[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 131 (Thursday, July 9, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39411-39412]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-16781]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XD825


Marine Mammals; File Nos. 17278 and 17557

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

ACTION: Notice; issuance of permit amendments.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that major amendments have been issued 
to James Shine, Ph.D., Harvard University School of Public Health, 401 
Park Drive, 404H West, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, (Permit No. 17278-
01) and the NMFS Forensics Office, 219 Fort Johnson Road, Charleston, 
SC 29412 (Permit No. 17557-01).

ADDRESSES: The permit amendments and related documents are available 
for review upon written request or by appointment in the 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jennifer Skidmore, Amy Sloan, or 
Malcolm Mohead, (301) 427-8401.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On March 20, 2015, notice was published in 
the Federal Register (80 FR 14907) that requests for amendments to 
Permit Nos. 17278 and 17557 to import specimens from long-finned pilot 
whales (Globicephala melas; 17278) and scalloped hammerhead sharks 
(Sphyrna lewinia; 17557) for scientific research had been submitted by 
the above-named applicants. The requested permit amendments have been 
issued under the authority of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, 
as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), the regulations governing the 
taking and importing of marine mammals (50 CFR part 216), 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), 
as applicable.

[[Page 39412]]

    Permit No. 17278 authorizes Dr. Shine to import and receive parts 
from subsistence-collected long-finned pilot whales (Globicephala 
melas) archived at the Faroese Museum of Natural History, Faroe 
Islands. The permit, as amended, increases the number of samples 
authorized to be imported from 15 to 100 animals annually, as well as 
authorization to conduct analyses of chlorinated and fluorinated 
organic chemicals using the same samples.
    Permit No. 17557 authorizes the NMFS Forensics Office to receive, 
import, export, transfer, archive, and conduct analyses on marine 
mammal and ESA-listed species parts under NMFS jurisdiction. The permit 
has been amended to include scalloped hammerhead sharks (Sphyrna 
lewinia) recently listed under the ESA.
    In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
(42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), a final determination has been made that the 
activity proposed is categorically excluded from the requirement to 
prepare an environmental assessment or environmental impact statement.
    As required by the ESA, issuance of the permit amendment (Permit 
No. 17557-01) 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 species; and (3) is consistent with the purposes and 
policies set forth in section 2 of the ESA.

    Dated: June 26, 2015.
Julia Harrison,
Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-16781 Filed 7-8-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P