Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 42 / Friday, March 1, 2024 / Notices 15165 

to 5 p.m. See SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION for agenda details. 

ADDRESSES: The meeting will take place 

over webinar using the Webex platform 

with a telephone-only connection 

option. Details on how to connect to the 

webinar by computer and by telephone 

will be available at: www.mafmc.org/ 

ssc. 

Council address: Mid-Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council, 800 N State 

Street, Suite 201, Dover, DE 19901; 

telephone: (302) 674–2331; website: 

www.mafmc.org. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Christopher M. Moore, Ph.D., Executive 

Director, Mid-Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council, telephone: (302) 

526–5255. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: During 

this meeting, the SSC will review and 

provide feedback on the most recent 

Mid-Atlantic State of the Ecosystem 

report, the Ecosystem Approach to 

Fisheries Management risk assessment, 

and the work plan/products of the SSC’s 

Ecosystem Work Group. The SSC will 

receive an overview of the Northeast 

Fisheries Science Center Cooperative 

Research Program activities. In addition, 

the SSC will discuss the activities and 

future products of the Overfishing Limit 

(OFL) Coefficient of Variation (CV) subgroup. Under ‘‘Other Business’’, the SSC 

will discuss a number of topics 

including: the Scientific Coordination 

Sub-Committee 8th National Workshop, 

outcomes from a recent workshop on 

defining biological reference points, the 

2024–2025 stock assessment schedule, 

and 2024 SSC meeting plans. The SSC 

may take up any other business as 

necessary. 

A detailed agenda and background 

documents will be made available on 

the Council’s website (www.mafmc.org) 

prior to the meeting. 

Special Accommodations 

The meeting is physically accessible 

to people with disabilities. Requests for 

sign language interpretation or other 

auxiliary aid should be directed to 

Shelley Spedden, (302) 526–5251, at 

least 5 days prior to the meeting date. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. 

Dated: February 27, 2024. 

Rey Israel Marquez, 

Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2024–04348 Filed 2–29–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XD741] 

Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental 

To Specified Activities; Taking Marine 

Mammals Incidental to Marine Site 

Characterization Surveys in the New 

York Bight 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; issuance of renewal 

incidental harassment authorization. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

regulations implementing the Marine 

Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), as 

amended, notification is hereby given 

that NMFS has issued a renewal 

incidental harassment authorization 

(IHA) to Bluepoint Wind, LLC, (BPW) to 

incidentally harass marine mammals 

incidental to marine site 

characterization surveys in coastal 

waters off of New York and New Jersey 

in the New York Bight, specifically 

within the Bureau of Ocean Energy 

Management (BOEM) Commercial Lease 

of Submerged Lands for Renewable 

Energy Development on the Outer 

Continental Shelf (Lease) Area OCS–A 

0537 and associated export cable route 

(ECR) area. 

DATES: This renewal IHA is valid from 

March 1, 2024, through February 28, 

2025. 

ADDRESSES: Electronic copies of the 

original application, renewal request, 

and supporting documents (including 

NMFS Federal Register notices of the 

original proposed and final 

authorizations, and the previous IHA), 

as well as a list of the references cited 

in this document, may be obtained 

online at: https://

www.fisheries.noaa.gov/permit/ 

incidental-take-authorizations-undermarine-mammal-protection-act. In case 

of problems accessing these documents, 

see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT

section. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jenna Harlacher, Office of Protected 

Resources, NMFS, (301) 427–8401. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The Marine Mammal Protection Act 

(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 promulgated or, if the 

taking is limited to harassment, an 

incidental harassment authorization is 

issued. 

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 such species or stocks for 

taking for certain subsistence uses 

(referred to here as ‘‘mitigation 

measures’’). NMFS must also prescribe 

requirements pertaining to monitoring 

and reporting of such takings. The 

definition of key terms such as ‘‘take,’’ 

‘‘harassment,’’ and ‘‘negligible impact’’ 

can be found in the MMPA and NMFS’s 

implementing regulations (see 16 U.S.C 

1362; 50 CFR 216.103). 

NMFS’ regulations implementing the 

MMPA at 50 CFR 216.107(e) indicate 

that IHAs may be renewed for 

additional periods of time not to exceed 

1 year for each reauthorization. In the 

notice of proposed IHA for the initial 

IHA, NMFS described the circumstances 

under which we would consider issuing 

a renewal for this activity, and 

requested public comment on a 

potential renewal under those 

circumstances. Specifically, on a caseby-case basis, NMFS may issue a onetime 1-year renewal IHA following 

notice to the public providing an 

additional 15 days for public comments 

when (1) up to another year of identical, 

or nearly identical, activities as 

described in the Detailed Description of 

Specified Activities section of the initial 

IHA issuance notice is planned, or (2) 

the activities as described in the 

Description of the Specified Activities 

and Anticipated Impacts section of the 

initial IHA issuance notice would not be 

completed by the time the initial IHA 

expires and a renewal would allow for 

completion of the activities beyond that 

described in the DATES section of the 

notice of issuance of the initial IHA, 

provided all of the following conditions 

are met: 


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1. A request for renewal is received no

later than 60 days prior to the needed 

renewal IHA effective date (recognizing 

that the renewal IHA expiration date 

cannot extend beyond 1 year from 

expiration of the initial IHA). 

2. The request for renewal must

include the following: 

• An explanation that the activities to

be conducted under the requested 

renewal IHA are identical to the 

activities analyzed under the initial 

IHA, are a subset of the activities, or 

include changes so minor (e.g., 

reduction in pile size) that the changes 

do not affect the previous analyses, 

mitigation and monitoring 

requirements, or take estimates (with 

the exception of reducing the type or 

amount of take). 

• A preliminary monitoring report

showing the results of the required 

monitoring to date and an explanation 

showing that the monitoring results do 

not indicate impacts of a scale or nature 

not previously analyzed or authorized. 

3. Upon review of the request for

renewal, the status of the affected 

species or stocks, and any other 

pertinent information, NMFS 

determines that there are no more than 

minor changes in the activities, the 

mitigation and monitoring measures 

will remain the same and appropriate, 

and the findings in the initial IHA 

remain valid. 

An additional public comment period 

of 15 days (for a total of 45 days), with 

direct notice by email, phone, or postal 

service to commenters on the initial 

IHA, is provided to allow for any 

additional comments on the proposed 

renewal. A description of the renewal 

process may be found on our website at: 

https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/ 

national/marine-mammal-protection/ 

incidental-harassment-authorizationrenewals. 

History of Request 

On February 28, 2023, NMFS issued 

an IHA to BPW to take marine mammals 

incidental to conducting marine site 

characterization surveys in coastal 

waters off of New York and New Jersey 

in the New York Bight, specifically 

within the BOEM Lease Area OCS–A 

0537 and associated ECR area (88 FR 

13783, March 6, 2023), effective from 

March 1, 2023, through February 29, 

2024. On December 21, 2023, NMFS 

received an application for the renewal 

of that initial IHA. As described in the 

application for renewal, the activities 

for which incidental take is requested 

consist of activities that are covered by 

the initial authorization but will not be 

completed prior to its expiration. As 

required, the applicant also provided a 

preliminary monitoring report (available 

at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/ 

action/incidental-take-authorizationbluepoint-wind-llc-marine-sitecharacterization-surveys-new) which 

confirms that the applicant has 

implemented the required mitigation 

and monitoring, and which also shows 

that no impacts of a scale or nature not 

previously analyzed or authorized have 

occurred as a result of the activities 

conducted. The notice of the proposed 

renewal incidental harassment 

authorization was published for public 

comment on January 31, 2024 (89 FR 

6092). 

Description of the Specified Activities 

and Anticipated Impacts 

BPW’s initial IHA included 

conducting marine site characterization 

surveys, including high-resolution 

geophysical (HRG) surveys, in coastal 

waters off of New Jersey and New York 

in the New York Bight, specifically 

within the BOEM Lease Area OCS–A 

0537 and associated ECR area. 

Challenges and delays with 

procurement, mobilization, and 

downtime contributed to less survey 

effort being completed during the initial 

IHA period than anticipated. 

The surveys were designed to obtain 

data sufficient to meet BOEM guidelines 

for providing geophysical, geotechnical, 

and geohazard information for site 

assessment plan surveys and/or 

construction and operations plan 

development. The objective of the 

surveys was to support the site 

characterization, siting, and engineering 

design of offshore wind project facilities 

including wind turbine generators, 

offshore substations, and submarine 

cables within the Lease Area. At least 

two survey vessels would operate as 

part of the planned surveys with a 

maximum of two nearshore (<20 meters 

(m)) vessels and a maximum of two 

offshore (≥20 m) vessels operating 

concurrently. 

BPW is planning to continue to 

conduct survey activities as per the 

initial IHA application up to 

approximately 17,008 kilometers (km) of 

trackline, which would be conducted 

over up to approximately 335 days 

across multiple vessels (in the same 

manner as the initial IHA). This is a 

subset of the survey trackline included 

in the initial IHA. The initial survey 

plan included 13,268 km of trackline in 

the ECR survey area and 9,923 km in the 

Lease Area (total of 23,191 km) using 

the sparker for all survey activities as a 

conservative operational scenario. 

Through the expiration of the initial 

IHA, BPW expects to survey 6,183 km 

of trackline, leaving 17,008 km 

remaining from the initial request (up to 

10,299 km in the ECR survey area and 

6,709 km in the Lease Area). 

The potential impacts of BPW’s 

activity on marine mammals could 

involve acoustic stressors and are 

unchanged from the impacts described 

in the notice of the proposed IHA (88 FR 

2325, January 13, 2023). Acoustic 

stressors include effects of the marine 

site characterization surveys. The effects 

of underwater disturbance from the 

BPW’s activities have the potential to 

result in Level B harassment of marine 

mammals in the specified geographic 

region. 

This renewal IHA is for the remainder 

of work that will not be completed by 

the expiration of the initial IHA. The 

renewal IHA would authorize incidental 

take, by Level B harassment only (in the 

form of behavioral disturbance), of 15 

species (16 stocks) of marine mammals 

for a subset of marine site 

characterization survey activities to be 

completed in 1 year, in the same area, 

using survey methods identical to those 

described in the initial IHA application. 

Therefore, the anticipated effects on 

marine mammals and the affected stocks 

also remain the same. All mitigation, 

monitoring, and reporting measures 

would remain exactly as described in 

the Federal Register notice of the issued 

initial IHA (88 FR 13783, March 6, 

2023). 

Detailed Description of the Activity 

A detailed description of the marine 

site characterization survey activities for 

which incidental take is authorized 

here, may be found in the Federal 

Register notice of the proposed IHA (88 

FR 2325, January 13, 2023) for the initial 

authorization. The location and nature 

of the activities, including the types of 

equipment planned for use, are identical 

to those described in the previous 

notices. The renewal would be effective 

for a period not exceeding 1 year from 

the date of expiration of the initial IHA. 

Description of Marine Mammals 

A description of the marine mammals 

in the area of the activities for which 

take is authorized, including 

information on abundance, status, 

distribution, and hearing, may be found 

in the Federal Register notice of the 

proposed IHA for the initial 

authorization (88 FR 2325, January 13, 

2023). NMFS has reviewed the finalized 

2022 Stock Assessment Reports (SARs), 

which included updates to certain stock 

abundances since the initial IHA was 

issued, information on relevant Unusual 

Mortality Events, and other scientific 

literature. In August 2023 after the 

initial IHA was issued, NMFS released 


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its final 2022 SARs, which updated the 

population estimate (Nbest) of North 

Atlantic right whales from 368 to 338 

and annual mortality and serious injury 

increased from 8.1 to 31.2. This large 

increase in annual serious injury/ 

mortality is a result of NMFS including 

undetected annual mortality and serious 

injury in the total annual serious injury/ 

mortality, which had not been 

previously included in the SARs. The 

population estimate is slightly lower 

than the North Atlantic Right Whale 

Consortium’s 2022 Report Card, which 

identifies the population estimate as 340 

individuals (Pettis et al., 2023). The 

2022 SAR and NARWC estimates are 

based on sighting history through 

November 2020 (Hayes et al., 2023). In 

October 2023, NMFS released a 

technical report identifying that the 

North Atlantic right whale population 

size based on sighting history through 

2022 was 356 whales, with a 95 percent 

credible interval ranging from 346 to 

363 (Linden, 2023). NMFS has 

determined that neither this nor any 

other new information affects which 

species or stocks have the potential to 

be affected or any other pertinent 

information in the Description of the 

Marine Mammals in the Area of 

Specified Activities contained in the 

supporting documents for the initial 

IHA. 

On August 1, 2022, NMFS announced 

proposed changes to the existing North 

Atlantic right whale vessel speed 

regulations to further reduce the 

likelihood of mortalities and serious 

injuries to endangered North Atlantic 

right whales from vessel collisions, 

which are a leading cause of the species’ 

decline and a primary factor in an 

ongoing Unusual Mortality Event (87 FR 

46921, August 1, 2022). Should a final 

vessel speed rule be issued and become 

effective during the effective period of 

this proposed Renewal IHA (or any 

other MMPA incidental take 

authorization), the authorization holder 

would be required to comply with any 

and all applicable requirements 

contained within the final rule. 

Specifically, where measures in any 

final vessel speed rule are more 

protective or restrictive than those in 

this or any other MMPA authorization, 

authorization holders would be required 

to comply with the requirements of the 

rule. Alternatively, where measures in 

this or any other MMPA authorization 

are more restrictive or protective than 

those in any final vessel speed rule, the 

measures in the MMPA authorization 

would remain in place. These changes 

would become effective immediately 

upon the effective date of any final 

vessel speed rule and would not require 

any further action on NMFS’s part. 

Potential Effects on Marine Mammals 

and Their Habitat 

A description of the potential effects 

of the specified activity on marine 

mammals and their habitat for the 

activities for which take is authorized 

here may be found in the Federal 

Register notice of the proposed IHA for 

the initial authorization (88 FR 2325, 

January 13, 2023). NMFS has reviewed 

the monitoring data from the initial 

IHA, recent Stock Assessment Reports, 

information on relevant Unusual 

Mortality Events, other scientific 

literature, and the public comments, 

and determined that there is no new 

information affects our initial analysis 

of impacts on marine mammals and 

their habitat. 

Estimated Take 

A detailed description of the methods 

and inputs used to estimate take for the 

specified activity are found in the 

Notices of the Proposed and Final IHAs 

for the initial authorization (88 FR 2325, 

January 13, 2023; 88 FR 13783, March 

6, 2023). Specifically, the source levels, 

days of operation, and marine mammal 

density/occurrence data applicable to 

this authorization remain unchanged 

from the previously issued IHA. 

Similarly, the stocks taken, methods of 

take, and types of take remain 

unchanged from the previously issued 

IHA. The number of takes authorized in 

this renewal IHA are a subset of the 

initial authorized takes that better 

represent the amount of activity BPW 

has left to complete. These estimated 

takes, which reflect the remaining 

survey days, are indicated below in 

table 1. 

TABLE 1—NUMBER OF TAKES BY LEVEL B HARASSMENT BY SPECIES AND STOCK AND PERCENT OF TAKE BY STOCK

Common name Authorized 

take 

Population 

abundance 

Percent of 

population 

North Atlantic right whale ............................................................................................................ 11 338 3.3

Fin whale ..................................................................................................................................... 63 6,802 0.9

Sei whale ..................................................................................................................................... 15 6,292 0.2

Minke whale ................................................................................................................................. 149 21,968 0.7

Humpback whale ......................................................................................................................... 27 1,396 1.9

Sperm whale ................................................................................................................................ 5 4,349 0.1

Atlantic white-sided dolphin ......................................................................................................... 316 93,233 0.3

Atlantic spotted dolphin ............................................................................................................... 162 39,921 0.4

Bottlenose dolphin (West North Atlantic Offshore) ..................................................................... 204 62,851 0.3

Bottlenose dolphin (Northern Migratory Coastal) ........................................................................ 730 6,639 11

Long-finned pilot whale ................................................................................................................ 50 39,215 0.1

Risso’s dolphin ............................................................................................................................. 38 35,215 0.1

Common dolphin .......................................................................................................................... 3,456 172,947 2

Harbor porpoise ........................................................................................................................... 958 95,543 1

Gray seal ..................................................................................................................................... 861 27,300 3.2

Harbor seal .................................................................................................................................. 861 61,366 1.4

Description of Mitigation, Monitoring 

and Reporting Measures 

The mitigation, monitoring, and 

reporting measures included as 

requirements in this authorization are 

identical to those included in the 

Federal Register notice announcing the 

issuance of the initial IHA (88 FR 13783, 

March 6, 2023), and the discussion of 

the least practicable adverse impact 

included in that document and the 

Notice of the proposed IHA remains 

accurate (88 FR 2325, January 13, 2023). 

The following measures for this renewal 

include: 

• Ramp-up: A ramp-up procedure

would be used for geophysical survey 

equipment capable of adjusting energy 

levels at the start or re-start of survey 

activities; 

• Protected Species Observers: A

minimum of one NMFS-approved 

Protected Species Observer (PSO) must 


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15168 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 42 / Friday, March 1, 2024 / Notices 

be on duty and conducting visual 

observations at all times during daylight 

hours (i.e., from 30 minutes prior to 

sunrise through 30 minutes following 

sunset). Two PSOs will be on watch 

during nighttime operations; 

• Pre-Operation Clearance Protocols: 

Prior to initiating HRG survey activities, 

BPW would implement a 30-minute preoperation clearance period. If any 

marine mammals are detected within 

the Exclusion Zones prior to or during 

ramp-up, the HRG equipment would be 

shut down (as described below); 

• Shutdown Zones: If an HRG source 

is active and a marine mammal is 

observed within or entering a relevant 

shutdown zone, an immediate 

shutdown of the HRG survey equipment 

would be required. Note this shutdown 

requirement would be waived for 

certain genera of small delphinids and 

pinnipeds; 

• Vessel Strike Avoidance Measures: 

Separation distances for large whales 

(500 m for North Atlantic right whales; 

100 m for sperm whales and all other 

baleen whales; 50 m for all other marine 

mammals); restricted vessel speeds and 

operational maneuvers; and 

• Reporting: BPW will submit a 

marine mammal report within 90 days 

following completion of the surveys. 

Comments and Responses 

A notice of NMFS’ proposal to issue 

a renewal IHA to BPW was published in 

the Federal Register on January 31, 

2024 (89 FR 6092). That notice either 

described, or referenced descriptions of, 

BPW’s activity, the marine mammal 

species that may be affected by the 

activity, the anticipated effects on 

marine mammals and their habitat, 

estimated amount and manner of take, 

and proposed mitigation, monitoring 

and reporting measures. NMFS received 

no public comments. 

Determinations 

BPW’s activities consist of a subset of 

activities analyzed in the initial IHA. In 

analyzing the effects of the activities for 

the initial IHA, NMFS determined that 

BPW’s activities would have a negligible 

impact on the affected species or stocks 

and that authorized take numbers of 

each species or stock were small relative 

to the relevant stocks (e.g., less than 

one-third the abundance of all stocks). 

The mitigation measures and 

monitoring and reporting requirements 

as described above are identical to the 

initial IHA. 

NMFS has concluded that there is no 

new information suggesting that our 

analysis or findings should change from 

those reached for the initial IHA. Based 

on the information and analysis 

contained here and in the referenced 

documents, NMFS has determined the 

following: (1) the required mitigation 

measures will effect the least practicable 

adverse 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; (4) 

BPW’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; and (5) 

appropriate monitoring and reporting 

requirements are included. 

National Environmental Policy Act 

This action is consistent with 

categories of activities identified in 

Categorical Exclusion B4 (incidental 

take authorizations with no anticipated 

serious injury or mortality) 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. Accordingly, NMFS 

determined that the issuance of the 

initial IHA qualified for categorical 

exclusion from further NEPA review. 

NMFS has determined that the 

application of this categorical exclusion 

remains appropriate for this renewal 

IHA. 

Endangered Species Act 

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, in this 

case with the NMFS Greater Atlantic 

Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO), 

whenever we propose to authorize take 

for endangered or threatened species. 

NMFS Office of Protected Resources 

has authorized the incidental take of 

four species of marine mammals which 

are listed under the ESA (the North 

Atlantic right, fin, sei, and sperm whale) 

and has determined that these activities 

fall within the scope of activities 

analyzed in GARFO’s programmatic 

consultation regarding geophysical 

surveys along the U.S. Atlantic coast in 

the three Atlantic Renewable Energy 

Regions (completed June 29, 2021; 

revised September 2021). The Renewal 

IHA provides no new information about 

the effects of the action, nor does it 

change the extent of effects of the 

action, or any other basis to require 

reinitiation of consultation with NMFS 

GARFO; therefore, the ESA consultation 

has been satisfied for the initial IHA and 

remains valid for the Renewal IHA. 

Renewal 

NMFS has issued a renewal IHA to 

BPW for the take of marine mammals 

incidental to conducting marine site 

characterization surveys in coastal 

waters off of New York and New Jersey 

in the New York Bight, from March 1, 

2024, through February 28, 2025. 

Dated: February 27, 2024. 

Kimberly Damon-Randall, 

Director, Office of Protected Resources, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2024–04391 Filed 2–29–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XD762] 

Endangered and Threatened Species: 

Expiration of Nonessential 

Experimental Population Designation 

for Middle Columbia River Steelhead 

Upstream of Round Butte Dam, 

Deschutes River Basin, Oregon 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: NMFS hereby gives notice 

that the nonessential experimental 

population (NEP) designation and 

accompanying protective measures for 

Middle Columbia River (MCR) steelhead 

occurring in all accessible reaches 

upstream of Round Butte Dam on the 

Deschutes River, Oregon, shall expire at 

midnight (00:00 hours; Pacific Standard 

Time) on January 15, 2025. Upon 

expiration, all steelhead that occur 

upstream of Round Butte Dam will be 

designated as threatened under the 

Endangered Species Act (ESA). This 

notice does not extend the upstream 

limit of existing critical habitat for MCR 

steelhead in the Deschutes River, nor 

does it designate new critical habitat. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Scott Carlon, Portland, Oregon, (971) 

322–7436, email: scott.carlon@noaa.gov. 


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