[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 58 (Tuesday, March 26, 2019)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 11254]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-05599]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 679
RIN 0648-XF559
Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Essential
Fish Habitat Amendments; Correction
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Fishery management plan amendments; notification of correction.
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SUMMARY: The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is announcing the
correction of Amendment 115 to the fishery management plan (FMP) for
Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (BSAI
Groundfish FMP). NMFS is correcting the numbering of the sections in
Amendment 115 describing species-specific essential fish habitat (EFH).
DATES: The correction to Amendment 115 is effective March 26, 2019.
ADDRESSES: The corrected FMP may be obtained at https://www.npfmc.org/wp-content/PDFdocuments/fmp/BSAI/BSAIfmp.pdf.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Megan Mackey, 907-586-7228.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Need for Correction
On July 5, 2018, NMFS announced the final approval of EFH
amendments to five of its six FMPs, including the BSAI Groundfish FMP
(83 FR 31340), in effect as of May 31, 2018 (July 2018 notification)
and published availability information for the amendments. These
amendments updated the description and identification of EFH based on
the best scientific information available to comply with the regulatory
requirement to review and update EFH every five years. Species-specific
EFH sections are numbered in Section 4.2.2 of the BSAI Groundfish FMP;
however, a number for the dusky rockfish section was inadvertently left
out. This correction provides a number for the dusky rockfish section,
and renumbers subsequent species sections sequentially. No regulations
were promulgated as part of the July 2018 notification, therefore no
regulatory changes are needed to effect this correction.
Classification
Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), the Assistant Administrator for
Fisheries, NOAA (AA) finds there is good cause to waive prior notice
and opportunity for public comment on this correction, as notice and
comment would be unnecessary and contrary to public interest. This
notification announces the correction of the unintentional omission of
a number for the dusky rockfish EFH section, as described above, and
does not change operating practices in the fisheries. Therefore, in
order to avoid any negative consequences that could result from this
error, the AA finds good cause to waive the requirement to provide
prior notice and opportunity for public comment.
The AA also finds good cause to waive the 30-day delay in the
effective date of this action under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3). This correction
notification makes only minor change to the numbers of the species-
specific EFH sections and does not change the operating practices in
the fisheries. For these reasons, the AA finds good cause to waive the
30-day delay in the effective date of this action.
Description of Correction
In the BSAI Groundfish FMP Amendment 115, described in the July
2018 notification (see ADDRESSES for availability), the section for
dusky rockfish on page 10 is numbered as follows:
4.2.2.2.20 Dusky Rockfish
Species-specific EFH sections following dusky rockfish are
corrected to be numbered sequentially up to the last species section
numbered 4.2.2.2.30 for yellow Irish lord, which was numbered
4.2.2.2.29 in the text described in the July 2018 notification.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: March 19, 2019.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-05599 Filed 3-25-19; 8:45 am]
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