[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 223 (Friday, November 19, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Page 70903]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-29259]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XA018


Eastern North Pacific Gray Whale; Notice of Extension of Public 
Comment Period on Marine Mammal Protection Act Petition

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration, Commerce.

ACTION: Notification of availability; extension of public comment 
period.

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SUMMARY: On November 9, 2010, NMFS announced receipt of a petition to 
designate the Eastern North Pacific population of gray whales 
(Eschrichtius robustus) as a depleted stock under the Marine Mammal 
Protection Act (MMPA) and solicited comments on the petition. NMFS is 
extending the public comment period on the petition until December 8, 
2010.

DATES: Comments must be received by close of business on December 8, 
2010.

ADDRESSES: A copy of the petition may be requested from Chief, Marine 
Mammal and Sea Turtle Conservation Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service, 1315 East-West Highway, 
Silver Spring, MD 20910.
    You may submit comments, identified by 0648-XA018, by any one of 
the following methods:
     Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal eRulemaking Portal 
http:[sol][sol]www.regulations.gov.
     Fax: 301-713-0376, Attn: Chief, Marine Mammal and Sea 
Turtle Conservation Division.
     Mail: Chief, Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Conservation 
Division, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries 
Service, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910.
    Instructions: No comments will be posted for public viewing until 
after the comment period has closed. All comments received are a part 
of the public record and will generally be posted to 
http:[sol][sol]www.regulations.gov without change. All Personal 
Identifying Information (for example, name, address, etc.) voluntarily 
submitted by the commenter may be publicly accessible. Do not submit 
Confidential Business Information or otherwise sensitive or protected 
information.
    NMFS will accept anonymous comments (enter N/A in the required 
fields, if you wish to remain anonymous). You may submit attachments to 
electronic comments in Microsoft Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or Adobe PDF 
file formats only.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Shannon Bettridge or Dr. Gregory 
Silber, Office of Protected Resources, Silver Spring, MD, (301) 713-
2322.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Electronic Access

    Interested persons may obtain the petition for review on the 
Internet at the following address: 
http:[sol][sol]www.nmfs.noaa.gov[sol]pr[sol] or by contacting Dr. 
Shannon Bettridge or Dr. Gregory Silber (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT).
    The 2008 stock assessment report for Eastern North Pacific gray 
whales is available on the Internet at the following address: 
http:[sol][sol]www.nmfs.noaa.gov[sol]pr[sol]pdfs[sol]sars[sol]ak2008whgr
-en.pdf. The Draft 2010 stock assessment report for Eastern North 
Pacific gray whales is available on the Internet at the following 
address: 
http:[sol][sol]www.nmfs.noaa.gov[sol]pr[sol]pdfs[sol]sars[sol]ak2010--
draft.pdf.

Background

    The MMPA provides for interested parties to submit a petition to 
designate a population stock of marine mammals as depleted. Section 
115(a)(3) of the MMPA (16 U.S.C. 1383b(a)(3)) requires NMFS to publish 
a notice in the Federal Register that such a petition has been received 
and is available for public review. Within 60 days of receiving a 
petition, NMFS must publish a finding in the Federal Register as to 
whether the petition presents substantial information indicating that 
the petitioned action may be warranted.
    On November 9, 2010, NMFS published a notice announcing receipt of 
a petition to designate the Eastern North Pacific population of gray 
whales (Eschrichtius robustus) as a depleted stock under the Marine 
Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and solicited comments on the petition (75 
FR 68756). That Federal Register notice began NMFS' 15-day public 
comment period ending on November 24, 2010. NMFS received the petition 
on October 21, 2010, and therefore must publish its 60-day finding no 
later than December 20, 2010.
    NMFS subsequently received a request by the petitioners, the 
California Gray Whale Coalition, to extend the public comment period by 
15 days to provide interested parties additional time to review the 
petition, compile additional materials, and prepare comments for 
submission to the agency. Since then, NMFS has received other requests 
to extend the public comment period. In this notice NMFS is extending 
the public comment period until December 8, 2010, to allow adequate 
time for the public to review and comment on the petition while 
allowing the agency sufficient time to thoughtfully consider public 
comments. To provide a more extended public comment period would 
preclude NMFS from meeting its statutory requirements under the MMPA to 
provide a determination within 60 days.

    Dated: November 16, 2010.
David Cottingham,
Chief, Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Conservation Division, Office of 
Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2010-29259 Filed 11-18-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P