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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 231 (Monday, December 2, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 95187-95188]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-28208]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Draft Revised Management Plan for the Narragansett Bay National 
Estuarine Research Reserve

AGENCY: Office for Coastal Management, National Ocean Service, National 
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is 
soliciting comments from the public regarding a proposed revision of 
the management plan for the Narragansett Bay National Estuarine 
Research Reserve (NBNERR). A management plan provides a framework to 
guide a reserve's programs, track progress toward meeting its goals, 
and identify potential opportunities or changes in direction. It is 
also used to guide programmatic evaluations. Management plan revisions 
are required at least every

[[Page 95188]]

five years. This draft, revised management plan is intended to replace 
the NBNERR management plan approved in 2010.

DATES: Comments must be received at the appropriate address (see 
ADDRESSES) on or before January 2, 2025.

ADDRESSES: The draft revised management plan can be downloaded or 
viewed at: http://nbnerr.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/NBNERR_ManagementPlan_DRAFT_PublicComment.pdf. It is also available by 
sending a written request to the point of contact identified below (see 
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
    You may submit comments by email to [email protected]. Include 
``Comments on draft Narragansett Bay National Estuarine Research 
Reserve Management Plan'' in the subject line of the message. NOAA will 
accept anonymous comments; however, the written comments NOAA receives 
are considered part of the public record, and the entirety of the 
comment, including the name of the commenter, email address, 
attachments, and other supporting materials, will be publicly 
accessible. Sensitive, personally identifiable information, such as 
account numbers and Social Security numbers, should not be included. 
Comments that are not related to the management plan for NBNERR, or 
that contain profanity, vulgarity, threats, or other inappropriate 
language, will not be considered.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Claudia Mazur, [email protected], 
or Betsy Nicholson, [email protected], (617-894-0197) of NOAA's 
Office for Coastal Management.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to 15 CFR 921.33(c), Rhode Island 
must revise the management plan for NBNERR at least every five years. 
If approved by NOAA, the revised management plan will replace the plan 
previously approved in 2010.
    Management plans outline a reserve's strategic goals and 
objectives; administrative structure; programs for conducting research 
and monitoring, education, and training; resource protection, 
restoration, and manipulation plans; public access and visitor use 
plans; consideration for future land acquisition; and facility 
development to support reserve operations. In particular, this draft 
revised plan for NBNERR provides information on new staff positions and 
new staff hired, and describes the reserve's updated position within 
the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management.
    Since the last management plan, NBNERR has secured a land 
acquisition and expanded its boundary. Additionally, the updated plan 
describes strategic goals and objectives and identifies topic areas 
where additional planning will be conducted to identify and develop new 
goals and objectives over the next five years. The revised management 
plan, once approved, would serve as the guiding document for the 
reserve for the next five years.
    NOAA's Office for Coastal Management analyzes the environmental 
impacts of the proposed approval of this management plan in accordance 
with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), as amended, 
42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq., and the Council on Environmental Quality 
Regulations for Implementing the Procedural Provisions of NEPA (40 CFR 
1500-1508 (2022). The public is invited to comment on the draft revised 
management plan. NOAA will take these comments into consideration when 
deciding whether to approve the revised management plan in whole or in 
part.
    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.; 15 CFR 921.33.

Keelin S. Kuipers,
Deputy Director, Office for Coastal Management, National Ocean Service, 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
[FR Doc. 2024-28208 Filed 11-29-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-08-P
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