Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Chevron Richmond Refinery Long Wharf Maintenance and Efficiency Project in San Francisco Bay, California, 28578-28582 [2021-11243]
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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 101 / Thursday, May 27, 2021 / Notices
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.
Margaret H. Miller,
Acting Chief, Endangered Species Division,
Office of Protected Resources, National
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2021–11190 Filed 5–26–21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
[RTID 0648–XB087]
Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to
Specified Activities; Taking Marine
Mammals Incidental to Chevron
Richmond Refinery Long Wharf
Maintenance and Efficiency Project in
San Francisco Bay, California
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 NMFS has issued an IHA to
Chevron Products Company (Chevron)
to incidentally harass, by Level B
harassment only, marine mammals
during construction activities associated
with the Chevron Richmond Refinery
Long Wharf Maintenance and Efficiency
Project (LWMEP) in San Francisco Bay,
California.
DATES: This authorization is effective
from June 1, 2021 through May 31,
2022.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Dwayne Meadows, Ph.D., Office of
Protected Resources, NMFS, (301) 427–
8401. Electronic copies of the
application, 2019 and 2020 IHAs, and
supporting documents (including NMFS
Federal Register notices of the earlier
proposed and final authorizations, and
the previous IHAs), as well as a list of
the references cited in this document,
may be obtained online at: https://
www.fisheries.noaa.gov/permit/
incidental-take-authorizations-undermarine-mammal-protection-act. In case
of problems accessing these documents,
please call the contact listed above.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
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SUMMARY:
Background
The MMPA prohibits the ‘‘take’’ of
marine mammals, with certain
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exceptions. Sections 101(a)(5)(A) and
(D) of the MMPA (16 U.S.C. 1361 et
seq.) direct the Secretary of Commerce
(as delegated to NMFS) to allow, upon
request, the incidental, but not
intentional, taking of small numbers of
marine mammals by U.S. citizens who
engage in a specified activity (other than
commercial fishing) within a specified
geographical region if certain findings
are made and either regulations are
issued or, if the taking is limited to
harassment, a notice of a proposed
incidental take authorization is
provided to the public for review.
Authorization for incidental takings
shall be granted if NMFS finds that the
taking will have a negligible impact on
the species or stock(s) and will not have
an unmitigable adverse impact on the
availability of the species or stock(s) for
taking for subsistence uses (where
relevant). Further, NMFS must prescribe
the permissible methods of taking and
other ‘‘means of 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, and on the
availability of such species or stocks for
taking for certain subsistence uses
(referred to here as ‘‘mitigation
measures’’). Monitoring and reporting of
such takings are also required. The
meaning of key terms such as ‘‘take,’’
‘‘harassment,’’ and ‘‘negligible impact’’
can be found in section 3 of the MMPA
(16 U.S.C. 1362) and the agency’s
regulations at 50 CFR 216.103.
History of Request
On February 1, 2018, NMFS received
a request from Chevron for an IHA to
take marine mammals incidental to pile
driving and pile removal associated
with the LWMEP in San Francisco Bay,
California. An IHA was issued on May
31, 2018 (83 FR 27548, June 13, 2018).
Chevron was unable to complete all of
the planned work and was issued a
second IHA on June 1, 2019 (84 FR
28474, June 19, 2019) and when the
work was again not completed a
Renewal IHA was issued on June 11,
2020 (85 FR 37064; June 19, 2020).
Chevron was again unable to complete
the work in 2020 and on February 24,
2021 requested a new IHA to authorize
take of marine mammals for the subset
of the initially planned work that could
not be completed. The application was
deemed adequate and complete on
March 22, 2021. Chevron requested the
new IHA be effective from June 1, 2021
through May 31, 2022. Chevron does not
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qualify for an additional renewal IHA,
but given the proposed work is a subset
of that which has been previously
analyzed, we will be referencing the
prior authorization except where
activities or analysis have changed as
described below.
Comments and Responses
A notice of NMFS’s proposal to issue
an IHA to Chevron was published in the
Federal Register on April 6, 2021 (86 FR
17777). That notice described, in detail,
Chevron’s activity, the marine mammal
species that may be affected by the
activity, and the anticipated effects on
marine mammals. During the 30-day
public comment period, NMFS received
comments from the U.S. Geological
Survey that they have ‘‘no comment at
this time’’. No changes have been made
from the proposed IHA to the final IHA.
Description of the Specified Activities
and Anticipated Impacts
As described in the 2018, 2019 and
2020 IHAs, Chevron is upgrading Long
Wharf to comply with current Marine
Oil Terminal Engineering and
Maintenance Standards and in order to
accept more modern, fuel efficient
vessels. The remaining work includes
installing four new standoff fenders and
removing obsolete piles at Berth 2 and
installing four new dolphins and
removing temporary piles associated
with the prior work at Berth 4.
Remaining construction at Long Wharf
includes vibratory pile installation of 52
14-inch composite piles, vibratory
removal of 150 piles (eight 36-inch steel
piles, 36 14-inch steel H piles, and 106
16-inch timber piles) and impact
installation of nine 24-inch concrete
piles (Table 1). A detailed description of
the planned project is provided in the
Federal Register notice for the proposed
IHA (86 FR 17777; April 6, 2021). Since
that time, no changes have been made
to the planned activities. Therefore, a
detailed description is not provided
here. Please refer to that Federal
Register notice for the description of the
specific activity. The activities consist
of 36 days of in-water work. Pile driving
and removal activities will continue to
occur within the standard NMFS work
windows for Endangered Species Act
(ESA)-listed fish species (June 1 through
November 30). The prior IHAs included
Level A harassment take associated with
installation of larger piles that has since
been completed, therefore no Level A
harassment take is requested or
proposed for this IHA.
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TABLE 1—PILE DRIVING DETAILS FOR WORK REMAINING TO BE COMPLETED
Pile type and number per day
36-inch
14-inch
24-inch
14-inch
16-inch
steel pipe pile (4/day) ..........
H pile removal (6/day) .........
concrete (1–2/day) ...............
composite (5/day) ................
timber pile (12/day) ..............
Number
of piles
Pile driver type
Vibratory removal .............................
Vibratory removal .............................
Impact install ....................................
Vibratory install .................................
Vibratory removal .............................
Description of Marine Mammals
A description of the marine mammals
in the area of the activities for which
take is authorized here, including
information on abundance, status,
distribution, and hearing, may be found
in the notices of the proposed and final
IHAs for the 2019 and 2020
authorization. NMFS has reviewed the
monitoring data from the 2020 IHA,
recent draft Stock Assessment Reports,
information on relevant Unusual
Mortality Events, and other scientific
literature, and determined that neither
this nor any other new information
affects which species or stocks have the
potential to be affected or the pertinent
information in the Description of the
Marine Mammals in the Area of
Specified Activities contained in the
supporting documents for the 2019 and
2020 IHAs.
Number of
driving days
8
36
9
52
106
Potential Effects on Marine Mammals
and Their Habitat
A description of the potential effects
of the specified activity on marine
mammals and their habitat for the
activities for which take is authorized
here may be found in the notices of the
proposed and final IHAs for the 2018
authorization. NMFS has reviewed the
monitoring data from the 2019 and 2020
IHAs, recent draft Stock Assessment
Reports, information on relevant
Unusual Mortality Events, and other
scientific literature, and determined
that, besides the revised source
information harbor seal occurrence
mentioned above and analyzed below,
neither this nor any other new
information affects our initial analysis
of impacts on marine mammals and
their habitat.
Time/pile
(min)
Strikes/pile
2
6
8
11
9
N/A
N/A
440
N/A
N/A
5
5
20
10
6.67
Estimated Take
A detailed description of the methods
and inputs used to estimate take for the
specified activity are found in the notice
of the final 2018 and 2019 IHAs. As
noted above, hydroacoustic monitoring
from prior years has changed the source
levels, transmission loss coefficients,
time and strikes to drive piles for
various of the pile sizes. Instead of
referencing prior discussions of these
topics we provide complete details of
the pile driving parameters used to
compute the Level A and Level B
harassment isopleths for this proposed
IHA in Tables 1 and 2. Based on these
revised inputs the Level A and Level B
harassment isopleth radii from the
NMFS User Spreadsheet are shown for
all pile sizes in Tables 2 and 3.
TABLE 2—PILE DRIVING SOURCE LEVELS AND CALCULATED DISTANCES TO LEVEL A HARASSMENT ISOPLETHS
[Sound source reference in italics]
Pile type and sound source
reference
Transmission
loss
coefficient
Attenuated Impact Driving (with
bubble curtain):
24-inch square concrete
(2018 acoustic monitoring).
Vibratory Driving/Extraction:
14-inch Composite Barrier
Pile (Laughlin 2012).
36-inch steel pipe pile (2019
acoustic monitoring).
14-inch H pile (2018 acoustic monitoring).
16-inch timber pile (WSDOT
2011).
Source levels at 10 meters
(dB) unless noted
Peak
RMS/SEL
Distance to Level A threshold
(meters)
Low-frequency
cetaceans
Mid-frequency
cetaceans
High-frequency
cetaceans
Phocid
pinnipeds
Otariid
pinnipeds
15
191
161 SEL ...........
31
1
37
17
1
15
178
168 RMS ..........
18
2
26
11
1
20
196
13
2
17
9
1
20
165
167 RMS @15
m.
150 RMS ..........
2
1
2
1
1
15
N/A
152 RMS ..........
2
1
3
1
1
Notes: SEL = sound exposure level, RMS = Root Mean Square.
TABLE 3—DISTANCES TO LEVEL B THRESHOLDS AND SIZE OF THE LEVEL B HARASSMENT ZONE FOR EACH PILE TYPE
Level B
harassment isopleth
(meters)
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Pile type
Attenuated Impact Driving (with bubble curtain):
24-inch square concrete ...........................................................................................................
Vibratory Driving/Extraction:
14-inch Composite ....................................................................................................................
36-inch steel pipe .....................................................................................................................
14-inch H ..................................................................................................................................
16-inch timber ...........................................................................................................................
* Using transmission loss coefficient and source levels from hydroacoustic monitoring.
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Area of
Level B zone
(square kilometers)
74
0.01
15,849
* 3,358
* 316
1,359
26.5
4.04
0.05
0.9
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The stocks taken, methods of take,
and types of take remain unchanged
from the previously issued IHAs. The
only change to the marine mammal
density/occurrence data used to
calculate take is an increase in harbor
seal abundance at the Castro Rocks
haulout. Castro Rocks are part of the
survey area for long-term National Park
Service (NPS) monitoring studies of
harbor seal colonies within the Golden
Gate National Recreation Area that have
been conducted since 1976. The take
estimates for this stock for this project
have been based on the highest mean
plus the standard error of harbor seals
observed at Castro Rocks during recent
annual surveys conducted by the NPS
during the molting season. Based on the
most recent surveys (Codde 2020, Codde
and Allen 2020) and using the methods
from the prior IHAs, the current daily
abundance for use in calculating take of
this stock would increase to 376 seals.
However, given the prior monitoring
results, the smaller pile sizes left to be
driven or removed, and their location
and distance from Castro Rocks, we are
reverting to our more common practice
of using the mean abundance estimate
to estimate take. The mean using the
most recent data is 237 animals per day
(an increase from 176). Therefore, Level
B harassment take for this stock is the
estimated daily abundance in the
project area (237) times the number of
days of in-water work (36), resulting in
a proposed authorization for Level B
harassment of 8,532 harbor seals.
Because the Level A harassment zones
are small and we believe the Protected
Species Observers (PSOs) will be able to
effectively monitor the Level A
harassment zones and implement
shutdowns, we do not authorize take by
Level A harassment for this or any other
stock.
For the remaining species take is
estimated as follows (using the same
criteria as prior IHAs). It is possible that
a lone northern elephant seal may enter
the Level B Harassment area once every
3 days during pile driving, resulting in
a proposed authorization for Level B
harassment of 12 northern elephant
seals. While no northern fur seals have
been observed in the 2018–2020
monitoring for this project, the
incidence of northern fur seal in San
Francisco Bay depends largely on
oceanic conditions, with animals more
likely to occur during El Nin˜o events.
As in prior IHAs, we propose
authorization for Level B harassment of
10 northern fur seals. While no
bottlenose dolphins have been observed
in the 2018–2020 monitoring for this
project, this species occurs
intermittently in San Francisco Bay. As
in prior IHAs, we propose authorization
for Level B harassment of 30 bottlenose
dolphins. Gray whales occasionally
enter San Francisco Bay, and as in prior
IHAs, we propose authorization for
Level B harassment of 2 gray whales.
Estimated Level B harassment take for
California sea lions and harbor
porpoises for this project has been based
on densities of those stocks in the
vicinity of the project. The estimated
densities for these species have not
changed from prior IHAs (0.16 and 0.17
animals per square kilometer,
respectively). The only factors that have
changed are the days of work for each
pile type and the areas of the Level B
harassment zones (see Tables 1 and 3
above, respectively).
Based on the above discussion, the
only changes to the number of
authorized takes, which are indicated
below in Table 4, is to account for the
increased occurrence of harbor seals and
the area and days of work remaining to
be completed.
TABLE 4—ESTIMATED TAKE BY LEVEL B HARASSMENT, BY SPECIES AND STOCK
Scientific name
Stock
Harbor seal .....................................
Harbor porpoise ..............................
California sea lion ...........................
Northern elephant seal ...................
Gray whale .....................................
Northern fur seal .............................
Bottlenose Dolphin .........................
Phoca vitulina .................................
Phocoena phocoena ......................
Zalophus californianus ...................
Mirounga angustirostris ..................
Eschrichtius robustus .....................
Callorhinus ursinus ........................
Tursiops truncatus .........................
California ........................................
San Francisco—Russian River ......
U.S .................................................
California Breeding ........................
Eastern North Pacific .....................
California ........................................
California Coastal ...........................
Description of Mitigation, Monitoring
and Reporting Measures
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Level B
harassment
Common name
The mitigation, monitoring, and
reporting measures included as
requirements in this authorization are
identical to those included in the
Federal Register notice announcing the
issuance of the 2020 IHA, except for the
changes to the shutdown zones
discussed above and shown in Table 5
and updated language we have
developed for our typical measures. The
location of the PSOs has changed,
eliminating some of the prior concerns
about visibility towards Castro Rocks as
the work locations for the remaining
work at berth 4 are off to the north side
of the wharf. Because the mitigation
measures have not increased, the
discussion of the least practicable
adverse impact included in in the
Federal Register notice announcing the
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issuance of the 2019 IHA remains
accurate. The following measures are
included in this authorization:
• Conduct training between
construction supervisors and crews and
the marine mammal monitoring team
and relevant Chevron staff prior to the
start of all pile driving activity and
when new personnel join the work, so
that responsibilities, communication
procedures, monitoring protocols, and
operational procedures are clearly
understood;
• Avoid direct physical interaction
with marine mammals during
construction activity. If a marine
mammal comes within 10 meters (m) of
such activity, operations must cease and
vessels must reduce speed to the
minimum level required to maintain
steerage and safe working conditions;
• Pile driving activity must be halted
upon observation of either a species for
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8,532
327
308
12
2
10
30
Percent of
stock
1.6
4.4
<0.1
<0.1
<0.1
<0.1
6.6
which incidental take is not authorized
or a species for which incidental take
has been authorized but the authorized
number of takes has been met, entering
or within the harassment zone;
• Implement the shutdown zones
indicated in Table 5;
• Employ PSOs and establish
monitoring locations as described in the
Marine Mammal Monitoring Plan and
Section 5 of the IHA. For all pile driving
locations two PSOs must be used, with
a minimum of one PSO assigned to each
active pile driving location to monitor
the shutdown zones. During work at
Berth 2, PSOs will be stationed on the
east and west edges of the Long Wharf.
The PSO on the east has 180-degree
views from the Long Wharf, north, south
and east toward the shore and would
have views of Castro Rocks. The PSO on
the west would have 180-degree views,
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north to south, with views of San
Francisco Bay to the west. During work
at Berth 4, one PSO would be stationed
on the east side of the wharf, just south
of Berth 4 on an elevated viewpoint.
This position allows clear views of the
work area and shutdown zones, and
views of the waters to the east and west
of Long Wharf. A second PSO would be
stationed on the mooring dolphin at the
north end of the Long Wharf. This
location provides a view of the work
area and shutdown zones from the north
as well as a clear view of Castro Rocks
and areas to the east and west;
• The placement of PSOs during all
pile driving and removal and drilling
activities will ensure that the entire
shutdown zone is visible during pile
installation. Should environmental
conditions deteriorate such that marine
mammals within the entire shutdown
zone will not be visible (e.g., fog, heavy
rain), pile driving and removal must be
delayed until the PSO is confident
marine mammals within the shutdown
zone could be detected;
• Monitoring must take place from 30
minutes prior to initiation of pile
driving activity through 30 minutes
post-completion of pile driving activity.
Pre-start clearance monitoring must be
conducted during periods of visibility
sufficient for the lead PSO to determine
the shutdown zones clear of marine
mammals. Pile driving may commence
following 30 minutes of observation
when the determination is made;
• If pile driving is delayed or halted
due to the presence of a marine
mammal, the activity may not
commence or resume until either the
animal has voluntarily exited and been
visually confirmed beyond the
shutdown zone or 15 minutes have
passed without re-detection of the
animal;
• Chevron must use soft start
techniques when impact pile driving.
Soft start requires contractors to provide
an initial set of three strikes at reduced
energy, followed by a 30-second waiting
period, then two subsequent reducedenergy strike sets. A soft start must be
implemented at the start of each day’s
impact pile driving and at any time
following cessation of impact pile
driving for a period of 30 minutes or
longer;
• Use a bubble curtain during impact
pile driving of 24-inch concrete piles
and must ensure that it is operated as
necessary to achieve optimal
performance, and that no reduction in
performance may be attributable to
faulty deployment. At a minimum, the
Holder must adhere to the following
performance standards: The bubble
curtain must distribute air bubbles
around 100 percent of the piling
circumference for the full depth of the
water column. The lowest bubble ring
must be in contact with the substrate for
the full circumference of the ring, and
the weights attached to the bottom ring
shall ensure 100 percent substrate
contact. No parts of the ring or other
objects shall prevent full substrate
contact. Air flow to the bubblers must
be balanced around the circumference
of the pile;
• Conduct sound source level
measurements during driving of a
minimum of two 14-inch composite
piles;
• Monitoring must be conducted by
qualified, NMFS-approved PSOs, in
accordance with the following: PSOs
must be independent (i.e., not
construction personnel) and have no
other assigned tasks during monitoring
periods. At least one PSO must have
prior experience performing the duties
of a PSO during construction activity
pursuant to a NMFS-issued incidental
take authorization. Other PSOs may
substitute other relevant experience,
education (degree in biological science
or related field), or training. Where a
team of three or more PSOs are required,
a lead observer or monitoring
coordinator must be designated. The
lead observer must have prior
experience performing the duties of a
PSO during construction activity
pursuant to a NMFS-issued incidental
take authorization. PSOs must be
approved by NMFS prior to beginning
any activity subject to this IHA.
• PSOs must record all observations
of marine mammals as described in the
Monitoring Plan, regardless of distance
from the pile being driven. PSOs shall
document any behavioral reactions in
concert with distance from piles being
driven or removed;
• The marine mammal and acoustic
monitoring reports must contain the
informational elements described in the
Monitoring Plan;
• A draft marine mammal monitoring
report, and PSO datasheets and/or raw
sighting data, must be submitted to
NMFS within 90 calendar days after the
completion of pile driving activities. If
no comments are received from NMFS
within 30 calendar days, the draft report
will constitute the final report. If
comments are received, a final report
addressing NMFS comments must be
submitted within 30 calendar days after
receipt of comments; and
• In the event that personnel involved
in the construction activities discover
an injured or dead marine mammal, the
IHA-holder must immediately cease the
specified activities and report the
incident to the Office of Protected
Resources (OPR) (PR.ITP.Monitoring
Reports@noaa.gov), NMFS and to West
Coast Regional Stranding Coordinator as
soon as feasible.
TABLE 5—SHUTDOWN ZONES BY MARINE MAMMAL HEARING GROUP, PILE SIZE, AND METHOD
Radial distance of shutdown zone (meters)
Pile type
Low-frequency
cetaceans
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Attenuated Impact Driving (with bubble curtain):
24-inch square concrete .........................................
Vibratory Driving/Extraction:
14-inch Composite ..................................................
36-inch steel pipe pile .............................................
14-inch H pile ..........................................................
16-inch timber .........................................................
Determinations
The action in this IHA is identical to
the action in the 2020 IHA except that
sound isopleths have decreased for a
number of sources, harbor seal daily rate
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Mid-frequency
cetaceans
High-frequency
cetaceans
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Otariid
pinnipeds
40
10
40
20
10
20
20
10
10
10
10
10
10
30
20
10
10
20
10
10
10
10
10
10
10
of take has increased, and the mitigation
and monitoring measures have been
updated to our new language. As
described in the notice of issuance of
the 2020 final IHA (85 FR 37064, June
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pinnipeds
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19, 2020) we found that Chevron’s
construction activities would have a
negligible impact and that the taking
would be small relative to population
size. For this analysis of the new IHA
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we found that marine mammal stock
abundance was still estimated to be the
same as for the 2020 IHA. Other marine
mammal information and the potential
effects were identical to the 2020 IHA
except for the increase in the daily
abundance of harbor seals. The
estimated take was calculated
identically to the 2020 IHA, except for
harbor seals, and zone sizes decreased
for a number of pile sizes. The increased
daily abundance and take of harbor
seals still involves far less than 10
percent of the stock (Table 4). Mitigation
and monitoring are identical to the 2020
IHA except for the decrease in Level A
harassment and shutdown zones for
many pile types and the change in
standard language, which has no
substantive effect on our analysis.
NMFS has concluded that there is no
new information suggesting that our
analysis or findings should change from
those reached for the 2020 IHA. This
includes consideration of the estimated
abundance of harbor seals increasing,
the change in harassment and shutdown
zones, and the updating of IHA language
for mitigation and monitoring.
Based on the information and analysis
contained here and in the referenced
documents, NMFS has determined the
following: (1) The required mitigation
measures will effect the least practicable
impact on marine mammal species or
stocks and their habitat; (2) the
authorized takes will have a negligible
impact on the affected marine mammal
species or stocks; (3) the authorized
takes represent small numbers of marine
mammals relative to the affected stock
abundances; (4) Chevron’s activities will
not have an unmitigable adverse impact
on taking for subsistence purposes as no
relevant subsistence uses of marine
mammals are implicated by this action,
and; (5) appropriate monitoring and
reporting requirements are included.
National Environmental Policy Act
To comply with the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969
(NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and
NOAA Administrative Order (NAO)
216–6A, NMFS must review our
proposed action (i.e., the issuance of an
IHA) with respect to potential impacts
on the human environment. This action
is consistent with categories of activities
identified in Categorical Exclusion B4
IHAs with no anticipated serious injury
or mortality) of the Companion Manual
for NOAA Administrative Order 216–
6A, which do not individually or
cumulatively have the potential for
significant impacts on the quality of the
human environment and for which we
have not identified any extraordinary
circumstances that would preclude this
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:29 May 26, 2021
Jkt 253001
categorical exclusion. Accordingly,
NMFS has determined that this action
qualifies to be categorically excluded
from further NEPA review.
Endangered Species Act
Section 7(a)(2) of the Endangered
Species Act of 1973 (ESA: 16 U.S.C.
1531 et seq.) requires that each Federal
agency insure that any action it
authorizes, funds, or carries out is not
likely to jeopardize the continued
existence of any endangered or
threatened species or result in the
destruction or adverse modification of
designated critical habitat. To ensure
ESA compliance for the issuance of
IHAs, NMFS consults internally, in this
case with the West Coast Region,
Protected Resources Division Office,
whenever we propose to authorize take
for endangered or threatened species.
No incidental take of ESA-listed
species is proposed for authorization or
expected to result from this activity.
Therefore, NMFS has determined that
formal consultation under section 7 of
the ESA is not required for this action.
Authorization
NMFS has issued an IHA to Chevron
for the potential harassment of small
numbers of seven species of marine
mammal species incidental to the
LWMEP project in San Francisco Bay,
CA, provided the previously mentioned
mitigation, monitoring and reporting
requirements are followed.
Dated: May 24, 2021.
Catherine Marzin,
Acting Director, Office of Protected Resources,
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2021–11243 Filed 5–26–21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army
[Docket ID: USA–2021–HQ–0004]
Submission for OMB Review;
Comment Request
Office of the Surgeon General
of the United States Army, United States
Medical Command (MEDCOM),
Department of Defense (DoD).
ACTION: 30-Day information collection
notice.
AGENCY:
The Department of Defense
has submitted to OMB for clearance the
following proposal for collection of
information under the provisions of the
Paperwork Reduction Act.
DATES: Consideration will be given to all
comments received by June 28, 2021.
SUMMARY:
PO 00000
Frm 00058
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 9990
Written comments and
recommendations for the proposed
information collection should be sent
within 30 days of publication of this
notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/
PRAMain. Find this particular
information collection by selecting
‘‘Currently under 30-day Review—Open
for Public Comments’’ or by using the
search function.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Angela Duncan, 571–372–7574, or
whs.mc-alex.esd.mbx.dd-dodinformation-collections@mail.mil.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title; Associated Form; and OMB
Number: Heart of Recovery—Military
Caregiver Needs Assessment; OMB
Control Number 0702–0143.
Type of Request: Extension.
Number of Respondents: 5,000.
Responses per Respondent: 1.
Annual Responses: 5,000.
Average Burden per Response: 30
minutes.
Annual Burden Hours: 2,500.
Needs and Uses: The information
collection requirement is necessary to
support the formation of the United
States Army Office of the Surgeon
General Military Caregivers Program:
Heart of Recovery.
Affected Public: Individuals or
Households.
Frequency: On occasion.
Respondent’s Obligation: Voluntary.
OMB Desk Officer: Ms. Jasmeet
Seehra.
You may also submit comments and
recommendations, identified by Docket
ID number and title, by the following
method:
• Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://
www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments.
Instructions: All submissions received
must include the agency name, Docket
ID number, and title for this Federal
Register document. The general policy
for comments and other submissions
from members of the public is to make
these submissions available for public
viewing on the internet at https://
www.regulations.gov as they are
received without change, including any
personal identifiers or contact
information.
DOD Clearance Officer: Ms. Angela
Duncan.
Requests for copies of the information
collection proposal should be sent to
Ms. Duncan at whs.mc-alex.esd.mbx.dddod-information-collections@mail.mil.
ADDRESSES:
Dated: May 19, 2021.
Aaron T. Siegel,
Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison
Officer, Department of Defense.
[FR Doc. 2021–11178 Filed 5–26–21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 5001–06–P
E:\FR\FM\27MYN1.SGM
27MYN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 101 (Thursday, May 27, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28578-28582]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-11243]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[RTID 0648-XB087]
Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities;
Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Chevron Richmond Refinery Long
Wharf Maintenance and Efficiency Project in San Francisco Bay,
California
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 NMFS has issued an IHA to Chevron Products Company (Chevron) to
incidentally harass, by Level B harassment only, marine mammals during
construction activities associated with the Chevron Richmond Refinery
Long Wharf Maintenance and Efficiency Project (LWMEP) in San Francisco
Bay, California.
DATES: This authorization is effective from June 1, 2021 through May
31, 2022.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dwayne Meadows, Ph.D., Office of
Protected Resources, NMFS, (301) 427-8401. Electronic copies of the
application, 2019 and 2020 IHAs, and supporting documents (including
NMFS Federal Register notices of the earlier proposed and final
authorizations, and the previous IHAs), as well as a list of the
references cited in this document, may be obtained online at: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/permit/incidental-take-authorizations-under-marine-mammal-protection-act. In case of problems accessing these
documents, please call the contact listed above.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The MMPA prohibits the ``take'' of marine mammals, with certain
exceptions. Sections 101(a)(5)(A) and (D) of the MMPA (16 U.S.C. 1361
et seq.) direct the Secretary of Commerce (as delegated to NMFS) to
allow, upon request, the incidental, but not intentional, taking of
small numbers of marine mammals by U.S. citizens who engage in a
specified activity (other than commercial fishing) within a specified
geographical region if certain findings are made and either regulations
are issued or, if the taking is limited to harassment, a notice of a
proposed incidental take authorization is provided to the public for
review.
Authorization for incidental takings shall be granted if NMFS finds
that the taking will have a negligible impact on the species or
stock(s) and will not have an unmitigable adverse impact on the
availability of the species or stock(s) for taking for subsistence uses
(where relevant). Further, NMFS must prescribe the permissible methods
of taking and other ``means of 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, and on the availability of such species or stocks for
taking for certain subsistence uses (referred to here as ``mitigation
measures''). Monitoring and reporting of such takings are also
required. The meaning of key terms such as ``take,'' ``harassment,''
and ``negligible impact'' can be found in section 3 of the MMPA (16
U.S.C. 1362) and the agency's regulations at 50 CFR 216.103.
History of Request
On February 1, 2018, NMFS received a request from Chevron for an
IHA to take marine mammals incidental to pile driving and pile removal
associated with the LWMEP in San Francisco Bay, California. An IHA was
issued on May 31, 2018 (83 FR 27548, June 13, 2018). Chevron was unable
to complete all of the planned work and was issued a second IHA on June
1, 2019 (84 FR 28474, June 19, 2019) and when the work was again not
completed a Renewal IHA was issued on June 11, 2020 (85 FR 37064; June
19, 2020). Chevron was again unable to complete the work in 2020 and on
February 24, 2021 requested a new IHA to authorize take of marine
mammals for the subset of the initially planned work that could not be
completed. The application was deemed adequate and complete on March
22, 2021. Chevron requested the new IHA be effective from June 1, 2021
through May 31, 2022. Chevron does not qualify for an additional
renewal IHA, but given the proposed work is a subset of that which has
been previously analyzed, we will be referencing the prior
authorization except where activities or analysis have changed as
described below.
Comments and Responses
A notice of NMFS's proposal to issue an IHA to Chevron was
published in the Federal Register on April 6, 2021 (86 FR 17777). That
notice described, in detail, Chevron's activity, the marine mammal
species that may be affected by the activity, and the anticipated
effects on marine mammals. During the 30-day public comment period,
NMFS received comments from the U.S. Geological Survey that they have
``no comment at this time''. No changes have been made from the
proposed IHA to the final IHA.
Description of the Specified Activities and Anticipated Impacts
As described in the 2018, 2019 and 2020 IHAs, Chevron is upgrading
Long Wharf to comply with current Marine Oil Terminal Engineering and
Maintenance Standards and in order to accept more modern, fuel
efficient vessels. The remaining work includes installing four new
standoff fenders and removing obsolete piles at Berth 2 and installing
four new dolphins and removing temporary piles associated with the
prior work at Berth 4. Remaining construction at Long Wharf includes
vibratory pile installation of 52 14-inch composite piles, vibratory
removal of 150 piles (eight 36-inch steel piles, 36 14-inch steel H
piles, and 106 16-inch timber piles) and impact installation of nine
24-inch concrete piles (Table 1). A detailed description of the planned
project is provided in the Federal Register notice for the proposed IHA
(86 FR 17777; April 6, 2021). Since that time, no changes have been
made to the planned activities. Therefore, a detailed description is
not provided here. Please refer to that Federal Register notice for the
description of the specific activity. The activities consist of 36 days
of in-water work. Pile driving and removal activities will continue to
occur within the standard NMFS work windows for Endangered Species Act
(ESA)-listed fish species (June 1 through November 30). The prior IHAs
included Level A harassment take associated with installation of larger
piles that has since been completed, therefore no Level A harassment
take is requested or proposed for this IHA.
[[Page 28579]]
Table 1--Pile Driving Details for Work Remaining To Be Completed
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number of Number of Time/pile
Pile type and number per day Pile driver type piles driving days Strikes/pile (min)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
36-inch steel pipe pile (4/ Vibratory 8 2 N/A 5
day). removal.
14-inch H pile removal (6/day) Vibratory 36 6 N/A 5
removal.
24-inch concrete (1-2/day).... Impact install.. 9 8 440 20
14-inch composite (5/day)..... Vibratory 52 11 N/A 10
install.
16-inch timber pile (12/day).. Vibratory 106 9 N/A 6.67
removal.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Description of Marine Mammals
A description of the marine mammals in the area of the activities
for which take is authorized here, including information on abundance,
status, distribution, and hearing, may be found in the notices of the
proposed and final IHAs for the 2019 and 2020 authorization. NMFS has
reviewed the monitoring data from the 2020 IHA, recent draft Stock
Assessment Reports, information on relevant Unusual Mortality Events,
and other scientific literature, and determined that neither this nor
any other new information affects which species or stocks have the
potential to be affected or the pertinent information in the
Description of the Marine Mammals in the Area of Specified Activities
contained in the supporting documents for the 2019 and 2020 IHAs.
Potential Effects on Marine Mammals and Their Habitat
A description of the potential effects of the specified activity on
marine mammals and their habitat for the activities for which take is
authorized here may be found in the notices of the proposed and final
IHAs for the 2018 authorization. NMFS has reviewed the monitoring data
from the 2019 and 2020 IHAs, recent draft Stock Assessment Reports,
information on relevant Unusual Mortality Events, and other scientific
literature, and determined that, besides the revised source information
harbor seal occurrence mentioned above and analyzed below, neither this
nor any other new information affects our initial analysis of impacts
on marine mammals and their habitat.
Estimated Take
A detailed description of the methods and inputs used to estimate
take for the specified activity are found in the notice of the final
2018 and 2019 IHAs. As noted above, hydroacoustic monitoring from prior
years has changed the source levels, transmission loss coefficients,
time and strikes to drive piles for various of the pile sizes. Instead
of referencing prior discussions of these topics we provide complete
details of the pile driving parameters used to compute the Level A and
Level B harassment isopleths for this proposed IHA in Tables 1 and 2.
Based on these revised inputs the Level A and Level B harassment
isopleth radii from the NMFS User Spreadsheet are shown for all pile
sizes in Tables 2 and 3.
Table 2--Pile Driving Source Levels and Calculated Distances to Level A Harassment Isopleths
[Sound source reference in italics]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source levels at 10 meters Distance to Level A threshold (meters)
Pile type and sound source Transmission (dB) unless noted --------------------------------------------------------------------------
reference loss -------------------------------- Low-frequency Mid-frequency High-frequency Phocid Otariid
coefficient Peak RMS/SEL cetaceans cetaceans cetaceans pinnipeds pinnipeds
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Attenuated Impact Driving (with
bubble curtain):
24-inch square concrete 15 191 161 SEL.......... 31 1 37 17 1
(2018 acoustic monitoring).
Vibratory Driving/Extraction:
14-inch Composite Barrier 15 178 168 RMS.......... 18 2 26 11 1
Pile (Laughlin 2012).
36-inch steel pipe pile 20 196 167 RMS @15 m.... 13 2 17 9 1
(2019 acoustic monitoring).
14-inch H pile (2018 20 165 150 RMS.......... 2 1 2 1 1
acoustic monitoring).
16-inch timber pile (WSDOT 15 N/A 152 RMS.......... 2 1 3 1 1
2011).
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notes: SEL = sound exposure level, RMS = Root Mean Square.
Table 3--Distances to Level B Thresholds and Size of the Level B
Harassment Zone for Each Pile Type
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Area of Level B
Pile type Level B harassment zone (square
isopleth (meters) kilometers)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Attenuated Impact Driving
(with bubble curtain):
24-inch square concrete. 74 0.01
Vibratory Driving/
Extraction:
14-inch Composite....... 15,849 26.5
36-inch steel pipe...... * 3,358 4.04
14-inch H............... * 316 0.05
16-inch timber.......... 1,359 0.9
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Using transmission loss coefficient and source levels from
hydroacoustic monitoring.
[[Page 28580]]
The stocks taken, methods of take, and types of take remain
unchanged from the previously issued IHAs. The only change to the
marine mammal density/occurrence data used to calculate take is an
increase in harbor seal abundance at the Castro Rocks haulout. Castro
Rocks are part of the survey area for long-term National Park Service
(NPS) monitoring studies of harbor seal colonies within the Golden Gate
National Recreation Area that have been conducted since 1976. The take
estimates for this stock for this project have been based on the
highest mean plus the standard error of harbor seals observed at Castro
Rocks during recent annual surveys conducted by the NPS during the
molting season. Based on the most recent surveys (Codde 2020, Codde and
Allen 2020) and using the methods from the prior IHAs, the current
daily abundance for use in calculating take of this stock would
increase to 376 seals. However, given the prior monitoring results, the
smaller pile sizes left to be driven or removed, and their location and
distance from Castro Rocks, we are reverting to our more common
practice of using the mean abundance estimate to estimate take. The
mean using the most recent data is 237 animals per day (an increase
from 176). Therefore, Level B harassment take for this stock is the
estimated daily abundance in the project area (237) times the number of
days of in-water work (36), resulting in a proposed authorization for
Level B harassment of 8,532 harbor seals. Because the Level A
harassment zones are small and we believe the Protected Species
Observers (PSOs) will be able to effectively monitor the Level A
harassment zones and implement shutdowns, we do not authorize take by
Level A harassment for this or any other stock.
For the remaining species take is estimated as follows (using the
same criteria as prior IHAs). It is possible that a lone northern
elephant seal may enter the Level B Harassment area once every 3 days
during pile driving, resulting in a proposed authorization for Level B
harassment of 12 northern elephant seals. While no northern fur seals
have been observed in the 2018-2020 monitoring for this project, the
incidence of northern fur seal in San Francisco Bay depends largely on
oceanic conditions, with animals more likely to occur during El
Ni[ntilde]o events. As in prior IHAs, we propose authorization for
Level B harassment of 10 northern fur seals. While no bottlenose
dolphins have been observed in the 2018-2020 monitoring for this
project, this species occurs intermittently in San Francisco Bay. As in
prior IHAs, we propose authorization for Level B harassment of 30
bottlenose dolphins. Gray whales occasionally enter San Francisco Bay,
and as in prior IHAs, we propose authorization for Level B harassment
of 2 gray whales. Estimated Level B harassment take for California sea
lions and harbor porpoises for this project has been based on densities
of those stocks in the vicinity of the project. The estimated densities
for these species have not changed from prior IHAs (0.16 and 0.17
animals per square kilometer, respectively). The only factors that have
changed are the days of work for each pile type and the areas of the
Level B harassment zones (see Tables 1 and 3 above, respectively).
Based on the above discussion, the only changes to the number of
authorized takes, which are indicated below in Table 4, is to account
for the increased occurrence of harbor seals and the area and days of
work remaining to be completed.
Table 4--Estimated Take by Level B Harassment, by Species and Stock
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Level B Percent of
Common name Scientific name Stock harassment stock
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Harbor seal....................... Phoca vitulina....... California........... 8,532 1.6
Harbor porpoise................... Phocoena phocoena.... San Francisco-- 327 4.4
Russian River.
California sea lion............... Zalophus U.S.................. 308 <0.1
californianus.
Northern elephant seal............ Mirounga California Breeding.. 12 <0.1
angustirostris.
Gray whale........................ Eschrichtius robustus Eastern North Pacific 2 <0.1
Northern fur seal................. Callorhinus ursinus.. California........... 10 <0.1
Bottlenose Dolphin................ Tursiops truncatus... California Coastal... 30 6.6
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Description of Mitigation, Monitoring and Reporting Measures
The mitigation, monitoring, and reporting measures included as
requirements in this authorization are identical to those included in
the Federal Register notice announcing the issuance of the 2020 IHA,
except for the changes to the shutdown zones discussed above and shown
in Table 5 and updated language we have developed for our typical
measures. The location of the PSOs has changed, eliminating some of the
prior concerns about visibility towards Castro Rocks as the work
locations for the remaining work at berth 4 are off to the north side
of the wharf. Because the mitigation measures have not increased, the
discussion of the least practicable adverse impact included in in the
Federal Register notice announcing the issuance of the 2019 IHA remains
accurate. The following measures are included in this authorization:
Conduct training between construction supervisors and
crews and the marine mammal monitoring team and relevant Chevron staff
prior to the start of all pile driving activity and when new personnel
join the work, so that responsibilities, communication procedures,
monitoring protocols, and operational procedures are clearly
understood;
Avoid direct physical interaction with marine mammals
during construction activity. If a marine mammal comes within 10 meters
(m) of such activity, operations must cease and vessels must reduce
speed to the minimum level required to maintain steerage and safe
working conditions;
Pile driving activity must be halted upon observation of
either a species for which incidental take is not authorized or a
species for which incidental take has been authorized but the
authorized number of takes has been met, entering or within the
harassment zone;
Implement the shutdown zones indicated in Table 5;
Employ PSOs and establish monitoring locations as
described in the Marine Mammal Monitoring Plan and Section 5 of the
IHA. For all pile driving locations two PSOs must be used, with a
minimum of one PSO assigned to each active pile driving location to
monitor the shutdown zones. During work at Berth 2, PSOs will be
stationed on the east and west edges of the Long Wharf. The PSO on the
east has 180-degree views from the Long Wharf, north, south and east
toward the shore and would have views of Castro Rocks. The PSO on the
west would have 180-degree views,
[[Page 28581]]
north to south, with views of San Francisco Bay to the west. During
work at Berth 4, one PSO would be stationed on the east side of the
wharf, just south of Berth 4 on an elevated viewpoint. This position
allows clear views of the work area and shutdown zones, and views of
the waters to the east and west of Long Wharf. A second PSO would be
stationed on the mooring dolphin at the north end of the Long Wharf.
This location provides a view of the work area and shutdown zones from
the north as well as a clear view of Castro Rocks and areas to the east
and west;
The placement of PSOs during all pile driving and removal
and drilling activities will ensure that the entire shutdown zone is
visible during pile installation. Should environmental conditions
deteriorate such that marine mammals within the entire shutdown zone
will not be visible (e.g., fog, heavy rain), pile driving and removal
must be delayed until the PSO is confident marine mammals within the
shutdown zone could be detected;
Monitoring must take place from 30 minutes prior to
initiation of pile driving activity through 30 minutes post-completion
of pile driving activity. Pre-start clearance monitoring must be
conducted during periods of visibility sufficient for the lead PSO to
determine the shutdown zones clear of marine mammals. Pile driving may
commence following 30 minutes of observation when the determination is
made;
If pile driving is delayed or halted due to the presence
of a marine mammal, the activity may not commence or resume until
either the animal has voluntarily exited and been visually confirmed
beyond the shutdown zone or 15 minutes have passed without re-detection
of the animal;
Chevron must use soft start techniques when impact pile
driving. Soft start requires contractors to provide an initial set of
three strikes at reduced energy, followed by a 30-second waiting
period, then two subsequent reduced-energy strike sets. A soft start
must be implemented at the start of each day's impact pile driving and
at any time following cessation of impact pile driving for a period of
30 minutes or longer;
Use a bubble curtain during impact pile driving of 24-inch
concrete piles and must ensure that it is operated as necessary to
achieve optimal performance, and that no reduction in performance may
be attributable to faulty deployment. At a minimum, the Holder must
adhere to the following performance standards: The bubble curtain must
distribute air bubbles around 100 percent of the piling circumference
for the full depth of the water column. The lowest bubble ring must be
in contact with the substrate for the full circumference of the ring,
and the weights attached to the bottom ring shall ensure 100 percent
substrate contact. No parts of the ring or other objects shall prevent
full substrate contact. Air flow to the bubblers must be balanced
around the circumference of the pile;
Conduct sound source level measurements during driving of
a minimum of two 14-inch composite piles;
Monitoring must be conducted by qualified, NMFS-approved
PSOs, in accordance with the following: PSOs must be independent (i.e.,
not construction personnel) and have no other assigned tasks during
monitoring periods. At least one PSO must have prior experience
performing the duties of a PSO during construction activity pursuant to
a NMFS-issued incidental take authorization. Other PSOs may substitute
other relevant experience, education (degree in biological science or
related field), or training. Where a team of three or more PSOs are
required, a lead observer or monitoring coordinator must be designated.
The lead observer must have prior experience performing the duties of a
PSO during construction activity pursuant to a NMFS-issued incidental
take authorization. PSOs must be approved by NMFS prior to beginning
any activity subject to this IHA.
PSOs must record all observations of marine mammals as
described in the Monitoring Plan, regardless of distance from the pile
being driven. PSOs shall document any behavioral reactions in concert
with distance from piles being driven or removed;
The marine mammal and acoustic monitoring reports must
contain the informational elements described in the Monitoring Plan;
A draft marine mammal monitoring report, and PSO
datasheets and/or raw sighting data, must be submitted to NMFS within
90 calendar days after the completion of pile driving activities. If no
comments are received from NMFS within 30 calendar days, the draft
report will constitute the final report. If comments are received, a
final report addressing NMFS comments must be submitted within 30
calendar days after receipt of comments; and
In the event that personnel involved in the construction
activities discover an injured or dead marine mammal, the IHA-holder
must immediately cease the specified activities and report the incident
to the Office of Protected Resources (OPR) (PR.ITP.Monitoring
[email protected]), NMFS and to West Coast Regional Stranding
Coordinator as soon as feasible.
Table 5--Shutdown Zones by Marine Mammal Hearing Group, Pile Size, and Method
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Radial distance of shutdown zone (meters)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pile type Low-frequency Mid-frequency High-frequency Phocid Otariid
cetaceans cetaceans cetaceans pinnipeds pinnipeds
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Attenuated Impact Driving
(with bubble curtain):
24-inch square concrete.. 40 10 40 20 10
Vibratory Driving/Extraction:
14-inch Composite........ 20 10 30 20 10
36-inch steel pipe pile.. 20 10 20 10 10
14-inch H pile........... 10 10 10 10 10
16-inch timber........... 10 10 10 10 10
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Determinations
The action in this IHA is identical to the action in the 2020 IHA
except that sound isopleths have decreased for a number of sources,
harbor seal daily rate of take has increased, and the mitigation and
monitoring measures have been updated to our new language. As described
in the notice of issuance of the 2020 final IHA (85 FR 37064, June 19,
2020) we found that Chevron's construction activities would have a
negligible impact and that the taking would be small relative to
population size. For this analysis of the new IHA
[[Page 28582]]
we found that marine mammal stock abundance was still estimated to be
the same as for the 2020 IHA. Other marine mammal information and the
potential effects were identical to the 2020 IHA except for the
increase in the daily abundance of harbor seals. The estimated take was
calculated identically to the 2020 IHA, except for harbor seals, and
zone sizes decreased for a number of pile sizes. The increased daily
abundance and take of harbor seals still involves far less than 10
percent of the stock (Table 4). Mitigation and monitoring are identical
to the 2020 IHA except for the decrease in Level A harassment and
shutdown zones for many pile types and the change in standard language,
which has no substantive effect on our analysis.
NMFS has concluded that there is no new information suggesting that
our analysis or findings should change from those reached for the 2020
IHA. This includes consideration of the estimated abundance of harbor
seals increasing, the change in harassment and shutdown zones, and the
updating of IHA language for mitigation and monitoring.
Based on the information and analysis contained here and in the
referenced documents, NMFS has determined the following: (1) The
required mitigation measures will effect the least practicable impact
on marine mammal species or stocks and their habitat; (2) the
authorized takes will have a negligible impact on the affected marine
mammal species or stocks; (3) the authorized takes represent small
numbers of marine mammals relative to the affected stock abundances;
(4) Chevron's activities will not have an unmitigable adverse impact on
taking for subsistence purposes as no relevant subsistence uses of
marine mammals are implicated by this action, and; (5) appropriate
monitoring and reporting requirements are included.
National Environmental Policy Act
To comply with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA;
42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and NOAA Administrative Order (NAO) 216-6A,
NMFS must review our proposed action (i.e., the issuance of an IHA)
with respect to potential impacts on the human environment. This action
is consistent with categories of activities identified in Categorical
Exclusion B4 IHAs with no anticipated serious injury or mortality) of
the Companion Manual for NOAA Administrative Order 216-6A, which do not
individually or cumulatively have the potential for significant impacts
on the quality of the human environment and for which we have not
identified any extraordinary circumstances that would preclude this
categorical exclusion. Accordingly, NMFS has determined that this
action qualifies to be categorically excluded from further NEPA review.
Endangered Species Act
Section 7(a)(2) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA: 16
U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) requires that each Federal agency insure that any
action it authorizes, funds, or carries out is not likely to jeopardize
the continued existence of any endangered or threatened species or
result in the destruction or adverse modification of designated
critical habitat. To ensure ESA compliance for the issuance of IHAs,
NMFS consults internally, in this case with the West Coast Region,
Protected Resources Division Office, whenever we propose to authorize
take for endangered or threatened species.
No incidental take of ESA-listed species is proposed for
authorization or expected to result from this activity. Therefore, NMFS
has determined that formal consultation under section 7 of the ESA is
not required for this action.
Authorization
NMFS has issued an IHA to Chevron for the potential harassment of
small numbers of seven species of marine mammal species incidental to
the LWMEP project in San Francisco Bay, CA, provided the previously
mentioned mitigation, monitoring and reporting requirements are
followed.
Dated: May 24, 2021.
Catherine Marzin,
Acting Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2021-11243 Filed 5-26-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
