Composite Training Unit Exercises and Joint Task ... - Govsupport.us

CD-086-06, Navy Training ExercisesSouthern CaliforniaPage 33Through the ESA and Integrated Natural Resource Management Plan (INRMP) processes, theNavy is currently implementing aggressive, island-wide measures to manage, protect, andimprove loggerhead shrike and island night lizard habitat, including but not limited to,surveying, monitoring and research, predator management and removal, fire controls(including during Naval Surface Fire Support from the proposed training activities),establishing restricted areas off limits to military and other human activities, captive breeding,and habitat enhancement. Firebreaks are coordinated with the Navy’s Natural Resources Officeprior to installation, and fire suppression equipment is on site during live-firing events. TheNavy has also established snowy plover avoidance measures that must be implemented for anytraining occurring during the snowy plover nesting season at the Silver Strand Peninsula. TheMarine Corps implements conservation measures on landing beaches off Camp Pendleton,including: fencing nesting areas, predator controls, restoring dunes within nesting areas,monitoring breeding activities, and studying long-term snowy plover and least tern populationtrends.In conclusion, for the reasons discussed on pages 18-32 above, based on the project’s marineresource concerns, the Commission is conditioning its concurrence on requirements that theNavy incorporate the following monitoring and mitigation measures (see p. 10-13 for conditionlanguage):implement safety zones out to the 154 dB (received level (RL), expressed in decibels(re 1 μPa2 ·s @ 1m [one micropascal squared second at one meter]);include two dedicated NOAA-trained observers at all times during use of midfrequencysonar;provide adequate, NMFS approved training for the monitors;include Passive Acoustic Monitoring and use it to enforce the safety zones;perform aerial monitoring;avoid, where possible, effect on gray whales, the Channel Islands National MarineSanctuary, and areas with known high concentrations of marine mammals, and complex, steepseabed topography (except on the Navy’s instrumented range off San Clemente Island);additional measures for night and low visibility conditions, during Surface DuctingConditions, and for Choke-point exercises;to the degree possible, retrieval of inert mine shapes dropped; andas agreed to previously, submit all monitoring results provided to NMFS (unlessclassified) to the Commission staff.