[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 101 (Friday, May 24, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31519-31520]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-12361]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XJ40


Endangered Species; File No. 13543

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

ACTION: Notice; issuance of permit modification.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that South Carolina Department of 
Natural Resources [Responsible Party: Robert Boyles], 217 Ft. Johnson 
Rd.,

[[Page 31520]]

Charleston, SC 29412, has been issued a modification to scientific 
research Permit No. 13543.

ADDRESSES: The modification and related documents are available for 
review upon written request or by appointment in the following offices:

Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected Resources, NMFS, 
1315 East-West Highway, Room 13705, Silver Spring, MD 20910; phone 
(301) 427-8401; fax (301) 713-0376; and

Southeast Region, NMFS, 263 13th Ave. South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701; 
phone (727) 824-5312; fax (727) 824-5309.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Amy Hapeman or Kristy Beard, (301) 
427-8401.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On January 17, 2013, notice was published in 
the Federal Register (78 FR 3882) that a modification to Permit No. 
13543, issued April 30, 2009 (74 FR 20926), had been requested by the 
above-named organization. The requested modification has been granted 
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 
222-226).
    Permit No. 13543 authorizes the permit holder to handle, measure, 
weigh, affix a passive integrated transponder tag, flipper tag, and 
photograph sea turtles that have already been captured by authorized 
coastal trawl surveys in waters from North Carolina to Florida. The 
purpose of the research is to further the understanding of the growth, 
distribution, and life history of sea turtles. The permit modification, 
No. 13543-01 authorizes the requested increase in annual take limits 
for Kemp's ridley (Lepidochelys kempii) and loggerhead (Caretta 
caretta) sea turtles to accommodate recent increases in capture rates 
of these species in the trawl surveys. The permit is valid through 
April 30, 2014.
    Issuance of this modification, 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 20, 2013.
P. Michael Payne,
Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2013-12361 Filed 5-23-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P