[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 66 (Thursday, April 7, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17658-17659]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-6939]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[I.D. 040105C]


Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; 
Extension of the Gulf of Mexico Charter Vessel/Headboat Permit 
Moratorium

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

ACTION:  Notice of intent; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) and 
NMFS intend to prepare a draft supplemental environmental impact 
statement (DSEIS) in support of a proposed Amendment to Extend the 
Charter Vessel/Headboat Permit Moratorium (Moratorium Amendment). The 
DSEIS will evaluate alternatives for allowing the permit moratorium to 
expire, extending the moratorium for a finite time period, or 
establishing a permanent limited access program. The purpose of this 
notice of intent is to solicit public comments on the range of 
alternatives and scope of issues to be addressed in the DSEIS.

DATES: Written comments on the scope of the DSEIS must be received by 5 
p.m. May 9, 2005.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on the scope of the DSEIS by any of 
the following methods:

[[Page 17659]]

     E-mail: [email protected]. Include in the subject 
line of the e-mail comment the following document identifier: Charter 
Headboat Permit Moratorium.
     Mail: Andy Strelcheck, Southeast Regional Office, NMFS, 
263 13\th\ Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701.
     Fax: 727-824-5308; Attention: Andy Strelcheck. Requests 
for the scoping document may be directed to the Gulf of Mexico Fishery 
Management Council, The Commons at Rivergate, 3018 U.S. Highway 301 
North, Suite 1000, Tampa, FL 33619; telephone: 813-228-2815; fax: 813-
225-7015. Scoping documents are also available to download at http://www.gulfcouncil.org.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stu Kennedy (phone: 813-228-2815; fax: 
813-225-7015; e-mail: [email protected]); or Andy Strelcheck 
(phone: 727-824-5305; fax: 727-824-5308; e-mail: 
[email protected]).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Council and NMFS intend to prepare a 
DSEIS in support of the proposed Moratorium Amendment. For-hire vessel 
permits were initially required in the coastal migratory pelagic (CMP) 
fishery starting in 1987 and in the reef fish fishery in 1997. 
Amendments establishing the charter vessel/headboat permit moratorium 
for the CMP fishery (Amendment 14) and the Reef Fish fishery (Amendment 
20) were approved by NMFS on May 6, 2003, and implemented on June 16, 
2003 (68 FR 26280). The intended effect of these amendments was to cap 
the number of for-hire vessels operating in these two fisheries at the 
current level (as of March 29, 2001) while the Council evaluated 
whether limited access programs were needed to constrain effort. In 
this proposed Moratorium Amendment, the Council is considering 
alternatives that would: allow the moratorium on for-hire reef fish and 
CMP permits to expire; extend the moratorium for a finite period of 
time (5 or 10 years); or establish a permanent limited access program. 
In any case, except for allowing the moratorium to expire, there would 
be no new permits issued. The DSEIS will evaluate the impacts of these 
alternatives. Alternatives which have been under consideration are 
described in detail in The Scoping Document for Extending the Charter 
Vessel/Headboat Permit Moratorium by Amending the FMPs for: Reef Fish 
(Amendment 25) and Coastal Migratory Pelagics (Amendment 17), which is 
available from the Council (see ADDRESSES). The Council is soliciting 
public comment on the range of alternatives and scope of issues that 
should be considered in this DSEIS.
    In accordance with NOAA's Administrative Order NAO 216-6, Section 
502(c)4, the Council previously held nine scoping hearings during June 
2004 to solicit input from interested parties on proposed actions and 
alternatives identified in the above-mentioned scoping document. These 
hearings were held in the following locations: Port Isabel, Port 
Aransas, and Galveston, TX; Kenner, LA; Biloxi, MS; Orange Beach, AL; 
Destin, Madeira Beach, and Naples, FL.
    Additionally, public comments may be accepted at the following 
Council meetings and during public hearings that will be announced in 
future Federal Register notices:
    July 11-14, 2005, Diamondhead All-Suite Beach Resort, 2000 Estero 
Boulevard, Ft. Myers Beach, FL 33931; and
    September 12-15, 2005, New Orleans, LA (Location TBA).
    The meetings will be physically accessible to people with 
disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other 
auxiliary aids should be directed to the Gulf Council (see ADDRESSES).
    The completed DSEIS associated with the draft Moratorium Amendment 
will be filed with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 
announced in the Federal Register, and open to public comment for a 45-
day period. This procedure is pursuant to regulations issued by the 
Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) for implementing the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and to NOAA's Administrative Order 
216-6 on complying 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 taking final action on the Moratorium Amendment. 
The Council will submit both the final amendment and the supporting 
FSEIS to NMFS for Secretarial review, approval, and implementation 
under the requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act.
    NMFS will announce, through a document published in the Federal 
Register, the availability of the final Moratorium 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 Moratorium 
Amendment.
    NMFS will announce, through a notice published in the Federal 
Register, all public comment periods on the final Moratorium Amendment, 
any 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, any proposed 
regulations, or the FSEIS, prior to final agency action.

    Dated: April 1, 2005.
Alan D. Risenhoover,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 05-6939 Filed 4-6-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S