55786 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 208 / Tuesday, October 28, 1997 / Notices

ACTION: Notice of advisory group

meetings scheduled in November, 1997.

SUMMARY: The North Pacific Fishery

Management Council’s (Council) Vessel

Bycatch Accountability (VBA)

Committee and Gulf of Alaska and

Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands groundfish

plan teams will hold meetings in

November in Seattle, WA.

DATES: The VBA Committee will meet

Friday, November 14, 1997, beginning at

8:00 a.m.

The groundfish plan teams will meet

November 17–21, 1997, beginning at

1:00 p.m. on Monday, November 17.

ADDRESSES: VBA Committee: Nordby

Conference Center, Suite A, Fishermen’s

Terminal, 1711 W. Nickerson, Seattle,

WA.

Plan teams: Alaska Fisheries Science

Center, 7600 Sand Point Way NE.,

Building 4, Room 2079, Seattle, WA.

Council address: North Pacific

Fishery Management Council, 605 W.

4th Ave., Suite 306, Anchorage, AK

99501–2252.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Dave Witherell, telephone: 907–271–

2809.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

1. The VBA Committee will further

define options of a vessel bycatch

accountability program, with emphasis

on initial and annual allocations.

2. The groundfish plan teams will

review any new stock assessment

information and catch statistics, prepare

final stock assessment documents for

the 1998 groundfish fisheries in the Gulf

of Alaska and Bering Sea/Aleutian

Islands, and prepare recommendations

for acceptable biological catches for

individual species. The teams will also

discuss streamlining the process of

setting annual total allowable catches

and review research needs and

priorities.

Although other issues not contained

in this agenda may come before the

Committee or Plan Teams for

discussion, in accordance with the

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery

Conservation and Management Act,

those issues may not be the subject of

formal action during the meetings.

Committee or Plan Team action will be

restricted to those issues specifically

identified in the agenda listed in this

notice.

Special Accommodations

These meetings are physically

accessible to people with disabilities.

Requests for sign language

interpretation or other auxiliary aids

should be directed to Helen Allen, 907–

271–2809, at least 5 working days prior

to the meeting date.

Dated: October 21, 1997.

Richard W. Surdi,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 97–28443 Filed 10-27-97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

[I.D. 101597C]

Western Pacific Fishery Management

Council; Public Meetings

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of public meetings.

SUMMARY: The Western Pacific Fishery

Management Council (Council) and its

committees will hold public meetings in

Honolulu, HI. Prior to the Council

meeting, the Council’s Scientific and

Statistical Committee (SSC) will hold its

67th meeting.

DATES: The meetings will be held on

November 10–14, 1997. See

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for specific

dates and times.

ADDRESSES: The SSC meeting will be

held at the Council office, 1164 Bishop

Street, Suite 1400, Honolulu, HI;

telephone: (808) 522–8220. The 94th

Council meeting will be held at the Ala

Moana Hotel, 410 Atkinson Dr., Garden

Lanai and Hibiscus Ballroom, Honolulu,

HI; telephone: (808) 955–4811.

Council address: Western Pacific

Fishery Management Council, 1164

Bishop St., Suite 1400, Honolulu, HI

96813.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Kitty M. Simonds, Executive Director;

telephone: (808) 522–8220.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The SSC

meeting will be held on November 10–

11, 1997, from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.,

each day. The Council’s Standing

Committees will meet on November 12,

1997, as follows:

7:30 a.m. to 9:00 a.m.—Enforcement

8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.—Crustaceans

9:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.—Vessel

Monitoring System (VMS)

10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.—Pelagics

and Bottomfish

1:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.—Indigenous

Fishing Rights and Ecosystem & Habitat

3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.—Precious

Corals and Executive/Budget &

Programing

The full Council will meet on

November 13–14, 1997, from 9:00 a.m.

to 5:00 p.m., each day.

The SSC and Council will discuss and

take final action on an amendment to

establish a framework process for future

management of precious corals

(including public hearings). This will

also be the first meeting under the

framework procedure for pelagic fishery

management changes for the American

Samoa longline fishery regarding closed

areas and a limited access program.

Other agenda items that the Council

will discuss and may take action on

include:

1. Pelagic fishery issues, including a)

status of longline fisheries in Hawaii

and American Samoa, b) international

meetings addressing the management

arrangements for highly migratory

species, and c) protected species

interaction/incidental take issues

(turtles, sharks, albatross).

2. Bottomfish fishery issues, including

a) status of the State’s management plan

focusing on monitoring and

enforcement components, for overfished

Main Hawaiian Islands (MHI) onaga and

ehu, b) consideration of the Federal

management alternatives for the

recovery of overfished MHI onaga and

ehu including a draft plan amendment,

c) draft amendment for the limited

access program for the Mau Zone in the

Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI)

including a public hearing, and d)

update on armorhead fishery in the

NWHI;

3. Crustacean fishery issues, including

regulatory adjustments for 1998, such as

allowing VMS carrying vessels to return

directly back to port via the permit

subzone, adding the month of May to

the closed season of the main Hawaiian

Islands lobster fishery within Federal

waters, allowing vessels to temporarily

leave fishing gear on the banks, opening

the season one month earlier on 1 June,

creating separate species and fishing

bank quotas, providing fishermen with

at least 24 hours notice before the close

of the fishery, and announcing the

harvest guideline 90 days after season

closure;

4. Ecosystem and habitat issues,

including a) consider the need for a

coral reef fishery management plan, b)

Essential Fish Habitat amendment and

National Environmental Policy Act

requirements, and c) Commonwealth of

the Northern Mariana Islands Farallon

de Mendinilla bombing issue;

5. Precious coral issues, including a)

status of the fisheries, and b)

consistency between state and Federal

regulations;

6. Native rights and indigenous

fishing issues, including the status of

Demonstration Projects and Community

Development Programs;
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 208 / Tuesday, October 28, 1997 / Notices 55787

7. Enforcement and VMS issues,

including a) reports from the U.S. Coast

Guard and NMFS Enforcement, b) status

of violations, and c) possible changes to

the Council’s VMS policy;

8. Program planning and

administrative issues, including a)

Council milestones for 2000–2003, b)

Standard Operating Practices and

Procedure revision, c) election of

officers, and d) meetings and

workshops; and

9. Other business as required.

Although other issues not contained

in this agenda may come before this

Council for discussion, in accordance

with the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery

Conservation and Management Act,

those issues may not be the subject of

formal Council action during this

meeting. Council action will be

restricted to those issues specifically

identified in the agenda listed in this

notice.

Special Accommodations

These meetings are physically

accessible to people with disabilities.

Requests for sign language

interpretation or other auxiliary aids

should be directed to Kitty M. Simonds,

(808) 522–8220 (voice) or (808) 522–

8226 (fax), at least 5 days prior to

meeting date.

Dated: October 21, 1997.

Richard W. Surdi,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 97–28442 Filed 10-27-97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

[102197B]

Marine Mammals; Permit No. 837 (P77–

1#67)

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Scientific research permit

amendment.

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that a

request for amendment of scientific

research permit no. 837 submitted by

The National Marine Mammal

Laboratory, Alaska Fisheries Science

Center, NMFS, NOAA, 7600 Sand Point

Way NE., BIN C15700, Seattle,

Washington 98115, has been granted.

ADDRESSES: The amendment and related

documents are available for review

upon written request or by appointment

in the following office(s):

Permits and Documentation Division,

Office of Protected Resources, NMFS,

1315 East-West Highway, Room 13130,

Silver Spring, MD 20910 (301/713–

2289); and

Alaska Region, NMFS, P.O. Box

21668, Juneau, AK 99802–1668.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On

September 12, 1997, notice was

published in the Federal Register (62

FR 48062) that an amendment of permit

no. 837, issued June 4, 1993 (58 FR

33085), had been requested by the

above-named organization. The original

permit authorized studies on northern

fur seals (Callorhinus ursinus) over a

five-year period on rookeries in the

Bering Sea and eastern North Pacific

Ocean. The requested amendment has

been granted under the authority of the

Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972,

as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), the

provisions of § 216.39 of the Regulations

Governing the Taking and Importing of

Marine Mammals (50 CFR part 216), and

the Fur Seal Act of 1966, as amended

(16 U.S.C. 1151 et seq.).

The permit was amended to authorize

the following increased takings of

northern fur seals (Callorhinus ursinus):

To collect biopsy samples from 30

additional females on St. Paul and 30

additional females on St. George

Islands. The total number of females to

be biopsy sampled on both St. Paul and

St. George will increase to 180 (90 on

each island).

Dated: October 20, 1997.

Ann Terbush,

Chief, Permits and Documentation Division,

Office of Protected Resources, National

Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 97–28439 Filed 10-27-97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

[I.D.092697B]

Marine Mammals; Scientific Research

Permit No. 1016 (P167H)

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Receipt of application for

amendment.

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that

Ann E. Bowles, Ph.D., Senior Research

Biologist, Hubbs-Sea World Research

Institute, 2595 Ingraham Street, San

Diego, California 92109, has requested

an amendment to Permit No. 1016.

DATES: Written comments must be

received on or before November 27,

1997.

ADDRESSES: The application and related

documents are available for review

upon written request or by appointment

in the following office(s):

Permits Division, Office of Protected

Resources, NMFS, 1315 East-West

Highway, Room 13130, Silver Spring,

MD 20910 (301/713-2289); and

Regional Administrator, Southwest

Region, 501 West Ocean Boulevard,

Suite 4200, Long Beach, CA 90802-4213

(310/980-4001).

Written data or views, or requests for

a public hearing on this request, should

be submitted to the Director, Office of

Protected Resources, NMFS, 1315 EastWest Highway, Room 13130, Silver

Spring, MD 20910. Those individuals

requesting a hearing should set forth the

specific reasons why a hearing on this

application would be appropriate.

Concurrent with the publication of

this notice in the Federal Register,

NMFS is forwarding copies of this

application to the Marine Mammal

Commission and its Committee of

Scientific Advisors.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

subject permit is requested under the

authority of the Marine Mammal

Protection Act of 1972, as amended (16

U.S.C. 1361 et seq.) and the Regulations

Governing the Taking and Importing of

Marine Mammals (50 CFR part 216).

Permit No. 1016 authorizes the

permittee to harass several species of

stranded rehabilitated and permanently

captive pinnipeds and small cetaceans

in order to measure their interaction

with fishing gear and to determine the

effect of introducing an auditory

stimulus (i.e., pinger) on responses. The

research is authorized to be conducted

over a five year period. The permittee is

now requesting to: add 2 pinger trials

and 2 net trials with 14 of the 18

California sea lions (Zalophus

californianus) currently authorized to be

involved in motivational state trials; and

increase the number of California sea

lions to be used in the naive trials from

30 to 40.

In compliance with the National

Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42

U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), an initial

determination has been made that the

activity proposed is categorically

excluded from the requirement to

prepare an environmental assessment or

environmental impact statement.