(a) “Autonomous vehicle” means an uncrewed vehicle that operates independently of, and without tethers or connecting cables to, a crewed vessel.

(b) “Biological survey” means a scientific study of organisms to assess the condition of an ecological resource.

(c) “Commission” means the California State Lands Commission.

(d) “Geophysical survey” or “survey” means the systematic collection of geophysical data for spatial analysis, within a pre-determined area of study, by reflecting sound or pressure waves off the floor underlying marine waters and non-marine waters, and analyzing such data to develop an approximation of the physical features of the surface or subsurface floor underlying marine waters and non-marine waters.

(e) “Haul-Out Site” means land habitat that is used by pinnipeds for periods of rest, molting, and as rookeries for mating and pupping.

(f) “High-energy equipment” means geophysical equipment that produces acoustic energy and is an air or water compression device (e.g., airgun, water gun).

(g) “Low-energy equipment” means geophysical equipment that produces acoustic energy and falls into one of the following categories: subbottom profilers (e.g., mini-sparkers, boomers, chirp, and general subbottom profiler systems), echosounders (e.g., single beam and multibeam echosounders), and side-scan sonars.

(h) “Marine waters” means those waters subject to tidal influence, except for waters in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Rivers and Delta upstream from a line running north and south through the point where Contra Costa, Sacramento, and Solano Counties meet.

(i) “Marine Wildlife Monitor” or “MWM” means a person responsible for monitoring for marine wildlife, including marine mammals and turtles, and ensuring geophysical survey activities are conducted in compliance with the Commission's Geophysical Survey Permit Program for minimizing the risk of injury and disturbance to marine wildlife.

(j) “Passive equipment” means equipment that does not produce acoustic or pressure wave energy, including but not limited to magnetometers, gravity meters, fluorometers, and optical sensors.

(k) “Pre-Survey Notification Form” means the Pre-Survey Notification Form dated September 5, 2018, incorporated herein in its entirety.

(l) “Sovereign lands” means the lands held in trust for the benefit of the people of California subject to the common law Public Trust Doctrine including granted and ungranted tidelands and submerged lands and the beds of navigable waterways.