[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 202 (Thursday, October 17, 1996)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 54105-54107]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-26498]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 961008281-6281-01; I.D. 091896B]
RIN 0648-AJ25
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Northeast
Multispecies Fishery; Monkfish Exempted Trawl Fishery
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: NMFS issues this final rule to modify the regulations
implementing the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan (FMP).
This rule allows a year-round exempted trawl fishery for monkfish south
of 40 deg.10' N. lat. and east of 72 deg.30' W. long., allows
additional bycatch species in the Cultivator Shoal Whiting Fishery, and
adds a prohibition to enhance enforcement of the exemptions. The intent
of this action is to maximize fishing opportunities in a manner that is
consistent with the conservation objectives of the FMP.
EFFECTIVE DATE: October 10, 1996.
ADDRESSES: Copies of Amendment 7 to the FMP, its regulatory impact
review (RIR) and the regulatory flexibility analysis contained within
the RIR, and its final supplemental environmental impact statement, are
available upon request from Christopher Kellogg, Acting Executive
Director, New England Fishery Management Council (Council), 5 Broadway,
Saugus, MA 01906-1097. Copies of the Environmental Assessment (EA)
supporting this action may be obtained from Dr. Andrew A. Rosenberg,
Regional Administrator, NMFS, 1 Blackburn Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: E. Martin Jaffe, Fishery Policy
Analyst, 508-281-9272.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Regulations implementing Amendment 7 to the
FMP became effective on July 1, 1996 (61 FR 27710, May 31, 1996). These
regulations implemented a
[[Page 54106]]
comprehensive set of measures to control fishing mortality and rebuild
the primary stocks of regulated multispecies. Amendment 7 contains a
bycatch control measure that is applied in each of two specific
regulated mesh areas: The Gulf of Maine/Georges Bank Regulated Mesh
Area and the Southern New England (SNE) Regulated Mesh Area. A vessel
may not fish in these areas unless it is fishing under a multispecies
or scallop days-at-sea (DAS) allocation, is fishing with exempted gear,
is fishing under the handgear or party/charter permit restrictions, or
is fishing in an exempted fishery.
The procedure for adding, modifying, or deleting fisheries from the
list of exempted fisheries is found in Sec. 648.80. A fishery may be
exempted by the Regional Administrator, Northeast Region (Regional
Administrator), after consultation with the Council, if the Regional
Administrator determines, based on available data or information, that
the bycatch of regulated species is, or can be reduced to, less than 5
percent by weight of the total catch and that such exemption will not
jeopardize the fishing mortality objectives of the FMP. The Regional
Administrator is also authorized to impose specific gear, area,
seasonal, or other limitations appropriate to reduce bycatch of
regulated species.
The Council submitted a request to establish an exempted trawl
fishery for monkfish south of 40 deg.10' N. lat. and requiring 8-inch
(20.3 cm) mesh or larger in the codend. In addition, the Regional
Administrator received other requests for monkfish fishery exemptions
that differed in area or mesh size but were similar enough to the
Council's request to consider and analyze jointly. The data
subsequently analyzed consisted of available otter trawl and beam trawl
sea sampling, vessel trip reports, and catch data. Consequently, in the
regulatory text, references to trawl vessels refer to otter trawl and
beam trawl vessels.
The Regional Administrator has also received and completed the data
analysis for a request involving the existing Cultivator Shoal Whiting
Fishery exemption. The request was submitted by an individual fisher
seeking additional bycatch species that could be retained under the
constraints of that program. The Regional Administrator also consulted
with the Council on this request and found no opposition to adding the
requested species.
Based on the analysis of the available data regarding regulated
species bycatch for the gear, area, and time periods specified in the
aforementioned exemption requests, and any other relevant factors, the
Regional Administrator has determined that the request for an exempted
fishery submitted by the Council and the request for additional bycatch
in the Cultivator Shoal Whiting Fishery submitted by a fisher meet the
exemption requirements specified in Sec. 648.80(a)(7) and (b)(4). The
other requests for monkfish fishery exemptions were determined not to
meet the requirements based on the EA, which is available upon request
from the Regional Administrator.
This rule implements an exempted fishery for trawl vessels using a
minimum mesh size of 8 inches (20.3 cm) in the codend, in the portion
of the SNE Regulated Mesh Area south of 40 deg.10' N. lat. Such vessels
may retain monkfish as well as the existing bycatch species allowed for
the SNE Regulated Mesh Area (Sec. 648.80(b)(3)). Vessels fishing in
this exempted fishery are subject to net stowage requirements if mesh
less than 8 inches (20.3 cm) is on board and may not possess regulated
species.
Vessels enrolled in the existing Cultivator Shoal Whiting Fishery
may retain, in addition to the currently allowed bycatch species,
unlimited amounts of butterfish and mackerel and may retain red hake
and dogfish, each in amounts not to exceed 10 percent, by weight, of
all other species on board. The 10 percent limit is based on data that
indicate that, when landed as bycatch these two species would not
result in greater than 5 percent bycatch of regulated multispecies. To
ensure that a directed fishery does not occur for dogfish and red hake
in the Cultivator Shoal Whiting Fishery, and that the species are only
bycatch, a 10 percent limit is imposed. Ten percent is consistent with
previous bycatch limits.
A directed fishery for mackerel is unlikely to occur, as it is
impractical with the gear used in this fishery. A directed fishery for
butterfish is unlikely to occur, because the area is located in the
northernmost extent of the species' range and, like mackerel, a
directed fishery is impractical with the gear required under the
program. Hence, no bycatch limits are necessary for these species. All
four additional bycatch species are allowed under the existing time,
area, and gear restrictions of the Cultivator Shoal Whiting Fishery
exemption.
Finally, this rule adds a prohibition to the regulations to enhance
enforceability, specifically referring to the exemptions authorized
under Sec. 648.80.
Classification
The Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA (AA), finds there
is good cause to waive prior notice and opportunity for comment under 5
U.S.C. 553(b)(B). Public meetings held by the Council to discuss this
management measure, as well as consultation with the Council on any
request for exemption during a public Council meeting, provided full
prior notice and opportunity for public comment to be made and
considered, making additional opportunity for public comment
unnecessary.
Because this rule relieves a restriction under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(1),
it is not subject to a delay in effective date.
This final rule has been determined to be not significant for
purposes of E.O. 12866.
List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 648
Fisheries, Fishing, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Dated: October 9, 1996.
Rolland A. Schmitten,
Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries
Service.
For the reasons set out in the preamble, 50 CFR part 648 is amended
as follows:
PART 648--FISHERIES OF THE NORTHEASTERN UNITED STATES
1. The authority citation for part 648 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
2. In Sec. 648.14, paragraph (a)(43) is revised to read as follows:
Sec. 648.14 Prohibitions.
(a) * * *
(43) Violate any of the provisions of Sec. 648.80(a)(3), (4), (5),
(8), (9), (b)(3) or (b)(5), or of any exempted fishery authorized by
the Regional Director. A violation of any of these paragraphs is a
separate violation.
* * * * *
3. In Sec. 648.80, paragraphs (a)(4)(i)(A) and (b)(2)(iii) are
revised, and paragraph (b)(5) is added to read as follows:
Sec. 648.80 Regulated mesh areas and restrictions on gear and methods
of fishing.
* * * * *
(a) * * *
(4) * * *
(i) * * *
(A) A vessel fishing in the Cultivator Shoal Whiting Fishery
Exemption Area under this exemption must have a letter of authorization
issued by the Regional Director on board and may not fish for, possess
on board, or land any species of fish other than whiting, except for
the
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following, with the restrictions noted, as allowable bycatch species:
Longhorn sculpin; squid; butterfish; mackerel; monkfish and monkfish
parts, dogfish, and red hake--up to 10 percent each, by weight, of all
other species on board; and American lobster--up to 10 percent by
weight of all other species on board or 200 lobsters, whichever is
less.
* * * * *
(b) * * *
(2) * * *
(iii) Other gear and mesh exemptions. The minimum mesh size for any
trawl net, sink gillnet, Scottish seine, midwater trawl, or purse seine
in use or available for immediate use, as described under
Sec. 648.23(b), by a vessel when not fishing under the Northeast
multispecies DAS program and when fishing in the SNE regulated mesh
area is specified under the exemptions set forth in paragraphs (b)(3),
(b)(5), (c), (e), (h), and (i) of this section. Vessels that are not
fishing in one of these exemption programs, with exempted gear (as
defined under this part), or under the scallop state waters exemption
specified in Sec. 648.54, or under a NE multispecies DAS, are
prohibited from fishing in the SNE regulated mesh area.
* * * * *
(5) SNE Monkfish Fishery Exemption Area. A trawl vessel may fish in
the SNE Monkfish Fishery Exemption Area when not under a NE
multispecies DAS if the vessel complies with the requirements specified
in paragraph (b)(5)(i) of this section. The SNE Monkfish Fishery
Exemption Area is defined as the area bounded on the north by a line
extending eastward along 40 deg.10' N. lat., and bounded on the west by
the eastern boundary of the Mid-Atlantic Regulated Mesh Area.
(i) Requirements. (A) A vessel fishing in the SNE Monkfish Fishery
Exemption Area under this exemption, when not fishing under a NE
multispecies DAS, may not fish for, possess on board, or land any
species of fish other than monkfish, except that such vessels may
retain and land the bycatch species and amounts specified in paragraph
(b)(3) of this section. Vessels fishing under this exemption may not
possess regulated species unless fishing under the NE Multispecies DAS
program.
(B) All trawl nets must comply with a minimum mesh size of 8 inches
(20.3 cm) square or diamond mesh applied throughout the codend for at
least 45 continuous meshes forward of the terminus of the net.
(C) All nets with a mesh size smaller than the minimum mesh size
specified in paragraph (b)(5)(i)(B) of this section must be stowed in
accordance with one of the methods described under Sec. 648.23(b).
(ii) [Reserved]
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 96-26498 Filed 10-10-96; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F
