[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 226 (Monday, November 24, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62563-62564]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-30829]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration


National Estuarine Research Reserve System

AGENCY: Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management (OCRM), 
National Ocean Service (NOS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration, Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of Public Meeting and Intent to Prepare a Draft 
Environmental Impact Statement.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act and 
with section 315 of the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972; as 
amended, the State of Florida and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration (NOAA) intend to conduct a public scoping meeting on the 
proposed Guana Tolomato Matanzas (GTM) National Estuarine Research 
Reserve (NERR) in Florida to solicit comments on significant issues 
related to the preparation of a Draft Environmental Impact Statement 
(DEIS) and Draft Management Plan (DMP). The DEIS and DMP address 
research, monitoring, education and resource protection needs for the 
reserve.

DATE AND TIME: Wednesday, December 10, 1997 at 7:00 p.m.

ADDRESSES: St. Johns County Auditorium, Government Complex, 4020 Lewis 
Speedway, St. Augustine, Florida 32095.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anna Marie Hartman, Bureau of Coastal 
and Aquatic Managed Areas, Division of Marine Resources, Department of 
Environmental Protection at (850) 488-3456; or Nathalie Peter, 
Sanctuaries and Reserves Division, Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource 
Management, NOAA, at (301) 713-3132, ext. 119.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In October 1997, NOAA Sanctuaries and 
Reserves Division (SRD) approved the nomination of the Guana Tolomato 
Matanzas (GTM) estuarine systems as a proposed National Estuarine 
Research Reserve. Research reserves provide natural coastal habitats as 
field laboratories for baseline ecological studies and education 
programs. Research and monitoring programs are designed to enhance 
scientific understanding of the coastal environment and aid in resource 
management decision making.
    The proposed GTM Reserve encompasses approximately 53,333 acres of 
publicly owned lands and waters in St. Johns and Flagler Counties on 
the east coast of Florida. It consists of two sites: the Guana River 
and Tolomato River estuarine system located north of St. Augustine and 
the Matanzas River south of St. Augustine. The proposed reserve is an 
area important to many resident and migratory fish and waterfowl and a 
variety of threatened and endangered species, including the manatee, 
the least tern, and the loggerhead, green and leatherback turtles. 
Major habitat types include beach dunes, salt and freshwater marshes, 
cypress and hardwood swamps, shell mounds, and xeric hammocks. The 
Matanzas Inlet is the last naturally occurring inlet on the east coast 
of Florida that has not been subject to dredging and other manmade 
disturbances.
    The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has developed a 
draft management plan for the NERR which identifies specific needs and 
priorities related to research, monitoring, education, and stewardship 
at the proposed site. It also presents draft action plans for 
administration, a volunteer program, public access, facilities/
construction, and boundaries/land acquisition.
    At the public meeting, DEP and NOAA will provide a synopsis of the 
draft management plan and will solicit comments on significant 
environmental issues that will be incorporated into a DEIS.
    The public meeting will be held in St. Augustine, Florida at the 
St. Johns County Auditorium, Government Complex, 4020 Lewis Speedway, 
on December 10, 1997, from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
    Interested parties who wish to submit suggestions, comments or 
substantive information regarding the scope or content of the proposed 
DEIS/DMP are invited to attend the above meeting. Parties who wish to 
respond in writing should do so by December 26, 1997, to Anna Marie 
Hartman, Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Marine 
Resources, Bureau of Coastal and Aquatic Managed Areas, 3900 
Commonwealth Boulevard, MS 235 Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3000, or 
Nathalie Peter, NOAA Sanctuaries and

[[Page 62564]]

Reserves Division, 1305 East-West Highway N/ORM2, Silver Spring, MD 
20910.

Federal Domestic Assistance Catalog Number 11.420 (Coastal Zone 
Management) Research Reserves
    Dated: November 19, 1997.
Captain Evelyn J. Fields,
Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator for Ocean Services and Coastal 
Zone Management.
[FR Doc. 97-30829 Filed 11-21-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-08-M