[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 204 (Monday, October 24, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-26305]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: October 24, 1994]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

15 CFR Part 940

RIN 0648-AC94

 

Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary Regulations

AGENCY: Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management (OCRM), 
National Ocean Service (NOS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of effective date.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: This notice announces the effective date for the final rule 
implementing the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, offshore of 
the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The final rule which was published 
on October 19, 1993 could not become effective until a congressional 
review period of 45 days of continuous session was completed.

EFFECTIVE DATE: The regulations at 15 CFR Part 940 published on October 
19, 1993 (58 FR 53865) are effective March 20, 1994.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Mr. R. Randall Schneider, Atlantic/Great Lakes Regional Manager, 
Sanctuaries and Reserves Division, Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource 
Management, National Ocean Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration, SSMC-4, Station 12158, 1305 East-West Highway, Silver 
Spring, MD 20910 (301/713-3132).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On October 19, 1993, the Under Secretary of 
Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere transmitted the Notice of Final Rule 
and Summary of Final Management Plan for the Stellwagen Bank National 
Marine Sanctuary to Congress. This action initiated a review period of 
45 days of continuous congressional session. Under section 304(b) of 
the National Marine Sanctuaries Program Amendments Act of 1992, the 
regulations to implement the Sanctuary designation and regulate the 
conduct of certain activities shall take effect and become final at the 
conclusion of the 45-day review period. Thus, the regulations became 
effective on March 20, 1994.
    The Notice of Final Rule and Summary of Final Management Plan was 
also published in the Federal Register on October 19, 1993 (58 FR 
53865). On November 4, 1992, Public Law 102-587 was signed, which, 
among other matters, provides for designation of the Stellwagen Bank 
National Marine Sanctuary, as described therein. The designated 
Sanctuary encompasses a total of approximately 638 square nautical 
miles (approximately 2181 square kilometers) of ocean waters, and the 
submerged lands thereunder, over and surrounding the submerged 
Stellwagen Bank and additional submerged features, offshore of the 
Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
    Stellwagen Bank is a submerged, glacially-deposited primarily sandy 
feature extending for approximately 20 miles in a southeast-to-
northwest direction, in the extreme southwestern Gulf of Maine, between 
Cape Ann, Massachusetts and the northern end of Cape Cod, 
Massachusetts, at the eastern edge of Massachusetts Bay. The 
combination of physical and oceanographic characteristics over an 
around the Bank result in two distinct peak productivity periods 
annually. This productivity supports a large variety of benthic, 
invertebrate and pelagic fishery resources, which have in turn 
supported generations of fishermen. The Bank also provides important 
feeding and nursery grounds for an extraordinary number of large and 
small cetacean species. Accessibility of the Bank from land has 
resulted in an extensive commercial whalewatch industry, attracting 
more than 1.25 million visitors to the Bank annually. The combination 
of productivity and accessibility also provides the base for high 
levels of scientific interest in the Stellwagen Bank area.

Federal Domestic Assistance Catalog Number 11.4229

Marine Sanctuary Program

    Dated: October 18, 1994.
Frank W. Maloney,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Ocean Services and Coastal Zone 
Management.
[FR Doc. 94-26305 Filed 10-21-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-08-M