NOAA and OMB Seek Comment on ICR for Marine Protected Areas

The U.S. Department of Commerce will submit to the Office of Management and Budget for clearance the following proposal for collection of information under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act. This request is for a revision and extension of an approved data collection effort to provide ocean managers, users and other interested parties with accurate, objective and useful information about the location, purpose, management and human uses of marine protected areas in the coastal and marine waters of the United States. To this end, NOAA’s National Marine Protected Areas Center part of the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries proposes to continue and augment an ongoing effort to inventory all U.S. MPAs.

BOEM Coastal and Offshore Archaeological Sites Report Applauded by California Environmental Professionals

The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management) was recognized by the Association of Environmental Professionals for its study report, Inventory and Analysis of Coastal and Submerged Archaeological Site Occurrence on the Pacific Outer Continental Shelf. The report earned AEP’s Outstanding Environmental Resource Document Award. This is the latest in a series of reports from BOEM-funded analyses that seek to identify potentially significant archaeological and cultural resources on the Pacific Outer Continental Shelf. The report was prepared for BOEM by ICF International, SEARCH, Inc., and Davis Geoarchaeological Research.

NOAA Proposes Changes for Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary

The U.S. Office of National Marine Sanctuaries, National Ocean Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, has propose expanding the boundaries and scope of Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary, to amend the regulations for HIHWNMS, to change the name of the sanctuary, and to revise the sanctuary’s terms of designation and management plan. The purpose of this action is to transition the sanctuary from a single-species management approach to an ecosystem-based management approach.

A draft environmental impact statement and draft revised management
plan have been prepared for this proposed action. NOAA is soliciting public comment on the proposed rule, draft environmental impact statement, and draft revised management plan. Comments on this proposed rule will be considered if received by June 19, 2015.