Part
2, Sec. 4A
Administration - Administrative Framework
Administrative
Framework
This
section of the management plan describes the roles of various
agencies that will be involved in Sanctuary management; proposes
strategies to coordinate their activities; and provides for
periodic evaluation of the overall effectiveness of the management
plan. As previously discussed, sanctuary management consists
of three basic functions: resource protection, research, and
education/interpretation. Administration oversees all other
functions and establishes who is responsible for implementing
specific programs. The administrative framework ensures that
all management activities are coordinated.
The
Sanctuaries and Reserves Division (SRD) is responsible for the
overall management of the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary
(SBNMS). SRD will coordinate its on-site activities through
cooperative agreements with the Commonwealth, regional, local
and other Federal agencies. The general administrative roles
of each agency are described below.
1. Sanctuaries
and Reserves Division
The
National Marine Sanctuary Program is administered by SRD. A
site-specific management plan is prepared for each individual
Sanctuary to ensure that on-site activities involving resource
protection, research, and education/interpretation are coordinated
and are consistent with Sanctuary goals and objectives.
SRD
develops a general budget, setting out expenditures for program
development, operating costs, and staffing. Funding priorities
will be reviewed and adjusted annually to reflect evolving conditions
in the SBNMS and National Marine Sanctuary Program priorities
and requirements. SRD also establishes policies and procedures
in response to specific issues in each Sanctuary. Detailed SRD
responsibilities are listed under the resource protection, research,
education/ interpretation, and general administration sections
which follow.
The
Sanctuary Manager for the SBNMS reports directly to the Atlantic
and Great Lakes Regional Manager at SRD. In this capacity, the
Manager represents SRD and is the primary spokesperson for the
SBNMS. The Sanctuary's headquarters will be located at a site
which provides access both to the visiting public and to the
Sanctuary. The town of Plymouth has been selected for the location
of the SBNMS headquarters office; additional "satellite" information
centers will be established following the designation of the
Sanctuary.
2. National
Marine Fisheries Service, Northeast Region
The
National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), within NOAA, has a
variety of missions which are directly involved with Sanctuary
resources. In general, these include implementation of the various
Fishery Management Plans; and implementation of the provisions
of the Marine Mammal Protection Act and Endangered Species Act.
(Further discussion of NMFS roles is presented in Part Three,
Section I: Status Quo Alternative.) NMFS offices are located
in Gloucester and in Woods Hole.
3. U.S.
Coast Guard
The
U.S. Coast Guard is responsible for enforcement of Federal laws
in waters under U.S. jurisdiction, including those related to
vessel traffic and search and rescue activities. (See further
discussion in Part Three, Section I: Status Quo Alternative.)
The First Coast Guard District office is located in Boston;
Coast Guard stations are located at Boston Harbor, Gloucester,
Scituate, Sandwich, Merrimack River, Provincetown, Cape Cod
Air Station (at Otis Air Force Base), and Woods Hole.
4. Sanctuary Advisory Committee
The
National Marine Sanctuary Program differs from many other special
area management programs, in that Sanctuaries are managed to
enhance research and education/interpretation, as well as to
ensure the primary goal of overall resource protection. Several
agencies, organizations, and interest groups are already involved
with resources and qualities within the area of the Sanctuary.
A mechanism will be established to facilitate the participation
of interested and appropriate individuals and groups in providing
to the Sanctuary Manager recommendations on policy related to
management of the Sanctuary. In accordance with the provisions
of Title III of the Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries
Act (MPRSA), as amended, a Sanctuary Advisory Committee (SAC)
will be established to provide this means of participation.
Section 315 of Title III (as amended at P.L. 102-587, §2112)
provides that the Secretary of Commerce may appoint up to 15
individuals who are: employed by Federal or State agencies with
expertise in management of natural resources; members of relevant
Regional Fishery Management Councils established under section
302 of the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Management Act;
or representatives of local user groups, conservation and other
public interest organizations, scientific organizations, educational
organizations, or others interested in the protection and multiple
use management of Sanctuary resources.
Groups,
individuals and agencies will be consulted to ensure that all
interests are taken into account, and that the SAC is representative
of a broad-based constituency. For example, interests represented
on the SAC should include commercial and recreational fishing,
commercial whalewatching, commercial and recreational boating,
environmental, research, and education groups, and regional
ocean/coastal management initiatives. Final selection of SAC
members is the responsibility of the Secretary of Commerce,
as parent agency to NOAA.
A
SAC with a broad representation will help ensure that the Sanctuary
Manager has an expanded information base upon which to make
management decisions. The experience and expertise of the SAC
will be available to the Manager on an ad hoc basis, as well
as at regularly scheduled meetings. In order for the SAC to
function efficiently, it may be beneficial to divide the SAC
into subcommittees that deal directly with resource protection,
research, education/interpretation, and general administration
issues. Responsibilities of the SAC are detailed in the resource
protection, research, education/interpretation, and general
administration sections which follow.
5. Other
Federal Agencies
The
Environmental Protection Agency, Region I office (EPA) in Boston,
has regulatory responsibilities related to sewage outfalls and
ocean disposal activities. Certain ocean disposal activities
are also permitted and monitored by the U.S. Corps of Engineers,
New England Division, located in Waltham, MA. The Corps is also
responsible for certain activities in navigable waters.
The
Minerals Management Service (MMS), within the U. S. Department
of the Interior, is responsible for activities conducted pursuant
to the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OSCLA). (Further discussion
of other Federal agency responsibilities is provided at Part
Three, Section I: Status Quo Alternative.)
6. State,
Regional and Local Agencies
NOAA
will work closely within the existing administrative framework
of Commonwealth agencies, such as the Massachusetts Coastal
Zone Management Office and the Division of Marine Fisheries,
to ensure a coordinated approach to the ocean and ocean resource
management responsibilities of all agencies.
It
is NOAA's intention to work to ensure full cooperation and coordination
with other State and State/Federal programs, such as the Massachusetts
Bays Program. This cooperation may involve formalization of
Cooperative Agreements and/or Memoranda of Understanding.
To
facilitate the administrative procedures regarding certification
and notification of leases, licenses, permits, approvals, rights
or other authorizations (as described above in Part Two, Section
III, Designation Document and Regulations), NOAA intends to
work closely with the owners or holders of, or applicants for,
leases, licenses, permits, approvals, rights or other authorizations
as well as with the appropriate issuing agencies.
Given
the proximity of the Sanctuary to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts,
and the close ties between resources of the Commonwealth and
those of the Stellwagen Bank area, it is presumed that all activities
proposed for Stellwagen Bank which are subject to direct Sanctuary
management can be demonstrated to potentially affect land and
water uses and natural resources of the Massachusetts coastal
zone. Such activities will, therefore, be subject to the jurisdiction
of the Massachusetts Coastal Zone Management Program (MCZM).
Such activities -- whether they are direct Federal activities,
require Federal permits, or are supported with Federal funds
-- are subject to review by MCZM to determine whether they are
consistent with applicable enforceable MCZM Program policies.
The determination of consistency with the Commonwealth's enforceable
policies, known as Federal Consistency Review, is conducted
by the MCZM Program Office pursuant to § 307 of the Coastal
Zone Management Act and its implementing regulations.
NOAA
intends to seek the active participation of the MCZM Program
Office in Sanctuary management issues; to draw upon the Commonwealth's
experience and expertise in coastal ocean resource management;
and to provide direct links with relevant Commonwealth environmental
management and regulatory agencies. When it is feasible, reviews
of proposed activities which are subject to both Sanctuary and
MCZM jurisdiction will be conducted concurrently.
As
a networking coastal program, MCZM implements its program policies
through the regulatory authorities of several different Commonwealth
agencies. NOAA believes, therefore, that close coordination
with the MCZM Program will provide an effective means of developing
appropriate and direct linkages between the Stellwagen Bank
National Marine Sanctuary and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
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