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

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

The Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) 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.

On April 3, 2013, a notice was published in the Federal Register (78 FR 20092) on the proposed information collection, Fish and Seafood Promotion. The information under the Data Section is corrected as follows: Estimated time per response: 106 hours. Estimated total annual burden hours: 318. Estimated total annual cost to the public: $22.

NMFS will hold two public workshops to solicit input from stakeholders regarding our advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPR) on potential management measures to protect glacially-associated harbor seal habitats in Alaska (78 FR 15669; March 12, 2013). During the workshops NMFS will present information regarding harbor seal habitat usage and available research on the effects of vessel disturbance. NMFS will seek input as to whether management measures are needed, and if so, what types of measures should be considered.

This notice sets forth the schedule of a forthcoming meeting of the DoC NOAA National Climate Assessment and Development Advisory Committee (NCADAC). Time and Date: The meeting will be held Monday, May 13, 2013 from 3:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m. Eastern time. Place: This meeting will be a conference call. Public access and materials will be available at the office of the U.S. Global Change Research Program, Conference Room A, Suite 250, 1717 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20006. The public will not be able to dial into the call. Please check the National Climate Assessment Web site for additional information at https://www.globalchange.gov/what-we-do/ assessment. Status: The meeting will be open to public participation with a 10- minute public comment period from 4:45-4:55 p.m. 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 two minutes. Written comments should be received in the NCADAC DFO's office by Monday, May 6, 2013 to provide sufficient time for NCADAC review. Written comments received by the NCADAC DFO after Monday, May 6, 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 special accommodations may be directed no later than 12 p.m. on Monday, May 6, 2013 to Dr. Cynthia Decker, SAB Executive Director, SSMC3, Room 11230, 1315 East-West Hwy., Silver Spring, MD 20910.

Notice is hereby given that Samuel Wasser, Ph.D., University of Washington, Department of Biology, P.O. Box 351800, Seattle, WA 98195, has applied in due form for a permit to conduct research on killer whales (Orcinus orca).

Notice is hereby given that Rachel Cartwright, Keiki Kohola Project, 5277 West Wooley Rd., Oxnard, CA 93035, has applied in due form for a permit to conduct research on humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae).

The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable Fisheries, Northeast Region, NMFS (Assistant Regional Administrator), has made a preliminary determination that an Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) application contains all of the required information and warrants further consideration. This Exempted Fishing Permit would exempt commercial fishing vessels from whiting possession limits to test an experimental trawl net as a means to reduce winter flounder bycatch in the small-mesh whiting and squid fisheries. The research is being conducted by Cornell University Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County, NY. 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.

NMFS, upon request of Port Dolphin Energy LLC (Port Dolphin), hereby issues regulations pursuant to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) to govern the unintentional taking of marine mammals, by harassment, incidental to port construction and operations at its Port Dolphin Deepwater Port in the Gulf of Mexico, over the course of five years; approximately June 2013 through May 2018. These regulations, which allow for the issuance of Letters of Authorization for the incidental take of marine mammals during the described activities and specified timeframes, prescribe the permissible methods of taking and other means of effecting the least practicable adverse impact on marine mammal species or stocks and their habitat, as well as requirements pertaining to the monitoring and reporting of such taking.

NMFS announces that it is establishing a control date of February 10, 2011, to control future access to the commercial trap sectors of the reef fish and spiny lobster fisheries operating in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the U.S. Caribbean. If changes to the management regime are developed and implemented under the Magnuson- Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act), a control date could be used to limit the number of participants in these sectors. This announcement is intended, in part, to promote awareness of the potential eligibility criteria for future access so as to discourage speculative entry into the trap sectors while the Caribbean Fishery Management Council (Council) and NMFS consider whether and how access to the commercial trap sectors of the reef fish and spiny lobster fisheries should be controlled.

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold a three-day meeting on to consider actions affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

In response to a petition submitted by WildEarth Guardians and Friends of Animals to list the species as threatened or endangered, we, NMFS, have completed a comprehensive status review under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) for the scalloped hammerhead shark (Sphyrna lewini). Based on the best scientific and commercial information available, including the status review report (Miller et al., 2013), and other information available since completion of the status review report, we have determined that the species is comprised of six distinct population segments (DPSs) that qualify as species under the ESA: Northwest Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico (NW Atlantic & GOM DPS); Central and Southwest Atlantic (Central & SW Atlantic DPS); Eastern Atlantic DPS; Indo-West Pacific DPS; Central Pacific DPS; and Eastern Pacific DPS. After reviewing the best available scientific and commercial information on the DPSs, we have determined that two DPSs warrant listing as endangered, the Eastern Atlantic and Eastern Pacific DPSs; two DPSs warrant listing as threatened, the Central & SW Atlantic and Indo-West Pacific DPSs; and two DPSs do not warrant listing at this time, the NW Atlantic & GOM DPS and the Central Pacific DPS. Any protective regulations determined to be necessary and advisable for the conservation of the threatened DPSs under ESA section 4(d) would be proposed in a subsequent Federal Register announcement. Should the proposed listings be finalized, we would also designate critical habitat for the species, to the maximum extent prudent and determinable. We solicit information to assist these listing determinations, the development of proposed protective regulations, and designation of critical habitat in the event these proposed DPSs are finally listed.

This final rule implements Amendment 19 to the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan. The New England Fishery Management Council developed Amendment 19 to modify management measures that currently govern the small-mesh multispecies fishery, including the accountability measures, the year-round possession limits, and total allowable landings process. Amendment 19 was approved by NMFS on January 15, 2013.

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.

Pursuant to the requirements of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980, as amended (CERCLA) notice is hereby given that a document entitled, ``St. Lawrence Environment Restoration and Compensation Determination Plan and Environmental Assessment'' (RCDP) is being made available for public review. This RCDP has been approved by the State, Federal and Tribal Natural Resource Trustee agencies (the Trustees) including: the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), acting on behalf of the Department of Commerce; United States Fish & Wildlife Service, acting on behalf of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the U. S. Department of the Interior (USFWS/DOI); and the State of New York; and the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe. The Trustees act on behalf of the public under CERCLA and State law to protect and restore natural resources injured or lost as a result of releases or the threat of a release of a hazardous substance. Public Review and Comment: The publication of this notice opens the period for public comment on the RCDP. Two information public meetings will be held during the public comment period in Massena and Akwesasne, N.Y. All comments must be submitted no later than thirty (30) days after the publication date in this Federal Register. Comments may be sent electronically or in written form. Written comments may be sent to: Lisa Rosman, NOAA, Assessment and Restoration Division, 290 Broadway, 20th Floor, New York, NY 10007. Electronic comments may be sent directly to: lisa.rosman@noaa.gov. Please provide a subject line, indicating that your comments relate to restoration planning for the St. Lawrence NRDA settlements. Any comments received will become part of the administrative record and will be available to the public. Please be aware that your entire commentincluding your personal identifying informationmay be made publicly available.

The ONMS is extending the deadline and seeking applications for the following vacant seats on the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council: Commercial Fishing. Applicants are chosen based upon their particular expertise and experience in relation to the seat for which they are applying; community and professional affiliations; philosophy regarding the protection and management of marine resources; and possibly the length of residence in the area affected by the sanctuary. Applicants who are chosen should expect to serve until February 2016.

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for pollock in Statistical Area 610 in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA). This action is necessary to prevent exceeding the B season allowance of the 2013 total allowable catch of pollock for Statistical Area 610 in the GOA.

The U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) Program in NOAA publishes this notice on behalf of the U.S. IOOS Advisory Committee (the Committee) to announce a 30-day public comment period for the draft ``IOOS Vision'' statement. The Committee and U.S. IOOS stakeholders will use the ``IOOS Vision'' to provide clear, consistent messaging on U.S. IOOS to public sectors on the mission and value of U.S. IOOS.

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 has received an application from the U.S. Navy's Office of Naval Research (ONR) for an Incidental Harassment Authorization (IHA) to take marine mammals, by harassment, incidental to conducting Acoustic Technology Experiments (ATE) in the western North Pacific Ocean. The Navy's activities are considered military readiness activities pursuant to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), as amended by the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2004 (NDAA). Pursuant to the MMPA, NMFS is requesting comments on its proposal to issue an IHA to ONR to incidentally harass, by Level B harassment only, 34 species of marine mammals during the specified activity.

As required by the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS has incorporated public comments into revisions of marine mammal stock assessment reports (SARs). All but ten of the 2012 reports are final and available to the public.