[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 107 (Friday, June 3, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Page 32144]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-13842]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XA467


Endangered Species; File No. 15677

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Issuance of permit.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that South Carolina Department of 
Natural Resources (hereinafter ``Permit Holder''), P.O. Box 12559 
Charleston, SC 29422 [Responsible Party: William C. Post], has been 
issued a permit to take shortnose sturgeon for purposes of scientific 
research.

ADDRESSES: The permit and related documents are available for review 
upon written request or by appointment in the following offices:
     Permits, Conservation and Education Division, Office of 
Protected Resources, NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Room 13705, Silver 
Spring, MD 20910; phone (301) 713-2289; fax (301) 713-0376; and
     Southeast Region, NMFS, 263 13th Avenue South, Saint 
Petersburg, Florida 33701; phone (727) 824-5312; fax (727) 824-5309.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Malcolm Mohead or Colette Cairns, 
(301) 713-2289.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On November 30, 2010, notice was published 
in the Federal Register (75 FR 74003) that a scientific research permit 
to take shortnose sturgeon had been submitted by the above-named 
organization. The requested permit has been issued under the authority 
of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 
et seq.) and the regulations governing the taking, importing, and 
exporting of endangered and threatened species (50 CFR parts 222-226).
    The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) is 
authorized to conduct a five-year scientific study assessing the 
presence, abundance, and distribution of shortnose sturgeon in South 
Carolina waters (Savannah, ACE Basin, including the Ashepoo, Combabee 
and Edisto Rivers, Cooper, and Santee Rivers, Lake Marion and its 
tributaries, and the Winyah Bay system, including the Black, Waccamaw, 
Sampit, Little Pee Dee and Great Pee Dee Rivers), each to the first 
impassible dam. The SCDNR will also specifically assess shortnose 
sturgeon usage of the upper Santee River Basin (Wateree, Saluda, and 
Congaree Rivers) as part of two Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 
(FERC) relicensing projects: the Duke Energy Catawba Wateree and the 
SCANA Services Saluda Hydroelectric Projects.
    Issuance of this permit, as required by the ESA, was based on a 
finding that such permit (1) Was applied for in good faith, (2) will 
not operate to the disadvantage of such endangered or threatened 
species, and (3) is consistent with the purposes and policies set forth 
in section 2 of the ESA.

    Dated: May 27, 2011.
Tammy C. Adams,
Acting Chief, Permits, Conservation and Education Division, Office of 
Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2011-13842 Filed 6-2-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P