16 USC 1390 – Assistance to ports to reduce impacts of vessel traffic and port operations on marine mammals
(a) In general
Not later than 180 days after December 23, 2022, the Under Secretary, in consultation with the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the Secretary, the Secretary of Defense, and the Administrator of the Maritime Administration, shall establish a grant program to provide assistance to eligible entities to develop and implement mitigation measures that will lead to a quantifiable reduction in threats to marine mammals from vessel traffic, including shipping activities and port operations.
(b) Eligible uses
Terms Used In 16 USC 1390
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
- State: means a State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any other territory or possession of the United States. See 1 USC 7
- vessel: includes every description of watercraft or other artificial contrivance used, or capable of being used, as a means of transportation on water. See 1 USC 3
Assistance provided under subsection (a) may be used to develop, assess, and carry out activities that reduce threats to marine mammals by—
(1) reducing underwater stressors related to marine traffic;
(2) reducing mortality and serious injury from vessel strikes and other physical disturbances;
(3) monitoring sound;
(4) reducing vessel interactions with marine mammals;
(5) conducting other types of monitoring that are consistent with reducing the threats to, and enhancing the habitats of, marine mammals; or
(6) supporting State agencies and Tribal governments in developing the capacity to receive assistance under this section through education, training, information sharing, and collaboration to participate in the grant program under this section.
(c) Priority
The Under Secretary shall prioritize providing assistance under subsection (a) for projects that—
(1) are based on the best available science with respect to methods to reduce threats to marine mammals;
(2) collect data on the effects of such methods and the reduction of such threats;
(3) assist ports that pose a higher relative threat to marine mammals listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.);
(4) are in close proximity to areas in which threatened or endangered cetaceans are known to experience other stressors; or
(5) allow eligible entities to conduct risk assessments and to track progress toward threat reduction.
(d) Outreach
The Under Secretary, in coordination with the Secretary, the Administrator of the Maritime Administration, and the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, as appropriate, shall conduct coordinated outreach to ports to provide information with respect to—
(1) how to apply for assistance under subsection (a);
(2) the benefits of such assistance; and
(3) facilitation of best practices and lessons, including the best practices and lessons learned from activities carried out using such assistance.
(e) Report required
Not less frequently than annually, the Under Secretary shall make available to the public on a publicly accessible website of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration a report that includes the following information:
(1) The name and location of each entity to which assistance was awarded under subsection (a) during the year preceding submission of the report.
(2) The amount of each such award.
(3) A description of the activities carried out with each such award.
(4) An estimate of the likely impact of such activities on the reduction of threats to marine mammals.
(f) Definition of eligible entity
In this section, the term “eligible entity” means—
(1) a port authority for a port;
(2) a State, regional, local, or Tribal government, or an Alaska Native or Native Hawaiian entity that has jurisdiction over a maritime port authority or a port;
(3) an academic institution, research institution, or nonprofit organization working in partnership with a port; or
(4) a consortium of entities described in paragraphs (1) through (3).
(g) Funding
From funds otherwise appropriated to the Under Secretary, $10,000,000 is authorized to carry out this section for each of fiscal years 2023 through 2028.
(h) Savings clause
An activity may not be carried out under this section if the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Under Secretary, determines that the activity would negatively impact the defense readiness or the national security of the United States.