The Department of the Navy, with the National Marine Fisheries Service
as a cooperating agency, has prepared a Supplemental Environmental
Impact Statement/Supplemental Overseas Environmental Impact Statement
(SEIS/SOEIS) for SURTASS LFA sonar in accordance with the National
Environmental Policy Act and Executive Order 12114. The SEIS/SOEIS
evaluates the potential environmental impacts associated with two
action alternatives and a No-Action Alternative to the following
resource areas: air quality, marine environment, biological, and
economic. Public comments on the Draft SEIS/SOEIS were received from
two federal agencies, two State agencies, and one group of
non-governmental organizations. The
Final SEIS/SOEIS
is now available for download. After a 30 day public comment period,
the Navy selected Alternative 2, the Preferred Action Alternative,
which is documented in its Record of Decision, available for download
here.
As part of the environmental decision-making process, the Navy
submitted
an application for rulemaking and a letter of authorization
under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) to take marine mammals
incidental to the use of SURTASS LFA sonar for training and testing
activities in the western and central North Pacific and eastern Indian
oceans. Additionally, the Navy submitted a Biological Evaluation to
initiate Section 7 consultation under the Endangered Species Act
(ESA). In its ESA Biological Opinion, NMFS determined that the
proposed action is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of
threatened and endangered species under NMFS’s jurisdiction and is not
likely to destroy or adversely modify designated critical habitat over
the period of the proposed seven-year MMPA rule and letter of
authorization, and into the reasonably foreseeable future. The
Biological Opinion, which includes the Incidental Take Statement, was
signed on July 30, 2019, becoming effective when the MMPA Final Rule
and LOA are authorized; it is available for download
here. The MMPA Final Rule and LOA became effective on August 12, 2019 and
can be downloaded here:
Final Rule
and
LOA.