National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration March 2015 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

NOAA published a final rule to expand the boundary of Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary (TBNMS or sanctuary), clarify the correlation between TBNMS regulations and Indian tribal fishing activities, and revise the corresponding sanctuary terms of designation on September 5, 2014 (79 FR 52960). The new boundary for TBNMS increases the size of the sanctuary from 448 square miles to 4,300 square miles and extends protection to 47 additional known historic shipwrecks of national significance. Pursuant to Section 304(b) of the National Marine Sanctuaries Act (16 U.S.C. 1434(b)) the final regulations take effect after 45 days of continuous session of Congress beginning on September 5, 2014. Through this notification, NOAA is announcing the regulations became effective on February 3, 2015.

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is scheduling a public meeting of its Groundfish Committee 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.

Free Atlantic Shark Identification Workshops and Protected Species Safe Handling, Release, and Identification Workshops will be held in April, May, and June of 2015. Also, due to inclement weather, NMFS cancelled the Atlantic Shark Identification workshop scheduled for February 26, 2015, in Norfolk, VA. NMFS has rescheduled this workshop to March 26, 2015, to be held at the same time and location, 12 p.m. to 4 p.m., LaQuinta Inn & Suites, 1387 North Military Highway, Norfolk, VA 23502. 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 2015 and will be announced in a future notice.

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council's (Council) Tilefish Monitoring Committee will hold a public meeting.

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council's (Council) Ecosystem and Ocean Planning Committee will meet as a Committee of the Whole, to receive an overview from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) about their geological and geophysical (G&G) permitting process in the Atlantic, focusing on regulations and the permitted activities for G&G surveys, and the development of possible comments.

NMFS issues regulations to implement Amendment 100 to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (BSAI FMP) and Amendment 91 to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska (GOA FMP). This final rule adds regulations to improve reporting of grenadiers, limit retention of grenadiers, and prevent direct fishing for grenadiers by federally permitted groundfish fishermen. This final rule is necessary to limit and monitor the incidental catch of grenadiers in the groundfish fisheries. This action is intended to promote the goals and objectives of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, the FMPs, and other applicable law.

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is scheduling a public meeting of its Habitat Committee 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.

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 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 received an application from Shell Gulf of Mexico Inc. (Shell) for an Incidental Harassment Authorization (IHA) to take marine mammals, by harassment, incidental to ice overflight surveys in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas, Alaska. Pursuant to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is requesting comments on its proposal to issue an IHA to Shell to take, by Level B harassment only, seven species of marine mammals during the specified activity.

The Caribbean Fishery Management Council's (Council) Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) will hold a meeting.

We, NMFS, have completed a comprehensive status review under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) for the African coelacanth (Latimeria chalumnae) in response to a petition to list that species. We have determined that, based on the best scientific and commercial data available, and after taking into account efforts being made to protect the species, L. chalumnae does not meet the definition of a threatened or endangered species when evaluated throughout all of its range. However, we determined that the Tanzanian population of the taxon represents a significant portion of the taxon's range, is threatened across that portion, and is a valid distinct population segment (DPS). Therefore, we propose to list the Tanzanian DPS of L. chalumnae as a threatened species under the ESA. We are not proposing to designate critical habitat for this DPS because the geographical areas occupied by the population are entirely outside U.S. jurisdiction, and we have not identified any unoccupied areas that are essential to the conservation of the DPS. We are soliciting comments on our proposal to list the Tanzanian DPS of the coelacanth as threatened under the ESA.

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for Pacific cod, except for the Community Development Quota program (CDQ), in the Aleutian Islands subarea of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area (BSAI). This action is necessary to prevent exceeding the non-CDQ allocation of the 2015 Pacific cod total allowable catch (TAC) in the Aleutian Islands subarea of the BSAI.

NMFS received an application from Shell Gulf of Mexico Inc. (Shell) for an Incidental Harassment Authorization (IHA) to take marine mammals, by harassment, incidental to ice overflight surveys in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas, Alaska. Pursuant to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is requesting comments on its proposal to issue an IHA to Shell to take, by Level B harassment only, seven species of marine mammals during the specified activity.

The Hydrographic Services Review Panel (HSRP) is a Federal Advisory Committee established to advise the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, the NOAA Administrator, on matters related to the responsibilities and authorities set forth in section 303 of the Hydrographic Services Improvement Act of 1998, as amended, and such other appropriate matters that the Under Secretary refers to the Panel for review and advice. Date and Time: The public meeting will be held from April 8-10, 2015. April 8th from 8:30 a.m. to 12 noon PST; April 9 from 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. PST; and April 10th from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Location: Long Beach, California, with the exact meeting location to be determined and posted online. Please refer to the following Web site for updates on the location, agenda, presentations, speaker's biographies, the webinar, and public comments: https:// www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/ocs/hsrp/meetings.htm.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is reinstating missing paragraphs of the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary (OCNMS) regulations that pertain to the issuance of permits. NOAA inadvertently excluded the paragraphs in the publication of a November 2011 final rule revising OCNMS permitting regulations. The reinstatement of these paragraphs will ensure continued coordination with the treaty Indian tribes whose cultural and treaty resources may be affected by activities of regulated entities. In addition, these provisions provide notice to the regulated community of NOAA's responsibilities to treaty Indian tribes whose cultural and treaty resources may be affected by a permittee's proposed activities.

The Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) of the Mid- Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold a meeting.

The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold a meeting of its Law Enforcement Advisory Panel (LEAP) in conjunction with the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission's Law Enforcement Committee (LEC).

Notice is hereby given that Dolphin World Productions Ltd, 59 Cotham Hill, Bristol, BS6 6JR, United Kingdom, has applied in due form for a permit to conduct commercial or educational photography on bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus).