Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Northeast Multispecies Fishery, Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery, and Atlantic Salmon Fishery; Fishery Management Plan (FMP) Amendments to Designate Essential Fish Habitat (EFH)

Resumo

NMFS announces that the New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) has submitted for review and approval by the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) an omnibus amendment that includes Amendment 11 to the Northeast Multispecies FMP, Amendment 9 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop FMP, and Amendment 1 to the Atlantic Salmon FMP. The document also includes Amendment 1 to the Monkfish FMP prepared jointly by NEFMC and the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (MAFMC). Because MAFMC has not yet adopted Monkfish Amendment 1, the FMP amendment is not being considered for Secretarial approval at this time. Finally, the omnibus amendment includes the EFH components of the Atlantic Herring FMP that is being developed by the NEFMC. The EFH information for Atlantic Herring will be incorporated by reference into the Atlantic Herring FMP when that FMP is submitted for Secretarial approval. These EFH provisions implement the requirements of section 303(a)(7) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act). The omnibus amendment describes and identifies EFH for the specified fisheries, discusses measures to address the effects of fishing on EFH, and identifies oth