80 FR 18192 - New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC); Public Meeting

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Federal Register Volume 80, Issue 64 (April 3, 2015)

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold a three-day meeting on April 21-23, 2015 to consider actions affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 64 (Friday, April 3, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18192-18193]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2015-07685]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XD875


New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC); Public Meeting

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

[[Page 18193]]


ACTION: Notice of a public meeting.

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SUMMARY: The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold 
a three-day meeting on April 21-23, 2015 to consider actions affecting 
New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

DATES: The meeting will be held on Tuesday, April 21 through Thursday, 
April 23, 2015, starting at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, April 21, and 8 a.m. on 
Wednesday, April 22 and Thursday, April 23, 2015.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at the Hilton Hotel, 20 Coogan 
Boulevard, Mystic, CT 06355-1900. The telephone number is (860) 572-
0731, and fax is (860) 572-0328. For online information see 
www.hiltonmystic.com.
    Council address: New England Fishery Management Council, 50 Water 
Street, Mill 2, Newburyport, MA 01950; telephone: (978) 465-0492.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Thomas A. Nies, Executive Director, 
New England Fishery Management Council; telephone: (978) 465-0492.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Tuesday, April 21, 2015

    The Council meeting will begin with introductions and a brief 
closed session during which the NEFMC will approve additional 
Scientific and Statistical Committee appointments for 2015-17. Brief 
reports will follow from the NEFMC Chairman and Executive Director, the 
NOAA Fisheries Regional Administrator, the Northeast Fisheries Science 
Center and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council liaisons, NOAA 
General Counsel and NOAA Law Enforcement, and representatives of the 
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, U.S Coast Guard and the 
Northeast Regional Ocean Council.
    NOAA General Counsel will then provide a presentation on the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act provisions on Council member financial disclosure 
and recusal requirements. During the Observer Committee's Report to 
follow the NEFMC will review and likely approve committee 
recommendations for additional industry-funded portside sampling and 
electronic monitoring options in the Atlantic herring fishery. The 
options are intended to be part of an omnibus amendment (vs. a 
framework adjustment) that would address industry-funded monitoring 
across all federally managed fisheries in the Northeast. A report from 
the Monkfish Committee report will include an update on the development 
of Framework Adjustment 9 to the Monkfish Fishery Management Plan 
(FMP), as well as Monkfish Plan Development Team analyses on use of 
less than 10-inch mesh stand-up gillnets while on a monkfish day-at-
sea, and allowing a vessel to switch from a monkfish day to a monkfish 
research set-aside day while at sea. Just prior to a lunch break the 
Council will provide an opportunity for the public to provide brief 
comments on items that are relevant to Council business but otherwise 
not listed on the published agenda.
    Following the break, there will be a presentation on a Northeast 
Fisheries Science Center report titled Performance of the Northeast 
Multispecies Groundfish Fishery, May 2013-April 2014. Following receipt 
of this information, the Council is expected to approve the Draft 
Environmental Impact Statement associated with Amendment 18 to the 
Northeast Multispecies Fishery FMP and identify preferred alternatives 
for the purpose of public review and comment. The amendment measures 
focus primarily on accumulation limits and the concentration of fishing 
effort in the inshore Gulf of Maine.

Wednesday, April 22, 2015

    The second day of the meeting will begin with a NOAA Fisheries 
presentation regarding possible changes to National Standards 1, 3, and 
7 and Council discussion of these issues. The NEFMC's Scientific and 
Statistical Committee will review its discussions about the proposals 
to change the National Standards, as well as NOAA's Draft Climate 
Science Strategy. Later in the morning, and as part of the Ecosystem 
Based Fisheries Management (EBFM) Committee's report, the Council will 
receive an updated status report on Northeast Continental Shelf Marine 
Ecosystem, review committee recommendations on a process to develop an 
EBFM policy, and review committee comments on NOAA's Draft Climate 
Science Strategy. The Habitat Committee will report prior to a lunch 
break. It seeks approval of final management measures to be included in 
Omnibus Essential Fish Habitat Amendment 2. Pending NOAA Fisheries 
approval, measures could affect all New England Council FMPs. This 
agenda item will be the subject of discussion for the remainder of the 
working day.

Thursday, April 23, 2015

    The Council will continue consideration of the habitat agenda items 
listed above during this final day of the meeting. The meeting will 
adjourn after the consideration of any outstanding business.
    Although other non-emergency issues not contained in this agenda 
may come before this Council for discussion, those issues may not be 
the subjects of formal action during this meeting. Council action will 
be restricted to those issues specifically listed in this notice and 
any issues arising after publication of this notice that require 
emergency action under section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, 
provided that the public has been notified of the Council's intent to 
take final action to address the emergency.

Special Accommodations

    This meeting is physically accessible to people with disabilities. 
Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids 
should be directed to Thomas A. Nies (see ADDRESSES) at least 5 days 
prior to the meeting date.

    Dated: March 31, 2015.
Tracey L. Thompson,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-07685 Filed 4-2-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P