Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Bottlenose Dolphins and Spotted Dolphins Incidental to Oil and Gas Structure Removal Activities in the Gulf of Mexico

NMFS is issuing regulations authorizing and governing the taking of bottlenose and spotted dolphins incidental to the removal of oil and gas drilling and production structures in state waters and on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) in the Gulf of Mexico for a period not to exceed 18 months. The incidental taking of small numbers of marine mammals is authorized by the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), if certain findings are made and regulations are issued that include requirements for monitoring and reporting. These regulations do not authorize the removal of the structures as such authorization is provided by the Minerals Management Service (MMS) and is not within the jurisdiction of NMFS. Rather, these regulations authorize the unintentional incidental take of marine mammals in connection with such activities and prescribe methods of taking and other means of effecting the least practicable adverse impact on the species and their habitat.