[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 215 (Friday, November 6, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68858-68859]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-28333]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XE306


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 two 
permit renewals.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that NMFS has received five scientific 
research permit application requests relating to Pacific salmon, 
steelhead, and eulachon. 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 December 7, 
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): Lower Columbia River 
(LCR); threatened Puget Sound (PS).
    Steelhead (O. mykiss): Threatened LCR; threatened PS.
    Chum salmon (O. keta): Threatened Columbia River (CR).
    Coho salmon (O. kisutch): Threatened LCR.
    Eulachon (Thaleichthys pacificus): Threatened Southern (S) distinct 
population segment.

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 15582-2R

    The City of Bothell, Washington is seeking to renew for five years 
a research permit that allows them to annually take juvenile PS Chinook 
salmon and PS steelhead. The purpose of the study is to develop a 
baseline and trend analysis to inform management decisions that could 
affect or be affected by stream water quality. These surveys would 
entail collecting macroinvertebrate samples and surveying streams for 
fish. The project would benefit listed salmonids by determining fish 
diversity in the monitored streams and generating information to help 
guide management decisions that would help remedy stream degradation. 
The researchers propose to capture fish using backpack electrofishing 
equipment and dip nets. The captured fish would be transferred to 
buckets via dip nets, anesthetized, identified by species, enumerated, 
measured, and released when recovered. The researchers do not propose 
to kill any listed fish, but a small number may die as an unintended 
result of the activities.

Permit 15611-2R

    The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) is seeking to 
renew for five years a permit that currently authorizes them to take 
adult LCR Chinook salmon, LCR steelhead, LCR coho salmon, and CR chum 
salmon while operating a fish collection facility on the North Fork 
Toutle River in Washington State. The fish collection facility is 
located at river mile 47.5, approximately 1.3 miles downstream from the 
Mount St. Helens sediment-retention structure. The purpose of the 
project is to trap and haul salmon and steelhead around the sediment 
retention structure. The WDFW would also collect scientific information 
and tag a portion of the fish to monitor migration patterns and 
spawning success. The primary benefit of the activities would be to 
allow listed salmon and steelhead to spawn in historically accessible 
habitat upstream of the sediment retention structure. The work would 
also benefit the fish by generating information on the species 
migration and spawning timing and location. The WDFW proposes to 
operate the trap several days a week during the species' upstream 
migration. Captured fish would be transported in a tanker truck and 
released upstream of the sediment retention structure. The WDFW does 
not intend to kill any fish being captured but some may die as an 
unintentional result of the activities.

Permit 18908

    The Skagit Fisheries Enhancement Group (SFEG) has requested a five-
year permit to annually take juvenile PS Chinook and PS steelhead in 
the Skagit River watershed. The purpose of the study is to help SFEG 
identify sites in need of restoration and target enhancement efforts. 
The project would benefit listed salmonids by helping guide projects 
designed to provide restored and high-quality rearing habitat. The SFEG 
proposes to capture fish using a beach seine and dip net. Fish captured 
in the seine (and kept in the water) would be removed using a small 
dip-net, quickly identified by species, and then immediately released 
into the water outside of the seine. The researchers do not propose to 
kill any of the listed fish being captured, but a small number may die 
as an unintended result of the activities.

[[Page 68859]]

Permit 19559

    The AMEC Foster Wheel (AMECFW) is seeking a three-year research 
permit to annually take juvenile PS Chinook salmon and PS steelhead in 
the northern Puget Sound. The AMECFW research may also take adult S 
eulachon, for which there are currently no ESA take prohibitions. The 
researchers propose to use hydroacoustics to map herring school size 
and distribution from Point Whitehorn to Sandy Point (Whatcom County; 
WA). They would then use lampara seine/dip net surveys to confirm the 
species distribution and abundance information generated by the 
hydroacoustic surveys. The researchers may encounter a small number of 
listed salmonids and eulachon as bycatch in the netting/seining 
operations, but those animals would be released immediately without 
further handling or sampling. The researchers do not propose to kill 
any of the listed fish being captured, but a small number may die as an 
unintended result of the activities.

Permit 19738

    The Washington Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) is seeking a 
five-year research permit to annually take juvenile PS Chinook salmon 
and PS steelhead in streams of northwest Puget Sound. The purpose of 
the study is to correctly type streams to ensure that riparian habitat 
buffers and fish passage structures adequately support or improve 
conditions for aquatic species, including listed salmonids. The WDNR 
proposes to capture fish using backpack electrofishing equipment. The 
captured fish would be counted, identified, measured and released. The 
researchers do not propose to kill any of the listed salmonids being 
captured, but a small number may die as an unintended result of the 
activities.
    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: November 3, 2015.
Angela Somma,
Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected Resources, 
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-28333 Filed 11-5-15; 8:45 am]
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