[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 126 (Tuesday, July 1, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Page 37295]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-15356]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Navy


Notice of Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact 
Statement/Supplemental Overseas Environmental Impact Statement for 
Employment of Surveillance Towed Array Sensor System Low Frequency 
Active Sonar

AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DoD.

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and 
Executive Order 12114, the Department of the Navy (DoN) is announcing 
its intent to prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement 
(SEIS)/Supplemental Overseas Environmental Impact Statement (SOEIS) to 
analyze the potential impact of Surveillance Towed Array Sensor System 
Low Frequency Active (SURTASS LFA) sonar on the five bottlenose dolphin 
stocks comprising the Hawaiian Islands Stock Complex (Kauai/Niiahu, 
Oahu, 4-island, Hawaii Island, and Hawaii Pelagic).

DATES: The Draft SEIS/SOEIS is expected to be available in early 
September 2014, at which time the public comment period will be open 
for 45 days. The Final SEIS/SOEIS is expected to be completed by early 
February 2015.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Chief of Naval Operations, Code 
N2N6F24, c/o SURTASS LFA Sonar SEIS/SOEIS Program Manager, 4100 Fairfax 
Drive, Suite 730, Arlington, Virginia 22203; or email: lfa-eis.com">eisteam@surtass-lfa-eis.com.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Although the most recent Final SEIS/SOEIS 
for SURTASS LFA Sonar was completed in June 2012, during subsequent 
litigation (Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. et al. v. Pritzker 
et al., No. 12-cv-05380-EDL [E.D. Cal. October 18, 2012]), the court 
found that the SEIS/SOEIS was deficient in one limited respect in that 
the DoN failed to use the best available data from the 2010 Pacific 
Stock Assessment Report to analyze the potential impact of SURTASS LFA 
sonar on the individual stocks within the Hawaiian Islands Stock 
Complex of common bottlenose dolphins and allow public comment on that 
analysis. The court upheld the current SEIS/SOEIS in all other 
respects. The SEIS/SOEIS proposed in this notice will be prepared for 
the limited purpose of addressing the single deficiency identified by 
the court.
    The National Marine Fisheries Service will be a cooperating agency 
under NEPA regulation (40 CFR 1501.6) for the development of the SEIS/
SOEIS. The SEIS/SOEIS will comply with both NEPA and Executive Order 
12114 (Environmental Effects Abroad of Major Federal Actions).
    Additional information concerning SURTASS LFA sonar and pertinent 
environmental documents are available at: lfa-eis.com">http://www.surtass-lfa-eis.com.

    Dated: June 24, 2014.
N.A. Hagerty-Ford,
Commander, Office of the Judge Advocate General, U.S. Navy, Federal 
Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 2014-15356 Filed 6-30-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE P