8914 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 38 / Friday, February 27, 2009 / Notices 

longline or gillnet gear must attend a 

Protected Species Safe Handling, 

Release, and Identification Workshop 

and submit a copy of their workshop 

certificate before either of the permits 

will be issued. 

In addition to certifying permit 

holders, all longline and gillnet vessel 

operators fishing on a vessel issued a 

limited access swordfish or limited 

access shark permit are required to 

attend a Protected Species Safe 

Handling, Release, and Identification 

Workshop and receive a certificate. The 

certificate(s) are valid for three years. 

Vessels that have been issued a limited 

access swordfish or limited access shark 

permit may not fish unless both the 

vessel owner and operator have valid 

workshop certificates onboard at all 

times. Approximately 60 free Protected 

Species Safe Handling, Release, and 

Identification Workshops have been 

conducted since 2006. 

Workshop Dates, Times, and Locations 

1. April 22, 2009, from 9 a.m.–5 p.m., 

Holiday Inn, 151 Route 72 East, 

Manahawkin, NJ 08050. 

2. April 29, 2009, from 9 a.m.–5 p.m., 

Hilton Garden Inn, 1101 North Highway 

231, Panama City, FL 32405. 

3. May 6, 2009, from 9 a.m.–5 p.m., 

Hilton Garden Inn, 5353 North Virginia 

Dare Trail, Kitty Hawk, NC 27949. 

4. May 20, 2009, from 9 a.m.–5 p.m., 

Princess Bayside Hotel, 4801 Coastal 

Highway, Ocean City, MD 21842. 

5. June 17, 2009, from 9 a.m.–5 p.m., 

Holiday Inn, 99701 Overseas Highway, 

Key Largo, FL 33037. 

6. June 24, 2009, from 9 a.m.–5 p.m., 

Holiday Inn, 8611 Airport Boulevard, 

Houston, TX 77061. 

Registration 

To register for a scheduled Protected 

Species Safe Handling, Release, and 

Identification Workshop, please contact 

Angler Conservation Education at (877) 

411–4272, 1640 Mason Avenue, 

Daytona Beach, FL 32117. 

Registration Materials 

To ensure that workshop certificates 

are linked to the correct permits, 

participants will need to bring the 

following items with them to the 

workshop: 

Individual vessel owners must bring a 

copy of the appropriate permit(s), a 

copy of the vessel registration or 

documentation, and proof of 

identification. 

Representatives of a business owned 

or co-owned vessel must bring proof 

that the individual is an agent of the 

business (such as articles of 

incorporation), a copy of the applicable 

permit(s), and proof of identification. 

Vessel operators must bring proof of 

identification. 

Workshop Objectives 

The protected species safe handling, 

release, and identification workshops 

are designed to teach longline and 

gillnet fishermen the required 

techniques for the safe handling and 

release of entangled and/or hooked 

protected species, such as sea turtles, 

marine mammals, and smalltooth 

sawfish. The proper identification of 

protected species will also be taught at 

these workshops in an effort to improve 

reporting. Additionally, individuals 

attending these workshops will gain a 

better understanding of the 

requirements for participating in these 

fisheries. The overall goal of these 

workshops is to provide participants 

with the skills needed to reduce the 

mortality of protected species, which 

may prevent additional regulations on 

these fisheries in the future. 

Grandfathered Permit Holders 

Participants in the industry-sponsored 

workshops on safe handling and release 

of sea turtles that were held in Orlando, 

FL (April 8, 2005) and in New Orleans, 

LA (June 27, 2005) were issued a NOAA 

workshop certificate in December 2006 

that is valid for three years. These 

workshop certificates may be expiring 

in 2009. Vessel owners and operators 

whose certificates expire prior to permit 

renewal in 2009 must attend a 

workshop, successfully complete the 

course, and obtain a new certificate in 

order to renew their limited access 

shark and limited access swordfish 

permits. Failure to provide a valid 

NOAA workshop certificate could result 

in a permit denial. 

Dated: February 24, 2009. 

Emily H. Menashes, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E9–4283 Filed 2–26–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Telecommunications and 

Information Administration 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMISSION 

Notice: American Recovery and 

Reinvestment Act of 2009 Broadband 

Initiatives 

AGENCY: National Telecommunications 

and Information Administration, U.S. 

Department of Commerce; Rural 

Development, U.S. Department of 

Agriculture; Federal Communications 

Commission 

ACTION: Joint Notice of Public Meeting 

SUMMARY: The National 

Telecommunications and Information 

Administration (NTIA), U.S. 

Department of Agriculture’s Office of 

Rural Development, and Federal 

Communications Commission (FCC) 

will host a public meeting on March 10, 

2009, in connection with the Broadband 

Initiatives funded by the American 

Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, 

Public Law No. 111-5. 

DATES: The meeting will be held on 

March 10, 2009, from 10:00 a.m. to 

11:30 a.m., Eastern Standard Time. 

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at 

the U.S. Department of Commerce, 

National Telecommunications and 

Information Administration, 1401 

Constitution Avenue, N.W., 

Auditorium, Washington, D.C. (Please 

enter at 14th Street.) The disability 

accessible entrance is located at the 14th 

Street Aquarium Entrance. The meeting 

location is subject to change. Any 

change in the location will be posted on 

NTIA’s website (www.ntia.doc.gov) 

prior to the meeting. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

further information regarding the 

meeting, contact Barbara Brown, NTIA, 

at (202) 482–4374 or 

bbrown@ntia.doc.gov or Mary 

Campanola, Rural Development, at 

(202)-720-8822 or 

mary.campanola@usda.gov or Christi 

Shewman, FCC, at (202) 418-1686 or 

christi.shewman@fcc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

American Recovery and Reinvestment 

Act of 2009 was signed into law on 

February 17, 2009. The Broadband 

Initiatives funded in the Act are 

intended to accelerate broadband 

deployment in unserved, underserved, 

and rural areas and to strategic 

institutions that are likely to create jobs 


rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES2
Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 38 / Friday, February 27, 2009 / Notices 8915 

or provide significant public benefits. 

NTIA, Rural Development, and the 

Federal Communications Commission 

will host a public meeting to discuss the 

broadband initiatives funded by the Act, 

including the new Broadband 

Technology Opportunities Program, the 

new Rural Development Broadband 

Program, and the development of a 

National Broadband Plan. The public 

meeting agenda and information about 

the new program will be available at 

NTIA’s website at http:// 

www.ntia.doc.gov/broadbandgrants, 

Rural Development’s website at http:// 

www.usda.gov/rurdev, and the FCC’s 

website at http://www.fcc.gov. This will 

be the first of several Public Meetings. 

Public attendance at the meeting is 

limited to space available. The meeting 

will be physically accessible to people 

with disabilities. Individuals requesting 

accommodations, such as sign language 

interpretation or other ancillary aids, are 

asked to indicate this to Barbara Brown 

at least two (2) days prior to the 

meeting. Members of the public will 

have an opportunity to ask questions at 

the meeting. The meeting will be 

streamed on the Web with captions and 

the archive will be made available on 

NTIA’s website at http:// 

www.ntia.doc.gov/broadbandgrants and 

Rural Development’s website at http:// 

www.usda/rurdev. 

Dated: February 23, 2009. 

Bernadette McGuire-Rivera, 

Associate Administrator, Office of 

Telecommunications and Information 

Applications. 

Dated: February 23, 2009. 

David P. Grahn, 

Associate General Counsel, Rural 

Development. 

Dated: February 23, 2009. 

P. Michele Ellison, 

Acting General Counsel, Federal 

Communications Commission. 

[FR Doc. E9–4194 Filed 2–26–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–60–S 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Department of the Army; Corps of 

Engineers 

Notice of Availability of the Record of 

Decision for the Final Environmental 

Impact Statement for the Brazos River 

Harbor Navigation District’s (Port 

Freeport) Proposed Widening of the 

Freeport Harbor Ship Channel 

AGENCY: Department of the Army, U.S. 

Army Corps of Engineers, DOD. 

ACTION: Notice of availability. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of 

Engineers, Galveston District announces 

the availability of the Record of 

Decision (ROD), for the Final 

Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) 

for the Port Freeport’s proposal to widen 

the Freeport Harbor Ship Channel. The 

FEIS was made available for public 

review and comment on January 11, 

2008. Comments received during the 

FEIS comment period are addressed in 

the ROD. The ROD discloses the 

decision to issue a Department of the 

Army permit for the proposed project. 

DATES: The waiting period for the FEIS 

ended February 11, 2008. The ROD was 

signed on February 3, 2009. 

ADDRESSES: Questions about this action 

may be addressed to the USACE, 

Galveston District, Attn: Sam J. Watson, 

P.O. Box 1229, Galveston, TX 77553– 

1229; or by calling 409–766–3946. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Authority: This Federal Action is in 

consideration of a Department of the 

Army Permit application for work under 

Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act 

of 1899 (33 U.S.C. 403), Section 404 of 

the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 1344) 

and Section 103 of the Marine 

Protection and Sanctuaries Act 

(MPRSA) (33 U.S.C. 1413). 

Background: In April 2005, Port of 

Freeport submitted a Department of 

Army Permit Application to widen 

portions of the Freeport Harbor Jetty 

Channel and all of the Freeport Harbor 

Entrance Channel from 400 feet (ft) to 

600 ft. It was determined that an 

Environmental Impact Statement would 

be required for the proposed project. 

Since the November 29, 2005 Scoping 

Meeting, the consulting firm of PBS&J, 

under the direction of the Galveston 

District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 

(USACE), prepared an Environmental 

Impact Statement for the proposed 

project. The ROD is now available to the 

public. 

Availability of the ROD: The ROD for 

the proposed Freeport Channel 

Widening project is being made 

available to Federal, State, and local 

agencies and all interested parties. The 

ROD can be viewed or downloaded at: 

http://www.swg.usace.army.mil/reg/. 

Location: The project is located in the 

Freeport Harbor Channel, Brazoria 

County, TX. Specifically, the project site 

is located along the northern edge of the 

Freeport Harbor Jetty and Entrance 

Channels, between the towns of 

Surfside and Quintana, TX. The project 

can be located on the U.S. Geological 

Survey quadrangle map entitled 

Freeport, TX. Approximate UTM 

Coordinates: NAD 83, UTM 14N, 

861095.730029, 3206475.762543. 

Project Description: The project 

includes widening the Freeport Harbor 

Jetty Channel beginning at Channel 

Station 63+35 with a gradual widening, 

at the authorized depth, up to an 

additional 150 feet (ft) for about 1,835 

ft to Channel Station 45+00. From that 

point to Channel Station 40+00 the 

widening would be less gradual from 

the additional 150 ft to an additional 

200 ft. Through the rest of the Jetty 

Channel and to the end of the Freeport 

Harbor Entrance Channel (Channel 

Station ¥260+00), the channel would 

be widened an additional 200 ft. The 

length of channel proposed for 

widening is about 6.1 miles, of which 

5.7 miles would be widened by 200 ft. 

The project depth will remain at the 

authorized depth of 45 ft in the Jetty 

Channel and 47 ft in the Entrance 

Channel. The widening would generate 

approximately 3.2 million cubic yards 

(mcy) of new work dredged material. 

Approximately 2.9 mcy of the new work 

material would consist of clay material 

and about 300,000 cubic yards (cy) 

would consist of silty/sand material. 

The ocean dredged material disposal 

sites (ODMDS) previously designated 

for the existing Freeport Harbor Ship 

Channel, would be used for placement 

of the 2.9 mcy of clay/silt material and 

maintenance material. The 300,000 cy of 

silty/sand material would be used 

beneficially and placed on Quintana 

Beach in front of the Seaway upland 

confined placement area. 

Brenda S. Bowen, 

Army Federal Register Liaison Officer. 

[FR Doc. E9–4197 Filed 2–26–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3720–58–P 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Department of the Army; Corps of 

Engineers 

Final Supplement to the Environmental 

Impact Statement To Evaluate 

Construction of Authorized 

Improvements to the Gulfport Harbor 

Federal Navigation Project in Harrison 

County, MS 

AGENCY: Department of the Army, U.S. 

Army Corps of Engineers, DoD. 

ACTION: Notice of availability. 

SUMMARY: This notice of availability 

announces the public release of the 

Final Supplement to the Environmental 

Impact Statement (SEIS) to evaluate 

construction of authorized 

improvements to the Gulfport Harbor 

Federal navigation project in Harrison 

County, MS. The Mobile District, U.S. 

Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) 


rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES2