42792 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 148 / Thursday, August 5, 2021 / Notices 

activity proposed is categorically 

excluded from the requirement to 

prepare an environmental assessment or 

environmental impact statement. 

Concurrent with the publication of 

this notice in the Federal Register, 

NMFS is forwarding copies of the 

application to the Marine Mammal 

Commission and its Committee of 

Scientific Advisors. 

Dated: August 2, 2021. 

Amy Sloan, 

Acting Chief, Permits and Conservation 

Division, Office of Protected Resources, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2021–16743 Filed 8–4–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XB290] 

Pacific Island Fisheries; Marine 

Conservation Plan for American 

Samoa; Western Pacific Sustainable 

Fisheries Fund 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of agency decision. 

SUMMARY: NMFS announces approval of 

a marine conservation plan (MCP) for 

American Samoa. 

DATES: This agency decision is effective 

from July 25, 2021, through July 24, 

2024. 

ADDRESSES: You may obtain a copy of 

the MCP, identified by NOAA–NMFS– 

2021–0069, from the Federal eRulemaking Portal, https://

www.regulations.gov/docket/NOAANMFS-2021-0069, or from the Western 

Pacific Fishery Management Council 

(Council), 1164 Bishop St., Suite 1400, 

Honolulu, HI 96813, tel 808–522–8200, 

http://www.wpcouncil.org. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kate 

Taylor, Sustainable Fisheries, NMFS 

Pacific Island Regional Office, 808–725– 

5182. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 

204(e) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(Magnuson-Stevens Act) authorizes the 

Secretary of State, with the concurrence 

of the Secretary of Commerce 

(Secretary) and in consultation with the 

Council, to negotiate and enter into a 

Pacific Insular Area fishery agreement 

(PIAFA). A PIAFA would allow foreign 

fishing within the U.S. Exclusive 

Economic Zone (EEZ) adjacent to 

American Samoa, Guam, or the 

Northern Mariana Islands. The Governor 

of the Pacific Insular Area to which the 

PIAFA applies must request the PIAFA. 

The Secretary of State may negotiate 

and enter the PIAFA after consultation 

with, and concurrence of, the applicable 

Governor. 

Before entering into a PIAFA, the 

applicable Governor, with concurrence 

of the Council, must develop and 

submit to the Secretary a three-year 

MCP for review and approval. The MCP 

must provide details on the uses for any 

funds collected by the Secretary. NMFS 

is the designee of the Secretary for MCP 

review and approval. The MagnusonStevens Act requires payments received 

under a PIAFA to be deposited into the 

United States Treasury and then 

conveyed to the Treasury of the Pacific 

Insular Area for which funds were 

collected. 

In the case of violations by foreign 

fishing vessels in the EEZ around any 

Pacific Insular Area, amounts received 

by the Secretary attributable to fines and 

penalties imposed under the MagnusonStevens Act (including sums collected 

from the forfeiture and disposition or 

sale of property seized subject to its 

authority) are deposited into the 

Treasury of the Pacific Insular Area 

adjacent to the EEZ in which the 

violation occurred, after direct costs of 

the enforcement action are subtracted. 

The Pacific Insular Area government 

may use funds deposited into the 

treasury of the Pacific Insular Area for 

fisheries enforcement and for 

implementation of an MCP. 

Federal regulations at 50 CFR 665.819 

authorize NMFS to specify catch limits 

of longline-caught bigeye tuna for U.S. 

territories. NMFS may also authorize 

each territory to allocate a portion of 

that limit to U.S. longline fishing vessels 

that are permitted to fish under the 

Fishery Ecosystem Plan for Pelagic 

Fisheries of the Western Pacific (FEP). 

Payments collected under specified 

fishing agreements are deposited into 

the Western Pacific Sustainable 

Fisheries Fund. Any funds attributable 

to a particular fund, and any funds 

attributable to a particular territory, may 

be used only for implementation of that 

territory’s MCP. 

An MCP must be consistent with the 

Council’s FEPs, must identify 

conservation and management 

objectives (including criteria for 

determining when such objectives are 

met), and must prioritize planned 

marine conservation projects. At its June 

2021 meeting, the Council reviewed and 

concurred with the American Samoa 

MCP. On July 21, 2021, the Governor of 

American Samoa submitted the MCP to 

NMFS for review and approval. The 

following briefly describes the 

objectives of the MCP. Please refer to the 

MCP for planned projects and activities 

designed to meet each objective, the 

evaluative criteria, and priority ranking. 

The MCP contains six conservation and 

management objectives, listed below. 

1. Maximize social and economic 

benefits through sustainable fisheries; 

2. Support quality scientific research 

to assess and manage fisheries; 

3. Promote an ecosystem approach in 

fisheries management; 

4. Recognize the importance of island 

culture and traditional fishing in 

managing fishery resources and foster 

opportunities for participation; 

5. Promote education and outreach 

activities and regional collaboration 

regarding fisheries conservation; 

6. Encourage development of 

technologies and methods to achieve the 

most effective level of enforcement and 

to ensure safety at sea. 

This notice announces that NMFS has 

reviewed the MCP, and has determined 

that it satisfies the requirements of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act. Accordingly, 

NMFS has approved the MCP for the 3- 

year period from July 25, 2021, through 

July 24, 2024. This MCP supersedes the 

MCP previously approved for the period 

July 25, 2018, through July 24, 2021 (83 

FR 42490, August 22, 2018). 

Dated: July 29, 2021. 

Jennifer M. Wallace, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2021–16667 Filed 8–4–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

Science Advisory Board Meeting 

AGENCY: National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Department of Commerce (DOC). 

ACTION: Notice of public meeting. 

SUMMARY: This notice sets forth the 

schedule and proposed agenda for a 

meeting of the Science Advisory Board 

(SAB). The members will discuss issues 

outlined in the section on Matters to be 

considered. 

DATES: The meeting is scheduled for 

August 25, 2021 from 12:30 p.m. to 3:30 

p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). 

These times and the agenda topics 

described below are subject to change. 

For the latest agenda please refer to the 

SAB website: http://sab.noaa.gov/ 

SABMeetings.aspx. 


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