[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 63 (Monday, April 2, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Page 19648]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-7847]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XA599


Marine Mammals; File No. 16094

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

ACTION: Notice; receipt of application for permit amendment.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the Alaska Department of Fish and 
Game, Juneau, AK, has applied for an amendment to Scientific Research 
Permit No. 16094.

DATES: Written, telefaxed, or email comments must be received on or 
before May 2, 2012.

ADDRESSES: The application and related documents are available for 
review by selecting ``Records Open for Public Comment'' from the 
Features box on the Applications and Permits for Protected Species home 
page, https://apps.nmfs.noaa.gov, and then selecting File No. 16094 
from the list of available applications.
    These documents are also available upon written request or by 
appointment in the following offices:
    Permits and Conservation 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
    Alaska Region, NMFS, P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, AK 99802-1668; phone 
(907)586-7221; fax (907)586-7249.
    Written comments on this application should be submitted to the 
Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, at the address listed above. 
Comments may also be submitted by facsimile to (301)713-0376, or by 
email to [email protected]. Please include the File No. in the 
subject line of the email comment.
    Those individuals requesting a public hearing should submit a 
written request to the Chief, Permits and Conservation Division at the 
address listed above. The request should set forth the specific reasons 
why a hearing on this application would be appropriate.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tammy Adams or Joselyd Garcia-Reyes, 
(301)427-8401.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The subject amendment to Permit No. 16094 is 
requested 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).
    Permit No. 16094, issued on September 20, 2011 (76 FR 61345), 
authorizes the permit holder to take harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) 
during aerial surveys for population census and radio tracking; ground 
surveys for photo-identification, counts and behavioral observations; 
vessel approaches of animals equipped with telemetry equipment; vessel 
surveys for radio tracking; and capture by entanglement in a net in the 
water or by hoop net or dip net on land. Captured animals will: be 
restrained (chemical or physical); be weighed and measured; have 
biological samples collected (blood, milk (lactating females), blubber, 
skin, muscle, hair, mucus membrane swabs, stomach lavage, tooth and 
vibrissae); be administered deuterated water; have measurement of 
blubber via ultrasound; be marked with flipper identification tags; and 
have internal (PIT tags) or external scientific instruments attached. 
Tissue samples will be collected from subsistence harvested animals and 
other mortalities and some samples will be exported to Canada for 
analysis. The permit also includes incidental harassment and accidental 
mortality of harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) during seal capture 
activities. The permit is valid through December 31, 2016.
    The permit holder is requesting the permit be amended to include 
authorization for takes related to a whisker growth and replacement 
study aimed at improving utility of dietary stable isotope information 
derived from whiskers. The amendment would increase the number of 
whiskers that may be collected from seals captured during field work 
from 1 per animal to 2 per animal, and add photogrammetry for these 
seals. There would be no increase in the numbers of seals captured or 
sampled in the wild. The amendment would also add a non-invasive study 
using captive seals held at the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward, AK. 
For that study, researchers would use hair dye to mark the seals' 
whiskers and photo document whisker growth over time.
    In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
(42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), an initial determination has been made that 
the activity proposed is categorically excluded from the requirement to 
prepare an environmental assessment or environmental impact statement.
    Concurrent with the publication of this notice in the Federal 
Register, NMFS is forwarding copies of this application to the Marine 
Mammal Commission and its Committee of Scientific Advisors.

    Dated: March 27, 2012.
Tammy C. Adams,
Acting Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2012-7847 Filed 3-30-12; 8:45 am]
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