[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 90 (Tuesday, May 10, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 27990-27991]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-09934]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[RTID 0648-XB134]


Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals 
Incidental to the Port Everglades Harbor Deepening and Widening 
Project, Florida

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

ACTION: Notice; receipt of application for letter of authorization; 
request for comments and information.

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SUMMARY: NMFS has received a request from the U.S. Army Corps of 
Engineers (USACE), Jacksonville District, for authorization to take, by 
Level B harassment only, small numbers of marine mammals incidental to 
the Port Everglades Harbor Deepening and Widening Project (Project), in 
Broward County, Florida, for a period of five years from August 2024 
through August 2029. Pursuant to regulations implementing the Marine 
Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is announcing receipt of USACE's 
request for the development and implementation of regulations governing 
the incidental taking of marine mammals. NMFS invites the public to 
provide information, suggestions, and comments on USACE's application 
and request.

DATES: Comments and information must be received no later than June 9, 
2022.

ADDRESSES: Comments on the application should be addressed to Jolie 
Harrison, Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service. Physical comments should 
be sent to 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910 and 
electronic comments should be sent to [email protected].
    Instructions: NMFS is not responsible for comments sent by any 
other method, to any other address or individual, or received after the 
end of the comment period. Comments received electronically, including 
all attachments, must not exceed a 25-megabyte file size. Attachments 
to electronic comments will be accepted in Microsoft Word or Excel or 
Adobe PDF file formats only. All comments received are a part of the 
public record and will generally be posted online at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-protection/incidental-take-authorizations-construction-activities without change. All 
personal identifying information (e.g., name, address) voluntarily 
submitted by the commenter may be publicly accessible. Do not submit 
confidential business information or otherwise sensitive or protected 
information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jenna Harlacher, Office of Protected 
Resources, NMFS, (301) 427-8401. An electronic copy of USACE's 
application may be obtained online at: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-protection/incidental-take-authorizations-construction-activities. In case of problems accessing these documents, 
please call the contact listed above.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Sections 101(a)(5)(A) and (D) of the MMPA (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.) 
direct the Secretary of Commerce (as delegated to NMFS) to allow, upon 
request, the incidental, but not intentional, taking of small numbers 
of marine mammals by U.S. citizens who engage in a specified activity 
(other than commercial fishing) within a specified geographical region 
if certain findings are made and either regulations are issued or, if 
the taking is limited to harassment, a notice of a proposed 
authorization is provided to the public for review.
    An incidental take authorization shall be granted if NMFS finds 
that the taking will have a negligible impact on the species or 
stock(s), will not have an

[[Page 27991]]

immitigable adverse impact on the availability of the species or 
stock(s) for subsistence uses (where relevant), and if the permissible 
methods of taking and requirements pertaining to the mitigation, 
monitoring and reporting of such takings are set forth.
    NMFS has defined ``negligible impact'' in 50 CFR 216.103 as an 
impact resulting from the specified activity that cannot be reasonably 
expected to, and is not reasonably likely to, adversely affect the 
species or stock through effects on annual rates of recruitment or 
survival.
    The MMPA states that the term ``take'' means to harass, hunt, 
capture, kill or attempt to harass, hunt, capture, or kill any marine 
mammal.
    Except with respect to certain activities not pertinent here, the 
MMPA defines ``harassment'' as: Any act of pursuit, torment, or 
annoyance, which (i) has the potential to injure a marine mammal or 
marine mammal stock in the wild (Level A harassment); or (ii) has the 
potential to disturb a marine mammal or marine mammal stock in the wild 
by causing disruption of behavioral patterns, including, but not 
limited to, migration, breathing, nursing, breeding, feeding, or 
sheltering (Level B harassment).

Summary of Request

    On September 3, 2020, NMFS received an application from the USACE 
requesting authorization for take of marine mammals incidental to 
confined blasting associated with the Port Everglades Harbor Deepening 
and Widening Project, Broward County, Florida. We provided comments on 
the application and the USACE submitted a revised version on April 3, 
2021. We deemed the application adequate and complete on April 29, 
2021. The requested regulations under which we would issue the 
requested LOA would be valid for five years, August 2024 and August 
2029. The USACE plans to conduct confined underwater blasting to deepen 
and widen the Port Everglades harbor and entrance channel. Blasting may 
incidentally expose marine mammals to elevated levels of noise, thereby 
resulting in incidental take, by Level B harassment only. Therefore, 
the USACE requests authorization to incidentally take marine mammals.

Specified Activities

    The purpose of the proposed project is to provide for increased 
navigational safety, efficiency, and improved economic conditions for 
ships calling at Port Everglades. The existing federal channel project 
depth of 42 feet at Port Everglades does not provide an adequate, safe 
depth for large tankers and container ships currently visiting the 
harbor. Furthermore, the next generation of container ships and oil 
tankers requires significantly more channel depth to operate 
efficiently and a wider and deeper entrance channel will greatly 
improve the safety of navigation. To achieve the proposed deepening and 
widening of Port Everglades, pretreatment of rock areas may be required 
using confined underwater blasting where dredging or other rock removal 
methods are unsuccessful due to the hardness and massiveness of the 
rock. The USACE anticipates a maximum of 280 confined, stemmed blasts 
would occur over the life of the LOA, if issued, at a rate of one blast 
per day. Blasting operations may take place six days a week with a 
maximum of one blast occurring per day. Confined underwater blasting 
operations will be prohibited between November 15 and March 15 in order 
to avoid take of the West Indian Manatee (Trichecus manatus). Blasting 
would occur in six designated areas: The outer entrance channel, inner 
entrance channel, main turning basin, widener, south access channel, 
and turning notch. The USACE's application contains mitigation and 
monitoring measures designed to reduce impacts to marine mammals. The 
application also contains proposed marine mammal and acoustic 
monitoring and reporting plans.

Information Solicited

    Interested persons may submit information, suggestions, and 
comments concerning USACE's request (see ADDRESSES). NMFS will consider 
all information, suggestions, and comments related to the request 
during the development of proposed regulations governing the incidental 
taking of marine mammals by USACE, if appropriate.

    Dated: May 4, 2022.
Kim Damon-Randall,
Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-09934 Filed 5-9-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P