September 21, 2023 — The following was released by New England Fishery Management Council:
A joint subpanel comprised of selected members of the New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils’ Scientific and Statistical Committees (SSCs) will meet via webinar to review essential fish habitat designation methods. The public is invited to listen live. Here are the details.
START TIME: 1:00 p.m.
WEBINAR REGISTRATION: Online access to the meeting is available at Listen Live. There is no charge to join the meeting through this webinar. The Remote Participation Guide is postedhere.
CALL-IN OPTION: To listen by telephone, dial +1 (415) 655-0060. The access code is 596-061-701. Your regular phone charges will apply.
AGENDA: The joint SSC subpanel will meet to review and develop input on methods for designating essential fish habitat (EFH) and Habitat Areas of Particular Concern (HAPCs). The review will address the following topics:
- Principles applied to improving EFH and HAPC designations;
- Methods for developing EFH text and maps, including application of model-based approaches;
- Methods for identifying HAPCs; and
- Recommendations for additional near- or longer-term work that might improve EFH or HAPC designations.
The subpanel’s input will be provided directly to the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s EFH Fishery Management Action Team, the New England Fishery Management Council’s Habitat Plan Development Team, and the full New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils.
COMMENTS: The deadline for submitting written comments for consideration at this meeting is8:00 a.m. on Wednesday, September 27, 2023. Address comments to Council Chair Eric Reid or Executive Director Cate O’Keefe and email them to comments@nefmc.org.
MATERIALS: All documents for this meeting will be posted on the SSC Subpanel September 29, 2023 meeting webpage.
QUESTIONS: Contact Joan O’Leary at (978) 465-0492, ext. 101, joleary@nefmc.org or Janice Plante at (607) 592-4817, jplante@nefmc.org.