[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 115 (Thursday, June 13, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50267-50270]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-12998]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[RTID-0648-XD998]


Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; 
Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 
Debris Dock Replacement Project, Sausalito, California

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

ACTION: Notice; issuance of renewal incidental harassment 
authorization.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the regulations implementing the Marine 
Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) as amended, notification is hereby given 
that NMFS has issued a renewal incidental harassment authorization 
(IHA) to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) to harass marine 
mammals incidental to construction activities associated with the 
debris dock replacement project in Sausalito, California.

DATES: This authorization is effective from July 15, 2024, through July 
14, 2025.

ADDRESSES: Electronic copies of the application and supporting 
documents, as well as a list of the references cited in this document, 
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 below.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Summer Owens, Office of Protected 
Resources, NMFS, (301) 427-8401. Electronic copies of the original 
application, renewal request, and supporting documents (including 
Federal Register notices of the original proposed and final 
authorizations, and the previous IHA), as well as a list of the 
references cited in this document, may be obtained online at: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/permit/incidental-take-authorizations-under-marine-mammal-protection-act. In case of problems accessing these 
documents, please call the contact listed above.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The MMPA prohibits the ``take'' of marine mammals, with certain 
exceptions. 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 promulgated or, if the taking is limited to harassment, an IHA is 
issued.
    Authorization for incidental takings shall be granted if NMFS finds 
that the taking will have a negligible impact on the species or 
stock(s) and will not have an unmitigable adverse impact on the 
availability of the species or stock(s) for taking for subsistence uses 
(where relevant). Further, NMFS must prescribe

[[Page 50268]]

the permissible methods of taking and other ``means of effecting the 
least practicable adverse impact'' on the affected species or stocks 
and their habitat, paying particular attention to rookeries, mating 
grounds, and areas of similar significance, and on the availability of 
such species or stocks for taking for certain subsistence uses 
(referred to here as ``mitigation measures''). NMFS must also prescribe 
requirements pertaining to monitoring and reporting of such takings. 
The definition of key terms such as ``take,'' ``harassment,'' and 
``negligible impact'' can be found in the MMPA and the NMFS' 
implementing regulations (see 16 U.S.C. 1362; 50 CFR 216.103).
    NMFS' regulations implementing the MMPA at 50 CFR 216.107(e) 
indicate that IHAs may be renewed for additional periods of time not to 
exceed 1 year for each reauthorization. In the notice of proposed IHA 
for the initial IHA, NMFS described the circumstances under which we 
would consider issuing a renewal for this activity, and requested 
public comment on a potential renewal under those circumstances. 
Specifically, on a case-by-case basis, NMFS may issue a one-time 1-year 
renewal of an IHA following notice to the public providing an 
additional 15 days for public comments when (1) up to another year of 
identical, or nearly identical, activities as described in the Detailed 
Description of Specified Activities section of the initial IHA issuance 
notice is planned or (2) the activities as described in the Description 
of the Specified Activities and Anticipated Impacts section of the 
initial IHA issuance notice would not be completed by the time the 
initial IHA expires and a renewal would allow for completion of the 
activities beyond that described in the DATES section of the notice of 
issuance of the initial IHA, provided all of the following conditions 
are met:
    (1) A request for renewal is received no later than 60 days prior 
to the needed renewal IHA effective date (recognizing that the renewal 
IHA expiration date cannot extend beyond 1 year from expiration of the 
initial IHA);
    (2) The request for renewal must include the following:
     An explanation that the activities to be conducted under 
the requested renewal IHA are identical to the activities analyzed 
under the initial IHA, are a subset of the activities, or include 
changes so minor (e.g., reduction in pile size) that the changes do not 
affect the previous analyses, mitigation and monitoring requirements, 
or take estimates (with the exception of reducing the type or amount of 
take); and
     A preliminary monitoring report showing the results of the 
required monitoring to date and an explanation showing that the 
monitoring results do not indicate impacts of a scale or nature not 
previously analyzed or authorized;
    (3) Upon review of the request for renewal, the status of the 
affected species or stocks, and any other pertinent information, NMFS 
determines that there are no more than minor changes in the activities, 
the mitigation and monitoring measures will remain the same and 
appropriate, and the findings in the initial IHA remain valid.
    An additional public comment period of 15 days (for a total of 45 
days), with direct notice by email, phone, or postal service to 
commenters on the initial IHA, is provided to allow for any additional 
comments on the proposed renewal. A description of the renewal process 
may be found on our website at: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-protection/incidental-harassment-authorization-renewals. Any comments received on the potential renewal, along with 
relevant comments on the initial IHA, have been considered in the 
development of this proposed IHA renewal, and a summary of agency 
responses to applicable comments is included in this notice. NMFS will 
consider any additional public comments prior to making any final 
decision on the issuance of the requested renewal, and agency responses 
will be summarized in the final notice of our decision.

Summary of Request

    On July 14, 2021, NMFS issued an IHA to the U.S. ACOE to take 
marine mammals incidental to the Debris Dock Replacement Project in 
Sausalito, California (86 FR 37124, July 14, 2021) effective September 
1, 2021-August 31, 2022. As the planned work was never begun, NMFS 
reissued this IHA three times on request from the ACOE, effective 
January 5, 2022-January 4, 2023 (86 FR 73261, December 21, 2021), 
January 1, 2024-December 31, 2024 (88 FR 16412, March 17, 2023), and 
most recently, effective July 15, 2023-July 14, 2024 (88 FR 38035, June 
12, 2023). On April 4, 2024, NMFS received an application for the 
renewal of the most recent reissued IHA, referred to herein as the 
initial IHA. As described in the application for renewal IHA, the 
activities for which incidental take is requested are identical to 
those covered in the initial authorization. The notice of the proposed 
renewal IHA was published on May 13, 2024 (89 FR 41381). There are no 
changes from the proposed authorization in this final authorization.

Description of the Specified Activities and Anticipated Impacts

    The proposed activities (including mitigation, monitoring, and 
reporting) authorized incidental take, and anticipated impacts on the 
affected stocks are the same as those analyzed and authorized through 
the previously issued IHA. No work has yet occurred under the IHA, but 
the ACOE has informed us that they plan to begin the planned work but 
not finish it prior to expiration of the currently issued IHA.
    The purpose of the ACOE's construction project is to replace the 
existing decaying dock and other onshore infrastructure used to move 
marine debris collected from San Francisco Bay onto land for disposal. 
The location, timing, and nature of the activities, including the types 
of equipment planned for use, are identical to those described in the 
initial IHA. The mitigation and monitoring are also as prescribed in 
the initial IHA.
    Species that are expected to be taken by the planned activity 
include harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena), harbor seal (Phoca 
vitulina), gray whale (Eschrichtius robustus), bottlenose dolphin 
(Tursiops truncatus), California sea lion (Zalophus californianus), 
northern fur seal (Callorhinus ursinus), and northern elephant seal 
(Mirounga angustirostris). A description of the methods and inputs used 
to estimate take anticipated to occur and, ultimately, the take that 
was authorized is found in the previous documents referenced above. The 
data inputs and methods of estimating take are identical to those used 
in the initial IHA. NMFS has reviewed recent Stock Assessment Reports 
(SAR), information on relevant Unusual Mortality Events (UME), and 
recent scientific literature, and determined that no new information 
affects our original analysis of impacts or take estimates under the 
initial IHA.
    We refer to the documents related to the original IHA, which 
include the Federal Register notice of the issuance of the 2021 IHA for 
the ACOE's construction work (86 FR 37124, July 14, 2021), the ACOE's 
application, the Federal Register notice of the proposed IHA (86 FR 
28768, May 28, 2021), all associated references and documents, and 
Federal Register notices of issuance for the reissued IHAs.

Detailed Description of the Activity

    A detailed description of the demolition and construction 
activities

[[Page 50269]]

for which take is proposed here may be found in the notices of the 
proposed (86 FR 28768, May 28, 2021) and final IHAs for the 2021 
authorization. The location, timing, and nature of the activities, 
including the types of equipment planned for use, are identical to 
those described in the previous notices. The renewal IHA is effective 
for a period from July 15, 2024, to July 14, 2025.

Description of Marine Mammals

    A description of the marine mammals in the area of the activities 
for which authorization of take is proposed here, including information 
on abundance, status, distribution, and hearing, may be found in the 
notices of the proposed and final IHAs for the 2021 authorization. NMFS 
has reviewed recent SARs, including the draft 2023 SARs, information on 
relevant UMEs, and other scientific literature, and determined there is 
no new information that affects which species or stocks have the 
potential to be affected or the pertinent information in the 
Description of the Marine Mammals in the Area of Specified Activities 
contained in the supporting documents for the initial IHA. Two of the 
authorized stocks have increased slightly in abundance according to the 
draft 2023 SARs. The San Francisco/Russian River stock of harbor 
porpoise has increased from 7,524 to 7,777 and the California breeding 
stock of northern elephant seal has increased from 179,000 to 187,386. 
However, these new population abundance estimates do not change 
estimated take numbers, or influence the findings made in support of 
the initial IHA.

Potential Effects on Marine Mammals and Their Habitat

    A description of the potential effects of the specified activity on 
marine mammals and their habitat for the activities for which an 
authorization of incidental take is proposed here may be found in the 
notices of the proposed and final IHAs for the 2021 authorization. NMFS 
has reviewed recent draft SARs, information on relevant UMEs, and other 
scientific literature, and determined that there is no new information 
that affects our initial analysis of impacts on marine mammals and 
their habitat.

Estimated Take

    A detailed description of the methods and inputs used to estimate 
take for the specified activity are found in the Notices of the 
Proposed and Final IHA for the 2021 authorization. Specifically, the 
source levels, days of operation, and marine mammal density and 
occurrence data applicable to this authorization remain unchanged from 
the previously issued IHAs. Similarly, the stocks taken, methods and 
types of takes, and numbers of takes remain unchanged from the 
previously issued IHA, as do the number of takes, which are indicated 
below in table 1.

                               Table 1--Summary of Marine Mammal Takes by Species
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                                                                      Level A         Level B       Percent of
         Common name            Scientific name       Stock         harassment      harassment         stock
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Harbor Seal..................  Phoca vitulina..  California.....               2             527             1.7
Harbor Porpoise..............  Phocoena          San Francisco-                2              21             0.3
                                phocoena.         Russian River.
California Sea Lion..........  Zalophus          U.S............               2              20            <0.1
                                californianus.
Gray Whale...................  Eschrichtius      Eastern North                 0               2            <0.1
                                robustus.         Pacific.
Bottlenose Dolphin...........  Tursiops          California                    0               9               2
                                truncatus.        Coastal.
Northern Elephant Seal.......  Mirounga          California                    0               5            <0.1
                                angustirostris.   Breeding.
Northern Fur Seal............  Callorhinus       California and                0               3            <0.1
                                ursinus.          Eastern North
                                                  Pacific.
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Description of Mitigation, Monitoring and Reporting Measures

    The mitigation, monitoring, and reporting measures included as 
requirements in the authorization are identical to those included in 
the Federal Register notice announcing the issuance of the 2021 IHA and 
subsequently included in the reissued IHAs, and the discussion of the 
least practicable adverse impact included in the application and the 
notice of the proposed and final IHA remains accurate.

Comments and Responses

    A notice of NMFS' proposal to issue an IHA to ACOE was published in 
the Federal Register on May 13, 2024 (89 FR 41381). That notice either 
described, or referenced descriptions of, ACOE's activity, the marine 
mammal species that may be affected by the activity, the anticipated 
effects on marine mammals and their habitat, estimated amount and 
manner of take, and proposed mitigation, monitoring and reporting 
measures. During the 15-day public comment period, NMFS did not receive 
any public comments.

Determinations

    NMFS has concluded that there is no new information suggesting that 
our analysis or findings should change from those reached for the 
initial IHA. Based on the information and analysis contained here and 
in the referenced documents, NMFS has determined the following: (1) the 
required mitigation measures will affect the least practicable impact 
on marine mammal species or stocks and their habitat; (2) the 
authorized takes will have a negligible impact on the affected marine 
mammal species or stocks; (3) the authorized takes represent small 
numbers of marine mammals relative to the affected stock abundances; 
(4) U.S. ACOE activities will not have an unmitigable adverse impact on 
taking for subsistence purposes as no relevant subsistence uses of 
marine mammals are implicated by this action; and (5) appropriate 
monitoring and reporting requirements are included.

Endangered Species Act

    Section 7(a)(2) of the Endangered Species Act (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 
et seq.) requires that each Federal agency ensure that any action it 
authorizes, funds, or carries out is not likely to jeopardize the 
continued existence of any endangered or threatened species or result 
in the destruction or adverse modification of designated critical 
habitat. To ensure ESA compliance for the issuance of IHAs, NMFS 
consults internally whenever we propose to authorize take for 
endangered or threatened species.
    No incidental take of ESA-listed species is proposed for 
authorization or expected to result from this activity. Therefore, NMFS 
has determined that formal consultation under section 7 of the ESA is 
not required for this action.

National Environmental Policy Act

    To comply with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969

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(NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and NOAA Administrative Order 216-6A, 
NMFS must review our proposed action (i.e., the issuance of an IHA) 
with respect to potential impacts on the human environment.
    This action is consistent with categories of activities identified 
in Categorical Exclusion B4 (incidental take authorizations with no 
anticipated serious injury or mortality) of the Companion Manual for 
NOAA Administrative Order 216-6A, which do not individually or 
cumulatively have the potential for significant impacts on the quality 
of the human environment and for which we have not identified any 
extraordinary circumstances that would preclude this categorical 
exclusion. Accordingly, NMFS determined that the issuance of the 
initial IHA qualified to be categorically excluded from further NEPA 
review. NMFS has determined that the application of this categorical 
exclusion remains appropriate for this renewal IHA.

Authorization

    NMFS has issued a renewal IHA to ACOE for the take of small numbers 
of seven marine mammal species incidental to the Debris Dock 
Replacement Project in Sausalito, CA, valid from July 15, 2024 through 
July 14, 2025.

    Dated: June 10, 2024.
Angela Somma,
Acting Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-12998 Filed 6-12-24; 8:45 am]
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