All Protected Resources Regulations & Actions
Incidental Take Authorization: Hilcorp Alaska Construction and Operation of the Liberty Drilling and Production Island in Foggy Island Bay, Beaufort
NOAA Fisheries issued regulations to govern the unintentional taking of marine mammals incidental to construction and operation of the Liberty Drilling and Production Island (LDPI) in the Beaufort Sea, Alaska over the course of five years. These…
- Issued LOA (pdf, 10 pages)
- Application (pdf, 293 pages)
- Marine Mammal Monitoring and Mitigation Plan (pdf, 42 pages)
- Plan of Cooperation (pdf, 15 pages)
- EIS
- Public Comment (pdf, 25 pages)
- Acoustic Monitoring Plan (pdf, 12 pages)
- Best Management Practices (pdf, 7 pages)
- Peer Review Panel Report (pdf, 7 pages)
- Wildlife Action Plan Sections Related to NMFS Action (pdf, 24 pages)
- Biological Opinion
- References (pdf, 11 pages)
Effective
12/01/2021
Incidental Take Authorization: U.S. Navy Transit Protection Program Pier and Support Facilities Project at Naval Base Kitsap Bangor, Washington
NOAA Fisheries has issued two incidental harassment authorizations to the U.S. Navy to incidentally harass, by Level A and Level B harassment only, marine mammals during construction activities associated with the Transit Protection Program Pier and…
Effective
07/16/2021
Incidental Take Authorization: Sentinel Island Moorage Float Project, Juneau, Alaska
NOAA Fisheries has received a request from the Gastineau Channel Historical Society (GCHS) for the re-issuance of a previously issued incidental harassment authorization (IHA) with the only change being effective dates. The initial IHA authorized take…
Effective
07/15/2021
Incidental Take Authorization: Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Company Construction Activities Associated with the Raritan Bay Pipeline off New York
NOAA Fisheries has issued an incidental harassment authorization (IHA) to Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Company, LLC (Transco), a subsidiary of Williams Partners L.P., to incidentally harass, by Level A and Level B harassment, marine mammals incidental…
Effective
05/01/2021
Incidental Take Authorization: Oil and Gas Industry Geophysical Survey Activity in the Gulf of Mexico
NOAA Fisheries, upon request from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), has issued regulations to govern the unintentional taking of marine mammals incidental to geophysical survey activities conducted by oil and gas industry operators, and…
- Final Rule
- Paperwork Reduction Act Information Collection Request
- Proposed Rule
- Notice of Receipt of Application for Incidental Take Regulations
- Application for Incidental Take Regulations (pdf, 192 pages)
- Application Addendum- BOEM Notice to NMFS of Revised Scope of Action (pdf, 4 pa…
- Application Addendum- BOEM Revised Acoustic Exposure Estimates (pdf, 17 pages)
- Application Addendum- BOEM Revised Action Area Map (pdf, 1 page)
- Acoustic Modelling Report (pdf, 385 pages)
- Acoustic Modeling Report Addendum (pdf, 6 pages)
- Cumulative and Chronic Effects Report (pdf, 50 pages)
- Cumulative and Chronic Effects Report Addendum (pdf, 12 pages)
- Gulf of Mexico Acoustic Exposure Model Variable Analysis (pdf, 171 pages)
- Expert Working Group Report (Southall et al., 2017) (pdf, 26 pages)
- Public Comments Received on Notice of Receipt (pdf, 195 pages)
- Public Comments Received on Proposed Rule
- Regulatory Impact Analysis- Proposed Rule (pdf, 209 pages)
- Regulatory Impact Analysis- Final Rule (pdf, 117 pages)
- Regulatory Impact Analysis Appendices- Final Rule (pdf, 70 pages)
- References Cited (pdf, 45 pages)
- Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement
- Record of Decision (pdf, 11 pages)
- Biological Opinion
- Final Rule (pdf, 462 pages) Initially posted 12/8/2020.
Effective
04/19/2021
MMPA List of Fisheries for 2021
NOAA Fisheries publishes its final List of Fisheries (LOF) for 2021, as required by the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA). The LOF for 2021 reflects new information on interactions between commercial fisheries and marine mammals. NOAA Fisheries must…
Effective
02/16/2021
Initiation of a 5-Year Review for the Arctic, Okhotsk, Baltic, and Ladoga Subspecies of the Ringed Seal
NMFS announces its intent to conduct a 5-year review of the threatened Arctic (Pusa hispida hispida), Okhotsk (Pusa hispida ochotensis), Baltic (Pusa hispida botnica), and endangered Ladoga (Pusa hispida ladogensis) subspecies of the ringed seal. NMFS…
Comments Close
03/26/2021
Incidental Take Authorization: NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center Fisheries and Ecosystem Research Activities in the California Current and
NOAA Fisheries' Office of Protected Resources has issued regulations to govern the unintentional taking of marine mammals incidental to fisheries research conducted in multiple specified geographical regions over the course of five years. These…
- LOA- Antarctic Marine Living Resources Ecosystem (pdf, 7 pages)
- LOA- California Current Ecosystem (pdf, 10 pages)
- LOA Application (pdf, 198 pages)
- Environmental Assessment (pdf, 307 pages)
- Environmental Assessment Appendices (pdf, 77 pages)
- FONSI (pdf, 4 pages)
- Environmental Assessment Adoption Memo (pdf, 5 pages)
- Biological Opinion (pdf, 235 pages, use Internet Explorer to open)
- Public Comments
- References (pdf, 5 pages)
Effective
01/15/2021
Initiation of a 5-Year Review for the Beringia and Okhotsk Distinct Population Segments of the Bearded Seal
NOAA Fisheries announces its intent to conduct a 5-year review of the threatened Beringia and Okhotsk distinct population segments (DPSs) of the Pacific bearded seal subspecies Erignathus barbatus nauticus. NOAA Fisheries is required by the Endangered…
Comments Close
03/26/2021
Designation of Critical Habitat for the Arctic Subspecies of the Ringed Seal
NOAA Fisheries announces revisions to our December 9, 2014, proposed designation of critical habitat for the Arctic subspecies of the ringed seal (Pusa hispida hispida) under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The revised proposed designation comprises…
- Revised Proposed Rule: Reopening of Comment Period (86 FR 1452, 01/08/2021)
- Comment Period Extension (80 FR 5498, 02/02/2015)
- Public Hearings (80 FR 1618, 01/13/2015)
- Corrected Proposed Rule (79 FR 73010, 12/09/2014)
- Questions and Answers (2021)
- Draft Economic Analysis Report (2021)
- Map of Proposed Critical Habitat (2021)
- Proposed Critical Habitat Shapefile (zip) (2021)
- References Cited (2021)
- Draft Economic Analysis Report (2014)
- Proposed Critical Habitat Shapefile (zip) (2014)
- References Cited (2014)
- Ringed Seals
Comments Close
03/09/2021