[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 52 (Friday, March 16, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11733-11734]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-05352]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XG027


Marine Mammals; File No. 21348

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 the NMFS Northwest Fisheries 
Science Center (NWFSC), 2725 Montlake Boulevard East, Seattle, WA 
98112-2097, (Responsible Party: M. Bradley Hanson, Ph.D.) has applied 
in due form for a permit to conduct research on marine mammals.

DATES: Written, telefaxed, or email comments must be received on or 
before April 16, 2018.

ADDRESSES: The application and related documents are available for 
review by selecting ``Records Open for Public Comment'' from the 
``Features'' box on the Applications and Permits for Protected Species 
(APPS) home page, https://apps.nmfs.noaa.gov, and then selecting File 
No. 21348 from the list of available applications.
    These documents are also 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: Shasta McClenahan 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.), 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.), the 
regulations governing the taking, importing, and exporting of 
endangered and threatened species (50 CFR parts 222-226), and the Fur 
Seal Act of 1966, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1151 et seq.).
    The applicant proposes to take marine mammals in the North Pacific 
Ocean in the U.S. waters of Washington, Oregon, California, Alaska, and 
Hawaii, and international waters, to assess the biology and ecology of 
marine mammals in the study area, in particular endangered Southern 
Resident killer whales (Orcinus orca). Up to 47 species of marine 
mammals may be taken during research including the following ESA-listed 
cetaceans: Blue (Balaenoptera musculus), fin (B. physalus), humpback 
(Megaptera novaeangliae; Western North Pacific, Central America, and 
Mexico distinct population segments), North Pacific right (Eubalaena 
japonica), Main Hawaiian Islands insular DPS of false killer (Pseudorca 
crassidens), sei (B.

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borealis), sperm (Physeter macrocephalus), and Western North Pacific 
gray (Eschrichtius robustus) whales; and ESA-listed pinnipeds including 
Guadalupe fur seals (Arctocephalus townsendi), Hawaiian monk seals 
(Neomonachus schauinslandi), and the U.S. Western stock of Steller sea 
lions (Eumetopias jubatus). The applicant proposes to take marine 
mammals during vessel and aerial surveys, including unmanned aircraft 
systems for photo-identification, photogrammetry, thermal imaging, 
above and underwater photography and videography, behavioral 
observations, active acoustic playbacks, passive acoustic recordings, 
prey mapping with echosounders, remote ultrasound, biological sampling 
(exhaled air, feces, sloughed skin, predation samples, and skin and 
blubber biopsies), and tagging (suction-cup and dart/barb). Annual take 
numbers for aerial and vessel surveys include a maximum of 6,000 takes 
per species, and Level A harassment procedures include a maximum of 25 
remote ultrasound, 50 biopsy samples, 30 suction-cup tags, and 25 dart/
barb tags, per species. The duration of the requested permit is 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: March 13, 2018.
Julia Harrison,
Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2018-05352 Filed 3-15-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P