[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 22 (Tuesday, February 3, 2015)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 5699-5701]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-01949]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

15 CFR Part 922


Revisions of Boundaries for Flower Garden Banks National Marine 
Sanctuary; Intent To Prepare Draft Environmental Impact Statement

AGENCY: Office of National Marine Sanctuaries (ONMS), National Ocean 
Service (NOS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 
Department of Commerce (DOC).

ACTION: Notice of intent to revise boundaries; intent to prepare 
environmental impact statement.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with section 304(e) of the National Marine 
Sanctuaries Act, as amended, (NMSA), the Office of National Marine 
Sanctuaries (ONMS) of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration (NOAA) is initiating a review of Flower Garden Banks 
National Marine Sanctuary (FGBNMS or Sanctuary) boundaries, based on 
the recommendation contained within the Sanctuary Expansion Action Plan 
of the FGBNMS Management Plan (April 2012). The review process, as 
required by the NMSA, will be conducted concurrently with a public 
process under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). This 
document also informs the public that NOAA will coordinate its 
responsibilities under section 106 of the National Historic 
Preservation Act (NHPA) with its ongoing NEPA process, including the 
use of NEPA documents and public and stakeholder meetings to also meet 
the requirements of section 106. The public scoping process is intended 
to solicit information and comments on the range and significance of 
issues related to the expansion of the FGBNMS boundaries. The results 
of this scoping process will assist NOAA in formulating alternatives 
for the draft environmental impact statement for the proposed revised 
sanctuary boundaries.

DATES: Comments must be received by April 6, 2015. Public hearings will 
be held as detailed below:

(1) New Orleans, LA

Date: Tuesday, March 3, 2015
Location: Hilton New Orleans Airport, Cocodrie Room
Address: 901 Airline Drive, Kenner, LA 70062
Time: 6:00-8:00 p.m.

(2) Houston, TX

Date: Thursday, March 5, 2015
Location: Bayland Community Center
Address: 6400 Bissonnet Street, Houston, TX 77074
Time: 6:00-8:00 p.m.

(3) Galveston, TX

Date: Wednesday, March 11, 2015
Location: Flower Garden Banks NMS Office, NOAA Galveston Laboratory
Address: 4700 Avenue U, Building 216, Galveston, TX 77551
Time: 6:00-8:00 p.m.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted by any one of the following 
methods:
     Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to 
www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NOS-2014-0154, click the 
``Comment Now!'' icon, complete the required fields and enter or attach 
your comments.
     Mail: George Schmahl, Sanctuary Superintendent, Flower 
Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary, 4700 Avenue U, Bldg. 216, 
Galveston, TX 77551.
    Instructions: Comments sent by any other method, to any other 
address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period, 
may not be considered by NOAA. All comments received are a part of the 
public record and will generally be posted for public viewing on 
www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying 
information (e.g., name, address, etc.), confidential business 
information, or otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily 
by the sender will be publicly accessible. ONMS will accept anonymous 
comments (enter ``N/A'' in the required fields if you wish to remain 
anonymous). Attachments to electronic comments will be accepted in 
Microsoft Word, Excel, or Adobe PDF file formats only.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kelly Drinnen, 409-621-5151 Ext. 105, 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background Information

I. Background

    The National Marine Sanctuaries Act (NMSA) (16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.) 
authorizes the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) to designate and 
protect as a national marine sanctuaries areas of the marine 
environment that are of special national significance due to their 
conservation, recreational, ecological, historical, scientific, 
cultural, archeological, educational, or esthetic qualities. Day-to-day 
management of national marine sanctuaries has been delegated by the 
Secretary to the ONMS. The primary objective of the NMSA is to protect 
the biological and cultural resources of the sanctuary system, such as 
coral reefs, marine animals, historical shipwrecks, historic 
structures, and archaeological sites.
    Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary was designated on 
January 17, 1992 (Pub. L. 102-251, Title I, Sec. 101). At that time, 
the sanctuary consisted of two areas known as East and West Flower 
Garden Banks (56 FR 63634). In 1996, Congress added Stetson Bank to the 
sanctuary (Pub. L. 104-283). FGBNMS regulations were first published on 
December 5, 1991 (56 FR 63634) and became effective on January 18, 1994 
(58 FR 65664). Current FGBNMS regulations can be found at 15 CFR part 
922, subpart L.

[[Page 5700]]

    FGBNMS is located in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico. The 
banks'salt domes range in depth from 55 feet to over 500 feet, 
providing conditions supporting several distinct habitats (including 
the northern-most coral reefs in the continental United States) and 
essential habitat for a variety of marine species. The combination of 
location and geology makes the sanctuary an extremely productive and 
nationally significant ecosystem.

II. Need for Action

    NOAA published a revised FGBNMS Management Plan in April 2012, 
which described the need to protect additional sensitive biological 
resources and geological features associated with reefs and banks in 
the northwestern Gulf of Mexico. The expansion of sanctuary protection 
for certain critical areas would address concerns about impacts of 
anchoring, safe access by fishers and divers, damage as a result of 
unregulated activities, and the need to protect unique features in 
these areas.
    Based on six years of input from the public and the FGBNMS Advisory 
Council, NOAA developed a Sanctuary Expansion Action Plan as part of 
the 2012 management plan revision. The action plan's primary purpose 
was to ''evaluate and expand, as appropriate, the network of protected 
areas within the sanctuary to include five to twelve additional reefs 
and banks, and modify the boundary of East and West Flower Garden and 
Stetson Banks to include critical adjacent habitats.'' This proposal 
was developed in particular by the Sanctuary Advisory Council's (SAC) 
boundary expansion working group, which was comprised of researchers, 
oil and gas production representatives, recreational divers, Bureau of 
Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) representatives, and ONMS staff. The 
working group met initially in February 2007, and then periodically 
over the course of 10 months, to discuss the concept in detail. The 
working group employed a consensus driven, constituent-based process to 
address the concept of boundary expansion. All participants discussed a 
variety of issues, considerations, priorities and concerns for each 
step of the process.
    The following recommendation was developed by the working group and 
adopted as a recommendation to NOAA by the SAC:

    Expand the sanctuary, with boundaries based on a critical 
habitat area and a 500-meter buffer zone, by modifying the existing 
boundaries of East and West Flower Garden Banks and Stetson Bank, 
and adding Horseshoe Bank, McGrail Bank, Geyer Bank, Bright Bank, 
Sonnier Bank, Alderdice Bank, MacNeil Bank, Rankin Bank, and 28 
Fathom Bank.

It is important to note that certain activities related to oil and gas 
exploration and development are already prohibited within a significant 
portion of each of the banks recommended for expansion, as these areas 
have been designated ``no activity zones'' by BOEM under lease 
stipulations that have been in place since 1973. (These restrictions 
are contained within ``Notice to Lessees'' (NTL) No. 2009-G39 for 
``Biologically-Sensitive Underwater Features and Areas'', for the 
Central and Western planning areas of the OCS in the Gulf of Mexico 
region.) NOAA has now decided that the SAC's recommendation should be 
further explored through a public review process. Additional 
information on the SAC recommendation can be found in the FGBNMS 
Sanctuary Expansion Action Plan at the following link: http://flowergarden.noaa.gov/document_library/mgmtdocs/fmp2012/fmpexpansionactionplan.pdfith.
    In accordance Section 304(e) of the National Marine Sanctuaries 
Act, as amended (NMSA), 16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq., NOAA is initiating a 
review of the FGBNMS boundaries to ``evaluate and expand, as 
appropriate'' the network of protected areas within the sanctuary. The 
action under consideration will evaluate options for the expansion of 
the sanctuary by incorporating selected reefs and banks in the 
northwestern Gulf of Mexico for their long-term protection and 
management. An environmental impact statement will describe the various 
reefs and banks to be considered, alternative scenarios for 
incorporating additional areas, and NOAA's preferred alternative. In 
addition, NOAA will analyze various regulatory scenarios for any new 
potential sanctuary areas, as well as for the existing sanctuary as 
described in the 2012 final management plan.

III. Process

    The process for considering the expansion of FGBNMS is composed of 
four primary stages:
    1. Information collection and characterization, including the 
consideration of public comment;
    2. Preparation and release of a draft environmental impact 
statement (DEIS) that identifies boundary expansion alternatives, as 
well as a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to amend the sanctuary 
regulations to reflect any new boundary if proposed;
    3. Public review and comment on the DEIS and NPRM;
    4. Preparation and release of a final environmental impact 
statement, including a response to public comments, with a final rule 
if appropriate.
    With this document, NOAA is opening a public comment period to:
    1. Gather information and public comments from individuals, 
organizations, and government agencies on whether FGBNMS should expand 
its boundary, suggestions for the extent of an expanded boundary, and 
the potential effects of a boundary expansion; and
    2. Help determine the scope of issues to be addressed in the 
preparation of an environmental analysis under NEPA.
[INFORMATION ON DATES AND LOCATIONS FOR PUBLIC MEETINGS WILL BE ADDED 
LATER].

IV. Consultation Under Section 106 of the National Historic 
Preservation Act

    This document confirms that NOAA will fulfill its responsibility 
under section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA, 16 
U.S.C. 470) through the ongoing NEPA process, pursuant to 36 CFR 
800.8(a) including the use of NEPA documents and public and stakeholder 
meetings to meet the section 106 requirements. The NHPA specifically 
applies to any agency undertaking that may affect historic properties. 
Pursuant to 36 CFR 800.16(1)(1), historic properties includes any 
prehistoric or historic district, site, building, structure or object 
included in, or eligible for inclusion in, the National Register of 
Historic Places maintained by the Secretary of the Interior. The term 
includes artifacts, records, and remains that are related to and 
located within such properties. The term includes properties of 
traditional religious and cultural importance to an Indian tribe or 
Native Hawaiian organization and that meet the National Register 
criteria. In fulfilling its responsibility under the NHPA and NEPA, 
NOAA intends to identify consulting parties; identify historic 
properties and assess the effects of the undertaking on such 
properties; initiate formal consultation with the State Historic 
Preservation Officer, the Advisory Council of Historic Preservation, 
and other consulting parties; involve the public in accordance with 
NOAA's NEPA procedures, and develop in consultation with identified 
consulting parties alternatives and proposed measures that might avoid, 
minimize or mitigate any adverse effects on historic properties and 
describe them in any environmental assessment or draft environmental 
impact statement.

[[Page 5701]]

V. Consultation Under Section 304(a)(5) of the National Marine 
Sanctuaries Act

    This document confirms that NOAA will fulfill its responsibility 
under section 304(a)(5) of the National Marine Sanctuaries Act (NMSA, 
16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.), which states that the Gulf of Mexico Fishery 
Management Council (GMFMC) should be provided with the opportunity to 
prepare draft regulations for fishing within Federal waters, if NOAA 
pursues the addition of areas within the Gulf of Mexico to the 
sanctuary and if regulations regarding fishing are needed. The NMSA 
further declares that draft regulations prepared by the GMFMC, or a 
GMFMC determination that regulations are not necessary, shall be 
accepted and issued as proposed regulations unless the GMFMC's action 
fails to fulfill the purposes and policies of the Act and the goals and 
objectives of the proposed designation. If the GMFMC declines to make a 
determination with respect to the need for regulations, makes a 
determination that is rejected by the Secretary of Commerce, or fails 
to prepare draft regulations in a timely manner, then NOAA shall 
prepare fishing regulations.

    Authority:  16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.

    Dated: January 15, 2015.
Daniel J. Basta,
Director for the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries.
[FR Doc. 2015-01949 Filed 2-2-15; 8:45 am]
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