[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 132 (Friday, July 10, 1998)] [Notices] [Pages 37350-37351] From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] [FR Doc No: 98-18308] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [I.D. 070298G] 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 meeting. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) will convene public meetings. DATES: The meetings will be held on July 20-24, 1998. ADDRESSES: These meetings will be held at the Lafayette Hilton and Towers, 1521 West Pinhook Road, Lafayette, LA; telephone: 318-235-6111. Council address: Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council, 3018 U.S. Highway 301 North, Suite 1000, Tampa, FL 33619. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Wayne E. Swingle, Executive Director, Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council; telephone: (813) 228-2815. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Council July 22 8:30 a.m.--Convene. 8:45 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.--Receive presentation on Fisheries Issues of Mutual Interest to Mexico and U.S.A. 9:30 a.m. - 12:00 noon--Receive public testimony on: (1) Total Allowable Catch (TAC) (2) Draft Mackerel Amendment 9; and, (3) Draft Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) Amendment. Draft Mackerel Amendment 9 contains the following alternatives: (1) Possible changes to the fishing year for Gulf group king mackerel; (2) Possible prohibitions of sale of Gulf mackerel caught under the recreational allocation; (3) Possible reallocations of TAC for the commercial fishery for Gulf group king mackerel in the Eastern Zone; (4) Possible reallocations of TAC for Gulf group king mackerel between the recreational and commercial sectors to 70 percent recreational and 30 percent commercial; (5) Possible establishment of two (2) subdivisions of TAC for the commercial, hook-and-line allocation of Gulf group king mackerel by area for the Florida west coast; (6) Possible subdivisions of TAC for commercial Gulf group king mackerel in the Western Zone (Alabama through Texas) by area, season, or a combination of area and season; (7) Possible trip limits for vessels fishing for Gulf group king mackerel in the Western Zone; (8) Possible additional restrictions on the use of net gear to harvest Gulf group king mackerel off the Florida west coast; including a phase-out, a moratorium on additional net endorsements with requirements for continuing existing net endorsements, restrictions on the transferability of net endorsements, and restriction of the use of nets to primarily the waters off Monroe and Collier Counties; (9) Possible increase in the minimum size limit for Gulf group king mackerel to 24 or 26 inches fork length; (10) Possible re-establishment of an annual allocation or a TAC percentage of Gulf group Spanish mackerel for the purse seine fishery with consideration of trip limits and area restrictions; (11) Possible retention and sale of cut-off (damaged) legal-sized king and Spanish mackerel within established trip limits. Following is a summary of the Draft EFH Amendment: (1) EFH is identified and described based on areas where various life stages of 21 selected managed species and the coral complex commonly occur. The selected species are shrimp; red drum; reef fish; coastal migratory pelagic species; stone crab; spiny lobster; and the coral complex; (2) The selected species represent about a third of the species under management by the Council. Collectively, these species commonly occur throughout all of the marine and estuarine waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Consequently, EFH for the remaining managed species would be included with that of the species discussed. EFH for the remaining managed species will be further addressed in future Fishery Management Plan (FMP) amendments, as appropriate; (3) EFH is defined as everywhere that the above managed species commonly occur. Because these species collectively occur in all estuarine and marine habitats of the Gulf of Mexico, EFH is separated into estuarine and marine components. For the estuarine component, EFH includes all estuarine waters and substrates (mud, sand, shell, rock, and associated biological communities), including the sub-tidal vegetation (seagrasses and algae) and adjacent inter-tidal vegetation (marshes and mangroves). In the marine waters of the Gulf of Mexico, EFH includes virtually all marine waters and substrates (mud, sand, shell, rock, and associated biological communities) from the shoreline to the seaward limit of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ); (4) Threats to EFH from fishing and nonfishing activities are identified; (5) Options to conserve and enhance EFH are provided and research needs are identified; (6) No management measures and, therefore, no regulations are proposed at this time. Fishing- related management measures to minimize any identified impacts are deferred to future amendments when the Council has the information necessary to decide if the measures are practicable. 1:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.--Take final action on the EFH Amendment. 4:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.--Take final action on Mackerel Amendment 9. July 23 8:15 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.--(Closed Session) Appointment of Reef Fish Stock Assessment Panel Member. 8:30 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.--Receive an update on Bycatch Reduction Device (BRD) evaluations. 9:30 a.m. - 9:45 a.m.--Consider an amendment to the Statement of Organizational Practices and Procedures (SOPPs) to revise or temporarily suspend Section VI, term of office for chairs. 9:45 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.--Receive a presentation on the Options Paper for the Generic Sustainable Fisheries Act (SFA) Amendment. [[Page 37351]] July 24 8:30 a.m. - 8:45 a.m.--Receive a report of the Shrimp Management Committee. 8:45 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.--Receive a report of the Budget Committee. 9:00 a.m. - 9:15 a.m.--Receive a report of the Ad Hoc Vessel Monitoring Committee. 9:15 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.--Receive a report of the Ad Hoc Sustainable Fisheries Committee and Law Enforcement Committee. 9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.--Receive a report on the Council Chairman's Meeting. 10:00 a.m. - 10:15 a.m.--Receive a report on the NMFS Billfish/ Highly Migratory Species Advisory Panels meetings. 10:15 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.--Receive a report on the U.S. Coast Guard Enforcement Workshop. 10:30 a.m. - 10:45 a.m.--Receive a report on the Gulf and South Atlantic Fisheries Development Foundation (G&SAFDF) Shrimp Effort Meeting. 10:45 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.--Receive a report on the G&SAFDF Red Snapper Meeting. 11:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.--Receive the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (SAFMC) Marine Reserve Workshop Report. 11:15 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.--Receive the SAFMC Liaison Report. 11:30 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.--Receive Enforcement Reports. 11:45 a.m. - 12:00 noon--Receive Directors' Reports. 12:00 noon - 12:15 p.m.--Other business to be discussed. July 20 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon--Convene a joint meeting of the Shrimp, Stone Crab, and Spiny Lobster Management Committees to consider the Options Paper on the Sustainable Fisheries Act Amendment. 1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.--Convene the Shrimp Management Committee to consider reports on overfishing of shrimp stocks, the Tortugas shrimp fishery, and fishing violations in the Tortugas Shrimp Sanctuary. 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.--Convene the Mackerel Management Committee to consider actions of the SAFMC on Amendment 9 and take final action. Also to consider further regulatory action in setting TAC. 3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.--Convene the Ad Hoc Vessel Monitoring Committee to receive an update on Vessel Monitoring System Trials. 4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.--Convene the Budget Committee to receive a status report on the CY 1998 Budget and to consider cost saving policies. 5:00 p.m. - 5:45 p.m.--Convene a joint meeting of the Ad Hoc Sustainable Fisheries Committee and the Law Enforcement Committee to consider allowable gear regulations. July 21 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon--Convene a joint meeting of the Mackerel, Reef Fish, and Red Drum Management Committees to review the Options Paper on the SFA Amendment. 1:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.--Convene the Habitat Protection Committee to consider recommendations for final action on the Draft EFH Generic Amendment. Although other issues not contained in this agenda may come before the Council for discussion, in accordance with the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 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 These meetings are physically accessible to people with disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids should be directed to Anne Alford at the Council (see ADDRESSES) by July 13, 1998. Dated: July 6, 1998. Richard W. Surdi, Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. [FR Doc. 98-18308 Filed 7-9-98; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 3510-22-F