81452 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 242 / Wednesday, December 16, 2020 / Notices 

and ordered Economia to issue a 

redetermination within 90 days. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Vidya Desai, Acting United States 

Secretary, NAFTA Secretariat, Room 

2061, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, 

Washington, DC 20230, (202) 482–5438. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Article 

1904 of Chapter 19 of NAFTA provides 

a dispute settlement mechanism 

involving trade remedy determinations 

issued by the Government of the United 

States, the Government of Canada, and 

the Government of Mexico. Following a 

Request for Panel Review, a Binational 

Panel is composed to provide judicial 

review of the trade remedy 

determination being challenged and 

then issue a binding Panel Decision. 

The NAFTA Binational Panel Decision 

is available publicly at https://can-mexusa-sec.org/secretariat/report-rapportreporte.aspx?lang=eng. There are 

established NAFTA Rules of Procedure 

for Article 1904 Binational Panel 

Reviews and the NAFTA Panel Decision 

has been notified in accordance with 

Rule 70. For the complete Rules, please 

see https://can-mex-usa-sec.org/ 

secretariat/agreement-accord-acuerdo/ 

nafta-alena-tlcan/rules-regles-reglas/ 

article-article-articulo_

1904.aspx?lang=eng. 

Dated: December 10, 2020. 

Vidya Desai, 

Acting U.S. Secretary, NAFTA Secretariat. 

[FR Doc. 2020–27612 Filed 12–15–20; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–GT–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XA698] 

Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to 

Specified Activities; Taking Marine 

Mammals Incidental to Long Beach 

Cruise Terminal Improvement Project 

in the Port of Long Beach, California 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; issuance of incidental 

harassment authorization. 

SUMMARY: NMFS has received a request 

from the Carnival Corporation & PLC 

(Carnival) for the re-issuance of a 

previously issued incidental harassment 

authorization (IHA) with the only 

change being effective dates. The initial 

IHA authorized take of five species of 

marine mammals, by Level A and Level 

B harassment, incidental to construction 

associated with the Port of Long Beach 

Cruise Terminal Improvement Project in 

Port of Long Beach, California. The 

project has been delayed and none of 

the work covered in the initial IHA has 

been conducted. The initial IHA was 

effective from November 19, 2019, 

through November 18, 2020. Carnival 

has requested re-issuance with new 

effective dates of December 10, 2020 

through December 9, 2021. The scope of 

the activities and anticipated effects 

remain the same, authorized take 

numbers are not changed, and the 

required mitigation, monitoring, and 

reporting remains the same as included 

in the initial IHA. NMFS is, therefore, 

issuing a second identical IHA to cover 

the incidental take analyzed and 

authorized in the initial IHA. 

DATES: This authorization is effective 

from December 10, 2020, through 

December 9, 2021. 

ADDRESSES: An electronic copy of the 

final 2019 IHA previously issued to 

Carnival, Carnival’s application, and the 

Federal Register notices proposing and 

issuing the initial IHA may be obtained 

by visiting https://

www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/ 

incidental-take-authorization-cruiseterminal-improvement-project-portlong-beach-ca. In case of problems 

accessing these documents, please call 

the contact listed below (see FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jaclyn Daly, Office of Protected 

Resources, NMFS, (301) 427–8401. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

Sections 101(a)(5)(A) and (D) of the 

Marine Mammal Protection Act (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 authorization for incidental 

takings 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 November 25, 2019, NMFS 

published final notice of our issuance of 

an IHA authorizing take of marine 

mammals incidental to the Port of Long 

Beach Cruise Terminal Improvement 

Project (84 FR 64833). The effective 

dates of that IHA were November 19, 

2019 through November 18, 2020. On 

November 24, 2020, Carnival informed 

NMFS that the project was delayed. 

None of the pile driving considered in 

the initial IHA has occurred. Carnival 

submitted a request that we reissue an 

identical IHA that would be effective 

from December 10, 2020 through 

December 9, 2021, in order to conduct 

the construction work that was analyzed 

and for which take was authorized in 

the previously issued IHA. Therefore, 

re-issuance of the IHA is appropriate. 

Summary of Specified Activity and 

Anticipated Impacts 

The planned activities (including 

mitigation, monitoring, and reporting), 

authorized incidental take, and 

anticipated impacts on the affected 

stocks are the same as those analyzed 

and authorized through the previously 

issued IHA. 

The purpose of Carnival’s project is to 

make improvements to its existing 

berthing facilities at the Long Beach 

Cruise Terminal in order to 

accommodate a new, larger class of 

cruise ships. Implementation of the 

project requires pile driving to install 

two high-capacity mooring dolphins, 

fenders, and a new passenger bridge 

system, and dredging at the existing 


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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 242 / Wednesday, December 16, 2020 / Notices 81453 

berth and the immediate surrounding 

area. The location, timing, and nature of 

the activities, including the types of 

equipment planned for use, are identical 

to those described in the initial IHA. 

The mitigation, monitoring, and 

reporting measures are also identical to 

those prescribed in the initial IHA. 

Species that are expected to be taken 

by the specified activity include shortbeaked common dolphin (Delphinus 

delphis), long-beaked common dolphin 

(Delphinus capensis), bottlenose 

dolphin (Tursiops truncates), California 

sea lion (Zalophus californianus) and 

harbor seal (Phoca vitulina). A 

description of the methods and inputs 

used to estimate take anticipated to 

occur and, ultimately, the take that was 

authorized is found in the previous 

documents referenced above. The data 

inputs and methods of estimating take 

are identical to those used in the initial 

IHA. NMFS has reviewed recent Stock 

Assessment Reports, information on 

relevant Unusual Mortality Events, and 

recent scientific literature, and 

determined that no new information 

affects our original analysis of impacts 

or take estimate under the initial IHA. 

Determinations 

Carnival will conduct activities as 

analyzed in the initial 2019 IHA. As 

described above, the number of 

authorized takes of the same species and 

stocks of marine mammals are identical 

to the numbers that were found to meet 

the negligible impact and small 

numbers standards and authorized 

under the initial IHA and no new 

information has emerged that would 

change those findings. The re-issued 

2020 IHA includes identical required 

mitigation, monitoring, and reporting 

measures as the initial IHA, and there is 

no new information suggesting that our 

analysis or findings should change. 

Based on the information contained 

here and in the referenced documents, 

NMFS has determined the following: (1) 

The required mitigation measures will 

effect the least practicable impact on 

marine mammal species or stocks and 

their habitat; (2) the authorized takes 

will have a negligible impact on the 

affected marine mammal species or 

stocks; (3) the authorized takes 

represent small numbers of marine 

mammals relative to the affected stock 

abundances; and (4) Carnival’s activities 

will not have an unmitigable adverse 

impact on taking for subsistence 

purposes as no relevant subsistence uses 

of marine mammals are implicated by 

this action. 

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 with respect to 

environmental consequences on the 

human environment. 

Accordingly, NMFS has determined 

that the issuance of the IHA qualifies to 

be categorically excluded from further 

NEPA review. This action is consistent 

with categories of activities identified in 

CE B4 of the Companion Manual for 

NOAA Administrative Order 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. Because the only 

change to the IHA are effective dates, 

the CE on record for issuance of the 

initial IHA applies to this action. 

Endangered Species Act (ESA) 

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. 

However, no incidental take of ESAlisted species is authorized or expected 

to result from this activity. Therefore, 

NMFS has determined that formal 

consultation under section 7 of the ESA 

is not required for this action. 

Authorization 

NMFS has issued an IHA to Carnival 

for in-water construction activities 

associated with the specified activity 

from December 10, 2020 through 

December 9, 2021. All previously 

described mitigation, monitoring, and 

reporting requirements from the initial 

2019 IHA are incorporated. 

Dated: December 11, 2020. 

Donna S. Wieting, 

Director, Office of Protected Resources, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2020–27675 Filed 12–15–20; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XA689] 

Interagency Working Group on Illegal, 

Unreported, and Unregulated Fishing; 

Request for Comments 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: NMFS is seeking public 

comments on the Work Plan of the 

Interagency Working Group on Illegal, 

Unreported, and Unregulated Fishing. 

This Interagency Working Group was 

established under the Maritime Security 

and Fisheries Enforcement Act. 

DATES: Information should be received 

on or before January 15, 2021. 

ADDRESSES: Information may be 

submitted electronically to iuu.fishing@

noaa.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mi 

Ae Kim, phone 301–427–8365 or email 

mi.ae.kim@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Maritime Security and Fisheries 

Enforcement Act (Maritime SAFE Act) 

became law on December 20, 2019. The 

overarching purpose of the Maritime 

SAFE Act is to support a whole-ofgovernment approach across the Federal 

government to counter illegal, 

unreported, and unregulated (IUU) 

fishing and related threats to maritime 

security. It seeks to achieve this through 

a number of means, including: Improve 

data sharing that enhances surveillance, 

enforcement, and prosecution against 

IUU fishing and related activities; 

support coordination and collaboration 

to counter IUU fishing within priority 

regions; and increase and improve 

global transparency and traceability 

across the seafood supply chain to deter 

IUU fishing and strengthen fisheries 

management and food security; improve 

global enforcement operations against 

IUU fishing; and prevent the use of IUU 

fishing as a financing source for 

transnational organized crime groups. 

Part II of the Maritime SAFE Act calls 

for the establishment of the Interagency 

Working Group on IUU Fishing 

(Working Group), specifying the chair 

and agency membership in the Working 

Group, as well as the Working Group’s 

responsibilities. This Working Group 

met for the first time in June 2020. 

NOAA is chair of this Working Group 

for its first three years, joined by the 


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