Notice2025-15929
Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to the Port of Alaska Modernization Program Phase 2B: Cargo Terminals Replacement Project in Anchorage, 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
August 20, 2025
Effective
March 1, 2026
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), as amended, and implementing regulations, notification is hereby given that a letter of authorization (LOA) has been issued to the Don Young Port of Alaska (POA), for the unintentional taking of marine mammals incidental to the Cargo Terminals Replacement project at the existing port facility in Anchorage, Alaska over the course of 5 years (2026-2031).
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 159 (Wednesday, August 20, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 159 (Wednesday, August 20, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40566-40567]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-15929]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[RTID 0648-XF051]
Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals
Incidental to the Port of Alaska Modernization Program Phase 2B: Cargo
Terminals Replacement Project in Anchorage, Alaska
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of issuance of letter of authorization.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act
[[Page 40567]]
(MMPA), as amended, and implementing regulations, notification is
hereby given that a letter of authorization (LOA) has been issued to
the Don Young Port of Alaska (POA), for the unintentional taking of
marine mammals incidental to the Cargo Terminals Replacement project at
the existing port facility in Anchorage, Alaska over the course of 5
years (2026-2031).
DATES: This LOA is effective from March 1, 2026, through February 28,
2031.
ADDRESSES: The LOA and supporting documentation are available online
at: <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/incidental-take-authorization-port-alaskas-construction-activities-port-alaska-modernization">https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/incidental-take-authorization-port-alaskas-construction-activities-port-alaska-modernization</a>. In case of problems accessing these documents, please
call the contact listed below.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cara Hotchkin, Office of Protected
Resources, NMFS, (301) 427-8401.
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 issued or, if the taking is limited to harassment, a notice of a
proposed incidental take authorization may be provided to the public
for review.
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 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 the species or stocks for
taking for certain subsistence uses (referred to as ``mitigation'');
and requirements pertaining to the mitigation, monitoring, and
reporting of the 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.
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 July 15, 2025, we issued a final rule upon request from the POA
for authorization to take marine mammals incidental to construction
activities (90 FR 31756). The POA plans to conduct construction
activities related to replacement of existing cargo terminals 2 and 3
at the POA in Anchorage, Alaska. This construction will include use of
vibratory pile driving and removal and impact pile driving. The use of
vibratory and impact pile driving is expected to produce underwater
sound at levels that have the potential to result in Level A and Level
B harassment of marine mammals.
Authorization
We have issued a LOA to POA authorizing the take of marine mammals
incidental to construction activities, as described above. Take of
marine mammals will be minimized through the implementation of the
following planned mitigation measures: (1) required monitoring of the
construction area to detect the presence of marine mammals before
beginning construction activities; (2) shutdown of construction
activities under certain circumstances to avoid injury of marine
mammals; (3) use of bubble curtains for impact and vibratory driving of
permanent (72-inch) piles; and (4) soft start for impact pile driving
to allow marine mammals the opportunity to leave the area prior to
beginning impact pile driving at full power. Additionally, the rule
includes an adaptive management component that allows for timely
modification of mitigation or monitoring measures based on new
information, when appropriate. The POA will submit reports as required.
Based on these findings and the information discussed in the
preamble to the final rule, the activities described under this LOA
will have a negligible impact on marine mammal stocks and will not have
an unmitigable adverse impact on the availability of the affected
marine mammal stock for subsistence uses.
Dated: August 18, 2025.
Kimberly Damon-Randall,
Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries
Service.
[FR Doc. 2025-15929 Filed 8-19-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on August 20, 2025.
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