Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic Fisheries; Application for Exempted Fishing Permits, 13015-13016 [E5-1162]
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Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 51 / Thursday, March 17, 2005 / Notices
practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the
agency’s estimate of the burden
(including hours and cost) of the
proposed collection of information; (c)
ways to enhance the quality, utility, and
clarity of the information to be
collected; and (d) ways to minimize the
burden of the collection of information
on respondents, including through the
use of automated collection techniques
or other forms of information
technology.
Comments submitted in response to
this notice will be summarized and/or
included in the request for OMB
approval of this information collection;
they also will become a matter of public
record.
Dated: March 10, 2005.
Gwellnar Banks,
Management Analyst, Office of the Chief
Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 05–5244 Filed 3–16–05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
[I.D. 031005C]
Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions;
General Provisions for Domestic
Fisheries; Application for Exempted
Fishing Permits
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; request for comments.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: The Assistant Regional
Administrator for Sustainable Fisheries,
Northeast Region, NMFS (Assistant
Regional Administrator) has made a
preliminary determination that the
subject Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP)
application contains all of the required
information and warrants further
consideration. The Assistant Regional
Administrator has also made a
preliminary determination that the
activities authorized under the EFP
would be consistent with the goals and
objectives of the Northeast (NE)
Multispecies Fishery Management Plan
(FMP). However, further review and
consultation may be necessary before a
final determination is made to issue the
EFP. Therefore, NMFS announces that
the Assistant Regional Administrator
proposes to issue an EFP that would
allow vessels to conduct fishing
operations that are otherwise restricted
by the regulations governing the
fisheries of the Northeastern United
States. The EFP would allow for
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14:51 Mar 16, 2005
Jkt 205001
exemptions from the NE multispecies
year-round closure area restrictions and
the NE multispecies Gulf of Maine
(GOM) and Georges Bank (GB) hook gear
restrictions. The applicant proposes to
conduct a haddock tagging study to
assess the movement of haddock
between the GOM and GB stocks,
western and eastern GB substocks, and
across closure area boundaries. The EFP
would allow these exemptions for up to
20 commercial vessels for a combined
total of 30 trips. All experimental work
would be monitored by Cape Cod
Commercial Hook Fishermen’s
Association (CCCHFA) personnel.
Regulations under the MagnusonStevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act require publication of
this notification to provide interested
parties the opportunity to comment on
applications for proposed EFPs.
DATES: Written comments must be
received on or before March 31, 2005.
ADDRESSES: Written comments on this
notice may be submitted by e-mail to:
DA736@noaa.gov. Include in the subject
line the following document identifier:
‘‘Comments on CCCHFA EFP Proposal
for Haddock Tagging Study (DA–736).’’
Written comments may also be mailed
to: Patricia A. Kurkul, Regional
Administrator, NMFS, Northeast
Regional Office, 1 Blackburn Drive,
Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark the outside
of the envelope ‘‘Comments on CCCHFA
EFP Proposal for Haddock Tagging
Study (DA–736).’’
Comments may also be sent via fax to:
(978) 281–9135.
Copies of the Environmental
Assessment (EA) are available from the
NE Regional Office at the mailing
address specified above.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Peter Cooper, Fishery Management
Specialist, phone: 978–281–9122, fax:
978–281–9135.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: An
application for an EFP was submitted by
CCCHFA, in collaboration with the Gulf
of Maine Research Institute and the
Northeast Fisheries Science Center
(NEFSC), on November 22, 2004.
Modifications to the initial EFP
application were received on February
25, 2005. The EFP would exempt 20
federally permitted commercial fishing
vessels from the following requirements
in the FMP: NE multispecies closed area
restrictions specified at §§ 648.81(a), (b),
(d), and (e) for the purpose of providing
access to haddock stocks within GB
Closed Area (CA) I, GB CA II, Cashes
Ledge Closure Area (Cashes), and the
Western Gulf of Maine Closure Area
(WGOM); and the NE multispecies GOM
hook gear restrictions specified at
PO 00000
Frm 00009
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
13015
§ 648.80(a)(3)(v) and GB hook gear
restrictions specified at § 648.80(a)(4)(v),
in order to allow fishing for the
purposes of tagging viable fish without
hook gear restrictions.
Researchers request that the study
would be conducted from March 2005
through February 2006. Fishing would
take place aboard a maximum of 20
different fishing vessels totaling 30 trips
fishing under NE multispecies Category
A days-at-sea (DAS). Only the most
vigorous haddock caught would be
tagged and released to maximize their
chance of survival. It is estimated that
250 haddock would be tagged and
released each trip. All legal catch not
tagged would be landed and sold,
consistent with the current daily and
trip possession landing limits. NEFSC
personnel would accompany
researchers on trips and sample the
ovaries of landed haddock for fecundity
research. The NEFSC fecundity research
is not included in the EFP because it
would be conducted only on landed
catch. NEFSC fecundity research began
February 2005, within CA I under a
separate scientific research permit (SRP)
that also allows haddock tagging in CA
I. The EFP would not provide
exemptions from the Eastern U.S./
Canada Management Area, should this
area or portion of this area be closed due
to attainment of the U.S./Canada total
allowable catches of GB cod, haddock,
or yellowtail flounder. Undersized fish
would be returned to the sea as quickly
as possible. The participating vessels
would be required to report all landings
in their Vessel Trip Reports.
The goal of this study is to assess
haddock movement between stock areas
and across closure area boundaries. The
proposed project would test existing
assumptions about haddock movement
rates between the GOM and GB,
haddock movement rates between the
eastern and western GB regulated areas,
and haddock movement rates in and out
of the closure areas. Researchers
propose to use benthic longline gear
consisting of hooks with fabricated baits
(Norbait or Trident) that target haddock
and reduce cod bycatch. An estimated
total of 7,500 Hallmark T-bar tags would
be deployed in the closure areas as
follows: CA I (53.3 percent of tags); CA
II (13.3 percent of tags); WGOM (26.7
percent of tags); and Cashes (6.7 percent
of tags). Researchers under this tagging
study, would be allowed to catch a
maximum of 94,470 lb (42,851 kg) of
haddock and 3,149 lb (1,429 kg) of cod
within the closure areas. Catch limits
would reflect tagging effort in closure
areas within GB (62,980 lb (28,568 kg)
haddock; 1,575 lb (715 kg) cod) and
within the GOM (31,490 lb (14,284 kg)
E:\FR\FM\17MRN1.SGM
17MRN1
13016
Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 51 / Thursday, March 17, 2005 / Notices
haddock; 1,575 lb (715 kg) cod). A total
of 35 percent of haddock caught is
estimated to be viable for tagging. Thus,
vessels would not be allowed to land
more 65 percent of their overall
haddock catch from the GB (40,937 lb,
18,569 kg) and GOM (20,469 lb, 9,285
kg) closure areas. If any of the maximum
limits (haddock caught, haddock
landed, or cod caught) is reached within
GB or the GOM, vessels would not be
allowed to continue fishing in the
corresponding closure areas.
The target fishery is the groundfish
mixed-species fishery. The main species
expected to be caught under this EFP
are haddock and Atlantic cod. Other
commercially important fish commonly
found in the groundfish mixed-species
fishery are expected to be caught
incidentally. The incidental catch is
expected to be comprised of yellowtail
flounder, pollack, American plaice,
monkfish, skates, spiny dogfish, white
hake, winter flounder, and witch
flounder.
The applicant may place requests for
minor modifications and extensions to
the EFP throughout the year. EFP
modifications and extensions may be
granted without further notice if they
are deemed essential to facilitate
completion of the proposed research
and result in only a minimal change in
the scope or impact of the initially
approved EFP request. The applicant
has prepared a draft Environmental
Assessment (EA) that analyzes the
impacts of the proposed experimental
fishery on the human environment. The
draft EA examines whether the
proposed activities are consistent with
the goals and objectives of the FMP,
whether they would be detrimental to
the well-being of any stocks of fish
harvested, and whether they would
have any significant environmental
impacts. The draft EA also examines
whether the proposed experimental
fishery would be detrimental to
essential fish habitat, marine mammals,
or protected species. After publication
in the Federal Register the EFP may
become effective following a 15 day
public comment period.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: March 14, 2005.
Alan D. Risenhoover,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E5–1162 Filed 3–15–05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–S
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14:51 Mar 16, 2005
Jkt 205001
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army
Inland Waterways Users Board;
Request for Nominations
Department of the Army, DOD.
Notice.
AGENCY:
ACTION:
SUMMARY: Section 302 of Pub. L. 99–662
established the Inland Waterways Users
Board. The Board is an independent
Federal advisory committee. The
Secretary of the Army appoints its 11
members. This notice is to solicit
nominations for six (6) appointments or
reappointments to two-year terms that
will begin after June 14, 2005.
ADDRESSES: Office of the Assistant
Secretary of the Army (Civil Works),
Attention: Inland Waterways Users
Board Nominations Committee, 103
Army Pentagon, Washington, DC
20310–0103.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Office of the Assistant Secretary of the
Army (Civil Works), (703) 697–8986.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
selection, service, and appointment of
Board members are covered by
provisions of section 302 of Public Law
99–662. The substance of those
provisions is as follows:
a. Selection. Members are to be
selected from the spectrum of
commercial carriers and shippers using
the inland and intracoastal waterways,
to represent geographical regions, and to
be representative of waterborne
commerce as determined by commodity
ton-miles statistics.
b. Service. The Board is required to
meet at least semi-annually to develop
and make recommendations to the
Secretary of the Army on waterways
construction and rehabilitation
priorities and spending levels for
commercial navigation improvements,
and report its recommendations
annually to the Secretary and Congress.
c. Appointment. The operation of the
board and appointment of its members
are subject to the Federal Advisory
Committee Act (Pub. L. 92–463, as
amended) and departmental
implementing regulations. Members
serve without compensation but their
expenses due to Board activities are
reimbursable. The considerations
specified in Section 302 for the
selection of the Board members, and
certain terms used therein, have been
interpreted, supplemented, or otherwise
clarified as follows:
(1) Carriers and Shippers. The law
uses the terms ‘‘primary users and
shippers.’’ Primary users have been
interpreted to mean the providers of
PO 00000
Frm 00010
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
transportation services on inland
waterways such as barge or towboat
operators. Shippers have been
interpreted to mean the purchasers of
such services for the movement of
commodities they own or control.
Individuals are appointed to the Board,
but they must be either a carrier or
shipper, or represent a firm that is a
carrier or shipper. For that purpose a
trade or regional association is neither a
shipper or primary user.
(2) Geographical Representation. The
law specifies ‘‘various’’ regions. For the
purpose of selecting Board members, the
waterways subjected to fuel taxes and
described in Public Law 95–502, as
amended, have been aggregated into six
regions. They are: (1) The Upper
Mississippi River and its tributaries
above the mouth of the Ohio; (2) the
Lower Mississippi River and its
tributaries below the mouth of the Ohio
and above Baton Rouge; (3) the Ohio
River and its tributaries; (4) the Gulf
Intracoastal Waterway in Louisiana and
Texas; (5) the Gulf Intracoastal
Waterway east of New Orleans and
associated fuel-taxed waterways
including the Tennessee-Tombigbee,
plus the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway
below Norfolk; and (6) the ColumbiaSnake Rivers System and Upper
Willamette. The intent is that each
region shall be represented by at least
one Board member, with that
representation determined by the
regional concentration of the
individual’s traffic on the waterways.
(3) Commodity Representation.
Waterway commerce has been
aggregated into six commodity
categories based on ‘‘inland’’ ton-miles
shown in Waterborne Commerce of the
United States. These categories are: (1)
Farm and Food Products; (2) Coal and
Coke; (3) Petroleum, Crude and
Products; (4) Minerals, Ores, and
Primary Metals and Mineral Products;
(5) Chemicals and Allied Products; and
(6) All other. A consideration in the
selection of Board members will be that
the commodities carried or shipped by
those individuals or their firms will be
reasonably representative of the above
commodity categories.
d. Nomination. Reflecting preceding
selection criteria, the current
representation by the six (6) Board
members whose terms will expire is one
member each representing regions 1, 2,
4, and 5, and two members representing
region 3. Also, four of these Board
members represent carriers, one
represents a shipper and one represents
a carrier/shipper.
Five of the six members whose terms
will expire are eligible for
reappointment. Nominations to replace
E:\FR\FM\17MRN1.SGM
17MRN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 51 (Thursday, March 17, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13015-13016]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E5-1162]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[I.D. 031005C]
Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic
Fisheries; Application for Exempted Fishing Permits
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable
Fisheries, Northeast Region, NMFS (Assistant Regional Administrator)
has made a preliminary determination that the subject Exempted Fishing
Permit (EFP) application contains all of the required information and
warrants further consideration. The Assistant Regional Administrator
has also made a preliminary determination that the activities
authorized under the EFP would be consistent with the goals and
objectives of the Northeast (NE) Multispecies Fishery Management Plan
(FMP). However, further review and consultation may be necessary before
a final determination is made to issue the EFP. Therefore, NMFS
announces that the Assistant Regional Administrator proposes to issue
an EFP that would allow vessels to conduct fishing operations that are
otherwise restricted by the regulations governing the fisheries of the
Northeastern United States. The EFP would allow for exemptions from the
NE multispecies year-round closure area restrictions and the NE
multispecies Gulf of Maine (GOM) and Georges Bank (GB) hook gear
restrictions. The applicant proposes to conduct a haddock tagging study
to assess the movement of haddock between the GOM and GB stocks,
western and eastern GB substocks, and across closure area boundaries.
The EFP would allow these exemptions for up to 20 commercial vessels
for a combined total of 30 trips. All experimental work would be
monitored by Cape Cod Commercial Hook Fishermen's Association (CCCHFA)
personnel. Regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation
and Management Act require publication of this notification to provide
interested parties the opportunity to comment on applications for
proposed EFPs.
DATES: Written comments must be received on or before March 31, 2005.
ADDRESSES: Written comments on this notice may be submitted by e-mail
to: DA736@noaa.gov. Include in the subject line the following document
identifier: ``Comments on CCCHFA EFP Proposal for Haddock Tagging Study
(DA-736).''
Written comments may also be mailed to: Patricia A. Kurkul,
Regional Administrator, NMFS, Northeast Regional Office, 1 Blackburn
Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark the outside of the envelope
``Comments on CCCHFA EFP Proposal for Haddock Tagging Study (DA-736).''
Comments may also be sent via fax to: (978) 281-9135.
Copies of the Environmental Assessment (EA) are available from the
NE Regional Office at the mailing address specified above.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Peter Cooper, Fishery Management
Specialist, phone: 978-281-9122, fax: 978-281-9135.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: An application for an EFP was submitted by
CCCHFA, in collaboration with the Gulf of Maine Research Institute and
the Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC), on November 22, 2004.
Modifications to the initial EFP application were received on February
25, 2005. The EFP would exempt 20 federally permitted commercial
fishing vessels from the following requirements in the FMP: NE
multispecies closed area restrictions specified at Sec. Sec.
648.81(a), (b), (d), and (e) for the purpose of providing access to
haddock stocks within GB Closed Area (CA) I, GB CA II, Cashes Ledge
Closure Area (Cashes), and the Western Gulf of Maine Closure Area
(WGOM); and the NE multispecies GOM hook gear restrictions specified at
Sec. 648.80(a)(3)(v) and GB hook gear restrictions specified at Sec.
648.80(a)(4)(v), in order to allow fishing for the purposes of tagging
viable fish without hook gear restrictions.
Researchers request that the study would be conducted from March
2005 through February 2006. Fishing would take place aboard a maximum
of 20 different fishing vessels totaling 30 trips fishing under NE
multispecies Category A days-at-sea (DAS). Only the most vigorous
haddock caught would be tagged and released to maximize their chance of
survival. It is estimated that 250 haddock would be tagged and released
each trip. All legal catch not tagged would be landed and sold,
consistent with the current daily and trip possession landing limits.
NEFSC personnel would accompany researchers on trips and sample the
ovaries of landed haddock for fecundity research. The NEFSC fecundity
research is not included in the EFP because it would be conducted only
on landed catch. NEFSC fecundity research began February 2005, within
CA I under a separate scientific research permit (SRP) that also allows
haddock tagging in CA I. The EFP would not provide exemptions from the
Eastern U.S./Canada Management Area, should this area or portion of
this area be closed due to attainment of the U.S./Canada total
allowable catches of GB cod, haddock, or yellowtail flounder.
Undersized fish would be returned to the sea as quickly as possible.
The participating vessels would be required to report all landings in
their Vessel Trip Reports.
The goal of this study is to assess haddock movement between stock
areas and across closure area boundaries. The proposed project would
test existing assumptions about haddock movement rates between the GOM
and GB, haddock movement rates between the eastern and western GB
regulated areas, and haddock movement rates in and out of the closure
areas. Researchers propose to use benthic longline gear consisting of
hooks with fabricated baits (Norbait or Trident) that target haddock
and reduce cod bycatch. An estimated total of 7,500 Hallmark T-bar tags
would be deployed in the closure areas as follows: CA I (53.3 percent
of tags); CA II (13.3 percent of tags); WGOM (26.7 percent of tags);
and Cashes (6.7 percent of tags). Researchers under this tagging study,
would be allowed to catch a maximum of 94,470 lb (42,851 kg) of haddock
and 3,149 lb (1,429 kg) of cod within the closure areas. Catch limits
would reflect tagging effort in closure areas within GB (62,980 lb
(28,568 kg) haddock; 1,575 lb (715 kg) cod) and within the GOM (31,490
lb (14,284 kg)
[[Page 13016]]
haddock; 1,575 lb (715 kg) cod). A total of 35 percent of haddock
caught is estimated to be viable for tagging. Thus, vessels would not
be allowed to land more 65 percent of their overall haddock catch from
the GB (40,937 lb, 18,569 kg) and GOM (20,469 lb, 9,285 kg) closure
areas. If any of the maximum limits (haddock caught, haddock landed, or
cod caught) is reached within GB or the GOM, vessels would not be
allowed to continue fishing in the corresponding closure areas.
The target fishery is the groundfish mixed-species fishery. The
main species expected to be caught under this EFP are haddock and
Atlantic cod. Other commercially important fish commonly found in the
groundfish mixed-species fishery are expected to be caught
incidentally. The incidental catch is expected to be comprised of
yellowtail flounder, pollack, American plaice, monkfish, skates, spiny
dogfish, white hake, winter flounder, and witch flounder.
The applicant may place requests for minor modifications and
extensions to the EFP throughout the year. EFP modifications and
extensions may be granted without further notice if they are deemed
essential to facilitate completion of the proposed research and result
in only a minimal change in the scope or impact of the initially
approved EFP request. The applicant has prepared a draft Environmental
Assessment (EA) that analyzes the impacts of the proposed experimental
fishery on the human environment. The draft EA examines whether the
proposed activities are consistent with the goals and objectives of the
FMP, whether they would be detrimental to the well-being of any stocks
of fish harvested, and whether they would have any significant
environmental impacts. The draft EA also examines whether the proposed
experimental fishery would be detrimental to essential fish habitat,
marine mammals, or protected species. After publication in the Federal
Register the EFP may become effective following a 15 day public comment
period.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: March 14, 2005.
Alan D. Risenhoover,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E5-1162 Filed 3-15-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S
