[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 152 (Tuesday, August 7, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38684-38685]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-16812]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Notice of Availability of Draft Programmatic Environmental
Assessments for Field Operations at Thirteen National Marine
Sanctuaries and Two Marine National Monuments
AGENCY: Office of National Marine Sanctuaries (ONMS), National Ocean
Service (NOS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Department of Commerce (DOC).
ACTION: Notice of availability.
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SUMMARY: The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has
prepared four draft programmatic environmental assessments for the
proposed continuation of field operations for each region of sites
managed by the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries. The field
operations support resource protection, research and education
objectives as mandated by the National Marine Sanctuaries Act and as
described in site-specific management plans. In each PEA, NOAA analyzes
the potential effects on the human environment of two alternatives to
implement field operations in the subject region. NOAA is soliciting
public comment on the four regional draft programmatic environmental
assessments.
DATES: Comments on these draft programmatic environmental assessments
will be considered if received by September 21, 2018.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on these documents, identified by
NOAA-NOS-2018-XXXX, by any of the following methods:
--Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public comments via the
Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NOS-2018-XXXX, click the ``Comment Now!'' icon,
complete the required fields, and enter or attach your comments.
--Mail: Helene Scalliet, Office of National Marine Sanctuaries, 1305
East West Highway, R/ORM6, Silver Spring, MD 20910.
Instructions: Comments sent by any other method, to any other
address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period,
may not be considered by NOAA. All comments received are a part of the
public record and will generally be posted for public viewing on
www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying
information (e.g., name, address), confidential business information,
or
[[Page 38685]]
otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily by the sender
will be publicly accessible. NOAA will accept anonymous comments (enter
``N/A'' in the required fields if you wish to remain anonymous).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Helene Scalliet, Policy and Planning
Division, Office of National Marine Sanctuaries at 240-533-0648 or via
email at [email protected]. Copies of the draft programmatic
environmental assessments can be downloaded or viewed on the internet
at www.regulations.gov (search for docket #NOAA-NOS-2018-XXXX). Copies
can also be obtained by contacting the person identified under FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
NOAA's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries (ONMS) serves as the
trustee for a network of underwater parks encompassing more than
600,000 square miles of marine and Great Lakes waters. The network
includes a system of 13 national marine sanctuaries and
Papah[amacr]naumoku[amacr]kea and Rose Atoll marine national monuments.
The National Marine Sanctuaries Act (NMSA; 16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.) is
the statute governing the National Marine Sanctuary System. The NMSA
authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to designate as national marine
sanctuaries areas of the marine environment or Great Lakes with special
national significance due to their conservation, recreational,
ecological, historical, scientific, cultural, archeological,
educational or aesthetic qualities. The primary objective of the NMSA
is to protect sanctuary resources, which span diverse geographic and
administrative boundaries. Accordingly, ONMS subscribes to a broad and
comprehensive management approach to meet the NMSA's primary objective
of resource protection. Comprehensive sanctuary and monument
management, described in detail in each site's management plan, serves
as a framework for addressing long-term protection of a wide range of
living and non-living marine resources, while allowing multiple uses of
the site to the extent that they are compatible with the primary goal
of resource protection. These plans are site-specific documents used by
all national marine sanctuaries and the monuments for which ONMS has
management responsibilities. The NMSA requires that ONMS develop and
periodically review the management plans for each national marine
sanctuary (Sec. 304(a)(2)(A) and (e)). Since revision of a management
plan often constitutes a Federal action, ONMS typically analyzes
changes to the management plan under NEPA. In many cases, this analysis
does not analyze in-depth consequences of routine field operations,
such as vessel operations and ongoing research programs. The draft PEAs
announced through this notice are designed to analyze these routine
field operations not previously adequately analyzed under the National
Environmental Policy Act during the management plan review process.
Within the context of the ONMS management plans, field operations
are an important component of implementing many of the actions
necessary to support resource protection, research and education
activities. The management plans also contain information relevant to
these draft regional programmatic environmental assessments (PEAs) such
as background about each sanctuary environment and its resources.
II. NOAA's Proposed Action
NOAA has prepared four draft PEAs for the proposed continuation of
field operations described in management plans for each site managed by
the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries. There is a draft PEA for
each of the following regions: West Coast, Pacific Islands, Northeast/
Great Lakes, and Southeast/Gulf of Mexico. The purpose of the
underlying field operations analyzed in the draft PEAs is to support
resource protection, research and education objectives as mandated by
the National Marine Sanctuaries Act and as described in site-specific
management plans. Field operations in ONMS-managed sites fall under 10
categories: vessel operations; vessel maintenance; aircraft operations;
non-motorized craft operations; SCUBA or snorkel operations; onshore
field work; deployment of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs)/
remotely operated vehicles (ROVs)/gliders/drifters; deployment of
remote sensing equipment; deployment of equipment on the seafloor; and
other sampling activities. The four regional draft PEAs describe in
detail the field operations taking place at each site in the next five
years as well as their environmental impacts on the physical,
biological, socioeconomic, maritime heritage and cultural environment.
In these documents, NOAA analyzes the potential effects of two
alternatives to implement the proposed action. NOAA also intends to use
these four draft PEAs as the basis for compliance under the Marine
Mammal Protection Act, Endangered Species Act, Magnuson-Stevens Act,
National Historic Preservation Act, and Coastal Zone Management Act.
NOAA intends to finalize any necessary compliance requirements for
these statutes prior to finalizing this action.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.
Thomas Culliton,
Acting Director, Office of National Marine Sanctuaries.
[FR Doc. 2018-16812 Filed 8-6-18; 8:45 am]
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