2019-26619. Marine Mammals and Endangered Species

AGENCY:

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

ACTION:

Notice; issuance of permits and permit modifications.

SUMMARY:

Notice is hereby given that permits or permit amendments have been issued to the following entities under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and the Endangered Species Act (ESA), as applicable.

ADDRESSES:

The permits and related documents are available for review upon written request or by appointment in the Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected Resources, NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Room 13705, Silver Spring, MD 20910; phone: [phone]; fax: [phone].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Amy Hapeman (Permit Nos. 22835 and 23095), Jennifer Skidmore (Permit Nos. 20610-02, 22435, and 23092), and Carrie Hubard (Permit No. 23043); at [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Notices were published in the Federal Register on the dates listed below that requests for a permit or permit amendment had been submitted by the below-named applicants. To locate the Federal Register notice that announced our receipt of the application and a complete description of the research, go to www.federalregister.gov and search on the permit number provided in the table below.

Permit No.	RIN	Applicant	Previous Federal Register notice	Permit or amendment issuance date
20610-02	0648-XF801	David Portnoy, Ph.D., Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi, TX 78412	84 FR 50018; September 24, 2019	November 15, 2019.
22435	0648-XR017	Northwest Fisheries Science Center, Marine Forensic Laboratory (Responsible Party: Kevin Werner, Ph.D.), 2725 Montlake Blvd East, Seattle, WA 98112	84 FR 36054; July 26, 2019	November 15, 2019.
22835	0648-XR003	Scripps Institute of Oceanography (Responsible Party: John Hildebrand, Ph.D.), University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093	84 FR 31846; July 3, 2019	November 1, 2019.
23043	0648-XR051	Devon Massyn, Natural History Unit, 2118 Manhattan Beach Blvd, Unit B, Redondo Beach, CA 90278	84 FR 52073; October 1, 2019	November 25, 2019.
23092	0648-PR-A004	C. Scott Baker, Ph.D., Oregon State University, Marine Mammal Institute, Hatfield Marine Science Center, 2030 SE Marine Science Drive, Newport, OR 97365	84 FR 49098; September 18, 2019	November 5, 2019.
23095	0648-XR033	Ari Friedlaender, Ph.D., University of California at Santa Cruz, 115 McAllister Way, Santa Cruz, CA 95060	84 FR 39811; August 12, 2019	November 13, 2019.

In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), a final determination has been made that the activities proposed are categorically excluded from the requirement to prepare an environmental assessment or environmental impact statement.

As required by the ESA, as applicable, issuance of these permit was based on a finding that such permits: (1) Were applied for in good faith; (2) will not operate to the disadvantage of such endangered species; and (3) are consistent with the purposes and policies set forth in Section 2 of the ESA.

Authority: The requested permits have been issued under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as amended (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 parts 222-226), as applicable.

Dated: December 5, 2019.

Amy Sloan,

Acting Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.