Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 180 / Wednesday, September 17, 1997 / Notices 48817

reviewed companies covered by these

orders are the cash deposit rates in

effect at the time of entry.

This notice serves as a reminder to

parties subject to administrative

protective order (APO) of their

responsibility concerning the

disposition of proprietary information

disclosed under APO in accordance

with 19 C.F.R. 355.34(d). Timely written

notification of return/destruction of

APO materials or conversion to judicial

protective order is hereby requested.

Failure to comply with the regulations

and the terms of an APO is a

sanctionable violation.

These administrative reviews and

notice are in accordance with section

751(a)(1) of the Act (19 U.S.C.

1675(a)(1)).

Dated: September 2, 1997.

Robert S. LaRussa,

Assistant Secretary for Import

Administration.

[FR Doc. 97–24710 Filed 9–16–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

[I.D. 091097A]

Incidental Take of Marine Mammals;

Bottlenose Dolphins and Spotted

Dolphins

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of issuance of letters of

authorization.

SUMMARY: In accordance with the

Marine Mammal Protection Act

(MMPA) as amended, and implementing

regulations, notification is hereby given

that 1-year letters of authorization to

take bottlenose and spotted dolphins

incidental to oil and gas structure

removal activities were issued on July

10, 1997, to the Coastal Oil and Gas

Corporation; on July 11, 1997, to Enron

Oil and Gas Corporation; on July 18,

1997, to the Louisiana Land and

Exploration Company, all of Houston,

TX; on July 25, 1997, to Mobil

Exploration and Producing U.S. Inc., of

New Orleans, LA; and on September 10,

1997, to the Forest Oil Corporation, of

Denver, CO, and Unocal of California, of

Lafayette, LA.

ADDRESSES: The applications and letters

are available for review in the following

offices: Office of Protected Resources,

NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver

Spring, MD 20910 and the Southeast

Region, NMFS, 9721 Executive Center

Drive N, St. Petersburg, FL 33702.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Kenneth R. Hollingshead, Office of

Protected Resources, NMFS, (301) 713–

2055 or Charles Oravetz, Southeast

Region (813) 570–5312.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section

101(a)(5)(A) of the MMPA (16 U.S.C.

1361 et seq.) directs NMFS to allow, on

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 regulations are issued.

Under the MMPA, the term ‘‘taking’’

means to harass, hunt, capture, or kill or

to attempt to harass, hunt, capture or

kill marine mammals.

Permission may be granted for periods

up to 5 years if NMFS finds, after

notification and opportunity for public

comment, that the taking will have a

negligible impact on the species or

stock(s) of marine mammals and will

not have an unmitigable adverse impact

on the availability of the species or

stock(s) for 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 must include requirements

pertaining to the monitoring and

reporting of such taking. Regulations

governing the taking of bottlenose and

spotted dolphins incidental to oil and

gas structure removal activities in the

Gulf of Mexico were published on

October 12, 1995 (60 FR 53139), and

remain in effect until November 13,

2000.

Summary of Requests

NMFS received requests for letters of

authorization on June 25, 1997, from

Coastal Oil and Gas Corporation; on July

11, 1997, from Enron Oil and Gas

Corporation; on June 27, 1997, from the

Louisiana Land and Exploration

Company; on July 17, 1997, from Mobil

Exploration and Producing U.S. Inc.; on

September 3, 1997, from the Forest Oil

Corporation, and on September 4, 1997,

from Unocal of California. These letters

requested a take by harassment of a

small number of bottlenose and spotted

dolphins incidental to the described

activity. Issuance of these letters of

authorization are based on a finding that

the total takings will have a negligible

impact on the bottlenose and spotted

dolphin stocks of the Gulf of Mexico.

Dated: September 11, 1997.

Patricia A. Montanio,

Deputy Director, Office of Protected

Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 97–24673 Filed 9–16–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

[I.D. 080697A]

Small Takes of Marine Mammals

Incidental to Specified Activities;

Seismic Hazards Investigations in

Puget Sound

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of receipt of application

and proposed authorization for a small

take exemption; request for comments.

SUMMARY: NMFS has received a request

from the U.S.Geological Survey (USGS)

for an authorization to take small

numbers of marine mammals by

harassment incidental to collecting

deep-crustal marine seismic data in the

Puget Sound/Straits of Juan de Fuca

region of Washington State. Under the

Marine Mammal Protection Act

(MMPA), NMFS is requesting comments

on its proposal to authorize USGS to

incidentally take, by harassment, small

numbers of marine mammals in the

above mentioned area during late

February or March 1998.

DATES: Comments and information must

be received no later than October 17,

1997.

ADDRESSES: Comments on the

application should be addressed to

Michael Payne, Chief, Marine Mammal

Division, Office of Protected Resources,

NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver

Spring, MD 20910–3225. A copy of the

application, and a draft environmental

assessment (EA), which includes a list

of references used in this document,

may be obtained by writing to this

address or by telephoning one of the

contacts listed below.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Kenneth R. Hollingshead, Office of

Protected Resources, NMFS, (301) 713–

2055, or Brent Norberg, Northwest

Regional Office, NMFS, (206) 526–6733.
48818 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 180 / Wednesday, September 17, 1997 / Notices

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Section 101(a)(5) (A) and (D) 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

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, notice of a proposed

authorization is provided to the public

for review.

Permission may 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,

and the permissible methods of taking

and requirements pertaining to the

monitoring and reporting of such taking

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.’’

New section 101(a)(5)(D) of the

Marine Mammal Protection Act

established an expedited process by

which citizens of the United States can

apply for an authorization to

incidentally take small numbers of

marine mammals by harassment. The

MMPA now defines ‘‘harassment’’ as:

* * * any act of pursuit, torment, or

annoyance which (a) has the potential to

injure a marine mammal or marine mammal

stock in the wild; or (b) 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.

New subsection 101(a)(5)(D)

establishes a 45-day time limit for

NMFS review of an application

followed by a 30-day public notice and

comment period on any proposed

authorizations for the incidental

harassment of small numbers of marine

mammals. Within 45 days of the close

of the comment period, NMFS must

either issue or deny issuance of the

authorization.

Summary of Request

On July 2, 1997, NMFS received an

application from the USGS, on behalf of

the Seismic Hazards Investigations in

Puget Sound (SHIPS) project, requesting

an authorization for the possible

harassment of small numbers of several

species of marine mammals incidental

to conducting marine seismic surveys in

Puget Sound, WA. The survey is to

collect data on the earthquake hazards

of the Puget Sound area. Geological

features around the Puget Sound that

might produce earthquakes lie obscured

beneath water, city, forest, and thick

glacial deposits. As a result,

investigators must use sound waves that

are produced by an array of airguns to

indirectly view these features. Because

seismic noise from the proposed

survey’s airguns could potentially affect

marine mammals due to disturbance by

sound (i.e., acoustic harassment), an

incidental harassment authorization

under the MMPA is warranted.

The main goals of the SHIPS project

concern understanding earthquake

processes and mitigating a potential

disaster, not earthquake prediction.

Geologists have clear evidence for past

earthquakes, but basic geological

information about earthquake processes

is lacking. To close this critical

information gap, the SHIPS consortium

will collect seismic reflection and

seismic refraction data in and near

Puget Sound. Seismic reflection data

will help locate potential earthquake

faults, and seismic refraction data will

show the speed of sound waves in deep

rocks. These data together will reveal

the structure and physical properties of

rocks where earthquakes are likely to

occur. Information from onshore

seismometers will reveal where deep

rocks could focus earthquake waves at

the surface and where surface sediment

is weak.

Where these conditions of focusing

and sediment weakness overlap,

buildings and other infrastructure are at

elevated risk of damage or destruction

during a major earthquake. SHIPS will

provide information needed to make

maps, for city planners, to show areas of

potentially strong ground motion so that

scarce funds for seismic retrofitting can

be allocated on a rational basis. Prime

candidates for retrofitting are schools

and hospitals. Freeway interchanges

and major bridges as well as structures

housing police and firefighters must

withstand earthquakes so that survivors

receive prompt assistance.

Dependent upon ship scheduling, the

seismic survey is expected to take

approximately two weeks sometime

during late February and March 1998. A

detailed description of the work

planned is contained in the application

(USGS 1997) and the draft EA. These

documents are available upon request

(see ADDRESSES). Description of Habitat

and Marine Mammals Affected by the

Activity

A description of the Puget Sound

ecosystem and its associated marine

mammals can be found in the USGS

application and associated draft EA.

Marine Mammals

The species of marine mammals that

are likely to be present in Puget Sound

and Straits of Juan de Fuca include the

harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena),

killer whale (Orcinus orca), Dall’s

porpoise (Phocoenoides dalli), and

harbor seal (Phoca vitulina). Additional

species that are rare or only occasionally

seen in the area at the time of the survey

include: Minke whale (Balaenoptera

acutorostrata), elephant seal (Mirounga

angustirostris) Pacific white-sided

dolphin (Lagenorhynchus obliquidens),

northern sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus),

California sea lion (Zalophus

californianus), humpback whale

(Megaptera novaengliae), and gray

whale (Eschrichtius robustus). General

information on these latter species can

be found in Barlow et al. (1995).

Information relevant to the distribution,

abundance, and behavior of those

species most likely to be impacted by

the experiment in Puget Sound and the

Straits of Juan de Fuca is provided in

the application and draft EA. Please

refer to those documents for information

on the biology, distribution, and

abundance of these species.

Potential Effects of Seismic Surveys on

Marine Mammals

Discussion

Deep seismic surveys are used to

obtain data about rock formations

several thousands of feet deep. These

surveys are accomplished by

transmitting sound waves into the earth,

which are reflected off subsurface

formations and recorded with detectors

in the water column. A typical marine

seismic source is an airgun array, which

releases compressed air into the water

creating an acoustical energy pulse that

is directed downwards toward the

seabed. Hydrophones spaced along a

streamer cable just below the surface of

the water receive the reflected energy

from the subsurface formations and

transmit data to the seismic vessel.

Onboard the vessel, the signals are

amplified, digitized, and recorded on

magnetic tape.

Disturbance by seismic noise is the

principal means of taking by this

activity. Vessel noise may provide a

secondary source. Also, the physical

presence of vessel(s) could also lead to

some non-acoustic effects involving

visual or other cues.

Depending upon ambient conditions

and the sensitivity of the receptor,
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 180 / Wednesday, September 17, 1997 / Notices 48819

underwater sounds produced by openwater seismic operations may be

detectable some substantial distance

away from the activity. Any sound that

is detectable is (at least in theory)

capable of eliciting a disturbance

reaction by a marine mammal or

masking a signal of comparable

frequency. An incidental harassment

take is presumed to occur when marine

mammals in the vicinity of the seismic

source (or vessel) react to the generated

sounds or visual cues.

Seismic pulses are known to cause

some species of whales, including gray

and bowhead whales, to behaviorally

respond within a distance of several

kilometers (Richardson et al. 1995).

Although some limited masking of lowfrequency sounds is a possibility for

those species of whales using low

frequencies for communication, the

intermittent nature of seismic source

pulses will limit the extent of masking.

Bowhead whales, for example, are

known to continue calling in the

presence of seismic survey sounds, and

their calls can be heard between seismic

pulses (Richardson et al. 1986).

When the received levels of noise

exceed some behavioral reaction

threshold, cetaceans will show

disturbance reactions. The levels,

frequencies, and types of noise that will

elicit a response vary between and

within species, individuals, locations

and season. Behavioral changes may be

subtle alterations in surface-diverespiration cycles. More conspicuous

responses, include changes in activity or

aerial displays, movement away from

the sound source, or complete

avoidance of the area. The reaction

threshold and degree of response are

related to the activity of the animal at

the time of the disturbance. Whales

engaged in active behaviors such as

feeding, socializing or mating are less

likely than resting animals to show

overt behavioral reactions, unless the

disturbance is directly threatening.

Hearing damage is not expected to

occur during the project. While it is not

known whether a marine mammal very

close to an airgun array would be at risk

of temporary or permanent hearing

impairment, temporary threshold shift

(TTS) is a theoretical possibility for

animals within a few hundred meters

(Richardson et al. 1995). However,

planned monitoring and mitigation

measures (described below) are

designed to detect marine mammals

occurring near the seismic array and to

avoid, to the greatest extent practicable,

exposing them to sound pulses that

have any possibility of causing hearing

damage.

Estimates of Harassment Take Levels

Based upon analyses provided in the

application and draft EA, the USGS

estimates that the number of potential

harassment takings resulting from the

1998 Puget Sound marine seismic

survey will be as follows:

Harbor porpoise ....... 1,000.

Killer whale .............. 40.

Dall’s porpoise ......... 1,000.

Harbor seals .............. 4,500 in Puget

Sound, 1,200 in

Hood Canal, 5,000

in the Strait of

Juan de Fuca.

California sea lions .. 2,000.

Northern sea lions .... 0.

Elephant seals: ......... <100.

Pacific white-sided

dolphin.

<100.

Minke whale ............. 10.

Humpback whale ..... ≤ 50.

Gray whale ............... 20.

Potential Effect on Habitat

As described in detail in the draft EA,

no impact on the habitat or food sources

of marine mammals are likely from this

short-term marine seismic survey.

Mitigation

Several mitigation measures to reduce

the potential for marine mammal

harassment will be implemented by

USGS as part of their proposed activity.

These include:

(1) Scheduling the survey for the

period of February/March, when marine

mammal abundance in Puget Sound/

Straits of Juan de Fuca is low;

(2) To avoid potential Level A

harassment of, or injury to, marine

mammals, safety zones will be

established and monitored continuously

(during daylight hours). Whenever the

seismic vessel approaches a marine

mammal closer than the distance

mentioned below and described in more

detail in both the application and the

draft EA, the USGS would shut off

airguns.

(3) For gray, minke, and humpback

whales, the marine mammal species that

are considered to be most sensitive to

the frequency and intensity of sound

that will be emitted by the airgun array,

airgun operations will cease when

members of these species approach

within 500 m (1,640 ft) of the seismic

vessel.

(4) For odontocetes, with their lower

sensitivity to low frequency sound,

airgun operations will cease when these

animals approach a safety zone of 200

m (656 ft), twice the calculated radius

for preventing TTS.

(5) For pinnipeds (seals and sealions),

if the SHIPS seismic vessel approaches

a pinniped, a safety radius of 100 m

(328 ft) will be maintained from the

animal(s). However, if a pinniped

approaches the towed airgun array, the

USGS will not be required to shutdown

the airguns. Experience indicates that

pinnipeds will come from great

distances to scrutinize seismic

operations. Seals have been observed

swimming within airgun bubbles, 10 m

(33 ft) away from active arrays and,

more recently, Canadian scientists, who

were using a high-frequency seismic

system that produced sound closer to

pinniped hearing than will the USGS

airgun array, describe how seals

frequently approached close to the

seismic source, presumably out of

curiosity. Therefore, because the seismic

survey could be severely hampered by

delays, because turning across marine

traffic lanes to resume work after a

shutdown will be risky and costly, and

because pinnipeds indicate no reaction

to seismic noise, the above-mentioned

mitigation plan has been proposed.

Instead, the USGS will gather

information on how often pinnipeds

approach the airgun array on their own

volition, and what effect the airguns

appear to have on them.

(6) To ensure no marine mammals are

inadvertently harmed, when data

collection first begins, or resumes, after

operations have ceased, the airguns will

be turned on sequentially at a rate no

greater than 6 dB/minute, so that peak

power is achieved gradually to give

marine mammals a chance to move

away from the source.

(7) During seismic survey operations,

the ship’s speed will be 4 to 5 knots so

that when the airguns are being

discharged, nearby marine mammals

will have gradual warning of the ship’s

approach and can move away.

(8) The USGS plans to have marine

biologists onboard the seismic vessel

who will have the authority to stop

airgun operations when a mammal

enters the safety zone. These observers

will monitor the safety zone to ensure

no marine mammals enter the zone, and

record observations on marine mammal

abundance and behavior.

(9) Emergency shut-down. If

observations are made that one or more

marine mammals of any species are

attempting to beach themselves when

the seismic source is operating in the

vicinity of the beaching, the airgun array

will be immediately shut off and NMFS

contacted.

(10) Upon notification by a local

stranding network that a marine

mammal has been found dead within

the waters of Puget Sound, the San Juan

Archipelago, or the Straits of Juan de

Fuca when the array is operating within
48820 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 180 / Wednesday, September 17, 1997 / Notices

that body of water, NMFS will

investigate the stranding to determine

whether a reasonable chance exists that

the SHIPS project caused the animal’s

death. If NMFS determines, based upon

a necropsy of the animal(s), that the

death was likely due to the seismic

source, the survey must cease until

procedures are altered to eliminate the

potential for future deaths.

Monitoring

The objectives of the proposed

monitoring program will be: To mitigate

potential harassment of marine

mammals, to document the number of

animals of each species present in the

vicinity of the sound transmissions, and

to evaluate the reactions of marine

mammals to these transmissions. In

addition, hydrophones will be used to

measure sound levels, to correlate

mammal behavior with actual, received

sound levels. Focused surveys will be

conducted in geographic areas of

particular concern, especially for gray

whales that migrate past the western

entrance to the Straits of Juan de Fuca

and other members of this species that

spend the summer in the survey area

(near south Whidbey Island and the

Straits of Juan de Fuca), humpback

whales near Swiftsure Bank and the

waters west of the Straits, harbor

porpoise that tend to congregate along

western Whidbey Island and elsewhere,

and minke whales that frequent shallow

banks in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. All

species of large whales (humpback,

gray, minke, or killer whales) will be

photographed to identify the individual

using the area.

It should be recognized that, at this

time, the monitoring program is

unfunded and therefore may need to be

modified in the future. However, in

order for an IHA to be issued,

monitoring will need to be conducted at

a level which ensures that the activity

will have no more than a negligible

impact on marine mammal species or

stocks.

Reporting

The USGS will provide an initial

report to NMFS within 90 days of the

completion of the 1998 phase of the

marine seismic project. This report will

provide dates and locations of seismic

operations, details of marine mammal

sightings, and estimates of the amount

and nature of all takes by harassment. A

final technical report will be provided

by USGS within 1 year of completion of

the 1998 phase of the Puget Sound

marine seismic project. The final

technical report will contain a

description of the methods, results, and

interpretation of all monitoring tasks.

Consultation

Under section 7 of the Endangered

Species Act, NMFS has begun

consultation on the proposed issuance

of an incidental harassment

authorization. Consultation will be

concluded upon completion of the

comment period and consideration of

those comments in the final

determination on issuance of an

authorization.

National Environmental Policy Act

In conjunction with this notice,

NMFS has released a draft EA that

addresses the impacts on the human

environment from issuance of the

authorization and the alternatives to the

proposed action. A copy of the draft EA

is available upon request (see

ADDRESSES).

Conclusions

NMFS has preliminarily determined

that the short-term impact of conducting

deep crustal marine seismic surveys

will result, at worst, in a temporary

modification in behavior by certain

species of pinnipeds, and possibly some

individual cetaceans. While behavioral

modifications may be made by certain

species of marine mammals to avoid the

resultant noise from airgun arrays, this

behavioral change is expected to have a

negligible impact on the animals.

In addition, no take by injury and/or

death is anticipated and takes will be at

the lowest level practicable due to

incorporation of the mitigation

measures mentioned above. No known

rookeries, mating grounds, areas of

concentrated feeding, or other areas of

special significance for marine

mammals occur within or near the

planned area of operations during the

season of operations.

Proposed Authorization

NMFS proposes to issue an incidental

harassment authorization to the USGS

for the possible harassment of small

numbers of several species of marine

mammals incidental to collecting deepcrustal marine seismic data in the Puget

Sound/Straits of Juan de Fuca region of

Washington State, provided the abovementioned mitigation, monitoring, and

reporting requirements are incorporated.

NMFS has preliminarily determined

that the proposed activities would result

in the harassment of only small

numbers of each of several species of

marine mammals and will have no more

than a negligible impact on these marine

mammal stocks.

Information Solicited

NMFS requests interested persons to

submit comments, information, and

suggestions concerning this request (see

ADDRESSES).

Dated: September 11, 1997.

Hilda Diaz-Soltero,

Director, Office of Protected Resources,

National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 97–24674 Filed 9–16–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

[I.D. 090997E]

South Atlantic Fishery Management

Council; Public Meetings

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

SUMMARY: The South Atlantic Fishery

Management Council (Council) will

hold a meeting of its Sargassum and

Water Column Habitat Sub-Group.

DATES: The meeting will be held on

October 7-8 1997. See SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION for specific dates and

times.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at

NMFS Southeast Fisheries Science

Center, 101 Pivers Island Road,

Beaufort, NC.

Council address: South Atlantic

Fishery Management Council, One

Southpark Circle, Suite 306; Charleston,

SC 29407-4699.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Susan Buchanan, Public Information

Officer; telephone: (803) 571-4366; fax:

(803) 769-4520; email:

susan.buchanan@noaa.gov

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Meeting Dates

October 7, 1997, 1:30 p.m. to 5:00

p.m. & October 8, 1997, 8:30 a.m. to

12:30 p.m.

The Sub-Group will meet to review

Sargassum habitat and water column

information in state, Federal and

regional systems, and to discuss fishing

and non-fishing threats to these habitats.

The Sub-Group will also discuss policy

recommendations and research and

monitoring needs for these habitats.

Although other issues not contained

in this agenda may come before this

Sub-Group for discussion, in accordance

with the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery

Conservation and Management Act,

those issues may not be the subject of

formal Sub-Group action during this

meeting. Sub-Group action will be