[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 84 (Friday, April 30, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23729-23730]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-9779]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[I.D. 011204A]
RIN 0648-AN16


Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 
Provisions; Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Atlantic Sea 
Scallop Fishery; Amendment 10

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

ACTION: Notice of partial approval of a fishery management plan 
amendment.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces that Amendment 10 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop 
Fishery Management Plan (Amendment 10) has been partially approved by 
NMFS, acting on behalf of the Secretary of Commerce. Amendment 10 was 
developed by the New England Fishery Management Council to establish a 
long-term, comprehensive program to maximize scallop yield and 
implement a suite of management measures intended to make the 
management program more effective and flexible. The intent of this 
announcement is to inform the public of the partial approval of 
Amendment 10 and of the availability of the Record of Decision (ROD) 
for Amendment 10 in compliance with the National Environmental Policy 
Act (NEPA).

DATES: Amendment 10 was partially approved on April 14, 2004.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the ROD may be obtained from the Patricia Kurkul, 
Regional Administrator, National Marine Fisheries Service, One 
Blackburn Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930 or from the Northeast Regional 
Office's website at http://www.nero.noaa.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Peter Christopher, Fishery Policy 
Analyst, 978-281-9288, fax: 978-281-9135; email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A Notice of Availability for Amendment 10 
was published on January 16, 2004 (69 FR 2561) that announced NMFS 
review of Amendment 10 under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 
and Management Act. The public comment period on the NOA ended on March 
15, 2004. Thirteen comments in response to the NOA were received. A 
proposed rule to implement Amendment 10 was published in the Federal 
Register on February 26, 2004 (69 FR 8915), with public comment ending 
on March 29, 2004. A total of 27 comments were received on the proposed 
rule. A summary of the comments received and NMFS's responses to those 
comments will be published in the final rule.
    On April 14, 2004, NMFS approved all measures in Amendment 10 with 
the exception of the following proposed measures, which have been 
disapproved: (1) Possession restriction on Limited Access scallop 
vessels fishing outside of scallop days at sea; and a (2) cooperative 
industry resource survey program. A full explanation of the reasons for 
disapproval will be included in the final rule implementing Amendment 
10. Regulatory provisions

[[Page 23730]]

implementing the approved measures will not become effective until the 
implementation of the final rule. NMFS anticipates that the final rule 
will be published in the near future.
    In compliance with NEPA, the public is informed that the ROD for 
Amendment 10 is available on the NMFS website at http://www.nero.noaa.gov or may be obtained from the Regional Administrator 
(see ADDRESSES).

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

    Dated: April 26, 2004.
Rebecca Lent,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 04-9779 Filed 4-29-04; 8:45 am]
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