[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 104 (Tuesday, June 1, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Page 30383]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-13045]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XV92


Marine Mammals; File No. 14610

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

ACTION:  Notice; issuance of permit.

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SUMMARY:  Notice is hereby given that the Alaska Department of Fish and 
Game (ADFG), Division of Wildlife Conservation, Juneau, AK (Principal 
Investigator: Robert Small, Ph.D.) has been issued a permit to conduct 
research on marine mammals.

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)713-0376; and
    Alaska Region, NMFS, P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, AK 99802-1668; phone 
(907)586-7221; fax (907)586-7249.

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

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On April 20, 2010, notice was published in 
the Federal Register (75 FR 20565) that a request for a permit to 
conduct research on beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas), endangered 
bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus), gray whales (Eschrictius 
robustus), and endangered humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) had 
been submitted by the above-named applicant. The requested permit has 
been issued for the beluga whale and gray whale projects 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). A decision on the 
bowhead whale and humpback whale projects has been deferred pending 
completion of consultation under section 7 of the Endangered Species 
Act of 1973, as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).
    The permit is valid through May 31, 2015, for research activities 
including aerial surveys for beluga whales, capture of beluga whales 
for instrument attachment and sample collection, remote biopsy of 
beluga whales, and remote biopsy and instrument attachment for gray 
whales. Research may occur in waters of the Bering, Chukchi, and 
Beaufort Seas in Alaska to determine population abundance, stock 
structure, feeding areas and other important habitats, migration 
routes, behavior relative to human disturbance, and to genetically 
identify individuals to determine survival and calving intervals.
    In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
(42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), a final determination has been made that the 
activity proposed is categorically excluded from the requirement to 
prepare an environmental assessment or environmental impact statement.

    Dated: May 26, 2010.
P. Michael Payne,
Chief, Permits, Conservation and Education Division, Office of 
Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2010-13045 Filed 5-28-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S