Issuance of an Incidental Harassment Authorization for the Take of Marine Mammals Incidental to the Port of Alaska’s North Extension Stabilization Step 1 (NES1) Project in Anchorage, Alaska

The Port of Alaska (POA) requests authorization for the take of small numbers of marine mammals, by Level A and Level B harassment, incidental to its North Extension Stabilization (NES) Step 1 (NES1) Project (Project) at the existing port facility in Anchorage, Alaska. The North Extension is considered a failed structure. Parts of the North Extension bulkhead structure and the surrounding upland area are unstable and collapsing, and some of the sheet piles are visibly twisted and buckled. The structure presents safety hazards and logistical impediments to ongoing Port operations, and much of the upland area is currently unusable. The NES Project will result in removal of the failed sheet pile structure and reconfiguration and realignment of the shoreline within the North Extension. The NES1 project will include vibratory and impact pile installation and removal, which may result in the take, by Level A and Level B harassment, of marine mammals.