[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 117 (Monday, June 19, 1995)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 31949-31951]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-14827]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Parts 646 and 659
[I.D. 060695D]
Shrimp and Calico Scallop Fisheries Off the Southern Atlantic
States and the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic; Public
Scoping Meetings and Public Hearing
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of public scoping meetings and public hearing.
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SUMMARY: The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) is
holding public scoping meetings to solicit comments on the following
issues: Sale of fish caught under the recreational bag limit (all
species); Amendment 2 to the Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for the
Shrimp Fishery of the South Atlantic Region (Shrimp FMP) dealing with
fishery bycatch issues; the development of an FMP for the calico
scallop fishery; and the issue of recreational catch and the commercial
bycatch of wreckfish under the FMP for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of
the South Atlantic. The Council is also holding a public hearing to
solicit comments on management options for Amendment 1 to the Shrimp
FMP that would add rock shrimp to the management unit, prohibit shrimp
trawling in certain areas, and establish permitting and reporting
requirements for this fishery. See the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
section for additional information on the hearing and scoping meetings.
DATES: The public scoping meetings are scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. on
Monday, June 19, 1995, at Palm Beach Gardens, FL.
The hearing is scheduled to begin at 1:45 p.m. on Thursday, June
22, 1995, at Palm Beach Gardens, FL.
ADDRESSES: The public scoping meetings and public hearing will be held
in conjunction with the South [[Page 31950]] Atlantic Council public
meetings at the Palm Beach Gardens Marriott, 4000 RCA Boulevard, Palm
Beach Gardens, FL 33410; telephone: (407) 622-8888.
Requests for copies of the public scoping and hearing documents
should be sent to the Council at the following address: South Atlantic
Fishery Management Council, One Southpark Circle, Suite 306,
Charleston, SC 29407-4699.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sharon Coste (Council staff);
telephone: 803-571-4366; fax: 803-769-4520.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A public scoping meeting will be held to
solicit comments on the sale of fish caught under the recreational bag
limit (all species). The Council has considered this issue on numerous
occasions over the past several years, and both commercial and
recreational fishermen have expressed concerns about this matter.
Currently, all of the Council's FMPs allow for the sale of fish taken
under a legal bag limit. The issue regarding the sale of fish caught
under bag limits involves several considerations including: (1) The
definitions of recreational and commercial fishermen; (2) the ethical
question of a ``recreational'' fisherman selling his catch; and (3) the
impacts on a commercial quota from selling fish caught under the bag
limit. The Council will consider prohibiting the sale of fish by
recreational anglers.
The Council will also hold a public scoping meeting to solicit
comments on Amendment 2 to the Shrimp FMP to address the issue of
finfish bycatch in the shrimp trawl fishery. The Council prepared the
Shrimp FMP in 1992 and NMFS approved and implemented it in 1993. At the
time the Shrimp FMP was implemented, the Council was concerned about
finfish bycatch in the shrimp trawl fishery, and intended to begin
developing management measures through an FMP amendment that would
reduce bycatch. The Council's goal for bycatch reduction was delayed by
the 1990 amendments to the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Management
Act, which mandated a 3-year research program to assess the impacts of
shrimp trawl bycatch on fishery resources under management of the
Council. The results of this research program have been recently
summarized in a NMFS report to Congress titled ``A Report to Congress--
Cooperative Research Program Addressing Finfish Bycatch in the Gulf of
Mexico and South Atlantic Shrimp Fisheries--April 1995.''
These research results will be considered by the Council as an
important basis for any specific management actions. Recent advances in
gear development through cooperative efforts between Federal and state
governments and the shrimp industry have produced Bycatch Excluder
Devices (BRDs) that successfully exclude juvenile fish from shrimp
trawls with a minimum of shrimp loss. At its October 1994 meeting in
Wrightsville Beach, NC, the Council recommended that NMFS emphasize the
development of efficient and effective BRDs in its bycatch reduction
research efforts in the South Atlantic; this would provide the Council
and the South Atlantic states with expanded options to reduce finfish
bycatch in the shrimp trawl fishery. Both the Council and the South
Atlantic states have requested that NMFS proceed as rapidly as possible
to obtain the research information needed to identify and assess
options for requiring the use of BRDs under the Shrimp FMP and under
coastal fishery management plans (CFMPs) developed by the Atlantic
States Marine Fisheries Commission (Commission), under provisions of
the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act of 1993
(Atlantic Coastal Act).
The Council has asked NMFS to conduct a bycatch characterization of
the rock shrimp fishery off Cape Canaveral, FL. Concerns still exist
relative to the impacts of shrimp bycatch on the Spanish and king
mackerel resources. In addition, under the current Amendment 2 to the
CFMP for Weakfish, prepared by the Commission under the Atlantic
Coastal Act, all South Atlantic states must implement management
measures to reduce the bycatch of weakfish in the shrimp trawl
fisheries by 50 percent for the 1996 fishing season. Bycatch reduction
plans must be submitted to the Commission's Weakfish Technical
Committee by October 1, 1995.
The Council is closely coordinating its efforts with the marine
resource agencies of the South Atlantic states and has also initiated
action on the shrimp trawl bycatch issue by beginning the scoping
process on the development of Amendment 2 to the Shrimp FMP. Among
several management alternatives under consideration by the Council are
the use of BRDs by season and/or area, as well as areal or seasonal
closures.
A public scoping meeting will also be held to solicit comments on
the development of an FMP for the calico scallop fishery. The Council
may consider the following measures as possible management options for
this fishery: (1) No action; (2) prohibit calico scallop trawling
(trawling) south of 28 deg.30' N. lat; (3) prohibit trawling south of
28 deg. N. lat.; (4) allow trawling south of Cape Canaveral only with
transponders; (5) prohibit trawling west of Oculina Bank; (6) prohibit
trawling in depths of less than 120 ft (36.58 m); (7) allow trawling
with transponders only from Duval County through St. Lucie County; (8)
limit trawling from Duval County through St. Lucie, County; and (9)
prohibit trawling south of Cape Canaveral, FL (i.e., south of
28 deg.35.1' N. lat.).
A scoping meeting will also be held to solicit comments on
wreckfish caught by recreational fishermen and the commercial bycatch
of wreckfish outside of the Blake Plateau. Amendments 3 and 4 to the
Snapper-Grouper FMP established a management program for wreckfish in
the South Atlantic region. A framework measure was also included
allowing the Council to set total allowable catch (TAC) each year and
at the same time consider other options. Amendment 5 to the Snapper-
Grouper FMP established an individual transferable quota (ITQ) system
in the wreckfish fishery that only allows ITQ shareholders to land and
sell wreckfish, and allows only permitted dealers to handle wreckfish
and to buy wreckfish from ITQ shareholders. Recently, there have been
reports of wreckfish being caught by recreational fishermen fishing
primarily for red grouper off Key West, FL, and commercial fishermen,
especially off south Florida, observing occasional wreckfish bycatch.
These reports do not indicate frequency or poundage of catches,
disposition of catches, nor substantial quantities or targeting of
wreckfish. The Council is considering the following management options
for regulating this fishery: (1) No action (i.e., do not allow the
taking or landing of wreckfish in the South Atlantic region except by
ITQ shareholders; (2) set a recreational bag limit of 1 or 2 fish per
fisherman per trip; (3) set a recreational bag limit of 1 or 2 fish per
boat per day; (4) set a recreational bag limit of 1 or 2 fish per boat
per trip; (5) set an undetermined recreational bag limit; (6) set a bag
limit of 1 or 2 fish per boat per trip for commercial fishermen in the
South Atlantic region who are not wreckfish ITQ shareholders; (7) set a
bag limit of 1 or 2 fish per boat per day for commercial fishermen in
the South Atlantic region who are not wreckfish ITQ shareholders; (8)
set a bag limit of 1 or 2 fish per boat per trip for commercial
fishermen in the south Florida area who are not wreckfish ITQ
shareholders; (9) set a bag limit of 1 to 2 fish per boat per day for
commercial fishermen in the south Florida area who [[Page 31951]] are
not wreckfish ITQ shareholders, (10) allow for an undetermined
commercial bag limit in the South Atlantic region; and (11) allow for
an undetermined commercial bag limit only in the South Florida area.
A final public hearing will be held to solicit comments on
management options for Amendment 1 to the Shrimp FMP, which proposes to
add rock shrimp to the management unit, prohibit trawling for rock
shrimp in designated areas, and implement mandatory permitting and
reporting requirements for vessels fishing for, and dealers handling,
rock shrimp in the South Atlantic region. In addition, the Council will
solicit comments on a mandatory vessel operator license and other
management measures to enhance law enforcement that it is considering.
Verbal public comments regarding Shrimp FMP Amendment 1 may be
presented at the public hearing and will be considered by the Council
prior to taking its intended final action at the June public meeting.
Written public comments on the subjects of the scoping meetings,
including any Council scoping documents made available to the public,
may be submitted to the Council from the time of the scoping meetings
until such time as the Council has prepared appropriate and related
hearing documents that are available for public comment. For copies of
the public scoping and hearing documents, see ADDRESSES.
These meetings are physically accessible to people with
disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other
auxiliary aids should be directed to the Council office by June 16,
1995.
For special accommodations regarding the meetings and hearing,
contact the Council (see ADDRESSES).
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et. seq.
Dated: June 13, 1995.
Richard H. Schaefer,
Director, Office of Fisheries Conservation and Management, National
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 95-14827 Filed 6-13-95; 3:27 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F
