[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 65 (Friday, April 4, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Page 16479]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-8273]



[[Page 16479]]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[I.D. 013003C]


Endangered Species; Files No.1266-01 and 1388

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

ACTION: Receipt of applications for modification.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the following applicants have 
applied in due form for a permit modification to take sea turtles for 
purposes of scientific research/enhancement:
    REMSA, Inc., 12829 Jefferson Ave., Suite 108, Newport News, VA 
23608 (John Glass, Principal Investigator) (File No. 1266-01); and
    Dr. David Nelson, U.S. Army Research and Development Center, 
Waterways Experiment Station, 4104 Freetown Rd., Vicksburg, MS 39183 
(File No. 1388).

DATES: Written or telefaxed comments must be received on or before May 
5, 2003.

ADDRESSES: The modification requests and related documents are 
available for review upon written request or by appointment in the 
following office(s):
    Permits, Conservation and Education Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Room 13705, Silver Spring, MD 
20910; phone (301)713-2289; fax (301)713-0376; and
    Northeast Region, NMFS, One Blackburn Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930-
2298; phone (978)281-9200; fax (978)281-9371;
    Southeast Region, NMFS, 9721 Executive Center Drive North, St. 
Petersburg, FL 33702-2432; phone (727)570-5301; fax (727)570-5320.
    Written comments or requests for a public hearing on these requests 
should be submitted to the Chief, Permits, Conservation and Education 
Division, F/PR1, Office of Protected Resources, NMFS, 1315 East-West 
Highway, Room 13705, Silver Spring, MD 20910. Those individuals 
requesting a hearing should set forth the specific reasons why a 
hearing on these particular modification requests would be appropriate.
    Comments may also be submitted by facsimile at (301)713-0376, 
provided the facsimile is confirmed by hard copy submitted by mail and 
postmarked no later than the closing date of the comment period. Please 
note that comments will not be accepted by e-mail or other electronic 
media.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carrie Hubard or Ruth Johnson, 
(301)713-2289.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The subject modifications are requested 
under the authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended 
(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).
    Permit No. 1266-01 authorizes REMSA, Inc. to capture via trawl, 
handle, flipper and PIT tag, and release sea turtles while removing 
them from the path of hopper dredges. Annually, 350 loggerhead, 150 
green, 150 Kemp's ridley, 10 hawksbill and 10 leatherback sea turtles 
may be taken in this manner. Research is conducted in the Atlantic 
Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. In this modification, the permit holder 
requests authorization to biopsy sample sea turtles. A maximum of 350 
loggerhead, 150 green, 150 Kemp's ridley, 10 hawksbill, and 10 
leatherback sea turtles could be biopsy sampled annually until the 
permit's expiration on April 30, 2006. Biopsy sampling will follow the 
protocol for tissue collection established by the NMFS Southeast 
Fisheries Science Center and will only be performed by trained 
personnel.
    Permit No. 1388 authorizes Dr. David Nelson to conduct sea turtle 
research in the northwestern Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. The 
first project involves relocation trawling in association with hopper 
dredge activity. A total of 200 loggerhead, 100 green, 30 Kemp's 
ridley, 2 hawksbill, and 2 leatherback sea turtles are authorized to be 
captured, handled, measured, flipper and PIT tagged, and released. The 
second project uses a subset of the turtles caught via relocation 
trawling to investigate large-scale movements and diving behavior. 
Twenty loggerhead, 5 Kemp's ridley, and 5 green turtles will be 
satellite tagged in addition to the above activities before being 
released. The third project is an abundance and habitat survey of green 
sea turtles along the shoreline of Cape Canaveral. A total of 75 green 
sea turtles may be captured, handled, flipper and PIT tagged, and 
fitted with a radio/sonic transmitter or a time-depth recorder/radio 
transmitter, before being released. The permit holder requests 
authorization to biopsy sample 30 of the 200 loggerhead turtles that 
may be captured annually during relocation trawls in association with 
dredging activity. Biopsy sampling will follow the protocol for tissue 
collection established by the NMFS Southeast Fisheries Science Center 
and will only be performed by trained personnel.
    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.

    Dated: March 28, 2003.
Stephen L. Leathery,
Chief, Permits, Conservation and Education Division, Office of 
Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 03-8273 Filed 4-3-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S