[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 80 (Friday, April 25, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20378-20379]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-10280]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[I.D. 042103B]


South Atlantic Fishery Management Council; Technical Workshops

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

ACTION: Notice of workshop series to address Essential Fish Habitat 
(EFH), Fishery Ecosystem Plans (FEP) and Ecosystem Models.

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SUMMARY: The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) will 
hold a series of technical workshops involving selected members from 
its Habitat and Environmental Protection Advisory Panel, Coral Advisory 
Panel and invited scientists with background in specific habitat type 
or species utilization patterns.

DATES: The workshops will be held during the months of May, July, 
August, September and October. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for 
specific dates and times.

ADDRESSES: The workshop series will be held in St. Petersburg, FL, 
Beaufort, NC, and Charleston, SC. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for 
specific locations.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kim Iverson, Public Information 
Officer, South Atlantic Fishery Management Council, One Southpark 
Circle, Suite 306, Charleston, SC, 29407; telephone: (843) 571-4366 or 
(866) SAFMC-10; fax: (843) 769-4520.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The workshops will take place: May 19-
21,2003, May 21-23, 2003, July 1-2, 2003, August 19-21, 2003, September 
23-25, 2003 and October 20-22, 2003.
    The workshop process will initiate development of a South Atlantic 
Council Fishery Ecosystem Plan (FEP) which presents fishery and 
resource information for fisheries in the South Atlantic Bight 
ecosystem in context. The workshop processes will integrate two 
directives in the Final Rule for Essential Fish Habitat: (1) Review and 
update Essential Fish Habitat information, and (2) Consider ecosystem-
based management through development of a Fishery Ecosystem Plan for 
the South Atlantic Region.
    The Council recognizes the scope of the significant task necessary 
to meet the new essential fish habitat mandates and directive to begin 
evaluating ecosystem-based management through the development of a 
Fishery Ecosystem Plan (FEP) and is again calling upon the Habitat 
Advisory Panel members and other technical experts involved in the 
previous Habitat Plan development process to serve as or identify 
appropriate experts to function on a quasi-plan development team for 
this task. The Habitat and Coral Advisory Panel are scheduled to meet 
this fall and will provide additional guidance on the workshop process 
and ecosystem management.
    A Final EFH Rule was published on January 17, 2002 replacing the 
interim Final Rule of December 19, 1997 on which the original EFH and 
EFH-Habitat Area of Particular Concern (HAPC) designations were made. 
The Councils have, pursuant to the Final EFH Rule, been directed to 
update EFH and EFH-HAPC information and designations; in addition, 
pursuant to revisions to NOAA General Counsel interpretation of the 
National Environmental Policy Act the Councils will be required to 
update all Environmental Impact Statements for all Federal Fishery 
Management Plans under their jurisdiction. Information compiled during 
this process will further facilitate meeting both the EFH and the NEPA 
mandate. As was done with the original Habitat Plan, a series of 
technical workshops will be conducted by Council habitat staff, in 
cooperation with NOAA Beaufort Laboratory, NMFS Southeast Fishery 
Science Center Miami Laboratory, NMFS Southeast Regional Office 
personnel and invited participants. Workshops are intended to build on 
a review of existing information presented in the Habitat Plan, and 
focus on updating information pursuant to the new EFH Rule. This effort 
will begin the integration of comprehensive details of habitat 
distribution and characterization, the biology of managed species 
including their biological role in and the characteristics of the food 
web they exist in.
    Essential Fish Habitat (EFH), Fishery Ecosystem Plan (FEP) 
Development and

[[Page 20379]]

Ecosystem Model Technical Workshop Schedule:
May 19-21, 2003--EFH/FEP Development Technical Workshops [numsign]3-
[numsign]6, Wetlands (Submerged Aquatic Vegetation & Mangroves), 
Pelagic Habitat (Sargassum and Water Column)
    May 19, 2003, 1 p.m.-5 p.m.; May 20, 2003, 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. and May 
21, 2003 from 8:30 a.m.-12 noon
    Location: NOAA Beaufort Lab, 101 Pivers Island Road, Beaufort, NC 
28516; telephone: (252) 728-8746.
May 21-23, 2003--South Atlantic Ecosystem Modeling Development Workshop 
[numsign]1.
    May 21, 2003, 1 p.m.-5 p.m.; May 22, 2003, 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.; and 
May 23, 2003, 8:30 a.m. 3 p.m.
    Location: NOAA Beaufort Lab, 101 Pivers Island Road, Beaufort, NC 
28516; telephone: (252) 728-8746.
July 1-2, 2003--EFH/FEP Development Technical Workshop [numsign]7 GIS
    July 1, 2003, 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., and July 2, 2003, 8:30 a.m.-3 p.m.
    Location: Florida Marine Research Institute, 100 Eighth Avenue, 
S.E., St. Petersburg, FL 33701; telephone: (727) 896-8626.
August 19-21, 2003--EFH/FEP Development Technical Workshops [numsign]8-
[numsign]10, Marsh, Oyster/Shell Habitat and Water Issues
    August 19, 2003, 1 p.m.-5 p.m., August 20, 2003, 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., 
and August 21, 2003, 8:30 a.m.-3 p.m.
    Location: Town and Country Inn, 2008 Savannah Highway, Charleston, 
SC 29407; telephone: (843) 571-1000.
September 23-25, 2003--South Atlantic Ecosystem Modeling Workshop 
[numsign]2
    September 23, 2003, 1 p.m.-5 p.m., September 24, 2003, 8:30 a.m.-5 
p.m., September 25, 2003, 8:30 a.m.-3 p.m.
    Location: Florida Marine Research Institute, 100 Eighth Avenue, 
S.E., St. Petersburg, FL 33701; telephone: (727) 896-8626.
October 20-21, 2003--EFH/Ecosystem Workshop [numsign]11 - Impacts of 
Fishing on Habitat
    October 20, 2003, 1 p.m.-5 p.m., October 21, 2003, 8:30 a.m.-12 
noon
October 21-22, 2003--EFH/Ecosystem Workshop [numsign]12, Research and 
Monitoring
    October 21, 2003, 1 p.m.--5 p.m. and October 22, 2003, 8:30 a.m.--5 
p.m.
    Location: Town and Country Inn, 2008 Savannah Highway, Charleston, 
SC 29407; telephone: (843) 571-1000.
    Although non-emergency issues not contained in this agenda may come 
before these groups for discussion, 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 and any issues 
arising after publication of this notice that require emergency action 
under section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act, provided the public has been notified of the Council's 
intent to take final action to address the emergency.

Special Accommodations

    These meetings are physically accessible to people with 
disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other 
auxiliary aids should be directed to the Council office (see FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT) at least 5 business days prior to each 
workshop.

    Dated: April 21, 2003.
Matteo J. Milazzo,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 03-10280 Filed 4-24-03; 8:45 am]
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