[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 221 (Wednesday, November 17, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 70213-70214]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-28955]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XA043


Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting

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

ACTION: Notice of a public meeting.

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SUMMARY: The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council will convene two 
webinars of the Gag Update Assessment Work Group.

DATES: The first webinar will convene at 9 a.m. on Monday, December 6, 
2010 and conclude by 1 p.m. and the second will convene at 9 a.m. on 
Thursday,

[[Page 70214]]

December 9, 2010 and conclude by 1 p.m.

ADDRESSES: The meetings will convene via webinar.
    Council Address: Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council, 2203 N. 
Lois Avenue, Suite 1100, Tampa, FL 33607.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Steven Atran, Population Dynamics 
Statistician; Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council; telephone: 
(813) 348-1630.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Gag Update Assessment Work Group will 
convene to re-run a gag update assessment that was originally run in 
2009. The purpose of the re-run is to address two issues recently 
discovered in the assessment inputs. In the original run, an incorrect 
size distribution estimate of undersized caught-and-released fish from 
the recreational private and for-hire fishery was used. In addition, 
the original update assessment estimated dead discards from the 
commercial gag fishery to be about 5,000 fish per year based on logbook 
reports and depth distribution of the catch. However, more recent 
estimates of dead discards based on observer data have been on the 
order of 200,000 pounds of fish. A re-run of the assessment with 
adjustments to these inputs could result in a revision to the catch 
limits needed to rebuild the stock, which has been declared to be 
overfished and undergoing overfishing.
    At the first webinar, on December 6, 2010, the Work Group and 
National Marine Fisheries Service assessment biologists will determine 
what changes to the assessment inputs are needed to address the above 
issues. At the second webinar, on December 9, 2010, the Work Group will 
review the results of the assessment re-run. The results of the 
assessment re-run will be reviewed by the Council's Scientific and 
Statistical Committee in January 2011, and the Scientific and 
Statistical Committee may recommend a revised level of acceptable 
biological catch to the Council when it meets in February 2011.
    Copies of the agenda and other related materials can be obtained by 
calling (813) 348-1630 or can be downloaded from the Council's ftp 
site, ftp.gulfcouncil.org.
    Although other non-emergency issues not on the agenda may come 
before the Gag Update Assessment Work Group for discussion, in 
accordance with the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act, those issues may not be the subject of formal action 
during this meeting. Actions of the Gag Update Assessment Work Group 
will be restricted to those issues specifically identified in the 
agenda 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 Council's intent to take action to address the 
emergency.

Special Accommodations

    This meeting is physically accessible to people with disabilities. 
Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids 
should be directed to Trish Kennedy at the Council (see ADDRESSES) at 
least 5 working days prior to the meeting.

    Dated: November 12, 2010.
Tracey L. Thompson,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2010-28955 Filed 11-16-10; 8:45 am]
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