[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 206 (Monday, October 26, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57096-57100]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-28601]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[I.D. 092898C]
Small Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities;
Construction of an Offshore Platform in the Beaufort Sea
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of receipt of application and proposed authorization for
a small take exemption; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: NMFS has received a request from the BP Exploration (Alaska),
900 East Benson Boulevard, Anchorage, AK 99519 (BPXA) for an
authorization to take small numbers of marine mammals by harassment
incidental to construction of an offshore oil platform and subsea
pipeline at Northstar in the Beaufort Sea in state waters. Under the
Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is requesting comments on its
proposal to authorize BPXA to incidentally take, by harassment, small
numbers of marine mammals in the above mentioned area between December
1, 1998, and November 30, 1999.
DATES: Comments and information must be received no later than November
25, 1998.
ADDRESSES: Comments on the application should be addressed to Michael
Payne, Chief, Marine Mammal Division, Office of Protected Resources,
NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910-3225. A copy of
the application and a list of references used in this document may be
obtained by writing to this address or by telephoning one of the
contacts listed here. A copy of the draft environmental impact
statement (DEIS) may be obtained by contacting the U.S. Army Engineer
District, Alaska, Regulatory Branch, P.O. Box 898, Anchorage, AK 99506-
0898.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kenneth R. Hollingshead, (301) 713-
2055, Brad Smith, (907) 271-5006.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Section 101(a)(5)(A) and (D) of the MMPA (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.)
directs the Secretary of Commerce to allow, upon request, the
incidental, but not intentional taking of marine mammals by U.S.
citizens who engage in a specified activity (other than commercial
fishing) within a specified geographical region if certain findings are
made and either regulations are issued or, if the taking is limited to
harassment, a notice of a proposed authorization is provided to the
public for review.
Permission may be granted if NMFS finds that the taking will have a
negligible impact on the species or stock(s) and will not have an
unmitigable adverse impact on the availability of the species or
stock(s) for subsistence uses and that the permissible methods of
taking and requirements pertaining to the
[[Page 57097]]
monitoring and reporting of such taking are set forth.
On April 10, 1996 (61 FR 15884), NMFS published an interim rule
establishing, among other things, procedures for issuing incidental
harassment authorizations (IHAs) under section 101(a)(5)(D) of the MMPA
for activities in Arctic waters. For additional information on the
procedures to be followed for this authorization, please refer to that
document.
Summary of Request
On August 14, 1998, NMFS received an application from BPXA
requesting a 1-year authorization for the harassment of small numbers
of several species of marine mammals incidental to construction of the
Northstar development in the Alaskan Beaufort Sea. While a brief
description of the proposed activity is provided here, a more detailed
description of the activity and the expected impact can be found in the
application and DEIS (see ADDRESSES).
BPXA proposes to produce crude oil from the Northstar Unit, which
is located between 2 and 8 miles (mi)(3.2 and 12.9 kilometers (km))
offshore from Pt. Storkersen, AK. This unit is adjacent to the Prudhoe
Bay industrial complex and is approximately 54 mi (87 km) northeast of
Nuiqsut, a Native Alaskan community. The proposed construction activity
during the period of the proposed incidental harassment authorization
includes the construction of three ice roads, one from either West Dock
or Pt. McIntyre to a gravel mine site, a second from a gravel mine site
to Seal Island and a third from the shore crosisng of the pipeline
following the pipeline route to Seal Island; the construction of a
gravel island work surface for drilling and oil production facilities;
and two pipelines, one to transport crude oil and one for gas for field
injection. NMFS anticipates that this 1-year authorization will not be
continued into a second year (if necessary to complete construction)
but will instead be followed by a set of regulations and a Letter of
Authorization, under section 101(a)(5)(A) of the MMPA, governing
incidental takes of marine mammals from construction and operations of
the Northstar Development and other offshore oil and gas developments
in the U.S. Beaufort Sea. An application for a small take authorization
under section 101(a)(5)(A) of the MMPA is under development by BPXA.
Ice-covered Season: Ice road construction will take place during
the winter, 1998/99. Ice roads constructed inside the barrier islands
will be bottom-fast while ice roads offshore will be on artificially
thickened floating ice. Island construction will be at the location of
the existing man-made Seal Island. It is estimated that approximately
16,800 large-volume haul trips between the onshore mine site and a
reload area in the vicinity of Egg Island and 28,500 lighter dump truck
trips from Egg Island to Seal Island will be necessary to transport
construction gravel to Seal Island. An additional 300 truck trips will
be necessary to transport concrete-mat slope protection materials to
the island.
Two 10-inch (0.25 m)pipelines are planned. The offshore portions
will each be 6 mi (9.5 km) in length and will be constructed between
January and April, 1999. Both pipelines will be buried together in a
common trench and backfilled. Trenching will be done from thickened ice
using excavation and construction equipment. This work is expected to
be completed by the end of April.
Open-water Season: During the summer 1999, open water season, BPXA
expects to transport the drill rig(s) and some of the process and
production modules to Seal Island via ocean-going barges. In addition,
barges will also be used to support construction during the summer, and
helicopters will support drill rig installation until ice roads are
constructed next winter. Up to 75 barge trips are expected between
Prudhoe Bay and/or Endicott to Seal Island during the open water season
(July to September, 1999). By August 31, 1999, all island and pipeline
construction and sheet pile and slope protection installation
operations are expected to be completed. Operations during September
will be limited, and barge transport will be limited to waters west of
Cross Island, minimizing the possibility for interference with
subsistence hunting.
Some process and camp modules are scheduled to arrive from
Anchorage or the Prudhoe Bay area via sealift or local barge service on
approximately August 15, 1999, with offloading completed by August 21,
1999. A drill rig is scheduled to be moved by local barge to the island
for arrival by September 7, 1999, with offloading completed by
September 30, 1999. Construction activities may continue on the island
through the autumn and early winter of 1999. Activities on and near the
island during the period October through December will depend upon
progress up to that time. Some of the construction activities planned
for earlier months may need to continue during the autumn.
Description of Habitat and Marine Mammal Affected by the Activity
A detailed description of the Beaufort Sea ecosystem and its
associated marine mammals can be found in the DEIS prepared for this
authorization (Corps of Engineers (Corps), 1998). This information is
not repeated here but will be considered part of the record of decision
for this application. A copy of the DEIS is available upon request (see
ADDRESSES).Marine Mammals
The Beaufort/Chukchi Seas support a diverse assemblage of marine
mammals, including bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus), gray whales
(Eschrichtius robustus), beluga (Delphinapterus leucas), ringed seals
(Phoca hispida), spotted seals (Phoca largha) and bearded seals
(Erignathus barbatus). Descriptions of the biology and distribution of
these species and of others can be found in several documents (e.g.,
Hill et al., 1997) including the BPXA application and the DEIS. Please
refer to those documents for information on these species. For the
purpose of making a determination that the taking by this activity will
have no more than a negligible impact on the species or stock(s) of
marine mammals and will not have an unmitigable adverse impact on the
availability of the species or stock(s) of marine mammals for
subsistence uses, NMFS adopts the information contained in these
documents as part of its record of decision. In addition to the species
mentioned in this paragraph, Pacific walrus and polar bears also have
the potential to be taken. Appropriate applications for taking these
species under the MMPA have been submitted to the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service by BPXA.
Potential Effects on Marine Mammals
Sounds and non-acoustic stimuli will be generated by vehicle
traffic, ice-cutting, pipeline construction, offshore trenching, gravel
dumping, sheet pile driving, and vessel and helicopter operations. The
sounds generated from the construction operations and associated
transportation activities will be detectable underwater and/or in air
some distance away from the area of the activity, depending upon the
nature of the sound source, ambient noise conditions, and the
sensitivity of the receptor. At times, some of these sounds are likely
to be strong enough to cause an avoidance or other behavioral
disturbance reaction by small numbers of marine mammals or to cause
masking of signals important to marine mammals. The type and
significance of behavioral reaction is likely to depend
[[Page 57098]]
on the species and season, and the behavior of the animal at the time
of reception of the stimulus, as well as the distance and level of the
sound relative to ambient conditions.
In winter and spring, on-ice travel and construction activities
will displace some ringed seals along the ice road and pipeline
construction corridors. BPXA plans to begin winter construction
activities prior to female ringed seals establishing birthing lairs
beginning in late March. The noise and general human activity will
displace female seals away from activity areas that could negatively
affect the female and young, if birth lairs were contstructed there. If
construction activities are initiated in previously undisturbed areas
after March 20, BPXA will be required to survey the area(s) to identify
and avoid ringed seal lairs by a minimum of 50 m (164 ft). Due to
mitigation and monitoring, it is not expected that any ringed seals
will be killed or seriously injured during this time.
During the open-water season, all six species of whales and seals
could potentially be exposed to vessel or construction noise and to
other stimuli associated with the planned operations. Vessel traffic is
known to cause avoidance reactions by whales at certain times
(Richardson et al., 1995). Pile driving, helicopter operations, and
possibly other activities may also lead to disturbance of small numbers
of seals or whales. In addition to disturbance, some limited masking of
whale calls or other low-frequency sounds potentially relevant to
bowhead whales could occur.
BPXA estimates that up to 219 ringed seals and 1 bearded seal may
be incidentally harassed during the ice-covered period. During the
open-water season, BPXA estimates that up to 319 ringed seals, 10
spotted seals, 26 bearded seals, 23 bowhead whales, 10 gray whales, and
250 beluga whales may be incidentally harassed. Because of residency,
some ringed seals may be taken by harassment more than once during this
period. Please refer to the application for the rationale supporting
these estimated harassment takes of individual animals.
Impacts on Affected Species
For a discussion on the anticipated effects of ships, boats,
aircraft, and construction activities at Northstar on marine mammals,
please refer to the application (BPXA, 1998). NMFS proposes to adopt
this information as a summarization of the best scientific information
available on this subject.
Effects of Activities on Habitat
The Northstar Development area is not known to be an area of
concentrated mating or feeding of any marine mammal species.
Anticipated impacts by Northstar construction on the habitat include
temporarily elevated noise levels, potential bottom disturbance due to
additional gravel placement on Seal Island and pipeline trenching
activities, and the permanent loss of approximately 86,130
m2 (926,250 ft2) of habitat due to island
reconstruction. These effects will be localized at the site of the
project.
Effects of Activities on Subsistence Needs
The disturbance and potential displacement of bowhead whales and
other marine mammals by sounds from vessel traffic and/or on-island
construction activities (e.g., impact hammering) are the principle
concerns related to subsistence use of the area. The harvest of marine
mammals (mainly bowhead whales, ringed seals, and bearded seals) is
central to the culture and subsistence economies of the coastal North
Slope communities (BPXA, 1998). In particular, if elevated noise levels
are displacing migrating bowhead whales farther offshore, this could
make the harvest of these whales more difficult and dangerous for
hunters. The harvest could also be affected if bowheads become more
skittish when exposed to vessel or impact-hammering noise (BPXA, 1998).
Construction activities and associated vessel and aircraft
(helicopter) support are expected to begin in December and continue
into October 1999, depending upon ice conditions. Few bowhead whales
approach the Northstar area before the end of August, and subsistence
whaling generally does not begin until after September 1 and occurs in
areas well east of the construction site. Therefore, a substantial
portion of the Northstar development will be completed when no bowhead
whales are nearby and when no whaling is underway. Insofar as possible,
vessel and aircraft traffic near areas of particular concern for
whaling will be completed by BPXA before the end of August. No impact
hammering will occur during the period when subsistence hunting of
migrating bowhead whales is underway.
Nuiqsut is the community closest to the area of the proposed
activity, and it harvests bowhead whales only during the fall whaling
season. In recent years, Nuiqsut whalers typically take zero to four
whales each season (BPXA, 1998). Nuiqsut whalers concentrate their
efforts on areas north and east of Cross Island, generally in water
depths greater than 20 m (65 ft). Cross Island, the principle field
camp location for Nuiqsut whalers, is located approximately 28.2 km
(17.5 mi) east of the Northstar construction activity area.
Whalers from the village of Kaktovik search for whales east, north,
and west of their village. Kaktovik is located approximately 200 km
(124.3 mi) east of Seal Island. The westernmost reported harvest
location was about 21 km (13 mi) west of Kaktovik, near
70o10'N, 144oW (Kaleak, 1996). That site is
approximately 180 km (112 mi) east of Seal Island.
Whalers from the village of Barrow search for bowhead whales much
further from the Northstar area, >250 km (>175 mi) west.
Effects of Northstar construction on migrating bowheads are not
expected to extend into the area where Nuqsut hunters usually search
for bowheads. However, it is recognized that it is difficult to
determine the maximum distance at which reactions occur (Moore and
Clark, 1992). As a result, in order to avoid any unmitigable adverse
impact on subsistence needs and to reduce potential interference with
the hunt, the timing of various construction activities at Northstar as
well as barge and aircraft traffic in the Cross Island area will be
addressed in a Communications and Avoidance Agreement between BPXA and
North Slope Borough residents. Also, NMFS believes that the monitoring
plan proposed by BPXA will provide information that will help resolve
uncertainties about the effects of construction noise on the
accessibility of bowheads to hunters.
While Northstar activity has some potential to influence
subsistence seal hunting activities, the most important sealing area
for Nuiqsut hunters is off the Colville delta, extending as far west as
Fish Creek and as far east as Pingok Island (BPXA, 1998). Pingok Island
is about 24 km (15 mi) west of Northstar. The peak season for seal
hunting is during the summer months, but some hunting is conducted on
the landfast ice in late spring. In summer, boat crews hunt ringed,
spotted and bearded seals (BPXA, 1998). Thus, it is unlikely that
construction activity will have a significant negative impact on
Nuiqsut seal hunting.
Mitigation
Several mitigation measures have been proposed by BPXA to reduce
harassment takes to the lowest level practicable. These include:
[[Page 57099]]
(1) BPXA will begin winter construction activities prior to female
ringed seals establishing the birthing lair in late March to early
April in order to displace seals away from activities that could
negatively affect the female and young.
(2) If construction activities are initiated in previously
undisturbed areas after March 20, BPXA will survey the area(s) to
identify and avoid ringed seal lairs by a minimum of 50 m (164 ft).
(3) BPXA will establish and monitor a 190 dB re 1 Pa
safety range for seals around the island for those noisier activities.
(4) While whales are unlikely to approach the island during impact
hammering or other noisy activities, a 180 dB re 1 Pa safety
zone will be established and monitored around the island.
(5) If any marine mammals are observed within their respective
safety range, operations will cease until such time as the observed
marine mammals have left the safety zone.
(6) Project scheduling indicates that impact hammering will not
occur during the period for subsistence hunting of westward migrating
bowhead whale.
(7) Helicopter flights to support Northstar construction will be
limited to a corridor from Seal Island to the mainland, and, except
when limited by weather, will maintain a minimum altitude of 1,000 ft
(305 m).
Monitoring
Monitoring will employ both marine mammal observations and
acoustics measurements and recordings. During the open-water period,
monitoring will consist of (1) acoustic measurements of sounds produced
by construction activities through hydrophones, seaborne sonobuoys and
bottom recorders, and (2) observations of marine mammals from an
elevated platform on Seal Island will be made during periods with and
without construction underway (see page 94 of application).
During the ice-covered season, BPXA proposes to continue an ongoing
(since the spring, 1997) Before-After/Control-Impact Study on the
distribution and abundance of ringed seals in relation to development
of the offshore oil and gas resources in the central Beaufort Sea.
Collection and analysis of data before and after construction is
expected to provide a reliable method for assessing the impact of oil
and gas activities on ringed seal distribution in the Northstar
construction area. Other winter/spring monitoring will include (1) on-
ice searches for ringed seal lairs in areas where construction starts
in the mid-March through April period, (2) assessment of abandonment
rates for seal holes, and (3) acoustic measurements of sounds and
vibrations from construction.
The monitoring plan will be subject to review by NMFS biologists
and revised appropriately prior to implementation. Independent peer
review is not warranted on the on-ice portion of the plan. This work
has been underway since the winter 1997/98 and on-ice monitoring was
reviewed during the May, 1998 workshop held in Seattle, WA. The open-
water season monitoring plan however will be reviewed next spring at
the annual peer-review workshop held in Seattle.
Reporting
BPXA will provide two initial reports on 1998 activities to NMFS
within 90 days of completion of each phase of the activity. The first
report will be due 90 days after the ice roads are no longer usable or
spring aerial surveys are completed, whichever is later. The second
report will be forwarded to NMFS 90 days after the formation of ice in
the central Alaskan Beaufort Sea. These reports will provide summaries
of the dates and locations of construction activities, details of
marine mammal sightings, estimates of the amount and nature of marine
mammal takes, and any apparent effects on accessibility of marine
mammals to subsistence hunters.
A draft final technical report will be submitted to NMFS by April
1, 2000. The final technical report will contain a full description of
the methods, results, and interpretation of all monitoring tasks. The
draft final report will be subject to peer review before finalized by
BPXA.
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
On June 12, 1998 (63 FR 32207), the Environmental Protection Agency
noted the availability for public review and comment a DEIS prepared by
the Corps under NEPA on Beaufort Sea oil and gas development at
Northstar. Comments on that document were accepted by the Corps until
August 31, 1998 (63 FR 43699, August 14, 1998). NMFS is a cooperating
agency, as defined by the Council on Environmental Quality regulations
(40 CFR 1501.6), on the preparation of this document. This DEIS, which
supplements information contained in the application, is considered
part of NMFS' record of decision for determining whether the activity
proposed for receiving a small take authorization is having a
negligible impact on affected marine mammal stocks and not having an
unmitigable adverse impact on subsistence needs. Based upon a review of
the Final EIS (FEIS) and the comments received on this proposed
authorization, NMFS will (1) adopt the Corp FEIS, (2) amend the Corps
FEIS to incorporate relevant comments, suggestions and information, or
(3) based upon comments received, prepare and release for comment a
draft Environmental Assessment. NMFS will not issue an IHA until its
responsibilities under NEPA have been met.
Consultation
Under section 7 of the Endangered Species Act (ESA), NMFS will
complete formal consultation with the Corps on the Beaufort Sea oil and
gas development project at Northstar. NMFS will also consult with
itself on the issuance of an incidental harassment authorization for
this activity. If an authorization to incidentally harass listed marine
mammals is issued under the MMPA, NMFS will issue an Incidental Take
Statement under section 7 of the ESA for listed marine mammals.
Conclusions
NMFS has preliminarily determined that the impact of constructing
the Northstar Development in the U.S. Beaufort Sea will result, at
worst, in a temporary modification in behavior by certain species of
cetaceans and pinnipeds. During the ice-covered season, pinnipeds close
to the island may be subject to incidental harassment due to the
localized displacement from construction of ice roads and from
transportation activities on that road. As cetaceans will not be in the
area during the ice-covered season, they will not be affected. During
the open-water season, the principal construction-related activities
will be helicopter traffic, vessel traffic, and some construction
activity on Seal Island. Sheet-pile driving is expected to be completed
prior to whales being present in the area. Sounds from construction
activities on the island are not expected to be detectable more than
about 5-10 km (3.1-6.2 mi) offshore of the island. Disturbance to
bowhead or beluga whales by on-island activities will be limited to an
area substantially less than that distance. Helicopter traffic will be
limited to nearshore areas between the mainland and the island and is
unlikely to approach or disturb whales. Barge traffic will be located
mainly inshore of the whales and will involve vessels moving slowly, in
a straight line, and at constant speed. Little disturbance or
[[Page 57100]]
displacement of whales by vessel traffic is expected. While behavioral
modifications may be made by these species to avoid the resultant
noise, this behavioral change is expected to have no more than a
negligible impact on the animals.
While the number of potential incidental harassment takes will
depend on the distribution and abundance of marine mammals (which vary
annually due to variable ice conditions and other factors) in the area
of operations, because the proposed activity is in shallow waters
inshore of the main migration corridor for bowhead whales and far
inshore of the main migration corridor for belugas, the number of
potential harassment takings is estimated to be small. In addition, no
take by injury and/or death is anticipated, and the potential for
temporary or permanent hearing impairment will be avoided through the
incorporation of the mitigation measures mentioned in this document. No
rookeries, areas of concentrated mating or feeding, or other areas of
special significance for marine mammals occur within or near the
planned area of operations during the season of operations.
Because bowhead whales are east of the construction area in the
Canadian Beaufort Sea until late August/early September, activities at
Northstar are not expected to impact subsistence hunting of bowhead
whales prior to that date. Appropriate mitigation measures to avoid an
unmitigable adverse impact on the availability of bowhead whales for
subsistence needs will be the subject of consultation between BPXA and
subsistence users.
Also, while construction at Northstar has some potential to
influence seal hunting activities by residents of Nuiqsut, because (1)
the peak sealing season is during the winter months, (2) the main
summer sealing is off the Colville Delta), and (3) the zone of
influence from Northstar on belukha and seals is fairly small, NMFS
believes that Northstar construction will not have an unmitigable
adverse impact on the availability of these stocks for subsistence
uses.
Proposed Authorization
NMFS proposes to issue an IHA for the taking of marine mammals
incidental to construction of the Northstar development project in the
Alaskan Beaufort Sea, provided the previously mentioned mitigation,
monitoring, and reporting requirements are incorporated. NMFS has
preliminarily determined that the proposed activity would result in the
harassment of only small numbers of bowhead whales, gray whales,
belukha whales, ringed seals, bearded seals, and spotted (largha)
seals; would have a negligible impact on these marine mammal stocks;
and would not have an unmitigable adverse impact on the availability of
marine mammal stocks for subsistence uses.
Information Solicited
NMFS requests interested persons to submit comments and information
concerning this request (see ADDRESSES).
Dated: October 20, 1998.
Hilda Diaz-Soltero,
Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries
Service.
[FR Doc. 98-28601 Filed 10-23-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F