[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 70 (Wednesday, April 11, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15553-15554]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-07472]



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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XG155


Western Pacific Fishery Management Council; Public Meetings

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

ACTION: Notice of public meetings and hearings.

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SUMMARY: The Western Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) will 
convene a meeting of its Archipelagic Fishery Ecosystem Plan Team (FEP) 
and the Fishery Data Collection and Research Committee--Technical 
Committee (FDCRC-TC). The Archipelagic FEP Team will review the fishery 
performance, ecosystem consideration, and data integration chapter of 
the Stock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation (SAFE) Report for the 
Western Pacific region, conduct the evaluation of the 2017 catches to 
the 2017 Annual Catch Limits (ACL) for the coral reef, crustacean, and 
Territory bottomfish fisheries, review of the ecosystem component 
action, aquaculture, and crustacean Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) 
review. The FDCRC-TC will review the status of the data collection 
improvement efforts in the Western Pacific region, progress on the 
Pacific Island Fisheries Research Program, discuss the collection of 
fisheries data for management unit species (MUS) and Ecosystem 
Component Species (ECS), and the implementation of the Marine 
Recreational Information Program (MRIP)--Pacific Islands Regional 
Implementation Plan (PIRIP).

DATES: The Archipelagic FEP Team meeting will be held between 8:30 a.m. 
and 5:00 p.m. on April 30--May 1, 2018. The FDCRC-TC will be held on 
May 2-3, 2018. For specific times and agendas, see SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION.

ADDRESSES: The FEP Team and FDCRC-TC meetings will be held at the 
Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council Conference Room, 
1164 Bishop St., Suite 1400, Honolulu, HI 96813; phone: (808) 522-8220.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kitty M. Simonds, Executive Director; 
phone: (808) 522-8220.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Public comment periods will be provided 
throughout the agendas. The order in which agenda items are addressed 
may change. The meetings will run as late as necessary to complete 
scheduled business.

Agenda for Archipelagic FEP Team Meeting

Monday, April 30, 2018, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

1. Welcome and Introductions
2. Approval of Draft Agenda, 2017 Report and Assignment of Rapporteurs
3. Report on Previous Plan Team recommendations and Council Actions
4. 2017 Annual SAFE Report
    A. Fishery Performance
    1. Archipelagic Fisheries Modules
    a. American Samoa
    1. Coral Reef Fisheries
    2. Bottomfish Fishery
    3. Crustacean Fishery
    4. Precious Coral Fishery
    b. Guam
    1. Coral Reef Fisheries
    2. Bottomfish Fishery
    3. Crustacean Fishery
    4. Precious Coral Fishery
    c. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
    1. Coral Reef Fisheries
    2. Bottomfish Fishery
    3. Crustacean Fishery
    4. Precious Coral Fishery
    d. Hawaii
    1. Coral Reef Fisheries (Commercial and Non-Commercial)
    2. Bottomfish Fishery
    3. Crustacean Fishery
    4. Precious Coral Fishery
    2. Discussions
    3. Public Comment
    B. Ecosystem Considerations
    1. Protected Species Section
    2. Climate, Ecosystems and Biological Section
    a. Environmental and Climate Variables
    b. Life History and Length-Derived Variables
    3. Habitat Section
    a. Crustacean EFH Review
    4. Socioeconomics Section
    5. Marine Planning Section
    6. Discussions
    7. Public Comment
    C. Administrative Reports
    1. Number of Federal Permits
    2. Regulatory Actions in 2017
    3. Discussions
    4. Public Comment
    D. Data Integration Chapter
    1. Draft Data Integration Chapter
    2. Predictive Mapping Tool in the Hawaii Non-Commercial Fisheries
    3. Discussion on Moving the Analysis Forward for Chapter 3
    4. Public Comment

Tuesday, May 1, 2018, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

5. Web-Interface of the SAFE Report
6. Action Agenda Items
    A. Evaluating 2017 Catches to its Respective 2017 ACLs
    1. Coral Reef Fisheries
    2. Crustacean Fisheries
    3. Territory Bottomfish Fisheries
    B. Ecosystem Component Amendment
    1. Monitoring of Management Unit Species (MUS) and ECS
    2. Changes in the SAFE report due to ECS Designation
    C. Omnibus Amendment to Establish an Aquaculture Management Program
    D. Main Hawaiian Islands Deep 7 Bottomfish Fishery
    1. Stock Assessment for the Main Hawaiian Islands Deep 7 Bottomfish 
Complex 2018, with Catch Projections Through 2022
    2. Risk of Overfishing (P*) Working Group Report on the Main 
Hawaiian Islands Deep 7 Bottomfish Fishery
    3. Social, Economic, Ecological, and Management Uncertainty (SEEM) 
Working Group Report on the Main Hawaiian Islands Deep 7 Bottomfish 
Fishery
    E. Refining Precious Corals EFH--Plan Team Working Group Report
    F. Discussions
    G. Public Comment
7. Monitoring and Updating Priorities
    A. Council's 5-year Research Priorities
    B. Cooperative Research Priorities
    C. Management Strategy Evaluation Priorities
8. General Discussions
9. Fishery Ecosystem Plan Team Recommendations
10. Other Business

Wednesday, May 2, 2018, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Agenda for FDCRC-TC Meeting
1. Welcome and Introductions
2. Approval of Draft Agenda, 2017 Report & Assignment of Rapporteurs
3. Report on Previous FDCRC-TC Recommendations and Council Actions
4. Piecing Together Current Efforts to Improve Fishery Data Collection
5. Status of the Fishery Dependent Data Collection Improvement Efforts
    A. American Samoa
    B. Guam
    C. CNMI
    D. Hawaii
    E. MRIP and Territory Science Initiative Projects
    F. Western Pacific Fishery Information Network Database

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Transition and Online Interface
    G. Discussions
    H. Public Comment
6. Updates on Ecosystem Monitoring and Research
    A. Life History Research
    B. Ecosystem Research
    C. Socio-Economics
    D. Guam Ecosystem Research
    E. Discussions
    F. Public Comment
7. Pacific Islands Fisheries Research Program
    A. Climate Change Impacts on the American Samoa Coral Reef 
Fisheries
    B. Bayesian Approach to Catch Estimation
    C. Hawaii and Guam Fishing Community Perceptions of the Marine 
Protected Area Siting Process and its Implications
    D. Discussions
    E. Public Comment
8. Marine Recreational Information Program/Territory Science Initiative
    A. MRIP Pacific Islands Regional Implementation Plan (MRIP PIRIP)
    B. Description of the Certification Process
    C. Discussion on the Preparation for the MRIP PIRIP Implementation
    D. Future of Territory Science Initiative
    E. Public Comment

Thursday, May 3, 2018, 8:30 a.m. to 12 noon

9. MUS and ECS Monitoring
    A. Need for Monitoring Changes
    B. Discussion on Potential Changes in the Data Collection System
    C. Discussion on Potential Changes to the Database and Reporting
    D. Discussion on Potential Funding to Support the Data Collection 
Changes
    E. Discussion on Potential Legislative Support for Data Collection 
Changes
    F. Public Comment
10. General Discussions
11. Other Business
12. FDCRC-TC Recommendations

Special Accommodations

    These meetings are physically accessible to people with 
disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other 
auxiliary aids should be directed to Kitty M. Simonds, (808) 522-8220 
(voice) or (808) 522-8226 (fax), at least 5 days prior to the meeting 
date.

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

    Dated: April 6, 2018.
Tracey L. Thompson,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2018-07472 Filed 4-10-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P