Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to the Maryland Offshore Wind Project Offshore of Maryland, 95186-95187 [2024-28215]
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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 231 / Monday, December 2, 2024 / Notices
ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
Act, Public Law 104–447 (Act)
authorizes a fishing capacity reduction
program implementing capacity
reduction plans submitted to NMFS by
catcher processor subsectors of the
Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI)
non-pollock groundfish fishery
(reduction fishery) as set forth in the
Act.
The longline catcher processor
subsector (Longline Subsector) is among
the catcher processor subsectors eligible
to submit to NMFS a capacity reduction
plan under the terms of the Act. The
longline subsector non-pollock
groundfish reduction program’s
objective was to reduce the number of
vessels and permits endorsed for
longline subsector of the non-pollock
groundfish fishery. All post-reduction
fish landings from the reduction fishery
are subject to the longline subsector
non-pollock groundfish program’s fee.
NMFS proposed the implementing
notice on August 11, 2006 (71 FR
46364), and published the final notice
on September 29, 2006 (71 FR 57696).
NMFS allocated the $35,000,000
reduction loan (A Loan) to the reduction
fishery and this loan is repayable by fees
from the fishery.
On September 24, 2007, NMFS
published in the Federal Register (72
FR 54219), the final rule to implement
the industry fee system for repaying the
non-pollock groundfish program’s
reduction loan and established October
24, 2007, as the effective date when fee
collection and loan repayment began.
The regulations implementing the
program are located at § 600.1012.
NMFS published a final rule to
implement a second $2,700,000
reduction loan (B Loan) for this fishery
in the Federal Register on September
24, 2012 (77 FR 58775). The loan was
disbursed December 18, 2012 with fee
collection of $0.001 per pound to begin
January 1, 2013. This fee is in addition
to the A Loan fee.
Purpose
The purpose of this notice is to adjust
the fee rate for the reduction fishery in
accordance with the framework rule’s
§ 600.1013(b). Section 600.1013(b)
directs NMFS to recalculate the fee rate
that will be reasonably necessary to
ensure reduction loan repayment within
the specified 30 year term.
NMFS has determined for the
reduction fishery that the current fee
rate of Loan A, $0.020 per pound, is
more than that needed to service the
loan in 2025. Therefore, NMFS is
decreasing the Loan A fee rate to $0.016
per pound. NMFS has determined
$0.017 per pound is sufficient to ensure
timely loan repayment, with an
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18:25 Nov 29, 2024
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additional temporary $0.001 per pound
adjustment related to the 2024 Season B
rate having been set at $0.020 per pound
rather than $0.019 per pound. The fee
rate for Loan B will remain $0.001 per
pound.
Subsector members may continue to
use Pay.gov to disburse collected fee
deposits at: https\://www.pay.gov/
paygov/.
Please visit the NMFS website for
additional information at:https://
www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/
funding-and-financial-services/longlinecatcher-processor-subsector-bering-seaand-aleutian-islands-non-pollock.
Notice
The new fee rate for the non-pollock
groundfish fishery will begin on January
1, 2025.
From and after this date, all subsector
members paying fees on the non-pollock
groundfish fishery shall begin paying
non-pollock groundfish fishery program
fees at the revised rate.
Fee collection and submission shall
follow previously established methods
in § 600.1013 of the framework rule and
in the final fee rule published in the
Federal Register on September 24, 2007
(72 FR 54219).
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1861 et seq.; Pub.
L. 108–447.
Dated: November 26, 2024.
Brian T. Pawlak,
Chief Financial Officer/Chief Administrative
Officer, Director, Office of Management and
Budget, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024–28163 Filed 11–29–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
[RTID 0648–XE341]
Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to
Specified Activities; Taking Marine
Mammals Incidental to the Maryland
Offshore Wind Project Offshore of
Maryland
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; issuance of Letter of
Authorization.
AGENCY:
In accordance with the
Marine Mammal Protection Act
(MMPA) as amended, and implementing
regulations, notification is hereby given
that a Letter of Authorization (LOA) has
been issued to US Wind, Inc. (US
Wind), for the taking of marine
SUMMARY:
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
mammals incidental to the construction
of the Maryland Offshore Wind Project
(hereafter known as the ‘‘Project’’).
DATES: The LOA is effective from
January 1, 2025 through December 31,
2029.
ADDRESSES: The LOA and supporting
documentation are available 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 below (see
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Jessica Taylor, Office of Protected
Resources, NMFS, (301) 427–8401.
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, regulations are promulgated
(when applicable), and public notice
and an opportunity for public comment
are provided.
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) and
will not have an unmitigable adverse
impact on the availability of the species
or stock(s) for taking for subsistence
uses (where relevant). If such findings
are made, NMFS must prescribe the
permissible methods of taking; ‘‘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
the species or stocks for taking for
certain subsistence uses (referred to as
‘‘mitigation’’); and requirements
pertaining to the monitoring and
reporting of such takings. The MMPA
defines ‘‘take’’ to mean harass, hunt,
capture, or kill, or attempt to harass,
hunt, capture, or kill any marine
mammal (16 U.S.C. 1362(13); 50 CFR
216.103). Level A harassment is defined
as any act of pursuit, torment, or
annoyance which has the potential to
injure a marine mammal or marine
mammal stock in the wild (16 U.S.C.
1362(18); 50 CFR 216.3). Level A
harassment is defined as any act of
E:\FR\FM\02DEN1.SGM
02DEN1
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 231 / Monday, December 2, 2024 / Notices
ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
pursuit, torment, or annoyance which
has the potential to injure a marine
mammal or marine mammal stock in the
wild (16 U.S.C. 1362(18); 50 CFR 216.3).
Level B harassment is defined as any act
of pursuit, torment, or annoyance which
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 (16 U.S.C.
1362(18); 50 CFR 216.3). Section
101(a)(5)(A) of the MMPA and the
implementing regulations at 50 CFR part
216, subpart I authorize NMFS to
propose and, if appropriate, promulgate
regulations and issue associated LOA(s).
NMFS promulgated regulations on
October 23, 2024 (89 FR 84676) for the
taking of marine mammals incidental to
the construction of the Maryland
Offshore Wind Project offshore of
Maryland. The LOA authorizes US
Wind, and those persons it authorizes or
funds to conduct activities on its behalf,
to take marine mammals incidental to
specified activities during the
construction of the Project and requires
them to implement mitigation,
monitoring, and reporting requirements.
Summary of Request
On October 23, 2024, NMFS
promulgated a final rule (89 FR 84674)
responding to a request from US Wind
for authorization to take marine
mammals (19 species comprising 20
stocks) by Level B harassment (all 20
stocks) and by Level A harassment (5
stocks of the 20 stocks) incidental to
construction activities occurring in
Federal and State waters off of
Maryland, specifically within and
around the Bureau of Ocean Energy
Management (BOEM) Commercial Lease
of Submerged Lands for Renewable
Energy Development on the Outer
Continental Shelf (OCS) Lease Area
OCS–A 0490 (collectively, ‘‘Lease
Area’’) and along two export cable
routes to sea-to-shore transition points
(collectively referred to as the ‘‘Project
Area’’), over the course of 5 years
(January 1, 2025 through December 31,
2029). The final rule included the
following specified activities: the
installation of up to 114 wind turbine
generators (WTGs) on monopile
foundations using impact pile driving;
the installation of 4 offshore substations
(OSSs) on jacket foundations consisting
of post-piled pin piles using impact pile
driving; the installation of one
meteorological tower (Met Tower) on
pin piles using impact pile driving;
installation and subsequent removal of
gravity cells to connect the offshore
export cables to onshore facilities
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:25 Nov 29, 2024
Jkt 265001
within Delaware Seashore State Park;
high-resolution geophysical (HRG)
marine site characterization surveys
using active acoustic sources; fishery
and ecological monitoring surveys; the
placement of scour protection; the
installation of the export cable routes
from OSSs to shore-based converter
stations and inter-array cables between
turbines by trenching, laying, and burial
activities; vessel transit within the
specified geographical region to
transport crew, supplies, and materials;
and WTG operation.
Marine mammals exposed to elevated
noise levels during foundation impact
pile driving may be taken by Level A
harassment, and marine mammals
exposed to elevated noise levels during
impact pile driving and HRG site
characterization surveys may be taken
by Level B harassment. No mortality or
serious injury of any marine mammal is
anticipated or authorized. The number
of takes, by species, authorized may be
found in table 1 in the LOA, which is
available at https://www.fisheries.
noaa.gov/permit/incidental-takeauthorizations-under-marine-mammalprotection-act.
Authorization
In accordance with the final rule (89
FR 84674, October 23, 2024; see 50 CFR
217.306), NMFS has issued a LOA to US
Wind authorizing the take, by
harassment, of marine mammals
incidental to specified activities within
the specified geographical region. As
previously stated, no mortality or
serious injury of any marine mammal
species is anticipated or authorized. The
incidental takes authorized herein are
the same as those analyzed and
authorized in the final rule (89 FR
84674, October 23, 2024). Takes of
marine mammals will be minimized
through the following planned
mitigation and monitoring measures, as
applicable for each specified activity: (1)
implementation of seasonal pile driving
work restrictions; (2) use of multiple
NMFS-approved Protected Species
Observers (PSOs) to visually observe for
marine mammals (with any detection
within specifically designated zones
triggering a delay or shutdown, as
applicable); (3) use of NMFS-approved
passive acoustic monitoring (PAM)
operators to acoustically detect marine
mammals, with a focus on detecting
baleen whales (with any detection
within designated zones triggering a
delay or shutdown, as applicable); (4)
implementation of clearance and
shutdown zones; (5) use of soft-start
upon commencement of impact pile
driving and ramp-up of acoustic sources
during HRG surveys; (6) use of noise
PO 00000
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
95187
attenuation technology during
foundation pile driving; (7) use of
situational awareness monitoring for
marine mammal presence; (8) use of
sound field verification monitoring; (9)
use of PAM within the vessel transit
corridor for Project vessels to travel over
10 knots (11.5 miles per hour); and (10)
implementation of several vessel strike
avoidance measures to avoid vessel
strikes, including but not limited to,
vessel separation zones between marine
mammals and project vessels.
Additionally, NMFS may modify the
LOA’s mitigation, monitoring, or
reporting measures, based on new
information. US Wind is also required
to submit reports, as specified in the
final rule.
Based on the findings discussed in the
preamble of the final rule, NMFS has
determined that the take authorized in
the LOA is of small numbers, will have
a negligible impact on marine mammal
stocks, will not have an unmitigable
adverse impact on the availability of the
affected marine mammal stock for
subsistence uses, and the mitigation
measures provide a means of affecting
the least practicable adverse impact on
the affected stocks and their habitat.
Dated: November 26, 2024.
Kimberly Damon-Randall,
Director, Office of Protected Resources,
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024–28215 Filed 11–29–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
Draft Revised Management Plan for the
Narragansett Bay National Estuarine
Research Reserve
Office for Coastal Management,
National Ocean Service, National
Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration, Department of
Commerce.
ACTION: Request for comments.
AGENCY:
The National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is
soliciting comments from the public
regarding a proposed revision of the
management plan for the Narragansett
Bay National Estuarine Research
Reserve (NBNERR). A management plan
provides a framework to guide a
reserve’s programs, track progress
toward meeting its goals, and identify
potential opportunities or changes in
direction. It is also used to guide
programmatic evaluations. Management
plan revisions are required at least every
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\02DEN1.SGM
02DEN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 231 (Monday, December 2, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 95186-95187]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-28215]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[RTID 0648-XE341]
Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities;
Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to the Maryland Offshore Wind Project
Offshore of Maryland
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; issuance of Letter of Authorization.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) as
amended, and implementing regulations, notification is hereby given
that a Letter of Authorization (LOA) has been issued to US Wind, Inc.
(US Wind), for the taking of marine mammals incidental to the
construction of the Maryland Offshore Wind Project (hereafter known as
the ``Project'').
DATES: The LOA is effective from January 1, 2025 through December 31,
2029.
ADDRESSES: The LOA and supporting documentation are available 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 below (see
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jessica Taylor, Office of Protected
Resources, NMFS, (301) 427-8401.
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, regulations are
promulgated (when applicable), and public notice and an opportunity for
public comment are provided.
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) and will not have an unmitigable adverse impact on the
availability of the species or stock(s) for taking for subsistence uses
(where relevant). If such findings are made, NMFS must prescribe the
permissible methods of taking; ``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
the species or stocks for taking for certain subsistence uses (referred
to as ``mitigation''); and requirements pertaining to the monitoring
and reporting of such takings. The MMPA defines ``take'' to mean
harass, hunt, capture, or kill, or attempt to harass, hunt, capture, or
kill any marine mammal (16 U.S.C. 1362(13); 50 CFR 216.103). Level A
harassment is defined as any act of pursuit, torment, or annoyance
which has the potential to injure a marine mammal or marine mammal
stock in the wild (16 U.S.C. 1362(18); 50 CFR 216.3). Level A
harassment is defined as any act of
[[Page 95187]]
pursuit, torment, or annoyance which has the potential to injure a
marine mammal or marine mammal stock in the wild (16 U.S.C. 1362(18);
50 CFR 216.3). Level B harassment is defined as any act of pursuit,
torment, or annoyance which 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 (16 U.S.C.
1362(18); 50 CFR 216.3). Section 101(a)(5)(A) of the MMPA and the
implementing regulations at 50 CFR part 216, subpart I authorize NMFS
to propose and, if appropriate, promulgate regulations and issue
associated LOA(s). NMFS promulgated regulations on October 23, 2024 (89
FR 84676) for the taking of marine mammals incidental to the
construction of the Maryland Offshore Wind Project offshore of
Maryland. The LOA authorizes US Wind, and those persons it authorizes
or funds to conduct activities on its behalf, to take marine mammals
incidental to specified activities during the construction of the
Project and requires them to implement mitigation, monitoring, and
reporting requirements.
Summary of Request
On October 23, 2024, NMFS promulgated a final rule (89 FR 84674)
responding to a request from US Wind for authorization to take marine
mammals (19 species comprising 20 stocks) by Level B harassment (all 20
stocks) and by Level A harassment (5 stocks of the 20 stocks)
incidental to construction activities occurring in Federal and State
waters off of Maryland, specifically within and around the Bureau of
Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Commercial Lease of Submerged Lands for
Renewable Energy Development on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Lease
Area OCS-A 0490 (collectively, ``Lease Area'') and along two export
cable routes to sea-to-shore transition points (collectively referred
to as the ``Project Area''), over the course of 5 years (January 1,
2025 through December 31, 2029). The final rule included the following
specified activities: the installation of up to 114 wind turbine
generators (WTGs) on monopile foundations using impact pile driving;
the installation of 4 offshore substations (OSSs) on jacket foundations
consisting of post-piled pin piles using impact pile driving; the
installation of one meteorological tower (Met Tower) on pin piles using
impact pile driving; installation and subsequent removal of gravity
cells to connect the offshore export cables to onshore facilities
within Delaware Seashore State Park; high-resolution geophysical (HRG)
marine site characterization surveys using active acoustic sources;
fishery and ecological monitoring surveys; the placement of scour
protection; the installation of the export cable routes from OSSs to
shore-based converter stations and inter-array cables between turbines
by trenching, laying, and burial activities; vessel transit within the
specified geographical region to transport crew, supplies, and
materials; and WTG operation.
Marine mammals exposed to elevated noise levels during foundation
impact pile driving may be taken by Level A harassment, and marine
mammals exposed to elevated noise levels during impact pile driving and
HRG site characterization surveys may be taken by Level B harassment.
No mortality or serious injury of any marine mammal is anticipated or
authorized. The number of takes, by species, authorized may be found in
table 1 in the LOA, which is available at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/permit/incidental-take-authorizations-under-marine-mammal-protection-act.
Authorization
In accordance with the final rule (89 FR 84674, October 23, 2024;
see 50 CFR 217.306), NMFS has issued a LOA to US Wind authorizing the
take, by harassment, of marine mammals incidental to specified
activities within the specified geographical region. As previously
stated, no mortality or serious injury of any marine mammal species is
anticipated or authorized. The incidental takes authorized herein are
the same as those analyzed and authorized in the final rule (89 FR
84674, October 23, 2024). Takes of marine mammals will be minimized
through the following planned mitigation and monitoring measures, as
applicable for each specified activity: (1) implementation of seasonal
pile driving work restrictions; (2) use of multiple NMFS-approved
Protected Species Observers (PSOs) to visually observe for marine
mammals (with any detection within specifically designated zones
triggering a delay or shutdown, as applicable); (3) use of NMFS-
approved passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) operators to acoustically
detect marine mammals, with a focus on detecting baleen whales (with
any detection within designated zones triggering a delay or shutdown,
as applicable); (4) implementation of clearance and shutdown zones; (5)
use of soft-start upon commencement of impact pile driving and ramp-up
of acoustic sources during HRG surveys; (6) use of noise attenuation
technology during foundation pile driving; (7) use of situational
awareness monitoring for marine mammal presence; (8) use of sound field
verification monitoring; (9) use of PAM within the vessel transit
corridor for Project vessels to travel over 10 knots (11.5 miles per
hour); and (10) implementation of several vessel strike avoidance
measures to avoid vessel strikes, including but not limited to, vessel
separation zones between marine mammals and project vessels.
Additionally, NMFS may modify the LOA's mitigation, monitoring, or
reporting measures, based on new information. US Wind is also required
to submit reports, as specified in the final rule.
Based on the findings discussed in the preamble of the final rule,
NMFS has determined that the take authorized in the LOA is of small
numbers, will have a negligible impact on marine mammal stocks, will
not have an unmitigable adverse impact on the availability of the
affected marine mammal stock for subsistence uses, and the mitigation
measures provide a means of affecting the least practicable adverse
impact on the affected stocks and their habitat.
Dated: November 26, 2024.
Kimberly Damon-Randall,
Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries
Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-28215 Filed 11-29-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
