Notice of Availability of Final Management Plan and Final Environmental Assessment for Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, 53473-53475 [2023-16551]
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Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 151 / Tuesday, August 8, 2023 / Notices
comments when (1) up to another year
of identical or nearly identical activities
as described in the Description of
Proposed Activity section of this notice
is planned, or (2) the activities as
described in the Description of
Proposed Activity section of this notice
would not be completed by the time the
IHA expires and a renewal would allow
for completion of the activities beyond
that described in the Dates and Duration
section of this notice, provided all of the
following conditions are met:
• A request for renewal is received no
later than 60 days prior to the needed
renewal IHA effective date (recognizing
that the renewal IHA expiration date
cannot extend beyond one year from
expiration of the initial IHA).
• The request for renewal must
include the following:
(1) An explanation that the activities
to be conducted under the requested
renewal IHA are identical to the
activities analyzed under the initial
IHA, are a subset of the activities, or
include changes so minor (e.g.,
reduction in pile size) that the changes
do not affect the previous analyses,
mitigation and monitoring
requirements, or take estimates (with
the exception of reducing the type or
amount of take).
(2) A preliminary monitoring report
showing the results of the required
monitoring to date and an explanation
showing that the monitoring results do
not indicate impacts of a scale or nature
not previously analyzed or authorized.
Upon review of the request for
renewal, the status of the affected
species or stocks, and any other
pertinent information, NMFS
determines that there are no more than
minor changes in the activities, the
mitigation and monitoring measures
will remain the same and appropriate,
and the findings in the initial IHA
remain valid.
Dated: August 3, 2023.
Kimberly Damon-Randall,
Director, Office of Protected Resources,
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2023–16945 Filed 8–7–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
Notice of correction of a public
meeting.
ACTION:
The New England Fishery
Management Council (Council) is
scheduling a public meeting of its Risk
Policy Working Group (RPWG) to
consider actions affecting New England
fisheries in the exclusive economic zone
(EEZ). This meeting will be held as a
webinar. Recommendations from this
group will be brought to the full Council
for formal consideration and action, if
appropriate.
SUMMARY:
This meeting will be held on
Tuesday, August 22, 2023, at 9 a.m.
DATES:
This meeting will be held as
a webinar only. Webinar registration
URL information: https://
attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/
7355629868155270240.
Council address: New England
Fishery Management Council, 50 Water
Street, Mill 2, Newburyport, MA 01950.
ADDRESSES:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Thomas A. Nies, Executive Director,
New England Fishery Management
Council; telephone: (978) 465–0492.
The
original notice published in the Federal
Register on July 31, 2023 (88 FR 49451).
The original notice announced that the
meeting would be a hybrid in-person
meeting as well as a webinar. This
notice corrects the meeting to be a
webinar meeting only. All other
information previously published
remains unchanged.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
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: August 3, 2023.
Rey Israel Marquez,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
[FR Doc. 2023–16963 Filed 8–7–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
[RTID 0648–XD200]
New England Fishery Management
Council; Public Meeting; Correction
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
AGENCY:
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53473
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
Notice of Availability of Final
Management Plan and Final
Environmental Assessment for
Stellwagen Bank National Marine
Sanctuary
Office of National Marine
Sanctuaries (ONMS), National Ocean
Service (NOS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Department of Commerce (DOC).
ACTION: Notice; notice of availability of
a final management plan and final
environmental assessment.
AGENCY:
On February 13, 2020, NOAA
initiated a review of the Stellwagen
Bank National Marine Sanctuary
(SBNMS or the sanctuary) management
plan to evaluate substantive progress
toward implementing the goals of the
sanctuary and to make revisions to the
management plan as necessary to fulfill
the purposes and policies of the NMSA.
NOAA anticipated that management
plan changes would require preparation
of environmental analysis under the
National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA), and initiated public scoping
meetings to gather information and
other comments from individuals,
organizations, tribes, and government
agencies on the scope, types, and
significance of issues related to the
SBNMS management plan and the
proper scope of environmental analysis
for the management plan review. NOAA
is providing notice of availability of a
final management plan and a final
environmental assessment (EA) for
SBNMS.
SUMMARY:
The final management plan and
final environmental assessment are now
available.
ADDRESSES: To obtain a copy of the final
management plan, final environmental
assessment, and finding of no
significant impact (FONSI), contact the
Management Plan Review Coordinator
at Stellwagen Bank National Marine
Sanctuary, Alice Stratton, 175 Edward
Foster Road, Scituate, MA 02066, 203–
882–6515, sbnmsmanagementplan@
noaa.gov. Copies can also be
downloaded from the Stellwagen Bank
National Marine Sanctuary website at
https://stellwagen.noaa.gov/
management/.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Alice Stratton, 203–882–6515,
sbnmsmanagementplan@noaa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
DATES:
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53474
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 151 / Tuesday, August 8, 2023 / Notices
I. Background
SBNMS was designated in October
1992. It spans 842-square-miles (638square-nautical-mile) at the mouth of
Massachusetts Bay. The sanctuary
boundary is somewhat rectangular,
stretching from three miles southeast of
Cape Ann to three miles north of Cape
Cod. The sanctuary is about 25 miles
east of Boston, and lies totally within
Federal waters. It encompasses all of
Stellwagen and Tillies Banks, and the
southern portion of Jeffreys Ledge.
SBNMS is administered by NOAA,
within the U.S. Department of
Commerce, and was designated to
conserve, protect, and enhance the
biodiversity, ecological integrity, and
cultural legacy of marine resources for
current and future generations.
Sanctuary programs in education,
conservation, science, and stewardship
help protect SBNMS and its nationallysignificant resources, while promoting
public use and enjoyment through
compatible human activities.
In 2016, NOAA completed an internal
assessment of progress toward
implementation of the 2010
management plan. The assessment
found that 66% (69 of 104 activities) of
the management plan’s activities had
been fully or partially completed or
were still being implemented as ongoing
functions, while 35% (36 of 104
activities) were not yet started or had
been placed on hold. Results of the 2016
internal assessment were discussed at a
public meeting of the sanctuary
advisory council in October, 2016.
ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
II. Management Plan Revisions
On February 13, 2020, NOAA
published a notice in the Federal
Register, initiating a review of SBNMS
management plan and providing a
notice of intent to conduct scoping to
prepare an environmental analysis
under NEPA (85 FR 8213). Pursuant to
the National Marine Sanctuaries Act
(NMSA), the management plan review
process provides an opportunity to
evaluate substantive progress toward
implementing the goals of the sanctuary,
and to make revisions to the
management plan as necessary to fulfill
the purposes and policies of the NMSA.
The scoping process yielded feedback
that was largely aligned with the 2020
condition report findings. Comments
focused on NOAA’s need to monitor
and address potential emerging issues
such as climate change and changes to
water quality, to continue and expand
protections for sanctuary resources, and
to maintain core sanctuary research.
Scoping comments also called for
enhanced education and outreach
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efforts and increased capacity to
administer sanctuary programs. NOAA
incorporated the issues identified
during the public scoping process into
the draft management plan.
On November 30, 2021, NOAA
published a notice in the Federal
Register, announcing the availability of
a public comment period for the
SBNMS Draft Management Plan and
Environmental Assessment SBNMS
management plan. NOAA held two
virtual public comment meetings
(January 11, 2022 and January 12, 2022)
to receive public input. During public
comment, NOAA heard concerns from
the environmental NGO community that
the proposed changes in the sanctuary
management plan would not adequately
address declining sanctuary conditions.
NOAA also heard concerns that the
management plan should include more
direct management actions, including
regulations for fisheries management
and reducing sound. In preparing the
final Management Plan, NOAA
evaluated and considered all public and
agency comments and made several
changes to the management plan in
response to those comments.
The revised management plan
contains 15 Action Plans addressing
priority issues under four primary goals:
ensure a thriving sanctuary, increase
support for the sanctuary, deepen our
understanding of sanctuary resources,
and ensure coordinated support for
sanctuary infrastructure, staff, and field
operations. The revised management
plan supports continued protection of
sanctuary resources through
enforcement of existing sanctuary
regulations, education and outreach
strategies that promote ocean
stewardship, and community
engagement.
The revised SBNMS management
plan will result in changes to existing
programs and policies to address
contemporary issues and challenges,
and to better protect and manage the
sanctuary’s resources and qualities. The
management plan review process was
composed of four major stages: (1)
information collection and
characterization; (2) preparation and
release of a draft management plan and
environmental document under NEPA;
(3) public review and comment; and (4)
preparation and release of a final
management plan and environmental
document. NOAA has also addressed
other statutory and regulatory
requirements, including those contained
in the Endangered Species Act (ESA),
Marine Mammal Protection Act,
Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) provisions
of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery
Conservation and Management Act
PO 00000
Frm 00024
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
(Magnuson-Stevens Act), Coastal Zone
Management Act (CZMA), National
Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), and
tribal consultation responsibilities
under Executive Order 13175.
A. Action Plans
This draft management plan contains
15 action plans which address priority
issues for SBNMS. These action plans
fall under four primary goals: ensure a
thriving sanctuary, increase support for
SBNMS, deepen our understanding of
sanctuary resources, and ensure
coordinated support for sanctuary
infrastructure, staff, and field
operations. Each action plan is
summarized below (refer to the draft for
complete text).
1. Marine Mammal Protection: The
sanctuary serves as the primary habitat
for 22 species of marine mammals. The
goal of this plan is to expand our
understanding of the vulnerability of
marine mammals to anthropogenic
activity and develop and implement
mitigation activities.
2. Seabird Research: Coastal
development, predation by humans and
other animals, removal of prey through
fisheries activity, and marine
environment pollution threaten the
many seabirds in the sanctuary. The
goal of this plan is to understand the
abundance, distribution, habitat use,
bycatch, contaminant load, and foraging
ecology of seabirds, and how SBNMS
relates to the wider Gulf of Maine and
Atlantic ecosystems.
3. Vessel Traffic: SBNMS sits at the
mouth of Massachusetts Bay, which
experiences commercial vessel traffic
traveling to and from the growing Port
of Boston. Sanctuary staff work to
mitigate the impacts of the large volume
of vessel traffic through technology,
reporting, and warnings. The goal of this
plan is to monitor vessel traffic and
mitigate negative effects on sanctuary
resources.
4. Maritime Heritage and Cultural
Landscapes: The sanctuary serves as an
underwater museum to maritime history
with numerous shipwrecks on the
seafloor. The sanctuary’s efforts in
maritime cultural landscapes help us
understand the relationships between
the people and the sea in the past and
present through research and
management. The goal of this plan is to
understand the broader context of past
and present uses of the sanctuary while
assessing and protecting maritime
heritage resources in the sanctuary.
5. Compatible Uses: Evolving
commercial and recreational uses of the
sanctuary impact key elements of the
sanctuary’s landscape. The goal of this
plan is to enhance transparency
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Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 151 / Tuesday, August 8, 2023 / Notices
regarding how current and emerging
activities are assessed for compatibility
while managing sanctuary resources.
6. Climate Change: The goal of this
plan is to evaluate climate change
impacts on sanctuary resources and
incorporate changing conditions in
management decisions. Various
strategies and efforts for enhanced
understanding of climate impacts and
synergies will inform decisions on a
wide range of sanctuary management,
including resource protection,
education, and operations.
7. Education and Outreach: A variety
of education and outreach programs,
tools, and techniques are employed to
bring sanctuary information and
research to the widest audiences. The
goal of this plan is to increase public
awareness and understanding of the
sanctuary and encourage responsible
use and stewardship of its resources.
8. Interagency/Intergovernmental
Coordination: NOAA relies on
partnerships with other Federal and
State agencies as well as collaborations
with non-profit, community, research/
academic, and many others, for effective
management. The goal of this plan is to
promote improved management through
coordinated partnering with local, State,
regional, Tribal, and Federal partners.
9. Sanctuary Advisory Council: The
Sanctuary Advisory Council addresses
specific management issues and public
involvement by developing sound
advice for the sanctuary. The goal of this
plan is to facilitate an active and
engaged community of Sanctuary
Advisory Council members to advise the
superintendent in carrying out the
sanctuary’s mission.
10. Research and Monitoring: The
sanctuary conducts a robust science
program to provide vital information to
support management needs. The goal of
this plan is to support, promote, and
coordinate scientific research,
characterization, and long-term
monitoring to enhance the
understanding of the sanctuary
environment and processes, and
improve management decision-making
for optimal resource management and
protection.
11. Soundscape: The sanctuary has an
extensive acoustics research program
that provides opportunities for
partnership and leadership in the
development of regional, national, and
international policies for managing
noise impacts on marine life. The goal
of this plan is to maintain the role of
SBNMS as a sentinel site for passive
acoustic monitoring in the Gulf of
Maine, and as a testbed for applying
these data to both long-term monitoring
of ecosystems and the design of
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methods to reduce impacts from human
activities.
12. Water Quality Monitoring: The
exceptional diversity of marine life in
the sanctuary depends on good water
quality. This action plan addresses the
need to collaborate on water quality
monitoring and research in the
sanctuary to determine whether it can
continue to maintain healthy resources.
13. Habitat: Habitat quality in the
sanctuary over the last decade has
shown changes from both direct
interactions, like bottom-contact fishing,
and indirect interactions, such as
trophic and competitive shifts in
population. The goal of this plan is to
develop an improved understanding of
the condition of major habitat types
within the sanctuary to understand their
productivity and biodiversity.
14. Ecosystem Services: Sanctuary
resources support nearby coastal
communities in a variety of ways, and
it is important to better understand and
quantify the economic and intrinsic
values of the sanctuary to natural and
human systems. The goal of this plan is
to explore the dynamic connections
between sanctuary resources and
ecosystem services to better inform
management decisions.
15. Administration and Infrastructure
Capacity: This action plan addresses the
necessary operational and
administrative activities required for
implementing an effective program,
including staffing, infrastructure needs,
and operational improvements.
B. Regulatory and Boundary Changes
The management plan review process
did not identify the need for any
regulatory or boundary changes at this
time.
C. National Environmental Policy Act
Compliance
In accordance with NEPA, on
February 13, 2020, NOAA published a
notice of intent to prepare an
environmental analysis in order to
identify and analyze potential impacts
associated with adopting and
implementing a revised management
plan and field activities for SBNMS (85
FR 8213). NOAA’s analysis of the draft
management plan indicated no
significant impacts are expected.
Accordingly, NOAA determined the
preparation of an EIS would not be
necessary, and instead prepared a draft
EA, which was made available for
public review on November 30, 2021 (86
FR 67923).
For this EA, NOAA evaluated the
potential impacts on the human
environment of the proposed action and
alternatives in compliance with NEPA,
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Fmt 4703
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53475
as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), and
its implementing regulations (40 CFR
parts 1500 through 1508). NOAA
analyzed two alternatives: the no action
alternative and the preferred alternative.
The no action alternative would be to
continue operating under the existing
management plan, without updating it
to reflect current resource status or
protection priorities. The preferred
alternative is adopting and
implementing a revised management
plan and field activities, which would
update strategies to better address
resource protection and management
needs. NOAA prepared the final EA and
finding of no significant impact (FONSI)
for this action using the 1978 Council
on Environmental Quality (CEQ)
regulations because this environmental
review began before September 14,
2020, which was the effective date of
the amendments to the CEQ regulations
implementing NEPA (85 FR 43304, July
16, 2020).
In preparing the final EA, NOAA
evaluated and considered all public and
agency comments received on the draft
management plan and draft EA, and
made changes to the management plan
and EA as appropriate. NOAA
determined that these changes to the
management plan did not result in any
changes to the determinations of the
draft EA with regard to the significance
of the impacts. NOAA prepared a
FONSI that concluded that
implementing the preferred alternative
(i.e., adopt and implement a new
management plan and field activities)
would not have a significant impact on
the quality of the human environment.
Copies of the final EA and FONSI are
available at the website listed in the
ADDRESSES section of this notice of
availability.
III. Public Comments
NOAA received 56 comments on the
Draft Management Plan/Environmental
Assessment during the public comment
period. These are summarized into 61
topics. NOAA’s summary of these
comments and relevant responses are
provided in Appendix E of the Final
Management Plan.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.
John Armor,
Director, Office of National Marine
Sanctuaries, National Ocean Service,
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration.
[FR Doc. 2023–16551 Filed 8–7–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–NK–P
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 151 (Tuesday, August 8, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53473-53475]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-16551]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Notice of Availability of Final Management Plan and Final
Environmental Assessment for Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary
AGENCY: Office of National Marine Sanctuaries (ONMS), National Ocean
Service (NOS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Department of Commerce (DOC).
ACTION: Notice; notice of availability of a final management plan and
final environmental assessment.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: On February 13, 2020, NOAA initiated a review of the
Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary (SBNMS or the sanctuary)
management plan to evaluate substantive progress toward implementing
the goals of the sanctuary and to make revisions to the management plan
as necessary to fulfill the purposes and policies of the NMSA. NOAA
anticipated that management plan changes would require preparation of
environmental analysis under the National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA), and initiated public scoping meetings to gather information and
other comments from individuals, organizations, tribes, and government
agencies on the scope, types, and significance of issues related to the
SBNMS management plan and the proper scope of environmental analysis
for the management plan review. NOAA is providing notice of
availability of a final management plan and a final environmental
assessment (EA) for SBNMS.
DATES: The final management plan and final environmental assessment are
now available.
ADDRESSES: To obtain a copy of the final management plan, final
environmental assessment, and finding of no significant impact (FONSI),
contact the Management Plan Review Coordinator at Stellwagen Bank
National Marine Sanctuary, Alice Stratton, 175 Edward Foster Road,
Scituate, MA 02066, 203-882-6515, [email protected]. Copies
can also be downloaded from the Stellwagen Bank National Marine
Sanctuary website at https://stellwagen.noaa.gov/management/.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Alice Stratton, 203-882-6515,
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
[[Page 53474]]
I. Background
SBNMS was designated in October 1992. It spans 842-square-miles
(638-square-nautical-mile) at the mouth of Massachusetts Bay. The
sanctuary boundary is somewhat rectangular, stretching from three miles
southeast of Cape Ann to three miles north of Cape Cod. The sanctuary
is about 25 miles east of Boston, and lies totally within Federal
waters. It encompasses all of Stellwagen and Tillies Banks, and the
southern portion of Jeffreys Ledge. SBNMS is administered by NOAA,
within the U.S. Department of Commerce, and was designated to conserve,
protect, and enhance the biodiversity, ecological integrity, and
cultural legacy of marine resources for current and future generations.
Sanctuary programs in education, conservation, science, and stewardship
help protect SBNMS and its nationally-significant resources, while
promoting public use and enjoyment through compatible human activities.
In 2016, NOAA completed an internal assessment of progress toward
implementation of the 2010 management plan. The assessment found that
66% (69 of 104 activities) of the management plan's activities had been
fully or partially completed or were still being implemented as ongoing
functions, while 35% (36 of 104 activities) were not yet started or had
been placed on hold. Results of the 2016 internal assessment were
discussed at a public meeting of the sanctuary advisory council in
October, 2016.
II. Management Plan Revisions
On February 13, 2020, NOAA published a notice in the Federal
Register, initiating a review of SBNMS management plan and providing a
notice of intent to conduct scoping to prepare an environmental
analysis under NEPA (85 FR 8213). Pursuant to the National Marine
Sanctuaries Act (NMSA), the management plan review process provides an
opportunity to evaluate substantive progress toward implementing the
goals of the sanctuary, and to make revisions to the management plan as
necessary to fulfill the purposes and policies of the NMSA. The scoping
process yielded feedback that was largely aligned with the 2020
condition report findings. Comments focused on NOAA's need to monitor
and address potential emerging issues such as climate change and
changes to water quality, to continue and expand protections for
sanctuary resources, and to maintain core sanctuary research. Scoping
comments also called for enhanced education and outreach efforts and
increased capacity to administer sanctuary programs. NOAA incorporated
the issues identified during the public scoping process into the draft
management plan.
On November 30, 2021, NOAA published a notice in the Federal
Register, announcing the availability of a public comment period for
the SBNMS Draft Management Plan and Environmental Assessment SBNMS
management plan. NOAA held two virtual public comment meetings (January
11, 2022 and January 12, 2022) to receive public input. During public
comment, NOAA heard concerns from the environmental NGO community that
the proposed changes in the sanctuary management plan would not
adequately address declining sanctuary conditions. NOAA also heard
concerns that the management plan should include more direct management
actions, including regulations for fisheries management and reducing
sound. In preparing the final Management Plan, NOAA evaluated and
considered all public and agency comments and made several changes to
the management plan in response to those comments.
The revised management plan contains 15 Action Plans addressing
priority issues under four primary goals: ensure a thriving sanctuary,
increase support for the sanctuary, deepen our understanding of
sanctuary resources, and ensure coordinated support for sanctuary
infrastructure, staff, and field operations. The revised management
plan supports continued protection of sanctuary resources through
enforcement of existing sanctuary regulations, education and outreach
strategies that promote ocean stewardship, and community engagement.
The revised SBNMS management plan will result in changes to
existing programs and policies to address contemporary issues and
challenges, and to better protect and manage the sanctuary's resources
and qualities. The management plan review process was composed of four
major stages: (1) information collection and characterization; (2)
preparation and release of a draft management plan and environmental
document under NEPA; (3) public review and comment; and (4) preparation
and release of a final management plan and environmental document. NOAA
has also addressed other statutory and regulatory requirements,
including those contained in the Endangered Species Act (ESA), Marine
Mammal Protection Act, Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) provisions of the
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-
Stevens Act), Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA), National Historic
Preservation Act (NHPA), and tribal consultation responsibilities under
Executive Order 13175.
A. Action Plans
This draft management plan contains 15 action plans which address
priority issues for SBNMS. These action plans fall under four primary
goals: ensure a thriving sanctuary, increase support for SBNMS, deepen
our understanding of sanctuary resources, and ensure coordinated
support for sanctuary infrastructure, staff, and field operations. Each
action plan is summarized below (refer to the draft for complete text).
1. Marine Mammal Protection: The sanctuary serves as the primary
habitat for 22 species of marine mammals. The goal of this plan is to
expand our understanding of the vulnerability of marine mammals to
anthropogenic activity and develop and implement mitigation activities.
2. Seabird Research: Coastal development, predation by humans and
other animals, removal of prey through fisheries activity, and marine
environment pollution threaten the many seabirds in the sanctuary. The
goal of this plan is to understand the abundance, distribution, habitat
use, bycatch, contaminant load, and foraging ecology of seabirds, and
how SBNMS relates to the wider Gulf of Maine and Atlantic ecosystems.
3. Vessel Traffic: SBNMS sits at the mouth of Massachusetts Bay,
which experiences commercial vessel traffic traveling to and from the
growing Port of Boston. Sanctuary staff work to mitigate the impacts of
the large volume of vessel traffic through technology, reporting, and
warnings. The goal of this plan is to monitor vessel traffic and
mitigate negative effects on sanctuary resources.
4. Maritime Heritage and Cultural Landscapes: The sanctuary serves
as an underwater museum to maritime history with numerous shipwrecks on
the seafloor. The sanctuary's efforts in maritime cultural landscapes
help us understand the relationships between the people and the sea in
the past and present through research and management. The goal of this
plan is to understand the broader context of past and present uses of
the sanctuary while assessing and protecting maritime heritage
resources in the sanctuary.
5. Compatible Uses: Evolving commercial and recreational uses of
the sanctuary impact key elements of the sanctuary's landscape. The
goal of this plan is to enhance transparency
[[Page 53475]]
regarding how current and emerging activities are assessed for
compatibility while managing sanctuary resources.
6. Climate Change: The goal of this plan is to evaluate climate
change impacts on sanctuary resources and incorporate changing
conditions in management decisions. Various strategies and efforts for
enhanced understanding of climate impacts and synergies will inform
decisions on a wide range of sanctuary management, including resource
protection, education, and operations.
7. Education and Outreach: A variety of education and outreach
programs, tools, and techniques are employed to bring sanctuary
information and research to the widest audiences. The goal of this plan
is to increase public awareness and understanding of the sanctuary and
encourage responsible use and stewardship of its resources.
8. Interagency/Intergovernmental Coordination: NOAA relies on
partnerships with other Federal and State agencies as well as
collaborations with non-profit, community, research/academic, and many
others, for effective management. The goal of this plan is to promote
improved management through coordinated partnering with local, State,
regional, Tribal, and Federal partners.
9. Sanctuary Advisory Council: The Sanctuary Advisory Council
addresses specific management issues and public involvement by
developing sound advice for the sanctuary. The goal of this plan is to
facilitate an active and engaged community of Sanctuary Advisory
Council members to advise the superintendent in carrying out the
sanctuary's mission.
10. Research and Monitoring: The sanctuary conducts a robust
science program to provide vital information to support management
needs. The goal of this plan is to support, promote, and coordinate
scientific research, characterization, and long-term monitoring to
enhance the understanding of the sanctuary environment and processes,
and improve management decision-making for optimal resource management
and protection.
11. Soundscape: The sanctuary has an extensive acoustics research
program that provides opportunities for partnership and leadership in
the development of regional, national, and international policies for
managing noise impacts on marine life. The goal of this plan is to
maintain the role of SBNMS as a sentinel site for passive acoustic
monitoring in the Gulf of Maine, and as a testbed for applying these
data to both long-term monitoring of ecosystems and the design of
methods to reduce impacts from human activities.
12. Water Quality Monitoring: The exceptional diversity of marine
life in the sanctuary depends on good water quality. This action plan
addresses the need to collaborate on water quality monitoring and
research in the sanctuary to determine whether it can continue to
maintain healthy resources.
13. Habitat: Habitat quality in the sanctuary over the last decade
has shown changes from both direct interactions, like bottom-contact
fishing, and indirect interactions, such as trophic and competitive
shifts in population. The goal of this plan is to develop an improved
understanding of the condition of major habitat types within the
sanctuary to understand their productivity and biodiversity.
14. Ecosystem Services: Sanctuary resources support nearby coastal
communities in a variety of ways, and it is important to better
understand and quantify the economic and intrinsic values of the
sanctuary to natural and human systems. The goal of this plan is to
explore the dynamic connections between sanctuary resources and
ecosystem services to better inform management decisions.
15. Administration and Infrastructure Capacity: This action plan
addresses the necessary operational and administrative activities
required for implementing an effective program, including staffing,
infrastructure needs, and operational improvements.
B. Regulatory and Boundary Changes
The management plan review process did not identify the need for
any regulatory or boundary changes at this time.
C. National Environmental Policy Act Compliance
In accordance with NEPA, on February 13, 2020, NOAA published a
notice of intent to prepare an environmental analysis in order to
identify and analyze potential impacts associated with adopting and
implementing a revised management plan and field activities for SBNMS
(85 FR 8213). NOAA's analysis of the draft management plan indicated no
significant impacts are expected. Accordingly, NOAA determined the
preparation of an EIS would not be necessary, and instead prepared a
draft EA, which was made available for public review on November 30,
2021 (86 FR 67923).
For this EA, NOAA evaluated the potential impacts on the human
environment of the proposed action and alternatives in compliance with
NEPA, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), and its implementing
regulations (40 CFR parts 1500 through 1508). NOAA analyzed two
alternatives: the no action alternative and the preferred alternative.
The no action alternative would be to continue operating under the
existing management plan, without updating it to reflect current
resource status or protection priorities. The preferred alternative is
adopting and implementing a revised management plan and field
activities, which would update strategies to better address resource
protection and management needs. NOAA prepared the final EA and finding
of no significant impact (FONSI) for this action using the 1978 Council
on Environmental Quality (CEQ) regulations because this environmental
review began before September 14, 2020, which was the effective date of
the amendments to the CEQ regulations implementing NEPA (85 FR 43304,
July 16, 2020).
In preparing the final EA, NOAA evaluated and considered all public
and agency comments received on the draft management plan and draft EA,
and made changes to the management plan and EA as appropriate. NOAA
determined that these changes to the management plan did not result in
any changes to the determinations of the draft EA with regard to the
significance of the impacts. NOAA prepared a FONSI that concluded that
implementing the preferred alternative (i.e., adopt and implement a new
management plan and field activities) would not have a significant
impact on the quality of the human environment. Copies of the final EA
and FONSI are available at the website listed in the ADDRESSES section
of this notice of availability.
III. Public Comments
NOAA received 56 comments on the Draft Management Plan/
Environmental Assessment during the public comment period. These are
summarized into 61 topics. NOAA's summary of these comments and
relevant responses are provided in Appendix E of the Final Management
Plan.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.
John Armor,
Director, Office of National Marine Sanctuaries, National Ocean
Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
[FR Doc. 2023-16551 Filed 8-7-23; 8:45 am]
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