Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Conducting Oil and Gas Exploration Activities in the Gulf of Mexico

Résumé

NMFS has received a request from the U.S. Minerals Management Service (MMS), U.S. Department of the Interior, for regulations to authorize the take, by harassment, of small numbers of marine mammals incidental to seismic surveys during oil and gas exploration activities by the U.S. oil and gas industry in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM). By this document, NMFS announces: (1) its intention to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS); (2) commencement of its scoping process under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA); (3) a request for public comment on the scope of the EIS; and (4) times, dates, and locations for public scoping meetings.