The U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service proposes to issue the U.S. Marine Corps an authorization to take marine mammals, specifically bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus), by harassment, incidental to training operations at the Marine Corps’ Cherry Point Range Complex, North Carolina from September 2014 to September 2019. In this action, NMFS proposes to amend the regulations to establish a framework for authorizing the take of marine mammals incidental to the Marine Corps’ military training operations, and to issue a subsequent Letter of Authorization to the Marine Corps, which would contain mitigation, monitoring, and reporting requirements. Per the Marine Mammal Protection Act , NMFS requests comments on its proposal to issue regulations and a subsequent Letter of Authorization to the Marine Corps. NMFS must receive comments on or before August 14, 2014.
The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has published BOEM’s Record of Decision for WPA Lease Sale 238, most recently analyzed in the Gulf of Mexico OCS Oil and Gas Lease Sales: 2014–2016; Western Planning Area Lease Sales 238, 246, and 248. BOEM has also published its Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for this lease sale (WPA 238, 246, and 248 Supplemental EIS).
Click here for BOEM’s Federal Register notice of this ROD.
Click here for BOEM’s Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement.
NMFS Extends Comment Period on DPS Listing for Central North Pacific Population of Humpback Whale
Jul 18
The U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service Has Extended the public comment period on NMFS’ June 26, 2014, 90-day finding on a petition to designate the Central NorthPacific population of humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) as a Distinct Population Segment (DPS) and to delist the DPS under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). As part of that finding, NMFS solicited scientific and commercial information about the status of this population and announced a 30-day comment period to end on July 28, 2014. NMFS has extended that public comment period to August 27, 2014. Click here to read NMFS’ Federal Register notice extending the comment period.
The U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service proposes to issue an Incidental Harassment Authorization SAExploration, Inc., to take marine mammals, by harassment, incidental to a marine 3-dimensional ocean bottom node seismic surveys program in the state and federal waters of the Beaufort Sea, Alaska, during the open-water season of 2014.
NMFS’ Federal Register notice of this proposed IHA explains, “NMFS does not expect any marine mammals will incur serious injury or mortality in the shallow waters off Beaufort Sea or strand as a result of the proposed seismic survey.”
The U.S. Marine Mammal Commission held its annual meeting in May, 2014. The MMC has posted abstracts for presentations at this meeting, which was organized around five themes:
1) Understanding and managing the impacts of climate change and increased human activities;
2) Offshore energy development;
3) Marine mammal strandings—Maximizing their value for understanding ocean health, wildlife health, and connections to human health;
4) Marine mammal bycatch in U.S. and global fisheries; and
5) Issues associated with increasing marine mammal stocks.
Click here to read abstracts for the meeting presentations on these five themes.
NMFS has issued an Incidental Harassment Authorization to BP Exploration (Alaska) Inc., to take marine mammals, by harassment, incidental to conducting a shallow geohazard survey in Foggy Island Bay, Beaufort Sea, Alaska, during the 2014 open water season. This IHA is effective July 1, 2014, through September 30, 2014. The purpose of this proposed survey is to evaluate the existence and location of archaeological resources and potential geologic hazards on the seafloor and in the shallow subsurface.
This IHA, and NMFS’ response to comments on the proposed IHA, are available here.
The U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service has published notice of NMFS’ issuance of an incidental harassment authorization to BP Exploration, Inc. This IHA authorizes BP to take marine mammals, by harassment, incidental to conducting an ocean-bottom sensor seismic survey in Prudhoe Bay, Beaufort Sea, Alaska, during the 2014 open water season. NMFS issues this IHA in accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act and NMFS’ MMPA regulations. This IHA is effective July 1, 2014, through September 30, 2014.
This IHA, and NMFS’ response to the Marine Mammal Commission comments on it, are available here.
The U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service, of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, has received an application from the U.S. Geological Survey, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, and National Science Foundation for an Incidental Harassment Authorization to take marine mammals, by harassment, incidental to conducting a marine geophysical survey in the Atlantic Ocean off the Eastern Seaboard, August to September 2014, and April to August 2015. Pursuant to the U.S. Marine Mammal Protection Act, NMFS requests comments on its proposal to issue an IHA to USGS to incidentally harass, by Level B harassment only, 34 species of marine mammals during the specified activity.
The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has published notice of BOEM’s intent to prepare a Supplemental EIS for OCS Oil and Gas Lease Sale 193 in the Chukchi Sea Planning Area, Alaska. This SEIS will provide new analysis in response to a remand by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. This SEIS will supplement the analysis from the Oil and Gas Lease Sale 193 Final EIS (OCS EIS/EA MMS 2007–0026) and the Oil and Gas Lease Sale 193 Final Supplemental EIS (OCS EIS/EA BOEMRE 2011–041) by providing an updated oil and gas exploration, development and production scenario and associated environmental effects analysis.
The U.S. Department of Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has published a Request for Information and Comments (RFI) on BOEM’s preparation of the 2017-2022 Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program. This RFI is the initial step in the multi-year planning process. It does not identify any specific course of action. Per statute and consistent with previous efforts, BOEM will evaluate all of the OCS planning areas during this first stage.
Comments on this RFI are due to BOEM by July 31, 2014. Substantial public involvement and extensive analysis will accompany all stages of the planning process, which will take up to three years to complete.
