Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Essential Fish Habitat Components of Certain Fishery Management Plans 5-year Review; Supplemental Scoping Process

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On February 24, 2004, the New England Fishery Management Council (Council) in cooperation with NMFS announced its intent to prepare a programmatic EIS and Omnibus Amendment 2 to the Fishery Management Plans (FMPs) for Northeast Multispecies, Atlantic Sea Scallop, Monkfish, Atlantic Herring, Skates, Atlantic Salmon, and Red Crab. The purpose of this notification is to alert the interested public of the Council's intent to complete Omnibus Amendment 2 in a two-phased approach. Phase 1 (Volume 1 of the EIS) would include a review and update of Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) designations and consideration of Habitat Areas of Particular Concern (HAPCs) (not including consideration of management measures or restrictions), an update of the prey species list, an update of non-fishing impacts, and an update of research and information needs. Phase 2 (Volume 2 of the EIS) would include reviewing and updating a gear effects evaluation and optimizing management measures for minimizing the adverse effects of fishing on EFH across all FMPs, including the potential consideration of management measures for HAPCs designated in Phase 1. During this scoping period, the Council and NMFS are seeking comm