Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Army Corps of Engineers Debris Dock Replacement Project, Sausalito, California, 16412-16414 [2023-05483]
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16412
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 52 / Friday, March 17, 2023 / Notices
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
Agency Information Collection
Activities; Submission to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) for
Review and Approval; Comment
Request; Request for Duty-Free Entry
of Scientific Instrument or Apparatus
Enforcement & Compliance,
International Trade Administration,
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of information collection,
request for comment.
AGENCY:
The Department of
Commerce, in accordance with the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
(PRA), invites the general public and
other Federal agencies to comment on
proposed, and continuing information
collections, which helps us assess the
impact of our information collection
requirements and minimize the public’s
reporting burden. The purpose of this
notice is to allow for 60 days of public
comment preceding submission of the
collection to OMB.
DATES: To ensure consideration,
comments regarding this proposed
information collection must be received
on or before May 16, 2023.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are
invited to submit written comments by
mail to Dianne Hanshaw, Statutory
Import Program Assistant, Enforcement
& Compliance, International Trade
Administration, Room 3720, U.S.
Department of Commerce, Washington,
DC 20230; or by email to
Dianne.Hanshaw@trade.gov or
PRAcomments@doc.gov. Please
reference OMB Control Number 0625–
0037 in the subject line of your
comments. Do not submit Confidential
Business Information or otherwise
sensitive or protected information.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Requests for additional information or
specific questions related to collection
activities should be directed to Dianne
Hanshaw, Statutory Import Program
Assistant, Enforcement & Compliance,
International Trade Administration,
Room 3720, U.S. Department of
Commerce, Washington, DC 20230; by
telephone at (202) 482–1661, or by
email to Dianne.Hanshaw@trade.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
SUMMARY:
I. Abstract
The Departments of Commerce and
Homeland Security (‘‘DHS’’) are
required to determine whether nonprofit
institutions established for scientific or
educational purposes are entitled to
duty-free entry for scientific instruments
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17:04 Mar 16, 2023
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the institutions import under the
Florence Agreement. Form ITA–338P
enables: (1) DHS to determine whether
the statutory eligibility requirements for
the institution and the instrument are
fulfilled, and (2) Commerce to make a
comparison and finding as to the
scientific equivalency of comparable
instruments being manufactured in the
United States. Without the collection of
the information, DHS and Commerce
would not have the necessary
information to carry out the
responsibilities of determining
eligibility for duty-free entry assigned
by law.
II. Method of Collection
A copy of Form ITA–338P is provided
on and downloadable from a website at
https://enforcement.trade.gov/sips/
sipsform/ita-338p.pdf or the potential
applicant may request a copy from the
Department. The applicant completes
the form and then forwards it via mail
to DHS.
Upon acceptance by DHS as a valid
application, the application is
transmitted to Commerce for further
processing.
III. Data
OMB Control Number: 0625–0037.
Form Number(s): ITA–338P.
Type of Review: Regular submission.
Affected Public: State or local
government; Federal agencies; not forprofit institutions.
Estimated Number of Respondents:
65.
Estimated Time per Response: 2
hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden
Hours: 130.
Estimated Total Annual Cost to
Public: $2,138.
Respondent’s Obligation: Required to
receive benefits.
Legal Authority: 19 U.S.C. 1202; 15
CFR 301.
IV. Request for Comments
We are soliciting public comments to
permit the Department/Bureau to: (a)
Evaluate whether the proposed
information collection is necessary for
the proper functions of the Department,
including whether the information will
have practical utility; (b) Evaluate the
accuracy of our estimate of the time and
cost burden for this proposed collection,
including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used; (c)
Evaluate ways to enhance the quality,
utility, and clarity of the information to
be collected; and (d) Minimize the
reporting burden on those who are to
respond, including the use of automated
collection techniques or other forms of
information technology.
PO 00000
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Comments that you submit in
response to this notice are a matter of
public record. We will include or
summarize each comment in our request
to OMB to approve this ICR. Before
including your address, phone number,
email address, or other personal
identifying information in your
comment, you should be aware that
your entire comment—including your
personal identifying information—may
be made publicly available at any time.
While you may ask us in your comment
to withhold your personal identifying
information from public review, we
cannot guarantee that we will be able to
do so.
Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of
the Under Secretary of Economic Affairs,
Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2023–05518 Filed 3–16–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
[RTID 0648–XC628]
Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to
Specified Activities; Taking Marine
Mammals Incidental to Army Corps of
Engineers Debris Dock Replacement
Project, Sausalito, California
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; issuance of incidental
harassment authorization.
AGENCY:
NMFS has received a request
from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
(ACOE) for a second re-issuance of a
previously issued incidental harassment
authorization (IHA), with the only
change being the effective dates. The
IHA authorizes take of seven species of
marine mammals, by Level A and Level
B harassment, incidental to construction
associated with the Debris Dock
Replacement Project in Sausalito,
California. The ACOE has requested reissuance with new effective dates of
January 1, 2024 through December 31,
2024. The scope of the activities and
anticipated effects remain the same,
authorized take numbers are not
changed, and the required mitigation,
monitoring, and reporting remains the
same as included in the initial IHA.
NMFS is, therefore, issuing an identical
IHA to cover the incidental take
analyzed and authorized in the initial
IHA.
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\17MRN1.SGM
17MRN1
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 52 / Friday, March 17, 2023 / Notices
This authorization is effective
from January 1, 2024 through December
31, 2024.
ADDRESSES: An electronic copy of the
final 2021 IHA previously issued to the
ACOE, the ACOE’s application, and the
Federal Register notices proposing and
issuing the initial IHA may be obtained
by visiting /www.fisheries.noaa.gov/
action/incidental-take-authorizationarmy-corps-engineers-debris-dockreplacement-project-sausalito. In case of
problems accessing these documents,
please call the contact listed below (see
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Jessica Taylor, Office of Protected
Resources, NMFS, (301) 427–8401.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
DATES:
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
Background
Sections 101(a)(5)(A) and (D) of the
Marine Mammal Protection Act (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 authorization is provided to
the public for review.
An authorization for incidental
takings shall be granted if NMFS finds
that the taking will have a negligible
impact on the species or stock(s), will
not have an unmitigable adverse impact
on the availability of the species or
stock(s) for subsistence uses (where
relevant), and if the permissible
methods of taking and requirements
pertaining to the mitigation, monitoring
and reporting of such takings are set
forth.
NMFS has defined ‘‘negligible
impact’’ in 50 CFR 216.103 as an impact
resulting from the specified activity that
cannot be reasonably expected to, and is
not reasonably likely to, adversely affect
the species or stock through effects on
annual rates of recruitment or survival.
The MMPA states that the term ‘‘take’’
means to harass, hunt, capture, kill or
attempt to harass, hunt, capture, or kill
any marine mammal.
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
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17:04 Mar 16, 2023
Jkt 259001
wild by causing disruption of behavioral
patterns, including, but not limited to,
migration, breathing, nursing, breeding,
feeding, or sheltering (Level B
harassment).
Summary of Request
On July 14, 2021, NMFS published
final notice of our issuance of an IHA
authorizing take of marine mammals
incidental to the Debris Dock
Replacement project (86 FR 37124). The
effective dates of that IHA were
September 1, 2021, through August 31,
2022. On December 14, 2021, the ACOE
informed NMFS that the project was
delayed. None of the work identified in
the initial IHA application (e.g., pile
driving and removal) had occurred. The
ACOE submitted a request that we
reissue an identical IHA that would be
effective from January 5, 2022 through
January 4, 2023, in order to conduct the
construction work that was analyzed in
support of the previously issued IHA.
An identical IHA was reissued on
December 27, 2021 (86 FR 73261).
However, the project remains delayed
and no work has been conducted. On
December 6, 2022, the ACOE informed
NMFS that, due to a project delay, none
of the work identified in the original
IHA (e.g., pile driving and removal) has
been conducted. The ACOE has,
therefore, submitted a request that we
reissue another IHA identical to the IHA
issued July 14, 2021. As the project
activities, anticipated effects, and
required mitigation, monitoring, and
reporting remain the same, re-issuance
of the IHA is appropriate.
Summary of Specified Activity and
Anticipated Impacts
The planned activities (including
mitigation, monitoring, and reporting),
authorized incidental take, and
anticipated impacts on the affected
stocks are the same as those analyzed
and authorized through the previously
issued IHA.
The purpose of the ACOE’s
construction project is to replace the
existing decaying dock and other
onshore infrastructure used to move
marine debris collected from San
Francisco Bay onto land for disposal.
The location, timing, and nature of the
activities, including the types of
equipment planned for use, are identical
to those described in the initial IHA.
The mitigation and monitoring are also
as prescribed in the initial IHA.
Species that are expected to be taken
by the planned activity include harbor
porpoise (Phocoena phocoena), harbor
seal (Phoca vitulina), gray whale
(Eschrichtius robustus), bottlenose
dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), California
PO 00000
Frm 00020
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
16413
sea lion (Zalophus californianus),
northern fur seal (Callorhinus ursinus),
and northern elephant seal (Mirounga
angustirostris). A description of the
methods and inputs used to estimate
take anticipated to occur and,
ultimately, the take that was authorized
is found in the previous documents
referenced above. The data inputs and
methods of estimating take are identical
to those used in the initial IHA. NMFS
has reviewed recent Stock Assessment
Reports, information on relevant
Unusual Mortality Events, and recent
scientific literature, and determined that
no new information affects our original
analysis of impacts or take estimate
under the initial IHA.
We refer to the documents related to
the previously issued IHA, which
include the Federal Register notice of
the issuance of the initial 2021 IHA for
the ACOE’s construction work (86 FR
37124), the ACOE’s application, the
Federal Register notice of the proposed
IHA (86 FR 28768), and all associated
references and documents.
Determinations
The ACOE will conduct activities as
analyzed in support of the initial 2021
IHA. As described above, the number of
authorized takes of the same species and
stocks of marine mammals are identical
to the numbers that were found to meet
the negligible impact and small
numbers standards and authorized
under the initial IHA and no new
information has emerged that would
change those findings. The re-issued
2024 IHA includes identical required
mitigation, monitoring, and reporting
measures as the initial IHA, and there is
no new information suggesting that our
analysis or findings should change.
Based on the information 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; and (4) the ACOE’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.
National Environmental Policy Act
This action is consistent with
categories of activities identified in
Categorical Exclusion B4 (incidental
take authorizations with no anticipated
E:\FR\FM\17MRN1.SGM
17MRN1
16414
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 52 / Friday, March 17, 2023 / Notices
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
determined that the issuance of the
initial IHA qualified to be categorically
excluded from further NEPA review.
NMFS has determined that the
application of this categorical exclusion
remains appropriate for this reissued
IHA.
Endangered Species Act (ESA)
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
whenever we propose to authorize take
for endangered or threatened species.
However, no incidental take of ESAlisted species is authorized 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 the ACOE
for in-water construction activities
associated with the specified activity
from January 1, 2024 through December
31, 2024. All previously described
mitigation, monitoring, and reporting
requirements from the initial 2021 IHA
are incorporated.
Dated: March 14, 2023.
Catherine Marzin,
Deputy Director, Office of Protected
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2023–05483 Filed 3–16–23; 8:45 am]
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE FROM
PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND OR
SEVERELY DISABLED
Procurement List; Additions and
Deletions
Committee for Purchase from
People Who Are Blind or Severely
Disabled.
AGENCY:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:04 Mar 16, 2023
Jkt 259001
ACTION:
Additions to the Procurement
List.
This action adds service(s) to
the Procurement List that will be
furnished by nonprofit agencies
employing persons who are blind or
have other severe disabilities.
DATES: Date added to the Procurement
List: April 16, 2023.
ADDRESSES: Committee for Purchase
from People Who Are Blind or Severely
Disabled, 355 E Street SW, Suite 325,
Washington, DC 20024.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Michael R. Jurkowski, Telephone: (703)
785–6404, or email CMTEFedReg@
AbilityOne.gov.
SUMMARY:
Additions
On 1/27/2023, the Committee for
Purchase From People Who Are Blind
or Severely Disabled published notice of
proposed additions to the Procurement
List. This notice is published pursuant
to 41 U.S.C. 8503 (a)(2) and 41 CFR 51–
2.3.
After consideration of the material
presented to it concerning capability of
qualified nonprofit agencies to provide
the service(s) and impact of the
additions on the current or most recent
contractors, the Committee has
determined that the service(s) listed
below are suitable for procurement by
the Federal Government under 41 U.S.C.
8501–8506 and 41 CFR 51–2.4.
Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification
I certify that the following action will
not have a significant impact on a
substantial number of small entities.
The major factors considered for this
certification were:
1. The action will not result in any
additional reporting, recordkeeping or
other compliance requirements for small
entities other than the small
organizations that will furnish the
service(s) to the Government.
2. The action will result in
authorizing small entities to furnish the
service(s) to the Government.
3. There are no known regulatory
alternatives which would accomplish
the objectives of the Javits-WagnerO’Day Act (41 U.S.C. 8501–8506) in
connection with the service(s) proposed
for addition to the Procurement List.
End of Certification
Accordingly, the following service(s)
are added to the Procurement List:
Service(s)
Service Type: Contractor Operated Civil
Engineer Supply Store
Mandatory for: Malmstrom Air Force Base,
Frm 00021
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Michael R. Jurkowski,
Acting Director, Business Operations.
[FR Doc. 2023–05500 Filed 3–16–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6353–01–P
COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE FROM
PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND OR
SEVERELY DISABLED
Procurement List; Proposed Additions
and Deletions
Committee for Purchase from
People Who Are Blind or Severely
Disabled.
ACTION: Proposed additions to and
deletions from the Procurement List.
AGENCY:
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
PO 00000
Malmstrom AFB, MT
Designated Source of Supply: South Texas
Lighthouse for the Blind, Corpus Christi,
TX
Contracting Activity: DEPT OF THE AIR
FORCE, FA4626 341 CONS LGC
The Committee is proposing
to add product(s) and service(s) to the
Procurement List that will be furnished
by nonprofit agencies employing
persons who are blind or have other
severe disabilities, and delete product(s)
and service(s) previously furnished by
such agencies.
DATES: Comments must be received on
or before: April 16, 2023.
ADDRESSES: Committee for Purchase
from People Who Are Blind or Severely
Disabled, 355 E Street SW, Suite 325,
Washington, DC 20024.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
further information or to submit
comments contact: Michael R.
Jurkowski, Telephone: (703) 785–6404,
or email CMTEFedReg@AbilityOne.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
notice is published pursuant to 41
U.S.C. 8503(a)(2) and 41 CFR 51–2.3. Its
purpose is to provide interested persons
an opportunity to submit comments on
the proposed actions.
SUMMARY:
Additions
If the Committee approves the
proposed additions, the entities of the
Federal Government identified in this
notice will be required to procure the
product(s) and service(s) listed below
from nonprofit agencies employing
persons who are blind or have other
severe disabilities.
The following product(s) and
service(s) are proposed for addition to
the Procurement List for production by
the nonprofit agencies listed:
Product(s)
NSN(s)—Product Name(s):
8520–01–490–7358—Instant Hand
Sanitizer, Gel, Portable Flip Cap Bottle,
4oz
E:\FR\FM\17MRN1.SGM
17MRN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 52 (Friday, March 17, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16412-16414]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-05483]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[RTID 0648-XC628]
Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities;
Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Army Corps of Engineers Debris Dock
Replacement Project, Sausalito, California
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; issuance of incidental harassment authorization.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: NMFS has received a request from the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers (ACOE) for a second re-issuance of a previously issued
incidental harassment authorization (IHA), with the only change being
the effective dates. The IHA authorizes take of seven species of marine
mammals, by Level A and Level B harassment, incidental to construction
associated with the Debris Dock Replacement Project in Sausalito,
California. The ACOE has requested re-issuance with new effective dates
of January 1, 2024 through December 31, 2024. The scope of the
activities and anticipated effects remain the same, authorized take
numbers are not changed, and the required mitigation, monitoring, and
reporting remains the same as included in the initial IHA. NMFS is,
therefore, issuing an identical IHA to cover the incidental take
analyzed and authorized in the initial IHA.
[[Page 16413]]
DATES: This authorization is effective from January 1, 2024 through
December 31, 2024.
ADDRESSES: An electronic copy of the final 2021 IHA previously issued
to the ACOE, the ACOE's application, and the Federal Register notices
proposing and issuing the initial IHA may be obtained by visiting /
www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/incidental-take-authorization-army-corps-engineers-debris-dock-replacement-project-sausalito. In case of
problems accessing these documents, please call the contact listed
below (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jessica Taylor, Office of Protected
Resources, NMFS, (301) 427-8401.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Sections 101(a)(5)(A) and (D) of the Marine Mammal Protection Act
(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 authorization is provided to the
public for review.
An authorization for incidental takings shall be granted if NMFS
finds that the taking will have a negligible impact on the species or
stock(s), will not have an unmitigable adverse impact on the
availability of the species or stock(s) for subsistence uses (where
relevant), and if the permissible methods of taking and requirements
pertaining to the mitigation, monitoring and reporting of such takings
are set forth.
NMFS has defined ``negligible impact'' in 50 CFR 216.103 as an
impact resulting from the specified activity that cannot be reasonably
expected to, and is not reasonably likely to, adversely affect the
species or stock through effects on annual rates of recruitment or
survival.
The MMPA states that the term ``take'' means to harass, hunt,
capture, kill or attempt to harass, hunt, capture, or kill any marine
mammal.
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).
Summary of Request
On July 14, 2021, NMFS published final notice of our issuance of an
IHA authorizing take of marine mammals incidental to the Debris Dock
Replacement project (86 FR 37124). The effective dates of that IHA were
September 1, 2021, through August 31, 2022. On December 14, 2021, the
ACOE informed NMFS that the project was delayed. None of the work
identified in the initial IHA application (e.g., pile driving and
removal) had occurred. The ACOE submitted a request that we reissue an
identical IHA that would be effective from January 5, 2022 through
January 4, 2023, in order to conduct the construction work that was
analyzed in support of the previously issued IHA. An identical IHA was
reissued on December 27, 2021 (86 FR 73261). However, the project
remains delayed and no work has been conducted. On December 6, 2022,
the ACOE informed NMFS that, due to a project delay, none of the work
identified in the original IHA (e.g., pile driving and removal) has
been conducted. The ACOE has, therefore, submitted a request that we
reissue another IHA identical to the IHA issued July 14, 2021. As the
project activities, anticipated effects, and required mitigation,
monitoring, and reporting remain the same, re-issuance of the IHA is
appropriate.
Summary of Specified Activity and Anticipated Impacts
The planned activities (including mitigation, monitoring, and
reporting), authorized incidental take, and anticipated impacts on the
affected stocks are the same as those analyzed and authorized through
the previously issued IHA.
The purpose of the ACOE's construction project is to replace the
existing decaying dock and other onshore infrastructure used to move
marine debris collected from San Francisco Bay onto land for disposal.
The location, timing, and nature of the activities, including the types
of equipment planned for use, are identical to those described in the
initial IHA. The mitigation and monitoring are also as prescribed in
the initial IHA.
Species that are expected to be taken by the planned activity
include harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena), harbor seal (Phoca
vitulina), gray whale (Eschrichtius robustus), bottlenose dolphin
(Tursiops truncatus), California sea lion (Zalophus californianus),
northern fur seal (Callorhinus ursinus), and northern elephant seal
(Mirounga angustirostris). A description of the methods and inputs used
to estimate take anticipated to occur and, ultimately, the take that
was authorized is found in the previous documents referenced above. The
data inputs and methods of estimating take are identical to those used
in the initial IHA. NMFS has reviewed recent Stock Assessment Reports,
information on relevant Unusual Mortality Events, and recent scientific
literature, and determined that no new information affects our original
analysis of impacts or take estimate under the initial IHA.
We refer to the documents related to the previously issued IHA,
which include the Federal Register notice of the issuance of the
initial 2021 IHA for the ACOE's construction work (86 FR 37124), the
ACOE's application, the Federal Register notice of the proposed IHA (86
FR 28768), and all associated references and documents.
Determinations
The ACOE will conduct activities as analyzed in support of the
initial 2021 IHA. As described above, the number of authorized takes of
the same species and stocks of marine mammals are identical to the
numbers that were found to meet the negligible impact and small numbers
standards and authorized under the initial IHA and no new information
has emerged that would change those findings. The re-issued 2024 IHA
includes identical required mitigation, monitoring, and reporting
measures as the initial IHA, and there is no new information suggesting
that our analysis or findings should change.
Based on the information 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; and (4) the ACOE'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.
National Environmental Policy Act
This action is consistent with categories of activities identified
in Categorical Exclusion B4 (incidental take authorizations with no
anticipated
[[Page 16414]]
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 determined that the issuance of the initial IHA
qualified to be categorically excluded from further NEPA review. NMFS
has determined that the application of this categorical exclusion
remains appropriate for this reissued IHA.
Endangered Species Act (ESA)
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 whenever we propose to authorize take for
endangered or threatened species.
However, no incidental take of ESA-listed species is authorized 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 the ACOE for in-water construction
activities associated with the specified activity from January 1, 2024
through December 31, 2024. All previously described mitigation,
monitoring, and reporting requirements from the initial 2021 IHA are
incorporated.
Dated: March 14, 2023.
Catherine Marzin,
Deputy Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2023-05483 Filed 3-16-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
