NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service last month announced that it is providing an additional 30 days of public comment through Mar. 27 on its proposal to designate ~5,900 square miles of critical habitat for the following threatened Caribbean corals: Orbicella annularis, O. faveolata, O. franksi, Dendrogyra cylindrus, and Mycetophyllia ferox. The proposed critical habitat includes areas extending from off Southeast Florida to the Dry Tortugas, the Flower Garden Banks, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Navassa Island. Comments were originally due by Jan. 26 before being extended in December through Feb. 25.
In announcing the second extension, NMFS cited requests received during public hearings conducted in January as well as a letter from the Governors of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and American Samoa.
