[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 244 (Friday, December 19, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66603-66604]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-33216]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[I.D. 121197D]


Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council; Public Meetings

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

ACTION: Notice of public meetings.

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SUMMARY: The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) will 
convene a public meeting of the Reef Fish Stock Assessment Panel 
(RFSAP) and the Standing and Special Reef Fish Scientific and 
Statistical Committee (SSC).

DATES: A joint meeting of the RFSAP and Standing and Special Reef Fish 
SSC will be held beginning at 1:00 p.m. on Monday, January 5, 1998, and 
will conclude by 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, January 8, 1998.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at NMFS Southeast Fisheries Science 
Center, 75 Virginia Beach Drive, Miami, FL.
    Council address: 3018 U.S. Highway 301 North, Suite 1000, Tampa, FL 
33619.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Steven Atran, Population Dynamics 
Statistician, Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council; telephone: 
813-228-2815.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The RFSAP and SSC will review the NMFS Gulf 
of Mexico red snapper stock assessment that was prepared in October 
1997. The RFSAP conducted a preliminary review of this assessment in 
October, but were unable to recommend an acceptable biological catch 
(ABC) at that time due to insufficient time to conduct a thorough 
review. In addition to the NMFS Gulf of Mexico red snapper stock 
assessment, the RFSAP and SSC will also review the NMFS South Atlantic 
red snapper stock assessment for comparison to the Gulf of Mexico 
assessment; an independent Gulf of Mexico red snapper stock assessment 
by Dr. Brian Rothschild, University of Massachusetts; new information 
on shrimp trawl bycatch reduction devices; and independent peer group 
evaluations of the red snapper management process that were compiled 
for NMFS by the American Fisheries Society.
    The RFSAP is composed of biologists who are trained in the 
specialized field of population dynamics. They advise the Council on 
the status of stocks and level of ABC. The SSC is composed of 
biologists, economists, and sociologists who are knowledgeable about 
the technical aspects of fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico. They assess 
the acceptability of the scientific information and of the ABC 
recommendation. The SSC may also recommend a specific level of total 
allowable catch (TAC) from within the ABC range, and management 
measures needed to implement the TAC, in particular, management 
measures that may prevent a recreational quota closure in 1998.
    The Council will set the 1998 red snapper TAC and associated 
management measures at its meeting in Point Clear, AL, on January 19-
23, 1998, based on the recommendations of the RFSAP, SSC, and public 
testimony that will be taken at the Council meeting.
    Although other issues not contained in this agenda may come before 
the joint RFSAP/SSC for discussion, in accordance with the Magnuson-
Stevens Fishery Conservation Act, those issues may not be the subject 
of formal action during this meeting. RFSAP/SSC action will be 
restricted to those issues specifically identified in the agenda listed 
in this notice.
    A copy of the agenda can be obtained by contacting the Council (see 
ADDRESSES).

Special Accommodations

    This meeting is physically accessible to people with disabilities. 
Requests for sign language interpretation or other

[[Page 66604]]

auxiliary aids should be directed to Anne Alford at the Council (see 
ADDRESSES) by December 29, 1997.

    Dated: December 12, 1997.
Gary C. Matlock, Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 97-33216 Filed 12-18-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F