Chapter XI — Permits for Marine Mammals 



how the habitat might be affected, and describe the 

 steps planned to prevent or minimize such impacts. 

 After its review, the Service may include conditions 

 in any authorization it issues to prohibit certain 

 activities in certain areas or at certain times of the 

 year, establish buffer zones, etc. 



The Service acknowledged that no incidental taking 

 of polar bears would be permissible without an 

 authorization regardless of whether or not it occurred 

 in an area identified as important habitat. Because of 

 the greater likelihood that polar bears may be taken in 

 important habitat areas, the Service considered making 

 a letter of authorization mandatory before oil and gas 

 activities could be conducted in these areas. It con- 

 cluded, however, that the habitat conservation strategy 

 did not provide proper authority for issuing such a 

 requirement. Instead, the Service indicted that it 

 would consider requiring letters of authorization for 

 activities in important habitat areas through a separate 

 rulemaking or amendment of the Marine Mammal 

 Protection Act. 



The final strategy also addressed several comments 

 that had recommended that the Service afford special 

 protection to polar bear habitat within the Arctic 

 National Wildlife Refuge. The Service noted that the 

 refuge is currently closed to oil and gas activity by 

 statute. Thus, the Service believed that additional 

 protective measures were not warranted at this time. 

 It did, however, commit to re-examining the need for 

 special measures for this area, should legislation be 

 enacted that would open the refuge to oil and gas 

 operations. 



The Service noted in the draft strategy the dietary 

 importance of ringed seals to polar bears and the need 

 to restrict activities that may displace seals. In the 

 final habitat conservation strategy, the Service pro- 

 posed coordinating its efforts with those of the Nation- 

 al Marine Fisheries Service, which has authorized the 

 incidental taking of ringed seals. 



In 1982, 1987, and again in 1993 the National 

 Marine Fisheries Service issued regulations to autho- 

 rize the taking of small numbers of ringed seals 

 incidental to on-ice seismic activities associated with 

 oil and gas exploration over the outer continental shelf 



of the Beaufort Sea. The current authorization expires 

 at the end of 1997. 



As noted in the previous annual report, four letters 

 of authorization for the taking of ringed seals inciden- 

 tal to on-ice seismic exploration in the Beaufort Sea 

 were issued by the Service during 1994. Three of 

 these authorizations remained valid through 1 Decem- 

 ber 1995. New letters of authorization covering 

 activities from 1 January to 31 May 1996 were issued 

 to BP Exploration, Western Geophysical, and Geco- 

 Prakla on 1 December 1995. 



On 18 July 1990 the National Marine Fisheries 

 Service published regulations authorizing the non- 

 lethal take of six species of marine mammals 

 (bowhead, gray, and beluga whales and bearded, 

 ringed, and spotted seals) incidental to oil and gas 

 exploration in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas from 

 1990 to 1995. As discussed in previous annual 

 reports, the incidental taking of marine mammals 

 under this authorization has been contentious, particu- 

 larly with respect to the adequacy of the associated 

 monitoring programs. However, interest in conduct- 

 ing oil and gas exploration in the Beaufort Sea has 

 waned in recent years, and no letters of authorization 

 were requested in 1994 or 1995. It is expected that 

 some oil and gas operators will seek authority to take 

 marine mammals by harassment incidental to explor- 

 atory activities in the Beaufort Sea during 1996 under 

 section 101(a)(5)(D) of the Marine Mammal Protec- 

 tion Act. 



Removal of Oil and Gas-Related Structures 

 in the Gulf of Mexico 



In 1989 the American Petroleum Institute, repre- 

 senting operators who remove offshore oil and gas 

 drilling and production structures and related facilities 

 in the Gulf of Mexico, sought a small-take authoriza- 

 tion from the National Marine Fisheries Service. The 

 American Petroleum Institute estimated that 670 

 structures will be removed from Gulf waters during 

 the first five years of the proposed operations and that 

 about 5,500 structures will be removed within a 35- 

 year period. Explosives used to sever pilings, well 

 conductors, and supporting structures as part of the 

 removal process may expose dolphins and other 



203 



