Notice2025-08869
Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Texas Parks and Wildlife Fisheries Independent Research Programs
Primary source
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Published
May 19, 2025
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
NMFS has received a request from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) for authorization to take small numbers of marine mammals incidental to fisheries independent research surveys conducted in the coastal waters of Texas over the course of five years (2025- 2030). Pursuant to regulations implementing the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is announcing receipt of the TPWD'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 TPWD's application and request.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 95 (Monday, May 19, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 95 (Monday, May 19, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21285-21286]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-08869]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[RIN 0648-XE850]
Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals
Incidental to Texas Parks and Wildlife Fisheries Independent Research
Programs
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 Texas Parks and Wildlife
Department (TPWD) for authorization to take small numbers of marine
mammals incidental to fisheries independent research surveys conducted
in the coastal waters of Texas over the course of five years (2025-
2030). Pursuant to regulations implementing the Marine Mammal
Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is announcing receipt of the TPWD'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 TPWD's application and
request.
DATES: Comments and information must be received no later than June 18,
2025.
ADDRESSES: Comments on the applications should be addressed to the
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 <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#044d50542a676b676f76616868446a6b65652a636b72"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="3d74696d135e525e564f5851517d53525c5c135a524b">[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/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> without change. All
personal identifying information (e.g., name, address) voluntarily
submitted by
[[Page 21286]]
the commenter may be publicly accessible. Do not submit confidential
business information or otherwise sensitive or protected information.
An electronic copy of the TPWD'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: Craig Cockrell, 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 October 31, 2023, NMFS received an application from the TPWD
requesting authorization for take of marine mammals incidental to
fisheries independent research activities related to sampling
activities with gillnet gear in the coastal waters of Texas. A revised
application was submitted on March 3, 2025, and we determined the
application was adequate and complete on May 12, 2025. The requested
regulations would be valid for five years (2025-2030). The TPWD plans
to conduct necessary work in several coastal bays of Texas including
Laguna Madre, Nueces and Corpus Christi Bay, Aransas Bay complex,
Matagorda Bay, West Bay, Galveston Bay, and Sabine Lake. It is possible
that marine mammals may interact with fishing gear (e.g., gillnets)
proposed for use in TPWD's fishery independent, resulting in injury,
serious injury, or mortality. Therefore, the TPWD requests
authorization to incidentally take marine mammals.
Specified Activities
TPWD conducts a long-term standardized fishery-independent
monitoring program to assess the relative abundance and size of finfish
and shellfish in Texas bays. The fisheries independent research
programs use sampling gear including gillnets, trawls, and dredges to
assess finfish and shellfish abundance and health in the surrounding
coastal bays of Texas. Results from this program are primarily used by
TPWD to manage Texas' marine finfish and shellfish resources. These
proposed activities by TPWD would be conducted over the 5-year period
of the regulations and subsequent Letter of Authorization.
Information Solicited
Interested persons may submit information, suggestions, and
comments concerning the TPWD'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 TPWD, if appropriate.
Dated: May 13, 2025.
Kimberly Damon-Randall,
Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries
Service.
[FR Doc. 2025-08869 Filed 5-16-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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