[Federal Register: March 14, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 50)]
[Notices]
[Page 12342-12343]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr14mr03-28]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[I.D. 031003F]
Endangered and Threatened Species; Take of Anadromous Fish
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries), National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Applications for scientific research permits (1140, 1156, 1205,
1410) and permit modifications (1309, 1315).
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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that NOAA Fisheries received four
scientific research permit applications and two applications to modify
existing permits related to Pacific salmon and steelhead. All of the
proposed research is intended to increase knowledge of species listed
under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and to help guide management and
conservation efforts.
DATES: Comments or requests for a public hearing on the applications or
modification requests must be received no later than 5 p.m. Pacific
daylight savings time on April 14, 2003.
ADDRESSES: Written comments on the applications or modification
requests should be sent to Protected Resources Division, NOAA
Fisheries, F/NWO3, 525 NE Oregon Street, Suite 500, Portland, OR 97232-
2737. Comments may also be sent via fax to 503-230-5435. Comments will
not be accepted if submitted via e-mail or the internet.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Garth Griffin, Portland, OR (ph: 503-
231-2005, Fax: 503-230-5435, e-mail: Garth.Griffin@noaa.gov). Permit
applications are available at http://www.nwr.noaa.gov.
applications are available at http://www.nwr.noaa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Species Covered in This Notice
The following listed species and evolutionarily significant units
(ESUs) are covered in this notice:
Sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka): endangered Snake River (SnR);
threatened Ozette Lake.
Chinook salmon (O. tshawytscha): endangered naturally produced and
artificially propagated upper Columbia River (UCR) spring-run;
threatened naturally produced and artificially propagated SnR spring/
summer (S/S); threatened SnR fall; threatened lower Columbia River
(LCR); threatened upper Willamette River (UWR); threatened naturally
produced and artificially propagated Puget Sound.
Chum salmon (O. keta): threatened Columbia River (CR); threatened
Hood Canal summer-run.
Steelhead (O. mykiss): endangered naturally produced and
artificially propagated UCR; threatened SnR; threatened middle Columbia
River (MCR); threatened LCR.
Authority
Scientific research permits are issued in accordance with section
10(a)(1)(A) of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1531 et. seq) and Federal regulations
governing listed fish and wildlife permits (50CFR 222-226). NOAA
Fisheries issues permits and modifications based on findings that such
permits and modifications: (1) are applied for in good faith; (2) if
granted and exercised, would not operate to the disadvantage of the
listed species that are the subject of the permit; and (3) are
consistent with the purposes and policy of section 2 of the ESA.
Authority to take listed species is subject to conditions set forth in
the permits and modifications.
Anyone requesting a hearing on an permit or modification
application listed in this document should set out the specific reasons
why a hearing would be appropriate (see ADDRESSES). The holding of such
hearing is at the discretion of the Assistant Administrator for
Fisheries, NOAA.
Permit Applications Received
Permit 1140
The Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC), NOAA Fisheries in
Seattle, WA requests a 5-year permit for three studies that will have
annual take of juvenile threatened OC coho salmon; juvenile threatened
CR chum salmon; juvenile endangered SnR sockeye salmon; juvenile
threatened naturally produced and artificially-propagated SnR S/S
chinook salmon; juvenile threatened SnR fall chinook salmon; juvenile
threatened LCR chinook salmon; juvenile threatened UWR chinook salmon;
juvenile endangered naturally produced and artificially propagated UCR
spring chinook salmon; juvenile threatened naturally produced and
artificially propagated PS chinook salmon; juvenile threatened SnR
steelhead; juvenile threatened LCR steelhead; juvenile threatened MCR
steelhead; juvenile endangered naturally produced and artificially
propagated UCR steelhead; and juvenile threatened UWR steelhead.
Study 1. The NWFSC would take listed juvenile salmon and steelhead
while conducting research that will assess the relationship between
environmental variables, selected anthropogenic stresses, and bacterial
and parasitic pathogens on disease-induced mortality in juvenile salmon
in selected coastal estuaries and nearshore areas in Oregon and
Washington. In addition, the NWFSC proposes to gather additional site-
specific information in the Lower Columbia River to (1) determine
contaminant concentrations in fish, (2) understand bioaccumulation in
juvenile salmon and determine site-specific factors, (3) analyze for
the presence of physiological biomarkers, and to (4) investigate the
presence of indicators of exposure to environmental estrogens. The
NWFSC would collect samples with seines or high speed rope trawls, and
requests authorization to lethally take salmon for pathogen prevalence
and intensity, biochemical composition, histopathological attributes,
and stomach content analyses.
Study 2. The NWFSC would take listed juvenile PS chinook salmon
while conducting research activities in the Duwamish waterway in the
state of Washington. The NWFSC will investigate salmon exposure to
contaminants and evaluate the extent of river contamination to
determine what actions will be necessary to mitigate future exposure.
Beach seines will be used to catch juvenile threatened PS chinook
salmon. The NWFSC also would collect samples with high speed rope
trawls and it requests authorization to lethally take salmon for
contaminant analysis.
Study 3. The NWFSC would take juvenile PS chinook salmon associated
with an assessment and monitoring program designed to (1) characterize
the estuarine ecology of existing life history types of chinook salmon,
(2) evaluate the performance of estuarine habitat restoration actions,
and (3) evaluate the effects of shoreline alterations on nearshore
fishes. Sampling will occur in Seattle, WA estuarine nearshore areas.
The NWFSC would collect listed salmon with beach seines, enclosure
nets, surface trawl nets, and block/fyke nets, sample the fish for
biological data and stomach contents using non-lethal evacuation, and
then release them. In addition, the NWFSC requests authorization to
lethally take salmon for histopathological attributes and otolith
stomach content analyses.
Permit 1156
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in Corvallis, Oregon
(OR) requests a 5-year permit for annual take of juvenile and adult
threatened LCR steelhead; threatened MCR steelhead; endangered
naturally-produced and artificially propagated UCR steelhead;
[[Page 12343]]
threatened SnR steelhead; threatened UWR steelhead; threatened SnR (S/
S) chinook salmon; threatened SnR fall chinook salmon; threatened LCR
chinook salmon; threatened UWR chinook salmon; endangered naturally
produced and artificially propagated UCR spring chinook salmon;
threatened naturally produced and artificially propagated PS chinook
salmon; threatened OC coho salmon; and threatened SONCC coho salmon
associated with research designed to assess species status and trends
in randomly selected river systems in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho.
The EPA intends to conduct annual surveys for fish, macroinvertebrate,
algae, and microbial assemblages as well as physical and chemical
habitat conditions in randomly selected river-systems in Oregon,
Washington, and Idaho. Listed fish will be captured by electrofishing
(using backpack or raft-mounted gear), sampled for biological
information, and released. The research will benefit the listed species
by providing baseline information about water quality in the study
areas and will also support enforcement of the Clean Water Act in those
river systems where listed fish are present. Dynamac Corporation, U.S.
Geological Survey Biological Resources Division, Idaho Department of
Environmental Quality, and Washington Department of Ecology will be
cooperators in the proposed EPA research. The EPA requests the
cooperators' biologists be authorized as agents of the EPA in
conducting the research.
Permit 1205
The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (ODEQ) in Portland,
OR requests a 5-year permit for annual take of juvenile threatened SnR
(S/S) chinook salmon; SnR fall chinook salmon; and SONCC coho salmon
associated with research designed to assess the condition of randomly
selected streams in Southwestern and Northeastern Oregon. The research
involves stream vertebrate surveys that are part of a monitoring
program that evaluates the chemical, biological, and habitat conditions
of streams on a regional basis. ODEQ's research implements the Oregon
Plan and is coordinated with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
and the EPA. ODEQ would capture listed juvenile salmonids using
backpack electrofishing, sample them for biological information, and
release them. The research will benefit the listed species by providing
baseline information to support enforcement of the Clean Water Act in
freshwater river systems where listed fish are present.
Permit 1410
The NNWFSC in Seattle, WA requests a 5-year permit for annual take
of adult and juvenile listed fish. The NWFSC proposes to investigate
the distribution, abundance, condition and health of juvenile salmon in
relation to physical and biological oceanographic conditions in the
Columbia River plume and surrounding ocean environment to better
understand factors controlling estuarine and marine survival. The study
will provide information to help predict and forecast survival
potential as a function of easily measured indices of plume and ocean
conditions. Further, the information will help hydropower operators
develop a set of hydropower management scenarios that could benefit
survival, growth, and health of juvenile salmon by changing the
dynamics of the Columbia River plume. Listed fish will be collected
with purse seines and trawl nets, sampled for biological data, and
released. The NWFSC also requests authorization to lethally take salmon
for endocrine assessments, genetic stock identification, pathogen
prevalence and intensity, otolith and stomach content analysis, and
histopathological attributes.
Modification Requests
Permit 1309-Modification 2
The King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks (KCDNRP)
in Seattle, WA requests a modification to permit 1309 for increased
annual take of juvenile threatened naturally produced PS chinook salmon
associated with its current study examining the behavior of juvenile
chinook and other salmonids in the Green and Duwamish Rivers and
adjacent nearshore areas in the State of Washington. The study will
provide information about natural chinook salmon growth, timing of
migration, feeding, life history types and interactions with hatchery
salmon. Resource managers will use the information to take short-term
conservation measures as well as to establish a baseline to gauge the
long-term effectiveness of ESA recovery actions. In addition, the KCDNR
requests authorization to lethally take PS chinook salmon for otolith
and diet analysis and to capture listed fish using a screw trap.
Permit 1315-Modification 2
The U.S. Army Corp of Engineers Seattle District (COE) requests a
modification to permit 1315, which authorizes annual take of PS chinook
salmon under several studies. The COE is proposing to micro-acoustic
tag naturally produced PS chinook salmon associated with an ongoing
investigation of fish passage conditions at the large lock chamber of
the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks and Lake Washington Ship Canal in the
State of Washington. The study will identify effects on salmonids in
the Lake Washington Basin and help researchers (1) identify limiting
factors contributing to smolt survival, (2) develop smolt survival
estimates, and (3) assess restoration measures to improve smolt
survival.
Further, the COE is requesting annual take of juvenile naturally
produced PS chinook salmon associated with a new study which will
provide it and the city of Seattle with information on salmonid
nearshore habitat use in Lake Washington and the Lake Washington Ship
Canal. The information will help (1) determine the relationship between
habitat use and shoreline development, (2) guide the city's habitat
restoration efforts to improve habitat conditions, (3) help predict the
effects of modifications to salmonid habitat, and (4) and aid Lake
Washington area municipalities with their shoreline management
programs. Listed fish would be captured by beach seine, anesthetized,
sampled for biological information and stomach contents using non-
lethal evacuation, tagged/marked, and released.
This notice is provided pursuant to section 10(c) of the ESA. NOAA
Fisheries will evaluate the applications and modification requests,
associated documents, and any comments submitted to determine whether
the applications and modification requests meet the requirements of
section 10(a) of the ESA and Federal regulations. NOAA will not make
any final determinations until after the end of the 30-day comment
period. NOAA Fisheries will publish notice of its final action in the
Federal Register.
Dated: March 11, 2003.
Barbara Schroeder,
Acting Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 03-6199 Filed 3-13-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S