[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 79 (Monday, April 26, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20266-20268]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-10406]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[I.D. 041999B]


Endangered Species; Permits

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

ACTION: Receipt of application for a scientific research permit (1215); 
receipt of applications to modify permits (1102, 1136, 1140); issuance 
of modifications to existing permits (1058, 1174).

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given of the following actions regarding 
permits for takes of endangered and threatened

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species for the purposes of scientific research and/or enhancement:
    NMFS has received a permit application from the Washington 
Department of Natural Resources in Olympia, WA (WDNR); NMFS has 
received applications for modifications to existing permits from: 
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife at Vancouver, WA (WDFW) 
(1102), Oregon Cooperative Fishery and Wildlife Research Unit at 
Corvallis, OR (OCFWRU) (1136), and Northwest Fisheries Science Center, 
NMFS at Seattle, WA (NWFSC) (1140); NMFS has issued a permit to Mr. 
Harold Brundage III, of Environmental Research and Consulting, Inc. 
(ERCI) (1174); and NMFS has issued modifications to a scientific 
research permit to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service at Ahsahka, ID 
(USFWS) (1058).

DATES: Written comments or requests for a public hearing on any of the 
new applications or modification requests must be received on or before 
May 26, 1999.
ADDRESSES: The applications and related documents are available for 
review in the following offices, by appointment:
    For permits 1058, 1102, 1136, 1140, 1215: Protected Resources 
Division, F/NWO3, 525 NE Oregon Street, Suite 500, Portland, OR 97232-
4169 (503-230-5400).
    For permit 1174: Office of Protected Resources, Endangered Species 
Division, F/PR3, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910 (301-
713-1401).
    All documents may also be reviewed by appointment in the Office of 
Protected Resources, F/PR3, NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver 
Spring, MD 20910-3226 (301-713-1401).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
    For permits 1058, 1102, 1136: Leslie Schaeffer, Portland, OR (503-
230-5433).
    For permits 1140, 1215: Tom Lichatowich, Portland, OR (503-230-
5438).
    For permit 1174: Terri Jordan, Silver Spring, MD (301-713-1401).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Authority

    Issuance of permits and permit modifications, as required by the 
Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA), is based on a finding that such 
permits/modifications: (1) are applied for in good faith; (2) would not 
operate to the disadvantage of the listed species which are the subject 
of the permits; and (3) are consistent with the purposes and policies 
set forth in section 2 of the ESA. Authority to take listed species is 
subject to conditions set forth in the permits. Permits and 
modifications are issued in accordance with and are subject to the ESA 
and NMFS regulations governing listed fish and wildlife permits (50 CFR 
parts 217-227).
    Those individuals requesting a hearing on an application listed in 
this notice should set out the specific reasons why a hearing on that 
application would be appropriate (see ADDRESSES). The holding of such 
hearing is at the discretion of the Assistant Administrator for 
Fisheries, NOAA. All statements and opinions contained in the permit 
action summaries are those of the applicant and do not necessarily 
reflect the views of NMFS.

Species Covered in this Notice

    The following species and evolutionarily significant units (ESU's) 
are covered in this notice:
    Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha): Snake River (SnR) fall, 
SnR spring/summer, Upper Columbia River (UCR) spring.
    Coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch): Oregon Coastal (OC), Southern 
Oregon/northern California coast (SONCC).
    Sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka): SnR.
    Steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss): UCR.
    Shortnose sturgeon (Acipenser brevirostrum).
    To date, protective regulations for threatened OC coho salmon under 
section 4(d) of the ESA have not been promulgated by NMFS. This notice 
of receipt of an application requesting a take of this species is 
issued as a precaution in the event that NMFS issues protective 
regulations that prohibit takes of threatened OC coho salmon. The 
initiation of a 30-day public comment period on the application, 
including its proposed take of threatened OC coho salmon, does not 
presuppose the contents of the eventual protective regulations.

New Applications Received

    WDNR (1215) requests a 5-year permit for takes of juvenile, 
endangered, naturally produced and artificially propagated, UCR 
steelhead associated with salmonid presence/absence surveys in proposed 
timber sale areas. The proposed stream surveys will determine the 
correct stream classification and place the stream in the correct 
Riparian Management Zones (RMZ). The correct RMZ designation will 
protect listed fish by requiring proper riparian buffers be left along 
streams. ESA-listed juvenile fish are proposed to be captured using 
electrofishing, netted, quickly identified without being removed from 
the water, and immediately released to calm water to recover. Indirect 
mortalities of ESA-listed juvenile fish associated with the research 
are also requested.

Modification Requests Received

    WDFW requests a modification to scientific research permit 1102. 
Permit 1102 authorizes WDFW annual direct takes of adult, endangered, 
UCR steelhead; adult, threatened, SnR spring/summer chinook salmon; and 
adult, threatened, SnR fall chinook salmon associated with studies 
designed to determine the stock composition of steelhead passing 
Bonneville Dam on the Columbia River and the stock composition of 
salmon and steelhead harvested in Columbia River fisheries. For the 
modification, WDFW requests an increase in the annual take of adult, 
threatened, SnR spring/summer chinook salmon associated with the 
handling of ESA-listed adult fish at Bonneville Dam. The increased 
annual take is requested because more adult spring chinook salmon are 
expected to pass Bonneville Dam in 1999 and future years. WDFW also 
requests an annual take of adult, endangered, UCR spring chinook salmon 
associated with the research. ESA-listed adult fish are proposed to be 
captured, anesthetized, measured and sampled for tissues and scales, 
allowed to recover from the anesthetic, and released. The modification 
is requested to be valid for the duration of the permit, which expires 
on January 31, 2003.
    OCFWRU requests a modification to scientific research permit 1136. 
Permit 1136 authorizes OCFWRU annual direct takes of juvenile, 
endangered, SnR sockeye salmon; juvenile, threatened, naturally 
produced and artificially propagated, SnR spring/summer chinook salmon; 
juvenile, threatened, SnR fall chinook salmon; and juvenile, 
endangered, naturally produced and artificially propagated, UCR 
steelhead associated with research designed to compare biological and 
physiological indices of wild and hatchery fish exposed to stress from 
bypass, collection, and transportation activities at dams on the Snake 
and Columbia Rivers in the Pacific Northwest. For the modification, 
OCFWRU requests annual takes of juvenile, endangered, naturally 
produced and artificially propagated, UCR spring chinook salmon 
associated with the research. OCFWRU also requests that ESA-listed 
juvenile fish be captured at two additional locations: Little Goose Dam 
on the Snake River and John Day Dam on the Columbia

[[Page 20268]]

River. ESA-listed juvenile fish are proposed to be captured or acquired 
from Smolt Monitoring Program personnel, anesthetized, examined, 
allowed to recover from the anesthetic, and released. ESA-listed 
juvenile fish indirect mortalities are also requested. The modification 
is requested to be valid for the duration of the permit, which expires 
on December 31, 2000.
    NWFSC requests a modification to permit 1140. Permit 1140 
authorizes annual direct takes of juvenile, endangered, SnR fall 
chinook salmon and juvenile, threatened, SONCC coho salmon associated 
with a research study designed to assess the relationship between 
environmental variables, selected anthropogenic stresses, and bacterial 
and parasitic pathogens on disease-induced mortality of juvenile salmon 
in selected coastal estuaries in Oregon and Washington. Annual 
incidental takes of ESA-listed anadromous fish are also authorized by 
the permit. The results of the study will benefit ESA-listed species by 
providing a better understanding of how environmental factors influence 
disease. For the modification, NWFSC requests an annual direct take of 
juvenile, threatened, OC coho salmon. NWFSC proposes to collect ESA-
listed juvenile coho salmon with seines, purse seines, and/or fyke nets 
in Salmon River and Tillamook, Yaquina, Alsea and Coos Bays. ESA-listed 
juvenile coho salmon are proposed to be lethally taken and analyzed for 
pathogen prevalence and intensity, chemical analyses, histopathology 
and stomach contents. NWFSC also requests an annual incidental take and 
incidental mortalities of juvenile, endangered, UCR spring chinook 
salmon. The modification is requested to be valid for the duration of 
the permit, which expires on December 31, 2002.

Permits and Modifications Issued

    Notices were published on September 25, 1998 (63 FR 5134), and 
February 2, 1999 (64 FR 5030), that the USFWS had applied for 
modifications to scientific research permit 1058. Modification 1 to 
permit 1058 was issued on April 19, 1999, authorizing an increase in 
the annual take of adult, threatened, SnR fall chinook salmon 
associated with an effort to collect biological information from 
returning adults at Lower Granite Dam on the Snake River in Washington. 
Data from the larger sample will be used to estimate age composition of 
the run to provide better information for regulating Columbia River 
harvest. FWS is also authorized annual takes of juvenile, threatened, 
SnR fall chinook salmon associated with a new study designed to examine 
hatchery steelhead residualism in the Clearwater River Basin of ID. The 
purpose of the research is to gain a better understanding of factors 
leading to residualism and interactions between residuals and wild or 
natural stocks of fish. Modification 1 is valid for the duration of the 
permit, which expires on December 31, 2001.
    On April 15, 1999, NMFS issued modification 2 to scientific 
research permit 1174 to ERCI. Permit 1174 authorizes sampling for and 
collection of shortnose sturgeon in the Delaware River and Estuary 
system and in the lower Susquehanna River/Chesapeake Bay Complex. This 
sampling program is under contract to the NMFS Northeast Region, 
Protected Resources Division. The objectives of the study are to 
collect data on current distribution, abundance, length structure and 
movements of shortnose sturgeon in the Delaware River Estuary and in 
the lower Susquehanna River and Chesapeake Bay. Modification 2 
increases the authorized annual incidental take of shortnose sturgeon 
in the Delaware River Estuary and in the lower Susquehanna River and 
Chesapeake Bay, due to evidence that the population of shortnose 
sturgeon in the Delaware River may be substantially higher than 
previously thought. This modification follows modification 1, which 
increased the authorized annual non-lethal take of shortnose sturgeon 
in the Delaware River. Modification 2 is valid for the duration of the 
permit, which expires on August 31, 2003.

    Dated: April 20, 19999.
Kevin Collins,
Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected Resources, 
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 99-10406 Filed 4-23-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F