[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 54 (Monday, March 21, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15942-15944]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-05947]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[RTID 0648-XB890]


Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals 
Incidental to Construction and Operation of the Revolution Wind 
Offshore Wind Farm Offshore of Rhode Island

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

[[Page 15943]]

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice; receipt of application for regulations and letter of 
authorization; request for comments and information.

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SUMMARY: NMFS has received a request from Revolution Wind, LLC 
(Revolution Wind), a subsidiary of [Oslash]rsted Wind Power North 
America, LLC's ([Oslash]rsted), for authorization to take small numbers 
of marine mammals incidental to construction and operation activities 
associated with the Revolution Wind Offshore Wind Farm in Revolution 
Wind's lease area on the Outer Continental Shelf (OSC-A 0468) offshore 
of Rhode Island over the course of 5 years beginning in 2023. Pursuant 
to regulations implementing the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), 
NMFS is announcing receipt of Revolution Wind's request for the 
development and implementation of regulations governing the incidental 
taking of marine mammals and issuance of a Letter of Authorization 
(LOA). NMFS invites the public to provide information, suggestions, and 
comments on Revolution Wind's application and request.

DATES: Comments and information must be received no later than April 
20, 2022.

ADDRESSES: Comments on the applications should be addressed to Jolie 
Harrison, Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service and should be sent to 
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#6c25383c42291f0f042c02030d0d420b031a"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="7c35282c52390f1f143c12131d1d521b130a">[email protected]</span></a>.
    Instructions: NMFS is not responsible for comments sent by any 
other method, to any other address or individual, or received after the 
end of the comment period. Comments received electronically, including 
all attachments, must not exceed a 25-megabyte file size. Attachments 
to electronic comments will be accepted in Microsoft Word or Excel or 
Adobe PDF file formats only. All comments received are a part of the 
public record and will generally be posted online at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-protection/incidental-take-authorizations-other-energy-activities-renewable without change. 
All personal identifying information (e.g., name, address) voluntarily 
submitted by the commenter may be publicly accessible. Do not submit 
confidential business information or otherwise sensitive or protected 
information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carter Esch, Office of Protected 
Resources, NMFS, (301) 427-8421. An electronic copy of Revolution 
Wind's application may be obtained online at: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-protection/incidental-take-authorizations-other-energy-activities-renewable. In case of 
problems accessing these documents, please email the contact listed 
above.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

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 incidental take authorization 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 October 8, 2021, NMFS received an application from Revolution 
Wind requesting authorization for the taking of marine mammals 
incidental to construction and operation activities related to the 
development of the Revolution Wind Offshore Wind Farm offshore of Rhode 
Island in Commercial Lease (OCS-A-0486). In response to our comments, 
and following extensive information exchange with NMFS, Revolution Wind 
submitted a revised application on February 23, 2022, that we 
determined was adequate and complete on February 28, 2022. Revolution 
Wind requested the regulations and subsequent LOA be valid for five 
years beginning in 2023.
    Revolution Wind considered the following activities associated with 
Wind Farm construction and operation in its application: Impact 
installation of monopiles for wind turbine generators (WTG) 
foundations; impact installation of monopiles for offshore sub-station 
(OSS) foundations; potential detonations of unexploded ordnances 
(UXOs); construction of temporary cofferdams or casing pipes with 
support sheet piles at the sea-to-shore transitions, which includes 
vibratory installation and removal of sheet piles and pneumatic 
hammering installation and removal of casing pipes; site 
characterization surveys; fisheries monitoring; placement of scour 
protection; and export cable and inter-array cable trenching, laying, 
and burial. Vessels will be used to transport crew, supplies, and 
materials within the Project area and to the Wind Farm location to 
support pile installation. A subset of these activities (i.e., 
installing and removing piles and casing pipes using impact and 
vibratory hammers, UXO detonation, and site characterization surveys) 
may result in the taking, by Level A harassment and Level B harassment, 
of marine mammals. Therefore, Revolution Wind requests authorization to 
incidentally take marine mammals.

Specified Activities

    In Executive Order 14008, President Biden stated that it is the 
policy of the United States to organize and deploy the full capacity of 
its agencies to combat the climate crisis to implement a Government-
wide approach that reduces climate pollution in every sector of the 
economy; increases resilience to the impacts of climate change; 
protects public health; conserves our lands, waters, and biodiversity; 
delivers environmental justice; and spurs well-paying union jobs and 
economic growth, especially through innovation, commercialization, and 
deployment of clean energy technologies and infrastructure.
    Through a competitive leasing process under 30 CFR 585.211, 
Revolution Wind was awarded Commercial Lease OCS-A 0486 offshore of 
Rhode Island and the exclusive right to submit a construction

[[Page 15944]]

and operations plan (COP) for activities within the lease area. 
Revolution Wind, LLC has submitted a COP to BOEM proposing the 
construction, operation, maintenance, and conceptual decommissioning of 
the Revolution Wind project, a 704-megawatt (MW) commercial-scale 
offshore wind energy facility located within Lease Area OCS-A 0486 and 
consisting of up to 100 wind turbines, 2 offshore sub-stations, and 2 
transmission cables to shore.
    Revolution Wind anticipates activities potentially resulting in the 
taking of marine mammals could occur for the life of the requested 
regulations and LOA. This includes:
    <bullet> Construction-related high-resolution site assessment 
geophysical surveys in all 5 years (248 survey days per year during 
Years 1; 25 survey days per year during Years 2 through 5);
    <bullet> the installation of up to 100 WTG monopile foundations 
(12-meter (m) diameter piles) by impact pile driving from May through 
December in Year 1 over the course of 31 to 100 days;
    <bullet> the installation of 2 OSS foundations by impact pile 
driving of 2 monopiles (15-m diameter piles) from May through December 
in Year 1 over the course of 2 days;
    <bullet> the installation and removal of 2 temporary cofferdams by 
vibratory pile driving at the cable tie-in area in Year 1 (14 days for 
installation and 14 days for removal per cofferdam; 56 days total) or, 
as an alternative to cofferdams (and also at the cable tie-in area in 
Year 1), installation and removal of 2 casing pipes by pneumatic 
hammering and supporting sheet piles by vibratory pile driving (2 days 
for installation and 2 days for removal per casing pipe, 8 days total; 
6 days for installation and 6 days for removal of support sheet piles 
per cable tie-in area, 24 days total); and,
    <bullet> the potential detonation of up to 13 UXOs over the course 
of 13 days in Year 1 (1 UXO detonation per day, as necessary).
    Revolution Wind has noted that these are the most accurate 
estimates for the durations of each planned activity, but that the 
schedule may shift over the course of the Project due to weather, 
mechanical, or other related delays.

Information Solicited

    Interested persons may submit information, suggestions, and 
comments concerning Revolution Wind'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 Revolution Wind, if appropriate.

    Dated: March 16, 2022.
Kimberly Damon-Randall,
Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-05947 Filed 3-18-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P


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