2024-16569. Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act Provisions; Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic Fisheries; Application for Exempted Fishing Permits

Table 1—Requested Exemptions

CFR citation	Regulation	Need for exemption
50 CFR 697.21(b)(2)	Gear marking requirements	For trial of lobster gear with no more than one surface marking on trawls of more than three traps.
50 CFR 648.84(b)	Gear marking requirements	For trial of gillnet gear with no more than one surface marking.

Table 2—Project Summary

Project title	Testing Technologies for Sub-Surface Gear Marking and Buoyless/On-Demand Trap/Pot and Gillnet Fishing Gear and Data Collection Packages to Help Reduce Entanglement Risk.
Project start	Upon issuance.
Project end	12/31/2025.
Project objectives	To test sub-surface gear marking, on-demand gear, and smart buoy technologies in trap/pot and sink gillnet fisheries.
Project location	Trap/pot: Lobster Management Areas 1 and 3. Gillnet: Statistical Areas 521, 538, and Georges Bank Regulated Mesh Area.
Number of vessels	Trap/pot: 16; gillnet: 4.
Number of trips	Trap/pot: 780; gillnet: 104.
Trip duration (days)	1.
Total number of days	Trap/pot: 780; gillnet: 104.
Gear type(s)	Trap/pot, gillnet.
Number of tows or sets	Trap/pot: 1,560 total; gillnet: 208 total.
Duration of tows or sets	Trap/pot: 2-4 days; gillnet: 6-8 hours.