[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 177 (Thursday, September 12, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 74216-74217]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-20708]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[RTID 0648-XE280]


Pacific Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting

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

ACTION: Notice of a public online meeting.

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SUMMARY: The Groundfish Subcommittee of the Pacific Fishery Management 
Council's (Pacific Council) Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) 
will convene an online meeting to review the suitability of fish age 
estimates developed using Fourier Transformed Near-Infrared 
Spectroscopy (FT-NIRS) for inclusion in groundfish stock assessments. 
The methodology review meeting is open to the public.

DATES: The groundfish methodology review online meeting will be held 
Tuesday, October 1, 2024 and Wednesday October 2, 2024, daily from 8 
a.m. until noon (Pacific daylight time) or until business for the day 
has been completed.

ADDRESSES: The groundfish methodology review will be conducted as an 
online meeting. Specific meeting information, including the agenda and 
directions on how to join the meeting and system requirements, will be 
provided in the workshop 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Marlene A. Bellman, Staff Officer, 
Pacific Council; telephone: (503) 820-2414, email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The purpose of the groundfish methodology 
review meeting is aimed at evaluating FT-NIRS to provide a reliable 
alternative to traditional ageing. Proponents plan to explore and 
document the variability in estimated relationships between traditional 
age reads and spectral data across major categorical dimensions. In 
addition, the review may evaluate the effect that replacing large 
blocks of traditional ages in assessments with FT-NIRS ages has on 
important assessment metrics. Evaluation of the benefits of including 
additional variables and the costs/implications for use of the age data 
in estimating other relationships, such as growth, will be explored, as 
time permits. This review is planned in preparation for the 2025 
groundfish stock assessment cycle. The results of

[[Page 74217]]

this review are not considered final until reviewed by the full SSC at 
a future Council meeting.
    No management actions will be decided by the meeting participants. 
The participants' role will be development of recommendations and 
reports for consideration by the SSC and the Pacific Council at a 
future Council meeting.
    Although nonemergency 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 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 of the workshop 
participants 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.
    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.

    Dated: September 9, 2024.
Rey Israel Marquez,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-20708 Filed 9-11-24; 8:45 am]
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