[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 175 (Monday, September 11, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53423-53424]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-14997]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[I.D. 090106B]


Marine Mammals; File No. 1070-1783

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

ACTION: Notice; issuance of permit amendment.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that a permit held by Dr. Alejandro 
Acevedo-Gutierrez, Biology Department, Western Washington University, 
Bellingham, Washington (File No. 1070-1783) to conduct scientific 
research on harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) has been amended.

ADDRESSES: The permit 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)427-2521; and
    Northwest Region, NMFS, 7600 Sand Point Way NE, BIN C15700, Bldg. 
1, Seattle, WA 98115-0700; phone (206)526-6150; fax (206)526-6426.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tammy Adams or Amy Sloan, (301)713-
2289.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On June 29, 2006, notice was published in 
the Federal Register (71 FR 37060) that an amendment to Permit No. 
1070-1783-00 had been requested by the above named individual. The 
requested amendment has been issued under the authority of the Marine 
Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), and 
the Regulations Governing the Taking and Importing of Marine Mammals 
(50 CFR part 216).
    The permit has been amended to increase the number of harbor seals 
that may be harassed annually during scat collection and to add a 
sampling location. The objective of the research remains the same: to 
study temporal and spatial variation in numbers and diet composition of 
harbor seals to determine responses of harbor seals to changes in prey 
density and the impact of seal behavior on marine protected areas. The 
permit remains valid through March 2011.
    In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
(42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), a final determination has been made that

[[Page 53424]]

issuance of the proposed permit is categorically excluded from the 
requirement to prepare an environmental assessment or environmental 
impact statement.

    Dated: September 5, 2006.
P. Michael Payne,
Chief, Permits, Conservation and Education Division, Office of 
Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E6-14997 Filed 9-8-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S