Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Snapper-Grouper Fishery off the Southern Atlantic States; Amendment 8

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 622

[I.D. 102197D]

RIN 0648-AG27

Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic;

Snapper-Grouper Fishery off the Southern Atlantic States; Amendment 8

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of availability of an amendment to a fishery management

plan; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the South Atlantic Fishery Management

Council (Council) has submitted Amendment 8 to the Fishery Management

Plan for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region for

review, approval, and implementation by NMFS. Written comments are

requested from the public.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before December 29,

1997.

ADDRESSES: Comments must be mailed to the Southeast Regional Office,

NMFS, 9721 Executive Center Drive N., St. Petersburg, FL 33702.

Requests for copies of Amendment 8, which includes a final

supplemental environmental impact statement, an initial regulatory

flexibility analysis, a regulatory impact review, and a social impact

assessment, should be sent to the South Atlantic Fishery Management

Council, One Southpark Circle, Suite 306, Charleston, SC 29407-4699;

phone: 803-571-4366; fax: 803-769-4520.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Peter J. Eldridge, 813-570-5305.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation

and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) requires each regional

fishery management council to submit any fishery management plan or

amendment to NMFS for review and approval, disapproval, or partial

approval. The Magnuson-Stevens Act also requires that NMFS, upon

receiving an amendment, immediately publish a document in the Federal

Register stating that the amendment is available for public review and

comment.

Amendment 8 would: Limit access to the commercial snapper-grouper

fishery; allow the retention of snapper-grouper in excess of the bag

limits on a permitted vessel that has a single bait net or cast nets on

board; subject to specific conditions, exempt snapper-grouper lawfully

harvested in Bahamian waters from the requirement that they be

maintained with head and fins intact in the exclusive economic zone of

the South Atlantic; redefine ``optimum yield,'' ``overfished,'' and

``overfishing'' for snapper-grouper; and establish a ``threshold

level'' for snapper-grouper, i.e., the level of spawning potential

ratio at which the Council will take appropriate action including, but

not limited to, eliminating directed fishing mortality and evaluating

measures to eliminate any bycatch mortality.

A proposed rule to implement Amendment 8 has been received from the

Council. In accordance with the Magnuson-Stevens Act, NMFS is

evaluating the proposed rule to determine whether it is consistent with

Amendment 8, the Magnuson-Stevens Act, and other applicable law. If

that determination is affirmative, NMFS will publish it in the Federal

Register for public review and comment.

Comments received by December 29, 1997, whether specifically

directed to the amendment or the proposed rule, will be considered by

NMFS in its decision to approve, disapprove, or partially approve

Amendment 8. Comments received after that date will not be considered

by NMFS in this decision. All comments on Amendment 8 or on the

proposed rule during their respective comment periods will be addressed

in the final rule.

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

Dated: October 23, 1997.

Bruce C. Morehead,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine

Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 97-28713 Filed 10-29-97; 8:45 am]

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