[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 242 (Friday, December 17, 1999)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 70679-70681]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-32781]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[I.D. 120999A]


Western Pacific Fishery Management Council; Public Scoping 
Meetings

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

ACTION: Public scoping meetings; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Western Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) will 
convene public scoping meetings on its draft Coral Reef Ecosystem 
Fishery Management Plan (CREFMP), preliminary draft Environmental 
Impact Statement (PDEIS) for the CREFMP, and associated documents for 
the CREFMP.
    The Council announces its intention to prepare an environmental 
impact statement (EIS) on the Federal management of crustaceans in the 
Western Pacific Region. The scope of the EIS analysis will include all 
activities related to the conduct of the fisheries and will examine the 
impacts of crustacean harvest on, among other things, protected 
species. The Council will hold public scoping meetings and accept 
written comments to provide for public input into the range of actions, 
alternatives, and impacts that the EIS should consider. The Council 
will continue scoping meetings for the EIS on bottomfish and seamount 
groundfish fisheries with meetings planned throughout Hawaii.
    The Council also announces its intention to develop an amendment to 
the Fishery Management Plan for Pelagic Species Fisheries of the 
Western Pacific Region (Pelagics FMP) which will consider a range of 
alternatives and impacts for management of incidental and directed 
catches of management unit species of sharks, including finning. The 
Council will hold a series of meetings to give the public an 
opportunity to comment.

DATES: Written comments will be accepted until January 24, 2000. Public 
scoping meetings will be held from December 20, 1999, to January 13, 
2000. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for specific dates, times and 
locations.

ADDRESSES: Comments on the Council's draft CREFMP and PDEIS, intent to 
prepare EISs for crustacean fisheries, scoping for crustacean, 
bottomfish, and seamount groundfish fisheries and intent to develop an 
amendment to the pelagics FMP concerning shark catches should be sent 
to Kitty M. Simonds, Executive Director, Western Pacific Regional 
Fishery Management Council, 1164 Bishop St., Suite 1400, Honolulu, HI 
96813. Copies of the draft CREFMP, PDEIS and documents for the 
crustacean EIS, bottomfish EIS and shark management are available from 
the Council office. Public scoping meetings will be held in American 
Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), 
and Hawaii. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for specific scoping meeting 
locations and for special accommodations.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kitty M. Simonds, Executive Director; 
Western Pacific Fishery Management Council, 808-522-8220.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    A. A summary of the Coral Reef Ecosystem FMP/PDEIS will be 
presented including the preferred alternatives identified by the 
Council for management action, as described below. Comments will be 
solicited from the public on these management alternatives.
    At its 101st meeting, held from October 18-21, 1999, the 
Council took initial action to approve the following preferred 
alternatives for the FMP:
    1. Marine Protected Areas (MPAs): (a) For the unincorporated 
atolls: MPAs would be zoned for limited take, subject to a special 
permit (see permit requirements below), to a depth of 50 fm around each 
island/atoll, with exceptions granted for personal consumption by 
island residents and for fishing for species managed under existing 
FMPs.
    (b) For the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI): the MPA would 
include all substrate from the shoreline to a depth of 50 fm and be 
zoned for no take from 0-10 fm and for limited take, by special permit 
only (see permit requirements below), from 10-50 fm, with exceptions 
granted for fishing for species managed under existing FMPs.
    (c) For Guam's offshore southwest banks: This area would be 
designated a MPA, with the only initial restriction being a prohibition 
on anchoring on the banks by fishing vessels >50 ft. long.
    2. Allowable Gear and Methods: Allowable gear would be limited to 
remotely operated vehicles (ROV)/

[[Page 70680]]

submersible, hand harvest, handline, hook-and-line, rod and reel, 
spear, slurp gun, hand net/dip net, barrier net (aquarium), and 
surround/purse net (for akule and aku bait fishing only). The use of 
hookah, and possession or use of any poisons, explosives or 
intoxicating substances would be prohibited. Fish traps (fish defined 
generally to include other organisms) would additionally be allowed in 
appropriate areas and with appropriate conditions if permanently marked 
to identify the owner. Nets would be allowed for use in limited 
applications permitted here and should always be tended. Also, the use 
of scuba with spear should be prohibited at night only.
    3. Permits and Reporting: Include in the FMP two types of permits: 
a general permit for taxa harvested in non-MPA areas, and a special 
permit for non-targeted taxa in all areas and for targeted taxa in MPA 
areas:
    (a) Regular (General) permits: To harvest Coral Reef Ecosystem 
(CRE) Management Unit Species/taxa (MUS) within the non-MPA areas, a 
regular permit would be required (subject to standard eligibility 
requirements such as completed Federal application, vessel 
documentation, US citizenship, etc.).
    (b) Special coral reef ecosystem permit: The permit will be issued 
on a case-by-case basis, by the Southwest Regional Administrator in 
consultation with the Council, subject to specific conditions that 
restrict access. Individual application and the issuance of a special 
individual permit will be required until the Council develops, under 
the framework process, general permits (based on sufficient 
information) that can be applied broadly to a fleet of fishers for 
harvest of particular taxa or groups of taxa, harvest of CRE taxa, 
other than those covered by existing FMPs (exempt).
    (c) No permits would be issued for the take of wild live rock or 
live hexacorals (hard corals); except for small amounts for brood-stock 
for breeding/aquaculture, (where consistent with local laws). Regulated 
culture of new live rock on labeled artificial substrates placed in the 
sea without harm to wild biota could be accommodated under special 
permit conditions.
    (d) Permits issued under other FMPs would be unaffected by the 
above permit requirements.
    4. MUS: The MUS would include essentially all biota in the 
ecosystem, divided into two groups. One group, ``Harvested Coral Reef 
Taxa,'' contains those species/taxa that are currently harvested or are 
believed to be subject to immediate harvest. For many of these taxa, 
enough may be known to make some reasonable estimates about their 
ability to support harvest. The other group, ``Non-targeted Coral Reef 
Taxa,'' includes those taxa for which there is no known harvest and, in 
many cases, no biological information to support decisions about 
sustainable harvest.
    5. Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) requirements:
    (a) EFH: Link MUS to specific habitat composites consistent with 
the depth of the ecosystem to 50 fm and to the limit of the exclusive 
economic zone (EEZ).
    (b) For Habitat Areas of Particular Concern (HAPC): Based on the 
established criteria for HAPC designation and the list of ``Harvested 
CRE taxa'', revise the list to focus/refine HAPC based on established 
criteria. This list may include existing protected areas/reserves as 
HAPC.
    6. Overfishing/Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) requirements: 
Determine overfishing and MSY as follows:
    (a) For MUS/taxa with a good history of harvest, use existing catch 
data and other available information to make best estimates of MSY.
    (b) When insufficient catch data exist from EEZ sources, 
extrapolate data from other similar areas where fishing has occurred.
    (c) When no information exists, estimate MSY by proxy, state 
assumptions clearly, and/or explain why estimates cannot be made.
    7. Bycatch requirement: Note that the highly selective gear listed 
in the allowable gear list should minimize bycatch. Other bycatch 
provisions should similarly follow those for existing FMPs.
    8. Fishing communities requirement: Approve the Scientific and 
Statistical Committee's approach that coral reef ecosystem fishing 
communities be defined based on island areas: Guam, CNMI, American 
Samoa, and each of the major inhabited islands of Hawaii.
    9. Fishing sectors requirement: Employ standard data reporting 
systems already developed for each island area, similar to those 
provisions for existing FMPs, with no exemption to the reporting 
requirement for subsistence fishermen.
    10. Non-regulatory measures: Follow a formal process to be 
described in the FMP regarding interaction among the various FMP Plan 
Teams to coordinate in the monitoring and addressing of ecosystem 
impacts.
    The CREFMP, and its associated EIS, will be the Council's fifth FMP 
for the EEZ for all US Pacific Islands. This area includes nearly 
11,000 km2 (4,000 square miles) of coral reefs. Development 
of the FMP is timely considering new mandates and initiatives such as 
the April 1999 report to Congress by the Ecosystem Principles Advisory 
Panel on Ecosystem-Based Fishery Management, the President' 1998 
Executive Order on Coral Reefs (E.O. 13089) and priorities of the U.S. 
Coral Reef Task Force and the U.S. Coral Reef Initiative, as well as 
the provisions of the Magnuson Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act, including provisions of the Sustainable Fisheries Act. 
The draft FMP describes the importance of coral reef resources to the 
region and current and potential threats that warrant a management plan 
at this time. Information regarding the harvest of these resources in 
the EEZ is largely unknown. Potential for unregulated harvest and bio-
prospecting for reef fish, live grouper, live rock and coral exists 
throughout the region. Marine debris, largely from fishing gear, is 
impacting reefs in the NWHI.
    B. Scoping meetings for the crustacean EIS will held at all 
locations as listed under the ``Date'' section above. Bottomfish and 
seamount groundfish scoping meetings will be held at the Hawaii 
locations only. Public scoping meetings on the bottomfish and seamount 
groundfish EIS were completed for American Samoa, Guam, and the CNMI in 
July and August of 1999.
    A summary of the current Federal management system for crustaceans, 
bottomfish and seamount groundfish will be reviewed during public 
scoping hearing. The Council will hear comments on the current 
management system and any proposed changes. A principal objective of 
the scoping and public input process is to identify a reasonable set of 
management alternatives that, with adequate analysis, will sharply 
define critical issues and provide a clear basis for choice among the 
alternatives. The intent of the EIS is to present an overall picture of 
the environmental effects of fishing as conducted under the FMPs. 
Rather than focusing narrowly on one management action, the EIS will 
include a range of reasonable management alternatives and an analysis 
of their impacts in order to define issues and provide clear basis for 
choice among options by the public and the Council.
    The EIS will discuss the impacts of bottomfish, seamount 
groundfish, and crustacean harvest accruing with present management 
regulations and under a range of representative alternative management 
regulations on Western Pacific ecosystem issues. These issues include: 
EFH, target and non-target species of fish, fish that are discarded, 
marine mammals (Hawaiian

[[Page 70681]]

monk seals and cetaceans), and other protected species present in the 
Western Pacific ecosystem. In addition, the environmental consequences 
section will contain an analysis of socio-economic issues associated 
with conduct of the fishery on the following groups of individuals: (1) 
Those who participate in harvesting the fishery resources and other 
living marine resources, (2) those who process and market the fish and 
fishery products, (3) those who are involved in allied support 
industries, (4) those who consume fishery products, (5) those who rely 
on living marine resources in the management area either for 
subsistence needs or for recreational benefits, (6) those who benefit 
from non-consumptive uses of living marine resources, (7) those 
involved in managing and monitoring fisheries, and (8) fishing 
communities.
    C. At its 101st meeting on October 18-21, 1999, the 
Council took initial action to approve the following preferred 
alternatives for incidental and directed shark catches in and around 
Hawaii's EEZ to be implemented by an amendment to the Pelagics FMP.
    a. Establish a fleet-wide quota of 50,000 sharks harvested by 
vessels with a Hawaii longline limited entry permit. This limit would 
be established as a precautionary measure to prevent further expansion 
of fishing mortality on shark stocks caught by the Hawaii longline 
fishery.
    b. Establish a framework mechanism which would adjust the shark 
quota annually based on changes in catch per unit effort or other 
objective indicators of the health of the stocks.
    c. Prohibit the use of demersal longline to fish for pelagics in 
the NWHI protected species zone, and within the Main Hawaiian Islands 
longline 3-75 nm closed area.

Dates, Times, and Locations

    The public scoping meetings will be held on:
    Monday, December 20, 1999, from 3:00-6:00 p.m., Department of 
Marine and Wildlife Resources (DMWR) Conference Room, AS. Phone contact 
c/o DMWR 684-633-4456
    Tuesday, December 28, 1999, from 7:00-9:00 p.m, Guam Fishermen's 
Cooperative Association, Hagatna, GU. Phone contact c/o Guam Dept. of 
Commerce 671-475-0321
    Wednesday, December 29, 1999, from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Joeten-Kiyu 
Public Library Conference Room, Saipan, CNMI. Phone Division of Fish 
and Wildlife Resources (DFWR) 670-322-9834 for information;
    Tuesday, December 28, 1999, from 6:00-7:00 p.m., King Kamehameha 
Hotel, Kamakahonu Ballroom, Kona, HI;
    Wednesday, December 29, 1999, from 6:00-7:00 p.m., College of 
Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service Conference Room A, 875 
Komahana St., Hilo, HI;
    Tuesday, January 4, 2000, from 6:00-9:00 p.m., Maui Beach Hotel, 
Maui Room, Kahalui, Maui, HI;
    Wednesday, January 5, 2000, from 6:00-9:00 p.m., Haleiwa Alii Beach 
Park, John Kalili Surf Center, Oahu, HI;
    Thursday, January 6, 2000 from 6:00-9:00 p.m., Wilcox Elementary 
School, Lihue, Kauai; Monday, January 10, 2000 from 6:00-9:00 p.m., 
Waianae Public Library, Oahu, HI;
    Tuesday, January 11, 2000 from 6:00-9:00 p.m., Lanai Airport 
Conference Room, Lanai, HI;
     Wednesday, January 12, 2000 from 6:00-9:00 p.m., Mitchell Pauole 
Center Conference Room, Kaunakakai, Molokai, HI and Thursday, January 
13, 2000 from 6:00-9:00 p.m., Ala Moana Hotel, Carnation Room, 
Honolulu, HI. Phone: Council office-808-522-8220.
    These meetings will be advertised in the local newspapers.

Special Accommodations

    These meetings are 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 the meeting 
date.

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.

    Dated: December 14, 1999.
Richard W. Surdi,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 99-32781 Filed 12-16-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F