[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 163 (Thursday, August 22, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43793-43794]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-18118]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XR022


Marine Mammals; File No. 22884

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 Mark Baumgartner, Ph.D., Woods 
Hole Oceanographic Institution, MS No. 33, Biology Department, Woods 
Hole, MA

[[Page 43794]]

02543 has applied in due form for a permit to conduct research on two 
species of marine mammals.

DATES: Written, telefaxed, or email comments must be received on or 
before September 23, 2019.

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. 22884 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.), and the 
regulations governing the taking, importing, and exporting of 
endangered and threatened species (50 CFR parts 222-226).
    The applicant proposes to take up to 80 endangered North Atlantic 
right whales (NARW; Eubalaena glacialis) annually by Level B harassment 
during vessel surveys in the Atlantic Ocean from the Gulf of Maine 
through the mid-Atlantic Bight. Feeding NARW may be approached by 
vessel for counts, observations, and collection of prey samples to 
determine the NARW prey species in various habitats, and to 
characterize the abundance and vertical distribution of those prey. Up 
to 20 endangered sei whales (Balaenoptera borealis) may be incidentally 
harassed if feeding in the same areas as the target NARW. The permit 
would be valid for five years from the date of issuance.
    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: August 19, 2019.
Julia Marie Harrison,
Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-18118 Filed 8-21-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P