[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 42 (Wednesday, March 4, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10594-10595]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-5510]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[I.D. 022598A]


Western Pacific 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 Western Pacific Fishery Council will hold meetings of its 
Scientific and Statistical Committee, in Honolulu, HI. DATES: The 
Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) meeting will be held on 
March 24-26, 1998, from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. each day.

ADDRESSES: The meetings will be held at the Council office conference 
room, 1164 Bishop Street, Suite 1400, Honolulu, Hawaii; telephone: 
(808) 522-8220.
    Council address: Western Pacific Fishery Management Council, 1164 
Bishop St., Suite 1400, Honolulu, HI 96813.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kitty M. Simonds, Executive Director; 
telephone: (808) 522-8220.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The SSC will discuss and may make 
recommendations to the Council on: a draft amendment for an area 
closure for large pelagic vessels in the American Samoa exclusive 
economic zone; a draft comprehensive amendment (covering all fishery 
management plans (FMP) to implement new Sustainable Fishery Act 
requirements (bycatch, fishing sectors, fishing communities, 
overfishing, Essential Fish Habitat (EFH), including research needs and 
priorities necessary to carry out the Council's EFH management mandate, 
and updates of National Environmental Policy Act requirements); 
National Vessel and Fisheries Information Systems; Federal management 
options to restore overfished Main Hawaiian Islands (MHI) onaga and 
ehu; draft island-area modules for the 1997 bottomfish annual report, 
including improvements to the report and reconsideration of geographic 
reporting of overfishing indicator; the draft 1997 Northwestern 
Hawaiian Islands (NWHI) lobster annual report; the addition of new 
areas (Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) and U.S. 
Possessions) to Permit Area 3 through a possible framework amendment; 
review of Marine Conservation Plans (by island area) and the 
Sustainable Fisheries Fund.

[[Page 10595]]

    Other agenda items that the SSC will discuss and may take action on 
include:
    1. Pelagics protected species interactions and initiative;
    2. Possible study on shark finning in Western Pacific Region;
    3. Fishery developments at Palmyra and Midway atolls;
    4. State and federal research on MHI overfished bottomfish;
    5. Possible addition of generic level management unit species to 
the Bottomfish FMP or include with developing Coral Reef Ecosytem FMP;
    6. Update on the status of the draft amendment for the limited 
access program for the Mau Zone in the NWHI;
    7. Update on American Deepwater Engineering precious corals 
operations;
    8. Crustaceans research and data collection plans for 1998;
    9. Determination of the 1998 NWHI lobster harvest guideline, 
including estimation of exploitable population size and establishment 
of separate bank quotas;
    10. Status of Crustaceans FMP framework regulatory changes: Vessel 
Monitoring System vessel transit of 50 mile closed area, announce 
harvest guideline February 28, add May to closed season for MHI Federal 
waters;
    11. Draft outline and concept for Coral Reef Ecosystem Fishery 
Management Plan, with recommendations for membership to form a new Plan 
Team;
    12. Final Environmental Impact Statement (if available) for 
military use of Farallon de Mendinilla, CNMI; and
    13. Other business as required.
    Although other issues not contained in this agenda may come before 
this SSC for discussion, in accordance with the Magnuson-Stevens 
Fishery Conservation and Management Act, those issues may not be the 
subject of formal action during this meeting. Action will be restricted 
to those issues specifically identified in the agenda listed in this 
notice.

Special Accommodations

    This meeting is physically accessible to people with disabilities. 
Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids 
should be directed to Kitty M. Simonds, 808-522-8220 (voice) or 808-
522-8226 (fax), at least 5 days prior to meeting date.

    Dated: February 25, 1998.
Bruce C. Morehead,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 98-5510 Filed 3-3-98; 8:45 am]
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