[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 206 (Tuesday, October 26, 1999)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 57585-57586]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-27922]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 622
[I.D. 102099B]
Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic;
Reef Fish Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico; Closure of the Commercial Red
Snapper Component
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of closure.
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SUMMARY: NMFS closes the commercial fishery for red snapper in the
exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Gulf of Mexico. NMFS projects that
the initial portion of the annual commercial quota for red snapper will
be reached on November 5, 1999. This closure is necessary to protect
the red snapper resource.
DATES: Effective noon, local time, November 5, 1999, until noon, local
time, February 1, 2000.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Roy E. Crabtree, 727-570-5305.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The reef fish fishery of the Gulf of Mexico
is managed under the Fishery
[[Page 57586]]
Management Plan for the Reef Fish Resources of the Gulf of Mexico
(FMP). The FMP was prepared by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management
Council and is implemented under the authority of the Magnuson-Stevens
Fishery Conservation and Management Act by regulations at 50 CFR part
622. Those regulations set the commercial quota for red snapper in the
Gulf of Mexico at 4.65 million lb (2.11 million kg) for the current
fishing year, January 1 through December 31, 1999. Those regulations
split the red snapper commercial fishing season into two time periods,
the first commencing at noon on February 1, with two-thirds of the
annual quota (3.06 million lb (1.39 million kg)) available, and the
second commencing at noon on September 1, with the remainder of the
annual quota available. During the fall commercial season, the red
snapper commercial fishery opens at noon on the first of each month and
closes at noon on the 10th of each month, until the applicable
commercial quotas are reached.
Under 50 CFR 622.43(a), NMFS is required to close the commercial
fishery for a species or species group when the quota for that species
or species group is reached, or is projected to be reached, by filing a
notification to that effect with the Federal Register. Based on current
statistics, NMFS projects that the available commercial quota of 4.65
million lb (2.11 million kg) for red snapper will be reached on
November 5, 1999. Accordingly, the commercial fishery in the EEZ in the
Gulf of Mexico for red snapper will remain closed from noon on November
5, 1999, until noon, local time, on February 1, 2000. The operator of a
vessel with a valid reef fish permit having red snapper aboard must
have landed and bartered, traded, or sold such red snapper prior to
noon, local time, November 5, 1999.
During the closure, the bag and possession limits specified in 50
CFR 622.39(b) apply to all harvest or possession of red snapper in or
from the EEZ in the Gulf of Mexico, and the sale or purchase of red
snapper taken from the EEZ is prohibited. In addition, the bag and
possession limits for red snapper apply on board a vessel for which a
commercial permit for Gulf reef fish has been issued, without regard to
where such red snapper were harvested. However, the bag and possession
limits for red snapper apply only when the recreational quota for red
snapper has not been reached and the bag and possession limit has not
been reduced to zero. The prohibition on sale or purchase does not
apply to sale or purchase of red snapper that were harvested, landed
ashore, and sold prior to noon, local time, November 5, 1999, and were
held in cold storage by a dealer or processor.
Classification
This action is taken under 50 CFR 622.43(a) and is exempt from
review under E.O. 12866.
Dated: October 21, 1999.
Bruce C. Morehead,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 99-27922 Filed 10-25-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F
