13984 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 48 / Friday, March 11, 2022 / Notices 

Background 

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 issued or, if the taking is 

limited to harassment, a notice of a 

proposed authorization is provided to 

the public for review. 

An authorization for incidental 

takings shall 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 (where 

relevant), and if the permissible 

methods of taking and requirements 

pertaining to the mitigation, monitoring 

and reporting of such takings 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. 

The MMPA states that the term ‘‘take’’ 

means to harass, hunt, capture, kill or 

attempt to harass, hunt, capture, or kill 

any marine mammal. 

Except with respect to certain 

activities not pertinent here, the MMPA 

defines ‘‘harassment’’ as: Any act of 

pursuit, torment, or annoyance which (i) 

has the potential to injure a marine 

mammal or marine mammal stock in the 

wild (Level A harassment); or (ii) 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 (Level B 

harassment). 

Summary of Request 

On February 11, 2022, NMFS received 

an adequate and complete application 

from CDFW requesting authorization for 

take of marine mammals incidental to 

IEP monitoring and research activities 

in the San Francisco Bay-Delta Estuary, 

California. The requested regulations 

would be valid for 5 years. The 

proposed action includes the use of 

fishing research gear (e.g., nets, trawls, 

setlines, and fykes) that may result in 

marine mammal interactions resulting 

in Level A harassment, serious injury or 

mortality. Therefore, CDFW requests 

authorization to incidentally take 

marine mammals. 

Specified Activities 

The IEP consists of multiple State and 

Federal agencies operating in the San 

Francisco Bay and Sacramento-San 

Joaquin Delta. The IEP has been 

conducting cooperative ecological 

investigations since the 1970s. IEP 

agencies partner with non-governmental 

organizations that work together to 

develop a better understanding of the 

Bay-Delta estuary’s fish and wildlife, 

water quality, hydrodynamics and 

impacts of human activities on ecology. 

IEP’s key studies specifically address 

the effects of the State Water Project and 

Federal Central Valley Project water 

project operations on the Delta and San 

Francisco Estuary. Many of the surveys 

monitor abundance and distribution of 

fish so to reduce entrainment risk at the 

water project export facilities in the 

south Delta. 

IEP fish monitoring studies include 

use of various gears including midwater, 

otter, and Kodiak trawls (trawls), gill 

and trammel nets, purse seines and 

Lampara nets (nets), setlines and 

longlines (setlines), and hoop and fyke 

traps (fykes) that could result in 

incidental take via entanglement by net 

mesh, entrapment by fyke, or hooking 

by setlines. IEP studies also use a 

variety of other gears, such as backpack 

or boat mounted electrofishers, larval 

fish trawl nets, zooplankton nets, water 

samplers and instrumentation (acoustic 

receivers, water quality sondes, etc.) 

that are not expected to result in take of 

marine mammals. 

Information Solicited 

Interested persons may submit 

information, suggestions, and comments 

concerning CDFW’s request (see 

ADDRESSES). NMFS will consider all 

information, suggestions, and comments 

related to the request during the 

development of proposed regulations 

governing the incidental taking of 

marine mammals by CDFW, if 

appropriate. 

Dated: March 8, 2022. 

Kimberly Damon-Randall, 

Director, Office of Protected Resources, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2022–05225 Filed 3–10–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XB870] 

Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative 

Management Act Provisions; General 

Provisions for Domestic Fisheries; 

Application for Exempted Fishing 

Permits 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: The Assistant Regional 

Administrator for Sustainable Fisheries, 

Greater Atlantic Region, NMFS, has 

made a preliminary determination that 

an Exempted Fishing Permit application 

contains all of the required information 

and warrants further consideration. The 

Exempted Fishing Permit would allow 

commercial fishing vessels to fish 

outside fishery regulations in support of 

research conducted by the applicant. 

Regulations under the MagnusonStevens Fishery Conservation and 

Management Act and the Atlantic 

Coastal Fisheries Cooperative 

Management Act require publication of 

this notification to provide interested 

parties the opportunity to comment on 

applications for proposed Exempted 

Fishing Permits. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before March 28, 2022. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit written 

comments by the following method: 

• Email: nmfs.gar.efp@noaa.gov. 

Include in the subject line ‘‘AOLA Early 

Benthic-Phase Lobster Trap EFP.’’ 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Laura Deighan, Fishery Management 

Specialist, Laura.Deighan@noaa.gov, 

(978) 281–9184. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Atlantic Offshore Lobstermen’s 

Association submitted a complete 

application for an Exempted Fishing 

Permit (EFP) to conduct commercial 

fishing activities that the regulations 

would otherwise restrict to pilot test a 

single early benthic-phase (EBP) lobster 

trap, which targets lobsters between 15- 

and 50-millimeter carapace length, to 

determine its feasibility for broader use 

in lobster surveys. This EFP would 

exempt the participating vessel from the 

Federal regulations described in Table 

1. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 48 / Friday, March 11, 2022 / Notices 13985 

TABLE 1—REQUESTED EXEMPTIONS

Citation Regulation Need for exemption 

50 CFR 697.21(c) and 

§ 697.21(d).

Gear specification requirements ....... To allow for the use a modified trap with no escape vents or ghost panels. 

§ 697.19 ................................. Trap limit requirements ..................... To allow for one additional trap. 

§ 697.19(j) .............................. Trap tag requirements ...................... To allow for the use of an untagged trap. 

§§ 697.20(a)(7), 697.20(a)(8), 

697.20(b)(5), 697.20(b)(6), 

697.20(d), and 697.20(g).

Possession restrictions ..................... To allow for onboard biological sampling of undersized, oversized, vnotched, and egg-bearing lobsters. 

§ 697.21(a) ............................. Gear identification and marking requirements.To allow for the use of an unmarked trap. 

This project would use one federally 

permitted lobster vessel to pilot test the 

use of an EBP lobster trap in Lobster 

Management Area 3 (Statistical Areas 

561, 562, and 522) between May 1, 

2022, and November 1, 2022. The EBP 

trap is an 80-centimeter square trap 

based on a modified crawfish trap. It has 

four square openings, measuring less 

than two inches, which lead to ramps 

that drop the lobsters into a baited 

kitchen. Inside the trap, there are 

additional ramps that lead the lobsters 

to four cylindrical parlors with vertical 

openings. The trap is attached to cement 

runners that provide weight and 

maintain proper orientation. 

The participants would place the EBP 

trap on one of their existing trawls and 

haul it every 7–14 days during the 

course of the vessel’s normal fishing 

activity. At each haul, the participants 

would record and immediately release 

all bycatch and measure, sex, and 

release all lobsters from the EBP trap. 

The project would include no more than 

26 experimental hauls. In addition to 

the EBP trap, the vessel would fish with 

its full allotted number of standard 

traps, but the total number of traps 

would remain less than the Area 3 trap 

cap. Participants would land and sell 

the legal catch from the standard traps. 

The goal of this project is to test the 

selectivity of the EBP trap (versus 

ventless traps that often catch eel and 

crab) and the scalability of its use. If 

successful, EBP traps could be used in 

lobster surveys to provide information 

about larval settlement patterns and 

juvenile nursery grounds. 

If approved, the applicant may 

request minor modifications and 

extensions to the EFP throughout the 

year. EFP modifications and extensions 

may be granted without further notice if 

they are deemed essential to facilitate 

completion of the proposed research 

and have minimal impacts that do not 

change the scope or impact of the 

initially approved EFP request. Any 

fishing activity conducted outside the 

scope of the exempted fishing activity 

would be prohibited. 

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

Dated: March 7, 2022. 

Ngagne Jafnar Gueye, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2022–05118 Filed 3–10–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XB874] 

Marine Mammals and Endangered 

Species 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; issuance of permits. 

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that 

permits have been issued to the 

following entities under the Marine 

Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and 

the Endangered Species Act (ESA), as 

applicable. 

ADDRESSES: The permits and related 

documents are available for review 

upon written request via email to 

NMFS.Pr1Comments@noaa.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Erin 

Markin (Permit No. 25870) and Amy 

Hapeman (Permit No. 26024); at (301) 

427–8401. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notices 

were published in the Federal Register 

on the dates listed below that requests 

for a permit had been submitted by the 

below-named applicants. To locate the 

Federal Register notice that announced 

our receipt of the application and a 

complete description of the activities, go 

to www.federalregister.gov and search 

on the permit number provided in Table 

1 below. 

TABLE 1—ISSUED PERMITS

Permit No. RTID Applicant Previous Federal Register 

notice Issuance date 

25870 ................ 0648–XB500 Harold Brundage, Environmental Research and Consulting, 

Inc., 325 Market Street, Lewes, DE 19958.

86 FR 56692; October 12, 

2021.

2/8/2022 

26024 ................ 0648–XB623 Ocean Futures Society, 513 De La Vina Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101 (Responsible Party: Jean-Michel 

Cousteau).

86 FR 69632; December 8, 

2021.

2/28/2022 

In compliance with the National 

Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), a final 

determination has been made that the 

activities proposed are categorically 

excluded from the requirement to 

prepare an environmental assessment or 

environmental impact statement. 

As required by the ESA, as applicable, 

issuance of these permit was based on 

a finding that such permits: (1) Were 

applied for in good faith; (2) will not 

operate to the disadvantage of such 

endangered species; and (3) are 

consistent with the purposes and 


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