Interior Department, Fish and Wildlife Service
We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, in response to a request from the Alaska Oil and Gas Association, propose to issue regulations authorizing the nonlethal, incidental, unintentional take by harassment of small numbers of polar bears and Pacific walruses during year-round oil and gas industry activities in the Beaufort Sea (Alaska and the Outer Continental Shelf) and adjacent northern coast of Alaska. Take may result from oil and gas exploration, development, production, and transportation activities occurring for a period of 5 years. These activities are similar to those covered by the previous 5- year Beaufort Sea incidental take regulations effective from August 5, 2016, through August 5, 2021. This proposed rule would authorize take by harassment only. No lethal take would be authorized. If this rule is finalized, we will issue Letters of Authorization, upon request, for specific proposed activities in accordance with this proposed regulation. Therefore, we request comments on these proposed regulations.
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 the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service 50 CFR Part 18 [Docket No. FWS-R7-ES-2021-0037; FXES111607MRG01-212-FF07CAMM00] RIN 1018-BF13 AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior. ACTION: Proposed rule; notice of availability of draft environmental assessment; and request for comments. SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, in response to a request from the Alaska Oil and Gas Association, propose to issue regulations authorizing the nonlethal, incidental, unintentional take by harassment of small numbers of polar bears and Pacific walruses during year-round oil and gas industry activities in the Beaufort Sea (Alaska and the Outer Continental Shelf) and adjacent northern coast of Alaska. Take may result from oil and gas exploration, development, production, and transportation activities occurring for a period of 5 years. These activities are similar to those covered by the previous 5-year Beaufort Sea incidental take regulations effective from August 5, 2016, through August 5, 2021. This proposed rule would authorize take by harassment only. No lethal take would be authorized. If this rule is finalized, we will issue Letters of Authorization, upon request, for specific proposed activities in accordance with this proposed regulation. Therefore, we request comments on these proposed regulations. DATES: Comments on these proposed incidental take regulations and the accompanying draft environmental assessment will be accepted on or before July 1, 2021. ADDRES…
Citation: 86 FR 29364
