2024-24162. Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; Reporting of Sea Turtle Incidental Takes in Virginia Chesapeake Bay Pound Net Operations

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Department of Commerce

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

The Department of Commerce will submit the following information collection request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and clearance in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, on or after the date of publication of this notice. We invite the general public and other Federal agencies to comment on proposed, and continuing information collections, which helps us assess the impact of our information collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden. Public comments were previously requested via the Federal Register on August 7, 2024 during a 60-day comment period. This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public comments.

Agency: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

Title: Reporting of Sea Turtle Incidental Takes in Virginia Chesapeake Bay Pound Net Operations.

OMB Control Number: 0648-0470.

Form Number(s): None.

Type of Request: Regular submission (extension of a current information collection).

Number of Respondents: 33.

Average Hours per Response: 10 minutes.

Total Annual Burden Hours: 167 hours.

Needs and Uses: This is a request for renewal of an approved information collection.

Since 2002, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has promulgated several rules restricting the use of large mesh and stringer pound net leaders in certain Virginia Chesapeake Bay waters during the late spring/early summer each year. On June 17, 2002, an interim final rule was published (67 FR 41196) restricting leader use, which also required year-round reporting of sea turtle takes. In 2004, NMFS issued a final rule further restricting pound net leader use in Virginia (69 FR 24997). The 2004 rule retained the reporting requirement from the 2002 rule. These regulations (modifications to 50 CFR parts 222 and 223) were implemented as a result of high sea turtle strandings each spring in Virginia and the documented take of sea turtles in pound net leaders. On March 31, 2018, a revised Biological Opinion on NMFS gear regulations in the Virginia pound net fishery was completed pursuant to section 7 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA). An Incidental Take Statement was included in this Biological Opinion, exempting the incidental take of a certain number of loggerhead, Kemp's ridley, green and leatherback sea turtles in pound net operations.

A non-discretionary term and condition of the Incidental Take Statement involved the reporting to NMFS of live or dead sea turtles taken in pound net operations (reflected in 50 CFR 223.206). The collection of this information on the incidental take of sea turtles in the Virginia pound net fishery is necessary to ensure sea turtles are being conserved and protected, as mandated by the ESA. Documenting the accurate occurrence of sea turtle incidental take in pound net operations will help to determine if additional regulatory actions or management measures are necessary to protect sea turtles caught in pound net operations. This information will help NMFS better assess the Virginia pound net fishery and its impacts (or lack thereof) on sea turtle populations in the Virginia Chesapeake Bay. The collection of this information is also imperative to ensure that the Incidental Take Statement is not being exceeded, the anticipated take levels are appropriate, and the effects analysis in the Biological Opinion is accurate. Further, reporting the take of live, injured sea turtles caught in pound net gear will ensure these turtles are transferred immediately to a stranding and rehabilitation center for appropriate medical treatment.

Affected Public: Individuals or households.

Frequency: Reporting occurs when sea turtles are encountered in Virginia pound net gear, which could occur occasionally from May through November.

Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.

Legal Authority: Endangered Species Act.

This information collection request may be viewed at www.reginfo.gov. Follow the instructions to view the Department of Commerce collections currently under review by OMB.

Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be submitted within 30 days of the publication of this notice on the following website www.reginfo.gov/​public/​do/​PRAMain. Find this particular information collection by selecting “Currently under 30-day Review—Open for Public Comments” or by using the search function and entering either the title of the collection or the OMB Control Number 0648-0470.

Sheleen Dumas,

Departmental PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs, Commerce Department.