Marine Mammals; Incidental Take of Polar Bears and Pacific Walruses in the Beaufort Sea and North Slope of Alaska

Document 2026-04558 is a Proposed Rule published by the Department of Interior in the Federal Register on March 9, 2026. We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, received a request under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 from the Alaska Oil and Gas Association to issue regulations facilitating the authorization of incidental, unintentional take of small numbers of polar bears (Ursus maritimus) and Pacific walruses (Odobenus rosmarus divergens) during year-round oil and gas industry activities in the Beaufort Sea (Alaska and the Outer Continental Shelf) and adjacent northern coast of Alaska. Take may result from oil and gas exploration, development, production, and transportation activities occurring for a period of 5 years. Oil and gas industry operations include similar types of activities covered by the previous 5-year Beaufort Sea incidental take regulations effective from August 5, 2021, through August 5, 2026. If this rule is finalized, we may issue letters of authorization, upon request, for specific proposed activities in accordance with this proposed regulation. We are proposing that this rule, if finalized, will be for 5 years. We intend that any final action resulting from this proposed rule will be as accurate and effective as possible. Therefore, we request comments or suggestions on these proposed regulations and the accompanying draft environmental assessment from the public, Tribes, and local, State, and Federal agencies. View the original at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/03/09/2026-04558/marine-mammals-incidental-take-of-polar-bears-and-pacific-walruses-in-the-beaufort-sea-and-north.

No. Document 2026-04558 is not classified as economically significant under Executive Order 12866. Economically significant rules require OIRA review and are estimated to have impacts of $100 million or more per year.