[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 105 (Wednesday, May 31, 2000)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 34633-34635]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-13569]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 648

[I.D. 052300A]


New England Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting

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

ACTION: Notification of public meeting.

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

SUMMARY: The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold 
a 2-day public meeting on June 14 and 15, 2000, to consider actions 
affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

DATES: The meeting will be held on Wednesday, June 14, 2000, beginning 
at

[[Page 34634]]

9:30 a.m. and Thursday, June 15, beginning at 8:30 a.m.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at the Sheraton Harborside Hotel, 
250 Market Street, Portsmouth, NH 03801; telephone (603) 431-2300. 
Requests for special accommodations should be addressed to the New 
England Fishery Management Council, 50 Water Street, Mill 2, 
Newburyport, MA 01950; telephone (978) 465-0492.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul J. Howard, Executive Director, 
New England Fishery Management Council (978) 465-0492.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Wednesday, June 14, 2000

    After introductions, the meeting will begin with a report from the 
Chairman of the Council's Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) Committee (committee). The 
committee will seek Council guidance on issues to be considered for the 
development of comments during the Magnuson-Stevens Act reauthorization 
process and may ask for approval of preliminary draft comments. This 
agenda item will be followed by two presentations to be discussed by 
NMFS staff: An overview of the Vessel Monitoring System Program in the 
Northeast; and Applications of Vessel Monitoring Systems for Improved 
Fisheries Science and Management. Amendment 10 to the Atlantic Sea 
Scallop Fishery Management Plan (FMP) and related topics will be 
discussed during the second half of the day. The Scallop Committee will 
present proposed Amendment 10 management alternatives. Alternatives 
selected for further development will be analyzed in terms of their 
scallop, habitat, bycatch, gear conflict, enforcement, and social and 
economic impacts in a Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact 
Statement. Under consideration are proposals for: Rotational area 
management (which would also require a re-estimation of the overfishing 
definition reference points, consistent with the expected change in 
size selection and other factors); a requirement for scallop nets to be 
modified to achieve the same selectivity and/or equivalent fishing 
mortality as dredges; a change in the fishing year and the annual 
review process; and possibly adjusting the present crew size limits. 
The Scallop Committee also will provide an update on the development of 
the annual adjustment to management measures for the FMP (Framework 
Adjustment 14) scheduled to take effect in March 2001.

Thursday, June 15, 2000

    The second day of the meeting will begin with reports on recent 
activities from the Council Chairman, Executive Director, the Regional 
Administrator, Northeast Region, NMFS (Regional Administrator), 
Northeast Fisheries Science Center and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management 
Council liaisons, and representatives of the Coast Guard, NMFS 
Enforcement, and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission.

Announcement of Experimental Fishery Application

    The Regional Administrator will discuss, during the reports portion 
of the agenda, the receipt of an experimental fishing proposal 
submitted by the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries (MADMF) for 
which the issuance of Exempted Fishing Permits (EFPs) is required. The 
Regional Administrator has made a preliminary determination that the 
application is complete and warrants further consideration. The public 
may comment during the discussion at the Council meeting, or may submit 
comments in writing. Written comments must be received by June 15, 
2000, and should be submitted to: Patricia Kurkul, Regional 
Administrator, NMFS, Northeast Regional Office, 1 Blackburn Drive, 
Gloucester, MA 01930. Written comments may be submitted by facsimile 
(fax) to (978) 281-9135, but may not be submitted via e-mail or the 
Internet. The proposal is summarized here.
    The MADMF proposes to continue the work they conducted beginning in 
1997 to show that small-mesh whiting fishing with a raised footrope 
trawl configuration can effectively target whiting in areas east of 
Cape Cod. The experimental area, formerly referred to as Area 3 during 
the 1999 experiment, is proposed to be modified this year by shifting 
the western boundary farther west to the port of Chatham, MA (see 
coordinates below).

 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
           Point Number                  Latitude          Longitude
------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.................................      42 deg.14.05'      70 deg.08.80'
7.................................      42 deg.09.20'      69 deg.47.80'
8.................................      41 deg.54.85'      69 deg.35.20'
9.................................      41 deg.41.50'      69 deg.32.85'
10................................      41 deg.39.00'      69 deg.44.30'
11................................      41 deg.45.60'      69 deg.51.80'
12................................      41 deg.52.30'      69 deg.52.55'
13................................      41 deg.55.50'      69 deg.53.45'
4.................................      42 deg.14.05'      70 deg.08.80'
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    This change in area would likely expand the participating fleet and 
improve our understanding of bycatch levels in the area through 
increased data collection and gear experimentation. The industry 
cooperative experiment is proposed to take place from September 1 to 
December 30, 2000. The experiment is likely to involve approximately 20 
vessels; 5 vessels in the early part of the season (September through 
November) and an additional 15 beginning in late November through to 
December 2000. Enrollment would be established by the MADMF similar to 
last year, when historical participation and previous experience with 
the raised footope trawl gear operation played a role in the selection 
process conducted by the MADMF. It is expected that 100 percent of the 
participants would be vessels from Chatham, MA, during the early part 
of the season beginning in September through to October. In November 
and December, it is expected that approximately 50 percent of the 
participants would be from the ports of Gloucester and Provincetown, 
MA, with the remaining vessels continuing to be from Chatham. The 
purpose of the experimental fishery is to document bycatch levels in 
this area. If they are below the 5-percent regulated multispecies 
bycatch standard, the fishery could be found to be an exempted fishery.

[[Page 34635]]

    The Council approved an exemption request for an area comprising 
the experimental Areas 2B and 4 under Framework 35 to the Northeast 
Fishery Management Plan (Framework 35). The MADMF did not request that 
Area 3 be included in the exemption due to the low sample size and 
inconclusive data results from previous year's experiments. Therefore, 
this year's experiment proposes to increase the sampling size (fleet 
size expansion) and improve the confidence level of data on bycatch of 
regulated multispecies, overall effort, species composition and gear 
performance.
    The MADMF has stated that the gear specifications would be 
identical to those approved under Framework 35, including the minimum 
mesh size requirement of 2.5 inches (6.35 cm), the headrope, ground 
gear, footrope and drop chains settings and configurations, option to 
use the sweepless trawl, and a prohibition on use of net strengtheners. 
Also, net possession restrictions would be amended to allow fishermen 
to leave their large-mesh groundfish net aboard the vessel (in addition 
to the small mesh raised footrope trawl) when enrolled in the fishery.
    The area defined by the MADMF for the experiment overlaps a portion 
of the Gulf of Maine Rolling Closure Area V (Rolling Closure Area) from 
October 1--November 30, 2000. NMFS is also requesting comments on 
MADMF's request that participants in the experimental fishery be 
allowed to fish in the Rolling Closure Area. The MADMF hopes that this 
overlap would help define a continuous exemption area including the 
area proposed in Framework 35 and the area proposed in this experiment.
    The MADMF personnel would sea sample approximately 10-20 percent of 
the total trips during the course of the experimental fishery season; 
September through December of 2000. In addition, participants would be 
required to record catch information on a tow-by-tow basis on MADMF-
supplied logs and submit all logs weekly to MADMF. If bycatch problems 
should develop, MADMF would take the appropriate remedial actions to 
amend the problem, as they have in past years.
    EFPs would be issued to participating federally permitted whiting 
vessels to exempt them from DAS, mesh size and other gear restrictions 
required as part of the Northeast Multispecies FMP during the specified 
season.
    Following reports and consideration of the experimental fishery 
proposal, the Groundfish Committee will report on the development of 
Amendment 13 to the Northeast Multispecies FMP. The Habitat Committee 
will report during the afternoon session. Included will be a 
presentation on the 2000 Habitat Annual Review Report, discussion and 
possible approval of recommendations concerning the establishment of 
one or more dedicated habitat research areas, and review and possible 
approval of a letter to the Minerals Management Service about proposed 
sand mining off the New Jersey coast.
    Prior to addressing any other outstanding business, the Capacity 
and Herring Committees will update the Council on their most recent 
activities.
    Although other non-emergency issues not contained in this agenda 
may come before this Council for discussion, those issues may not be 
the subject of formal action during this meeting. Council 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 Act, 
provided the public has been notified of the Council's intent to take 
final action to address the emergency.
    The New England Council will consider public comments at a minimum 
of two Council meetings before making recommendations to the Regional 
Administrator on any framework adjustment to a fishery management plan. 
If she concurs with the adjustment proposed by the Council, the 
Regional Administrator has the discretion to publish the action either 
as proposed or final regulations in the Federal Register. Documents 
pertaining to framework adjustments are available for public review 7 
days prior to a final vote by the Council.

Special Accommodations

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

    Dated: May 24, 2000.
Richard W. Surdi,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 00-13569 Filed 5-30-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F