[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 42 (Friday, March 2, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12815-12816]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-5184]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XA914


Marine Mammals; File No. 16998

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

ACTION: Notice; denial of permit.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that an application for a scientific 
research permit (File No. 16998) submitted by Mr. Gregory Walker, 
University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK, has been denied.

ADDRESSES: The application and related documents are available for 
review upon written request or by appointment in the following 
office(s):
    Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected Resources, 
NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Room 13705,

[[Page 12816]]

Silver Spring, MD 20910; phone (301) 427-8401; 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 Laura Morse, (301) 427-
8401.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On January 4, 2012, a notice was published 
in the Federal Register (77 FR 268) that an application had been filed 
by the above named applicant for a permit to harass 13,000 Steller sea 
lions (Eumetopias jubatus), 200 harbor seals (Phoca vitulina), 10 
killer whales (Orcinus orca), 10 humpback whales (Megaptera 
novaeangliae), and 10 northern fur seals (Callorhinus ursinus) over the 
course of a one-year permit. The objective was to conduct low-altitude 
(75 to 120 meters) aerial surveys of rookeries and haul outs using 
ship-based unmanned aircraft to demonstrate novel methods for imaging 
Steller sea lion terrestrial habitat in the Aleutian Islands with the 
accuracy and fidelity necessary for population surveys and at a cost 
low enough to allow frequent monitoring.
    In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
(42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), an initial determination was made that the 
activities proposed were consistent with the Preferred Alternative in 
the Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for 
Steller Sea Lion and Northern Fur Seal Research (NMFS 2007), and that 
issuance of the permit would not have a significant adverse impact on 
the human environment. Comments received on the application after 
publication of the notice of receipt suggested that an environmental 
assessment (EA) or other supplemental analysis was warranted due to the 
lack of information in the PEIS regarding potential effects of such 
low-altitude surveys. The regulations governing the taking and 
importing of marine mammals (50 CFR part 216) stipulate that, under 
these circumstances, the permit be denied unless an EA is prepared with 
a finding of no significant impact.
    The requested permit has been denied subject to the provisions of 
the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), and 
the regulations governing the taking and importing of marine mammals 
(50 CFR part 216), because there is not time to prepare an EA and make 
a finding of no significant impact before the proposed field season. 
The application may be re-submitted with information necessary to 
prepare an EA and would be processed as a new application, with 
opportunity for public review and comment.

    Dated: February 27, 2012.
Tammy C. Adams,
Acting Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2012-5184 Filed 3-1-12; 8:45 am]
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