[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 122 (Monday, June 26, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32945-32946]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-15528]



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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
[I.D. 062095B]


Endangered Species; Permits

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

ACTION: Issuance of permit 964 (P770#69), modification 5 to permit 825 
(P513), modification 4 to permit 817 (P45K), and modification 2 to 
permit 823 (P503C).

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that NMFS has issued a permit and 
modifications to permits authorizing takes of listed species for the 
purpose of scientific research, subject to certain conditions set forth 
therein, to the Coastal Zone and Estuarine Studies Division (CZESD) of 
the Northwest Fisheries Science Center, NMFS, the Columbia River Inter-
Tribal Fish Commission (CRITFC), the Northwest Biological Science 
Center of the National Biological Service (NBS), and the Idaho 
Department of Fish and Game (IDFG).

ADDRESSES: The applications and related documents are available for 
review in the following offices, by appointment:
    Office of Protected Resources, F/PR8, NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, 
Silver Spring, MD 20910-3226 (301-713-1401); and
    Environmental and Technical Services Division, F/NWO3, NMFS, 525 NE 
Oregon Street, Portland, OR 97232-4169 (503-230-5400).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Permit 964, modification 5 to permit 825, 
modification 4 to permit 817, and modification 2 to permit 823 were 
issued under the authority of section 10 of the Endangered Species Act 
of 1973 (ESA) (16 U.S.C. 1531-1543) and the NMFS regulations governing 
listed fish and wildlife permits (50 CFR parts 217-222).
    Notice was published on February 9, 1995 (60 FR 7752) that an 
application had been filed by CZESD (P770#69) for a permit to take 
listed species. CZESD requested authorization for a direct take of 
juvenile, listed, Snake River fall chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus 
tshawytscha) and an incidental take of juvenile, listed, Snake River 
sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) and juvenile, listed, naturally-
produced and artificially-propagated, Snake River spring/summer chinook 
salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) associated with a juvenile fall 
chinook salmon transportation study. The purpose of the study is to 
compare the adult recoveries of run-of-the-river subyearling chinook 
salmon transported around the hydropower dams on the Columbia River 
using state-of-the-art facilities and technologies versus those 
migrating inriver under as favorable passage conditions as possible. 
Permit 964 was issued to CZESD on June 14, 1995. The duration of the 
research will be from approximately June 15 to September 15 for 3 of 
the next 5 years. The take of listed species associated with the 
research is authorized for 1995. Permit 964 expires on December 31, 
1999.
    Notice was published on April 26, 1995 (60 FR 20480) that an 
application had been filed by CRITFC (P513) for modification 5 to 
permit 825. Permit 825 authorizes a take of adult and juvenile, listed, 
naturally-produced and artificially-propagated, Snake River spring/
summer chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) associated with five 
scientific research projects. For modification 5, CRITFC requested an 
additional take of juvenile, listed, Snake River spring/summer chinook 
salmon and a take of juvenile, listed, Snake River sockeye salmon 
(Oncorhynchus nerka) associated with a new scientific research project 
designed to provide fishery managers and hydropower system operators 
with real-time information on the distribution and incidence of gas 
bubble trauma symptoms experienced by migrating juvenile salmon during 
spills at Lower Monumental and Ice Harbor Dams on the Snake River and 
McNary and Bonneville Dams on the Columbia River. Modification 5 to 
permit 825 was issued on June 9, 1995 and is valid for the duration of 
the permit. Permit 825 expires on December 31, 1997.
    Notice was published on March 20, 1995 (60 FR 14735) that an 
application had been filed by NBS (P45K) for modification 4 to permit 
817. Permit 817 authorizes a take of juvenile, listed, Snake River fall 
and spring/summer chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) associated 
with a study designed to assess the migration timing of juvenile 
anadromous salmon using passive integrated transponder (PIT) tags and 
Panjet marks. For modification 4, NBS requested an increase in the 
annual take authorized in the permit and approval to use an additional 
sampling gear type. The increase in the annual take was requested to 
obtain a sufficient sample size to estimate the migration timing of 
fish produced in the upper Snake and Clearwater Rivers to Lower 
Monumental Dam on the lower Snake River. In addition, NBS requested 
approval to use modified fyke nets instead of beach seines to capture 
fish for tagging and to assess nearshore movements of the marked fish 
in the Snake and Clearwater Rivers. Modification 4 to permit 817 was 
issued on June 5, 1995 and is valid for the duration of the permit. 
Permit 817 expires on December 31, 1996.
    Notice was published on March 9, 1995 (60 FR 12913) that an 
application had been filed by IDFG (P503C) for modification 2 to permit 
823. Permit 823 authorizes a take of adult and juvenile, listed, 
naturally-produced and artificially-propagated, Snake River spring/
summer chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha), adult and juvenile, 
listed, Snake River fall chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha), and 
adult and juvenile, endangered, Snake River sockeye salmon 
(Oncorhynchus nerka) associated with a wide range of scientific 
research activities. For modification 2, IDFG requested an increase in 
the lethal take [[Page 32946]] of juvenile, endangered, Snake River 
sockeye salmon in Redfish Lake to optimize the evaluation of Redfish 
Lake fertilization/supplementation efforts in 1995 and beyond. In 
addition, IDFG requested to implement three other actions which would 
not require an increase in the take of listed species authorized in the 
permit. These three actions are: (1) A fish flush strategy designed to 
provide flushing flows through a seasonally dewatered stretch of the 
Lemhi River between the Barracks Lane Bridge and the Clark Steelhead 
Bridge during times of critical adult and juvenile salmon migrations; 
(2) the installation of a second juvenile fish trap upstream from the 
existing juvenile fish trap, the Sawtooth Hatchery weir, on the upper 
Salmon River to optimize trapping efficiency with the aim of developing 
more accurate estimates of anadromous fish survival rates and migration 
timing; and (3) the installation of a rotary screw trap in Rapid River 
upstream from the Rapid River Fish Hatchery to collect natural 
production information on wild steelhead salmon. Modification 2 to 
permit 823 was issued on June 13, 1995 and is valid for the duration of 
the permit. Permit 823 expires on November 30, 1997.
    Issuance of these permit actions, as required by the ESA, was based 
on a finding that such actions: (1) Were applied for in good faith, (2) 
will not operate to the disadvantage of the listed species that are the 
subject of the permits, and (3) are consistent with the purposes and 
policies set forth in section 2 of the ESA and the NMFS regulations 
governing listed species permits.

    Dated: June 20, 1995.
Robert C. Ziobro,
Acting Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 95-15528 Filed 6-23-95; 8:45 am]
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