Notice2025-01469
Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to the Empire Wind Offshore Wind Energy Project Offshore of New York
Primary source
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Published
January 22, 2025
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), as amended, its implementing regulations, and NMFS' MMPA Regulations for Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Construction of the Empire Wind Offshore Wind Project Offshore of New York, notification is hereby given that upon request from Empire Wind, LLC (Empire Wind), NMFS has modified a Letter of Authorization (LOA) issued to Empire Wind for the take of marine mammals incidental to activities associated with construction of the Empire Wind Offshore Wind Energy Project (hereafter known as the "Project") in Federal and State waters offshore New York. Specifically, NMFS has modified the LOA Holder's name as well as mitigation and monitoring measures related to vessel strike avoidance, sound field verification reporting, and requirements for passive acoustic monitoring (PAM). NMFS has also made modifications to additional measures to improve clarify and better align with the Biological Opinion. NMFS has determined that these modifications do not change the findings made for the regulations and does not result in any change in the total estimated number of takes of marine mammals.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 13 (Wednesday, January 22, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 13 (Wednesday, January 22, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7662-7663]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-01469]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[RTID 0648-XE596]
Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities;
Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to the Empire Wind Offshore Wind
Energy Project Offshore of New York
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; modification of letter of authorization.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), as
amended, its implementing regulations, and NMFS' MMPA Regulations for
Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Construction of the Empire Wind
Offshore Wind Project Offshore of New York, notification is hereby
given that upon request from Empire Wind, LLC (Empire Wind), NMFS has
modified a Letter of Authorization (LOA) issued to Empire Wind for the
take of marine mammals incidental to activities associated with
construction of the Empire Wind Offshore Wind Energy Project (hereafter
known as the ``Project'') in Federal and State waters offshore New
York. Specifically, NMFS has modified the LOA Holder's name as well as
mitigation and monitoring measures related to vessel strike avoidance,
sound field verification reporting, and requirements for passive
acoustic monitoring (PAM). NMFS has also made modifications to
additional measures to improve clarify and better align with the
Biological Opinion. NMFS has determined that these modifications do not
change the findings made for the regulations and does not result in any
change in the total estimated number of takes of marine mammals.
DATES: The modified LOA is valid through February 21, 2029.
ADDRESSES: The issued modified LOA may be obtained online at <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/incidental-take-authorization-empire-offshore-wind-llc-construction-empire-wind-project-ew1?check_logged_in=1">https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/incidental-take-authorization-empire-offshore-wind-llc-construction-empire-wind-project-ew1?check_logged_in=1</a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jessica Taylor, Office of Protected
Resources, NMFS, (301) 427-8401.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The MMPA prohibits the ``take'' of marine mammals, with certain
[[Page 7663]]
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
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, regulations are promulgated (when
applicable), and public notice and an opportunity for public comment
are provided.
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). If such findings are made, NMFS must prescribe 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 as ``mitigation''); and requirements pertaining to the
monitoring and reporting of such takings.
NMFS promulgated a final rule in the Federal Register on February
14, 2024 (89 FR 11342), which governs the incidental take of marine
mammals incidental to Empire Wind's construction of the Project in
Federal and State waters offshore New York, specifically within the
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Commercial Lease of Submerged
Lands for Renewable Energy Development on the Outer Continental Shelf
(OCS) Lease Area OCS-A-0512 and along two export cable routes to sea-
to-shore transition points. The rule became effective on February 22,
2024, and is valid through February 21, 2029. The regulations allow
NMFS to approve requests for modification to the LOA's specified
activity or the mitigation, monitoring, or reporting measures if NMFS
determines the requested change does not change the findings made for
promulgation of the regulations and does not result in more than a
minor change in the total estimated number of takes (see 50 CFR
217.287(b)).
NMFS issued a LOA to Empire Wind on February 22, 2024, and
published a notice of issuance in the Federal Register on February 27,
2023 (89 FR 14442). The LOA authorized Empire Wind to take, by
harassment, marine mammals incidental to specified construction
activities, specifically impact pile driving of wind turbine generator
and offshore substation jacket foundations, vibratory pile driving of
cofferdams and goal posts, pneumatic hammering of casing pipes, and
high-resolution geophysical vessel-based site characterization surveys,
within the specified geographical region.
Summary of Request and Analysis
On December 4, 2024, NMFS received a request from Empire Wind to
transfer the LOA to Empire Leaseholder LLC (Empire Leaseholder), an
affiliate wholly owned by Empire Wind. To ensure safety during vessel
transit, Empire Wind requested for NMFS to modify the LOA safety
exemption language to include a provision for allowing deviations from
the vessel strike avoidance requirements (LOA measure 3(b)) so Project
vessels could maintain safe maneuvering speed when oceanographic,
hydrographic, and/or meteorological conditions restrict vessel
maneuverability. Empire Wind also requested revisions to the reporting
timeline for bubble curtain performance and maintenance report for
piles for which abbreviated sound field verification (SFV) monitoring
is performed. These provisions will be more practicable and align with
the Project's Biological Opinion, issued on September 8, 2023. In
addition, Empire Wind requested for NMFS to allow the Pile Driving
Mitigation and Monitoring Plan (PDMMP) to specify the number and
location of PAM operators and to allow the PAM Plan to specify PAM
operator protocols during foundation pile driving, instead of these
requirements being specified in the LOA. NMFS determined none of these
changes will affect the amount, the type of take authorized, or our
findings as described in the final rule. Therefore, we have modified
the attached LOA, specifically measures 3(b), 3(c)(7)(v), and 4(c)(2),
thus fulfilling Empire Wind's request.
In reviewing Empire Wind's request, NMFS also recognized the need
to update additional measures to improve clarity and better align the
LOA with the Biological Opinion. NMFS moved the safety exemption for
foundation pile driving to the beginning of the foundation pile driving
section (LOA measure 3 (c)) to clarify that this measure applies to all
foundation pile driving activities. In addition, NMFS modified the
language for the maximum hammer energies ((3)(c)(2)) and soft start
requirements ((3)(c)(4)) to provide additional flexibility for
application of these requirements in the field. NMFS made minor
revisions to the language in the mitigation and monitoring sections to
improve the clarity of the requirements. To better align with the
Biological Opinion, NMFS made minor revisions to the language in the
sound field verification (SFV) monitoring requirements (LOA measures
3(c)(13)). NMFS also clarified the Protected Species Observer (PSO) and
PAM Operator experience qualification requirements in section 4(a) of
the LOA for foundation installation, cable landfall construction/marina
activities, and high-resolution geophysical (HRG) surveys. NMFS'
evaluation of the requested and necessary additional LOA modifications
indicated that these modifications would not change the amount or
nature of anticipated impacts of activities on marine mammals.
Specifically, none of the benefits of any of the mitigation or
monitoring measures that have been modified here were considered
quantitatively in the analyses (i.e., only the 10-decibel sound
attenuation and seasonal restrictions were quantitatively considered
such that take numbers were reduced). In consideration of the above,
NMFS has determined that these modifications do not result in changes
in the total estimated take numbers or otherwise change any of the
findings made for the regulations.
Authorization
NMFS has issued a modified LOA to Empire Wind authorizing the take,
by harassment, of small numbers of marine mammals incidental to
specified construction activities associated with the Project, which
includes the modified mitigation, monitoring, and reporting measures
discussed herein.
Dated: January 16, 2025.
Kimberly Damon-Randall,
Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries
Service.
[FR Doc. 2025-01469 Filed 1-21-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on January 22, 2025.
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