[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 58 (Tuesday, March 26, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11286-11288]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-05685]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XG892


Endangered and Threatened Species; Announcement of a Recovery 
Planning Workshop and Request for Information To Inform Recovery 
Planning for the Oceanic Whitetip Shark

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

ACTION: Notice; request for information.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: We, NMFS, are convening a workshop to solicit facts and 
information from experts to inform recovery planning for the oceanic 
whitetip shark (Carcharhinus longimanus). We will not be asking for a 
consensus recommendation on how to recover the oceanic whitetip shark. 
This workshop will be open to the public. We also request information 
that might inform the development of the recovery plan.

DATES: Workshop dates and information: The two-day recovery planning 
workshop for the oceanic whitetip shark will be held Tuesday, April 23 
through Wednesday April 24, 2019 at the Ohana Waikiki East Hotel,

[[Page 11287]]

150 Kaiulani Ave., Honolulu, HI 96815. The workshop will begin each day 
at 9 a.m. and end each day at 5:00 p.m. or as necessary to complete 
business for the day.
    RSVP date: If you plan to attend the workshop as an interested 
member of the public, please contact Chelsey Young, NMFS, Office of 
Protected Resources, [email protected], 301-427-8491 no later than 
April 16, 2019.
    Date for information submission: Please submit information to 
inform recovery planning via the methods listed below in the ADDRESSES 
section May 28, 2019.

ADDRESSES: You may submit information to help inform the recovery plan 
for the oceanic whitetip shark, by including NOAA-NMFS-2019-0024, by 
either of the following methods:
     Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: Go to www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-2019-0024. Click the ``Comment Now!'' icon, 
complete the required fields, and enter or attach your comments.
     Mail: Chelsey Young, Office of Protected Resources, 
National Marine Fisheries Service, 1315 East-West Highway, Room 13632, 
Silver Spring, MD 20910.
    Instructions: NMFS may not consider comments if they are sent by 
any other method, to any other address or individual, or received after 
the end of the comment period. 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. NMFS will accept anonymous 
comments (enter N/A in the required fields if you wish to remain 
anonymous).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Chelsey Young, NMFS, Office of 
Protected Resources, (301) 427-8491, [email protected]; or John 
Carlson, NMFS, Southeast Fisheries Science Center, (850) 624-9031, 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On January 30, 2018, we published a final rule listing the oceanic 
whitetip shark as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) (83 
FR 4153). The final listing rule describes the background of the 
listing action for the species and provides a summary of our 
conclusions regarding its status. For additional background and a 
summary of natural history and threats to the species, the reader is 
referred to the status review report and final listing rule (available 
at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/species/oceanic-whitetip-shark).
    NMFS is required by section 4(f) of the ESA to develop and 
implement recovery plans for the conservation and survival of federally 
listed species unless the Secretary finds that such a plan will not 
promote the conservation of the species. Recovery means that listed 
species and their ecosystems are restored, and their future secured, so 
that the protections of the ESA are no longer necessary. The ESA 
specifies that recovery plans are to include (1) a description of site-
specific management actions necessary to achieve the plan's goals for 
the conservation and survival of the species; (2) objective, measurable 
criteria which, when met, would result in the species being removed 
from the list; and (3) estimates of the time and costs required to 
carry out the actions and achieve the plan's conservation goals. Under 
section 4(f) of the ESA, public notice and an opportunity for public 
review and comment are also provided during recovery plan development. 
This notice and request for information serves as the first public 
notice and opportunity for public input early in the process. Once a 
recovery plan has been drafted, it will be announced in the Federal 
Register and available on our website (see ADDRESSES section) for 
public review and comment before being finalized.

Recovery Planning Workshop Announcement

    From April 23 through 24, 2019, NMFS will hold a workshop at the 
Ohana Waikiki East Hotel in Honolulu, HI to help inform our recovery 
planning for the oceanic whitetip shark (see DATES section). We are 
inviting experts in specific topic areas, including the species' 
biology/ecology, threats to the species and the species' habitat, and 
the recovery planning process itself. These experts will help us to 
identify potential actions to address the threats to the species, 
identify gaps in knowledge and associated research needs, as well as 
begin developing recovery criteria for the species. In particular, this 
workshop will focus on addressing threats related to commercial 
fisheries interactions. Identified experts include representatives of 
Federal and state agencies, scientific experts, individuals from 
conservation partners and nongovernmental organizations, and commercial 
and recreational fishermen. Information received at the workshop may be 
used to inform the development of other conservation decisions and 
actions, including the designation of critical habitat.
    NMFS will provide a moderator to manage the workshop as well as a 
note taker to document input received. We are seeking facts and 
information; we will not be asking for consensus recommendations on how 
to recover the oceanic whitetip shark. During the workshop, there will 
also be a time-limited question and answer period during which 
attendees may ask NMFS about information presented. NMFS will prepare a 
summary of the workshop, noting the main points raised by the panelists 
and registered speakers.
    This workshop will be open to the public, and a public comment 
period will be provided at the end of each day. If you plan to attend 
the workshop as an interested member of the public, please contact 
Chelsey Young at the address listed above by April 16, 2019, so we can 
ensure sufficient space for all participants and interested parties 
during our logistics planning.

Agenda

     April 23 will focus on the status and threats to the 
species and recovery actions related to commercial fisheries 
interactions;
     April 24 will focus on recovery criteria and actions 
related to commercial fisheries interactions, research to fill in data 
gaps, and other needs.

Request for Information

    We also invite the public to submit scientific or commercial 
information that may help to inform the recovery criteria and actions 
for the oceanic whitetip shark. We are soliciting relevant information 
related to the species and its habitat, including the following:
    1. Criteria for removing the oceanic whitetip shark from the list 
of threatened and endangered species (this could be either threats-
based or abundance/trends based);
    2. Human activities that contribute to threats to the species;
    3. Physical, biological or chemical features of the environment 
that limit the recovery of the oceanic whitetip shark;
    4. Recovery strategies addressing threats to physical and 
biological features that are essential to species conservation;
    5. Strategies and/or actions to recover the oceanic whitetip shark;
    6. Estimates of the time and cost, and potential partners to 
implement recovery actions;

[[Page 11288]]

    7. Critical knowledge gaps and/or uncertainties that need to be 
resolved to better inform recovery efforts; and
    8. Research, monitoring, and evaluation needs to address knowledge 
gaps and uncertainties, or to assess the species' status, limiting 
factors, and threats relative to recovery goals.
    Information may be submitted via the methods listed above in the 
ADDRESSES section.
    The workshop is accessible to persons with disabilities. Send 
requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids at 
least five business days in advance to Chelsey Young at (301) 427-8491.

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.

    Dated: March 20, 2019.
Donna S. Wieting,
Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-05685 Filed 3-25-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P