§ 218.140 - Specified activity and geographical region.

§ 218.140 Specified activity and specified geographical region.

(a) Regulations in this subpart apply only to the U.S. Navy (Navy) for the taking of marine mammals that occurs in the area outlined described in paragraph (b) of this section and that occurs incidental to the activities described listed in paragraph (c) of this section.

(b) The taking of marine mammals by the Navy is only authorized under this subpart may be authorized in Letters of Authorization (LOAs) only if it occurs within the NWTT Study Area, which . The NWTT Study Area is composed of established maritime operating and warning areas in the eastern North Pacific Ocean region, including areas of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Puget Sound, and Western Behm Canal in southeastern Alaska. The Study Area includes air and water space within and outside Washington state waters, and outside state waters of Oregon and Northern California. The eastern boundary of the Offshore Area portion of the Study Area is 12 nautical miles (nmi) off the coastline for most of the Study Area starting south of W-237, including southern Washington, Oregon, and Northern California. The Offshore Area includes the ocean all the way to the coastline only along that part of the Washington coast that lies beneath the airspace of W-237 and the Olympic Military Operations Area. The Quinault Range Site is a defined area of sea space where training and testing is conducted. The Quinault Range Site coincides with the boundaries of W-237A and also includes a surf zone component. The surf zone component extends north to south 5 nmi along the eastern boundary of W-237A, extends approximately 3 nmi to shore along the mean lower low water line, and encompasses 1 mile (1.6 kilometers) of shoreline at Pacific Beach, Washington. The Study Area includes four existing range complexes and facilities: The the Northwest Training Range Complex (NWTRC), the Keyport Range Complex, the Carr Inlet Operations Area, and the Southeast Alaska Acoustic Measurement Facility (SEAFAC). In addition to these range complexes, the Study Area also includes Navy pierside locations where sonar maintenance and testing occurs as part of overhaul, modernization, maintenance, and repair activities at NAVBASE Naval Base Kitsap, Bremerton; NAVBASE Naval Base Kitsap, Bangor; and Naval Station Everett.

(c) The taking of marine mammals by the Navy is only authorized if it occurs incidental to the following activities within the designated amounts of use:

(1) Sonar and other Active Sources Used During Training:

(i) Mid-frequency (MF) Source Classes:

(A) MF1 - an average of 166 hours per year.

(B) MF3 - an average of 70 hours per year.

(C) MF4 - an average of 4 hours per year.

(D) MF5 - an average of 896 items per year.

(E) MF11 - an average of 16 hours per year.

(ii) High-frequency (HF) Source Classes:

(A) HF1 - an average of 48 hours per year.

(B) HF4 - an average of 384 hours per year.

(C) HF6 - an average of 192 hours per year

(iii) Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Source Classes:

(A) ASW2 - an average of 720 items per year per year.

(B) ASW3 - an average of 78 hours per year.

(2) Sonar and other Active Sources Used During Testing:

(i) Low-frequency (LF) Source Classes:

(A) LF4 - an average of 110 hours per year.

(B) LF5 - an average of 71 hours per year.

(ii) Mid-frequency (MF):

(A) MF1 - an average of 32 hours per year

(B) MF3 - an average of 145 hours per year.

(C) MF4 - an average of 10 hours per year.

(D) MF5 - an average of 273 items per year.

(E) MF6 - an average of 12 items per year.

(F) MF8 - an average of 40 hours per year.

(G) MF9 - an average of 1,183 hours per year.

(H) MF10 - an average of 1,156 hours per year.

(I) MF11 - an average of 34 hours per year.

(J) MF12 - an average of 24 hours per year.

(iii) High-frequency (HF) and Very High-frequency (VHF):

(A) HF1 - an average of 161 hours per year.

(B) HF3 - an average of 145 hours per year.

(C) HF5 - an average of 360 hours per year.

(D) HF6 - an average of 2,099 hours per year.

(iv) VHF:

(A) VHF2 - an average of 35 hours per year.

(B) [Reserved]

(v) ASW:

(A) ASW1 - an average of 16 hours per year.

(B) ASW2 - an average of 64 hours per year.

(C) ASW2 - an average of 170 items per year.

(D) ASW3 - an average of 444 hours per year.

(E) ASW4 - an average of 1,182 items per year.

(vi) Acoustic Modems (M):

(A) M3 - an average of 1,519 hours per year.

(B) [Reserved]

(vii) Torpedoes (TORP):

(A) TORP1 - an average of 315 items per year.

(B) TORP2 - an average of 299 items per year.

(viii) Swimmer Detection Sonar (SD):

(A) SD1 - an average of 757 hours per year.

(B) [Reserved]

(ix) Synthetic Aperture Sonar (SAS):

(A) SAS2 - an average of 798 hours per year.

(B) [Reserved]

(3) Impulsive Source Detonations During Training:

(i) Explosive Classes:

(A) E1 (0.1 to 0.25 pound [lb] NEW) - an average of 48 detonations per year.

(B) E3 (>0.5 to 2.5 lb NEW) - an average of 6 detonations per year.

(C) E5 (>5 to 10 lb NEW) - an average of 80 detonations per year.

(D) E10 (>250 to 500 lb NEW) - an average of 4 detonations per year.

(E) E12 (>650 to 1,000 lb NEW) - an average of 10 detonations per year.

(ii) [Reserved]

(4) Impulsive Source Detonations During Testing:

(i) Explosive Classes:

(A) E3 (>0.5 to 2.5 lb NEW) - an average of 72 detonations per year.

(B) E4 (>2.5 to 5 lb NEW) - an average of 140 detonations (70 sonobuoys) per year.

(C) E8 (>60 to 100 lb NEW) - an average of 3 detonations per year.

(D) E11 (>500 to 650 lb NEW) - an average of 3 detonations per year.

(ii) [Reserved]

Navy conducting training and testing activities, including:

(1) Anti-submarine warfare;

(2) Mine warfare;

(3) Surface warfare;

(4) Unmanned systems;

(5) Vessel evaluation; and

(6) Other training and testing activities.