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 Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [RTID 0648-XE478]
 AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
 ACTION: Notice of modification to expiration date of letter of authorization.
 SUMMARY: In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), as amended, its implementing regulations, and NMFS' MMPA Regulations for Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Geophysical Surveys Related to Oil and Gas Activities in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM), notification is hereby given that NMFS has modified the expiration date of a Letter of Authorization (LOA) issued to Shell Offshore Inc. (Shell) for the taking of marine mammals incidental to geophysical survey activity in the GOM.
 DATES: This LOA is effective through October 31, 2025.
 ADDRESSES: The LOA, LOA request, and supporting documentation are available online at: 
                        *https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/​marine-mammal-protection/​issued-letters-authorization-oil-and-gas-industry-geophysical-survey.*
                         In case of problems accessing these documents, please call the contact listed below 
                        **FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT**
                        .
 FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jenna Harlacher, Office of Protected Resources, NMFS, (301) 427-8401.


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 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. 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). On January 19, 2021, we issued a final rule with regulations to govern the 
                    ( print page 96644)
                    unintentional taking of marine mammals incidental to geophysical survey activities conducted by oil and gas industry operators, and those persons authorized to conduct activities on their behalf (collectively “industry operators”), in U.S. waters of the GOM over the course of 5 years (86 FR 5322, January 19, 2021). The rule was based on our findings that the total taking from the specified activities over the 5-year period will have a negligible impact on the affected species or stock(s) of marine mammals and will not have an unmitigable adverse impact on the availability of those species or stocks for subsistence uses. The rule became effective on April 19, 2021. Our regulations at 50 CFR 217.180 
                    *et seq.*
                     allow for the issuance of LOAs to industry operators for the incidental take of marine mammals during geophysical survey activities and prescribe the permissible methods of taking and other means of effecting the least practicable adverse impact on marine mammal species or stocks and their habitat (often referred to as mitigation), as well as requirements pertaining to the monitoring and reporting of such taking. Under 50 CFR 217.186(e), issuance of an LOA shall be based on a determination that the level of taking will be consistent with the findings made for the total taking allowable under these regulations and a determination that the amount of take authorized under the LOA is of no more than small numbers. NMFS subsequently discovered that the 2021 rule was based on erroneous take estimates. We conducted another rulemaking using correct take estimates and other newly available and pertinent information relevant to the analyses supporting some of the findings in the 2021 final rule and the taking allowable under the regulations. We issued a final rule in April 2024, effective May 24, 2024 (89 FR 31488, April 24, 2024). The 2024 final rule made no changes to the specified activities or the specified geographical region in which those activities would be conducted, nor to the original 5-year period of effectiveness. In consideration of the new information, the 2024 rule presented new analyses supporting affirmance of the negligible impact determinations for all species, and affirmed that the existing regulations, which contain mitigation, monitoring, and reporting requirements, are consistent with the “least practicable adverse impact” (LPAI) standard of the MMPA. NMFS issued a LOA to Shell on April 19, 2024, for the take of marine mammals incidental to a four-dimensional (4D) ocean bottom node survey in the Mississippi Canyon 941 and portions of the surrounding 80 lease blocks, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025. Please see the 
                    **Federal Register**
                     notice of issuance (89 FR 25577, April 11, 2024) for additional detail regarding the LOA and the survey activity. Shell has requested that the June 30, 2025, expiration date be extended to October 31, 2025, due to changes in survey timing. Since we issued the LOA to Shell, we have updated the final rule to include corrected take estimates and new information as discussed above; therefore, we have updated the authorized take numbers accordingly based on this new information. There are no changes to the planned survey, as described in the previous notice of issuance (89 FR 25577, April 11, 2024), including the planned location and duration of the survey. As discussed in the previous notice of issuance (89 FR 25577, April 11, 2024), no 4D ocean bottom node (OBN) surveys were included in the modeled survey types, thus the coil proxy was selected. Shell plans to cover approximately 15.7 square kilometers (km2
                    ) per day compared to the 144 km2
                     in the coil proxy, and although Shell is not proposing to perform a survey using the coil geometry, the coil proxy is most representative of the effort planned by Shell in terms of predicted Level B harassment exposures. Additionally, Shell plans to use a 32-element, 5,110 cubic inch (in3
                    ) airgun array and therefore the 5,110 in3
                     proxy was selected. The survey will take place over approximately 90 days with 60 days of sound source operation, all planned in zone 5. The monthly distribution of survey days is not known in advance, though we assume that the planned 60 days of source operation would occur contiguously. Take estimates for each species are based on the time period that produces the greatest value. There are no other changes to Shell's planned activity. For the Rice's whale, take estimates based solely on the modeling yielded results that are not realistically likely to occur when considered in light of other relevant information available during the rulemaking process regarding marine mammal occurrence in the GOM. The approach used in the acoustic exposure modeling, in which seven modeling zones were defined over the U.S. GOM, necessarily averages fine-scale information about marine mammal distribution over the large area of each modeling zone. Thus, although the modeling conducted for the rule is a natural starting point for estimating take, the rule acknowledged that other information could be considered (see, 
                    *e.g.,*86 FR 5442, January 19, 2021, discussing the need to provide flexibility and make efficient use of previous public and agency review of other information and identifying that additional public review is not necessary unless the model or inputs used differ substantively from those that were previously reviewed by NMFS and the public). For this survey, NMFS has other relevant information reviewed during the rulemaking that indicates use of the acoustic exposure modeling to generate a take estimate may produce results inconsistent with what is known regarding their occurrence in the GOM. Accordingly, we have adjusted the calculated take estimates as described below. NMFS' 2024 final rule provided detailed discussion regarding Rice's whale habitat (see, 
                    *e.g.,*89 FR 31508, 31519). In summary, recent survey data, sightings, and acoustic data support Rice's whale occurrence in waters throughout the GOM between approximately 100 m and 400 m depth along the continental shelf break, and associated habitat-based density modeling has identified similar habitat (
                    *i.e.,*
                     approximately 100 to 400 m water depths along the continental shelf break) as being Rice's whale habitat (Garrison 
                    *et al.,*
                     2023; Soldevilla 
                    *et al.,*
                     2022, 2024). Although Rice's whales may occur outside of the general depth range expected to provide suitable habitat, we expect that any such occurrence would be rare. Shell's planned activities will occur in water depths of approximately 1,500 to 3,000 m in the central GOM. Thus, NMFS does not expect there to be the reasonable potential for take of Rice's whale in association with this survey and, accordingly, does not authorize take of Rice's whale through the LOA. Based on the results of our analysis, NMFS has determined that the level of taking expected for this survey and authorized through the LOA is consistent with the findings made for the total taking allowable under the regulations. See table 1 in this notice and table 6 of the rule (89 FR 31488, April 24, 2024). Small Numbers Determination Under the GOM rule, NMFS may not authorize incidental take of marine mammals in an LOA if it will exceed “small numbers.” In short, when an acceptable estimate of the individual marine mammals taken is available, if the estimated number of individual 
                    ( print page 96645)
                    animals taken is up to, but not greater than, one-third of the best available abundance estimate, NMFS will determine that the numbers of marine mammals taken of a species or stock are small (see 89 FR 31535, May 24, 2024). For more information please see NMFS' discussion of small numbers in the 2021 final rule (86 FR 5438, January 19, 2021). The take numbers for authorization are determined as described above. Subsequently, the total incidents of harassment for each species are multiplied by scalar ratios to produce a derived product that better reflects the number of individuals likely to be taken within a survey (as compared to the total number of instances of take), accounting for the likelihood that some individual marine mammals may be taken on more than 1 day (see 86 FR 5404, January 19, 2021). The output of this scaling, where appropriate, is incorporated into adjusted total take estimates that are the basis for NMFS' small numbers determinations, as depicted in table 1. This product is used by NMFS in making the necessary small numbers determinations through comparison with the best available abundance estimates (see discussion at 86 FR 5391, January 19, 2021). For this comparison, NMFS' approach is to use the maximum theoretical population, determined through review of current stock assessment reports (SAR; 
                    *https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/​national/​marine-mammal-protection/​marine-mammal-stock-assessments*) and model-predicted abundance information (
                    *https://seamap.env.duke.edu/​models/​Duke/​GOM/​*). Information supporting the small numbers determinations is provided in table 1. Table 1—Take Analysis
Species
Authorized
                             take
Scaled
                             
                                take 1
Abundance 2
Percent
                             abundanceRice's whale
0
n/a
51
0Sperm whale
543
230
3,007
7.6*Kogia spp.*
3
                             172
52
980
6.2Beaked whales
1,882
190
803
23.7Rough-toothed dolphin
1,399
401
4,853
8.3Bottlenose dolphin
1,684
483
165,125
0.3Clymene dolphin
869
168
4,619
3.6Atlantic spotted dolphin
496
142
21,506
0.7Pantropical spotted dolphin
11,845
3,400
67,225
5.1Spinner dolphin
258
74
5,548
1.3Striped dolphin
2,441
701
5,634
12.4Fraser's dolphin
512
98
1,665
5.9Risso's dolphin
421
124
1,974
6.3Blackfish 4
3,012
888
6,113
14.5Short-finned pilot whale
698
206
2,741
7.51
                         Scalar ratios were applied to “Authorized Take” values as described at 86 FR 5322 and 86 FR 5404 (January 19, 2021) to derive scaled take numbers shown here.2
                         Best abundance estimate. For most taxa, the best abundance estimate for purposes of comparison with take estimates is considered here to be the model-predicted abundance (Garrison 
                        *et al.,*
                         2023). For Rice's whale, Atlantic spotted dolphin, and Risso's dolphin, the larger SAR abundance estimate is used.3
                         Includes 9 takes by Level A harassment and 163 takes by Level B harassment. Scalar ratio is applied to takes by Level B harassment only; small numbers determination made on basis of scaled Level B harassment take plus authorized Level A harassment take.4
                         The “blackfish” guild includes melon-headed whales, false killer whales, pygmy killer whales, and killer whales.
 Authorization NMFS has changed the expiration date of the LOA from June 30, 2025, to October 31, 2025 and updated authorized take numbers based on the corrected information in the updated rule. There are no other changes to the LOA as described in the April 11, 2024, 
                    **Federal Register**
                     notice of issuance (89 FR 25577); the specified survey activity, and small numbers analysis and determination remain unchanged and are incorporated here by reference. Dated: November 27, 2024. Kimberly Damon-Randall, Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.


[FR Doc. 2024-28455 Filed 12-4-24; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 3510-22-P