
unusual sounds. These passive acoustic devices allow researchers to
hear when different marine mammals come into the region. This acoustic
network, combined with the volunteer (incidental) visual sighting
network allows researchers to document presence and location of various
marine mammal species.
With this level of coordination in the region of activity, WSDOT
will be able to get real-time information on the presence or absence of
whales before starting any pile driving.
Based on our evaluation of the mitigation measures described above,
NMFS has determined that the prescribed mitigation measures provide the
means effecting the least practicable adverse impact on the affected
species or stocks and their habitat, paying particular attention to
rookeries, mating grounds, and areas of similar significance.
Monitoring and Reporting
In order to issue an IHA for an activity, Section 101(a)(5)(D) of
the MMPA states that NMFS must set forth, requirements pertaining to
the monitoring and reporting of such taking. The MMPA implementing
regulations at 50 CFR 216.104(a)(13) indicate that requests for
authorizations must include the suggested means of accomplishing the
necessary monitoring and reporting that will result in increased
knowledge of the species and of the level of taking or impacts on
populations of marine mammals that are expected to be present in the
proposed action area. Effective reporting is critical to both
compliance and ensuring that the most value is obtained from the
required monitoring.
Monitoring and reporting requirements prescribed by NMFS should
contribute to improved understanding of one or more of the following:
Occurrence of marine mammal species or stocks in the
action area (e.g., presence, abundance, distribution, density);
Nature, scope, or context of likely marine mammal exposure
to potential stressors/impacts (individual or cumulative, acute or
chronic), through better understanding of: (1) Action or environment
(e.g., source characterization, propagation, ambient noise); (2)
affected species (e.g., life history, dive patterns); (3) co-occurrence
of marine mammal species with the action; or (4) biological or
behavioral context of exposure (e.g., age, calving or feeding areas);
Individual marine mammal responses (behavioral or
physiological) to acoustic stressors (acute, chronic, or cumulative),
other stressors, or cumulative impacts from multiple stressors;
How anticipated responses to stressors impact either: (1)
Long-term fitness and survival of individual marine mammals; or (2)
populations, species, or stocks;
Effects on marine mammal habitat (e.g., marine mammal prey
species, acoustic habitat, or other important physical components of
marine mammal habitat); and
Mitigation and monitoring effectiveness.
Monitoring Measures
WSDOT shall employ NMFS-approved PSOs to conduct marine mammal
monitoring for its Seattle Multimodal Project. The PSOs will observe
and collect data on marine mammals in and around the project area for
30 minutes before, during, and for 30 minutes after all pile removal
and pile installation work. NMFS-approved PSOs shall meet the following
requirements:
1. Independent observers (i.e., not construction personnel) are
required;
2. At least one observer must have prior experience working as an
observer;
3. Other observers may substitute education (undergraduate degree
in biological science or related field) or training for experience;
4. Where a team of three or more observers are required, one
observer should be designated as lead observer or monitoring
coordinator. The lead observer must have prior experience working as an
observer; and
5. NMFS will require submission and approval of observer CVs.
Monitoring of marine mammals around the construction site shall be
[[Page 31591]]
conducted using high-quality binoculars (e.g., Zeiss, 10 x 42 power).
Due to the different sizes of ZOIs from different pile sizes, several
different ZOIs and different monitoring protocols corresponding to a
specific pile size will be established.
During 14-in timber pile removal, two land-based PSOs will
monitor the exclusion zones and Level B harassment zone.
During impact pile driving of 30-in and 36-in steel piles,
4 land-based PSOs will monitor the Level A and Level B harassment
zones.
During vibratory pile driving of 24-in, 30-in, and 36-in
steel piles, 5 land-based PSOs and two vessel-based PSOs on ferries
will monitor the Level A and Level B harassment zones.
If the sound source verification (SSV) measurements show
that Level B harassment distance for the vibratory pile driving of 24-
in, 30-in, and 36-in steel piles is less than 10 km, monitoring efforts
listed above can be reduced to 4 land-based PSOs and one vessel-based
PSO on a ferry.
If the sound source verification (SSV) measurements show
that Level B harassment distance for the vibratory pile driving of 24-
in, 30-in, and 36-in steel piles is less than 10 km, 4 land-based PSOs
and one vessel-based PSO on a ferry will monitor the Level A and level
B harassment zones.
Locations of the land-based PSOs and routes of monitoring vessels
are shown in WSDOT's Marine Mammal Monitoring Plan, which is available
online at www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/permits/incidental/construction.htm.
To verify the required monitoring distance, the exclusion zones and
ZOIs will be determined by using a range finder or hand-held global
positioning system device.
In addition, WSDOT shall conduct SSV measurements when conduction
vibratory pile driving of 24-in, 30-in, and 36-in steel piles using
more than one hammer.
Reporting Measures
WSDOT will be required to submit a draft monitoring report within
90 days after completion of the construction work or the expiration of
the IHA, whichever comes earlier. This report would detail the
monitoring protocol, summarize the data recorded during monitoring, and
estimate the number of marine mammals that may have been harassed. NMFS
would have an opportunity to provide comments on the report, and if
NMFS has comments, WSDOT would address the comments and submit a final
report to NMFS within 30 days after receiving NMFS' comments.
In addition, NMFS would require WSDOT to notify NMFS' Office of
Protected Resources and NMFS' West Coast Stranding Coordinator within
48 hours of sighting an injured or dead marine mammal in the
construction site. WSDOT shall provide NMFS and the Stranding Network
with the species or description of the animal(s), the condition of the
animal(s) (including carcass condition, if the animal is dead),
location, time of first discovery, observed behaviors (if alive), and
photo or video (if available).
In the event that WSDOT finds an injured or dead marine mammal that
is not in the construction area, WSDOT would report the same
information as listed above to NMFS within 48 hours of sighting.
Negligible Impact Analysis and Determination
NMFS has defined negligible impact 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 (50 CFR 216.103). A
negligible impact finding is based on the lack of likely adverse
effects on annual rates of recruitment or survival (i.e., population-
level effects). An estimate of the number of takes, alone, is not
enough information on which to base an impact determination. In
addition to considering the number of marine mammals that might be
``taken'' through harassment, NMFS considers other factors, such as the
likely nature of any responses (e.g., intensity, duration), the context
of any responses (e.g., critical reproductive time or location,
migration, etc.), as well as effects on habitat, the status of the
affected stocks, and the likely effectiveness of the mitigation.
Consistent with the 1989 preamble for NMFS's implementing regulations
(54 FR 40338; September 29, 1989), the impacts from other past and
ongoing anthropogenic activities are incorporated into these analyses
via their impacts on the environmental baseline (e.g., as reflected in
the regulatory status of the species, population size and growth rate
where known, ongoing sources of human-caused mortality, or ambient
noise levels).
To avoid repetition, this introductory discussion of our analyses
applies to all the species listed in Table 7, given that the
anticipated effects of WSDOT's Seattle Multimodal Project at Colman
Dock activities involving pile driving and pile removal on marine
mammals are expected to be relatively similar in nature. There is no
information about the nature or severity of the impacts, or the size,
status, or structure of any species or stock that would lead to a
different analysis by species for this activity, or else species-
specific factors would be identified and analyzed.
Although a few marine mammal species (364 harbor seals, 1 gray
whale, 233 harbor porpoises, and 16 Dall's porpoise) are estimated to
experience Level A harassment in the form of PTS if they stay within
the Level A harassment zone during the entire pile driving for the day,
the degree of injury is expected to be mild and is not likely to affect
the reproduction or survival of the individual animals. It is expected
that, if hearing impairments occurs, most likely the affected animal
would lose a few dB in its hearing sensitivity, which in most cases is
not likely to affect its survival and recruitment. Hearing impairment
that occur for these individual animals would be limited to the
dominant frequency of the noise sources, i.e., in the low-frequency
region below 2 kHz. Therefore, the degree of PTS is not likely to
affect the echolocation performance of the two porpoise species, which
use frequencies mostly above 100 kHz. Nevertheless, for all marine
mammal species, it is known that in general animals avoid areas where
sound levels could cause hearing impairment. Therefore, it is not
likely that an animal would stay in an area with intense noise that
could cause severe levels of hearing damage. In addition, even if an
animal receives a TTS, the TTS would be a one-time event from the
exposure, making it unlikely that the TTS would evolve into PTS.
Furthermore, Level A take estimates are based on the assumption that
the animals are randomly distributed in the project area and would not
avoid intense noise levels that could cause TTS or PTS. In reality,
animals tend to avoid areas where noise levels are high (Richardson et
al. 1995).
For these species and the rest of the three marine mammal species,
takes that are anticipated and authorized are expected to be limited to
short-term Level B harassment (behavioral and TTS). Marine mammals
present in the vicinity of the action area and taken by Level B
harassment would most likely show overt brief disturbance (startle
reaction) and avoidance of the area from elevated noise levels during
pile driving and pile removal and the implosion noise. A few marine
mammals could experience TTS if they occur within the Level B TTS ZOI.
However, as discussed earlier in this document, TTS is a
[[Page 31592]]
temporary loss of hearing sensitivity when exposed to loud sound, and
the hearing threshold is expected to recover completely within minutes
to hours. Therefore, it is not considered an injury.
The project also is not expected to have significant adverse
effects on affected marine mammals' habitat, as analyzed in detail in
the ``Anticipated Effects on Marine Mammal Habitat'' section. There is
no ESA designated critical area in the vicinity of the Seattle
Multimodal Project at Colman Dock area. The project activities would
not permanently modify existing marine mammal habitat. The activities
may kill some fish and cause other fish to leave the area temporarily,
thus impacting marine mammals' foraging opportunities in a limited
portion of the foraging range. However, because of the short duration
of the activities and the relatively small area of the habitat that may
be affected, the impacts to marine mammal habitat are not expected to
cause significant or long-term negative consequences. Therefore, given
the consideration of potential impacts to marine mammal prey species
and their physical environment, WSDOT's proposed construction activity
at Colman Dock would not adversely affect marine mammal habitat.
Injury--only 4 species of marine mammals would experience
Level A affects in the form of mild PTS, which is expected to be of
small degree.
Behavioral disturbance--seven species/stocks of marine
mammals would experience behavioral disturbance and TTS from the
WSDOT's Seattle Colman Dock project. However, as discussed earlier, the
area to be affected is small and the duration of the project is short.
Therefore, the overall impacts are expected to be insignificant.
Based on the analysis contained herein of the likely effects of the
specified activity on marine mammals and their habitat, and taking into
consideration the implementation of the monitoring and mitigation
measures, NMFS finds that the total take from the proposed activity
will have a negligible impact on all affected marine mammal species or
stocks.
Small Numbers
As noted above, only small numbers of incidental take may be
authorized under Section 101(a)(5)(D) of the MMPA for specified
activities other than military readiness activities. The MMPA does not
define small numbers and so, in practice, NMFS compares the number of
individuals anticipated to be taken to the most appropriate estimation
of the relevant species or stock size in our determination of whether
an authorization would be limited to small numbers of marine mammals.
The takes represent less than 21 percent of all populations or
stocks with known abundance potentially impacted (see Table 7 in this
document). These take estimates represent the percentage of each
species or stock that could be taken by both Level A and Level B
harassments. In general, the numbers of marine mammals estimated to be
taken are small proportions of the total populations of the affected
species or stocks.
Based on the analysis contained herein of the proposed activity
(including the precribed mitigation and monitoring measures) and the
anticipated take of marine mammals, NMFS finds that small numbers of
each species or stock will be taken relative to the population size of
the affected species or stocks.
Unmitigable Adverse Impact Subsistence Analysis and Determination
There are no relevant subsistence uses of the affected marine
mammal stocks or species implicated by this action. Therefore, NMFS has
determined that the total taking of affected species or stocks would
not have an unmitigable adverse impact on the availability of such
species or stocks for taking for subsistence purposes.
Endangered Species Act (ESA)
Issuance of an MMPA authorization requires compliance with the ESA
for any species that are listed or proposed as threatened or
endangered.
The MMPA California-Oregon-Washington stock of humpback whale and
the Southern Resident stock of killer whale are the only marine mammal
species listed under the ESA that could occur in the vicinity of
WSDOT's proposed construction projects. Two DPSs of humpback whales,
the Mexico DPS and the Central America DPS, are listed as threatened
and endangered under the ESA, respectively. NMFS worked with WSDOT to
implement shutdown measures in the IHA that would avoid takes of both
SR killer whale and humpback whales. Therefore, NMFS determined that no
ESA-listed marine mammal species would be affected as a result of
WSDOT's Seattle Colman Dock construction project.
Authorization
As a result of these determinations, NMFS has issued an IHA to the
Washington State Department of Transportation for conducting ferry
terminal construction at Colman Dock in Seattle Washington, provided
the previously described mitigation, monitoring, and reporting
requirements are incorporated.
Dated: July 3, 2017.
Donna S. Wieting,
Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries
Service.
[FR Doc. 2017-14261 Filed 7-6-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
