(a) Compliance coordination. PIFSC shall designate a compliance coordinator who shall be responsible for ensuring compliance with all requirements of any LOA issued pursuant to §§ 216.106 of this chapter and 219.67 and for preparing for any subsequent request(s) for incidental take authorization.

(b) Visual monitoring program. PIFSC shall comply with the following monitoring requirements:

(1) Marine mammal visual monitoring shall occur prior to deployment of trawl nets, longlines, bottomfishing gear, instruments, and traps, respectively; throughout deployment of gear and active fishing of research gears (not including longline soak time); prior to retrieval of longline gear; and throughout retrieval of all research gear.

(2) Marine mammal watches shall be conducted by watch-standers (those navigating the vessel and/or other crew) at all times when the vessel is being operated.

(c) Training. (1) PIFSC must conduct annual training for all chief scientists and other personnel who may be responsible for conducting dedicated marine mammal visual observations to explain mitigation measures and monitoring and reporting requirements, mitigation and monitoring protocols, marine mammal identification, completion of datasheets, and use of equipment. PIFSC may determine the agenda for these trainings.

(2) PIFSC shall also dedicate a portion of training to discussion of best professional judgment, including use in any incidents of marine mammal interaction and instructive examples where use of best professional judgment was determined to be successful or unsuccessful.

(3) PIFSC shall coordinate with NMFS' Office of Science and Technology to ensure training and guidance related to handling procedures and data collection is consistent with other fishery science centers, where appropriate.

(d) Handling procedures and data collection. (1) PIFSC must develop and implement standardized marine mammal handling, disentanglement, and data collection procedures. These standard procedures will be subject to approval by NMFS OPR and must be complied with by PIFSC if approved.

(2) For any marine mammal interaction involving the release of a live animal, PIFSC shall collect necessary data to facilitate a serious injury determination, when practicable.

(3) PIFSC shall provide its relevant personnel with standard guidance and training regarding handling of marine mammals, including how to identify different species, bring an individual aboard a vessel, assess the level of consciousness, remove fishing gear, return an individual to water, and log activities pertaining to the interaction.

(4) PIFSC shall record marine mammal interaction information on standardized forms, which will be subject to approval by OPR. PIFSC shall also answer a standard series of supplemental questions regarding the details of any marine mammal interaction.

(e) Reporting. (1) Marine mammal capture/entanglements (live or dead) must be reported immediately to the relevant regional stranding coordinator (Hawai'i Statewide Marine Animal Stranding, Entanglement, and Reporting Hotline, 888-256-9840; Guam Conservation Office Hotline, 671-688-3297; Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Division of Fish and Wildlife Hotline, 670-287-8537; American Samoa Department of Marine and Wildlife Resources, 684-633-4456), OPR (301-427-8401), and NMFS Pacific Islands Regional Office (808-725-5000).

(2) PIFSC shall report all incidents of marine mammal interaction to NMFS's Protected Species Incidental Take database within 48 hours of occurrence and shall provide supplemental information to OPR upon request. Information related to marine mammal interaction (animal captured or entangled in research gear) must include details of survey effort, full descriptions of any observations of the animals, the context (vessel and conditions), decisions made, and rationale for decisions made in vessel and gear handling.

(3) PIFSC shall submit an annual summary report to OPR:

(i) The report must be submitted no later than 90 days following the end of a given calendar year. The first annual report must cover the period from the date of issuance of the LOA through the end of that calendar year and the entire first full calendar year of the authorization. Subsequent reports will cover only 1 full calendar year. PIFSC shall provide a final report within 30 days following resolution of comments on the draft report.

(ii) These reports shall contain, at minimum, the following:

(A) Annual line-kilometers surveyed during which the EK60, EM 300, and ADCP Ocean Surveyor (or equivalent sources) were predominant and associated pro-rated estimates of actual take;

(B) Summary information regarding use of all longline, bottomfishing, and trawl gear, including number of sets, tows, etc., specific to each gear;

(C) Accounts of surveys where marine mammals were observed during sampling but no interactions occurred;

(D) Accounts of all incidents of marine mammal interactions, including circumstances of the event and descriptions of any mitigation procedures implemented or not implemented and why and, if released alive, serious injury determinations;

(E) Summary information related to any disturbance of pinnipeds, including event-specific total counts of animals present, counts of reactions according to the three-point scale, and distance of closest approach;

(F) A written description of any mitigation research investigation efforts and findings (e.g., line modifications);

(G) A written evaluation of the effectiveness of PIFSC mitigation strategies in reducing the number of marine mammal interactions with survey gear, including best professional judgment and suggestions for changes to the mitigation strategies, if any; and

(H) A summary of all relevant training provided by PIFSC and any coordination with NMFS Office of Science and Technology and the Pacific Islands Regional Office.

(f) Reporting of injured or dead marine mammals. (1) If any activity defined in § 219.61(a) causes the take of a marine mammal in a prohibited manner, PIFSC personnel engaged in the research activity shall immediately cease such activity until such time as an appropriate decision regarding activity continuation can be made by the PIFSC Director (or designee). The incident must be reported immediately to OPR and the NMFS Pacific Islands Regional Office. OPR will review the circumstances of the prohibited take and assess what measures are necessary to minimize the likelihood of further prohibited take and ensure Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) compliance. The immediate decision made by PIFSC regarding continuation of the specified activity is subject to OPR concurrence. The report must include the following information:

(i) Time, date, and location (latitude/longitude) of the incident;

(ii) Description of the incident including, but not limited to, monitoring prior to and occurring at time of the incident;

(iii) Environmental conditions (e.g., wind speed and direction, Beaufort sea state, cloud cover, visibility);

(iv) Description of all marine mammal observations in the 24 hours preceding the incident;

(v) Species identification or description of the animal(s) involved;

(vi) Status of all sound source use in the 24 hours preceding the incident;

(vii) Water depth;

(viii) Fate of the animal(s) (e.g. dead, injured but alive, injured and moving, blood or tissue observed in the water, status unknown, disappeared, etc.); and

(ix) Photographs or video footage of the animal(s).

(2) In the event that PIFSC discovers an injured or dead marine mammal and determines that the cause of the injury or death is unknown and the death is relatively recent (e.g., in less than a moderate state of decomposition), PIFSC shall immediately report the incident to OPR and the NMFS Pacific Islands Regional Office. The report must include the information identified in paragraph (f)(1) of this section. Activities may continue while OPR reviews the circumstances of the incident. OPR will work with PIFSC to determine whether additional mitigation measures or modifications to the activities are appropriate.

(3) In the event that PIFSC discovers an injured or dead marine mammal and determines that the injury or death is not associated with or related to the activities defined in § 219.61(a) (e.g., previously wounded animal, carcass with moderate to advanced decomposition, scavenger damage), PIFSC shall report the incident to OPR and the Pacific Islands Regional Office, NMFS, within 24 hours of the discovery. PIFSC shall provide photographs or video footage or other documentation of the stranded animal sighting to OPR.

(4) In the event of a ship strike of a marine mammal by any PIFSC or partner vessel involved in the activities covered by the authorization, PIFSC or partner shall immediately report the information in paragraph (f)(1) of this section, as well as the following additional information:

(i) Vessel's speed during and leading up to the incident;

(ii) Vessel's course/heading and what operations were being conducted;

(iii) Status of all sound sources in use;

(iv) Description of avoidance measures/requirements that were in place at the time of the strike and what additional measures were taken, if any, to avoid strike;

(v) Estimated size and length of animal that was struck; and

(vi) Description of the behavior of the marine mammal immediately preceding and following the strike.