[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 243 (Monday, December 19, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 91919-91920]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-30415]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-XF082
Marine Mammals; File No. 20527
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
[[Page 91920]]
ACTION: Notice; receipt of application.
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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that Ann Pabst, Ph.D., University of
North Carolina Wilmington, Biology and Marine Biology, 601 S. College
Road, Wilmington, NC 28403, has applied in due form for a permit to
conduct research on marine mammals.
DATES: Written, telefaxed, or email comments must be received on or
before January 18, 2017.
ADDRESSES: The application and related documents are available for
review by selecting ``Records Open for Public Comment'' from the
``Features'' box on the Applications and Permits for Protected Species
(APPS) home page, https://apps.nmfs.noaa.gov, and then selecting File
No. 20527 from the list of available applications.
These documents are also available upon written request or by
appointment in the 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.
Written comments on this application should be submitted to the
Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, at the address listed above.
Comments may also be submitted by facsimile to (301) 713-0376, or by
email to [email protected]. Please include the File No. in the
subject line of the email comment.
Those individuals requesting a public hearing should submit a
written request to the Chief, Permits and Conservation Division at the
address listed above. The request should set forth the specific reasons
why a hearing on this application would be appropriate.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shasta McClenahan or Carrie Hubard,
(301) 427-8401.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The subject permit is requested under the
authority of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as amended
(MMPA; 16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), the regulations governing the taking
and importing of marine mammals (50 CFR part 216), 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).
The applicant proposes to take marine mammals to: (1) Document the
presence of North Atlantic right (Eubalaena glacialis) and humpback
(Megaptera novaeangliae) whales in the mid-Atlantic, and (2) describe
the distribution and abundance of cetaceans within specific regions
used for U.S. Navy training or other activities. Research activities
may occur year-round in the Atlantic Ocean from Delaware Bay to Cape
Canaveral, FL, and will include aerial and vessel surveys to conduct
counts, photo-identification, photogrammetry, and behavioral
observations. ESA-listed species include up to 40 blue (Balaenoptera
musculus), 100 fin (B. physalus), 200 North Atlantic right, 40 sei (B.
borealis), and 150 sperm (Physeter macrocephalus) whales. Non-listed
species include 100 Cuvier's beaked (Ziphius cavirostris), 100 false
killer (Pseudorca crassidens), 100 Gervais' beaked (Mesoplodon
europaeus), 200 humpback, 50 killer (Orcinus orca), 100 melon-headed
(Peponocephala electra), 100 minke (B. acutorostrata), 5,000 pilot
(Globicephala spp.), 100 pygmy and dwarf sperm (Kogia spp.), 100 pygmy
killer (Feresa attenuata), 100 True's beaked (M. mirus), and 100
unidentified beaked whales; 5,000 Atlantic spotted (Stenella
frontalis), 8,000 bottlenose (Tursiops truncatus), 1,000 Clymene (S.
clymene), 1,000 common (Delphinus delphis), 100 Fraser's (Lagenodelphis
hosei), 100 pantropical spotted (S. attenuata), 2,500 Risso's (Grampus
griseus), 500 rough-toothed (Steno bredanensis), 200 spinner (S.
longirostris), and 1,000 striped (S. coeruleoalba) dolphins; and 100
harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena). The permit would be valid for 5
years from the date of issuance.
In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969
(42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), an initial determination has been made that
the activity proposed is categorically excluded from the requirement to
prepare an environmental assessment or environmental impact statement.
Concurrent with the publication of this notice in the Federal
Register, NMFS is forwarding copies of the application to the Marine
Mammal Commission and its Committee of Scientific Advisors.
Dated: December 13, 2016.
Julia Harrison,
Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2016-30415 Filed 12-16-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P