[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 214 (Thursday, November 5, 1998)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 59758-59759]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-29653]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 660
[I.D. 103098A]
RIN 0648-AL49
Fisheries Off West Coast States and in the Western Pacific;
Pelagic Fisheries, Amendment 8; Crustacean Fisheries, Amendment 10;
Bottomfish and Seamount Groundfish Fisheries, Amendment 6; Precious
Corals Fisheries, Amendment 4
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of availability of fishery management plan amendments;
request for comments.
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SUMMARY: NMFS issues this notice that the Western Pacific Fishery
Management Council (Council) has submitted for Secretarial review
Amendment 8 to the Pelagic Fisheries Management Plan (FMP), Amendment
10 to the Crustaceans Fisheries FMP, Amendment 4 to the Precious Corals
Fisheries FMP, and Amendment 6 to the Bottomfish and Seamount
Groundfish Fisheries FMP and is requesting comments from the public.
The amendments were prepared so that the FMPs would comply with
provisions of the Sustainable Fisheries Act (SFA) regarding bycatch,
fishing sectors, essential fish habitat, fishing communities, and
overfishing. Copies of the amendments may be obtained from the Council
(See ADDRESSES).
DATES: Written comments on the amendments must be received on or before
January 4, 1998.
ADDRESSES: Written comments should be sent to Charles Karnella,
Administrator, Pacific Islands Area Office, National Marine Fisheries
Service, 2570 Dole Street, Room 106, Honolulu, HI 96822-2396. Copies of
the comprehensive amendment document are available from, Kitty Simonds,
Executive Director, Western Pacific Fishery Management Council, 1164
[[Page 59759]]
Bishop St., Suite 1400, Honolulu, HI 96813.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Alvin Katekaru, Fishery Management
Specialist, Pacific Islands Area Office, NMFS, at (808) 973-2985 or
Kitty Simonds at (808) 522-8220.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation
and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) requires that each Regional
Fishery Management Council submit any amendment to a FMP to NMFS for
review and approval, disapproval, or partial approval. The Magnuson-
Stevens Act also requires that NMFS, upon receiving an amendment,
immediately publish a notice that the amendment is available for public
review and comment. NMFS will consider all public comments received
during the comment period in determining whether to approve the
amendments for implementation.
The SFA amended the requirements for FMPs in section 303(a) of the
Magnuson-Stevens Act. The SFA established a 2-year deadline by which
the FMPs had to be in compliance with the SFA/Magnuson-Stevens Act
requirements. The proposed amendments are intended to supplement the
FMPs to conform to the new requirements in section 303(a) of the
Magnuson-Stevens Act. The proposed amendments: address bycatch and
bycatch mortality issues by presenting an overview of the type and
amount of bycatch in each managed fishery, assessing the adequacy of
bycatch reporting, and examining the existing and possible new measures
to minimize bycatch and mortality of bycatch in each fishery; describe
the likely effects of management measures on fishing communities;
specify overfishing criteria to determine whether a fishery is
overfished; identify commercial, recreational, and charter fishing
activity in each sector; identify pertinent data associated with the
fishing activity in each sector; and identify essential fish habitat/
areas of particular concern for management unit species. The new
overfishing criteria are not expected to result in major changes to
allowable catches in these fisheries. Specifically, the amendments
would add or revise existing definitions in the four Western Pacific
FMPs for: ``Bycatch,'' ``Charter fishing,'' ``Commercial fishing,''
``Recreational fishing,'' ``Essential fish habitat,'' ``Fishing
community,'' ``Individual fishing quota,'' ``Optimum,''
``Overfishing,'' ``Overfished,'' and ``Pacific Insular Area.''
Recommendations are also presented for obtaining additional data that
would enable NMFS and the Council to implement effectively the new
requirements under the proposed amendments.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: November 2, 1998.
Bruce C. Morehead,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 98-29653 Filed 11-2-97; 2:59 pm]
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