Essential Fish Habitat
Fundamental Fish Habitat (EFH) was defined by the U. H. Congress in the 1996 changes to the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Resource efficiency and Management Act, or perhaps Magnuson-Stevens Act, as "those waters and substrate essential to fish for spawning, breeding, nourishing or growth to maturity. "|1| Putting into action regulations clarified that oceans include all aquatic areas and their physical, chemical, and biological properties; substrate involves the associated biological communities that make these areas suitable for fish habitats, and the explanation and identification of EFH should include habitats used at any time during the species' life spiral.|2| EFH comes with all types of aquatic habitat, including wetlands, coral reefs, sand, seagrasses, and rivers.|3|
NOAA Fisheries works with the regional fishery management councils to designate EFH using the best available scientific information. EFH has been described for over a 1, 000 managed species to date.|4| The key purpose of EFH regulations is usually to minimize the adverse effects of fishing and non angling impacts on EFH to the maximum extent practicable.
In 1996, the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Work was amended to establish a fresh requirements to identify and illustrate EFH to protect, conserve and enhance EFH for the main advantage of the fisheries.|5| The Magnuson-Stevens Act possesses jurisdiction over the management and conservation of marine fish species. Federal agencies must consult with NOAA Fisheries when ever their actions or activities may adversely affect environment identified by federal regional fishery management councils or NOAA Fisheries as EFH.|6| On December 19, 1997, interim final rules were published inside the Federal Register (Vol. over 60, No . 244) which stipulate procedures for implementation on the EFH provisions of the Magnuson-Stevens Act.|7| These types of rules were amended by simply publication of final rules upon January 17, 2002 (Vol. 67, No . 12).|8| he rules, in two subparts, address requirements for fishery management plan (FMP) amendment, and fine detail the coordination, consultation, and recommendation requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Act.
Influences from certain fishing routines and coastal and maritime development and may alter, destruction, or destroy habitats necessary for fish. NOAA Fisheries, the regional fishery management councils (FMCs), and other federal firms work together to minimize these dangers.|13| Congress has created councils to classify unfavorable impacts on fishes in relation to types of fishing gear, seaside developments and nonpoint and point source pollution, along with, evaluating how well each fishery is managed. The FMCs, with assistance from NOAA Fisheries, has delineated EFH for federally managed types. As new FMPs happen to be developed, EFH for recently managed species will also be defined.|14| FMPs need to describe and identify EFH for the fishery, decrease to the extent practicable the adverse effects of fishing in EFH, and identify different actions to encourage the conservation and enhancement of EFH.
Through consultations, NOAA Fisheries can suggest ways federal agencies can easily avoid or minimize the adverse effects of their actions on the habitat of federally managed commercial and recreational the fishing industry.|16| Federal actions agencies which fund, support, or carry out activities that may adversely affect EFH have to consult with NOAA Fisheries.|17| The federal actions agency must provide NOAA Fisheries with an evaluation of all actions or proposed actions authorized, funded, or undertaken by the agency which may adversely affect EFH.|18| Then NOAA Fisheries will provide the federal action agency with EFH Conservation recommendations.|19| These kinds of Conservation Recommendations provide information on how to avoid, minimize, mitigate, or balance out those adverse effects.|20| Federal action agencies need to provide a written explanation to NOAA Fisheries if these recommendations have not been used.|21| NOAA The fishing industry must also include measures to reduce the adverse effects of angling gear and fishing actions on EFH as well.|22| In addition , NOAA Fisheries and the FMCs may comment on and make recommendations to the state agency on their activities which may affect EFH.|23|
Most consultations are done inside the NMFS regional offices: Better Atlantic Regional Fisheries Business office (GARFO), Southeast Regional Workplace (SERO), West Coast Local Office (WCRO), Alaska Local Office (AKRO), and Pacific Islands Regional Office (PIRO). National consultations spanning multiple regions can be done at NOAA Fisheries Headquarters.
State businesses and private landowners are not required to consult with NMFS. EFH consultation services are required if the federal government has authorized, funded, or undertaken part or all of a proposed activity, and if the action will adversely influence EFH.|24| Negatively affecting EFH includes immediate or indirect physical, chemical or biological alterations from the waters or substrate and loss of, or injury to kinds and their habitat, and other ecosystem components, or reduction of the quality and/or quantity of EFH.
Habitat areas of particular concern or perhaps HAPCs are considered high goal areas for conservation, managing, and research.|26| HAPCs are subsets of EFH that merit special attention because they meet for least one of the following 4 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 uncommon.|27|
Current HAPCs include important habitats like estuaries, canopy kelp, corals, seagrass, and rocky reefs, between other areas of interest. HAPCs will be afforded the same regulatory protection as EFH and do not leave out activities from occurring inside the area, such as fishing, snorkeling, swimming or surfing.
Imperative Fish Habitat is designated for all federally managed fish under the MSA whereas Essential Habitat is designated for the survival and restoration of species listed seeing that threatened or endangered beneath the Endangered Species Act (ESA).|29| Critical case include areas occupied by the threatened or endangered species that include physical and scientific 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 beneath the ESA.|31| EFH and Critical Habitat vary in terms of designation and legislation, but they may overlap for many species such as salmon.|32|
Home characteristics include sediment type, type of bottoms (sand, silt and clay), structures underlying the water surface, and marine community structures. These habitats are essential for fish and ecosystem health. The fundamental habitat structure begins with sediment. Erosion is stabilized by simply submerged aquatic vegetation. There are two main types of bottoms, hard and soft.|33| A study by Christensen at el. (2004) looked at three bottom an environment 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 shrimp selected vegetated areas in salinities 15-25 ppt and would select vegetated areas over marsh edges every time they co-occurred. Finding the areas that had the highest abundance helped to identify EFH of teenage brown shrimp.|34|
Hard bottom also known as coral reefs or live bottom delivers hard complex vertical framework for attachment of a dry sponge, seaweed, and coral, which support a diverse reef fish community.|35| This kind of community can comprise invertebra, coral, hard coral, bryozoans, ploychaete worms, tunicates, a variety of fin-fishes, alga, and a sponge. 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 can be primary nursery areas, anadromous fish spawning areas, and anadromous nursery areas. Features that affect soft starting in relation to organisms that make use of them include sediment hemp size, salinity, dissolved air and flow.
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