Essential Fish Habitat
Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) was defined by the U. T. Congress in the 1996 amendments to the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, or perhaps Magnuson-Stevens Act, as "those waters and substrate needed to fish for spawning, breeding, nourishing or growth to maturity. "|1| Putting into action regulations clarified that marine environments include all aquatic areas and their physical, chemical, and biological properties; substrate includes the associated biological areas that make these areas suitable for fish habitats, and the information and identification of EFH should include habitats used any time during the species' life spiral.|2| EFH involves all types of aquatic habitat, such as wetlands, coral reefs, yellow sand, seagrasses, and rivers.|3|
NOAA Fisheries works with the regional fishery management local authorities to designate EFH making use of the best available scientific information. EFH has been described for more than a 1, 000 managed kinds to date.|4| The primary purpose of EFH regulations is always to minimize the adverse effects of fishing and non sport fishing impacts on EFH for the maximum extent practicable.
In 1996, the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Work was amended to establish a new requirements to identify and explain EFH to protect, conserve and enhance EFH for the benefit of the fisheries.|5| The Magnuson-Stevens Act offers jurisdiction over the management and conservation of marine seafood species. Federal agencies must consult with NOAA Fisheries the moment their actions or actions may adversely affect habitat identified by federal regional fishery management councils or perhaps NOAA Fisheries as EFH.|6| On Dec 19, 1997, interim last rules were published in the Federal Register (Vol. 62, No . 244) which identify procedures for implementation of the EFH provisions of the Magnuson-Stevens Act.|7| These types of rules were amended by publication of final rules on January 17, 2002 (Vol. 67, No . 12).|8| he rules, in two subparts, address requirements for fishery management program (FMP) amendment, and fine detail the coordination, consultation, and recommendation requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Act.
Effects from certain fishing techniques and coastal and nautical development and may alter, damage, or destroy habitats necessary for fish. NOAA Fisheries, the regional fishery management councils (FMCs), and other federal companies work together to minimize these dangers.|13| Congress has created councils to classify unfavorable impacts on fishes in relation to types of fishing gear, coast developments and nonpoint and point source pollution, as well as, evaluating how well every single fishery is managed. The FMCs, with assistance from NOAA Fisheries, has delineated EFH for federally managed varieties. As new FMPs happen to be developed, EFH for newly managed species will also be defined.|14| FMPs must describe and identify EFH for the fishery, reduce to the extent practicable the adverse effects of fishing about EFH, and identify various other actions to encourage the conservation and enhancement of EFH.
Through consultations, NOAA Fisheries can suggest ways federal agencies may avoid or minimize the adverse effects of their actions on the habitat of federally supervised commercial and recreational fisheries.|16| Federal actions agencies which fund, grant, or carry out activities that may adversely affect EFH have to consult with NOAA Fisheries.|17| The federal action agency must provide NOAA Fisheries with an analysis of all actions or proposed actions authorized, funded, or perhaps undertaken by the agency which may adversely affect EFH.|18| Then NOAA The fishing industry will provide the federal actions agency with EFH Preservation recommendations.|19| These kinds of Conservation Recommendations provide information on keep away from, minimize, mitigate, or balance those adverse effects.|20| Federal action agencies need to provide a written explanation to NOAA Fisheries if any of these recommendations have not been used.|21| NOAA The fishing industry must also include measures to reduce the adverse effects of sportfishing gear and fishing activities on EFH as well.|22| In addition , NOAA The fishing industry and the FMCs may touch upon and make recommendations to any state agency on their activities which may affect EFH.|23|
Most consultations are done inside the NMFS regional offices: Better Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO), Southeast Regional Business office (SERO), West Coast Local Office (WCRO), Alaska Local Office (AKRO), and Pacific cycles Islands Regional Office (PIRO). National consultations spanning multiple regions can be done at NOAA Fisheries Headquarters.
State firms and private landowners are not forced to consult with NMFS. EFH meetings are required if the federal government offers authorized, funded, or done part or all of a proposed activity, and if the action will adversely have an effect on EFH.|24| Badly affecting EFH includes immediate or indirect physical, chemical substance or biological alterations in the waters or substrate and loss of, or injury to kinds and their habitat, and other environment components, or reduction with the quality and/or quantity of EFH.
Environment areas of particular concern or perhaps HAPCs are considered high goal areas for conservation, administration, and research.|26| HAPCs are subsets of EFH that merit work because they meet by least one of the following 5 criteria:
provide important environmental function;
are sensitive to environmental degradation;
include a environment type that is/will be stressed by development;
incorporate a habitat type that is exceptional.|27|
Current HAPCs consist of important habitats like estuaries, canopy kelp, corals, seagrass, and rocky reefs, among other areas of interest. HAPCs happen to be afforded the same regulatory safety as EFH and do not leave out activities from occurring inside the area, such as fishing, snorkeling, swimming or surfing.
Essential Fish Habitat is selected for all federally managed seafood under the MSA whereas Vital Habitat is designated meant for the survival and recovery of species listed while threatened or endangered beneath the Endangered Species Act (ESA).|29| Critical demeure include areas occupied by the threatened or endangered types that include physical and neurological features that are essential to the conservation of the species.|30| Critical Habitat is usually designated as critical at the moment a species is listed underneath the ESA.|31| EFH and Critical Habitat vary in terms of designation and control, but they may overlap for several species such as salmon.|32|
An environment characteristics include sediment type, type of bottoms (sand, silt and clay), structures base the water surface, and aquatic community structures. These case are essential for fish and ecosystem health. The fundamental natural environment structure begins with crud. Erosion is stabilized by submerged aquatic vegetation. You will find two main types of bottoms, hard and gentle.|33| A study by Christensen at el. (2004) looked at three bottom habitat types (vegetated marsh edge, submerged aquatic vegetation, and shallow non-vegetated bottom) pertaining to juvenile brown shrimp (Farfantepenaeus aztecus). The results from the study showed that brown prawn selected vegetated areas in salinities 15-25 ppt plus they would select vegetated areas over marsh edges after they co-occurred. Finding the areas that had the highest abundance helped to identify EFH of young , small brown shrimp.|34|
Hard bottom also known as coral reefs or live bottom delivers hard complex vertical composition for attachment of sponges, seaweed, and coral, which often support a diverse reef seafood community.|35| This community can comprise invertebra, coral, hard coral, bryozoans, ploychaete worms, tunicates, a range of fin-fishes, alga, and sponges. Areas of compacted or sheered mud and sediment can also be a form of hard bottom.|36|
Soft bottom consists of unconsolidated sediment and unvegetated areas. In some regions soft feet are not protected even though they may be primary nursery areas, anadromous fish spawning areas, and anadromous nursery areas. Qualities that affect soft bottom level in relation to organisms that employ them include sediment hemp size, salinity, dissolved fresh air and flow.
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