NOAA Fisheries Service will reopen the public comment period on the proposal to modify current requirements for herring mid-water trawl vessels fishing in Georges Bank Closed Area I.
Modifications proposed include 100 percent observer coverage, prohibition on slipping codends, and pumping aboard all fish caught to allow sampling by an observer.
The current comment period closes at 5 p.m. local time on Monday, September 21, 2009. The comment period will be extended for six days to September 27, 2009. For details on the proposed rule, visit us on the web at: http://www.nero.noaa.gov/nero/regs/com.html