National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration April 6, 2007 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with provisions of the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) as amended, notification is hereby given that Incidental Harassment Authorizations (IHAs) to take marine mammals, by harassment, incidental to conducting seismic operations in the northwest portion of Cook Inlet, Alaska, have been issued to ConocoPhillips Alaska, Inc. (CPAI) and Union Oil Company of California (UOCC) for a period between mid-March and mid-June, 2007.

Notice is hereby given that the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (Kathryn Hattala, Principal Investigator), 21 South Putt Corners Road; New Paltz, New York 12561, has been issued a modification to scientific research Permit Number 1547.

Limit 10(i) of the June 28, 2005, Endangered Species Act (ESA) provides that road maintenance programs that comply with a program substantially similar to that contained in the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) Guide that is determined to meet or exceed the protections provided by the ODOT Guide can be excepted from the prohibitions provided in earlier sections of that rule. The Five Counties Salmon Conservation Program's (5 C) ``A Water Quality and Stream Habitat Protection Manual for County Road Maintenance in Northwestern California Watersheds'' (Manual), is a comprehensive road maintenance program for Humboldt, Del Norte, Siskiyou, Trinity, and Mendocino Counties (5 C area). If the Manual is qualified under Limit 10(i), each of the five counties would adopt the Manual as its road maintenance program. To facilitate NMFS review of the Manual under Limit 10(i), 5 C prepared a submittal package that addresses each of the approval criterion in the 4(d) rule. The Manual would affect two Evolutionarily Significant Units (ESUs) of threatened salmon and two Distinct Population Segments (DPSs) of threatened steelhead identified in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION below. The Manual specifies the future management practices for routine road maintenance activities within the 5 C area. This notice serves to inform the public of the availability of the Manual and submittal package for review and comment.

Notice is hereby given of an annual meeting of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the State Marine Fisheries Directors. This annual meeting provides the opportunity for State and Federal fishery managers to discuss fishery management areas ofconcern. The meeting will be hosted by the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission(PSMFC). All sessions will be open to the public.