The Coast Guard urges commercial fishing vessel owners and operators to take advantage of voluntary dockside safety examinations prior to the enforcement of a new requirement Tuesday. The new requirement mandates that all commercial fishing, fish tender and fish processing vessels that operate or transit more than three nautical miles offshore demonstrate full compliance with all existing commercial fishing vessel safety regulations during a dockside safety examination.
Alert Regions
We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a public meeting of the Sport Fishing and Boating Partnership Council (Council). The meeting will be held at the Texas A & M University--Corpus Christi, Harte Research Institute; 6300 Ocean Drive, Corpus Christi, TX 78412-5869
Meeting Agenda
The Council will hold a meeting to consider:
This notice announces a meeting of the Aquatic Nuisance Species (ANS) Task Force. The ANS Task Force's purpose is to develop and implement a program for U.S. waters to prevent introduction and dispersal of aquatic nuisance species; to monitor, control, and study such species; and to disseminate related information. The meeting is open to the public.
The National Boating Safety Advisory Council (NBSAC) and three of its subcommittees will meet on November 9-11, 2012, in Watsonville, CA, to discuss issues relating to recreational boating safety. The meetings will be open to the public.
The Coast Guard has become aware of certain Mustang Survival Inflatable PFDs with Hammar MA1hydrostatic (HIT) inflation systems which may not inflate and require a new re-arm kit to properly inflate by manual or automatic activation. This safety alert identifies which products are affected. Certain inflatable PDFs may be subject to delayed or non-inflations. To determine if you are impacted please follow the instructions below.
Millions of pounds of unexploded bombs and other military ordnance that were dumped decades ago in the Gulf of Mexico, as well as off the coasts of both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, could now pose serious threats to shipping lanes and the 4,000 oil and gas rigs in the Gulf, warns two Texas William Bryant and Neil Slowey, professors of oceanography who have more than 90 years of combined research experience in all of the Earth's oceans, along with fellow researcher Mike Kemp of Washington, D.C., say millions of pounds of bombs are scattered over the Gulf of Mexico and also off the coasts of at least 16 states, from New Jersey to Hawaii.
• Sen. Joe Lieberman's (D-Conn.) communications director, Marshall Wittmann, is leaving. He will be replaced by the Senator's press secretary, Whitney Phillips.
• Mike Gruber, senior policy advisor on the Energy and Commerce Committee, is leaving to join the Grocery Manufacturers Association.
• Chief of staff to Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Don Kent, is joining the Nickles Group.
• At the Environment and Public Works Committee, counsel Matthew Hite is leaving to join the US Chamber of Commerce.
• Chief counsel for the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, Todd Harrison, is leaving. Deputy chief counsel Karen Christian will take over the position.
The Coast Guard announces that it is requesting public comments regarding the existing regulatory requirement to indicate a boat's model year as part of the 12-character Hull Identification Number (HIN). Under current regulations in 33 CFR part 181, the HIN must consist of 12 characters, the last two of which indicate the boat's model year. This notice requests public comments on whether we should continue to require model year as part of the HIN or change the regulatory definition of ``model year.''
Comments and related material must either be submitted to our online docket via http://www.regulations.gov on or before November 27, 2012 or reach the Docket Management Facility by that date.
Background and Purpose
This notice sets forth the schedule and proposed agenda of a forthcoming meeting of the Marine Fisheries Advisory Committee (MAFAC). The members will discuss and provide advice on issues outlined below.
Recently released data from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's (Service) 2011, which highlights the National Survey on Fishing, Hunting and Wildlife Associated Recreation and expenditures to mainstream industries showed the following;
Highlights of the findings included:
- Billfish Conservation Act Passes U.S. Senate, Heads to President’s Desk
- NOAA Fisheries Posts Statistical Report Card for U.S. Fisheries in 2011
- Reopening of Public Comment Period for National Standard 1
- Medical Waivers for Merchant Mariner Credential Applicants With Anti-Tachycardia Devices or Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillators
- Agencies Propose to Simplify Critical Habitat Proposal Review Process under Endangered Species Act
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Seeks Approval for National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Check-In Permit and Use Report
- Clean Air Act Advisory Committee (CAAAC) Upcoming Meeting
- Revisions to the Regulations for Impact Analyses of Critical Habitat
- Changes to Inland Navigation Rules
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection 30-Day Notice and Request for Comments
- Petition To List Five Species of Sturgeon as Threatened or Endangered
- National Maritime Security Advisory Committee Meeting
- Merchant Mariner Medical Advisory Committee September Meeting
- Buck Sutter Named New Director for NOAA Fisheries Office of Habitat Conservation
- Shrimp Boat Death Reviewed by OSHA
- Trio of Factors Drive Marine Fisheries Production in Northern Hemisphere Ecosystems
- NOAA, Industry Working Together to Promote Smart Fishing
- Rule to Modify Angler Registry Rule
- Marine Recreational Information Program
- A Revolutionary New Marine Habitat Classification System