82 FR 54329 - New England Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 221 (November 17, 2017)

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

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 221 (Friday, November 17, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54329-54330]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2017-24961]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XF839


New England Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting

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

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

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

DATES: The meeting will be held on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, 
December 5, 6, and 7, 2017, beginning at 9 a.m. on December 5, 8:30 
a.m. on December 6, and 8:30 a.m. on December 7.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at the Hotel Viking, 1 Bellevue 
Avenue, Newport, RI 02840; telephone: (401) 847-3300; online at 
www.hotelviking.com.
    Council address: New England Fishery Management Council, 50 Water 
Street, Mill 2, Newburyport, MA 01950; telephone: (978) 465-0492; 
www.nefmc.org.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Thomas A. Nies, Executive Director, 
New England Fishery Management Council; telephone: (978) 465-0492, ext. 
113.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Agenda

Tuesday, December 5, 2017

    After introductions and brief announcements, the meeting will begin 
with reports from the Council Chairman and Executive Director, NMFS's 
Regional Administrator for the Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries 
Office (GARFO), liaisons from the Northeast Fisheries Science Center 
(NEFSC) and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, representatives 
from NOAA General Counsel and the Office of Law Enforcement, and staff 
from the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) and U.S. 
Coast Guard. Next, the Council will receive a short briefing from the 
Northeast Regional Ocean Council on upgrades to the Northeast Ocean 
Data Portal. The Skate Committee will report next with a final item 
related to Framework Adjustment 5 to the Northeast Skate Complex 
Fishery Management Plan (FMP). The Council addressed most of the 
framework components during its September meeting. During this December 
meeting, the Council will: (1) Consider options to exempt vessels from 
skate regulations when fishing exclusively within the Northwest 
Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) Regulatory Area; and (2) take 
final action on the entire framework. Then, ASMFC will brief the 
Council on the Commission's Draft Addendum XXVI to the Interstate 
Fishery Management Plan for American Lobster and Addendum III to the 
Jonah Crab plan. The Council will discuss data collection needs for 
these fisheries. The Habitat Committee then will provide a short 
progress report on the Council's Coral Amendment and Clam Dredge 
Framework, which will be followed by a Bureau of Ocean Energy 
Management overview of proposed and ongoing offshore wind energy 
projects in the Northeast.
    After the lunch break, GARFO will provide a presentation on the 
North Atlantic Right Whale Five-Year Review and the reinitiation of 
formal consultation due to new information on the changed status of 
right whales. Next, the Atlantic Herring Committee will report on Draft 
Amendment 8 to the Atlantic Herring FMP. The Council will select 
preferred alternatives for localized depletion and user conflicts for 
the amendment and then approve the document for public hearing. The 
Council debated acceptable biological catch (ABC) control rule 
alternatives--the other major component of Amendment 8--during its 
September meeting. The Council also will approve 2019-2021 research 
priorities for the Atlantic Herring Research Set-Aside

[[Page 54330]]

Program. Following these actions, the Council will adjourn for the day.

Wednesday, December 6, 2017

    The second day of the meeting will begin with a report from the 
Northeast Fisheries Science Center on the results of the 2017 
operational assessments for 19 of the 20 groundfish stocks managed 
under the Council's Northeast Multispecies FMP. The Scientific and 
Statistical Committee (SSC) will report next with overfishing limits 
(OFLs) and ABCs for the following stocks and fishing years (FY): 
Atlantic sea scallops for FY 2018 with defaults for FY 2019; northern 
and southern silver hake and red hake for FY 2018-2020; and all 
groundfish stocks for 2018-2020 except Georges Bank yellowtail flounder 
and Atlantic halibut. The Council then will begin its Groundfish 
Committee report, during which it will take final action on Framework 
Adjustment 57 to the Northeast Multispecies FMP. The framework 
includes: (1) 2018-2020 fishery specifications and other management 
measures; (2) 2018 TACs for U.S./Canada stocks of Eastern Georges Bank 
cod, Eastern Georges Bank haddock, and Georges Bank yellowtail 
flounder; (3) Atlantic halibut accountability measures (AMs); (4) 
recreational management measures; (5) common pool trimester TAC 
adjustments; (6) southern windowpane flounder AMs; and (7) potential 
consideration of a Georges Bank cod sub-annual catch limit for the 
recreational fishery. Also under groundfish, the Council may consider 
requesting emergency action to reduce catches of Georges Bank cod by 
implementing additional measures for the recreational fishery.
    Following a lunch break, members of the public will have the 
opportunity to speak during an open comment period on issues that 
relate to Council business but are not included on the published agenda 
for this meeting. The Council asks the public to limit remarks to 3-5 
minutes. Then, the Groundfish Committee report will resume and continue 
until related business is concluded. The Council next will discuss its 
plan to provide input to NMFS on regulatory reform as mandated by 
Executive Orders 13777, 13771, and 13565. At the conclusion of this 
discussion, the Council will adjourn for the day.

Thursday, December 7, 2017

    The third day of the meeting will begin with a discussion of and 
final action on 2018 Council priorities covering tasks and actions for 
all committees. Next, the Council will hear from its Scallop Committee 
and take final action on Framework Adjustment 29 to the Atlantic Sea 
Scallop FMP. This framework contains: (1) Fishery specifications for 
the 2018 fishing year and default specifications for 2019; (2) scallop 
fishery AMs for yellowtail flounder and windowpane flounder; (3) 
Northern Gulf of Maine Management Area modifications; and (4) measures 
to modify and/or create access area and open area boundaries consistent 
with potential changes to habitat and groundfish closed areas under the 
Council's Omnibus Essential Fish Habitat Amendment 2.
    Following a lunch break, the Scallop Committee discussion will 
continue until business is concluded. The Whiting Committee will report 
next. The Council will take final action on 2018-2020 specifications 
for small-mesh multispecies, which include red, silver, and offshore 
hakes, and then will deliberate Amendment 22 to the Northeast 
Multispecies FMP, which was developed to consider limiting access to 
the small-mesh multispecies fishery. The Council will: (1) Consider 
whether to pursue or drop consideration of triggered possession limit 
adjustments in the amendment; and (2) approve the draft amendment for 
public hearing. Next, the Council will take up spiny dogfish to review 
the previously set 2018 specifications for the fishery and discuss 
whether to recommend modifications. Finally, the Council will close out 
the meeting with ``other business.''
    Although non-emergency issues not contained on this agenda may come 
before the Council for discussion, those issues may not be the subject 
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 Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act, provided the public has been notified of the Council's 
intent to take final action to address the emergency. The public also 
should be aware that the meeting will be recorded. Consistent with 16 
U.S.C. 1852, a copy of the recording is available upon request.

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: November 14, 2017.
Tracey L. Thompson,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2017-24961 Filed 11-16-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P