National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration September 2013 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The National Climate Assessment and Development Advisory Committee (NCADAC) was established by the Secretary of Commerce under the authority of the Global Change Research Act of 1990 to synthesize and summarize the science and information pertaining to current and future impacts of climate. Time and Date: The meeting will be held October 1, 2013 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and October 2, 2013 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. These times are subject to change. Please refer to the Web page https:// www.nesdis.noaa.gov/NCADAC/ for changes and for the most up- to-date meeting agenda. Place: The meeting will be held at the Four Points by Sheraton located at 1201 K Street NW., Washington, DC 20005. Please check the Web site https://www.nesdis.noaa.gov/NCADAC/ for confirmation of the venue and for directions. Status: Seating will be available on a first come, first serve basis. Members of the public must RSVP in order to attend all or a portion of the meeting by contacting the NCADAC DFO (Cynthia.Decker@noaa.gov) by September 23, 2013. The meeting will be open to public participation with a public comment period; October 1, 2013 from 4:30 p.m. to 4:55 p.m. (check Web site to confirm time). The NCADAC expects that public statements presented at its meetings will not be repetitive of previously submitted verbal or written statements. In general, each individual or group making a verbal presentation will be limited to a total time of five (5) minutes. Individuals or groups planning to make a verbal presentation should contact the NCADAC DFO (Cynthia.Decker@noaa.gov) by September 23, 2013 to schedule their presentation. Written comments should be received in the NCADAC DFO's Office by September 23, 2013 to provide sufficient time for NCADAC review. Written comments received by the NCADAC DFO after September 23, 2013 will be distributed to the NCADAC, but may not be reviewed prior to the meeting date. Special Accommodations: These meetings are physically accessible to people with disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids should be directed to Dr. Cynthia Decker (301-563- 6162, Cynthia.decker@noaa.gov) by September 23, 2013.

This proposed action would implement revisions to the boundaries of the Rockfish Conservation Area (RCA) that is closed to vessels fishing groundfish with bottom trawl gear. This proposed rule would affect the limited entry bottom trawl sector managed under the Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP) by liberalizing RCA boundaries in order to improve utilization of target species.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Pacific Council) Groundfish Management Team (GMT) will hold a working meeting, which is open to the public.

NMFS announces the receipt of an application for an exempted fishing permit (EFP) from the Gulf and South Atlantic Fisheries Foundation, Inc (Foundation). If granted, the EFP would authorize the applicant, with certain conditions, to collect and retain limited numbers of specimens that would otherwise be prohibited from possession and retention. This study, to be conducted in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) and South Atlantic, is intended to characterize catch and bycatch within the shrimp fisheries of the Gulf and South Atlantic.

Notice is hereby given that Wessley Merten, Marine Sciences Department, University of Puerto Rico, Mayag[uuml]ez Campus, PO Box 9000, Mayag[uuml]ez, PR 00682, has applied in due form for a permit to conduct commercial or educational photography of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncates), spinner dolphins (Stenella longirostris), striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba), False killer whales (Pseudorca crassidens), and killer whales (Orcinus orca) in waters off Puerto Rico.

This notice responds to Section 209 of the Sea Grant Program Improvement Act of 1976 (Pub. L. 94-461, 33 U.S.C. 1128), which requires the Secretary of Commerce to solicit nominations at least once a year for membership on the National Sea Grant Advisory Board, a Federal Advisory Committee that provides advice on the implementation of the National Sea Grant College Program. To apply for membership to the Advisory Board applicants should submit a current resume as indicated in the ADDRESSES section. A cover letter highlighting specific areas of expertise relevant to the purpose of the Board is helpful, but not required. NOAA is an equal opportunity employer. This notice also sets forth the schedule and proposed agenda of a forthcoming meeting of the National Sea Grant Advisory Board. Board members will discuss and provide advice on the National Sea Grant College Program in the areas of program evaluation, strategic planning, education and extension, science and technology programs, and other matters as described in the agenda found on the National Sea Grant College Program Web site at https://seagrant.noaa.gov/WhoWeAre/ Leadership/NationalSeaGrantAdvisoryBoard/ AdvisoryBoardUpcomingMeetings.aspx.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) and its advisory committees will hold public meetings in Anchorage, AK.

The Spiny Dogfish Monitoring Committee of the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold a meeting.

The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is publishing this notice to solicit nominations for the NOAA Science Advisory Board Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Science Program Advisory Working Group (RSPAWG). The RSPAWG is being formed to provide independent guidance and review of the RESTORE Act Science Program along with general programmatic advice and recommendations. The RSPAWG will also provide a mechanism for formal coordination between the multiple organizations conducting RESTORE-related science within the Gulf of Mexico. Members appointed to the RSPAWG will serve for three- year terms.

The SEDAR Steering Committee will meet to discuss the SEDAR process and assessment schedule. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

NMFS announces a workshop to solicit input from participants in the pollock fishery in the Bering Sea authorized under the American Fisheries Act (AFA), the Aleutian Islands pollock fishery, the Amendment 80 trawl fisheries in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands, the Western Alaska Community Development Quota (CDQ) Program, and the hook-and-line catcher/processor (freezer longline) Pacific cod fishery in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands. The workshop will address: (1) The applicability of cost recovery fees mandated under section 304(d)(2) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) to the AFA, Aleutian Islands pollock fishery, Amendment 80 Program, CDQ Program, and the freezer longline Pacific cod fishery in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands; (2) an overview of the potential impacts of cost recovery programs; and (3) an overview of proposed regulatory approaches to implement cost recovery programs. The meeting is open to the public, but NMFS is particularly seeking participation by people who are knowledgeable about the AFA, Aleutian Islands pollock fishery, Amendment 80, CDQ Program, and the freezer longline Pacific cod fishery in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands and who can discuss with NMFS the potential impacts of cost recovery programs and proposed regulatory approaches.

NMFS is opening directed fishing for Greenland turbot in the Bering Sea subarea of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (BSAI). This action is necessary to fully use the 2013 initial total allowable catch (ITAC) of Greenland turbot in the Bering Sea subarea of the BSAI.

In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS hereby issues a permit for a period of three years to authorize the incidental, but not intentional, taking of individuals of three stocks of marine mammals listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) by the California (CA) thresher shark/ swordfish drift gillnet (DGN) fishery (>=14 inch mesh) and the incidental, but not intentional, taking of individuals from one stock by the Washington/Oregon/California (WA/OR/CA) sablefish pot fishery.

NMFS announces that the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council has submitted the Recreational Accountability Measures Omnibus Amendment incorporating a draft Environmental Assessment, for review by the Secretary of Commerce. NMFS is requesting comments from the public on the Recreational Accountability Measures Omnibus Amendment, which was developed by the Council to modify the accountability measures for the Atlantic mackerel, Atlantic bluefish, summer flounder, scup, and black sea bass recreational fisheries.

Free Atlantic Shark Identification Workshops and Protected Species Safe Handling, Release, and Identification Workshops will be held in October, November, and December of 2013. Certain fishermen and shark dealers are required to attend a workshop to meet regulatory requirements and to maintain valid permits. Specifically, the Atlantic Shark Identification Workshop is mandatory for all federally permitted Atlantic shark dealers. The Protected Species Safe Handling, Release, and Identification Workshop is mandatory for vessel owners and operators who use bottom longline, pelagic longline, or gillnet gear, and who have also been issued shark or swordfish limited access permits. Additional free workshops will be conducted during 2014 and will be announced in a future notice.

The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable Fisheries, Northeast Region, NMFS, has made a preliminary determination that an exempted fishing permit application submitted by the Maine Department of Marine Resources contains all of the required information and warrants further consideration. This would exempt participating commercial fishing vessels from gear restrictions for the purpose of developing an alternative gear for the directed silver hake fishery. Regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act require publication of this notification to provide interested parties the opportunity to comment on applications for proposed EFPs.

This action decreases the possession limit for Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic winter flounder and Gulf of Maine haddock for Northeast multispecies common pool vessels for the remainder of the 2013 fishing year. NMFS is taking this action because the common pool has caught 73 percent of its Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic winter flounder quota, and 96 percent of its Gulf of Maine haddock quota. This action is intended to prevent the overharvest of the common pool's FY 2013 allocation of Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic winter flounder and Gulf of Maine haddock.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) Observer Advisory Committee (OAC) will meet in Seattle, WA.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council's (NPFMC) Bering Sea Aleutian Islands (BSAI) Crab Plan Team (CPT) will meet in Seattle, WA.