[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 174 (Thursday, September 8, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55647-55648]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-22972]



[[Page 55647]]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XA689


New England Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting

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

ACTION: Notice of a public meeting.

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SUMMARY: The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold 
a four-day meeting Monday through Thursday, September 26-29, 2011 to 
consider actions affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive 
economic zone (EEZ).

DATES: The meeting will be held on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and 
Thursday, September 26-29, starting at 9 a.m. on Monday, and at 8 a.m. 
on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at the Coco Key Hotel and Resort, 
50 Ferncroft Rd. Danvers, MA 01923; telephone: (978) 750-2500; fax: 
(978) 750-7959. Requests for special accommodations should be addressed 
to the New England Fishery Management Council, 50 Water Street, Mill 2, 
Newburyport, MA 01950; telephone: (978) 465-0492.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul J. Howard, Executive Director, 
New England Fishery Management Council; telephone: (978) 465-0492.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Monday, September 26, 2011

    Following introductions and any announcements, the NMFS Regional 
Administrator will swear in new members and the Council will elect 
2011-2012 officers. These exercises will be followed by brief reports 
from the NEFMC Chairman and Executive Director, NOAA Fisheries Regional 
Administrator (Northeast Region), Northeast Fisheries Science Center 
and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council liaisons, NOAA General 
Counsel, representatives of the U.S. Coast Guard and the Atlantic 
States Marine Fisheries Commission, and staff from the Vessel 
Monitoring Systems Operations and Law Enforcement offices. There also 
will be a review of any experimental fishery permit applications that 
have been made available for review since the June Council meeting. An 
open period for public comments will follow at which any interested 
party may provide brief comments on issues relevant to Council business 
but not listed on the meeting agenda. During the afternoon session the 
NMFS Regional Administrator and Acting Science Center Director will 
provide a follow-up summary of actions taken in response to an April 
2011 report commissioned by NMFS that reviewed the fisheries management 
process in the Northeast in the context of the effectiveness of the 
relationship among Council, the NMFS Regional Office and the Northeast 
Fisheries Science Center. The Council Chairman and staff will provide 
similar reports on this topic. The day will conclude with a preliminary 
discussion of the Council's 2012 fisheries management priorities.

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

    The Council's Monkfish Committee will summarize its discussion 
about goals and objectives for Amendment 6 to the Monkfish Fishery 
Management Plan (FMP) and seek approval as appropriate. The Skate 
Committee report will follow in which it will ask for final Council 
approval of a fishery specifications package for 2012-2013. Possible 
changes could affect the annual catch limits, total allowable landings 
and include monitoring adjustments. The Council then will receive a 
summary of the most recent Stock Assessment Workshop/Stock Assessment 
Review Committee meeting findings concerning the status of three winter 
flounder stocks. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and 
Enforcement (BOEMRE) will provide a general update on its activities 
and review two offshore energy proposals that are currently available 
for public comment. The Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) 
chairman will review the committee's recommendations concerning ABC's 
for a number of groundfish stocks in the Northeast multispecies complex 
and the whiting and hake stocks that are regulated under the 
Multispecies Fishery FMP. The Council is scheduled to take final action 
on Framework 23 to the Scallop FMP. The alternatives proposed relate to 
four specific issues: (1) A turtle deflector dredge for scallop dredge 
vessels; (2) Revisions to the yellowtail flounder accountability 
measures proposed in Amendment 15; (3) Modification to how catch in 
state waters is accounted for in the limited access general category 
management program for the Northern Gulf of Maine area; and (4) An 
adjustment to when a scallop vessel declares into the scallop fishery 
to improve scallop fleet operations.

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

    The Groundfish Committee Report will include a range if items: (1) 
Approval of a scoping document for an amendment to consider 
accumulation limits and fleet diversity in the groundfish fishery; (2) 
An update on the upcoming sector workshop scheduled for October; (3) An 
update on Framework Adjustment 47 to the Northeast Multispecies FMP, 
including recommendations that address accountability measures for 
ocean pout, windowpane flounder, Atlantic halibut, and Atlantic 
wolffish, alternative Georges Bank yellowtail flounder rebuilding 
strategies, and ABCs for fishing year 2012-2014; (4) A report on the 
2011 Transboundary Resources Assessment Committee`s review of the 
status of Eastern Georges Bank cod and haddock, and Georges Bank 
yellowtail flounder; and (5) Consideration and possible approval of the 
Transboundary Management Guidance Committee's recommendations for 
fishing year 2012 quotas for Eastern Georges Bank cod and haddock, and 
Georges Bank yellowtail flounder. Two reports will be presented to the 
Council during the afternoon session. The first is an overview of the 
report ``At-sea and Dockside Monitoring Programs in the Northeast'' and 
the second will be an update to the NEFSC Report ``Performance of the 
Northeast Groundfish Fishery Interim Report for Fishing Year 2010 (May 
2010-January 2011).'' During the Whiting Committee Report the Council 
intends to approve management alternatives for inclusion in a Draft 
Environmental Impact Statement for Multispecies FMP Amendment 19 (to 
address the small mesh fishery which includes stocks of red hake, 
silver hake, offshore hake).

Thursday, September 29, 2011

    The Council will review the Draft Terms of Reference for the 
upcoming benchmark stock assessment for herring scheduled for June 2012 
and forward any recommendations to the Northeast Regional Coordinating 
Committee. The Herring Committee will review and ask for approval of a 
Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Amendment 5 to the Atlantic 
Herring FMP for the purpose of further review and comment at public 
hearings. During the discussion the Council intends to address any 
outstanding/unresolved issues regarding the management alternatives 
under consideration, review Herring Advisory Panel comments regarding 
Amendment 5 and review/discuss the Amendment 5 impact analyses. It also 
could identify preferred alternatives for public hearings.

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Amendment 5 alternatives currently address adjustments to the fishery 
management program and reporting requirements for vessels and dealers, 
measures to address trip notification requirements, carrier vessels, 
and transfers of herring at-sea. It also may include a catch monitoring 
program that could maximize sampling and address net slippage, 
alternatives to allocate observer coverage on limited access herring 
vessels, river herring bycatch and criteria for midwater trawl vessel 
access to year-round groundfish closed areas.
    Although other non-emergency issues not contained in this agenda 
may come before this Council for discussion, those issues may not be 
the subjects of formal action during this meeting. Council 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 Act, 
provided that the public has been notified of the Council's intent to 
take final action to address the emergency.

Special Accommodations

    This meeting is physically accessible to people with disabilities. 
Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids 
should be directed to Paul J. Howard (see ADDRESSES) at least 5 days 
prior to the meeting date.

    Dated: September 2, 2011.
Tracey L. Thompson,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2011-22972 Filed 9-7-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P