[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 11 (Wednesday, January 17, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Page 3989]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-1354]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[I.D. 010901C]


Marine Mammals: Draft Environmental Assessment on Allocating Gray 
Whales to the Makah Tribe for the years 2001 and 2002

AGENCY:  National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of availability and request for comments.

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SUMMARY:  NMFS announces the availability of a Draft Environmental 
Assessment (EA) that examines the environmental consequences of issuing 
the International Whaling Commission (IWC) quota for gray whales to the 
Makah Tribe for the years 2001 and 2002. NMFS has not identified a 
preferred alternative in this draft EA and is soliciting comments on 
the draft EA. The Draft EA considers four alternatives regarding the 
issuance of the IWC quota to the Makah Tribe.

DATES:  Comments on the EA must be received by February 16, 2001. A 
public hearing on this draft EA will be held in Seattle, WA on 
Thursday, February 1, 2001, at 6:00 p.m. The public hearing will be 
held at the Sand Point Magnuson Park Auditorium, 74th Street Entrance, 
7400 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, Washington.

ADDRESSES:  Comments on the draft EA should be addressed to Cathy E. 
Campbell, NOAA/NMFS, Office of Protected Resources, 13th Floor, 1315 
East-West Hwy, Silver Spring, MD 20910. Mark the outside of the 
envelope with ``Comments on Makah EA.'' Comments received over the 
Internet or by electronic mail will not be accepted. Copies of the EA 
and directions to the public hearing may be obtained over the internet 
at http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/prot_res/prot_res.html under ``New 
Arrivals''.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Cathy Campbell, 301-713-2322.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Prior to the 1997 Annual International 
Whaling Commission (IWC) Meeting, NMFS formally analyzed the 
environmental impacts of a decision to support or not support whaling, 
and to determine whether an annual subsistence quota of up to five 
Eastern Pacific gray whales would significantly affect the quality of 
the human environment. A draft EA was distributed for public comment on 
August 22, 1997. After reviewing and addressing the comments received, 
NMFS issued a final EA and Finding of No Significant Impact on October 
17, 1997.
    At its 1997 annual meeting, the IWC approved a quota of 620 gray 
whales for an aboriginal subsistence harvest during the years 1998 
through 2002. The basis for the quota was a joint request by the 
Russian Federation (for a total of 600 whales) and the United States 
(for a total of 20 whales). In 1998 and 1999, NOAA granted an 
allocation of up to five whales a year to the Makah Indian Tribe, whose 
subsistence and ceremonial needs had been the foundation of the U.S. 
request to the IWC.
    U.S. Congressman Jack Metcalf, Breach Marine Protection, and 
several other plaintiffs brought a lawsuit, Metcalf v. Daley, in 
October 1997, alleging that the U.S. Government had violated the 
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Whaling Convention Act, 
and other statutes. In September 1998, the U.S. District Court for the 
Western District of Washington ruled in favor of the U.S. Government on 
all issues.
    On June 9, 2000, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned one 
aspect of that decision, ruling that the 1997 EA should have been 
completed before the U.S. and the Makah Tribe entered into a 
cooperative agreement. That agreement had provided that, if the Tribe 
prepared an adequate needs statement documenting a cultural and 
subsistence need to harvest gray whales, NOAA would request a quota of 
gray whales from the IWC. Two judges on a three-judge panel held that 
the timing of the EA, which was completed after the 1996 agreement was 
signed and before the 1997 annual meeting of the IWC, may have 
predisposed the preparers to find that the whaling proposal would not 
significantly affect the environment. The Court ordered NOAA to set 
aside that finding and comply with NEPA under circumstances that would 
ensure an objective evaluation of the environmental consequences of the 
gray whale harvest.
    Following the Court action, NOAA rescinded its cooperative 
agreement with the Makah Tribe on August 11, 2000. NOAA subsequently 
set the gray whale quota for 2000 at zero (65 FR 75186, December 1, 
2000), pending completion of its NEPA analysis.
    The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires that federal 
agencies conduct an environmental analysis of their actions to 
determine if the actions may affect the environment. Accordingly, NMFS 
prepared a draft EA that explores the environmental consequences of 
four alternatives: (1) Granting the Makah Tribe the IWC quota with 
restrictions to target the hunt on migrating whales (similar to the 
1999 regime); (2) Granting the Makah Tribe the IWC quota with 
restrictions that would allow a limited hunt on the gray whale summer 
feeding aggregation; (3) Granting the Makah Tribe the IWC quota without 
time-area restrictions; and (4) (No Action) - not granting the Makah 
Tribe the IWC quota.
    The draft EA was prepared in accordance with NEPA and implementing 
regulations at 40 CFR parts 1500 through 1508 and NOAA guidelines 
concerning implementation of NEPA found in NOAA Administrative Order 
216-6.
    NMFS is soliciting public comments on this draft EA. Oral and 
written comments may be presented at the public hearing [see DATES and 
ADDRESSES]. Written comments on the draft EA may also be sent to the 
previously listed address by February 16, 2001. Further details or a 
copy of the EA can be obtained from the internet address above [see 
ADDRESSES].

Special Accommodations

    The public hearing will be physically accessible to those with 
disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other aids 
should be directed to C. Campbell at least 10 days prior to the hearing 
date (see ADDRESSES).

    Dated: January 10, 2001.
Wanda L. Cain,
Acting Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 01-1354 Filed 1-11-01; 3:33 pm]
BILLING CODE: 3510-22-S