Notice2025-09070
Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Alaska Railroad Corporation Seward Freight Dock Construction in Seward, Alaska
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
May 21, 2025
Effective
November 1, 2026
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
In accordance with regulations implementing the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) as amended, notification is hereby given that NMFS has issued an incidental harassment authorization (IHA) to the Alaska Railroad Corporation (ARRC) for authorization to take marine mammals incidental to the Seward Freight Dock construction project in Seward, Alaska.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 97 (Wednesday, May 21, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 97 (Wednesday, May 21, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21754-21755]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-09070]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[RTID 0648-XE913]
Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities;
Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Alaska Railroad Corporation Seward
Freight Dock Construction in Seward, Alaska
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; issuance of incidental harassment authorization.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with regulations implementing the Marine Mammal
Protection Act (MMPA) as amended, notification is hereby given that
NMFS has issued an incidental harassment authorization (IHA) to the
Alaska Railroad Corporation (ARRC) for authorization to take marine
mammals incidental to the Seward Freight Dock construction project in
Seward, Alaska.
DATES: This authorization is effective from November 1, 2026, through
October 31, 2027.
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: <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/incidental-take-authorization-alaska-railroad-corporations-seward-freight-dock-construction">https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/incidental-take-authorization-alaska-railroad-corporations-seward-freight-dock-construction</a>. In case of problems accessing these
documents, please call the contact listed below.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jenna Harlacher, Office of Protected
Resources, NMFS, (301) 427-8401.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
MMPA Background and Determinations
The MMPA prohibits the ``take'' of marine mammals, with certain
exceptions. Among the exceptions is section 101(a)(5)(D) of the MMPA
(16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.) which directs the Secretary of Commerce (as
delegated to NMFS) to allow, upon request, the incidental, but not
intentional, taking by harassment 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 the public has an opportunity to comment on the proposed IHA.
Specifically, NMFS will issue an IHA if it 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 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''). 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).
On April 4, 2025, a notice of NMFS' proposal to issue an IHA to
ARRC for take of marine mammals incidental to the Seward Freight Dock
construction project in Seward, Alaska was published in the Federal
Register (90 FR 14792, April 4, 2025). In that notice, NMFS indicated
the estimated numbers, type, and methods of incidental take proposed
for each species or stock and the mitigation, monitoring, and reporting
measures that would be required should the IHA be issued. The Federal
Register notice also included analysis to support NMFS' preliminary
conclusions and determinations that the IHA, if issued, would satisfy
the requirements of section 101(a)(5)(D) of the MMPA for issuance of
the IHA. The Federal Register notice included web links to a draft IHA
for review and other supporting documents.
No substantive comments were received during the public comment
period. With the exception of the minor changes described below, there
are no changes to the specified activity, the species taken, the
proposed numbers, type, or methods of take, or the mitigation,
monitoring, or reporting measures in the proposed IHA notice. No new
information that would change any of the preliminary analyses,
conclusions, or determinations in the proposed IHA notice has become
available since that notice was published and, therefore, the
preliminary analyses, conclusions, and determinations included in the
proposed IHA are considered final.
Changes have been made to correct typographical errors to Tables 5
and 7 in the proposed Federal Register notice. In table 5, there were
errors in the tables sound pressure level categories. See below for the
revised table 5. In table 7, the Level A harassment zone for vibratory
installation of H piles should have been 3.5 m for phocids instead of
30.5 m. Additionally, text regarding the number of permanent piles
installed via vibratory pile driving should have been 253 rather than
256. None of these minor changes affect or change the analysis or the
findings in the proposed IHA notice.
Table 5--Estimates of Mean Underwater Sound Levels * Generated During In-Water Vibratory and Impact Pile
Installation and Vibratory Pile Removal
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Pile size and dB RMS (dB re dB peak (dB re dB SEL (dB re
Method type 1 uPa RMS) 1 uPa peak) 1 uPa\2\-sec) Reference
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Vibratory install and removal 24-inch (61 cm) 163 - - NMFS 2023
steel pile. Calculation.
Vibratory Install............ Sheet pile pair. 160.7 - - Caltrans 2015.
Vibratory Install............ H-pile.......... 150 - - Caltrans 2015.
Vibratory Install............ 30-inch (76 cm) 167 - - NMFS2023
steel pile. Calculation.
[[Page 21755]]
Impact install............... 30-inch (76 cm) 190 210 177 Caltrans 2015.
steel pile.
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Note: dB = decibels; dB peak = peak sound level; RMS = root mean square; uPa = micro-Pascals; SEL = sound
exposure level; cm = centimeter. * All sound levels are referenced at 10 m.
National Environmental Policy Act
To comply with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA;
42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and NOAA Administrative Order (NAO) 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 (IHAs with no anticipated serious injury or
mortality) of the Companion Manual for NAO 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 has determined that the
issuance of the IHA qualifies to be categorically excluded from further
NEPA review.
Endangered Species Act
Section 7(a)(2) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA; 16
U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) requires that each Federal agency insure 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.
NMFS is authorizing take of the following distinct population
segments: Western U.S. Steller sea lion, Western North Pacific humpback
whale, the Mexico humpback whale, and fin whale, which are listed under
the ESA. The Permit and Conservation Division completed a section 7
consultation with the Alaska Regional Office for the issuance of this
IHA. The Alaska Regional Office's biological opinion states that the
action is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of the
listed species.
Authorization
Accordingly, consistent with the requirements of section
101(a)(5)(D) of the MMPA, NMFS has issued an IHA to ARRC for
authorization to take marine mammals incidental to Seward Freight Dock
construction project in Seward, Alaska.
Dated: May 15, 2025.
Kimberly Damon-Randall,
Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries
Service.
[FR Doc. 2025-09070 Filed 5-20-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on May 21, 2025.
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