National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration September 26, 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service (Services) announce the availability of a Final Record of Decision on the issuance of incidental take permits to the state of Washington under section 10 of the Endangered Species Act for the Washington Forest Practices Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP). The two incidental take permits (one from each of the Services) authorize incidental take of aquatic species (16 listed fish species, 54 unlisted fish species, and 7 unlisted amphibian species) from covered forest practices implemented under the HCP. These forest practices affect approximately 9 million acres of non-Federal and non-tribal lands in Washington State. The permits were issued on June 5, 2006, and will remain in effect for 50 years.

The Department of Commerce is seeking nominations for membership on the Marine Protected Areas Federal Advisory Committee (Committee). The Marine Protected Areas Federal Advisory Committee was established to advise the Secretary of Commerce and the Secretary of the Interior in implementing Section 4 of Executive Order 13158, specifically on strategies and priorities for developing the national system of marine protected areas (MPAs) and on practical approaches to further enhance and expand protection of new and existing MPAs. Nominations are sought for highly qualified non-Federal scientists, resource managers, and people representing other interests or organizations involved with or affected by marine conservation including in the Great Lakes. Fifteen members of the Committee have terms that expire October 31, 2007, and nominations are sought to fill these vacancies. Individuals seeking membership on the Committee should possess demonstrable expertise in a related field or represent a stakeholder interest affected by MPAs. Nominees also will be evaluated based on the following factors: Marine policy experience, leadership and organization skills, region of country represented, and diversity characteristics. The membership reflects the Departments' commitment to attaining balance and diversity. The full text of the Committee Charter and its current membership can be viewed at the Agency's Web page at https://mpa.gov/fac.html.

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council); its Research Set-Aside (RSA) Committee; its Protected Resources Committee; its Law Enforcement Committee; and, its Executive Committee will hold public meetings.

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council's (MAFMC) Atlantic Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish Committee, its Advisors, and the Amendment 10 Fishery Management Action Team (FMAT) will hold a public meeting.

Notice is hereby given that Markus Horning, Ph.D., Department of Fisheries & Wildlife, Oregon State University, Hatfield Marine Science Center, 2030 SE Marine Science Drive, Newport, OR 97365, has been issued a permit to conduct research on Weddell seals (Leptonychotes weddellii).

NMFS issues this final rule to implement Amendment 13 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Shrimp Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico (Amendment 13), as prepared and submitted by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council). This final rule establishes a 10-year moratorium on issuance of Federal Gulf shrimp vessel permits; requires owners of vessels fishing for or possessing royal red shrimp from the Gulf of Mexico exclusive economic zone (EEZ) to have a royal red shrimp endorsement; requires owners or operators of all federally permitted Gulf shrimp vessels to report information on landings and vessel and gear characteristics; and requires vessels selected by NMFS to carry observers and/or install an electronic logbook provided by NMFS. In addition, Amendment 13 establishes biological reference points for penaeid shrimp and status determination criteria for royal red shrimp. The intended effects of this final rule are to provide essential fisheries data, including bycatch data, needed to improve management of the fishery and to control access to the fishery. Finally, NMFS informs the public of the approval by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) of the collection-of-information requirements contained in this final rule and publishes the OMB control numbers for those collections.