51352 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 160 / Thursday, August 18, 2011 / Notices 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

RIN 0648–XA645 

Endangered and Threatened Species; 

Take of Anadromous Fish 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of receipt and request for 

comment. 

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that 

NMFS has received an application from 

the Washington Department of Fish and 

Wildlife (WDFW), for a direct take 

permit pursuant to the Endangered 

Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA). 

The duration of the proposed Permit is 

ten years. This document serves to 

notify the public of the availability for 

comment of the permit application. All 

comments received will become part of 

the public record and will be available 

for review pursuant to the ESA. 

DATES: Written comments on the 

application must be received at the 

appropriate address or fax number (see 

ADDRESSES) no later than 5 p.m. Pacific 

time on September 19, 2011. 

ADDRESSES: Written responses to the 

application should be sent to Brian 

Allee, National Marine Fisheries 

Services, Salmon Management Division, 

1201 N.E. Lloyd Boulevard, Suite 1100, 

Portland, OR 97232. Comments may 

also be submitted by e-mail to: 

LowerColumbiaWeirs.nwr@noaa.gov. 

Include in the subject line of the e-mail 

comment the following identifier: 

Comments on three weirs in the Lower 

Columbia. Comments may also be sent 

via facsimile (fax) to (503) 872–2737. 

Requests for copies of the permit 

applications should be directed to the 

National Marine Fisheries Services, 

Salmon Management Division, 1201 NE. 

Lloyd Boulevard, Suite 1100, Portland, 

OR 97232. The documents are also 

available on the Internet at http:// 

www.nwr.noaa.gov. Comments received 

will also be available for public 

inspection, by appointment, during 

normal business hours by calling (503) 

230–5412. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Brian Allee at (503) 231–2009 or e-mail: 

brian.allee@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Species Covered in This Notice 

Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus 

tshawytscha): threatened, naturally 

produced and artificially propagated 

Lower Columbia River. 

Chum salmon (O. keta): threatened, 

naturally produced and artificially 

propagated Columbia River. 

Coho salmon (O. kisutch): threatened, 

naturally produced and artificially 

propagated Lower Columbia River. 

Steelhead (O. mykiss): threatened, 

naturally produced and artificially 

propagated Lower Columbia River. 

Background 

Section 9 of the ESA and Federal 

regulations prohibit the ‘‘taking’’ of a 

species listed as endangered or 

threatened. The term ‘‘take’’ is defined 

under the ESA to mean harass, harm, 

pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, 

capture, or collect, or to attempt to 

engage in any such conduct. NMFS may 

issue permits to take listed species for 

any act otherwise prohibited by section 

9 for scientific purposes or to enhance 

the propagation or survival of the 

affected species, under section 

10(a)(1)(A) of the ESA. NMFS 

regulations governing permits for 

threatened and endangered species are 

promulgated at 50 CFR 222.307. 

In an application dated May 2, 2011, 

and updated on May 23, 2011, the 

Washington Department of Fish and 

Wildlife proposes to install weirs in the 

Grays River and Elochoman River, both 

tributaries of the Columbia River, and 

the Coweeman River, a tributary of the 

Cowlitz River in southwest Washington 

State. The weir on the Grays River 

would represent a re-location of an 

existing weir. The weirs are intended to 

address adult salmonid monitoring 

needs outlined in the Lower Columbia 

Fish Recovery Board’s Watershed 

Conservation Plan through development 

of accurate and precise abundance 

estimates, and remove hatchery fall 

Chinook salmon from naturally 

spawning tule fall Chinook salmon 

populations. 

Authority 

This notice is provided pursuant to 

section 10(c) of the ESA. NMFS will 

evaluate each application, associated 

documents, and comments submitted 

thereon to determine whether the 

applications meet the requirements of 

section 10(a)(1)(A) of the ESA. If it is 

determined that the requirements are 

met, the permit will be issued to WDFW 

for the purpose of carrying out the 

installation, operation, and management 

of the weirs. NMFS will publish a 

record of its final action in the Federal 

Register. 

Dated: August 15, 2011. 

Angela Somma, 

Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office 

of Protected Resources, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2011–21111 Filed 8–17–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

RIN 0648–XA513 

Taking and Importing Marine 

Mammals: Taking Marine Mammals 

Incidental to Navy Operations of 

Surveillance Towed Array Sensor 

System Low Frequency Active Sonar 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; issuance of four Letters 

of Authorization. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Marine Mammal Protection Act 

(MMPA), as amended, and 

implementing regulations, notification 

is hereby given that NMFS has issued 

four one-year Letters of Authorization 

(LOAs) to take marine mammals by 

harassment incidental to the U.S. Navy’s 

operation of Surveillance Towed Array 

Sensor System Low Frequency Active 

(SURTASS LFA) sonar operations to the 

Chief of Naval Operations, Department 

of the Navy, 2000 Navy Pentagon, 

Washington, DC 20350 and persons 

operating under his authority. 

DATES: Effective from August 16, 2011, 

through August 15, 2012. 

ADDRESSES: Electronic copies of the 

Navy’s March 31, 2011, LOA 

application letter, the LOAs, the Navy’s 

2010 annual report are available by 

writing to P. Michael Payne, Chief, 

Permits, Conservation, and Education 

Division, Office of Protected Resources, 

National Marine Fisheries Service, 1315 

East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 

20910–3225, by telephoning the contact 

listed here (see FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT), or online at: 

http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/permits/ 

incidental.htm#applications. 

Documents cited in this notice may be 

viewed, by appointment, during regular 

business hours, at the aforementioned 

address. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jeannine Cody, Office of Protected 

Resources, NMFS (301) 427–8401. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 160 / Thursday, August 18, 2011 / Notices 51353 

Background 

Section 101(a)(5)(A) of the MMPA (16 

U.S.C. 1361 et seq.) directs the Secretary 

of Commerce to allow, upon request, the 

incidental, but not intentional taking of 

marine mammals by U.S. citizens who 

engage in a military readiness activity if 

certain findings are made and 

regulations are issued. 

Authorization may be granted for 

periods of five years or less 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 

certain subsistence uses. In addition, 

NMFS must prescribe regulations that 

include permissible methods of taking 

and other means effecting the least 

practicable adverse impact on the 

species and its habitat, and on the 

availability of the species for 

subsistence uses, paying particular 

attention to rookeries, mating grounds, 

and areas of similar significance. The 

regulations also must include 

requirements pertaining to the 

monitoring and reporting of such taking. 

Regulations governing the taking of 

marine mammals incidental to the U.S. 

Navy’s operation of SURTASS LFA 

sonar were published on August 21, 

2007 (72 FR 46846) and remain in effect 

through August 15, 2012. They are 

codified at 50 CFR part 216 subpart Q. 

These regulations include mitigation, 

monitoring, and reporting requirements 

for the incidental taking of marine 

mammals by the SURTASS LFA sonar 

system. For detailed information on this 

action, please refer to the August 21, 

2007 Federal Register document and 50 

CFR part 216 subpart Q. 

Summary of LOA Request 

NMFS received an application from 

the U.S. Navy for four LOAs, one 

covering the USNS VICTORIOUS (T– 

AGOS 19), one covering the USNS 

ABLE (T–AGOS 20), one covering the 

USNS EFFECTIVE (T–AGOS 21), and 

one covering the USNS IMPECCABLE 

(T–AGOS 23), under the regulations 

issued on August 21, 2007 (72 FR 

46846). (Note: The R/V CORY 

CHOUEST has been retired and has 

been replaced by the USNS ABLE.) The 

Navy requested that these LOAs become 

effective on August 16, 2011. The 

application requested authorization, for 

a period not to exceed one year, to take, 

by harassment, marine mammals 

incidental to employment of the 

SURTASS LFA sonar system for 

training, testing and routine military 

operations on the aforementioned ships 

in areas of the Pacific Ocean, as 

described in the 2007 regulations. 

Monitoring and Reporting 

In compliance with NMFS’ 2007 

SURTASS LFA sonar regulations, the 

Navy submitted an annual report (No. 3) 

for SURTASS LFA sonar operations 

during 2009–2010. The Navy also 

submitted a comprehensive report on 

SURTASS LFA sonar operations and the 

mitigation and monitoring activities 

conducted under the LOAs issued under 

its previous rule for the 2002 through 

2007 period. A copy of these reports can 

be viewed and/or downloaded at: 

http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/permits/ 

incidental.htm#applications. Based on 

these reports, the Navy has conducted 

the specified activities in the manner 

described in the regulations and LOAs, 

and has implemented the required 

mitigation and monitoring measures. 

Additionally, marine mammal 

detections and behavioral observations 

suggest that the actual impacts of 

SURTASS LFA sonar operation and 

training fall within the scope and nature 

of those analyzed and anticipated by the 

regulations and LOAs. 

In accordance with the current 

SURTASS LFA sonar regulations (50 

CFR 216.186), the Navy has submitted 

classified quarterly mission reports. 

Under the first three LOA periods in the 

current rule, the Navy has not exceeded 

the take authorized by NMFS. Based on 

the submitted quarterly reports for the 

2010 LOAs, NMFS does not expect the 

Navy to exceed authorized take 

(requested and authorized) based on the 

Navy’s 2010 application. The annual 

report (No. 4) for the 2010–2011 LOAs 

is due on September 30, 2011. Upon 

receipt, NMFS will post this annual 

report at http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/ 

permits/incidental.htm#applications. 

Authorization 

NMFS has issued four LOAs to the 

U.S. Navy, authorizing the incidental 

harassment of marine mammals, 

incidental to operating the four 

SURTASS LFA sonar systems for 

training, testing and routine military 

operations. Issuance of these four LOAs 

is based on findings, described in the 

preamble to the final rule (72 FR 46846, 

August 21, 2007) and supported by 

information contained in the Navy’s 

required reports on SURTASS LFA 

sonar, that the activities described 

under these four LOAs will have no 

more than a negligible impact on marine 

mammal stocks and will not have an 

unmitigable adverse impact on the 

availability of the affected marine 

mammal stocks for subsistence uses. 

These LOAs remain valid through 

August 15, 2012, provided the Navy 

remains in conformance with the 

conditions of the regulations and the 

LOAs, and the mitigation, monitoring, 

and reporting requirements described in 

50 CFR 216.184–216.186 (72 FR 46846, 

August 21, 2007) and in the LOAs are 

undertaken. 

Dated: August 12, 2011. 

James H. Lecky, 

Director, Office of Protected Resources, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2011–21110 Filed 8–17–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Department of the Navy 

Nominations for Membership on the 

Ocean Research Advisory Panel 

AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DoD. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Ocean Research Advisory 

Panel (ORAP) is soliciting nominations 

for new members. 

DATES: Nominations should be 

submitted no later than September 15, 

2011. 

ADDRESSES: Nominations should be 

submitted via e-mail to CDR Stephen D. 

Martin, U.S. Navy, at 

stephen.d.martin@navy.mil. 

Contact Information: Office of Naval 

Research, 875 North Randolph Street 

Suite 1425, Attn: ONR Code 322B Room 

1075, Arlington, VA 22203, telephone 

703–696–4395. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Charles L. Vincent, Office of Naval 

Research, 875 North Randolph Street 

Suite 1425, Arlington, VA 22203–1995, 

telephone 703–696–4120. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: ORAP is a 

statutorily mandated federal advisory 

committee that provides senior advice 

to the National Ocean Research 

Leadership Council (NORLC), the 

governing body of the National 

Oceanographic Partnership Program 

(NOPP). Under the National Ocean 

Policy, the National Ocean Council 

(NOC) Deputy-level Committee has 

assumed the responsibilities of the 

NORLC. ORAP provides independent 

advice and guidance to the NOC. The 

NOC routinely provides guidance and 

direction on the areas for which it seeks 

advice and recommendations from 

ORAP. ORAP also advises on selection 

of projects and allocation of funds for 

NOPP. 

Panel Member Duties and 

Responsibilities: Members of the panel 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES