Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 226 / Friday, November 22, 2024 / Notices 92645 

convened to discuss the following 

topics: area-based management in the 

U.S.; tracking conservation progress; 

Indigenous-led conservation and costewardship; and various administrative 

and organizational matters. For the most 

up-to-date meeting times, agenda, and 

meeting materials, refer to the MCAM 

website at (https://

oceanservice.noaa.gov/ocean/marinecoastal-fac/meetings.html). 

II. Public Comment Instructions 

The meeting will be open to public 

comment (check the meeting agenda on 

the MCAM website to confirm the time 

for oral public comments). Written 

comments should be received by the 

Designated Federal Official by 

December 4, 2024, to provide sufficient 

time for Committee review. Written 

comments received after December 4, 

2024, will be distributed to the 

Committee, but may not be reviewed 

prior to the meeting date. To submit 

written comments, please email Ellie 

Roberts, ellie.roberts@noaa.gov. Written 

comments NOAA receives are 

considered part of the public record, 

and the entirety of the comment, 

including the name of the commenter, 

email address, attachments, and other 

supporting materials will be publicly 

accessible. Sensitive personally 

identifiable information, such as 

account numbers and Social Security 

numbers, should not be included with 

the comment. Do not submit comments 

that contain profanity, vulgarity, threats, 

or other inappropriate language. 

III. Special Accommodations 

This meeting is physically accessible 

to people with disabilities. Requests for 

sign language interpretation or other 

auxiliary aids should be directed to Ellie 

Roberts at ellie.roberts@noaa.gov, at 

least 5 days prior to the meeting date. 

John Armor, 

Designated Federal Official, Marine and 

Coastal Area-based Management Advisory 

Committee, Director, Office of National 

Marine Sanctuaries, National Ocean Service, 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2024–27386 Filed 11–21–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–NK–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XE465] 

Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to 

Specified Activities; Taking Marine 

Mammals Incidental to the Skagway 

Ore Terminal Redevelopment Project 

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 Municipality of Skagway 

(MOS) to incidentally harass marine 

mammals incidental to the terminal 

redevelopment project in Skagway, 

Alaska. 

DATES: This renewal IHA is valid from 

the date of issuance through September 

30, 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, 

please call the contact listed below. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jenna Harlacher, Office of Protected 

Resources, NMFS, (301) 427–8401. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The 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 IHA 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: 

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 


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92646 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 226 / Friday, November 22, 2024 / Notices 

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 August 29, 2023, NMFS issued an 

IHA to MOS to take marine mammals 

incidental to the terminal 

redevelopment project in Skagway, 

Alaska (88 FR 60652, September 5, 

2023), effective from October 1, 2023, 

through September 30, 2024. On 

February 5, 2024, NMFS received a 

request from MOS to modify the 2023 

IHA; adding 2 takes by Level A 

harassment and 45 takes by Level B 

harassment for northern fur seal, and to 

adjust take requests based on average 

species densities throughout the year 

due to work occurring in all seasons 

and, consequently, increasing 

authorized take by Level B harassment 

to 270 for Steller sea lion. On May 3, 

2024, NMFS issued MOS a modification 

of the initial 2023 IHA (89 FR 36765). 

On July 22, 2024, NMFS received an 

application for the renewal of the initial 

IHA (as modified). After discussions 

with MOS about the work to be 

conducted under the renewal IHA, we 

received a revised renewal request on 

September 30, 2024. As described in the 

application for renewal IHA, the 

activities for which incidental take is 

requested consist of a subset of the 

activities that were covered by the 

initial authorization but which were not 

completed prior to its expiration. As 

required, the applicant also provided a 

final monitoring report, available online 

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

action/incidental-take-authorizationmunicipality-skagways-skagway-oreterminal-redevelopment. The report 

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 IHA was published on October 

22, 2024 (89 FR 84333). 

Description of the Specified Activities 

and Anticipated Impacts 

MOS planned to redevelop the 

Skagway Ore Terminal in Skagway, 

Alaska, with 196 days of pile 

installation and removal. This project 

involved installation and removal of 36 

temporary steel pile guides, removal of 

692 piles, and installation of 244 

permanent steel piles. Two different 

installation methods were used: 

vibratory pile driving and impact pile 

driving. Due to unexpected delays, MOS 

did not complete the construction 

during the initial 1-year period, 

completing removal of 385 piles and 

installation of 101 piles. 

This renewal is to cover a subset of 

the activities covered in the initial IHA 

that was not completed during the 

effective IHA period and which is 

planned to occur during the effective 

period of the renewal IHA. Specifically, 

MOS plans to install two maximumdiameter 24-in piles and remove ten 

timber piles, which are necessary to 

stabilize a single existing fender. The 

remainder of the initially planned work 

would not be conducted under this 

renewal IHA. 

The likely or possible impacts of the 

MOS’s activity on marine mammals is 

unchanged from the impacts described 

in the initial IHA. Potential nonacoustic stressors could result from the 

physical presence of the equipment, 

vessels, and personnel; however, any 

impacts to marine mammals are 

expected to primarily be acoustic in 

nature. Sounds resulting from pile 

installation, removal, and drilling may 

result in the incidental take of marine 

mammals by Level A and Level B 

harassment in the form of auditory 

injury or behavioral harassment. 

Detailed Description of the Activity 

A detailed description of the 

construction activities for which take is 

authorized here may be found in the 

notices of the proposed and final IHAs 

for the initial authorization (88 FR 

23627, April 18, 2023; 88 FR 60652, 

September 5, 2023). As previously 

mentioned, this request is for a subset 

of the activities considered for the 

initial IHA that were not completed 

prior to its expiration and which are 

planned to occur under this renewal 

IHA. The location, timing, and nature of 

the activities, including the types of 

equipment planned for use, are identical 

to those described in the previous notice 

for the initial IHA. The renewal IHA 

would be effective from the date of 

issuance through September 30, 2025. 

Description of Marine Mammals 

A description of the marine mammals 

in the area of the activities for which 

authorization of take is authorized here, 

including information on abundance, 

status, distribution, and hearing, may be 

found in the notice of the proposed IHA 

for the initial authorization and the 

notice of issuance of a modified IHA (88 

FR 23627, April 18, 2023; 89 FR 36765, 

May 3, 2024). 

NMFS has reviewed the monitoring 

data from the initial IHA, recent draft 

Stock Assessment Reports, and 

determined that neither this nor any 

other new information affects which 

species have the potential to be affected 

or the pertinent information in the 

Description of the Marine Mammals in 

the Area of Specified Activities 

contained in the supporting documents 

for the initial IHA and modified IHA (88 

FR 23627, April 18, 2023; 89 FR 36765, 

May 3, 2024). 

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 

limited subset of activities for which the 

authorization of take is authorized here 

may be found in the notice of the 

proposed IHA for the initial 

authorization (88 FR 23627, April 18, 

2023). NMFS has reviewed the 

monitoring data from the initial IHA, 

recent draft Stock Assessment Reports, 

information on relevant unusual 

mortality events, and other scientific 

literature, and determined that neither 

this nor any other 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 and the 

notice of issuance of the modified IHA 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 226 / Friday, November 22, 2024 / Notices 92647 

(88 FR 23627, April 18, 2023; 88 FR 

60652, September 5, 2023; 89 FR 36765, 

May 3, 2024). Specifically, the action 

area and marine mammal density and 

occurrence data applicable to this 

authorization remain unchanged from 

the initial and modified IHA. Similarly, 

source levels, type of activity, methods 

of take, and types of take remain 

unchanged from the initial and 

modified IHA. However, there are 

changes to the estimated Level A 

harassment zones based on the revised 

amount of piles driven per day and the 

2024 Updated Technical Guidance, 

further discussed below. The estimated 

number of takes authorized is based on 

the subset of activities to be completed 

under this renewal IHA, and therefore 

represents a proportion of the initial 

authorized takes. These takes reflect the 

estimated remaining number of days of 

work and number of piles to be driven. 

Estimated take by Level A and Level B 

harassment was calculated using the 

same methodology as in the initial and 

modified IHA. 

On May 3, 2024, NMFS published (89 

FR 36762) and solicited public comment 

on its draft 2024 Updated Technical 

Guidance, which includes updated 

thresholds and weighting functions to 

inform auditory injury estimates, and 

once finalized replaced the 2018 

Technical Guidance referenced in the 

initial and modified IHA notices. The 

public comment period ended on June 

17, 2024, and the 2024 Updated 

Technical Guidance was finalized on 

October 24, 2024 (89 FR 84872). 

In this renewal, use of the 2024 

Updated Technical Guidance results in 

changes to the estimated Level A 

harassment zones, but there are no 

changes to the estimated Level B 

harassment zones (table 1). In the 

proposed renewal we compared the 

outcomes of the Updated Technical 

Guidance and there was not substantial 

differences for any species, so the, at the 

time, draft 2024 Updated Technical 

Guidance was used in the analysis. 

Therefor there are no changes from the 

proposed renewal IHA to the final 

renewal IHA. The updated Level A 

harassment zones are used to revise 

estimations of potential take by Level A 

harassment. In table 2, we have 

presented values based on the 

methodology that was included in the 

previous authorizations, incorporating 

the previously described changes 

(number of piles per day and the 

Updated Technical Guidance). Takes are 

a proportion of the initial authorized 

takes and based on the days of work 

included in this renewal IHA. 

Mitigation zones, in consideration of the 

updated isopleths, are discussed in the 

Mitigation section. 

TABLE 1—LEVEL A AND LEVEL B HARASSMENT ISOPLETHS (m) FOR IMPACT AND VIBRATORY PILE DRIVING

Activity 

Level A harassment zone 

(m) 1

Level B 

harassment 

zone 

LF HF VHF Phocids Otariids (m) 

24-in steel pile, Impact Installation .......... 1,970.4 251.4 3,049.2 1,750.4 652.5 857.7 

24-in steel pile,* Vibratory Installation 

and Removal ........................................ 5.6 2.2 4.6 7.2 2.4 3,981 

14-in timber pile, Vibratory Removal ....... 3.7 1.4 3 4.7 1.6 3,415 

1Zones are based on the 2024 Updated Technical Guidance, further described above. This is new information that was not available at the 

time of the initial and modified IHA. Species groups have also been re-named in the Updated Technical Guidance. 

* Based on the up to 30-in piles included in the initial IHA that also included pile sizes: 10.75-in, 14-in, 16-in, 20-in, 24-in, 28-in, and 30-in. 

TABLE 2—AMOUNT OF TAKING, BY LEVEL A AND LEVEL B HARASSMENT, BY SPECIES AND STOCK AND PERCENT OF TAKE

BY STOCK

Species Stock 

Initial IHA 

authorized 

Level A take 

Initial IHA 

authorized 

Level B take 

Renewal Level 

A take 

Renewal Level 

B take 

Percent of 

stock 

Humpback Whale Hawaii ................................................ 2 13 0 * 2 <1 

Mexico—North Pacific ....................... 0 1 0 0 0 

Minke Whale ........ Alaska ................................................ 2 6 0 * 1 <1 

Killer Whale 1 ....... Eastern North Pacific, Northern Residents, Southeast Alaska + Eastern 

North Pacific, Alaska Residents + 

West Coast Transients + Gulf, 

Aleutian, Bering Sea Transients.

2 90 0 * 25 <1 

Dall’s Porpoise ..... Alaska ................................................ 43 193 0 4 <1 

Harbor Porpoise ... Northern Southeast Alaska Inland 

Waters.

17 75 0 * 2 <1 

Harbor Seal .......... Alaska—Lynn Canal/Stephens Passage.193 2,760 11 54 <1 

Steller Sea Lion ... Eastern U.S. + Western U.S ............. 2 270 0 10 <1 

Northern Fur Seal Pribilof Islands/Eastern Pacific stock 2 45 0 3 <1 

* Rounded up to assumed average group size based on Dahlheim et al., 2009. 1 Dahlheim et al. (2009) observed mean group sizes of 25 (resident ecotype) and 5 (transient ecotype) for killer whales in Southeast Alaska. 

While MOS observed only two killer whales during the initial IHA, it is possible that a larger group could enter the area during the renewal 

activities. 

Description of Mitigation, Monitoring 

and Reporting Measures 

The mitigation, monitoring, and 

reporting measures included as 

requirements in this authorization are 

substantially similar to those included 

in the FR notice announcing the 

issuance of the initial IHA, and the 

discussion of the least practicable 

adverse impact included in that 

document remains accurate (88 FR 

60652, September 5, 2023). The only 


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changes from the initial IHA are to the 

required shutdown zones and the 

removal of the acoustic monitoring 

requirement. The required shutdown 

zones (table 3) changed due to the 

changes in Level A harassment zone 

distances (table 1). As the initial IHA 

required shutdown zones equal to the 

Level A harassment zones, we retain 

that approach to mitigation in reflection 

of the new zones updated on the basis 

of the best scientific information 

available. Additionally, acoustic 

monitoring (as was required through the 

initial IHA) is not planned here, due to 

the minimal pile driving planned under 

this renewal IHA. 

TABLE 3—SHUTDOWN AND MONITORING ZONES

Activity 

Minimum shutdown zone (m) Harassment 

zone 

LF cetacean HF cetacean VHF cetacean Phocids Otariids (m) 

24-in steel pile, Impact Installation .......... 1,975 255 3,050 1,755 655 860 

24-in steel pile, Vibratory Installation and 

Removal ............................................... 10 10 10 10 10 3,985 

14-in timber pile, Vibratory Removal ....... 10 10 10 10 10 3,415 

The following mitigation, monitoring, 

and reporting measures for this renewal 

are: 

• The MOS must avoid direct 

physical interaction with marine 

mammals during construction activity. 

If a marine mammal comes within 10- 

m of such activity, operations must 

cease and vessels must reduce speed to 

the minimum level required to maintain 

steerage and safe working conditions, as 

necessary to avoid direct physical 

interaction; 

• Conduct training between 

construction supervisors and crews and 

the marine mammal monitoring team 

and relevant MOS staff prior to the start 

of all pile driving activity and when 

new personnel join the work, so that 

responsibilities, communication 

procedures, monitoring protocols, and 

operational procedures are clearly 

understood; 

• Pile driving activity must be halted 

upon observation of either a species for 

which incidental take is not authorized 

or a species for which incidental take 

has been authorized but the authorized 

number of takes has been met, entering 

or within the harassment zone; 

• MOS will establish and implement 

the shutdown zones. The purpose of a 

shutdown zone is generally to define an 

area within which shutdown of the 

activity would occur upon sighting of a 

marine mammal (or in anticipation of an 

animal entering the defined area). 

Shutdown zones typically vary based on 

the activity type and marine mammal 

hearing group; 

• Monitoring must take place from 30 

minutes prior to initiation of 

construction activity (i.e., pre-start 

clearance monitoring) through 30 

minutes post-completion of 

construction activity; 

• Pre-start clearance monitoring must 

be conducted during periods of 

visibility sufficient for the lead 

Protected Species Observer (PSO) to 

determine the shutdown zones clear of 

marine mammals. Construction may 

commence when the determination is 

made; 

• If construction is delayed or halted 

due to the presence of a marine 

mammal, the activity may not 

commence or resume until either the 

animal has voluntarily exited and been 

visually confirmed beyond the 

shutdown zone or 15 minutes have 

passed without re-detection of the 

animal; 

• MOS must use soft start techniques 

when impact pile driving. Soft start 

requires contractors and equipment to 

slowly approach the work site creating 

a visual disturbance allowing animals in 

close proximity to construction 

activities a chance to leave the area 

prior to stone resetting or new stone 

placement. A soft start must be 

implemented at the start of each day’s 

construction activity and at any time 

following cessation of activity for a 

period of 30 minutes or longer; 

• The MOS must employ up to four 

PSOs to monitor the shutdown and 

Level B harassment zones during pile 

driving activities; 

• Monitoring will be conducted 30 

minutes before, during, and 30 minutes 

after construction activities. In addition, 

observers shall record all incidents of 

marine mammal occurrence, regardless 

of distance from activity, and shall 

document any behavioral reactions in 

concert with distance from construction 

activity; 

• The MOS must submit a draft report 

detailing all monitoring within 90 

calendar days of the completion of 

marine mammal monitoring or 60 days 

prior to the issuance of any subsequent 

IHA for this project, whichever comes 

first; 

• The MOS must prepare and submit 

final report within 30 days following 

resolution of comments on the draft 

report from NMFS; 

• The MOS must submit all PSO 

datasheets and/or raw sighting data (in 

a separate file from the Final Report 

referenced immediately above); and 

• The MOS must report injured or 

dead marine mammals. 

Comments and Responses 

A notice of NMFS’ proposal to issue 

a renewal IHA to MOS was published in 

the Federal Register October 22, 2024 

(89 FR 84333). That notice either 

described, or referenced descriptions of, 

the MOS’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 

The renewal request consists of a 

subset of activities analyzed through the 

initial authorization described above. In 

analyzing the effects of the activities for 

the initial IHA, NMFS determined that 

MOS’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 substantially 

similar to those required through initial 

IHA; hydroacoustic monitoring is 

excluded because it was completed 

under the initial IHA, and the shutdown 

zones have been revised to reflect the 

piles to be driven in the subset of work. 

The minor changes described above do 

not affect the least practicable adverse 

impact determinations. 

NMFS has concluded that there is no 

new information suggesting that our 

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 


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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; (4) 

MOS’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 

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 action 

(i.e., the issuance of an IHA renewal) 

with respect to potential impacts on the 

human environment. 

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 to be categorically 

excluded from further NEPA review. 

NMFS has determined that the 

application of this categorical exclusion 

remains appropriate for this renewal 

IHA. 

Endangered Species Act 

The NMFS Alaska Regional Office 

issued a Biological Opinion under 

section 7 of the Endangered Species Act 

(ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) on the 

issuance of an IHA and potential 

renewal IHA to MOS under section 

101(a)(5)(D) of the MMPA by the NMFS 

OPR. The Biological Opinion concluded 

that the action is not likely to jeopardize 

the continued existence of ESA-listed 

humpback whales or Steller sea lions. 

Renewal 

NMFS has issued a renewal IHA to 

MOS for the take of marine mammals 

incidental to conducting the terminal 

redevelopment construction in 

Skagway, Alaska, from the date of 

issuance through September 30, 2025. 

Dated: November 19, 2024. 

Kimberly Damon-Randall, 

Director, Office of Protected Resources, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2024–27442 Filed 11–21–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XE479] 

Pacific Fishery Management Council; 

Public Meetings 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of public meetings. 

SUMMARY: The Pacific Fishery 

Management Council (Pacific Council) 

will convene a series of three online 

meetings of its Advisory Bodies to 

discuss Pacific Council projects funded 

under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA); 

all three meetings are open to the 

public. 

DATES: The online meetings will be held 

on Wednesday, December 11, 2024, 

from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Pacific time, or 

until business for the day is completed; 

Friday, December 13, 2024, from 12 

p.m. to 4 p.m., or until business for the 

day is completed; and Tuesday, 

December 17, 2024, from 12 p.m. to 4 

p.m., or until business for the day is 

completed. 

ADDRESSES: These meetings will be held 

online. Specific meeting information, 

including directions on how to join the 

meetings and system requirements, will 

be provided in the meeting 

announcement on the Pacific Council’s 

website (see www.pcouncil.org). You 

may send an email to Mr. Kris 

Kleinschmidt (kris.kleinschmidt@

noaa.gov) or contact him at (503) 820– 

2412 for technical assistance. 

Council address: Pacific Fishery 

Management Council, 7700 NE 

Ambassador Place, Suite 101, Portland, 

OR 97220–1384. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Gilly Lyons, Staff Officer, Pacific 

Council; telephone: (503) 820–2427. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Pacific Council will hold a series of 

three online meetings to discuss its IRA 

projects and associated project planning 

and development. Members of Advisory 

Bodies in attendance may also discuss 

project timelines, work products, 

milestones, and Advisory Body roles 

and responsibilities. Each meeting will 

focus on a separate IRA project: 

December 11—Innovating the 

Implementation of Council Actions to 

Respond to a Dynamic Ocean 

Environment; December 13— 

Considering the Effects of Council 

Management Actions on Human WellBeing in Vulnerable Fishing 

Communities Impacted by a Changing 

Marine Ecosystem; and December 17— 

Developing Climate-Ready Fishing 

Methods that Mitigate Bycatch of NonTarget, Associated Species in a 

Changing Ecosystem. Detailed meeting 

agendas will be available on the Pacific 

Council’s website prior to the meeting. 

Although non-emergency issues not 

contained in the meeting agenda may be 

discussed, those issues may not be the 

subject of formal action during these 

meetings. Action will be restricted to 

those issues specifically listed in this 

document and any issues arising after 

publication of this document that 

require emergency action under section 

305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act, 

provided the public has been notified of 

the intent to take final action to address 

the emergency. 

Special Accommodations 

Requests for sign language 

interpretation or other auxiliary aids 

should be directed to Mr. Kris 

Kleinschmidt (kris.kleinschmidt@

noaa.gov; (503) 820–2412) at least 10 

days prior to the meeting date. 

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

Dated: November 18, 2024. 

Rey Israel Marquez, 

Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2024–27370 Filed 11–21–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XE451] 

Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to 

Specified Activities; Taking Marine 

Mammals Incidental to Pacific Gas & 

Electric Sediment Remediation Project, 

San Francisco Bay 

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 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1