[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 181 (Friday, September 18, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56447-56448]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-23454]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XE188


Endangered and Threatened Species; Take of Anadromous Fish

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

ACTION: Applications for three new scientific research permits and 
three permit renewals.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that NMFS has received six scientific 
research permit application requests relating to Pacific salmon and 
steelhead. The proposed research is intended to increase knowledge of 
species listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and to help guide 
management and conservation efforts. The applications may be viewed 
online at: https://apps.nmfs.noaa.gov/preview/preview_open_for_comment.cfm.

DATES: Comments or requests for a public hearing on the applications 
must be received at the appropriate address or fax number (see 
ADDRESSES) no later than 5 p.m. Pacific standard time on October 19, 
2015.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on the applications should be sent to the 
Protected Resources Division, NMFS, 1201 NE Lloyd Blvd., Suite 1100, 
Portland, OR 97232-1274. Comments may also be sent via fax to 503-230-
5441 or by email to [email protected] (include the permit number 
in the subject line of the fax or email).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rob Clapp, Portland, OR (ph.: 503-231-
2314), Fax: 503-230-5441, email: [email protected]). Permit 
application instructions are available from the address above, or 
online at https://apps.nmfs.noaa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Species Covered in This Notice

    The following listed species are covered in this notice:
    Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha): Threatened Lower 
Columbia River (LCR); threatened Puget Sound (PS); threatened Snake 
River (SR) fall-run; threatened SR spring/summer-run (spr/sum); 
endangered Upper Columbia River (UCR) spring-run; threatened Upper 
Willamette River (UWR).
    Steelhead (O. mykiss): Threatened UCR; Threatened SR; threatened 
middle Columbia River (MCR); threatened LCR; threatened PS; threatened 
UWR.
    Sockeye salmon (O. nerka): Endangered SR.
    Chum salmon (O. keta): Threatened Columbia River (CR).
    Coho salmon (O. kisutch): Threatened LCR; threatened Oregon Coast 
(OC).

Authority

    Scientific research permits are issued in accordance with section 
10(a)(1)(A) of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1531 et. seq) and regulations 
governing listed fish and wildlife permits (50 CFR parts 222-226). NMFS 
issues permits based on findings that such permits: (1) Are applied for 
in good faith; (2) if granted and exercised, would not operate to the 
disadvantage of the listed species that are the subject of the permit; 
and (3) are consistent with the purposes and policy of section 2 of the 
ESA. The authority to take listed species is subject to conditions set 
forth in the permits.
    Anyone requesting a hearing on an application listed in this notice 
should set out the specific reasons why a hearing on that application 
would be appropriate (see ADDRESSES). Such hearings are held at the 
discretion of the Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, NMFS.

Applications Received

Permit 1336-7R

    Port Blakely Farms (PBF) is seeking to renew its permit to take 
juvenile LCR Chinook salmon, UWR Chinook salmon, PS Chinook salmon, LCR 
coho salmon, LCR steelhead, UWR steelhead, and PS steelhead in 
headwater streams in western Oregon and Washington. The purpose of the 
research is to evaluate factors limiting fish distribution and water 
quality in streams that cross land owned by PBF. The research would 
benefit listed salmonids by producing data to be used in conserving and 
restoring critical habitat. The researchers propose to capture (using 
backpack electrofishing and dipnetting), handle, and release juvenile 
fish. The PBF researchers do not intend to kill any fish being 
captured, but some may die as an unintentional result of the research 
activities.

Permit 15486-2R

    West Fork Environmental is seeking to renew its permit to capture 
and handle juvenile UCR Chinook salmon, LCR Chinook salmon, UWR Chinook 
salmon, PS Chinook salmon, LCR coho salmon, OC coho salmon, UCR 
steelhead, LCR steelhead, UWR steelhead, and PS steelhead during the 
course of headwater stream surveys over wide parts of Oregon and 
Washington. The purpose of the research is to provide owners of 
industrial forest lands and state lands managers with accurate maps of 
where threatened and endangered salmonids are found on state and 
industrial forest lands. The work would benefit the salmon and 
steelhead by helping land managers plan and carry out their activities 
in ways that would have the smallest effect possible on the listed 
fish. The fish would be captured using backpack electrofishing 
equipment and released without tagging or even handling more than is 
necessary to ensure that they have recovered from the effects of being 
captured. The West Fork Environmental researchers do not intend to kill 
any listed salmonids, but a small number may die as an unintended 
result of the activities.

Permit 16784-2R

    Hart Crowser, Inc. is seeking to renew a one-year scientific 
research permit to take juvenile SR fall Chinook salmon, SR spr/sum 
Chinook salmon, UCR Chinook salmon, UWR Chinook salmon, LCR Chinook 
salmon, CR chum salmon, LCR coho, SR sockeye salmon, SR steelhead, UCR 
steelhead, MCR steelhead, LCR steelhead, and UWR steelhead. The 
objective of the research

[[Page 56448]]

is to study the degree to which juvenile salmonids may be getting 
stranded by ship wakes along the lower Columbia River between river 
miles 21 and 102. The researchers would investigate the potential for 
stranding at approximately 24 ``high risk'' sites. The researchers 
would also evaluate whether the strategic placement of dredged material 
could reduce the risk of stranding. The research would benefit the 
listed species by helping river managers determine the likelihood of 
juvenile stranding along the lower river and investigate potential 
means for reducing it. Hart Crowser, Inc. would use beach seines to 
capture, handle, and release juvenile fish. Researchers may also 
collect stranded fish and return them to the river. Hart Crowser, Inc. 
does not intend to kill any of the fish being captured but a small 
number may die as an unintended result of the activities.

Permit 19587

    The Columbia River Estuary Study (CREST) is requesting a three-year 
scientific research permit to take LCR Chinook salmon, CR chum salmon, 
and LCR coho salmon. The objective of the research is to study the 
effectiveness of habitat restoration in Meglar Creek, Washington. The 
research would evaluate fish passage and habitat use in Meglar Creek 
and the Columbia River nearshore environment at the mouth of Meglar 
Creek. The CREST researchers would capture fish with a trap net. A 
portion of the juvenile Chinook and coho salmon would be anesthetized 
and tagged with passive integrated transponder tags (PIT-tags). The 
research would benefit listed salmonids by determining how effectively 
currently altered habitats support salmonids and using that information 
to guide future habitat modifications. CREST does not intend to kill 
any listed fish but a small number may die as an unintended result of 
the research activities.

Permit 19690

    The Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG) is seeking a five-year 
permit to take adult SR spr/sum Chinook, SR sockeye, and SR steelhead 
at a location approximately one mile upstream from the confluence of 
the Lemhi and Salmon Rivers in Idaho. Under the permit, they would trap 
adult Chinook and steelhead at a temporary weir, measure and tag them 
with PIT-tags, and monitor their movements in the Lemhi Valley with the 
purpose of determining the animals' response to habitat improvements 
throughout the subbasin. All adult sockeye salmon captured at the weir 
would simply be handled and released without being tagged. The weir 
would operate in 12-hour increments (checked at least twice daily), and 
all fish to be tagged would be anesthetized before the process, and 
allowed to recover afterwards; they would then be released back to the 
river upstream from the weir. The researchers would also collect scale 
and tissue samples from a number of fish for DNA analysis. The research 
is intended to form an integral part of an ongoing program that 
intensively monitors a number of ecological parameters in the Lemhi 
watershed. The weir operation would allow greater resolution of both 
adult return numbers and fish movement in the area, and it would feed 
that data into the information stream being generated by the overall 
program. The research would benefit the fish by providing new 
information that managers can use to (1) evaluate and monitor steelhead 
and Chinook status in the region, and (2) design and deploy 
increasingly effective habitat restoration actions throughout the 
fishes' range. The researchers do not intend to kill any of the listed 
fish, but a few may die as an inadvertent result of the planned 
activities.

Permit 19741

    The Yakama Nation is seeking a five-year permit to annually take 
juvenile, natural MCR steelhead during the course of a research project 
designed to assess their current abundance in the Rock Creek watershed 
in south central Washington. Under the permit, the researchers would 
employ backpack electrofishing to capture a number of juvenile MCR 
steelhead. Some of those fish would be tagged with PIT-tags, and some 
would be tissue-sampled, but most would simply be handled and released. 
The researchers would work primarily in five reference areas (reaches) 
and they would use mark/recapture techniques to study juvenile 
development and movement in Rock Creek. They would also conduct some 
boat electrofishing in the inundated pool downstream from the research 
area in Rock Creek--primarily to look at predator abundance. In 
addition, the researchers would take tissue samples from dead adults 
during spawning ground surveys. The purpose of the research is to 
assess the current distribution and relative abundance of MCR steelhead 
in selected portions of Rock Creek. That information would be 
integrated with information being collected on other ecological 
parameters and the researches would use that information as a whole to 
determine species status in the system and evaluate the effectiveness 
of several habitat restoration actions that have been going on there 
for a number of years. This research would benefit listed steelhead in 
that it would be used by fish managers such as the Rock Creek Subbasin 
Recovery Planning Group to prioritize to plan restoration, protection, 
and recovery actions for Rock Creek steelhead.
    This notice is provided pursuant to section 10(c) of the ESA. NMFS 
will evaluate the applications, associated documents, and comments 
submitted to determine whether the applications meet the requirements 
of section 10(a) of the ESA and Federal regulations. The final permit 
decisions will not be made until after the end of the 30-day comment 
period. NMFS will publish notice of its final action in the Federal 
Register.

    Dated: September 15, 2015.
Angela Somma,
Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected Resources, 
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-23454 Filed 9-17-15; 8:45 am]
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