The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) announces its intention to prepare, in cooperation with NMFS, an EIS in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). An EIS may be necessary to provide analytical support for the fishing year 2013-2015 catch allowances and management measures for the Northeast (NE) Multispecies Fishery Management Plan (FMP). Analysis may also be necessary to evaluate alternatives for mitigating FMP interactions with threatened and endangered distinct population segments of Atlantic sturgeon. This notice is to alert the interested public of the potential development of a Draft EIS, and to outline opportunity for public participation in that process.

Written comments must be received on or before 5 p.m., e.s.t., on July 23, 2012.

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is scheduling a public meeting of its Research Steering Committee (Committee) in June, 2012, to consider actions affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Recommendations from this group will be brought to the full Council for formal consideration and action, if appropriate.

DATES: The meeting will be held on Monday, June 25, 2012, at 9 a.m.

NOAA's Northeast Fisheries Science Center will sponsor a workshop to address the stock structure of cod in the Gulf of Maine, Georges Bank, Scotian Shelf and Southern New England regions. The Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI) in Portland, ME will organize and host the meeting scheduled for June 12-14, 2012.

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold a three-day meeting on June 19-21, 2012 to consider actions affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

The meeting will be held on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, June 19-21, starting at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, and at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday and Thursday.

The meeting will be held at the Holiday Inn by the Bay, 88 Spring Street, Portland, ME 04101; telephone: (207) 775-2311; fax: (207) 761-8224.

The European Parliament has adopted legislation aimed at protecting the bluefin tuna population in the eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean. The new rules were agreed upon at the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT) annual meeting in late 2010. As a contracting party to ICCAT, the EU is obliged to integrate these rules into EU law.

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is scheduling a public meeting of its Habitat Oversight Committee to consider actions affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Recommendations from this group will be brought to the full Council for formal consideration and action, if appropriate.

This meeting will be held on Friday, June 8, 2012 at 9:30 a.m.

NMFS approves Framework Adjustment 47 (Framework 47) to the Northeast (NE) Multispecies Fishery Management Plan (FMP) and implements the approved measures. The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) developed and adopted Framework 47 based on the biennial review process established in the NE Multispecies FMP to develop annual catch limits (ACLs) and revise management measures necessary to rebuild overfished groundfish stocks and achieve the goals and objectives of the FMP. This action also implements management measures and revises existing regulations that are not included in Framework 47, including common pool management measures for fishing year (FY) 2012, modification of the Ruhle trawl definition, and clarification of the regulations for charter/party and recreational groundfish vessels fishing in groundfish closed areas. This action is intended to prevent overfishing, rebuild overfished stocks, achieve optimum yield, and ensure that management measures are based on the best available scientific information at the time Framework 47 was submitted.

A recent assessment of the amount of cod found in the GOM was finalized in January 2012. The results are substantially different from those from a similar examination conducted in 2008. The new assessment concludes that GOM cod are ``overfished,'' meaning there is a lower amount of fish than necessary to sustain the population over the long term. It also concludes that GOM cod are subject to ``overfishing,'' meaning fishing activities are removing too many fish from the sea to sustain the population. The required population and fishing-related removal levels are set for GOM cod under a fishery management plan developed by the New England Fishery Management Council (Council) in collaboration with NMFS. This plan is designed to satisfy requirements of the primary law governing U.S. fisheries--the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act.  

NMFS proposes regulatory changes to the adjusted quotas and minimum sizes that would affect commercial and recreational vessels that catch Atlantic swordfish.

North and South Atlantic swordfish are managed under the dual authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Act and ATCA, which authorizes the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) to promulgate regulations as may be necessary and appropriate to implement ICCAT recommendations. The authority to issue regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Act and ATCA has been delegated from the Secretary to the Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA (AA). On October 2, 2006, NMFS published in the Federal Register final regulations, effective November 1, 2006, implementing the 2006 Consolidated Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Fishery Management Plan (FMP), which details management measures for Atlantic HMS fisheries. 

ICCAT is responsible for the conservation of tuna and tuna-like species in the Atlantic Ocean and adjacent seas. ICCAT recommendations are binding on Contracting Parties, non-Contracting Cooperating Parties, Entities and Fishing Entities (CPCs), unless Parties object pursuant to the treaty. All ICCAT recommendations are available on the ICCAT Web site at http://www.iccat.int/en/. In November 2011, ICCAT adopted Recommendation 11-02 for North Atlantic swordfish. This recommendation maintains the U.S. baseline quota of 2,937.6 metric tons (mt) dressed weight (dw) for 2012 and 2013. Previous North Atlantic swordfish recommendations included a quota transfer of 18.8 mt dw from the United States to Canada; however, Recommendation 11-02 eliminates this quota transfer and includes a transfer of 112.8 mt dw from the United States to Morocco to support joint scientific research and Morocco's efforts to eliminate the use of driftnets. Recommendation 11-02 also includes a provision for the submission of annual swordfish management plans and a change to the underharvest carryover provisions. The recommendation limits the amount of underharvested quota that can be carried over by a CPC allocated a baseline quota greater than 500 mt to 25 percent of the baseline quota. 

The New England Fishery Management Council's (Council) Recreational Advisory Panel will meet to consider actions affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

DATES: The meeting will be held on Tuesday, May 15, 2012 at 9 a.m.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at the Sheraton Colonial, One Audubon Road Wakefield, MA 01880; telephone: (781) 245-9300; fax: (781) 245-0842.

    Council address: New England Fishery Management Council, 50 Water Street, Mill 2, Newburyport, MA 01950.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul J. Howard, Executive Director, New England Fishery Management Council; telephone: (978) 465-0492.

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