International Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries; Implementation Plan

On July 25, 1996, NMFS announced the availability of a Draft Implementation Plan for the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries (Implementation Plan) in the Federal Register and requested comments by September 23, 1996. At the close of this period, it became clear that several of the public comments raised substantive issues. During the same period, two other relevant developments took place. First, in October 1996, the Congress passed the Sustainable Fisheries Act (SFA) which contained numerous and significant amendments to the Magnuson- Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act; and, second, NOAA/NMFS moved into the final and substantive phase of its long-term program planning exercise, the NOAA Fisheries Strategic Plan (Strategic Plan). The requirements of the SFA and the Strategic Plan point in the same directions as the Code of Conduct. In effect, NMFS will implement the Code of Conduct domestically as it carries out its Congressionally mandated responsibilities and the objectives of the Strategic Plan. Accordingly, NMFS redrafted the Implementation Plan, taking into account (1) the comments received on the first draft; (2) the guidance provided by Congress in the SFA; and (3) the long-term program planning that was being developed through the Strategic Plan. The revised Implementation Plan was made available for public comment in a Federal Register notice on March 12, 1997 (62 FR 11410), and comments were requested by April 28, 1997. The public may request a copy of the final plan (see ADDRESSES) or access it on the NMFS home page at http://www.nmfs.gov.