2021-27762. Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Atlantic Bluefish Fishery; Quota Transfers From DE to NC and MD to RI

AGENCY:

National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION:

Notification; quota transfers.

SUMMARY:

NMFS announces that the states of Delaware and Maryland are transferring a portion of their 2021 commercial bluefish quota to the states of North Carolina and Rhode Island, respectively. These quota adjustments are necessary to comply with the Atlantic Bluefish Fishery Management Plan quota transfer provisions. This announcement informs the public of the revised commercial bluefish quotas for Delaware, North Carolina, Maryland, and Rhode Island.

DATES:

Effective December 17, 2021, through December 31, 2021.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Laura Hansen, Fishery Management Specialist, [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Regulations governing the Atlantic bluefish fishery are found in 50 CFR 648.160 through 648.167. These regulations require annual specification of a commercial quota that is apportioned among the coastal states from Maine through Florida. The process to set the annual commercial quota and the percent allocated to each state is described in § 648.162, and the final 2021 allocations were published on December 16, 2020 (85 FR 81421).

The final rule implementing Amendment 1 to the Bluefish Fishery Management Plan (FMP) published in the Federal Register on July 26, 2000 (65 FR 45844), and provided a mechanism for transferring bluefish quota from one state to another. Two or more states, under mutual agreement and with the concurrence of the NMFS Greater Atlantic Regional Administrator, can request approval to transfer or combine bluefish commercial quota under § 648.162(e)(1)(i) through (iii). The Regional Administrator must approve any such transfer based on the criteria in § 648.162(e). In evaluating requests to transfer a quota or combine quotas, the Regional Administrator shall consider whether: The transfer or combinations would preclude the overall annual quota from being fully harvested; the transfer addresses an unforeseen variation or contingency in the fishery; and the transfer is consistent with the objectives of the FMP and the Magnuson-Stevens Act.

Delaware is transferring 15,000 lb (6,804 kg) to North Carolina, and Maryland is transferring 10,000 lb (4,536 kg) to Rhode Island through mutual agreement of the states. These transfers were requested to ensure that North Carolina and Rhode Island would not exceed their 2021 state quota. The revised bluefish quotas for 2021 are: Delaware, 6,958 lb (3,156 kg); North Carolina, 1,072,377 lb (486,422 kg); Maryland 43,084 lb (19,542 kg); and Rhode Island, 314,434 lb (142,625 kg).

Classification

NMFS issues this action pursuant to section 305(d) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act. This action is required by 50 CFR 648.162(e)(1)(i) through (iii), which was issued pursuant to section 304(b), and is exempted from review under Executive Order 12866.

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.

Dated: December 17, 2021.

Ngagne Jafnar Gueye,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.