[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 81 (Thursday, April 29, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22635-22636]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-08995]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[RTID 0648-XB049]


Pacific Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting

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

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

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SUMMARY: The Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Pacific Council) 
Highly Migratory Species Management Team (HMSMT) will hold an online 
meeting, which is open to the public.

DATES: The online meeting will be held on Thursday, May 13, 2021, 
beginning at 9 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time and continuing until business 
is completed.

ADDRESSES: This meeting will be held online. Specific meeting 
information, including directions on how to join the meeting and system 
requirements will be provided in the meeting announcement on the 
Pacific Council's website (see www.pcouncil.org). You may send an email 
to Mr. Kris Kleinschmidt ([email protected]) or contact him at 
(503) 820-2412 for technical assistance.
    Council address: Pacific Fishery Management Council, 7700 NE 
Ambassador Place, Suite 101, Portland, OR 97220-1384.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kit Dahl, Staff Officer, Pacific 
Council; telephone: (503) 820-2422.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The purpose of the meeting is for the HMSMT 
to discuss and prepare reports for HMS items on the Council's June 2021 
meeting agenda. There are two items on the Council meeting agenda that 
will be the focus of the HMSMT meeting, summarized below. The HMSMT 
also may discuss other items on the June Council agenda and conduct 
general workload planning.
    First, the HMSMT needs to prepare an analysis of drift gillnet 
(DGN) fishery performance metrics. These performance metrics track 
bycatch of specified protected species and finfish species of concern 
and are reported to

[[Page 22636]]

the Council each June based on available bycatch data. In June 2019, 
the Council endorsed a new analytical method proposed by the HMSMT. 
Because performance metrics were not reported in 2020, this would be 
the first year this new analytical method will be used.
    Second, the HMSMT will discuss recommendations to address scoping 
and the development of a range of alternatives for DGN fishery hard 
caps. The Council took final action in September 2015 to implement 
``hard cap'' for selected protected species taken in the DGN fishery as 
a bycatch mitigation measure. Implementing regulations became effective 
in February 2020 but were subsequently vacated by court order. The 
Council wishes to consider alternative bycatch mitigation methods, 
consistent with its original intent, and considering the reasons the 
previous implementing regulations were vacated by the Court.
    A meeting agenda will be available on the Council website at least 
one week before the meeting.
    Although non-emergency issues not contained in the meeting agenda 
may be discussed, those issues may not be the subject of formal action 
during this meeting. Action will be restricted to those issues 
specifically listed in this document and any issues arising after 
publication of this document 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

    Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids 
should be directed to Mr. Kris Kleinschmidt 
([email protected]; (503) 820-2412) at least 10 days prior to 
the meeting date.

    Dated: April 26, 2021.
Tracey L. Thompson,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2021-08995 Filed 4-28-21; 8:45 am]
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