[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 147 (Monday, August 1, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45781-45782]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-19399]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XA601


Endangered Species; File No. 15552

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

ACTION: Issuance of permit.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the National Marine Fisheries 
Service Southeast Fisheries Science Center (SEFSC) [Dr. Bonnie Ponwith, 
Responsible Party] has been issued a permit to take green (Chelonia 
mydas), hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata), loggerhead (Caretta 
caretta), Kemp's ridley (Lepidochelys kempii), olive ridley 
(Lepidochelys olivacea), leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea), and

[[Page 45782]]

unidentified hardshell sea turtles for the purposes of scientific 
research.

ADDRESSES: The permit 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) 427-8401; fax (301) 713-0376; and
    Southeast Region, NMFS, 263 13th Ave. South, St. Petersburg, FL 
33701; phone (727) 824-5312; fax (727) 824-5309.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Colette Cairns or Amy Hapeman, (301) 
427-8401.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On January 26, 2011, notice was published in 
the Federal Register (76 FR 4636) that a request for a scientific 
research permit to take green, loggerhead, hawksbill, leatherback, 
Kemp's ridley, olive ridley, and unidentified hardshell sea turtles had 
been submitted by the above-named organization. The requested permit 
has been issued 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 parts 222-226).
    The five-year permit authorizes the SEFSC to monitor the take of 
green, loggerhead, hawksbill, leatherback, Kemp's ridley, olive ridley, 
and unidentified hardshell sea turtles by observed commercial fisheries 
and collect data to estimate bycatch and its effects on sea turtle sub-
populations. SEFSC-certified observers are authorized to handle, 
photograph, measure, weigh, flipper and passive integrated transponder 
tag, tissue sample, carapace mark and salvage specimens taken during 
commercial fishing activities. The research will take place in the 
Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea, and their 
tributaries. These efforts would aid in the development and refinement 
of management efforts to recover these species.
    Issuance of this permit, as required by the ESA, was based on a 
finding that such permit (1) was applied for in good faith, (2) will 
not operate to the disadvantage of such endangered or threatened 
species, and (3) is consistent with the purposes and policies set forth 
in section 2 of the ESA.

     Dated: July 26, 2011.
P. Michael Payne,
Chief, Permits, Conservation and Education Division, Office of 
Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2011-19399 Filed 7-29-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P