31702 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 113 / Tuesday, June 15, 2021 / Notices 

the webinars can be found on the web 

page for information related to the Gear 

Restricted Area-Weak Hook final rule at 

https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/ 

pelagic-longline-bluefin-tuna-areabased-and-weak-hook-managementmeasures. Requests for sign language 

interpretation or other auxiliary aids 

should be directed to Craig Cockrell at 

craig.cockrell@noaa.gov or 301–427– 

8503, at least 7 days prior to the 

meeting. 

The public is reminded that NMFS 

expects participants at the public 

webinars to conduct themselves 

appropriately. At the beginning of each 

the webinar, the moderator will explain 

how the webinar will be conducted and 

how and when participants can provide 

comments. NMFS will structure the 

webinars so that all members of the 

public will be able to comment, if they 

so choose, regardless of the 

controversial nature of the subject. 

Participants are expected to respect the 

ground rules, and those that do not may 

be asked to leave the webinar. 

Dated: June 10, 2021. 

Jennifer M. Wallace, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2021–12560 Filed 6–14–21; 8:45 am] 

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XB094] 

Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to 

Specified Activities; Taking Marine 

Mammals Incidental to U.S. Navy 

Construction at Naval Station Norfolk 

in Norfolk, Virginia 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of issuance of letter of 

authorization. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Marine Mammal Protection Act 

(MMPA), as amended, and 

implementing regulations, notification 

is hereby given that a Letter of 

Authorization (LOA) has been issued to 

the U.S. Navy (Navy) for the take of 

marine mammals incidental to 

construction activities at Naval Station 

Norfolk in Norfolk, Virginia. 

DATES: Applicable from June 8, 2021 to 

June 6, 2026. 

ADDRESSES: The LOA and supporting 

documentation are available online at: 

https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/ 

incidental-take-authorization-us-navyconstruction-naval-station-norfolknorfolk-virginia. In case of problems 

accessing these documents, please call 

the contact listed below (see FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Leah Davis, 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). 

Summary of Request 

On May 6, 2021, we issued a final rule 

upon request from the Navy for 

authorization to take marine mammals 

incidental to construction activities (86 

FR 24340). The Navy plans to conduct 

construction activities including marine 

structure maintenance, pile 

replacement, and select waterfront 

improvements at Naval Station Norfolk. 

This construction will include use of 

vibratory pile driving and removal, and 

impact pile driving. The use of both 

vibratory and impact pile driving is 

expected to produce underwater sound 

at levels that have the potential to result 

in behavioral harassment of marine 

mammals. 

Authorization 

We have issued a LOA to Navy 

authorizing the take of marine mammals 

incidental to construction activities, as 

described above. Take of marine 

mammals will be minimized through 

the implementation of the following 

planned mitigation measures: (1) 

Required monitoring of the construction 

area to detect the presence of marine 

mammals before beginning construction 

activities; (2) shutdown of construction 

activities under certain circumstances to 

avoid injury of marine mammals; and 

(3) soft start for impact pile driving to 

allow marine mammals the opportunity 

to leave the area prior to beginning 

impact pile driving at full power. 

Additionally, the rule includes an 

adaptive management component that 

allows for timely modification of 

mitigation or monitoring measures 

based on new information, when 

appropriate. The Navy will submit 

reports as required. 

Based on these findings and the 

information discussed in the preamble 

to the final rule, the activities described 

under this LOA will have a negligible 

impact on marine mammal stocks and 

will not have an unmitigable adverse 

impact on the availability of the affected 

marine mammal stock for subsistence 

uses. 

Dated: June 8, 2021. 

Catherine Marzin, 

Acting Director, Office of Protected Resources, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2021–12547 Filed 6–14–21; 8:45 am] 

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