Fish and Wildlife Service May 8, 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) has received requests from Shell Offshore, Inc. (Shell), ConocoPhillips Alaska, Inc. (CPAI), and GXT Houston (GXT) for authorizations to take small numbers of marine mammals by harassment incidental to conducting open-water seismic operations in the Chukchi Sea. In accordance with provisions of the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), as amended, the Service requests comments on its proposed authorization for the operators identified above to incidentally take, by harassment, small numbers of Pacific walrus and polar bears in the Chukchi Sea area between June 1, 2006, and November 30, 2006.