EA on the Issuance of Incidental Harassment Authorizations to ConocoPhillips Alaska Inc. and Union Oil Company of California to take Marine Mammals by Harassment Incidental to Conducting Seismic Operations in Northwestern Cook Inlet, Alaska
April 06, 2007
On October 6 and 12, 2006, NOAA Fisheries received applications from ConocoPhillips Alaska, Inc. and Union Oil Company of California, respectively, requesting Incidental Harassment Authorizations.
These authorizations were sought for the possible harassment of small numbers of
- Cook Inlet beluga whales (Delphinapterus Leucas )
- Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus)
- Pacific harbor seals (Phoca vitulina richardsi)
- harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena)
- killer whales (Orcinus orca)
incidental to conducting open water seismic operations in portions of northwestern Cook Inlet, Alaska.
The seismic operations will use a 900-in3 BOLT airgun array with two sub-arrays of 3 225-in3 airguns and 3 75-in3 airguns. The seismic operations will be active 24 hours per day. The airguns will only be active for 1 - 2 hours during each of the 3 - 4 daily slack tide periods. The proposed seismic operations are planned from mid March to mid June 2007.