[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 222 (Friday, November 17, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66912-66915]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-19485]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[I.D. 101906B]


Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals 
Incidental to Conducting Oil and Gas Exploration Activities in the 
Arctic Ocean off Alaska

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

ACTION: Notice of Intent to prepare a Programmatic Environmental Impact 
Statement; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS and the Minerals Management Service (MMS) announce their 
intention to prepare a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement 
(PEIS) pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
(NEPA). This PEIS is being prepared to assess the impacts of MMS' 
annual authorizations under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act 
(OCSLA) to the U.S. oil and gas industry to conduct offshore 
geophysical seismic surveys in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas off 
Alaska, and NMFS' authorizations under the Marine Mammal Protection Act 
(MMPA) to incidentally harass marine mammals while conducting those 
surveys. Publication of this notice begins the official scoping period 
that will help clarify previously identified issues and alternatives to 
be considered in the PEIS. The NMFS and MMS will consider comments 
received in response to this notice in determining the scope of the 
PEIS. The public will have additional opportunities to comment on the 
draft PEIS and any applications received under the MMPA as part of this 
action.

DATES: Written comments and information must be received no later than 
December 18, 2006.

ADDRESSES: Comments on the contents of the Draft PEIS should be 
addressed to Mr. P. Michael Payne, Chief of the Permits, Conservation 
and Education Division, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine 
Fisheries Service, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910-
3225. The mailbox address for providing email comments is 
[email protected]. Comments sent via e-mail, including all 
attachments, must not exceed a 10-megabyte file size.
    A copy of MMS' Programmatic Environmental Assessment (PEA) for 
seismic survey operations in Arctic Alaska waters for the 2006 open 
water season is available on-line at:http://www.mms.gov/alaska/ref/pea_be.htm.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kenneth R. Hollingshead, NMFS, 301-
713-2289, ext 128 or Jill Lewandowski, MMS at 703-787-1703

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    In 2006, the MMS prepared a Draft PEA for the 2006 Arctic Outer 
Continental Shelf (OCS) Seismic Surveys. The MMS assumed in this PEA 
that up to eight marine seismic surveys (4 each in the Chukchi and 
Beaufort seas) were likely to occur in 2006 in the Arctic Ocean. NMFS 
was a cooperating agency in the preparation of the MMS Draft and Final 
PEAs and made the Draft PEA available upon request (e.g., 71 FR 26055, 
May 3, 2006). A Final PEA was published and released on June 20, 2006. 
In accordance with NOAA Administrative Order 216-6 (Environmental 
Review Procedures for Implementing the National Environmental Policy 
Act, May 20, 1999), NMFS subsequently determined that the MMS Final PEA 
contained an in-depth and detailed description of the affected 
environment, a reasonable range of alternatives to the proposed action, 
mitigation and monitoring measures to reduce impacts on the human 
environment to non-significant levels, and an analysis of the potential 
effects of the action and alternatives on the human environment. In 
view of the information and the analyses contained in the supporting 
Final PEA, on June 28, 2006, NMFS adopted the Final PEA, issued its own 
Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) and determined that issuance 
of Incidental Harassment Authorizations (IHAs), under section 
101(a)(5)(D) of the MMPA, to oil-and-gas companies for conducting 
seismic surveys in 2006 in the Arctic Ocean would have a negligible 
impact on affected marine mammal stocks and not have an unmitigable 
adverse impact on the availability of such species or stocks for taking 
for subsistence uses of marine mammals.
    This FONSI determination was predicated on full implementation of 
standard mitigation measures for preventing injury or mortality to 
marine mammals, in addition to area-specific mitigation measures, which 
included but were not limited to:
    (1) a 120-dB rms (root-mean-squared) monitored safety zone for fall 
migrating cow/calf pairs of bowhead whales in the Beaufort and Chukchi 
seas;
    (2) a 160-dB rms monitored safety zone for aggregations of feeding 
bowhead and gray whales in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas;
    (3) a 180-dB rms exclusion zone for all cetaceans and a 190-dB rms 
exclusion zone for pinnipeds except the walrus;
    (4) seismic shut-down criteria to protect bowhead and/or gray 
whales, under specific circumstances, when inside the 120-dB or 160-dB 
monitoring-safety zones; and for all cetaceans within the 180-dB zone 
and all pinnipeds, except walrus, within the 190-dB zone); and,
    (5) a joint industry cooperative program on marine mammal research 
in the Chukchi Sea.
    These mitigation measures were incorporated into NMFS' Selected 
Alternative and IHA conditions for the 2006 seismic survey operations. 
Accordingly, NMFS adopted MMS' Final PEA and determined that the 
preparation of an EIS for this action was not necessary.

Notice of Intent

    During the public comment period on MMS' Draft PEA, several 
comments were received recommending preparation of a Draft EIS under 
NEPA for this action. While preparation of an EIS on this action was 
considered, NMFS and MMS determined that the goals and objectives of 
NEPA could be met, given the level of proposed activities for 2006, by 
completing a Final PEA and implementing a mitigated FONSI for 2006 that 
would ensure that all authorized activities would not have a 
significant effect on

[[Page 66913]]

the human environment. At the time, NMFS also began to explore the need 
to prepare an EIS for future years, if seismic operations were to 
continue and expand in scope as anticipated.
    It is important to note that subsequent to issuance of the IHAs for 
the 2006 seismic season to Shell (71 FR 50027, August 24, 2006), 
ConocoPhillips Alaska (CPAI) (71 FR 43112, July 31, 2006), and GX 
Technology (GXT) (71 FR 49418, August 23, 2006), a District Court Judge 
in Anchorage in the case of ConocoPhillips Alaska, Inc v. National 
Marine Fisheries, et al. issued an order on September 18, 2006, 
granting a motion to stay the implementation of the CPAI IHA condition 
requiring a 120-dB monitoring safety zone to protect bowhead whale cow/
calf pairs during their annual fall migration out of the Arctic Ocean. 
The Court agreed that CPAI raised a ``serious question'' regarding the 
propriety of this additional requirement, meaning that the IHA 
condition requiring a 120-dB monitoring safety zone would be suspended 
until the Court is able to fully resolve the dispute. However, the 120-
dB mitigation measure was essential to allow NMFS to conclude with a 
FONSI, especially given the level of uncertainty on the effects of 
seismic surveys on bowhead whales in Arctic waters. This measure, 
therefore, became a basic condition for NMFS being able to issue IHAs 
to Shell, CPAI and GXT in the 2006 seismic season.
    It should be recognized that the MMS PEA analyzed the effects of 4 
concurrent seismic surveys in the Chukchi Sea and 4 concurrent seismic 
surveys in the Beaufort Sea during the bowhead migration while in fact, 
in 2006, only a single company operated at any one time in the Chukchi 
Sea during the bowhead migration (CPAI from September 25 - October 12 
and GXT from October 13 - present). As a result, this significant 
reduction in the anticipated amount of seismic activity around the 
bowhead whale migration reduced NMFS' concern this year that the 
suspension by the Court of one measure by one company would result in 
an increase of negative impacts to bowhead whales or subsistence 
hunters. However, there are indications that a similar (4 and 4) or 
even an increased level of seismic activity may occur in 2007 and 
beyond. These events may lead to an increased impact to marine mammals, 
particularly to fall migrating bowhead whale cow/calf pairs. Moreover, 
if in 2007 or beyond, the level of seismic survey activity in the 
Chukchi and Beaufort seas increases, it may exceed the level analyzed 
in the Final PEA. As a result, NMFS has determined that it needs to 
analyze impacts resulting from a higher level of potential seismic 
activity over a longer time frame than was addressed in the Final PEA 
and to reanalyze the range of practical mitigation measures for 
protecting marine mammals in more detail through preparation of a Draft 
PEIS for issuing: (1) permits for oil and gas exploration in the Arctic 
Ocean by MMS, and (2) authorizations to the seismic industry from NMFS 
to take marine mammals incidental to oil and gas seismic surveys in the 
Arctic Ocean.

Description of the Specified Activity

    Marine geophysical seismic surveys are conducted to obtain 
information on surface and near-surface geology (high-resolution 
surveys) and on subsurface structures and formations (2-D and 3-D 
seismic surveys and vertical seismic profile surveys). Airguns are the 
acoustic source for 2D and 3D seismic surveys. Their individual size 
can range from tens to several hundred cubic inches (in\3\). A 
combination of airguns is called an array, and operators vary the 
source-array size during the seismic survey to optimize the resolution 
of the geophysical data collected. Airgun array sizes for 2D/3D seismic 
surveys in Arctic waters have ranged from 1,800-4,000 in\3\ but may 
range up to 6,000 in\3\.
    These arrays emit pulsed rather than continuous sounds. While most 
of the energy is directed downward and the short duration of each pulse 
limits the total energy, the sound can propagate horizontally for 
several kilometers (Greene and Richardson, 1988; Hall et al., 1994).
    Marine-streamer 3D seismic surveys vary markedly depending on 
client specifications, subsurface geology, water depth, and geological 
target reservoir. The vessels conducting these surveys generally are 
70-90 meters (m) (230-295 ft) long. A 3D source array typically 
consists of two to three subarrays of six to nine airguns each, and is 
about 12.5-18 m (41-59 ft) long and 16-36 m (52-118 ft) wide. Vessels 
tow one to three source arrays, depending on the technical survey-
design specifications required for the geologic target, to generate the 
acoustic energy. The sound-source level (zero-to-peak) associated with 
3D seismic surveys ranges between 233 and 240 decibels re 1 microPascal 
at 1 m. The arrays usually are aligned parallel with one another and 
towed 50-200 m (164-656 ft) behind the vessel. Following behind the 
source arrays by another 100-200 m (328-656 ft) are multiple (4-12) 
streamer-receiver cables, and each streamer can be 3-8 kilometers (km; 
1.86-5 mi) long and spread out over a width of 400-900 m (1312-2953 
ft). Streamers are passive listening equipment consisting of multiple 
hydrophone elements.
    The airgun array produces a burst of underwater sound by releasing 
compressed air into the water column that creates an acoustic energy 
pulse. The release of compressed air every several seconds creates a 
regular series of strong acoustic impulses separated by silent periods 
lasting 7-16 seconds, depending on survey type and depth to the target 
formations. Acoustic signals are reflected off the subsurface 
sedimentary layers and recorded near the water surface by hydrophones 
spaced within the streamer cables. Some surveys employ ocean-bottom 
seismometers as the receiving instrument. Vessel speed is typically 
4.5-6 knots (about 4-8 mph) with gear deployed.
    Three-Dimensional (3-D) seismic surveying enables a more accurate 
assessment of potential hydrocarbon reservoirs to optimally locate 
exploration and development wells, and minimize the number of wells 
required to develop a field. State-of-the-art interactive computer 
mapping systems can handle much denser data coverage than older 2-D 
seismic surveys. Multiple-source and multiple-streamer technologies are 
used for 3-D seismic surveys. A typical 3-D survey might employ a dual 
array of up to 18 guns per array. Each array might emit a 3,000 cubic-
inch burst of compressed air at 2,000 kilojoule (kJ) of acoustic energy 
for each burst. The hydrophone streamer array might consist of 6-8 
parallel cables, each 6-8 km (3.7-5 mi) long, spaced 75 m (246 ft) 
apart. A series of 3-D surveys collected over time (4-D seismic survey) 
is used for reservoir monitoring and management (the movement of oil, 
gas, and water in the reservoirs can be observed over time). The 
overall energy output for the permitted activity will be the same, but 
the firing of the source arrays on the individual vessels will be 
alternated.
    A source array is activated approximately every 10-15 seconds, 
depending on vessel speed. The timing between activations varies 
between surveys to achieve the desired spacing required to meet the 
geological objectives of the survey; typical spacing is either 25 or 
37.5 m (82 or 123 ft). Depending on the shotpoint interval, airguns are 
fired between 20 and 70 times per mile.

Characteristics of Airgun Pulses

    Discussion on the characteristics of airgun pulses have been 
provided in the Final PEA and in previous Federal

[[Page 66914]]

Register notices (see 69 FR 31792 (June 7, 2004). Reviewers are 
referred to those documents for additional information.

Scoping

    The environmental review of the offshore seismic industry activity 
and related IHA applications will be conducted in accordance with the 
requirements of NEPA, its regulations (40 CFR 1500-1508), other 
appropriate Federal laws and regulations, and the NMFS policies and 
procedures for compliance with those regulations (NOAA Administrative 
Order 216-6 -Environmental Review Procedures for Implementing the 
National Environmental Policy Act, May 20, 1999).
    The activities that will be analyzed in the Draft PEIS will include 
conducting marine-streamer 3D and 2D seismic surveys, high-resolution 
site seismic surveys, and ocean-bottom-cable seismic surveys. NMFS and 
MMS will analyze the effects of seismic noise on marine mammals, fish 
and fishery resources, and marine birds found in the Chukchi and 
Beaufort seas. An analysis of the potential socioeconomic impacts, 
including potential impacts on subsistence uses of marine mammal 
resources, will also be included. The Draft PEIS' cumulative activities 
scenario and cumulative impact analysis will focus on oil and gas-
related and non-oil and gas-related noise-generating events/activities 
in both Federal and State of Alaska waters that have been authorized or 
conducted in the past and that are reasonably likely and foreseeable. 
Noise contributions from community and commercial development, military 
activities, and arctic warming will also be considered. Additional 
issues may be identified as a result of written scoping comments.
    The Draft PEIS will analyze the potential adverse impacts of the 
proposed activities and other non-seismic related activities on 
environmental resources, and will identify and describe any mitigation 
measures that could be adopted to avoid and/or minimize those impacts. 
The Draft PEIS will include, but not be limited to the following issues 
and concerns: (1) Protection of subsistence resources and the Inupiat 
culture and way of life; (2) impacts to marine mammals including 
disturbance to bowhead whale migration patterns; (3) impacts of seismic 
survey operations on marine fish reproduction, growth, and development; 
(4) harassment and potential harm of wildlife, including marine birds, 
by vessel operations and movements; (5) impacts on water and air 
quality; (6) changes in the socioeconomic environment; (7) impacts to 
threatened and endangered species; (8)risks of oil spills and their 
potential impacts on area fish and wildlife resources; (9) 
incorporation of traditional knowledge in the decision-making process; 
and, (10) a description of any potential marine mammal mitigation and 
monitoring measures and an analysis of their potential effectiveness.

PEIS Alternatives

    NMFS will explore and evaluate a reasonable range of alternatives 
in the Draft PEIS, including the proposed action and the no-action 
alternative. At this time, NMFS has identified 7 alternatives for this 
action: (1) No seismic-survey permits issued for geophysical 
exploration activities (No Action); (2) seismic surveys for 
geophysical-exploration activities would be permitted with existing 
Alaska OCS G&G (geological and geophysical) exploration stipulations 
and guidelines; (3) seismic surveys for geophysical exploration 
activities would be permitted incorporating existing Alaska OCS G&G 
exploration stipulations and guidelines but would include additional 
protective measures for marine animals, including a 120-dB monitored 
safety and/or exclusion zone for marine mammals; (4) seismic surveys 
for geophysical-exploration activities would be permitted incorporating 
existing Alaska OCS G&G exploration stipulations and guidelines and 
additional protective measures for marine animals, including a 160-dB-
monitored safety and/or exclusion zone for marine mammals; (5) seismic 
surveys for geophysical-exploration activities would be permitted 
incorporating existing Alaska OCS G&G exploration stipulations and 
guidelines but would include additional protective measures for marine 
animals, including 160-dB- and 120-dB monitored safety and/or exclusion 
zones for marine mammals (Alternatives 3 and 4 combined); (6) seismic 
surveys for geophysical exploration activities would be permitted 
incorporating existing Alaska OCS G&G exploration stipulations and 
guidelines but would include additional protective measures for marine 
animals, including a 180/190-dB exclusion zone for marine mammals to 
prevent acoustic injury; and, (7) seismic surveys for geophysical 
exploration activities would be permitted incorporating existing Alaska 
OCS G&G exploration stipulations and guidelines but would include 
additional protective measures for marine animals, including a 180/190-
dB exclusion zone and 160-dB and 120-dB monitored safety and/or 
exclusion zones for marine mammals (Alternatives 5 and 6 combined). 
Alternative 7 was the Selected Alternative by MMS and NMFS in the 2006 
PEA. No identification of a preferred or selected alternative has been 
made at this time.

Identified Draft PEIS Mitigation and Monitoring Measures

    The alternatives in the Draft PEIS will address a suite of 
potential mitigation and monitoring measures, including:
    (1) Exclusion/Safety Zones--A 180/190 dB rms isopleth exclusion 
zone from the sound source that must be free of marine mammals before 
the survey can begin and must remain free of mammals during the survey. 
The purpose of an exclusion zone is to protect marine mammals from 
Level A harassment (injury/harm); the purpose of a safety zone is to 
prevent interruption of critical natural behaviors that, if 
significantly disrupted, could result in population level effects, or 
to avoid an unmitigable adverse impact on subsistence resources. The 
180 dB (Level A harassment-injury) applies to cetaceans and walrus and 
190 dB (Level A harassment-injury) applies to pinnipeds, other than 
walrus.
    (2) Monitoring exclusion/safety zones--Trained marine mammal 
observers (MMOs) and Inupiat hunters monitor the area around the survey 
vessel for the presence of marine mammals to maintain a mammal free 
exclusion zone, monitor for avoidance, or take behaviors. Visual 
observers monitor the exclusion zone to ensure that marine mammals do 
not enter the exclusion zone for at least 30 minutes prior to ramp up, 
during the conduct of the survey, or before resuming seismic-survey 
work.
    (3) Shut-down/power-down--The seismic array must be shut-down or 
powered-down until the exclusion zone is free of marine mammals. All 
MMOs have the authority to, and will, instruct the vessel operators to 
immediately stop or de-energize the airgun array whenever a marine 
mammal is seen within the exclusion zone.
    (4) Ramp-up--Ramp up is the gradual introduction of sound to deter 
marine mammals from potentially damaging sound intensities and from 
approaching the exclusion zone. This technique involves the gradual 
increase (usually 5-6 dB per 5-minute increment) in emitted sound 
levels, beginning with firing a single airgun and gradually adding 
airguns over a period of at least 20-40 minutes, until the desired 
operating level of the full array is obtained. Ramp-up procedures may 
begin after MMOs ensure the absence of

[[Page 66915]]

marine mammals for at least 30 minutes within the exclusion zone.
    (5) Field Verification--Before conducting the survey, the operator 
must verify the radii of the exclusion zone within real-time conditions 
in the field. This provides for a more accurate exclusion-zone radii 
rather than relying on modeling techniques before entering the field.
    (6) Aerial Surveys--Aerial surveys are flown in advance of 
initiating seismic surveys and related ice-breaking activities over an 
area that includes the area to be surveyed.
    (7) Temporal/Spatial/Operational Restrictions-- Dynamic management 
approaches to avoid or minimize acoustic exposure, such as temporal or 
spatial limitations are based on the presence of a marine mammal in a 
particular place or time, or during a particularly sensitive behavior 
(such as feeding or maternal care). In the past, these restrictions 
have included: (a) A prohibition on surveys in the Chukchi Sea spring-
lead system before July 1; (b) under specific circumstances to protect 
migrating bowhead cow/calf pairs, the standard 180-dB exclusion zone 
for cetaceans is extended to a monitored 120-dB safety zone; (c) under 
specific circumstances to protect feeding aggregations of bowhead and/
or gray whales, the standard 180-dB exclusion zone for cetaceans is 
extended to a monitored 160-dB safety zone.
    (8) Dedicated aerial and/or vessel surveys--As appropriate, 
dedicated aerial and/or vessel surveys are conducted in the Beaufort 
and Chukchi seas during the fall bowhead whale migration period to 
detect migrating bowhead cow/calf pairs, and concentrations of feeding 
bowhead and gray whales.

Comments

    The NMFS requests comments from state, local, and tribal 
governments; Native Alaskan organizations; Federal agencies; 
environmental and fish and wildlife organizations; the oil and gas 
industry; other interested organizations and parties in order to assist 
in the preparation of a Draft PEIS for the Arctic Ocean OCS Seismic 
Surveys. In particular, NMFS requests comments on the scope of issues 
and range of alternatives that should be considered in the Draft PEIS.
    Additional opportunities for public review and comment will be 
provided when the Notice of Availability of the Draft PEIS is published 
in the Federal Register. After release of the Draft PEIS, MMS and NMFS 
intend to hold public information meetings in Anchorage, Barrow, 
Kaktovik, Nuiqsuk, Wainwright, Point Lay and Point Hope.

    Dated: November 7, 2006
James H. Lecky,
Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
[FR Doc. E6-19485 Filed 11-16-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S