[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 169 (Wednesday, August 30, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52701-52702]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-22202]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[081800A]


Coral, Golden Crab, Shrimp, Spiny Lobster, Red Drum, Coastal 
Migratory Pelagic Resources, and Snapper-Grouper Fisheries of the South 
Atlantic

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

ACTION: Notice of receipt of an application for an exempted fishing 
permit; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces the receipt of an application for an exempted 
fishing permit (EFP) from Mr. Steve Vogel III, Curator, South Carolina 
Aquarium on behalf of the South Carolina Aquarium (applicant), 
Charleston, South Carolina. If granted, the EFP would authorize the 
applicant, with certain conditions, to collect an average of 25 
specimens each of numerous species of marine

[[Page 52702]]

invertebrates and marine fish from Federal waters off South Carolina 
for public display. This EFP would extend an approved EFP that expired 
on June 30, 2000, through June 2002.

DATES:  Comments must be received no later than 5 p.m., eastern 
standard time, on September 29, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Comments on the application must be mailed to Peter 
Eldridge, Southeast Regional Office, NMFS, 9721 Executive Center Drive 
N., St. Petersburg, FL 33702. Comments also may be sent via fax to 727-
570-5583. Comments will not be accepted if submitted via e-mail or 
Internet.
    The application and related documents are available for review upon 
written request to the address above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Peter Eldridge, 727-570-5305; fax 727-
570-5583; e-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The EFP is requested under the authority of 
the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 
1801 et seq.), and regulations at 50 CFR 600.745(b), concerning 
exempted fishing.
    According to the applicant, the South Carolina Aquarium (SCA), 
located in Charleston, is a public, non-profit, self-supporting 
institution devoted to the understanding and conservation of South 
Carolina's natural aquatic habitats and is a major educational and 
conservation institution with free admission to school children in 
groups and extensive field study and outreach programs. The collected 
specimens will be maintained in the SCA for public display.
    The applicant intends, over a period of 2 years, to collect for 
public display an average of 25 specimens each of 76 species of marine 
invertebrates and 221 species of marine fish from the EEZ off South 
Carolina, using a variety of fishing gears and the fish anesthetic, 
quinaldine.
    The proposed collection for public display involves activities 
otherwise prohibited by regulations implementing the Fishery Management 
Plans for Coral, Coral Reefs, and Live/Hard Bottom Habitats, Golden 
Crab, Shrimp, Spiny Lobster, Red Drum, Coastal Migratory Pelagics, 
Calico Scallop, and Snapper-Grouper Fisheries of the South Atlantic 
Region (FMPs). The applicant requires authorization to harvest and 
possess corals, live rock, golden crab, rock shrimp, red drum, 
wreckfish, Nassau grouper, warsaw grouper, and jewfish taken from the 
EEZ off South Carolina. In addition, authorization is required to use 
quinaldine in a coral area and to possess spiny lobster, bluefish, 
cobia, king and Spanish mackerel, groupers and snappers, greater 
amberjack, hogfish and red porgy below the minimum size limit, in 
excess of established bag limits, or taken with prohibited gear.
    The applicant also intends to collect a large number of species 
that are either not subject to Federal fishery management in the South 
Atlantic Region or are management unit species under FMPs that contain 
no management measures restricting possession or harvest. The applicant 
was referred to NMFS' Highly Migratory Species Division for 
authorization to collect highly migratory species such as sharks and 
tunas for public display.
    Based on a preliminary review, NMFS finds that this application 
warrants further consideration and intends to issue an EFP. A final 
decision on issuance of the EFP will depend on a NMFS review of public 
comments received on the application, conclusions of environmental 
analyses conducted pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act, 
and consultations with South Carolina, the South Atlantic Fishery 
Management Council, and the U.S. Coast Guard. The applicant requests a 
24-month effective period for the EFP.

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

    Dated: August 24, 2000.
Bruce C. Morehead
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 00-22202 Filed 8-29-00; 8:45 am]
Billing Code: 3510-22-S