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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 33 / Monday, February 22, 2021 / Notices
and so, in practice, where estimated numbers are available, NMFS compares the number of individuals taken to the most appropriate estimation of abundance of the relevant species or stock in our determination of whether an authorization is limited to small numbers of marine mammals. When the predicted number of individuals to be taken is fewer than one third of the species or stock abundance, the take is considered to be of small numbers.
Additionally, other qualitative factors may be considered in the analysis, such as the temporal or spatial scale of the activities.
The number of instances of take for each species or stock authorized to be taken as a result of this project is included in Table 16. Our analysis shows that less than one-third of the best available population abundance estimate of each stock could be taken by harassment in fact, take of individuals is at most less than two percent of the abundance for all affected stocks. The number of animals authorized to be taken for each stock would be considered small relative to the relevant stocks abundances even if each estimated taking occurred to a new individual, which is an unlikely scenario.
For beluga whale, the percentages in Table 16 conservatively assume that all takes of beluga whale will be accrued to each stock; however, we expect that most, if not all, beluga whales taken by this project will be from the Beaufort Sea stock.
For the Alaska stock of bearded seals, a complete stock abundance value is not available. As noted in the 2019 Draft Alaska SAR Muto et al., 2019, an abundance estimate is currently only available for the portion of bearded seals in the Bering Sea Conn et al., 2012.
The current abundance estimate for the Bering Sea is 301,836 bearded seals.
Given the authorized 300 Level B
harassment takes and 2 Level A
harassment takes for the stock, comparison to the Bering Sea estimate, which is only a portion of the Alaska Stock which also includes animals in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas, shows that, at most, less than one percent of the stock is expected to be impacted.
A complete stock abundance value is also not available for the Alaska stock of ringed seals. As noted in the 2019 Draft Alaska SAR Muto et al., 2019, the abundance estimate available, 171,418
animals, is only a partial estimate of the Bering Sea portion of the population Conn et al., 2014. As noted in the SAR, this estimate does not include animals in the shore fast ice zone, and the authors did not account for availability
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bias. Muto et al. 2019 expect that the Bering Sea portion of the population is actually much higher. Given the authorized 1,765 Level B harassment takes and 9 Level A harassment takes for the stock, comparison to the Bering Sea partial estimate, which is only a portion of the Alaska Stock also includes animals in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas, shows that, at most, less than two percent of the stock is expected to be impacted.
Based on the analysis contained herein of the planned activity including the planned mitigation and monitoring measures and the anticipated take of marine mammals, NMFS finds that small numbers of marine mammals will be taken relative to the population size of the affected species or stocks.
Unmitigable Adverse Impact Analysis and Determination In order to issue an IHA, NMFS must find that the specified activity will not have an unmitigable adverse impact on the subsistence uses of the affected marine mammal species or stocks by Alaskan Natives. NMFS has defined unmitigable adverse impact in 50 CFR
216.103 as an impact resulting from the specified activity: 1 That is likely to reduce the availability of the species to a level insufficient for a harvest to meet subsistence needs by: i Causing the marine mammals to abandon or avoid hunting areas; ii Directly displacing subsistence users; or iii Placing physical barriers between the marine mammals and the subsistence hunters;
and 2 That cannot be sufficiently mitigated by other measures to increase the availability of marine mammals to allow subsistence needs to be met.
Given the nature of the activity, and the required mitigation measures, serious injury and mortality of marine mammals is not expected to occur.
Impacts to marine mammals would mostly include limited, temporary behavioral disturbances of seals, however, some slight PTS in seals within the lower frequencies associated with pile driving is possible.
Additionally, a small number of takes of bowhead whales, by Level B harassment only, are predicted to occur in the vicinity of AGDCs activity. As described above, the required mitigation measures, such as implementation of shutdown zones, are expected to reduce the frequency and severity of takes of marine mammals.
Project activities could deter target species from Prudhoe Bay and the area ensonified above the relevant harassment thresholds. However, as noted in the Effects of Specified Activities on Subsistence Uses of
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Marine Mammals section, subsistence use of seals is extremely limited in this area, as it is not within the preferred and frequented hunting areas. Bowhead whales typically remain outside of the area between the barrier islands and Prudhoe Bay, minimizing the likelihood of impacts from AGDCs project. The authorized takes are not expected to affect the fitness of any bowhead whales, or cause significant deflection outside of the typical migratory path in areas where subsistence hunts occur.
Additionally, during the Nuiqsut whaling season, the final IHA requires AGDC to cease pile driving and project vessels must transit landward of Cross Island, therefore minimizing the potential impact to the Nuiqsut hunt.
AGDC will continue to coordinate with local communities and subsistence groups to minimize impacts of the project, as described in the POC, which the IHA requires AGDC to abide by.
Based on the description of the specified activity and the potential impacts described in the Effects of Specified Activities on Subsistence Uses of Marine Mammals section, the measures described to minimize adverse effects on the availability of marine mammals for subsistence purposes, as well as the mitigation measures required to directly reduce impacts to the affected species and stocks, NMFS has determined that there will not be an unmitigable adverse impact on subsistence uses from AGDCs planned activities.
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 IHA with respect to potential impacts on the human environment.
Accordingly, NMFS adopted the FERCs EIS, as our independent evaluation of the document finds that it includes adequate information analyzing the effects on the human environment of issuing the IHA. NMFS is a cooperating agency on the FERCs EIS.
The FERCs EIS was made available for public comment from June 28, 2019
to October 3, 2019. The FERCs Final EIS is available at https www.ferc.gov/
industries/gas/enviro/eis/2020/03-0620-FEIS.asp.
Endangered Species Act Section 7a2 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq. requires that each Federal agency insure that any action it authorizes, funds, or carries out is not likely to
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