Notice2024-28453
Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Rocky Intertidal Monitoring Surveys Along the Oregon and California Coasts
Primary source
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Published
December 5, 2024
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
NMFS has received a request from the University of California Santa Cruz for authorization to take small numbers of marine mammals incidental to rocky intertidal monitoring along the coasts of Oregon and California over the course of 5 years from the date of issuance. Pursuant to regulations implementing the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is announcing receipt of the University of California Santa Cruz'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 the University of California Santa Cruz's application and request.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 234 (Thursday, December 5, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 234 (Thursday, December 5, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 96645-96646]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-28453]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-XE452
Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals
Incidental to Rocky Intertidal Monitoring Surveys Along the Oregon and
California Coasts
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 University of California
Santa Cruz for authorization to take small numbers of marine mammals
incidental to rocky intertidal monitoring along the coasts of Oregon
and California over the course of 5 years from the date of issuance.
Pursuant to regulations implementing the Marine Mammal Protection Act
(MMPA), NMFS is announcing receipt of the University of California
Santa Cruz'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
the University of California Santa Cruz's application and request.
DATES: Comments and information must be received no later than January
6, 2025.
ADDRESSES: Comments on the applications should be addressed to Jolie
Harrison, Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service. Comments should be
[[Page 96646]]
submitted electronically to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#81c8d5d1afe6e0f5fbeae4c1efeee0e0afe6eef7"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="b1f8e5e19fd6d0c5cbdad4f1dfded0d09fd6dec7">[email protected]</span></a>.
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 <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/node/23111">https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/node/23111</a> 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.
An electronic copy of the University of California Santa Cruz's
application may be obtained online at: <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-protection/incidental-take-authorizations-research-and-other-activities">https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-protection/incidental-take-authorizations-research-and-other-activities</a>. In case of problems accessing these
documents, please call the contact listed below.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jennifer Gatzke, Office of Protected
Resources, NMFS, (301) 427-8401.
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 unmitigable 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 6, 2024, NMFS received an application from the
University of California Santa Cruz requesting authorization for take
of marine mammals incidental to research activities related to rocky
intertidal monitoring along the coasts of Oregon and California.
Following receipt of additional information from the applicant, we
determined the application was adequate and complete on November 22,
2024. The requested regulations would be valid for 5 years, from 2025
through 2030. The University of California Santa Cruz plans to conduct
necessary work, including research surveys, to monitor rocky intertidal
communities. The proposed action may result in incidental disturbance
of pinnipeds caused by researcher presence and research activities in
the vicinity, including visual stimulus, noise, and use of unmanned
aerial systems, thereby resulting in incidental take, by Level B
harassment only. Therefore, the University of California Santa Cruz
requests authorization to incidentally take marine mammals.
The requested incidental take regulations would be the second such
regulations issued on request to the University of California Santa
Cruz, following regulations effective from 2020-2025 (<a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/incidental-take-authorization-university-california-santa-cruz-rocky-intertidal-monitoring-0">https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/incidental-take-authorization-university-california-santa-cruz-rocky-intertidal-monitoring-0</a>).
Specified Activities
The Multi-Agency Rocky Intertidal Network (MARINe, <a href="https://marine.ucsc.edu/">https://marine.ucsc.edu/</a>), administered by the University of California Santa
Cruz, conducts monitoring at rocky intertidal sites in California and
Oregon. They have been conducting similar research since 2013.
Information from MARINe's research is used to inform marine policy and
is made available to the public through outreach and educational
programs. The University of California Santa Cruz anticipates
approximately 300 survey days over the course of the 5-year period.
They expect to take California sea lions, northern elephant seals,
Steller sea lions, and California and Oregon/Washington stocks of
harbor seals.
Information Solicited
Interested persons may submit information, suggestions, and
comments concerning the University of California Santa Cruz'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 the
University of California Santa Cruz, if appropriate.
Dated: November 29, 2024.
Kimberly Damon-Randall,
Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries
Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-28453 Filed 12-4-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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