E7-24820. Pacific Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting

AGENCY:

National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION:

Notice of public telephone conference meeting.

SUMMARY:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Council) Salmon Technical Team Klamath Subcommittee (STTKS) will hold a work session by telephone conference with members of the Yurok and Hoopa Tribes and additional agency personnel from the NMFS, United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and the California Department of Fish and Game to continue review and development of an overfishing assessment for Klamath River fall Chinook (KRFC). This meeting of the STTKS is open to the public.

DATES:

The telephone conference will be held on Tuesday, January 8, 2008, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Wednesday, January 9, 2008, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

ADDRESSES:

A listening station for the public will be available at the Pacific Fishery Management Council, Small Conference Room, 7700 NE Ambassador Place, Suite 101, Portland, OR 97220-1384; telephone: [phone].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mr. Chuck Tracy, Salmon Management Staff Officer, Pacific Fishery Management Council; telephone: [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The purpose of the meeting is to further develop a report to assess the cause of KRFC failing to meet the 35,000 adult natural spawner conservation objective, and the implication to the long-term productivity of the stock not meeting that objective, for three consecutive years.

When a salmon stock managed by the Council fails to meet its conservation objective for three consecutive years, an overfishing concern is triggered according to the terms of the Pacific Coast Salmon Plan (Salmon Plan). The Salmon Plan requires the Council to direct its Salmon Technical Team to work with relevant agency and tribal personnel to undertake a review of the status of the stock in question and determine if excessive harvest was responsible for the shortfall, if other factors were involved, and the significance of the stock depression with regard to achieving maximum sustainable yield.

Although non-emergency issues not contained in the meeting agenda may come before the STTKS for discussion, those issues may not be the subject of formal action during these meetings. Action will be restricted to those issues specifically listed in this notice and any issues arising after publication of this notice that require emergency action under Section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, provided the public has been notified of the intent to take final action to address the emergency.

Special Accommodations

These meetings are physically accessible to people with disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids should be directed to Ms. Carolyn Porter at [phone] at least 5 days prior to the meeting date.

Dated: December 18, 2007.

Tracey L. Thompson,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.