Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Operation of Offshore Oil and Gas Facilities in the U.S. Beaufort Sea
other · Published 2013-12-12 · Effective 2014-01-13 · 78 FR 75488
Document
Document number
2013-29553
Federal Register citation
78 FR 75488
Type
Rule
Action
Final rule.
Category
other
Publication date
2013-12-12
Effective date
2014-01-13
NOAA docket
Docket No. 100217096-1059-02
Abstract
NMFS, upon application from BP Exploration (Alaska) Inc. (BP), is issuing regulations pursuant to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) to govern the unintentional taking of marine mammals incidental to operation of offshore oil and gas facilities in the U.S. Beaufort Sea, Alaska, for the period January 2014-January 2019. These regulations, which allow for the issuance of Letters of Authorization (LOAs) for the incidental take of marine mammals during the described activities and specified timeframes, prescribe the permissible methods of taking and other means of effecting the least practicable adverse impact on marine mammal species or stocks and their habitat, as well as requirements pertaining to the monitoring and reporting of such taking.