Commerce Department, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
NMFS has received a request from Western Geophysical/Western Atlas International of Houston, Texas (Western Geophysical) for an authorization to take small numbers of marine mammals by harassment incidental to conducting seismic surveys in the Beaufort Sea in state and Federal waters. Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is requesting comments on its proposal to authorize Western Geophysical to incidentally take, by harassment, small numbers of bowhead whales and other marine mammals in the above mentioned areas during the open water period of 2000.
Document Headings Document headings vary by document type but may contain the following: the agency or agencies that issued and signed a document the number of the CFR title and the number of each part the document amends, proposes to amend, or is directly related to the agency docket number / agency internal file number the RIN which identifies each regulatory action listed in the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions See the Document Drafting Handbook for more details. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [I.D. 032800A] AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce. ACTION: Notice of receipt of application and proposed authorization for a small take exemption; request for comments. SUMMARY: NMFS has received a request from Western Geophysical/Western Atlas International of Houston, Texas (Western Geophysical) for an authorization to take small numbers of marine mammals by harassment incidental to conducting seismic surveys in the Beaufort Sea in state and Federal waters. Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is requesting comments on its proposal to authorize Western Geophysical to incidentally take, by harassment, small numbers of bowhead whales and other marine mammals in the above mentioned areas during the open water period of 2000. DATES: Comments and information must be received no later than May 24, 2000. ADDRESSES: Comments on the application should be addressed to Donna Wieting, Chief, Marine Mammal Conservation Division, Office of Protected Resources, NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910-3225. A copy of the application, the Technical Monitoring Plan, and a list of references used in this document may be obtained by writing to this address or by telephoning one of the contacts listed here. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kenneth R. Hollingshead, (301) 713-2055, ext 128, Brad Smith, (907) 271-5006. (…
Citation: 65 FR 21720
