NOAA seeks public comment on Douglas Island cruise terminal marine mammal authorizations

Cruise Terminal Proposed Within Humpback Whale Biologically Important Area

Federal regulators are asking the public to weigh in on proposed incidental harassment authorizations that would allow construction of a new cruise ship terminal on Douglas Island within a federally identified biologically important area for humpback whale feeding in Stephens Passage, with pile driving anticipated to begin in the coming months.

The National Marine Fisheries Service published a notice Friday proposing to authorize Turnagain Marine Construction to harass up to 10 species and 15 stocks of marine mammals during two years of in-water construction on the western shore of Douglas Island, roughly 15 kilometers west of Juneau. The project calls for driving 120 temporary and 345 permanent pilings to support two large-class cruise ship berths intended to provide safe harbor for cruise ships and reduce congestion in downtown Juneau during the Southeast Alaska visitor season. NMFS is proposing two consecutive incidental harassment authorizations and is also requesting comment on possible one-time, one-year renewals of those authorizations under certain circumstances. NMFS proposes to authorize Level A harassment, meaning potential auditory injury, for nine of those species. No serious injury or mortality is anticipated, and incidental harassment authorizations are proposed because the take is limited to harassment.

Feeding Area Overlap

The project site sits within Lynn Canal and Stephens Passage, a federally designated biologically important area for humpback whale feeding from April through October. Humpback whales in the area are predominantly members of the Hawaii distinct population segment, which is not listed under the Endangered Species Act, though the Mexico DPS, which is ESA-threatened, is also present. NMFS says neither serious injury nor mortality is expected.

Mitigation measures include soft-start procedures, an unconfined bubble curtain during impact driving of 48-inch piles, and a 25-meter shutdown zone specifically for harbor seals. That reduced distance is intended to limit project delays, based on a September 2025 geotechnical study in which harbor seals were observed 80 to 200 meters from the project site. Shutdown zones for other phocid pinnipeds range from 50 to 300 meters depending on the driving method. NMFS has preliminarily determined the proposed authorizations qualify for a categorical exclusion from further environmental review under NEPA.

Prior Authorizations and Comment Deadline

NMFS previously issued incidental harassment authorizations to Turnagain for pile driving at other Alaska locations in 2023, 2024, and 2025. The agency says Turnagain complied with all mitigation, monitoring, and reporting requirements on those projects.