Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council; Public Hearings, 22215-22216 [2016-08778]

Download as PDF asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 73 / Friday, April 15, 2016 / Notices on the South Atlantic Council’s Web site at www.safmc.net as it becomes available. Council addresses: South Atlantic Fishery Management Council, 4055 Faber Place Drive, Suite 201, N. Charleston, SC 29405; Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, 800 North State Street, Suite 201, Dover, DE 19901. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kim Iverson, Public Information Officer, SAFMC; phone: (843) 571–4366 or toll free: (866) SAFMC–10; fax: (843) 769– 4520; email: kim.iverson@safmc.net. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The recreational fishery for Atlantic migratory group cobia is scheduled to close on June 20, 2016. The closure applies to those fishing for cobia recreationally in federal waters from Georgia to New York from a private vessel, charter vessel, or headboat. The closure is the result of accountability measures required by federal regulations to protect the cobia resource and prevent overfishing. The 2015 recreational catch was 1,540,775 pounds, 123% over the recreational Annual Catch Limit (ACL) of 690,000 pounds. The scheduled recreational closure has caused concerns from fishermen, particularly those from North Carolina and Virginia where the closure will have negative economic and social impacts due to the seasonality of the fishery. As a result, the two Councils will host a Cobia Q&A public meeting to provide information and help address questions and concerns. Council staff will give a presentation that includes an overview of the Council federal management process, historical management of cobia, and information about current cobia management and the pending recreational closure. The presentation will also include an overview of future management actions for cobia currently under consideration by the South Atlantic Council. Council staff and area Council members will be available to answer questions following the presentation. Written comments should be directed to Gregg Waugh, Executive Director, South Atlantic Fishery Management Council, 4055 Faber Place Drive, Suite 201, N. Charleston, SC 29405. Email comments to Mike.Collins@safmc.net with the Subject Line ‘‘Cobia Comments’’. FAX comments to (843) 769–4520. Comments must be received in the Council office by 5 p.m. on May 20, 2016. Special Accommodations This meeting is physically accessible to people with disabilities. Requests for VerDate Sep<11>2014 17:27 Apr 14, 2016 Jkt 238001 auxiliary aids should be directed to the Council office (see ADDRESSES) 5 days prior to the meeting. Note: The times and sequence specified in this agenda are subject to change. Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. Dated: April 12, 2016. Tracey L. Thompson, Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. [FR Doc. 2016–08779 Filed 4–14–16; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 3510–22–P DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration RIN 0648–XE570 New England Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce. ACTION: Notice of a public meeting. AGENCY: The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is scheduling a public meeting of its Scallop Plan Development Team and Advisory Panel on Wednesday, May 4, 2016, to consider actions affecting New England Fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Recommendations from this group will be brought to the full Council for formal consideration and action, if appropriate. DATES: This meeting will be held on Wednesday, May 4, 2016, at 9 a.m., to view the agenda, see SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at the Hilton Garden Inn Boston Logan Airport, 100 Boardman Street, Boston, MA 02128; telephone: (617) 571–5478; fax: (617) 561–0798. Council address: New England Fishery Management Council, 50 Water Street, Mill 2, Newburyport, MA 01950. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Thomas A. Nies, Executive Director, New England Fishery Management Council; telephone: (978) 465–0492. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: SUMMARY: Agenda Recipients of recent Scallop Research Set-Aside (RSA) awards will provide a status update and summary of preliminary findings to the Scallop Plan Development Team (PDT) and Advisory Panel (AP). Presentations will include RSA projects that have not yet been used directly in the scallop management PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 22215 process. This meeting is not a formal review of the methods or results of these projects. Instead, this meeting is only an overview to better inform the PDT and AP of current research status and help identify future research priority recommendations. The PDT and AP will review current RSA research priorities and discuss potential recommended changes for the 2017/2018 Scallop RSA funding announcement. Other business discussed as necessary. Special Accommodations This meeting is physically accessible to people with disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids should be directed to Thomas A. Nies, Executive Director, at 978–465–0492, at least 5 days prior to the meeting date. Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. Dated: April 12, 2016. Tracey L. Thompson, Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. [FR Doc. 2016–08714 Filed 4–14–16; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 3510–22–P DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council; Public Hearings National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce. ACTION: Notice; public hearings and webinar. AGENCY: The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold two public hearings and one webinar to solicit public comments on Reef Fish Amendment 43—Hogfish stock definition, status determination criteria, annual catch limits, and size limit. DATES: The public hearings will be held May 9–11, 2016. The hearings will begin at 6 p.m. and will conclude no later than 9 p.m. For specific dates and locations, see SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. Written public comments must be received on or before 5 p.m. EST on Friday, May 6, 2016. ADDRESSES: The public documents can be obtained by contacting the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council, 2203 N. Lois Avenue, Suite 1100, Tampa, FL 33607; (813) 348–1630 or on their Web site at www.gulfcouncil.org. Meeting addresses: The public hearings will be held in Naples and St. SUMMARY: E:\FR\FM\15APN1.SGM 15APN1 22216 Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 73 / Friday, April 15, 2016 / Notices Petersburg, FL; and one webinar. For specific locations, see SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. Public comments: Comments may be submitted online through the Council’s public portal by visiting www.gulfcouncil.org and clicking on ‘‘CONTACT US’’. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Douglas Gregory, Executive Director, Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council; telephone: (813) 348–1630. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The agenda for the two public hearings and one webinar are as follows: Council staff will brief the public on Reef Fish Amendment 43. The staff will then open the meeting for questions and public comments. Locations, Schedules, and Agendas Monday, May 9, 2016; Holiday Inn Express & Suites, 1785—5th Avenue South, Naples, FL 34102; telephone: (239) 261–3500. Tuesday, May 10, 2016; Holiday Inn Express, 2171—54th Avenue North, St. Petersburg, FL 33714; telephone: (727) 520–7800. Wednesday, May 11, 2016, Webinar— 6 p.m. EST at: https:// attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/ 3081763240819912449. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar. Special Accommodations These hearings are physically accessible to people with disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids should be directed to Kathy Pereira (see ADDRESSES), at least 5 working days prior to the meeting date. Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. Dated: April 12, 2016. Tracey L. Thompson, Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. [FR Doc. 2016–08778 Filed 4–14–16; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 3510–22–P DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration RIN 0648–XE498 Takes of Marine Mammals Incidental to Specified Activities; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to the Installation of the Block Island Wind Farm Export and Inter-Array Cables National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and AGENCY: VerDate Sep<11>2014 17:27 Apr 14, 2016 Jkt 238001 Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce. ACTION: Notice; proposed incidental harassment authorization; request for comments. NMFS has received an application from Deepwater Wind Block Island, LLC (DWBI) for an Incidental Harassment Authorization (IHA) to take marine mammals, by harassment, incidental to the installation of the Block Island Wind Farm (BIWF) Export and Inter-Array Cables. Pursuant to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is requesting comments on its proposal to issue an IHA to DWBI to incidentally take, by Level B harassment only, small numbers of marine mammals during the specified activity. DATES: Comments and information must be received no later than May 16, 2016. ADDRESSES: Comments on DWBI’s IHA application (the application) should be addressed to Jolie Harrison, Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service, 1315 EastWest Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910. The mailbox address for providing email comments is itp.fiorentino@noaa.gov. Comments sent via email, including all attachments, must not exceed a 25-megabyte file size. NMFS is not responsible for comments sent to addresses other than those provided here. Instructions: All comments received are a part of the public record and will generally be posted to https:// www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/permits/ incidental/ without change. All Personal Identifying Information (for example, name, address, etc.) voluntarily submitted by the commenter may be publicly accessible. Do not submit Confidential Business Information or otherwise sensitive or protected information. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Fiorentino, Office of Protected Resources, NMFS, (301) 427–8401. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: SUMMARY: Availability An electronic copy of the application and supporting documents, as well as a list of the references cited in this document, may be obtained by visiting the Internet at: www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/ permits/incidental/. In case of problems accessing these documents, please call the contact listed above. Background Sections 101(a)(5)(A) and (D) of the MMPA (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.) direct PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 the Secretary of Commerce to allow, upon request, the incidental, but not intentional, taking of small numbers of marine mammals by U.S. citizens who engage in a specified activity (other than commercial fishing) within a specified geographical region if certain findings are made and either regulations are issued or, if the taking is limited to harassment, a notice of a proposed authorization is provided to the public for review. An authorization for incidental takings shall be granted if NMFS finds that the taking will have a negligible impact on the species or stock(s), will not have an unmitigable adverse impact on the availability of the species or stock(s) for subsistence uses (where relevant), and if the permissible methods of taking and requirements pertaining to the mitigation, monitoring and reporting of such takings are set forth. NMFS has defined ‘‘negligible impact’’ in 50 CFR 216.103 as ‘‘an impact resulting from the specified activity that cannot be reasonably expected to, and is not reasonably likely to, adversely affect the species or stock through effects on annual rates of recruitment or survival.’’ Except with respect to certain activities not pertinent here, the MMPA defines ‘‘harassment’’ as: Any act of pursuit, torment, or annoyance which (i) has the potential to injure a marine mammal or marine mammal stock in the wild [Level A harassment]; or (ii) has the potential to disturb a marine mammal or marine mammal stock in the wild by causing disruption of behavioral patterns, including, but not limited to, migration, breathing, nursing, breeding, feeding, or sheltering [Level B harassment]. Summary of Request On March 11, 2016, NMFS received an application from DWBI for the taking of marine mammals incidental to the installation of the BIWF export and inter-array cables. This work was originally authorized by NMFS as part of a September 2014 (modified in June 2015) IHA issued to DWBI for construction of the BIWF (offshore installation of wind turbine generator [WTG] jacket foundations and export/ inter-array cable installation [79 FR 53409]); however, only the construction activities associated with the WTG jacket foundation installation were performed during that one-year authorization which expired in October 2015. DWBI has, therefore, reapplied for a new IHA to complete the remaining export and inter-array cable installation activities. The proposed export and inter-array cable installation activities E:\FR\FM\15APN1.SGM 15APN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 73 (Friday, April 15, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22215-22216]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-08778]


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

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration


Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council; Public Hearings

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice; public hearings and webinar.

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

SUMMARY: The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) will 
hold two public hearings and one webinar to solicit public comments on 
Reef Fish Amendment 43--Hogfish stock definition, status determination 
criteria, annual catch limits, and size limit.

DATES: The public hearings will be held May 9-11, 2016. The hearings 
will begin at 6 p.m. and will conclude no later than 9 p.m. For 
specific dates and locations, see SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. Written 
public comments must be received on or before 5 p.m. EST on Friday, May 
6, 2016.

ADDRESSES: The public documents can be obtained by contacting the Gulf 
of Mexico Fishery Management Council, 2203 N. Lois Avenue, Suite 1100, 
Tampa, FL 33607; (813) 348-1630 or on their Web site at 
www.gulfcouncil.org.
    Meeting addresses: The public hearings will be held in Naples and 
St.

[[Page 22216]]

Petersburg, FL; and one webinar. For specific locations, see 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
    Public comments: Comments may be submitted online through the 
Council's public portal by visiting www.gulfcouncil.org and clicking on 
``CONTACT US''.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Douglas Gregory, Executive Director, 
Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council; telephone: (813) 348-1630.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The agenda for the two public hearings and 
one webinar are as follows: Council staff will brief the public on Reef 
Fish Amendment 43. The staff will then open the meeting for questions 
and public comments.

Locations, Schedules, and Agendas

    Monday, May 9, 2016; Holiday Inn Express & Suites, 1785--5th Avenue 
South, Naples, FL 34102; telephone: (239) 261-3500.
    Tuesday, May 10, 2016; Holiday Inn Express, 2171--54th Avenue 
North, St. Petersburg, FL 33714; telephone: (727) 520-7800.
    Wednesday, May 11, 2016, Webinar--6 p.m. EST at: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3081763240819912449.
    After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing 
information about joining the webinar.

Special Accommodations

    These hearings are physically accessible to people with 
disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other 
auxiliary aids should be directed to Kathy Pereira (see ADDRESSES), at 
least 5 working days prior to the meeting date.

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.

    Dated: April 12, 2016.
Tracey L. Thompson,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2016-08778 Filed 4-14-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.