[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 87 (Monday, May 8, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21370-21371]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-09299]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XF399


Marine Mammals; File No. 21170

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

ACTION: Notice; receipt of application.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that Keith Ellenbogen, Keith Ellenbogen 
Photography, 795 Carroll St., Brooklyn, NY 11215, has applied in due 
form for a permit to conduct commercial or educational photography on 
marine mammals.

DATES: Written, telefaxed, or email comments must be received on or 
before June 7, 2017.

ADDRESSES: These documents are available 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.
    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: Courtney Smith or Amy Hapeman, (301) 
427-8401.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The subject permit is requested under the 
authority of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as amended 
(MMPA; 16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), and the regulations governing the 
taking and importing of marine mammals (50 CFR part 216).
    The applicant proposes to film and photograph cetaceans and seals 
within the U.S. northeast Atlantic waters of the U.S., from the Gulf of 
Maine (including Cape Cod Bay and Stellwagen Bank National Marine 
Sanctuary) through the New York Bight (Montauk, NY to Cape May, NJ), 
including the Hudson Canyon. Up to 810 humpback whales (Megaptera

[[Page 21371]]

novaeangliae, West Indies Distinct Population Segment); 225 long-finned 
pilot whales (Globicephala melaena); 225 harbor porpoises (Phocoena 
phocoena); 225 short-beaked common dolphin (Delphinus delphis); 225 
Risso's dolphins (Grampus griseus); 225 bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops 
truncatus); 225 striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba); 225 Atlantic 
white-sided dolphins (Lagenorhyncus acutus); 900 harbor seals (Phoca 
vitulina); and 900 grey seals (Halichoerus grypus) may be harassed 
during close approaches by marine vessels and experienced swimmers and 
divers for photography and filming purposes. The permit is requested 
for five years.
    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 the application to the Marine 
Mammal Commission and its Committee of Scientific Advisors.

    Dated: May 3, 2017.
Julia Harrison,
Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2017-09299 Filed 5-5-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P