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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 24 / Monday, February 8, 2021 / Notices mitigation and monitoring measures will remain the same and appropriate, and the findings in the initial IHA
remain valid.
An additional public comment period of 15 days for a total of 45 days, with direct notice by email, phone, or postal service to commenters on the initial IHA, is provided to allow for any additional comments on the proposed Renewal. A description of the Renewal process may be found on our website at:
www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/
marine-mammal-protection/incidentalharassment-authorization-renewals.
Any comments received on the potential Renewal, along with relevant comments on the initial IHA, have been considered in the development of this proposed IHA Renewal, and a summary of agency responses to applicable comments is included in this notice. NMFS will consider any additional public comments prior to making any final decision on the issuance of the requested Renewal, and agency responses will be summarized in the final notice of our decision.

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National Environmental Policy Act To comply with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969
NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq. and NOAA Administrative Order NAO
2166A, NMFS must review our proposed action i.e., the issuance of an incidental harassment authorization with respect to potential impacts on the human environment.
This action is consistent with categories of activities identified in Categorical Exclusion B4 IHAs with no anticipated serious injury or mortality of the Companion Manual for NOAA
Administrative Order 2166A, which do not individually or cumulatively have the potential for significant impacts on the quality of the human environment and for which we have not identified any extraordinary circumstances that would preclude this categorical exclusion. Accordingly, NMFS has preliminarily determined that the issuance of the proposed IHA Renewal qualifies to be categorically excluded from further NEPA review.
We will review all comments submitted in response to this notice prior to concluding our NEPA process or making a final decision on the IHA
Renewal request.
History of Request On May 24, 2019, NMFS received a request from the CTJV for an IHA to take marine mammals incidental to pile driving and removal at the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnel CBBT near Virginia Beach, Virginia. The
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application was deemed adequate and complete on October 11, 2019. The CTJVs request is for take of harbor seal Phoca vitulina, gray seal Halichoerus grypus, bottlenose dolphin Tursiops truncatus, harbor porpoise Phocoena phocoena and humpback whale Megaptera novaeangliae by Level A
and Level B harassment. We published a notice of a proposed IHA and request for comments on November 25, 2019 84
FR 64847 and subsequently published the final notice of our issuance of the IHA on March 20, 2020 85 FR 16061, effective from March 10, 2020, through March 9, 2021. This IHA was expected to cover one year of an anticipated 5year project.
On December 15, 2020, NMFS
received an application for the Renewal of the initial IHA. As described in the request for the Renewal IHA, the activities for which incidental take is requested are identical to, and consist of a subset of, those covered in the initial authorization. In order to consider an IHA Renewal, NMFS requires the applicant provide a preliminary monitoring report which confirms that the applicant has implemented the required mitigation and monitoring, and which also shows that no impacts of a scale or nature not previously analyzed or authorized have occurred as a result of the activities conducted. NMFS has reviewed CTJVs preliminary monitoring report and has preliminarily determined that CTJVs proposed activities including mitigation, monitoring, and reporting, estimated incidental take, and anticipated impacts on the affected stocks are the same as those analyzed and authorized through the initial IHA. However, NMFS is requesting comments or additional information that may further inform our proposal to issue an IHA Renewal to CTJV. This IHA Renewal would be valid for a period of one year.
Description of the Specified Activities and Anticipated Impacts CTJVs planned activities include construction associated with the PTST
project. Specifically, the location, timing, and nature of the activities, including the types of equipment planned for use, are identical to those described in the original IHA. The project consists of the construction of a two-lane parallel tunnel to the west of the existing Thimble Shoal Tunnel, connecting Portal Island Nos. 1 and 2 of the CBBT facility which extends across the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay near Virginia Beach, Virginia. The PTST
project will address existing constraints to regional mobility based on current traffic volume along the facility.

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Planned construction associated with the initial IHA included the driving of 812 piles over 198 days as shown below:
180 12-inch timber piles 74 36-inch steel pipe piles 500 36-inch interlocked pipes 58 42-inch steel casings Of these planned activities, under the initial IHA CTJV installed a total of 76
36-inch pipe piles and installed and removed 58 42-inch steel casings over approximately 64 construction days.
Additionally, 52 36-inch interlocking pipe piles have been eliminated from the construction plan. This is due to a design change which increased the elevation of stone placement on the West berm on Portal Island 1, decreasing the number of piles being installed below Mean High Water MHW. Remaining piles will be installed using impact driving, vibratory driving and drilling with down-the-hole DTH hammers. Some piles will be removed via vibratory hammer.
Accounting for work conducted under the initial IHA and the planned design change resulting in a reduction in total piles, CTJV plans to drive 684 piles over an estimated 140 days under this proposed Renewal IHA.
Similarly, the anticipated impacts are identical to those described in the initial IHA. NMFS anticipates the take of the same five species of marine mammal harbor seal, gray seal, bottlenose dolphin, harbor porpoise, and humpback whale by Level A and Level B harassment incidental to underwater noise resulting from construction associated with the proposed activities.
The following documents are referenced in this notice and include important supporting information:
Initial final IHA 85 FR 16061;
March 20, 2020;
Initial proposed IHA 84 FR 64847;
November 25, 2019; and 2019 IHA application, references cited, and previous public comments received available at www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/
marine-mammal-protection/incidentaltake-authorizations-constructionactivities.
Detailed Description of the Activity The PTST project entails construction of a two-lane parallel tunnel to the west of the existing Thimble Shoal Tunnel.
The new parallel two-lane tunnel is 6,350 feet ft 1935.5 meter m in overall total length with 5,356 linear ft 1632.5 m located below MHW.
Remaining proposed in-water activities to be covered under this Renewal include the following:
Mooring dolphins: An estimated 180 12-inch timber piles will be used for
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