[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 8 (Friday, January 11, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2370-2371]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-00396]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-XC435
New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC); Public Meeting
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of a public meeting.
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SUMMARY: The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold
a four-day meeting on January 28-31, 2013 to consider actions affecting
New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
DATES: The meeting will be held on Monday, January 28, through
Thursday, January 31, 2013. The meeting will begin at 1 p.m. on Monday,
at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, and at 8:30 a.m. on both Wednesday and Thursday.
ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at the Sheraton Portsmouth
Harborside Hotel, 250 Market Street, Portsmouth, NH 03801; telephone:
(603) 431-2300; fax: (603) 431-7805; or online at http://www.sheratonportsmouth.com/.
Council address: New England Fishery Management Council, 50 Water
Street, Mill 2, Newburyport, MA 01950; telephone: (978) 465-0492.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul J. Howard, Executive Director,
New England Fishery Management Council, (978) 465-0492.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Monday, January 28, 2013
The New England Council will hold a closed session on Monday,
January 28 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. to address employment matters.
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Following introductions and any announcements on Tuesday, the
Council will receive brief reports from the NEFMC Chairman and
Executive Director, the Northeast Fisheries Science Center and Mid-
Atlantic Fishery Management Council liaisons, NOAA General Counsel,
representatives of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, and
staff from the regional Vessel Monitoring Systems Operations and NOAA
Law Enforcement offices. The Council also will receive an update about
Northeast Regional Ocean Council activities. Following these reports,
NOAA's Northeast Regional Office staff will provide a presentation on a
proposed offshore mussel aquaculture project off Cape Ann, MA and
solicit comments or recommendations. The Monkfish Committee will update
the Council about the development of Amendment 6. This report will
include details about alternatives that would modify the current days-
at-sea/trip limit system, incorporate monkfish into groundfish sectors
and/or outline an Individual Transferable Quota (ITQ) program for the
fishery. The Council may approve a request asking the NOAA Regional
Administrator to provide feedback about the Northeast Regional Office's
ability to provide timely data during the development a sector
management or ITQ program for monkfish. Prior to a lunch break, the
Northeast Regional Office will present a Draft Environmental Assessment
on Standard Bycatch Reporting Methodology and also ask the Council and
public for comments. The day will conclude with a lengthy set of
decisions about Atlantic Herring. The Council is expected to select and
approve final recommendations for multi-year herring fishery
specifications (2013-15) and Framework Adjustment 2 to the Herring FMP
(to allow consideration of seasonal quota splitting and carryover of
unutilized quota). The specifications will address overfishing levels
and acceptable biological catch based on Scientific and Statistical
Committee advice, management uncertainty, optimum yield and a stock-
wide annual catch limit (ACL) for Atlantic herring, Domestic Annual
Harvest, Domestic Annual Processing, U.S. At-Sea Processing, Border
Transfer, sub-ACLs (quotas) for each of four management areas, seasonal
sub-ACL allocations (based on Framework 2 provisions), research set-
asides, set-asides for fixed gear fisheries in the Gulf of Maine, and a
range of accountability measures (AMs) for the herring fishery.
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
The Council will receive a report from the Northeast Fisheries
Science Center staff summarizing the findings of the 55th Stock
Assessment Workshop/Stock Assessment Review Committee meetings. The
species addressed were Gulf of Maine cod and Georges Bank cod. The
Council's Scientific and Statistical Committee will report on its
acceptable biological catch recommendations for those two species, and
possibly set ABCs for several other groundfish stocks, all for fishing
years 2013-15. During the Groundfish Committee's report, the Council
intends to specify ABCs and ACLs for fishing year 2013, to include
consideration of a revised Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic winter
flounder rebuilding plan and changes to the prohibition on landings
Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic winter flounder. These measures may
be adopted either through a specification package or an additional
framework adjustment. Additionally, the Council will discuss and could
approve a request for interim action to reduce overfishing on Gulf of
Maine cod and Gulf of Maine haddock in fishing year 2013.
Thursday, January 31, 2013
The final day of the New England Council's meeting will be used to
focus on further development of Draft EFH Omnibus Habitat Amendment 2.
The Habitat Committee will present recommendations on Dedicated Habitat
[[Page 2371]]
Research Areas, while the Groundfish Committee will recommend specific
spatial management options to achieve groundfish objectives in the
Habitat Amendment. In the absence of Groundfish Committee
recommendations, the Council will receive an update from the Closed
Area Technical Team and a summary of committee progress. The full
Council will direct it attention to providing guidance to both
committees about reconciling the two sets of options and identify next
steps. The selection of alternatives to be analyzed in a Draft
Environmental Impact Statement will take place at the Council's April
2013 meeting.
Although other non-emergency issues not contained in this agenda
may come before this Council for discussion, those issues may not be
the subjects of formal action during this meeting. Council action will
be restricted to those issues specifically listed in this notice and
any issues arising after publication of this notice that require
emergency action under section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act,
provided that the public has been notified of the Council's intent to
take final action to address the emergency.
Special Accommodations
This meeting is physically accessible to people with disabilities.
Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids
should be directed to Paul J. Howard (see ADDRESSES) at least 5 days
prior to the meeting date.
Dated: January 8, 2013.
Tracey L. Thompson,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2013-00396 Filed 1-10-13; 8:45 am]
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