83 FR 23257 - Endangered and Threatened Species; Take of Anadromous Fish

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 97 (May 18, 2018)

Notice is hereby given that NMFS has received three scientific research permit application requests relating to Pacific salmon and steelhead. 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. The applications may be viewed online at: https://apps.nmfs.noaa.gov/preview/ preview_open_for_comment.cfm.

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 97 (Friday, May 18, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23257-23258]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-10655]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XG243


Endangered and Threatened Species; Take of Anadromous Fish

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice. Applications for two new scientific research permits 
and one scientific research permit modification.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that NMFS has received three scientific 
research permit application requests relating to Pacific salmon and 
steelhead. 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. The applications may be viewed 
online at: https://apps.nmfs.noaa.gov/preview/preview_open_for_comment.cfm.

DATES: Comments or requests for a public hearing on the applications 
must be received at the appropriate address or fax number (see 
ADDRESSES) no later than 5 p.m. Pacific standard time on June 18, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on the applications should be sent to the 
Protected Resources Division, NMFS, 1201 NE Lloyd Blvd., Suite 1100, 
Portland, OR 97232-1274. Comments may also be sent via fax to 503-230-
5441 or by email to [email protected] (include the permit number 
in the subject line of the fax or email).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rob Clapp, Portland, OR (ph.: 503-231-
2314), Fax: 503-230-5441, email: [email protected]). Permit 
application instructions are available from the address above, or 
online at https://apps.nmfs.noaa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Species Covered in This Notice

    The following listed species are covered in this notice:
    Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha): Threatened Upper 
Willamette River (UWR).
    Coho salmon (O. kisutch): Threatened Oregon Coast (OC).
    Steelhead (O. mykiss): Threatened Lower Columbia River (LCR); 
threatened UWR.

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 regulations 
governing listed fish and wildlife permits (50 CFR parts 222-226). NMFS 
issues permits based on findings that such permits: (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. The authority to take listed species is subject to conditions set 
forth in the permits.
    Anyone requesting a hearing on an application listed in this notice 
should set out the specific reasons why a hearing on that application 
would be appropriate (see ADDRESSES). Such hearings are held at the 
discretion of the Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, NMFS.

Applications Received

Permit 1135-10M

    The United States Geological Survey (USGS) is seeking to modify a 
permit that currently authorizes them to take juvenile LCR steelhead in 
the Wind River subbasin (Washington). The permit would expire on 
December 31, 2021. The purpose of the study is to provide information 
on growth, survival, habitat use, and life histories of LCR steelhead. 
This information would improve understanding of habitat associations 
and life history strategies for LCR steelhead in the Wind River and 
that, in turn, would help state, tribal, and Federal efforts to restore 
LCR steelhead. This information would benefit LCR steelhead by 
improving our understanding of habitat associations and life history 
strategies in the Wind River. This new information would, in turn, help 
state, tribal, and Federal efforts to restore LCR steelhead.
    The USGS proposes to capture juvenile LCR steelhead using backpack 
electrofishing equipment, hold the fish in aerated buckets, anesthetize 
them with MS-222, measure length and weight, tag age-0 and age-1 fish 
with passive integrated transponders (PIT-tags), and release all fish 
at the site of collection after they recover from anesthesia. The 
permit modification would not change the methods or scope of the 
ongoing research except to increase the take of juvenile LCR steelhead 
that are captured, handled, and then released without PIT-tagging from 
2,500 to 4,500 fish annually. The USGS also requests to increase the 
unintentional mortalities authorized for fish that are released without 
PIT-tagging, from 75 to 135 fish annually. The USGS requests this 
increase in take because they captured unusually high

[[Page 23258]]

numbers of age-0 LCR steelhead in 2017. The researchers do not propose 
to kill any fish but a small number may die as an unintended result of 
research activities.

Permit 21837

    Researchers at the Oregon State University are requesting a permit 
that would allow them to take juvenile and adult UWR Chinook salmon and 
UWR steelhead. The research permit would expire on December 31, 2022. 
The researchers propose to work in the upper Willamette River (Oregon) 
and its tributaries including the Middle Fork Willamette, Coast Fork 
Willamette, Calapooia, Long Tom, Marys, and Luckiamute Rivers. The 
purpose of their research is to describe how water temperature and the 
presence of coldwater refugia influence the behavior, growth, diet, 
body condition, seasonal movements, and habitat associations of coastal 
cutthroat trout. The research would provide information to help 
fisheries managers prioritize conservation and management efforts in 
the context of climate change. The research would benefit UWR Chinook 
salmon and UWR steelhead by providing information on how a salmonids 
with similar ecological requirements--coastal cutthroat trout--adapt to 
increasing water temperatures. This new information would help 
fisheries managers prioritize conservation and management efforts in 
the context of climate change.
    The researchers propose to capture fish using boat and backpack 
electrofishing, stick and beach seining, and angling. The researchers 
would identify fish immediately after capture and hold them in cool, 
aerated buckets. The researchers propose to hold ESA-listed fish only 
long enough to avoid recapturing them. They would release the fish to 
the site of capture, with no further handling or measurements, as soon 
as they complete sampling at a site. The researchers propose the 
following measures to minimize take of adult UWR Chinook and UWR 
steelhead for each sampling date: (1) Request current information from 
the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife on adult run timing and 
distribution, (2) conduct visual reconnaissance surveys before sampling 
each site, and (3) avoid sampling in areas where adult salmonids are 
likely to hold, such as pools, glides, and tributary junctions. If 
researchers observe adult salmon or steelhead, the researchers would 
immediately stop sampling and leave the site. The researchers would not 
seine a single site more than five times or electrofish a single site 
more than three times across the summer sampling season. The 
researchers do not propose to kill any fish but a small number of 
juveniles may die as an unintended result of research activities.

Permit 22069

    The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) is requesting a 
permit that would allow them to take OC coho in the Tillamook Bay 
(Oregon). The research permit would expire on December 31, 2022. ODFW 
proposes to conduct a radio telemetry study of OC fall-run Chinook 
salmon, which are not ESA-listed. Researchers may unintentionally take 
OC coho salmon while collecting Chinook salmon. The goal of the 
research study is to improve information on the distribution and 
abundance of Chinook spawners in the Tillamook basin. The OC Chinook 
salmon ESU is subject to management under the Pacific Salmon Treaty, 
which calls for use of abundance-based management. Information on the 
distribution of spawning OC Chinook in the Tillamook basin is essential 
for developing an efficient and cost effective program to monitor 
Chinook spawner abundance. In addition, this research would benefit 
ESA-listed salmonids by demonstrating and improving methods for 
capturing and tagging fish in a large bay setting, and tracking spawner 
movement into multiple geographic strata.
    The ODFW proposes to capture fish from August through December in 
the lower portion of Tillamook Bay, below the mouths of the five 
primary Chinook spawning streams that flow into the bay. ODFW proposes 
to capture juvenile and adult OC coho using angling, seines, and tangle 
nets. The nets would have a nylon mesh size of 4.5 inches and range 
from 75 to 150 feet in length and 8 to 20 feet in depth, dependent upon 
water levels and sampling conditions. To minimize stress and injury of 
fish captured using tangle nets, the researchers propose to: (1) 
Observe nets constantly during deployment, (2) remove fish immediately 
upon detection of capture (i.e., typically less than two minutes after 
entanglement), and (3) relocate tangle nets if a coho is captured or if 
any fish is recaptured on the same day. ODFW proposes to identify fish 
upon capture, and immediately release any coho salmon without further 
handling. The researchers do not propose to kill any fish but a small 
number may die as an unintended result of the activities.
    This notice is provided pursuant to section 10(c) of the ESA. NMFS 
will evaluate the applications, associated documents, and comments 
submitted to determine whether the applications meet the requirements 
of section 10(a) of the ESA and Federal regulations. The final permit 
decisions will not be made until after the end of the 30-day comment 
period. NMFS will publish notice of its final action in the Federal 
Register.

    Dated: May 15, 2018.
Angela Somma,
Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected Resources, 
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2018-10655 Filed 5-17-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P