National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration October 13, 2023 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with the regulations implementing the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) as amended, notification is hereby given that NMFS has issued an incidental harassment authorization (IHA) to Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (L-DEO) to incidentally harass marine mammals during a marine geophysical survey near Puerto Rico in the northwest Atlantic Ocean.

The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) Council will hold a meeting of its Habitat and Ecosystem Advisory Panel (Habitat AP) in Charleston, SC.

The New England Fishery Management Council's is convening its Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) 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.

This temporary rule implements interim measures to reduce Atlantic mackerel catch for the remainder of the 2023 fishing year and the beginning of the 2024 fishing year to reduce the likelihood of overfishing based on new assessment information regarding the status of the Atlantic mackerel stock. This action is intended to reduce potential Atlantic mackerel overfishing through the end of 2023 and the beginning of 2024 while the 2024 specifications are developed. We will be collecting comments on the changes in per-trip catch limits to help inform future decisions on this topic.

In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), as amended, its implementing regulations, and NMFS' MMPA Regulations for Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Geophysical Surveys Related to Oil and Gas Activities in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM), notification is hereby given that NMFS has modified the expiration date of a Letter of Authorization (LOA) issued to CGG for the take of marine mammals incidental to geophysical survey activity in the GOM.