[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 98 (Friday, May 21, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Page 28565]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-12311]



[[Page 28565]]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XU76


Fisheries of the South Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico; Southeast 
Data, Assessment, and Review (SEDAR); spiny lobster.

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

ACTION: Modification to schedule, location, and contact information for 
SEDAR Webinars and Workshop for South Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico spiny 
lobster.

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SUMMARY: This notice updates information relative to the SEDAR update 
assessment of the South Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico stock of spiny 
lobster. This update will consist of a series of webinars and an Update 
Workshop. This assessment will update the stock assessment conducted 
under SEDAR 8. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. The original notice 
published in the Federal Register on March 2, 2010, 75 FR 9397.

DATES: The Data Webinar occurred on March 23, 2010. Assessment Update 
Webinars will occur on June 30, and August 17, 2010. The Update 
Workshop will take place September 28-30, 2010. See SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION.

ADDRESSES: The Webinars may be attended by the public. Those interested 
in participating should contact Julie A Neer at SEDAR. See FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT to request an invitation providing webinar access 
information.
    The Update Workshop will be held at the Key West Marriott Beachside 
Hotel, 3841 N. Roosevelt Blvd, Key West, Florida 33040; telephone: 
(305) 296-8100.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Julie A Neer, SEDAR Coordinator, 4055 
Faber Place Drive, Suite 201, North Charleston, SC 29405; telephone: 
(843) 571-4366; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Gulf of Mexico, South Atlantic, and 
Caribbean Fishery Management Councils, in conjunction with NOAA 
Fisheries and the Atlantic and Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commissions 
have implemented the Southeast Data, Assessment and Review (SEDAR) 
process, a multi-step method for determining the status of fish stocks 
in the Southeast Region. A full benchmark assessment conducted under 
SEDAR includes three workshops: (1) Data Workshop, (2) Stock Assessment 
Workshop Process and (3) Review Workshop. The product of the Data 
Workshop is a data report which compiles and evaluates potential 
datasets and recommends which datasets are appropriate for assessment 
analyses. The product of the Stock Assessment Workshop is a stock 
assessment report which describes the fisheries, evaluates the status 
of the stock, estimates biological benchmarks, projects future 
population conditions, and recommends research and monitoring needs. 
The assessment is independently peer reviewed at the Review Workshop. 
The product of the Review Workshop is a Review Workshop Report 
documenting Panel opinions regarding the strengths and weaknesses of 
the stock assessment and input data. Participants for SEDAR Workshops 
are appointed by the Gulf of Mexico, South Atlantic, and Caribbean 
Fishery Management Councils and NOAA Fisheries Southeast Regional 
Office and Southeast Fisheries Science Center. Participants include 
data collectors and database managers; stock assessment scientists, 
biologists, and researchers; constituency representatives including 
fishermen, environmentalists, and NGO's; international experts; and 
staff of Councils, Commissions, and state and federal agencies.
    SEDAR conducts updates of benchmark stock assessments previously 
conducted through the SEDAR program. Update assessments add additional 
data points to datasets incorporated in the original SEDAR benchmark 
assessment and run the benchmark assessment model to update population 
estimates. The spiny lobster update assessment will update the SEDAR 8 
benchmark of Southeastern United States spiny lobster, which included 
both the South Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico. The update process consists 
of a series of webinars and an update workshop.

Spiny Lobster Update Process Schedule:

New Dates for the SEDAR assessment webinars: June 30 and August 17, 
2010, 1 p.m. - 4 p.m.

    Using updated datasets adopted during the Data Webinar, 
participants will employ assessment models used in SEDAR 8 to evaluate 
stock status, estimate population benchmarks and management criteria, 
and project future conditions. Participants will recommend the most 
appropriate methods and configurations for determining stock status and 
estimating population parameters.

New Dates for the SEDAR Spiny Lobster Update Workshop: September 28-30, 
2010

September 28 and 29, 2010: 9 p.m. - 6 p.m.; September 30, 2010: 8 a.m. 
- 12 p.m.

    During the Update Workshop assessment analysts will discuss and 
evaluate decisions made during the Data and Assessment Webinars. 
Participants will compare and contrast various assessment approaches, 
and determine whether the assessments are adequate for submission to 
Science and Statistics Committees of the South Atlantic Fishery 
Management Council and the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council. 
Workshop panelists will document their findings and recommendations in 
an Assessment Workshop Report.
    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 these meetings. Action will be restricted to 
those issues specifically listed 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

    The Update Workshop is physically accessible to people with 
disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other 
auxiliary aids should be directed to the Council office (see ADDRESSES) 
at least 10 business days prior to the workshop.

    Dated: May 18, 2010.
Tracey L. Thompson,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2010-12311 Filed 5-20-10; 8:45 am]
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