[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 248 (Friday, December 28, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Page 67237]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-28234]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XG709


Fisheries of the South Atlantic; Southeast Data, Assessment, and 
Review (SEDAR); Public Meeting

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

ACTION: Notice of SEDAR 58 Data Workshop for Atlantic Cobia.

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SUMMARY: The SEDAR 58 assessment(s) of the Atlantic stock of Cobia will 
consist of a series of workshops and webinars: Stock Identification 
(ID) Workshop; Stock ID Review Workshop; Stock ID Joint Cooperator 
Technical Review; Data Workshop; Assessment Webinars; and a Review 
Workshop. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

DATES: The SEDAR 58 Data Workshop will be held on January 14, 2019, 
from 1 p.m. until 6 p.m.; January 15-17, 2019, from 8 a.m. until 6 
p.m., and January 18, 2019, from 8 a.m. until 1 p.m. The established 
times may be adjusted as necessary to accommodate the timely completion 
of discussion relevant to the assessment process. Such adjustments may 
result in the meeting being extended from, or completed prior to the 
time established by this notice. Additional SEDAR 58 workshops and 
webinar dates and times will publish in a subsequent issue in the 
Federal Register.

ADDRESSES: 
    Meeting address: The SEDAR 58 Data Workshop will be held at the 
Town and Country Inn, 2008 Savannah Highway, Charleston, SC 29407; 
phone: (843) 571-1000.
    SEDAR address: South Atlantic Fishery Management Council, 4055 
Faber Place Drive, Suite 201, N. Charleston, SC 29405; 
www.sedarweb.org.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Julia Byrd, SEDAR Coordinator, 4055 
Faber Place Drive, Suite 201, North Charleston, SC 29405; phone: (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. SEDAR is a three-step process 
including: (1) Data Workshop; (2) Assessment Process utilizing 
webinars; 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 Assessment Process 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 Summary 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, Highly Migratory Species 
Management Division, and Southeast Fisheries Science Center. 
Participants include: Data collectors and database managers; stock 
assessment scientists, biologists, and researchers; constituency 
representatives including fishermen, environmentalists, and non-
governmental organizations (NGOs); international experts; and staff of 
Councils, Commissions, and state and federal agencies.

    The items of discussion at the Data Workshop are as follows:

    Participants will evaluate all available data and select 
appropriate sources for providing information on life history 
characteristics, catch statistics, discard estimates, length and age 
composition, and fishery independent and fishery dependent measures 
of stock abundance, as specified in the Terms of Reference for the 
workshop, to develop an assessment data set and associated 
documentation.

    Although non-emergency issues not contained in this agenda may come 
before this group for discussion, those issues may not be the subject 
of formal action during this meeting. Action will be restricted to 
those issues specifically identified 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 intent to 
take final action to address the emergency.

Special Accommodations

    This meeting is accessible to people with disabilities. Requests 
for auxiliary aids should be directed to the SAFMC office (see 
ADDRESSES) at least 5 business days prior to the meeting.

    Note:  The times and sequence specified in this agenda are 
subject to change.

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

    Dated: December 21, 2018.
Tracey L. Thompson,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2018-28234 Filed 12-27-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P