[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 103 (Friday, May 28, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28998-28999]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-13664]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[I.D. 051899D]


Western Pacific Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting

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

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

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SUMMARY: The Western Pacific Fishery Council (Council) will hold its 
100th meeting in Honolulu, HI.

DATES: The full Council meeting will be held on June 16-18, 1999. The 
Council's Standing Committees will meet on June 15, 1999. See 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for specific times.

ADDRESSES: The 100th Council meeting will be held at the Hibiscus 
Ballroom, Ala Moana Hotel, 410 Atkinson Road Honolulu, HI; telephone: 
(808) 955-4811.
    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:

June 15, 1999

    7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.--Enforcement/Vessel Monitoring System (VMS)
    9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.--International Fisheries/Pelagics Fisheries
    10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.--Bottomfish Fisheries
    1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.--Ecosystem & Habitat
    1:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.--Native and Indigenous Rights
    3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.--Precious Corals Fisheries
    3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. -- Crustaceans Fisheries, and
    4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. -- Executive/Budget & Program.
    The full Council will meet on June 16, 17 and 18, 1999, from 8:30 
a.m. to 5:00 p.m., each day.

June 16-18, 1999

    The agenda during the full Council meeting will include the items 
here. The order in which agenda items will be addressed can change. The 
Council will meet as late as necessary to complete its scheduled 
business.
    1. Introductions
    2. Approval of Agenda
    3. Approval of 99th Meeting Minutes
    4. Island Reports
    A. American Samoa
    B. Guam
    C. Hawaii
    D. Northern Mariana Islands (NMI)
    5. Enforcement
    A. U.S. Coast Guard enforcement activities
    B. NMFS enforcement activities and status of violations
    C. Cooperative agreements for Guam
    D. Illegal immigration related to the foreign fishing fleet
    E. Update on U.S. Customs harassment of fishermen
    6. VMS
    A. Hawaii VMS report
    B. Report on Marine Fisheries Advisory Committee meeting
    C. Report on Forum Fisheries Agency Monitoring, Control and 
Surveillance Working Group Meeting
    D. Advisory Panel recommendations regarding VMS
    7. Ecosystems and Habitat
    A. Draft Coral Reef Ecosystem Fishery Management Plan (FMP), 
including review of first draft and representative maps for Essential 
Fish Habitat. The Council may take initial action to select preferred 
management alternatives for various permit requirements, prohibitions, 
allowable practices, marine protected areas and framework process; 
preliminary identification of management unit species/taxa, management 
unit areas, essential fish habitat and habitat areas of particular 
concern.
    B. Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) recommendations
    8. Native and Indigenous Rights issues
    A. Marine conservation plans for American Samoa and Guam
    B. Native and Indigenous Rights Advisory Panel recommendations 
relating to an amendment to the Endangered Species Act so that a take 
of green sea turtles for cultural purposes is permitted in Hawaii, 
American Samoa, Guam and the NMI; set aside for Western Pacific 
Community Development Programs consisting of 30 Hawaii longline limited 
access permits and/or 20 percent of the annual harvest guideline for 
the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI) lobster fishery; and an 
amendment to the Magnuson-Stevens Act which would require that 
representatives of the indigenous peoples of the Western Pacific be 
appointed to the Council.
    9. Pelagic FMP issues
    A. 1st quarter reports for Hawaii and American Samoa longline 
fisheries
    B. Akule and opelu study
    C. Yellowfin and bigeye tagging in Hawaii
    D. Council authority with respect to remote Pacific insular areas
    E. Issues relating to shark incidental catch and shark finning/
utilization in the Hawaii-based longline fishery
    F. The Council will assess whether the bottom longline gear 
currently being used to harvest coastal sharks in Hawaii is detrimental 
to conservation and management efforts. The Council may decide to 
proceed with further action concerning the use of this gear.
    G. Albatross/longline interactions in the Hawaii-based longline 
fishery, including the recommendations from the 1998 Blackfooted 
Albatross Population Dynamics Workshop. The Council will review the 
results of NMFS and Council longline-albatross

[[Page 28999]]

mitigation projects and discuss which mitigation measures are most 
appropriate for the Hawaii-based longline fishery. This will be the 
first meeting under the Council's two-meeting framework process for 
implementing ``new management measures.'' While final action will not 
be taken, the Council might adopt a preferred alternative.
    H. Turtle/longline interactions; including effective alternatives 
to mitigate longline-turtle interactions in the Hawaii-based longline 
fishery
    I. International meetings
    J. Recreational fisheries data task force
    K. Final action on Data Regulatory Amendment. The Council is 
considering final action on a comprehensive permit and logbook 
requirement for all non-longline vessels harvesting pelagic management 
unit species in the exclusive economic zone waters off Howland Island, 
Baker Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Midway Island, Kingman 
Reef, Palmyra Atoll, and Wake Island. Further, vessels holding a Hawaii 
longline limited access or longline general permit might be required to 
submit a logbook to NMFS regardless of the port of landing in the 
Pacific region. This meeting shall serve as a public hearing for the 
proposed Council action. This is the second Council meeting considering 
this ``new measure'' under the Pelagics FMP's framework procedure.
    L. Pelagic Advisory Panel recommendations relating to enforcement 
and vessel monitoring systems on domestic and foreign fishing boats; 
management initiatives for the American Samoa longline fishery; 
international management of tunas in the Central-West Pacific and 
reduction of bycatch of small tunas in Pacific purse seine fisheries; 
incidental longline catches of billfish and use of archival tagging for 
management data, management of shark fishing and marketing of shark 
products, pelagic fisheries interactions; use of circle hooks to reduce 
bycatch of protected species in the Hawaii longline fishery; economic 
impact analysis of recreational fisheries in the Western Pacific 
Region, studies on effect of blue dyed bait on longline catch rates.
    M. Pelagic Plan Team recommendations
    N. SSC recommendations
    10. Bottomfish FMP issues
    A. Overview of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Mau Zone limited 
entry program
    B. Hoomalu Zone permit review
    C. 1998 draft bottomfish annual report recommendations
    D. Report on state bottomfish management in Main Hawaiian Islands 
(MHI), including status of Federal list of overfished stocks, final 
report on genetic stock structure of onaga and ehu, genetic research 
needs for hapu'upu'u
    E. Plan Team/Advisory Panel recommendations, including draft annual 
report recommendations, recommending changes to the Marine Mammal 
Protection Act regarding the fishermen reporting interactions with 
marine mammals without the possibility of self-incrimination.
    F. SSC recommendations
    11. Precious corals FMP issues
    A. Recent research and surveys have provided new information on 
precious corals in the waters around Hawaii, including information on 
the size and condition of certain classified precious coral beds, 
potential increases in fishing pressure on black corals, the presence 
of a new precious coral bed near French Frigate Shoals and the possible 
importance of precious coral beds as foraging areas for Hawaiian monk 
seals. Based on this new information, the Council's precious corals 
plan team and advisory panel have recommended modifications to the 
precious corals FMP. Possible changes in the FMP include suspending the 
harvest quota for live gold coral at the Makapu'u Bed; redefining live 
precious coral as precious coral that has live coral polyps or tissue 
and redefining dead precious coral as precious coral that no longer has 
any live coral polyps or tissue; applying size limits to harvested live 
coral only; implementing a minimum size limit for black coral; 
prohibiting the use of non-selective gear except for scientific 
research activity; prohibiting the harvest of pink coral from any 
established or conditional bed unless it has attained a minimum height 
of 10 inches; revising the boundaries of Brooks Bank; increasing the 
annual harvest quota for live pink coral at Brooks Bank; suspending the 
harvest quota for live gold coral at Brooks Bank; restricting the 
harvest quota for all types of live precious coral at the newly-
discovered bed near French Frigate Shoals; and revising the fishing 
logbooks to require additional information. This will be the first 
meeting under the Council's two-meeting framework process for 
implementing ``new management measures''. While final action will not 
be taken, the Council might adopt a preferred alternative.
    B. Proposed changes in State of Hawaii regulations
    C. Plan Team/Advisory Panel recommendations
    D. SSC recommendations
    12. Crustaceans FMP issues (NWHI lobster fishery)
    A. 1998 Draft Annual Report
    B. NWHI 1999 harvest guidelines and data collectors
    C. NMFS tagging research on NWHI lobster stocks
    D. Necker Island Refuge Boundary
    E. Plan Team/Advisory Panel recommendations
    F. SSC recommendations
    13. Program Planning
    A. Review of Pelagic Fisheries Research Program Terms of Reference
    B. Disapproval of American Samoa Area Closure
    C. Addressing disapproved sections of Council's Sustainable 
Fisheries Act amendment related to bycatch, overfishing and fishing 
communities
    D. Program planning document
    E. Magnuson-Stevens Act amendments
    F. Advisory Panel Chairman Outreach Plan
    G. Marine Fisheries Advisory Committee Meeting
    H. Carbon monoxide-treated tuna update
    I. Western Pacific Fisheries Information Network
    J. SSC recommendations
    14. Administrative Matters
    A. Administrative reports
    B. Statement of Organizational Practices and Procedures
    C. Appointments to advisory bodies
    D. Meetings and workshops
    E. 101st Council Meeting
    F. Advisory Panel recommendations
    G. Standing Committee recommendations
    15. Other Business
    Although other isues not contained in this agenda may come before 
this Council 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 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: May 20, 1999.
Bruce C. Morehead,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 99-13664 Filed 5-27-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F