[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 149 (Friday, August 2, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Page 63165]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-17057]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration


Draft Revised Management Plan for the Guana Tolomato Matanzas 
National Estuarine Research Reserve

AGENCY: Office for Coastal Management, National Ocean Service, National 
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is 
soliciting comments from the public regarding a proposed revision of 
the management plan for the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine 
Research Reserve. A management plan provides a framework to guide a 
reserve's programs, track progress toward meeting its goals, and 
identify potential opportunities or changes in direction. It is also 
used to guide programmatic evaluations of a reserve. Management plan 
revisions are required at least every five years. This draft revised 
management plan is intended to replace the Guana Tolomato Matanzas 
National Estuarine Research Reserve management plan, which was approved 
in 2009.

DATES: Comments must be received at the appropriate address (see 
ADDRESSES) on or before September 3, 2024.

ADDRESSES: The draft revised management plan can be downloaded or 
viewed at: https://floridadep.gov/sites/default/files/GTM-NERR-Management-Plan.pdf. It is also available by sending a written request 
to the point of contact identified below (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT).
    You may submit comments by email to [email protected]. 
Include ``Comments on draft Guana Tolomato Matanzas Management Plan'' 
in the subject line of the message. NOAA will accept anonymous 
comments, however, the written comments NOAA receives are considered 
part of the public record, and the entirety of the comment, including 
the name of the commenter, email address, attachments, and other 
supporting materials, will be publicly accessible. Sensitive personally 
identifiable information, such as account numbers and Social Security 
numbers, should not be included with the comment. Comments that are not 
related to the Management Plan for the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National 
Estuarine Research Reserve, or that contain profanity, vulgarity, 
threats, or other inappropriate language will not be considered.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stephanie Robinson, on contract with 
NOAA's Office for Coastal Management, [email protected], (843) 
481-0190.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to 15 CFR 921.33(c), Florida must 
revise the management plan for the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National 
Estuarine Research Reserve at least every five years. If approved by 
NOAA, the revised management plan for the Guana Tolomato Matanzas 
National Estuarine Research Reserve will replace the plan previously 
approved in 2009.
    Management plans outline a reserve's strategic goals and 
objectives; administrative structure; programs for conducting research 
and monitoring, education, and training; resource protection, 
restoration, and manipulation plans; public access and visitor use 
plans; consideration for future land acquisition; and facility 
development to support reserve operations. In particular, this draft 
revised management plan for the Guana Tolomato Matanzas reserve focuses 
on changes to the strategic plan, physical boundaries, and enhanced 
programmatic alignment across the reserve's sectors.
    Since the last management plan, the Guana Tolomato Matanzas 
National Estuarine Research Reserve received approval for an expansion 
of the site's boundary--March 2020--to include the City of St. 
Augustine's sovereign submerged lands within the Matanzas River and 
Salt Run, the state sovereign submerged lands along the Matanzas and 
Tolomato Rivers that connect the City of St. Augustine portion to the 
previous boundary, and the Marshview parcel in the southern portion of 
the reserve. In addition, the reserve completed several facility 
construction projects: the Princess Place Legacy House and Cabins for 
visiting investigator use; a freshwater wetland boardwalk; a freshwater 
marsh boardwalk on the Guana Preserve Yellow Trail; and a storage 
facility (pole barn). The reserve also installed redesigned 
interpretive displays at the Visitor Center and along several trails 
within the reserve. The revised management plan, once approved, would 
serve as the guiding document for the 75,761-acre Guana Tolomato 
Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve for the next five years.
    NOAA's Office for Coastal Management analyzes the environmental 
impacts of the proposed approval of this management plan in accordance 
with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), as amended, 
42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq., and the Council on Environmental Quality 
Regulations for Implementing the Procedural Provisions of NEPA (40 CFR 
1500-1508 (2022)). The public is invited to comment on the draft 
revised management plan. NOAA will take these comments into 
consideration when deciding whether to approve the revised management 
plan in whole or in part.
    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.; 15 CFR 921.33.

Keelin S. Kuipers,
Deputy Director, Office for Coastal Management, National Ocean Service, 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
[FR Doc. 2024-17057 Filed 8-1-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-08-P