Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 56 / Tuesday, March 24, 2015 / Notices 15563 

the Kattegat inward (south/east) to and 

including the Baltic Sea proper. 

Significance 

The identified discrete Baltic 

subpopulation does not persist in an 

ecological setting unusual or unique for 

the taxon. Differences seen in harbor 

porpoise morphological characteristics 

(skull and tooth analyses) may be 

related to differences in environment, 

but available information is not 

informative enough at this point to link 

these characteristics to distinct habitats 

or specific adaptations at present. The 

habitat utilization reported for the Baltic 

harbor porpoise does not differ from 

general descriptions of the species’ 

habitat preference. They are found in 

the shallow coastal areas of the Baltic 

region and their preference for shallow 

water calving and nursing does not 

differ from the general preference of the 

species. The opportunistic feeding 

nature of the Baltic harbor porpoise also 

does not show it to persist in a unique 

ecological setting. They target high lipid 

content fish to fulfill large energetic 

requirements, similar to the general 

preference of the species. 

There are insufficient data to 

conclude that loss of the identified 

discrete Baltic subpopulation would 

result in a significant gap in the range 

of the taxon. The Baltic subpopulation 

comprises only a small geographic area 

in the total range of the species and 

even the subspecies. There are 

purported to be around ten other 

subpopulations in the North Atlantic 

(Tolley et al., 1999) and other harbor 

porpoise populations in the North 

Pacific and Black Sea. Additionally, 

available information reveals movement 

and some level of gene flow throughout 

the Baltic region through evidence of 

shared haplotypes, which is discussed 

further below. Although there are 

caveats to determining the exact level of 

mixing between the North Sea and 

Baltic region (and vice versa), there is 

evidence to show at least some level of 

mixing, such that a loss of the Baltic 

subpopulation would not lead to a 

significant gap in the range of the taxon. 

There is evidence of continued 

admixture and gene flow between these 

regions. This gene flow may be 

sustained by the high dispersal capacity 

and movement of these animals, and the 

lack of obvious physical barriers 

between the regions. 

While multiple studies confirm 

divergence between individuals from 

the North Sea and those inhabiting the 

Baltic region past the Kattegat Sea, the 

absolute extent of divergence is 

consistently weak. For instance, all 

analyses of mitochondrial haplotype 

distribution have revealed shared 

haplotypes throughout the region, even 

across the Kattegat ‘transition zone’ 

(Tiedemann et al., 1996; Wang and 

Berggren, 1997; Wiemann et al., 2010). 

In Wiemann et al. (2010), an abrupt shift 

in microsatellite haplotype distribution 

was observed between the North Sea 

and Baltic region past the Kattegat Sea, 

but the two most abundant haplotypes 

only differ by a single point mutation. 

No physical barrier exists between the 

Kattegat and the North Sea, porpoises 

are known to move long distances 

(Teilmann et al., 2009), and evidence 

suggests that genetic connectivity can 

occur among harbor porpoises separated 

thousands of kilometers in the North 

Atlantic (Tolley et al., 1999; Fontaine et 

al., 2007). So, while the weak 

divergence (separating the North Sea 

from the Baltic region) is well 

supported, continued genetic exchange, 

connectivity, and ongoing reproduction 

among animals throughout the region is 

likely. 

There is no evidence that the 

identified discrete Baltic subpopulation 

represents the only surviving natural 

occurrence of a taxon that may be more 

abundant elsewhere as an introduced 

population outside its historical range. 

Harbor porpoises are historically 

widespread in the northern hemisphere. 

As stated previously, within the North 

Atlantic subspecies, genetic studies 

differentiate harbor porpoises between 

the Eastern and Western Atlantic, with 

some level of mixing. The Baltic 

subpopulation does not represent the 

only surviving natural occurrence of a 

taxon that may be more abundant 

elsewhere as an introduced population 

outside its historical range, as there are 

clearly many other existing natural 

populations. 

There is no evidence that the 

identified discrete Baltic population 

differs markedly from other populations 

of the species in its genetic 

characteristics. The attachment of skull 

characters to unique environments or 

conditions would show evidence of 

adaptive genetic characteristics; 

however, the available harbor porpoise 

skull information from the Baltic region 

does not definitively attach characters to 

environmental connections to show that 

any skull differences are adaptive. One 

harbor porpoise skull study suggests 

that skull morphology could be attached 

to particular environments or conditions 

(Galatius et al., 2012). However, this is 

not supported by the weight of genetic 

evidence and is not even supported by 

other skull analyses, as they did not test 

adaptive skull characteristics and attach 

them to local or unique environmental 

conditions in the Baltic region. In 

addition, we did not find much 

discussion in the available literature 

about how differences in skull character 

for harbor porpoises may relate to 

adaptation to a particular prey item. 

Most of these skull studies attempt to 

delineate a population structure without 

testing the attachment of particular skull 

distinctions or characteristics. 

Conclusion Regarding Significance 

In conclusion, we find that the Baltic 

harbor porpoise subpopulation, while it 

may be discrete, does not meet any 

factors under the significance criterion. 

As such, we conclude that the Baltic 

harbor porpoise subpopulation is not a 

DPS as defined by our joint DPS Policy. 

Finding 

We find that the Baltic harbor 

porpoise subpopulation does not meet 

the DPS Policy criteria for qualifying as 

a DPS. Therefore, listing the petitioned 

entity under the ESA is not warranted. 

References Cited 

A complete list of all references cited 

in this notice can be found on our Web 

site and is available upon request (see 

ADDRESSES). 

Authority 

The authority for this action is the 

Endangered Species Act of 1973, as 

amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). 

Dated: March 18, 2015. 

Samuel D. Rauch, III, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2015–06749 Filed 3–23–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22––P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Institute of Standards and 

Technology 

Synthetic Biology Standards 

Consortium—Kick-off Workshop 

AGENCY: National Institute of Standards 

& Technology (NIST), Department of 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of public workshop. 

SUMMARY: NIST announces the 

Synthetic Biology Standards 

Consortium (SBSC)—Kick-off Workshop 

to be held on Tuesday March 31, 2015 

from 9 a.m.–4:30 p.m. Pacific time. The 

SBSC will be convened as a standards 

setting consortium focused on the 

shared standards development needs of 

consortium participants. It will provide 

safe harbor for collaborative work 

through the formation of technical 

standards-setting working groups. 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

15564 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 56 / Tuesday, March 24, 2015 / Notices 

Successful working groups will be 

organized around a clear vision of 

specific metrology products—standards, 

including reference materials, reference 

data, reference methods, and 

documentary standards—that will 

enable interoperability and 

reproducibility. The goal of the 

workshop is to identify several initial 

working groups with critical mass, 

leadership teams, and a clear path 

forward to deliver standards that 

support the growth of the bioeconomy. 

DATES: The Synthetic Biology Standards 

Consortium Kick-Off meeting will be 

held on Tuesday, March 31, 2015 from 

9 a.m.–4:30 p.m. Pacific time. 

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at 

Li Ka Shing Conference Center at 

Stanford University, 291 Campus Drive, 

Stanford, CA 94305. To register, go to 

http://tinyurl.com/sbsc-0315. There is 

no registration fee. Space is limited so 

please register early. Travel and parking 

information can be found on the 

registration page listed above. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

further information contact Matthew 

Munson by email at mmunson@nist.gov 

or by phone at (650) 690–6761, or Sarah 

Munro by email at smunro@nist.gov or 

by phone at (650) 690–6796, or Marc 

Salit by email at salit@nist.gov or by 

phone at (650) 350–2338. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Synthetic 

biology will realize its full contributions 

to the bioeconomy when a robust 

metrology infrastructure is in place to 

enable coordination of labor and reuse 

of materials. Metrology products— 

standards, including reference 

materials, reference data, reference 

methods, and documentary standards— 

can enable business-to-business 

transactions at scale. The NIST-hosted 

Synthetic Biology Standards 

Consortium (SBSC) will collectively 

build the infrastructure to support a 

fully integrated global synthetic biology 

enterprise. NIST will provide standards 

development support for some 

consortium activities, as well as 

facilitation and technical leadership. 

The SBSC will be convened as a 

standards setting consortium focused on 

the shared standards development 

needs of consortium members. It will 

provide safe harbor for collaborative 

work through the formation of technical 

standards-setting working groups. 

Successful working groups will be 

organized around a clear vision of 

specific metrology products that will 

enable interoperability and 

reproducibility. 

Example metrology products might 

include a reference material such as a 

standard proteome set from whole cell 

lysates to be used as a benchmark for 

mass spectroscopy; reference data such 

as a DNA watermark repository; a 

reference method for DNA sequence 

verification; and a documentary 

standard for minimum information 

standards for biological protocol 

interoperability. 

The goal of the workshop is to 

identify several initial working groups 

with critical mass, leadership teams, 

and a clear path forward to deliver 

standards. Participants are invited to 

put forth proposals—your input is 

essential to the success of this work. 

Some candidate working groups are 

listed on the registration page. Proposals 

for working groups are strongly solicited 

and may be contributed via the 

workshop registration page (http:// 

tinyurl.com/sbsc-0315), SBSC Trello 

page (http://tinyurl.com/NIST–SBSC), or 

email to the NIST team (sbsc@nist.gov). 

The portfolio of working groups and the 

technical projects within working 

groups will be dynamic as needs shift 

and arise. 

At present, we expect that the 

workshop will conclude with: 

• A prioritized list of working groups 

with well-defined customers, scope, 

and initial products 

• Working group leadership teams to 

begin to coordinate technical 

implementation 

• A plan for continued engagement 

within the consortium, including 

ways of working together 

• Establishment of consortium 

operations, e.g., steering committee 

and advisory board 

The SBSC—Kick-off Workshop will 

be held on Tuesday March 31, 2015 

from 9:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m. Pacific time. 

The workshop will be held in the Li Ka 

Shing Conference Center at Stanford 

University in Stanford, California. To 

register, go to http://tinyurl.com/sbsc0315. There is no registration fee. Space 

is limited so please register early. Travel 

and parking information can be found 

on the registration page listed above. 

There is no cost for participating in 

the consortium or the workshop. No 

proprietary information will be shared 

at the workshop. 

Richard Cavanagh, 

Acting Associate Director for Laboratory 

Programs. 

[FR Doc. 2015–06839 Filed 3–20–15; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

Proposed Information Collection; 

Comment Request; Economic Survey 

of Gulf of Mexico (GOM) Captains and 

Crew Associated With the Gulf of 

Mexico (GOM) Grouper-Tilefish 

Individual Fishing Quota (GT–IFQ) 

Program 

AGENCY: National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Department of 

Commerce, as part of its continuing 

effort to reduce paperwork and 

respondent burden, invites the general 

public and other Federal agencies to 

take this opportunity to comment on 

proposed and/or continuing information 

collections, as required by the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

submitted on or before May 26, 2015. 

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments 

to Jennifer Jessup, Departmental 

Paperwork Clearance Officer, 

Department of Commerce, Room 6616, 

14th and Constitution Avenue NW., 

Washington, DC 20230 (or via the 

Internet at JJessup@doc.gov). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Requests for additional information or 

copies of the information collection 

instrument and instructions should be 

directed to Dr. Larry Perruso, (305) 361– 

4278 or Larry.perruso@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract 

This request is for a new information 

collection. 

The National Marine Fisheries Service 

(NMFS) proposes to collect economic 

and attitudinal data from hired captains 

and crew regarding the performance of 

the GOM Grouper-Tilefish IFQ Program 

five years after its implementation. 

These data will be used to estimate the 

effects of the GT–IFQ Program on these 

stakeholders for the five-year program 

review mandated by the MagnusonStevens Fishery Conservation and 

Management Act (U.S.C. 1801 et seq.). 

The population targeted by the 

economic survey is hired captains and 

crew that participate in the GOM 

Grouper-Tilefish fishery. In addition, 

the information will be used to 

strengthen and improve fishery 

management decision-making, and 

satisfy legal mandates under Executive 

Order 12866, the Regulatory Flexibility 

Act, the Endangered Species Act, the 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES