Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 143 / Monday, July 27, 1998 / Notices 40103

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Caribbean Fishery Management Council,

268 Munoz Rivera Avenue, Suite 1108,

San Juan, Puerto Rico 00918–2577;

telephone: (787) 766–5926; fax: (787)

766–6239.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

Caribbean Fishery Management Council

will hold its 94th regular public meeting

to discuss the Draft Amendment

Number 1 to the Fishery Management

Plan for Corals and Reef Associated

Plants and Invertebrates of Puerto Rico

and the United States Virgin Islands for

Establishing a Marine Conservation

District. The Council will be taking final

action on the establishing of a proposed

‘‘no-take’’ marine conservation district

in the exclusive economic zone, U.S.V.I.

The Administrative Committee will

meet on Tuesday, August 11, 1998, from

2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., to discuss

administrative matters regarding

Council operation.

The Council will convene on

Wednesday, August 12, 1998, from 9:00

a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and on Thursday

August February 13, 1998, from 9:00

a.m. till noon, approximately.

The meetings are open to the public,

and will be conducted in English.

Fishers and other interested persons are

invited to attend and participate with

oral and written statements regarding

agenda issues.

Although other issues not contained

in this agenda may come before the

Council 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.

Action will be restricted to those issues

specifically identified in this notice.

Special Accommodations

These meetings are physically

accessible to people with disabilities.

For more information or requests for

sign language interpretation or other

auxiliary aids, please contact Mr.

Miguel A. Rolon at the Council (see FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT for

address) at least 5 days prior to the

meeting dates.

Dated: July 20, 1998.

Gary C. Matlock,

Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries,

National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 98–19990 Filed 7–24–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

[I.D. 071498A]

Incidental Taking of Marine Mammals;

Acoustic Harassment

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of workshop on acoustic

criteria.

SUMMARY: NMFS announces that it will

convene a panel of independent experts

in marine acoustics to discuss various

technical aspects of the problem of

marine mammals and anthropogenic

noise. While the proceedings are open

to the general public for observation, the

public’s ability to interact with the

expert panel will be limited to specified

times during the proceedings.

DATES: The workshop will be held

September 9 through September 11,

1998, from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. each day.

ADDRESSES: The Workshop will be held

at the Silver Spring Metro Center

Building 4, NOAA Science Center, 1301

East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Roger Gentry or Kenneth R.

Hollingshead, Office of Protected

Resources, NMFS, telephone (301) 713–

2055.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Anthropogenic sounds in the marine

environment are increasing over the

span of decades, with possible adverse

impacts on the marine biota, in

particular marine mammals. These

sounds come from shipping, military

(and civilian) explosives, seismic

profiling (both oil and gas exploration

and for seismic/geological hazards),

government, commercial, and private

sonars, dredging, drilling and pile

driving, military activities, use of

acoustic deterrence, and some scientific

research. Some sounds may be loud

enough to cause physical injury to

marine mammals. The Marine Mammal

Protection Act (MMPA) defines ‘‘take’’

to include ‘‘harass.’’ Harassment

includes a disturbance or a disruption of

behavioral patterns, including

migration, breathing, nursing, breeding,

feeding, or sheltering (16 U.S.C.

1362(18)). While it is clear that certain

takings (e.g., those that cause serious

injury or mortality or result in large

scale displacements of a marine

mammal population) require an

authorization under the MMPA (unless

exempted), it is less clear what level of

anthropogenic sounds might cause

behavioral modification or affect

hearing sufficient to require

authorizations under the MMPA and the

Endangered Species Act. Additionally,

at this time scientific data

demonstrating that certain sounds result

in the harassment of marine mammals

are lacking, and it is not known to what

extent NMFS should apply data from

surrogate species to marine mammals.

The workshop will consist of experts

in the fields of animal bioacoustics,

underwater sound, and animal behavior.

The workshop will consider whether

different criteria are needed for

explosions, pulsed sound, intermittent

sound, and continuous sound, the

preferred units in which to report these

levels, and other approaches as

alternatives to proximity for estimating

the effects of sound on marine

mammals.

Dated: July 21, 1998.

Patricia A. Montanio,

Deputy Director, Office of Protected

Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 98–19992 Filed 7–24–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

[I.D. 071598G]

South Atlantic Fishery Management

Council; Public Meeting

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

SUMMARY: The South Atlantic Fishery

Management Council (Council) will

hold joint meetings of its Habitat

Committee and Coral Advisory Panel

and its Habitat and Environmental

Protection Advisory Panel.

DATES: The meetings will be held from

August 11-13, 1998. See SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION for specific dates and

times.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at

the Town & Country Inn, 2008

Savannah Highway, Charleston, SC;

telephone: (843) 571-1000.

Council address: South Atlantic

Fishery Management Council, One

Southpark Circle, Suite 306; Charleston,

SC 29407-4699.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Susan Buchanan, Public Information

Officer; telephone: (843) 571-4366; fax:

(843) 769-4520; email:

susan.buchanan@noaa.gov