Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 107 / Friday, June 5, 2009 / Notices 27019 

TABLE 1—COMMON NAME AND TOTAL

NUMBER OF FISH, AND AMOUNT OF

LIVE ROCK TO BE HARVESTED OVER

A 2-YEAR PERIOD BY NC AQUARIUMS.—Continued 

26 Schoolmaster Snapper 

300 lbs. (136 kg) Live Rock 

16 Silk Snapper 

78 Vermilion Snapper 

200 Tomtate 

100 Small-mouth Grunt 

5 Common Hogfish 

5 Spanish Hogfish 

5 Cuban Hogfish 

200 Cottonwick 

6 Blue Angelfish 

6 Queen Angelfish 

6 Grey Angelfish 

6 French Angelfish 

6 Stoplight Parrotfish 

6 Blue Parrotfish 

6 Midnight Parrotfish 

6 Dwarf Goatfish 

6 Yellow Goatfish 

Specimens would be collected in 

Federal waters from 3 miles (4.8 km) 

offshore out to 100 fathoms (182 m), 

from 33°10′ N lat. to 36°30′ N lat. along 

the coast of North Carolina. The project 

proposes to use hook-and-line gear, and 

standard traps (for example, black sea 

bass and minnow traps) to collect fish, 

and SCUBA to collect live rock by hand. 

The collections would be conducted 

year-round for a period of 2 years, 

commencing on the date of issuance of 

the EFP. 

The overall intent of the project is to 

incorporate North Carolina native 

species into the educational exhibits at 

the three aquariums located on Pine 

Knoll Shores, Roanoke Island, and Fort 

Fisher, NC. The aquariums use these 

displays of native North Carolina 

habitats and species to teach the visiting 

public (over 1 million a year) about 

conservation of these resources. 

NMFS finds this application warrants 

further consideration. Based on a 

preliminary review, NMFS intends to 

issue an EFP. Possible conditions the 

agency may impose on this permit, if it 

is indeed granted, include but are not 

limited to, a prohibition of conducting 

research within marine protected areas, 

marine sanctuaries, special management 

zones, or artificial reefs without 

additional authorization. Additionally, 

NMFS may prohibit the possession of 

Nassau or goliath grouper, and require 

any sea turtles taken incidentally during 

the course of fishing or scientific 

research activities to be handled with 

due care to prevent injury to live 

specimens, observed for activity, and 

returned to the water. The harvest of 

live rock would have to be replaced by 

an equivalent amount of new rock 

substrate, or obtained from a 

commercial (aquaculture) source. A 

final decision on issuance of the EFP 

will depend on NMFS review of public 

comments received on the application, 

consultations with the affected state, the 

South Atlantic Fishery Management 

Council, and the U.S. Coast Guard, and 

a determination that it is consistent with 

all applicable laws. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. 

Dated: June 1, 2009. 

Kristen C. Koch 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E9–13175 Filed 6–5–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

RIN 0648–XO59 

Fisheries of the South Atlantic and 

Gulf of Mexico; Southeast Data, 

Assessment, and Review (SEDAR); 

black grouper and red grouper. 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of SEDAR Workshops for 

South Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico black 

grouper and South Atlantic red grouper. 

SUMMARY: The SEDAR assessments of 

the South Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico 

stocks of black grouper and South 

Atlantic red grouper will consist of a 

series of three workshops: a Data 

Workshop, an Assessment Workshop, 

and a Review Workshop. This is the 

fifteenth SEDAR. See SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION. 

DATES: The Data Workshop will take 

place June 22–26, 2009; the Assessment 

Workshop will take place October 5–9, 

2009; the Review Workshop will take 

place January 25–29, 2010. See 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. 

ADDRESSES: The Data Workshop will be 

held at the Hilton Garden Inn, 5265 

International Boulevard, North 

Charleston, SC 29418; telephone: (843) 

308–9330. The Assessment Workshop 

will be held at the Hilton Bayfront, 333 

First Street South, St. Petersburg, FL 

33701; telephone: (727) 894–5000. The 

Review Workshop will be held at the 

Hilton Garden Inn-Historic Savannah, 

321 West Bay Street Savannah, GA 

31401; telephone: (912) 721–5000. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Julie 

Neer, SEDAR Coordinator, 4055 Faber 

Place Drive, Suite 201, North 

Charleston, SC 29405; telephone: (843) 

571–4366. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Gulf 

of Mexico, South Atlantic, and 

Caribbean Fishery Management 

Councils, in conjunction with NOAA 

Fisheries and the Atlantic and Gulf 

States Marine Fisheries Commissions 

have implemented the Southeast Data, 

Assessment and Review (SEDAR) 

process, a multi-step method for 

determining the status of fish stocks in 

the Southeast Region. SEDAR includes 

three workshops: (1) Data Workshop, (2) 

Stock Assessment Workshop and (3) 

Review Workshop. The product of the 

Data Workshop is a data report which 

compiles and evaluates potential 

datasets and recommends which 

datasets are appropriate for assessment 

analyses. The product of the Stock 

Assessment Workshop is a stock 

assessment report which describes the 

fisheries, evaluates the status of the 

stock, estimates biological benchmarks, 

projects future population conditions, 

and recommends research and 

monitoring needs. The assessment is 

independently peer reviewed at the 

Review Workshop. The product of the 

Review Workshop is a Consensus 

Summary documenting Panel opinions 

regarding the strengths and weaknesses 

of the stock assessment and input data. 

Participants for SEDAR Workshops are 

appointed by the Gulf of Mexico, South 

Atlantic, and Caribbean Fishery 

Management Councils and NOAA 

Fisheries Southeast Regional Office and 

Southeast Fisheries Science Center. 

Participants include data collectors and 

database managers; stock assessment 

scientists, biologists, and researchers; 

constituency representatives including 

fishermen, environmentalists, and 

NGO’s; International experts; and staff 

of Councils, Commissions, and state and 

federal agencies. 


erowe on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES
27020 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 107 / Friday, June 5, 2009 / Notices 

SEDAR 19 Workshop Schedule: 

June 22–26, 2009; SEDAR 19 Data 

Workshop 

June 22, 2009: 1 p.m.- 8 p.m.; June 23– 

25, 2009: 8 a.m. - 8 p.m.; June 26, 2009: 

8 a.m. - 12 p.m. 

An assessment data set and associated 

documentation will be developed 

during the Data Workshop. Participants 

will evaluate all available data and 

select appropriate sources for providing 

information on life history 

characteristics, catch statistics, discard 

estimates, length and age composition, 

and fishery dependent and fishery 

independent measures of stock 

abundance. 

October 5–9, 2009; SEDAR 19 

Assessment Workshop 

October 5, 2009: 1 p.m.- 8 p.m.; October 

6–8, 2009: 8 a.m. - 8 p.m.; October 9, 

2009: 8 a.m. - 12 p.m. 

Using datasets provided by the Data 

Workshop, participants will develop 

population models to evaluate stock 

status, estimate population benchmarks 

and Sustainable Fisheries Act criteria, 

and project future conditions. 

Participants will recommend the most 

appropriate methods and configurations 

for determining stock status and 

estimating population parameters. 

Participants will prepare a workshop 

report, compare and contrast various 

assessment approaches, and determine 

whether the assessments are adequate 

for submission to the review panel. 

January 25–29, 2010; SEDAR 19 Review 

Workshop 

January 25, 2010: 1 p.m.- 8 p.m.; 

January 26–28, 2010: 8 a.m. - 8 p.m.; 

January 29, 2010: 8 a.m. - 12 p.m. 

The Review Workshop is an 

independent peer review of the 

assessment developed during the Data 

and Assessment Workshops. Workshop 

Panelists will review the assessment 

and document their comments and 

recommendations in a Consensus 

Summary. 

Although non-emergency issues not 

contained in this agenda may come 

before these groups for discussion, in 

accordance with the Magnuson-Stevens 

Fishery Conservation and Management 

Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act), those 

issues may not be the subject of formal 

action during these meetings. Actions 

will be restricted to those issues 

specifically identified in this notice and 

any issues arising after publication of 

this notice that require emergency 

action under Section 305(c) of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act, provided the 

public has been notified of the Council’s 

intent to take final action to address the 

emergency. 

Special Accommodations 

These meetings are physically 

accessible to people with disabilities. 

Requests for sign language 

interpretation or other auxiliary aids 

should be directed to the Council office 

(see ADDRESSES) at least 10 business 

days prior to each workshop. 

Dated: June 2, 2009. 

Tracey L. Thompson, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E9–13127 Filed 6–4–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

RIN 0648–XP63 

Marine Mammals; File Nos. 14210 and 

782–1719 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; issuance of permit and 

permit amendment. 

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that 

LGL Alaska Research Associates (Dr. 

Tamara McGuire, Principal 

Investigator), 1101 E. 76th Ave. Suite B, 

Anchorage, Alaska 99518 (File No. 

14210), and the National Marine 

Mammal Laboratory (NMML), Alaska 

Fisheries Science Center (Dr. Phillip J. 

Clapham, Principal Investigator), 7600 

Sand Point Way, NE., Seattle, 

Washington 98115 6349 (File No. 782 

1719) have been issued a permit and a 

permit amendment, respectively, to 

conduct research on the Cook Inlet stock 

of beluga whales (Delphinapterus 

leucas). 

ADDRESSES: The permits and related 

documents are available for review 

upon written request or by appointment 

in the following office(s): 

Permits, Conservation and Education 

Division, Office of Protected Resources, 

NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Room 

13705, Silver Spring, MD 20910; phone 

(301)713–2289; fax (301)427–2521; and 

Alaska Region, NMFS, P.O. Box 

21668, Juneau, AK 99802–1668; phone 

(907)586–7221; fax (907)586–7249. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Kristy Beard or Amy Hapeman, 

(301)713–2289. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On 

February 10, 2009, notice was published 

in the Federal Register (74 FR 6578) 

that a request for a scientific research 

permit and permit amendment to take 

Cook Inlet beluga whales had been 

submitted by the above-named 

organizations. The requested permit and 

permit amendment have been issued 

under the authority of the Marine 

Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as 

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

regulations governing the taking and 

importing of marine mammals (50 CFR 

part 216), the Endangered Species Act of 

1973, as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 

et seq.), and the regulations governing 

the taking, importing, and exporting of 

endangered and threatened species (50 

CFR parts 222–226). 

Permit No. 14210, issued to LGL 

Alaska Research Associates, authorizes 

harassment of up to 54 beluga whales 

three times annually in Cook Inlet, 

Alaska for vessel-based photoidentification annually between May 

and October. The permit expires on May 

30, 2014. 

Permit No. 782–1719–08 authorizes 

NMML to take species of cetaceans 

under NMFS jurisdiction during stock 

assessment activities throughout U.S. 

territorial waters and the high seas of 

the North Pacific Ocean, Southern 

Ocean, and Arctic Ocean. The permit 

authorizes Level B harassment during 

close approach for aerial surveys, 

vessel-based surveys, observations, and 

photo-identification and Level A 

harassment during biopsy sampling and 

attachment of scientific instruments. 

This permit amendment authorizes 

harassment of up to 585 Cook Inlet 

belugas 20 times annually during aerial 

surveys, and will be effective until the 

permit expires on June 30, 2009. 

In compliance with the National 

Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

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

assessment was prepared analyzing the 

effects of the permitted activities. After 

a Finding of No Significant Impact, the 

determination was made that it was not 

necessary to prepare an environmental 

impact statement. 

Issuance of this permit and permit 

amendment, as required by the ESA, 

was based on a finding that such 

permits: (1) were applied for in good 

faith; (2) will not operate to the 

disadvantage of such endangered 

species; and (3) are consistent with the 

purposes and policies set forth in 

section 2 of the ESA. 


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