APPENDIX D: EFH Consultation Letters Draft Environmental Assessment of a Marine Geophysical Survey by the R/V Marcus G. Langseth in the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Hatteras, September–October 2014 Prepared for Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory 61 Route 9W, P.O. Box 1000 Palisades, NY 10964-8000 and National Science Foundation Division of Ocean Sciences 4201 Wilson Blvd., Suite 725 Arlington, VA 22230 by LGL Ltd., environmental research associates 22 Fisher St., POB 280 King City, Ont. L7B 1A6 13 February 2014 Revised 2 May 2014 LGL Report TA8350-1 Environmental Analysis for L-DEO Atlantic off Cape Hatteras, 2014 Page ii Table of Contents TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................................................... V LIST OF ACRONYMS .................................................................................................................................... VII I. PURPOSE AND NEED .................................................................................................................................. 1 Mission of NSF................................................................................................................................... 1 Purpose of and Need for the Proposed Action ................................................................................... 1 Background of NSF-funded Marine Seismic Research ...................................................................... 2 Regulatory Setting .............................................................................................................................. 2 II. ALTERNATIVES INCLUDING PROPOSED ACTION ..................................................................................... 2 Proposed Action ................................................................................................................................. 2 (1) Project Objectives and Context .......................................................................................... 2 (2) Proposed Activities ............................................................................................................. 4 (3) Monitoring and Mitigation Measures ................................................................................. 7 Alternative 1: Alternative Survey Timing ....................................................................................... 15 Alternative 2: No Action Alternative .............................................................................................. 15 Alternatives Considered but Eliminated from Further Analysis ...................................................... 15 (1) Alternative E1: Alternative Location ............................................................................... 15 (2) Alternative E2: Use of Alternative Technologies ............................................................. 16 III. AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT .................................................................................................................... 16 Oceanography ................................................................................................................................... 18 Protected Areas ................................................................................................................................. 18 Marine Mammals .............................................................................................................................. 19 (1) Mysticetes ......................................................................................................................... 21 (2) Odontocetes ...................................................................................................................... 25 Sea Turtles ........................................................................................................................................ 32 (1) Leatherback Turtle ........................................................................................................... 33 (2) Green Turtle ..................................................................................................................... 33 (3) Loggerhead Turtle ............................................................................................................ 33 (4) Hawksbill Turtle ............................................................................................................... 34 (5) Kemp’s Ridley Turtle ....................................................................................................... 34 Seabirds ............................................................................................................................................ 35 (1) Piping Plover .................................................................................................................... 35 (2) Roseate Tern ..................................................................................................................... 35 (3) Bermuda Petrel ................................................................................................................. 35 Fish, Essential Fish Habitat, and Habitat Areas of Particular Concern ............................................ 36 (1) ESA-Listed Fish and Invertebrate Species ....................................................................... 36 (2) Essential Fish Habitat ....................................................................................................... 37 (3) Habitat Areas of Particular Concern ................................................................................. 37 Environmental Analysis for L-DEO Atlantic off Cape Hatteras, 2014 Page iii Table of Contents Fisheries ............................................................................................................................................ 40 (1) Commercial Fisheries ....................................................................................................... 40 (2) Recreational Fisheries ...................................................................................................... 40 Recreational SCUBA Diving............................................................................................................ 45 Terrestrial Species ............................................................................................................................ 45 (1) Birds ................................................................................................................................. 45 (2) Mammals .......................................................................................................................... 49 (3) Insects ............................................................................................................................... 49 (4) Plants ................................................................................................................................ 50 IV. ENVIRONMENTAL CONSEQUENCES...................................................................................................... 53 Proposed Action ............................................................................................................................... 53 (1) Direct Effects on Marine Mammals and Sea Turtles and Their Significance .................. 53 (2) Direct Effects on Invertebrates, Fish, Fisheries, and EFH and Their Significance .......... 68 (3) Direct Effects on Seabirds and Their Significance ........................................................... 70 (4) Indirect Effects on Marine Mammals, Sea Turtles, and Their Significance .................... 70 (5) Direct Effects on Recreational SCUBA Divers and Dive Sites and Their Significance ................................................................................................................. 70 (6) Direct Effects on Terrestrial Species and Their Significance ........................................... 70 (7) Cumulative Effects ........................................................................................................... 72 (8) Unavoidable Impacts ........................................................................................................ 75 (9) Coordination with Other Agencies and Processes ............................................................ 75 Alternative Action: Another Time .................................................................................................... 76 No Action Alternative ...................................................................................................................... 76 V. LIST OF PREPARERS ............................................................................................................................... 77 VI. LITERATURE CITED .............................................................................................................................. 78 Environmental Analysis for L-DEO Atlantic off Cape Hatteras, 2014 Page iv Abstract ABSTRACT Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (L-DEO), with funding from the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), proposes to conduct a high-energy, 3-D seismic survey from the R/V Langseth in the Atlantic Ocean ~6–430 km from the coast of Cape Hatteras in September–October 2014. The proposed 3 seismic survey would use a towed array of 36 airguns with a total discharge volume of ~6600 in or 18 airguns with a total discharge volume of ~3300 in3. The