Biological Opinion for City of Ketchikan Berth III Mooring Dolphins Project (AKRO-2020-02183)

For this document, the action agencies are the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the NMFS Office of Protected Resources Permits and Conservation Division (PR1).  USACE proposes to authorize construction activities at the City of Ketchikan’s Berth III. PR1 proposes to permit Marine Mammal Protection Act Level A take (i.e., take by injury or mortality) of harbor seals (Phoca vitulina), harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena), and Dall’s porpoise (Phocoenoides dalli). PR1 proposes to also permit Level B take (i.e., take by harassment) of nine marine mammal species: harbor seal, harbor porpoise, Dall’s porpoise, Steller sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus) (only the non-listed eastern distinct population segment is expected to be present in the action area), killer whale (Orcinus orca), humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae), minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata), gray whale (Eschrichtius robustus), and Pacific white-sided dolphin (Lagenorhynchus obliquidens), in conjunction with the action. The City of Ketchikan is the applicant. PND Engineers, Inc. prepared the biological assessment, marine mammal monitoring and mitigation plan (4MP), and incidental harassment authorization request for the City of Ketchikan. The consulting agency for this proposed action is NMFS’s Alaska Region. This document represents NMFS’s biological opinion on the effects of the proposed construction activities on endangered and threatened species and their designated critical habitat.