2022-14868. Marine Mammals and Endangered Species

AGENCY:

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

ACTION:

Notice; issuance of permits or permit amendments.

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 via email to [e-mail].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Carrie Hubard (Permit Nos. 20311-02 and 26260), Shasta McClenahan, Ph.D. (Permit No. 21045-01), Malcolm Mohead (Permit No. 24387), and Sara Young (Permit No. 26537); 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 activities, go to www.federalregister.gov and search on the permit number provided in Table 1 below.

Table 1—Issued Permits and Permit Amendments

Permit No.	RTID	Applicant	Previous Federal Register notice	Issuance date
20311-02	0648-XF412	Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, 1845 Wasp Boulevard, Building 176, Honolulu, HI 96818 (Responsible Party: Charles Littnan, Ph.D.)	82 FR 39776; August 22, 2017	June 28, 2022.
21045-01	0648-XA560	Matson Laboratory, LLC, 135 Wooden Shoe Lane, Manhattan, MT 59741 (Responsible Party: Carolyn Nistler)	85 FR 79169; December 9, 2020	June 28, 2022.
24387	0648-XB463	Northeast Fisheries Science Center, 166 Water Street, Woods Hole, MA 02543-1026 (Responsible Party: Jon Hare, Ph.D.)	86 FR 53947; September 29, 2021	June 23, 2022.
26260	0648-XB861	Lesley Thorne, Ph.D., School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794	87 FR 12434; March 4, 2022	June 8, 2022.
26537	0648-XB998	BBC Studio's Natural History Unit, Broadcasting House, 31-33 Whiteladies Rd, Bristol, BS8 2LR, United Kingdom, (Responsible Party: Matt Allen)	87 FR 29116; May 12, 2022	June 27, 2022.

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 MMPA 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 ESA of 1973, as amended (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 through 226), as applicable.

Dated: July 7, 2022.

Amy Sloan,

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