2019-15907. Marine Mammals and Endangered Species; File No. 22435

AGENCY:

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

ACTION:

Notice; receipt of application.

SUMMARY:

Notice is hereby given that the Northwest Fisheries Science Center, Marine Forensic Laboratory, 2725 Montlake Blvd. East, Seattle, WA 98112 (Responsible Party: Kevin Werner, Ph.D.), has applied in due form for a permit to receive, import, and export marine mammal and protected species parts for scientific research.

DATES:

Written, telefaxed, or email comments must be received on or before August 26, 2019.

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. 22435 from the list of available applications.

These documents are also available 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].

Written comments on this application should be submitted to the Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, at the address listed above. Comments may also be submitted by facsimile to [phone], or by email to [e-mail]. Please include the File No. 22435 in the subject line of the email comment.

Those individuals requesting a public hearing should submit a written request to the Chief, Permits and Conservation 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:

Jennifer Skidmore or Shasta McClenahan, [phone].

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.), the regulations governing the taking, importing, and exporting of endangered and threatened species (50 CFR parts 222-226), and the Fur Seal Act of 1966, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1151 et seq.).

The applicant proposes to receive, import, and export samples from up to 100 individual animals from each species of all cetaceans, pinnipeds (excluding walrus), sea turtles (in water), coral, and individual species of fish and abalone listed under the ESA including: Black and white abalone, Pacific and Atlantic salmonids, sawfish, sturgeon, sharks, grouper, rockfish, guitarfish, and totoaba. Receipt, import, and export is requested worldwide. Sources of samples may include animal strandings in foreign countries, foreign and domestic subsistence harvests, captive animals, other authorized persons or collections, incidentally bycaught animals, transfers from law enforcement, and marine mammals that died incidental to commercial fishing operations in the U.S. and foreign countries, where such take is legal. Samples would be archived at the Marine Forensics Laboratories in either Charleston or Seattle and would be used for research, supporting law enforcement actions, and outreach and education. No live takes from the wild would be authorized. The requested duration of the permit is 5 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: July 23, 2019.

Julia Marie Harrison,

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