[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 183 (Thursday, September 21, 1995)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 48959-48960]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-23398]



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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Chapter VI

[I.D. 091195A]


South Atlantic Fishery Management Council; Public Hearings

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

ACTION: Public hearings.

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SUMMARY: The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (SAFMC) will 
hold public hearings to solicit comments on management measures for a 
new Fishery Management Plan for the Golden Crab Fishery of the South 
Atlantic Region (FMP).

DATES: Written comments regarding the issues being discussed at the 
hearings will be accepted through October 19, 1995.
    The hearings are scheduled as follows:
    1. Tuesday, September 26, 1995, 7.00 p.m., Cocoa Beach, FL; 2. 
Wednesday, September 27, 1995, 7.00 p.m., Dania, FL; and 3. Thursday, 
September 28, 1995, 7.00 p.m., Key West, FL.

ADDRESSES: To send comments, and to request copies of public hearing 
documents, write to: Susan Buchanan, Public Information Officer, South 
Atlantic Fishery Management Council, One Southpark Circle, Suite 306, 
Charleston, SC 29407-4699. Copies of a revised draft FMP will be 
available to the public at the hearings.
    The hearings will be held at the following locations:
    1. Cocoa Beach--Holiday Inn, 1300 N. Atlantic Avenue, Cocoa Beach, 
FL 32931; telephone (407) 783-2271;
    2. Dania--Sheraton Design Center Hotel, 1825 Griffin Road, Dania, 
FL 33004; telephone (305) 920-3500; and
    3. Key West--Holiday Inn Beachside, 3841 N. Roosevelt Blvd., Key 
West, SC 29407-4699; telephone (305) 294-2571.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Susan Buchanan, (803) 571-4366; Fax: 
(803) 769-4520.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: At its meeting of August 21-25, 1995, the 
SAFMC decided to make changes in its proposed golden crab management 
program, which will be specified in a revised draft FMP. The SAFMC has 
decided to hold additional public hearings in order to solicit public 
views on the revised management measures for inclusion in the FMP.
    The FMP management unit is the population of golden crab occurring 
along the U.S. Atlantic coast from the east coast of Florida to the 
North Carolina/Virginia border. Other deep-water crabs, such as red 
crab and jonah crab, are included in the FMP for data collection 
purposes only; no management actions are planned for these species 
under the initial FMP. Although all three species of crab are harvested 
in the Gulf of Mexico and Mid-Atlantic/New England, it is believed that 
the populations are sufficiently separated from one another to be 
managed independently.
    The following types of management measures for golden crab are 
under consideration by the SAFMC for inclusion in its final FMP:
    (1) Definition of terms, including: Optimum yield, overfishing, and 
crustacean trap;
    (2) Gear controls, including: Use of traps only and a limit on 
their size, requirements for trap escape gaps, degradable escape 
panels, use of rope only as trap main line, and requiring that crabs be 
landed whole;
    (3) Measures to ensure conservation of the fishery, including: No 
retention of females;
    (4) Establishment of the following zones in the golden crab 
fishery:
    (A) Northern Zone--North of the Volusia/Flager Line (29 deg. 25' N. 
lat.) to the North Carolina/Virginia border;
    (B) Mid Zone--29 deg. 25' to 25 deg. N. lat.; and
    (C) Southern Zone--South of 25 deg. N. lat. to the boundary between 
the areas of jurisdiction of the SAFMC/Gulf of Mexico Fishery 
Management Council;
    (5) Measures to limit access to the fishery. Criteria for access 
will be as follows: Apply an April 7, 1995, control 

[[Page 48960]]
date to limit fishery access in the southern and mid-zones, and apply a 
date of September 1, 1995, as a criterion for limiting fishery access 
in the northern zone. Criteria for fishery access will be based on 
demonstrated landings from the Council's area of jurisdiction prior to 
the dates specified;
    (6) Area restrictions, including limiting deployment of traps to 
depths of 900 ft (295 m) or greater in the northern zone and 700 ft 
(230 m) or greater in the middle and southern zones;
    (7) Bait restrictions to protect snapper and grouper;
    (8) Enforcement provisions, including: Vessel permits, and dealer 
permits;
    (9) Collection of information requirements for science and research 
purposes, such as use of information from sales reports, and logbook 
requirements, and;
    (10) Framework rulemaking procedures to provide administrative 
flexibility to change management measures in a timely manner.
    The Council intends to finalize the FMP at its meeting in 
Wilmington, NC from October 23-27, 1995. The public will have an 
opportunity to comment at the full Council session before the Council 
takes final action to adopt the FMP's management measures. Once 
finalized, the FMP will be submitted to NMFS for review, approval and 
implementation. NMFS will provide for a 60-day public comment period on 
the FMP and a 45-day public comment period on the proposed implementing 
rule during its 110-day review period.
    These hearings are physically accessible to people with 
disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other 
auxiliary aids should be directed to the Council office by September 
21, 1995.
    For special accommodations regarding the hearings, contact the 
Council (see ADDRESSES).

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.

    Dated: September 15, 1995.
Richard W. Surdi,
Acting Director, Office of Fisheries Conservation and Management, 
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 95-23398 Filed 9-18-95; 12:52 pm]
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