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Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Geophysical Surveys in South San Francisco Bay South of the Dumbarton Bridge
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[Federal Register: June 20, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 118)] [Notices] [Page 35412-35416] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr20jn06-25] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [I.D. 050106A] Taking of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Geophysical Surveys in South San Francisco Bay South of the Dumbarton Bridge AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce. ACTION: Notice of proposed authorization for an incidental take authorization; request for comments. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: NMFS has received a request from the URS Corporation (URS) for an authorization to take small numbers of California sea lions, Pacific harbor seals, harbor porpoises, and gray whales, by harassment, incidental to geographical seismic surveys being conducted by Fugro West, Inc. (Fugro), in south San [[Page 35413]] Francisco Bay. Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is requesting comments on its proposal to issue an authorization to Fugro to incidentally take, by harassment, small numbers of these species of pinnipeds and cetaceans during the next 12 months. DATES: Comments and information must be received no later than July 20, 2006. ADDRESSES: Comments on the application and draft Environmental Assessment (EA) should be addressed to P. Michael Payne, Chief, Permits, Conservation and Education Division, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910-3225, or by telephoning the contact listed here. The mailbox address for providing e-mail comments is PR1.050106A@noaa.gov. Include in the subject line of the e-mail comment the following document identifier: 050106A. Comments sent via e-mail, including all attachments, must not exceed a 10-megabyte file size. A copy of the application, the application letter, EA, and other related documents may be obtained by writing to this address or by telephoning one of the contacts listed here (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT) and is also available at: http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/permits/incidental.htm.FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shane Guan, NMFS, (301) 713-2289, ext 137, or Monica DeAngelis, NMFS, (562) 980-3232. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 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, notice of a proposed authorization is provided to the public for review. An authorization shall be granted if NMFS finds that the taking will have a negligible impact on the species or stock(s) and will not have an unmitigable adverse impact on the availability of the species or stock(s) for subsistence uses and that the permissible methods of taking and requirements pertaining to the mitigation, monitoring and reporting of such taking 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.'' Section 101(a)(5)(D) of the MMPA established an expedited process by which citizens of the United States can apply for an authorization to incidentally take small numbers of marine mammals by harassment. 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]. Section 101(a)(5)(D) establishes a 45-day time limit for NMFS review of an application followed by a 30-day public notice and comment period on any proposed authorizations for the incidental harassment of small numbers of marine mammals. Within 45 days of the close of the comment period, NMFS must either issue or deny issuance of the authorization. Summary of Request On March 30, 2006, URS on behalf of Fugro submitted an application to NMFS requesting an Incidental Harassment Authorization (IHA) for the possible harassment of small numbers of California sea lions (Zalophus californianus), Pacific harbor seals (Phoca vitulina richardsi), harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena), and gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus) incidental to conducting geophysical surveys in the south San Francisco Bay (SFB or the Bay), California. The purpose of the surveys is to aid the San Francisco Public Utility Commission (SFPUC) in the design of an underground water pipeline, the Bay Division Tunnel, in south SFB. The proposed seismic study would span from Newark Slough and Plummer Creek adjacent to the Cargill Salt property in the east, to the Ravenswood Baylands open space on the western shore of SFB. The study would roughly parallel the existing SFPUC trans-bay pipelines, approximately 1 mile south of the Dumbarton Bridge. Marine seismic surveys would take approximately 8 - 10 days to perform. In the Newark Slough and Plummer Creek areas, work would be restricted to the non- pupping seasons of the harbor seal (July 1 - November 30). The ideal start date would occur during the summer/fall of 2006. The proposed geophysical (seismic) studies would include 21 seismic sample transects. A total of 25 - 35 linear miles (40 - 56 km) of marine-based geophysical sampling would occur. The marine seismic reflection data would be collected along a series of lines that cross the Bay centered over the projected alignment. A centerline and four wing lines are planned. Cross lines, or tie lines, would be run perpendicular to the centerline and extend 200 - 500 m (656 - 1,640 ft) beyond the alignment parallel lines, unless restricted by water depth or man-made obstructions. Water depths in the survey area range from roughly 14 m (45 ft) in the deeper mid-Bay channel to about 1.8 - 2.4 m (6 - 8 ft) along the shore and in Newark Slough at high tide. Work would be conducted at high tide in the shallow nearshore areas. Data would be collected from a small boat that tows a seismic energy source and a multichannel hydrophone. Two energy sources would be used, a Squid ``minisparker'' system and a Geopulse ``boomer'' system. An onboard generator powers the energy sources. The hydrophone contains multiple sensors that detect the seismic waves reflected from the water bottom and subsea floor sediments and rocks. The hydrophone is filled with inert silicon oil. The survey boat would travel along predetermined survey lines using a differential global positioning system (DGPS) for navigation. Boat speed during surveys would be at 3 - 4 knots. The length of time for each survey transect will vary depending on the total distance of the transect. The longest transects spanning from east to west would take about 1 hour to complete. The shorter north-south transect would generally take less than 30 minutes to complete. The energy source would be fired every 1/2 second (boomer) or 1 second (minisparker). Data received by the hydrophone are recorded with an onboard seismograph and laptop computer. Sound pressure level from a boomer operating at 350 joules is 204 dB re 1 microPaRMS at 1 m, and from a minisparker is 209 dB re 1 microPaRMS at 1 m. Frequency range for the boomer is at 750 - 3,500 Hz, with pulse duration 0.1 ms; and frequency range for the minisparker is at 150 - 2,500 Hz, with pulse duration 0.8 ms. Description of the Marine Mammals Potentially Affected by the Activity The marine mammals most likely to be found in SFB are the California sea lion, Pacific harbor seal, and harbor [[Page 35414]] porpoise. From December through May, gray whales may also be present in the Bay. General information of these species can be found in Caretta et al. (2005), which is available at the following URL: http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/PR2/Stock_Assessment_Program/sars.html.