Pacific Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting

• Published date: 29 April 2021
• Record Number: 2021-08995
• Section: Notices
• Court: National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration

Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 81 (Thursday, April 29, 2021)

[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 81 (Thursday, April 29, 2021)]
                [Notices]
                [Pages 22635-22636]
                From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
                [FR Doc No: 2021-08995]
                -----------------------------------------------------------------------
                DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
                National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
                [RTID 0648-XB049]
                Pacific Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting
                AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
                Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
                ACTION: Notice of public meeting.
                -----------------------------------------------------------------------
                SUMMARY: The Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Pacific Council)
                Highly Migratory Species Management Team (HMSMT) will hold an online
                meeting, which is open to the public.
                DATES: The online meeting will be held on Thursday, May 13, 2021,
                beginning at 9 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time and continuing until business
                is completed.
                ADDRESSES: This meeting will be held online. Specific meeting
                information, including directions on how to join the meeting and system
                requirements will be provided in the meeting announcement on the
                Pacific Council's website (see www.pcouncil.org). You may send an email
                to Mr. Kris Kleinschmidt ([email protected]) or contact him at
                (503) 820-2412 for technical assistance.
                 Council address: Pacific Fishery Management Council, 7700 NE
                Ambassador Place, Suite 101, Portland, OR 97220-1384.
                FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kit Dahl, Staff Officer, Pacific
                Council; telephone: (503) 820-2422.
                SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The purpose of the meeting is for the HMSMT
                to discuss and prepare reports for HMS items on the Council's June 2021
                meeting agenda. There are two items on the Council meeting agenda that
                will be the focus of the HMSMT meeting, summarized below. The HMSMT
                also may discuss other items on the June Council agenda and conduct
                general workload planning.
                 First, the HMSMT needs to prepare an analysis of drift gillnet
                (DGN) fishery performance metrics. These performance metrics track
                bycatch of specified protected species and finfish species of concern
                and are reported to
                [[Page 22636]]
                the Council each June based on available bycatch data. In June 2019,
                the Council endorsed a new analytical method proposed by the HMSMT.
                Because performance metrics were not reported in 2020, this would be
                the first year this new analytical method will be used.
                 Second, the HMSMT will discuss recommendations to address scoping
                and the development of a range of alternatives for DGN fishery hard
                caps. The Council took final action in September 2015 to implement
                ``hard cap'' for selected protected species taken in the DGN fishery as
                a bycatch mitigation measure. Implementing regulations became effective
                in February 2020 but were subsequently vacated by court order. The
                Council wishes to consider alternative bycatch mitigation methods,
                consistent with its original intent, and considering the reasons the
                previous implementing regulations were vacated by the Court.
                 A meeting agenda will be available on the Council website at least
                one week before the meeting.
                 Although non-emergency issues not contained in the meeting agenda
                may be discussed, those issues may not be the subject of formal action
                during this meeting. Action will be restricted to those issues
                specifically listed in this document and any issues arising after
                publication of this document that require emergency action under
                section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
                Management Act, provided the public has been notified of the intent to
                take final action to address the emergency.
                Special Accommodations
                 Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids
                should be directed to Mr. Kris Kleinschmidt
                ([email protected]; (503) 820-2412) at least 10 days prior to
                the meeting date.
                 Dated: April 26, 2021.
                Tracey L. Thompson,
                Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National
                Marine Fisheries Service.
                [FR Doc. 2021-08995 Filed 4-28-21; 8:45 am]
                BILLING CODE 3510-22-P