Notice2022-01658
East Coast Fisheries of the United States; Request for Comments
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
January 27, 2022
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
Several fishery management bodies on the East Coast of the U.S. are convening three public webinars to continue work on an initiative called East Coast Climate Change Scenario Planning. This is a joint effort of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC), the New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC), the Mid- Atlantic Fishery Management Council (MAFMC), the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (SAFMC), and NOAA Fisheries. The focus of the webinars will be to explore the key drivers of change that could shape East Coast fisheries over the next 20 years. There will be opportunity for questions and engagement from the public as well as a brief update on this multi-year initiative.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 87 Issue 18 (Thursday, January 27, 2022)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 18 (Thursday, January 27, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4199-4200]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-01658]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[RTID 0648-XB750]
East Coast Fisheries of the United States; Request for Comments
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of public meetings via webinar.
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SUMMARY: Several fishery management bodies on the East Coast of the
U.S. are convening three public webinars to continue work on an
initiative called East Coast Climate Change Scenario Planning. This is
a joint effort of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission
(ASMFC), the New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC), the Mid-
Atlantic Fishery Management Council (MAFMC), the South Atlantic Fishery
Management Council (SAFMC), and NOAA Fisheries. The focus of the
webinars will be to explore the key drivers of change that could shape
East Coast fisheries over the next 20 years. There will be opportunity
for questions and engagement from the public as well as a brief update
on this multi-year initiative.
DATES: These webinars will be held on Monday, February 14, 2022, at 3
p.m.-4:30 p.m.; Wednesday, February 23, 2022, at 3 p.m.-4:30 p.m.; and
Wednesday, March 2, 2022, at 3 p.m.-4:30 p.m.
ADDRESSES: The meetings will be held via webinar.
All meeting participants and interested parties are asked to
register for each webinar individually from this website: <a href="https://www.mafmc.org/climate-change-scenario-planning">https://www.mafmc.org/climate-change-scenario-planning</a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Thomas A. Nies, Executive Director,
New England Fishery Management Council; telephone: (978) 465-0492.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background: Climate change is a growing threat to marine fisheries
worldwide. On the East coast of the United States, there is evidence of
climate-related changes in distribution, abundance, and/or productivity
of fishery resources. It is uncertain what the next couple of decades
will bring, and how fishery management programs can best prepare to
meet the challenges ahead. Over the next year, this joint effort will
bring together researchers, fishery managers, fishery participants and
others to discuss these questions and emerge with ideas and
recommendations for how fishery management can potentially adapt to
climate change.
The management bodies in this region have decided to employ a
scenario planning framework to discuss these issues. Scenario planning
is a way of exploring how fishery management may need to evolve over
the next few decades as climate change becomes a
[[Page 4200]]
bigger issue. Specifically, scenarios are stories about possible future
developments. This approach is designed to help stakeholders and
managers think broadly about the future implications of climate change
to help define what changes can potentially be made now to be better
prepared.
Three introductory ``kick-off'' webinars were held in 2021 to
explain the overall initiative and share draft objectives and possible
outcomes of the work with the public. The next phase of this
initiative, the exploration phase, includes another series of webinars
outlined in this notice. The primary objective of these meetings is to
share information about and discuss the key drivers of change that
could shape East Coast fisheries over the next 20 years--which will
then become the ``building blocks'' for scenario creation. Three
separate webinars are planned, each dealing with a different area of
driving forces/uncertainties that are shaped by climate change. The
first on February 14, 2022, will cover oceanographic drivers of change
(e.g., ocean temperature, sea level rise, acidification, ocean
currents). The second on February 23, 2022, will focus on biological
drivers of change (e.g., changing spatial distributions, health of
stocks, habitat loss, rate of ecosystem change). And the last webinar
on March 2, 2022, will focus on social and economic drivers of change
(e.g., competing ocean uses, community impacts, consumer demand).
During each webinar a brief overview and status of the initiative will
be presented followed by a more detailed presentation by a lead
presenter outlining the current and future trends for each topic. Next,
a small panel of experts will join the lead presenter to provide
additional perspectives. Finally, there will be an opportunity for
questions of the panelists and presenters as well as limited public
comments at the end of each webinar.
Additional details about the webinars will be posted to this page
once available: <a href="https://www.mafmc.org/climate-change-scenario-planning">https://www.mafmc.org/climate-change-scenario-planning</a>.
The public also should be aware that the meeting will be recorded.
Consistent with 16 U.S.C. 1852, a copy of the recording is available
upon request.
Special Accommodations
These meetings are physically accessible to people with
disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other
auxiliary aids should be directed to: Thomas A. Nies, Executive
Director, at (978) 465-0492, at least 5 days prior to the meeting date.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: January 24, 2022.
Tracey L. Thompson,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-01658 Filed 1-26-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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