30-day FRN

Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 197 / Thursday, October 10, 2024 / Notices
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
[RTID 0648–XE372]

New England Fishery Management
Council; Public Meeting
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of public meeting.
AGENCY:

The New England Fishery
Management Council (Council) is
scheduling a public hybrid meeting of
its Groundfish Committee to consider
actions affecting New England fisheries
in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
This meeting will be held in-person
with a webinar option.
Recommendations from this group will
be brought to the full Council for formal
consideration and action, if appropriate.
DATES: This meeting will be held on
Tuesday, October 29, 2024, at 9 a.m.
ADDRESSES:
Meeting address: This meeting will be
held at the Hilton Garden Inn, 100 High
Street, Portsmouth, NH 03801;
telephone: (603) 431–1499.
Webinar registration URL
information: https://nefmc-org.zoom.us/
meeting/register/tJ0rfCtrT4jHdQAS16yNI82_YZ9x8joBKlT.
Council address: New England
Fishery Management Council, 50 Water
Street, Mill 2, Newburyport, MA 01950.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cate
O’Keefe, Executive Director, New
England Fishery Management Council;
telephone: (978) 465–0492.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
SUMMARY:

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Agenda
The Groundfish Committee will meet
to discuss recommendations from the
Recreational Advisory Panel,
Groundfish Advisory Panel, and
Groundfish Plan Development Team.
They will receive an update on
development of draft alternatives in
Framework Adjustment 69/
Specifications and Management
Measures, including potential
recommendations to the Council. The
Committee will receive an update on
development of the Atlantic Cod
Management Transition Plan. Other
business will be discussed, if necessary.
Although non-emergency issues not
contained on the agenda may come
before this Council for discussion, those
issues may not be the subject of formal
action during this meeting. Council
action will be restricted to those issues

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specifically listed in this notice and any
issues arising after publication of this
notice that require emergency action
under section 305(c) of the MagnusonStevens Act, provided the public has
been notified of the Council’s intent to
take final action to address the
emergency. The public also should be
aware that the meeting will be recorded.
Consistent with 16 U.S.C. 1852, a copy
of the recording is available upon
request.

82229

Type of Request: Regular submission,
revision and extension of a current
information collection.
Number of Respondents: 7.
Average Hours per Response: 115
hours per nomination; 8 hours for
additional information.
Total Annual Burden Hours: 591.
Needs and Uses: This request is for a
revision and extension of an existing
information collection necessary to
provide the American public an
opportunity to nominate marine areas
Special Accommodations
which the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
This meeting is physically accessible
may consider for designation as a
to people with disabilities. Requests for
national marine sanctuary, under the
sign language interpretation or other
auxiliary aids should be directed to Cate National Marine Sanctuaries Act
(NMSA). The revision adds a Request
O’Keefe, Executive Director, at (978)
for Additional Information to accurately
465–0492, at least 5 days prior to the
reflect the burden imposed by
meeting date.
requesting follow-up information.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
National marine sanctuary regulations
Dated: October 7, 2024.
provide that the public can submit areas
of the marine and Great Lakes
Rey Israel Marquez,
environments for consideration by
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable
NOAA as a national marine sanctuary
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
through the sanctuary nomination
[FR Doc. 2024–23467 Filed 10–9–24; 8:45 am]
process (15 CFR 922.12). Persons
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
wanting to submit nominations for
consideration should submit
information on the qualifying criteria
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
and management considerations for the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
site to be nominated. The Office of
Administration
National Marine Sanctuaries reviews the
submissions, which could result in the
Agency Information Collection
nomination being added to an inventory
Activities; Submission to the Office of
of areas that NOAA may consider for
Management and Budget (OMB) for
sanctuary designation at some point in
Review and Approval; Comment
the future. Sanctuary designation is a
Request; Nomination Process for
separate public process that would be
National Marine Sanctuaries
conducted pursuant to the requirements
of the National Marine Sanctuaries Act,
The Department of Commerce will
and all other applicable laws. This
submit the following information
proposed information collection is for
collection request to the Office of
national marine sanctuary nominations
Management and Budget (OMB) for
received pursuant to NOAA regulations
review and clearance in accordance
that provide that the public may
with the Paperwork Reduction Act of
nominate special places of the marine
1995, on or after the date of publication
environment through the sanctuary
of this notice. We invite the general
nomination process at 15 CFR 922.12.
public and other Federal agencies to
Affected Public: Individuals, noncomment on proposed, and continuing
information collections, which helps us profit institutions; Federal, State, local,
government, Native Hawaiian
assess the impact of our information
organizations; business or other forcollection requirements and minimize
profit organizations.
the public’s reporting burden. Public
Frequency: On occasion.
comments were previously requested
Respondent’s Obligation: Required to
via the Federal Register on April 30,
Obtain or Retain Benefits.
2024 during a 60-day comment period.
Legal Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.
This notice allows for an additional 30
This information collection request
days for public comments.
may be viewed at www.reginfo.gov.
Agency: National Oceanic &
Follow the instructions to view the
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Department of Commerce collections
Commerce.
currently under review by OMB.
Title: Nomination Process for National
Written comments and
Marine Sanctuaries.
recommendations for the proposed
OMB Control Number: 0648–0682.
information collection should be
submitted within 30 days of the
Form Number(s): None.

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82230

Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 197 / Thursday, October 10, 2024 / Notices

publication of this notice on the
following website www.reginfo.gov/
public/do/PRAMain. Find this
particular information collection by
selecting ‘‘Currently under 30-day
Review—Open for Public Comments’’ or
by using the search function and
entering either the title of the collection
or the OMB Control Number 0648–0682.
Sheleen Dumas,
Departmental PRA Clearance Officer, Office
of the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs,
Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2024–23436 Filed 10–9–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–NK–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
[RTID 0648–XE367]

Taking and Importing Marine
Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals
Incidental to Geophysical Surveys
Related to Oil and Gas Activities in the
Gulf of Mexico
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; issuance of letter of
authorization.
AGENCY:

In accordance with the
Marine Mammal Protection Act
(MMPA), as amended, its implementing
regulations, and NMFS’ MMPA
Regulations for Taking Marine
Mammals Incidental to Geophysical
Surveys Related to Oil and Gas
Activities in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM),
notification is hereby given that NMFS
has issued a Letter of Authorization
(LOA) to WesternGeco for the take of
marine mammals incidental to
geophysical survey activity in the GOM.
DATES: This LOA is effective from
October 3, 2024 through November 15,
2024.
ADDRESSES: The LOA, LOA request, and
supporting documentation are available
online at: https://www.fisheries.
noaa.gov/marine-mammal-protection/
issued-letters-authorization-oil-and-gasindustry-geophysical-survey. In case of
problems accessing these documents,
please call the contact listed below (FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Rachel Wachtendonk, Office of
Protected Resources, NMFS, (301) 427–
8401.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

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SUMMARY:

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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).
On January 19, 2021, we issued a final
rule with regulations to govern the
unintentional taking of marine
mammals incidental to geophysical
survey activities conducted by oil and
gas industry operators, and those
persons authorized to conduct activities
on their behalf (collectively ‘‘industry
operators’’), in U.S. waters of the GOM
over the course of 5 years (86 FR 5322).
The rule was based on our findings that
the total taking from the specified
activities over the 5-year period will
have a negligible impact on the affected
species or stock(s) of marine mammals
and will not have an unmitigable
adverse impact on the availability of
those species or stocks for subsistence
uses, and became effective on April 19,
2021.

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The regulations at 50 CFR 217.180 et
seq. allow for the issuance of LOAs to
industry operators for the incidental
take of marine mammals during
geophysical survey activities and
prescribe the permissible methods of
taking and other means of effecting the
least practicable adverse impact on
marine mammal species or stocks and
their habitat (often referred to as
mitigation), as well as requirements
pertaining to the monitoring and
reporting of such taking. Under
§ 217.186 (e), issuance of an LOA shall
be based on a determination that the
level of taking will be consistent with
the findings made for the total taking
allowable under these regulations and a
determination that the amount of take
authorized under the LOA is of no more
than small numbers.
NMFS subsequently discovered that
the 2021 rule was based on erroneous
take estimates. We conducted another
rulemaking using correct take estimates
and other newly available and pertinent
information relevant to the analyses
supporting some of the findings in the
2021 final rule and the taking allowable
under the regulations. We issued a final
rule in April 2024, effective May 24,
2024 (89 FR 31488).
The 2024 final rule made no changes
to the specified activities or the
specified geographical region in which
those activities would be conducted, nor
to the original 5-year period of
effectiveness. In consideration of the
new information, the 2024 rule
presented new analyses supporting
affirmance of the negligible impact
determinations for all species, and
affirmed that the existing regulations,
which contain mitigation, monitoring,
and reporting requirements, are
consistent with the ‘‘least practicable
adverse impact’’ standard of the MMPA.
Summary of Request and Analysis
NMFS issued a LOA to TGS on
September 27, 2023, for the take of
marine mammals incidental to a 3dimensional ocean bottom node survey
in the Green Canyon, Ewing Bank, and
Atwater Valley protraction areas,
including approximately 380 lease
blocks, effective September 27, 2023,
through September 28, 2024. Please see
the Federal Register notification (88 FR
68106, October 3, 2023) for additional
detail regarding the LOA and the
planned survey activity.
On December 20, 2023, TGS requested
the transfer of the LOA to WesternGeco,
its partner in the planned survey effort.
WesternGeco confirmed to NMFS that it
similarly requested transfer of the LOA.
No other changes were requested. The
revised LOA remained effective through

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