39568 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 160 / Monday, August 21, 2017 / Notices 

Authority: Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et 

seq. 

Dated: August 15, 2017. 

Jeffrey N. Lonergan, 

Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2017–17531 Filed 8–18–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

RIN 0648–XF529 

Taking and Importing Marine 

Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals 

Incidental to Waterfront Construction 

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 

waterfront construction activities at 

Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, 

Georgia. 

DATES: Effective from July 12, 2017, 

through July 11, 2022. 

ADDRESSES: The LOA and supporting 

documentation are available online at: 

www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/permits/ 

incidental/construction.htm. In case of 

problems accessing these documents, 

please call the contact listed below (see 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ben 

Laws, 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 June 7, 2017, we issued a final 

rule upon request from the Navy for 

authorization to take marine mammals 

incidental to waterfront construction 

activities (82 FR 26360). The Navy plans 

to repair in-water structures at NSB 

Kings Bay, as well as to construct new 

facilities and modify existing facilities. 

These repairs, upgrades, and new 

construction would include use of 

impact and vibratory pile driving, 

including installation and removal of 

steel, concrete, composite, and timber 

piles. 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. Only 

the bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops 

truncatus truncatus) is expected to be 

present. The regulations are valid for 

five years, from July 12, 2017, through 

July 11, 2022. 

Authorization 

We have issued a LOA to Navy 

authorizing the take of marine mammals 

incidental to waterfront 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 

waterfront construction areas 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: August 15, 2017. 

Cathryn E. Tortorici, 

Acting Deputy Director, Office of Protected 

Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2017–17605 Filed 8–18–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

Sanctuary System Business Advisory 

Council: Public Meeting 

AGENCY: Office of National Marine 

Sanctuaries (ONMS), National Ocean 

Service (NOS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Department of Commerce (DOC). 

ACTION: Notice of open meeting. 

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given of a 

meeting of the Sanctuary System 

Business Advisory Council (council). 

The meeting is open to the public, and 

participants may provide comments at 

the appropriate time during the meeting. 

DATES: The meeting will be held 

Wednesday, August 30, 2017, from 9:00 

a.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET, and an opportunity 

for public comment will be provided 

around 3:45 p.m. ET. Both these times 

and agenda topics are subject to change. 

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at 

the Hall of the States located at 444 

North Capitol Street NW., Washington, 

DC 20001. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kate 

Spidalieri, Office of National Marine 

Sanctuaries, 1305 East West Highway, 

Silver Spring, Maryland 20910 (Phone: 

240–533–0679; Fax: 301–713–0404; 

Email: Kate.Spidalieri@noaa.gov). 


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