[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 224 (Monday, November 22, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63790-63791]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-30322]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration


National Estuarine Research Reserve System

AGENCY: Estuarine Reserves Division, Office of Ocean and Coastal 
Resource Management, National Ocean Service, National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of approval and availability of the final revised 
Management Plan for the Narragansett Bay National Estuarine Research 
Reserve, 1998-2003.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the Estuarine Reserves Division 
(ERD), Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management, has approved 
the revised Management Plan for the Narragansett Bay National Estuarine 
Research Reserve (NBNERR). The NBNERR was designated in 1980 and has 
been operating under a Management Plan approved in 1983. Pursuant to 
Section 315 of the Coastal Zone Management Act, 16 U.S.C. 1461, and 
Section 921.33(c) of the implementing regulations, a state must revise 
its management plan at least every five years, or more often if 
necessary.
    The revisions to the NBNERR Management Plan include:
    Information about the Reserve's boundary expansion that increased 
from 2626 acres to 4259 acres. The land area is 2478 acres including 
the privately owned Prudence Conservancy, all state owned properties on 
Prudence Island, all of Hope and most of Patience islands. The aquatic 
areas of the Reserve are delineated by all waters out to a depth of 18 
feet and is 1781 acres in extent.
    Addition of dedicated positions for the NBNERR Manager and Research 
Coordinator.
    Under a NOAA matching grant, the NBNERR renovated an existing 
building to create a new 2,500 square-foot multi-purpose facility to 
support research, education, and office space. The newly renovated 
building provides educational exhibit space, a research lab, meeting 
rooms, the NBNERR office. Other construction improvements include the 
repair and upgrading of the caretaker's and visitors' cottages.
    The revised management plan demonstrates continued strong support 
from the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) and 
NOAA for research, monitoring and education programs. A long-term 
research plan focuses on understanding the structure and function of 
key habitats, such as the Reserve's five major marsh systems. A 
comparative ecology approach provides the basis for research project 
design and priority setting. Collaborative studies with Federal, state, 
and institutional researchers are encouraged. An associated long-term 
monitoring

[[Page 63791]]

program will characterize the environmental quality and the occurrence 
and abundance of living resources. Monitoring is designed to determine 
baseline status and trends in habitat quality and the health of 
important resource species.
    Copies of the document can be obtained from the Narragansett Bay 
National Estuarine Research Reserve, Department of Environmental 
Management, 55 South Reserve Drive, Prudence, Rhode Island 02872. (401) 
683-6780.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Doris Grimm, OCRM, Estuarine Reserves 
Division, 1305 East-West Highway, 11th Floor (N/ORM5), Silver Spring, 
Maryland 20910. (301) 713-3132, Extension 107.

Federal Domestic Assistance Catalog Number 11.420 (Coastal Zone 
Management) Research Reserves.

    Dated: November 16, 1999.
Ted I. Lillestolen,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Ocean Services and Coastal Zone 
Management, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
[FR Doc. 99-30322 Filed 11-19-99; 8:45 am]
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