[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 79 (Wednesday, April 24, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20162-20163]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-10024]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service


Biscayne National Park; Notice of Intent To Prepare a Fisheries 
Management Plan With Environmental Impact Statement

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to prepare a Fisheries Management Plan with 
Environmental Impact Statement for Biscayne National Park.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that in accordance with the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969, the U.S. Department of the Interior, 
National Park Service (NPS) will prepare a Fisheries Management Plan 
(FMP) with Environmental Impact Statement for Biscayne National Park. 
The plan will identify the current status of the fishery, describe 
desired future conditions, develop fisheries management objectives and 
present a range of alternatives that will directly contribute to the 
long-term protection and perpetuation of the Park's marine resources. 
Specific issues to be addressed include commercial and recreational 
harvest limits, park visitor use/access, availability of educational 
opportunities about fisheries resources within the Park, conservation 
and preservation of natural aquatic habitats, and the overall health 
and vitality of the fishery community. The plan will also address 
current tackle, techniques, methods, and practices pertaining to the 
recreational and commercial fisheries.

DATES: To determine the scope of issues to be addressed in the FMP and 
to identify significant issues related to the project, the NPS will 
hold three public scoping meetings. The first public meeting will be 
held in Miami, Florida on May 14, 2002. The second meeting will be held 
in Homestead, Florida on May 15, 2002, and the third will be held in 
Key Largo on May 16, 2002. An additional meeting will be held in Miami, 
Florida on May 13, 2002, to provide an opportunity for the NPS to 
respond to issues and concerns raised by commercial fishermen. A press 
release and advance mailing will be sent out providing details about 
the exact times and locations of each meeting. Representatives of the 
NPS will be available to discuss issues, resource concerns, and the 
planning process at each of the public meetings.

ADDRESSES: Any comments or requests for information should be addressed 
to Rick Clark, Chief, Resource Management, Biscayne National Park, 9700 
SW 328th Street, Homestead, FL 33033-5634.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: (1) Monika Mayr, Assistant 
Superintendent, Biscayne National Park, 9700 SW 328th Street, 
Homestead, FL 33033-5634, by telephone at 305-230-1144, ext. 3004 or by 
e-mail at [email protected]. (2) Rick Clark, Chief, Resource 
Management, Biscayne National Park, 9700 SW 328th Street, Homestead, FL 
33033-5634, by telephone at 305-230-1144, ext. 3007 or by e-mail at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Biscayne National Monument was established 
by Congress in 1968 (Pub. L. 90-606). The Monument was later expanded 
in 1974 (PL 93-477), and again in 1980 (Pub. L. 96-287) to its current 
size of 173,000 acres (270 square miles), when it was also redesignated 
Biscayne National Park to ``preserve and protect for the education, 
inspiration, recreation, and enjoyment of present and future 
generations a rare combination of terrestrial, marine, and amphibious 
life in a tropical setting of great natural beauty.'' As part of the 
enabling legislation, Congress recognized ``the unique and special 
values'' of the resources within the Park as well as the 
``vulnerability of these resources to destruction or damage due to easy 
human access by water.'' Congress therefore directed the NPS to 
``manage this area in positive and scientific way in order to protect 
the area's natural resource integrity.'' With respect to fisheries 
management, Congress provided additional direction by stipulating in 
the enabling legislation (Pub. L. 96-287) that ``The Secretary shall 
preserve and administer the park in accordance with the provisions of 
the Act of August 25, 1916 (39 Stat. 535; U.S.S. 1-4), as amended and 
supplemented. The waters within the park shall continue to be open to 
fishing in conformity with the laws of the State of Florida except as 
the Secretary, after consultation with appropriate officials of said 
State, designates species for which, areas and times within which, and 
methods by which fishing is prohibited, limited, or otherwise regulated 
in the interest of sound conservation to achieve the purposes for which 
the park is established.''
    Biscayne National Park is predominantly made up of submerged lands 
(95%), and may generally be divided into three major environments: 
coral reef, estuarine and terrestrial. The boundaries of the Park are 
from the mangrove shoreline to the west, extend east to Biscayne Bay 
(including seagrass communities and shoals), the keys (including 
hardwood hammocks, mangrove wetlands, sandy beaches and rocky inter-
tidal areas), the reef, and continue to a contiguous 60-foot depth 
contour to the east. The northern boundary for the Park is near the 
southern extent of Key Biscayne, while the southern boundary is near 
the northern extent of Key Largo, adjacent to the Barnes Sound and Card 
Sound areas. This fisheries planning effort will evaluate a range of 
management recommendations to provide a quality visitor experience 
while maximizing the protection of the Park's resources.
    Public comments received in writing and from the public meetings, 
including names and home addresses of respondents will be available for 
public review at the Park office during regular business hours. If you 
wish to withhold your name and/or address, please state this 
prominently at the beginning of your comment. Anonymous comments will 
be included in the public record, however, the NPS is not legally 
required to consider or respond to anonymous comments. All submissions 
from organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying 
themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or 
businesses, will also be made available for public inspection in their 
entirety.
    The draft and final fisheries management plans will be distributed 
to all known interested parties and appropriate agencies. Full public 
participation by federal, state, and local agencies, as well as other 
concerned organizations and private citizens, is invited during the 
scoping process and

[[Page 20163]]

after the draft Fisheries Management Plan is prepared.
    The responsible official for this environnmental impact statement 
is Jerry Belson, Regional Director, National Park Service, Southeast 
Region, 100 Alabama Street S.W., Atlanta, Georgia 30303.

    Dated: April 2, 2002.
Patricia A. Hooks,
Acting Regional Director, Southeast Region.
[FR Doc. 02-10024 Filed 4-23-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-70-M