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The Department of Commerce/NOAA, Eastern Administrative Support Center intends to negotiate on a sole source basis with the Center for Coastal Studies for disentanglement services in accordance with Congressional directives. Several species of endangered marine mammals are subject to entanglement in active and derelict commercial fishing gear. The endangered species of most concern in the Northeast Region is the northern right whale, Eubalaena glacialis. The minimum population estimate upon which management actions are currently based is approximately 300 animals for the Western North Atlantic stock of the northern right whale population. Scaring patterns on known individual right whales indicate that a minimum of 72% of the remaining population exhibit signs of entanglement in fishing gear. A second species of concern is the humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae. For humpback whales, entanglement in fishing gear is the most prevalent human-induced take observed in the Northeast. It has been estimated that 50% of the humpback whales in the Gulf of Maine sub-stock bear scars from entanglement. The Center for Coastal Studies will be required to establish, maintain, and operate a program for responding to reports of entangled whales (alive or dead) and for dissemination of knowledge gained from the response effort. This includes the U.S. coastline from Maine through and including the Atlantic coast of Florida. The statutory authority for this action is 41 USC 253(c)(1), Oly One Responsible Source.

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