[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 177 (Tuesday, September 14, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55738-55739]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-22897]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XY93


Marine Mammals; File No. 15654

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

ACTION:  Notice; receipt of application.

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SUMMARY:  Notice is hereby given that George Church, Ph.D. (Applicant), 
Professor of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur, 
Boston MA 02115, has applied in due form for a permit to receive 
bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus) cells for scientific research.

DATES:  Written, telefaxed, or e-mail comments must be received on or 
before October 14, 2010.

ADDRESSES:  The application and related documents are available for 
review by selecting ``Records Open for Public Comment'' from the 
Features box on the Applications and Permits for Protected Species 
(APPS) home page, https://apps.nmfs.noaa.gov, and then selecting File 
No. 15654 from the list of available applications.
    These documents are also available upon written request or by 
appointment in the following office(s):
    Permits, Conservation and Education Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Room 13705, Silver Spring, MD 
20910; phone (301)713-2289; fax (301)713-0376;
    Alaska Region, NMFS, P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, AK 99802-1668; phone 
(907)586-7221; fax (907)586-7249; and
    Northeast Region, NMFS, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 
01930; phone (978)281-9328; fax (978) 281-9394.
    Written comments on this application should be submitted to the 
Chief, Permits, Conservation and Education Division, at the address 
listed above. Comments may also be submitted by facsimile to (301)713-
0376, or by email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#612f2c27324f311350220e0c0c040f1512210f0e00004f060e17"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="85cbc8c3d6abd5f7b4c6eae8e8e0ebf1f6c5ebeae4e4abe2eaf3">[email protected]</span></a>. Please include the File 
No. in the subject line of the email comment.
    Those individuals requesting a public hearing should submit a 
written request to the Chief, Permits, Conservation and Education 
Division at the address listed above. The request should set forth the 
specific reasons why a hearing on this application would be 
appropriate.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Amy Sloan or Laura Morse, (301)713-
2289.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The subject permit is requested under the 
authority of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as amended 
(MMPA; 16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), the regulations governing the taking 
and importing of marine mammals (50 CFR part 216), the Endangered 
Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), and the 
regulations governing the taking, importing, and exporting of 
endangered and threatened species (50 CFR 222-226).
    The applicant proposes to receive and maintain tissues of bowhead 
whales to sequence the DNA (genome) and RNA (transcriptome) of the 
cells. Tissues would be received from a permitted laboratory (Permit 
No. 1008-1637-02 issued to John Wise, Ph.D.) and maintained at Harvard 
University for the proposed study. No live animals

[[Page 55739]]

would be affected by the proposed permit. The requested duration of the 
permit is five years.
    In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
(42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), an initial determination has been made that 
the activity proposed is categorically excluded from the requirement to 
prepare an environmental assessment or environmental impact statement.
    Concurrent with the publication of this notice in the Federal 
Register, NMFS is forwarding copies of the application to the Marine 
Mammal Commission and its Committee of Scientific Advisors.

    Dated: September 8, 2010.
P. Michael Payne,
Chief, Permits, Conservation and Education Division, Office of 
Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2010-22897 Filed 9-13-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S


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