[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 30 (Friday, February 13, 2004)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 7186-7187]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-3281]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 622

[I.D. 012604C]


Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; 
Reef Fish; Fishery Management Plan for the Reef Fish Resources of the 
Gulf of Mexico; Vermilion Snapper Rebuilding Plan

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

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare a draft supplemental environmental 
impact statement (DSEIS); request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) 
intends to prepare a DSEIS that describes and analyzes management 
alternatives associated with establishing a vermilion snapper 
rebuilding plan based on biomass-based stock rebuilding targets and 
thresholds. The rebuilding plan will be implemented through an 
amendment to the Fishery Management Plan for the Reef Fish Resources of 
the Gulf of Mexico (FMP). The purpose of this notice is to solicit 
public comments on the scope of issues to be addressed in the DSEIS, 
which will be submitted to NMFS for filing with the Environmental 
Protection Agency (EPA) for publication of a Notice of Availability for 
public comment.

DATES: Written comments must be received by the Council by March 15, 
2004.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on the scope of the DSEIS and requests for 
additional information on the Draft Vermilion Snapper Rebuilding 
Amendment should be sent to the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management 
Council, 3018 North U.S. Highway 301, Suite 1000, Tampa, FL 33619; 
telephone: (813) 228-2815; fax: (813) 225-7015. Comments may also be 
sent by e-mail to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stu Kennedy; phone: (813) 228-2815 
ext. 231; fax: (813) 225-7015; e-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Council is preparing to amend the FMP to 
establish a vermilion snapper rebuilding plan that is based on biomass-
based stock rebuilding targets and thresholds. The Council will develop 
a DSEIS that describes and analyzes management alternatives considered 
in the Draft Vermilion snapper Rebuilding Amendment.
    Scoping meetings were held in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, 
Alabama and Florida in late August 2003, to take public comment on the 
scope of issues to be addressed for ending overfishing. At the time, 
the level of effects did not seem sufficient to warrant a SEIS. On 
October 30, 2003, NMFS declared Gulf of Mexico vermilion snapper 
overfished. That determination increases the likelihood of a 
significant impact as a result of the need for a rebuilding plan. This 
type of action normally requires an EIS or SEIS and, as a result, the 
Council is forgoing the initial preparation of an environmental 
assessment and is developing an SEIS. The scoping meetings held in 
August, 2003, covered the range of options the Council chose prior to 
the declaration on the overfished condition and those have not changed 
since the declaration. Therefore, the previous meetings adequately 
scoped the issues.
    The DSEIS will evaluate biomass-based stock rebuilding targets and 
thresholds, will consider various rebuilding schedules, consistent with 
the legal mandate provided by Sec. 304(e)(4) of the Magnuson-Stevens

[[Page 7187]]

Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) to 
rebuild overfished stocks in ten years or less except in cases where 
the biology of the overfished stock, other environmental conditions or 
international agreements dictate otherwise, and will consider 
management alternatives to limit harvest to levels consistent with the 
selected rebuilding plan. The rebuilding period for vermilion snapper 
will be ten years or less based on Magnuson-Stevens Act guidelines. The 
DSEIS will consider various alternatives to achieve the rebuilding goal 
in either seven or ten years based on constant catch strategies, 
constant fishing mortality rate strategies or stepped strategies that 
holds harvest constant for three or four year periods consistent with 
the average of the harvests under a constant fishing mortality 
strategy. The status of the stock would be reviewed every 3 to 5 years 
to evaluate the need for additional management measures.
    Management alternatives considered by the Council could include, 
but would not be limited to, seasonal closures, quotas, minimum size 
limits, bag limits and trip limits.
    Written comments on the range of alternatives and scope of issues 
to be addressed in the DSEIS may be sent to the Council (see 
ADDRESSES).
    Once the Council completes the DSEIS associated with the Draft 
Vermilion snapper Rebuilding Amendment, it will submit the document to 
NMFS for filing with the EPA. The EPA will publish a Notice of 
Availability of the DSEIS for public comment in the Federal Register. 
The DSEIS will have a 45-day comment period. This procedure is pursuant 
to regulations issued by the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) for 
implementing the procedural provisions of the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA; 40 CFR parts 1500-1508) and to NOAA Administrative 
Order 216-6 regarding NOAA's compliance with NEPA and the CEQ 
regulations.
    The Council will consider public comments received on the DSEIS in 
developing the final supplemental environmental impact statement 
(FSEIS) and before adopting final management measures for the Vermilion 
Snapper Rebuilding Amendment. The Council will submit both the final 
Amendment, including the supporting FSEIS, to NMFS for Secretarial 
review, approval, and implementation under the Magnuson-Stevens Act.
    NMFS will announce, through a notice published in the Federal 
Register, the availability of the final Vermilion Snapper Rebuilding 
Amendment for public review during the Secretarial review period. 
During Secretarial review, NMFS will also file the FSEIS with the EPA 
for a final 30-day public comment period. This comment period will be 
concurrent with the Secretarial review period and will end prior to 
final agency action to approve, disapprove, or partially approve the 
final Vermilion Snapper Rebuilding Amendment.
    NMFS will announce, through a notice published in the Federal 
Register, all public comment periods on the final Vermilion Snapper 
Rebuilding Amendment, its proposed implementing regulations, and its 
associated FSEIS. NMFS will consider all public comments received 
during the Secretarial review period, whether they are on the final 
Amendment, the proposed regulations, or the FSEIS, prior to final 
agency action.

    Dated: February 9, 2004.
Bruce C. Morehead,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 04-3281 Filed 2-12-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S