[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 156 (Monday, August 15, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Page 47814]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-16061]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[I.D. 072105B]


Endangered Species; File No. 1542

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

ACTION: Notice; application for permit.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that SCANA Services, Inc. (Stephen E. 
Summer, Principal Investigator), 6248 Bush River Road, Columbia, SC 
29212, has applied in due form for a permit to take shortnose sturgeon 
(Acipenser brevirostrum) for purposes of scientific research.

DATES: Written, telefaxed, or e-mail comments must be received on or 
before September 14, 2005.

ADDRESSES: The application and related documents are available for 
review upon written request or by appointment in the following offices:
    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) 427-2521; and
    Southeast Region, NMFS, 263 13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 
33701; phone (727) 824-5312; fax (727) 824-5309.
    Written comments or requests for a public hearing on this 
application should be mailed 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 this particular request would be appropriate.
    Comments may also be submitted by facsimile at (301) 427-2521, 
provided the facsimile is confirmed by hard copy submitted by mail and 
postmarked no later than the closing date of the comment period.
    Comments may also be submitted by e-mail. The mailbox address for 
providing email comments is [email protected]. Include in the 
subject line of the e-mail comment the following document identifier: 
File No. 1542.

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

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The subject permits are requested under the 
authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA; 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).
    SCANA Services, Inc., sister company to South Carolina Electric & 
Gas Company (SCE&G), proposes to conduct a study of shortnose sturgeon 
in portions of the Santee River Basin in South Carolina (Saluda, 
Congaree, Broad, Wateree, and Santee Rivers) in support of SCE&G's 
efforts to acquire a new operating license from the Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission (FERC) for the Saluda Hydroelectric Project (FERC 
No. 516). The purpose of the proposed study is to document shortnose 
sturgeon usage in areas downstream of the Saluda Hydroelectric Project 
which are within the historic range of the species, but have not been 
adequately sampled in recent history. A maximum of 15 adult and 
juvenile shortnose sturgeon would be captured with gill nets, examined, 
measured, weighed, PIT and dart tagged, a tissue sample collected for 
genetic analysis, and released annually. An estimated 100 shortnose 
sturgeon eggs and larvae would be lethally taken by using D-shaped or 
rectangular drift nets annually as part of the proposed study to 
determine if spawning is taking place. The permit is requested for a 
duration of 5 years, with work slated to begin in January 2006.

    Dated: August 4, 2005.
Stephen L. Leathery,
Chief, Permits, Conservation and Education Division, Office of 
Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 05-16061 Filed 8-12-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S