Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Summer Flounder Fishery; Commercial Quota Harvested for Connecticut, 68095-68096 [E7-23509]
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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 232 / Tuesday, December 4, 2007 / Rules and Regulations
chartering operation through a mail
notification process.
A NAFO Contracting Party wishing to
enter into a chartering arrangement with
the United States must be in full current
compliance with the requirements
outlined in the NAFO Convention and
Conservation and Enforcement
Measures including, but not limited to,
submission of the following reports to
the NAFO Executive Secretary:
provisional monthly catches within 30
days following the calendar month in
which the catches were made;
provisional daily catches of shrimp
taken from Division 3L; provisional
monthly fishing days in Division 3M
within 30 days following the calendar
month in which the catches were made;
observer reports within 30 days
following the completion of a fishing
trip; and an annual statement of actions
taken in order to comply with the NAFO
Convention. Furthermore, the United
States may also consider a Contracting
Party’s previous compliance with the
NAFO incidental catch limits, as
outlined in the NAFO Conservation and
Enforcement Measures, before entering
into a chartering arrangement.
Expressions of interest from U.S.
fishing interests intending to make use
of vessels from another NAFO
Contracting Party under chartering
arrangements should include
information required by NAFO
regarding the proposed chartering
operation, including: the name,
registration and flag of the intended
vessel; a copy of the charter; the fishing
opportunities granted; a letter of consent
from the vessel’s flag state; the date from
which the vessel is authorized to
commence fishing on these
opportunities; and the duration of the
charter (not to exceed six months). More
details on NAFO requirements for
chartering operations are available from
NMFS (see ADDRESSES). In addition,
expressions of interest for chartering
operations should be accompanied by a
detailed description of anticipated
benefits to the United States. Such
benefits might include, but are not
limited to, the use of U.S. processing
facilities/personnel; the use of U.S.
fishing personnel; other specific
positive effects on U.S. employment;
evidence that fishing by the chartered
vessel actually would take place; and
documentation of the physical
characteristics and economics of the
fishery for future use by the U.S. fishing
industry.
In the event that multiple expressions
of interest are made by U.S. fishing
interests proposing the use of chartering
operations, the information submitted
regarding benefits to the United States
VerDate Aug<31>2005
18:18 Dec 03, 2007
Jkt 214001
will be used in making a selection. In
the event that applications by U.S.
fishing interests proposing the use of
chartering operations are considered, all
applicants will be made aware of the
allocation decision as soon as possible.
Once the allocation has been awarded
for use in a chartering operation, NMFS
will immediately take appropriate steps
to notify NAFO and transfer the U.S. 3L
shrimp quota allocation and/or the 3M
shrimp effort allocation to the
appropriate Contracting Party.
After reviewing all requests for
allocations submitted, NMFS may
decide not to grant any allocations if it
is determined that no requests meet the
criteria described in this notice. All
individuals/companies submitting
expressions of interest to NMFS will be
contacted if an allocation has been
awarded. Please note that if the U.S.
portion of the 2008 NAFO 3L shrimp
quota allocation and/or 3M shrimp
effort allocation is awarded to a U.S.
vessel or a specified chartering
operation, it may not be transferred
without the express, written consent of
NMFS.
Dated: November 27, 2007.
Rebecca Lent
Director, Office of International Affairs,
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E7–23518 Filed 12–3–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–S
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 061020273–7001–03]
RIN 0648–XE14
Fisheries of the Northeastern United
States; Summer Flounder Fishery;
Commercial Quota Harvested for
Connecticut
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; closure.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the
2007 summer flounder commercial
quota allocated to the State of
Connecticut has been harvested. Vessels
issued a commercial Federal fisheries
permit for the summer flounder fishery
may not land summer flounder in
Connecticut for the remainder of
calendar year 2007, unless additional
quota becomes available through a
transfer from another state. Regulations
PO 00000
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Fmt 4700
Sfmt 4700
68095
governing the summer flounder fishery
require publication of this notification
to advise Connecticut that the quota has
been harvested and to advise vessel
permit holders and dealer permit
holders that no commercial quota is
available for landing summer flounder
in Connecticut.
DATES: Effective 0001 hours, December
4, 2007, through 2400 hours, December
31, 2007.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Emily Bryant, Fishery Management
Specialist, (978) 281–9244.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Regulations governing the summer
flounder fishery are found at 50 CFR
part 648. The regulations require annual
specification of a commercial quota that
is apportioned on a percentage basis
among the coastal states from North
Carolina through Maine. The process to
set the annual commercial quota and the
percent allocated to each state is
described in § 648.100.
The initial total commercial quota for
summer flounder for the 2007 calendar
year was set equal to 7,789,800 lb (3,533
mt) (71 FR 75134, December 14, 2006).
This quota was increased through an
emergency action to 10,267,098 lb
(4,658 mt) (72 FR 2458, January 19,
2007). The percent allocated to vessels
landing summer flounder in
Connecticut is 2.25708 percent,
resulting in a commercial quota of
231,739 lb (106 mt). The 2007 allocation
was reduced to 226,464 lb (103 mt)
when research set-aside was deducted
and then reduced to 209,994 (96 mt)
after the 2006 overages had been
applied.
Section 648.101(b) requires the
Administrator, Northeast Region, NMFS
(Regional Administrator) to monitor
state commercial quotas and to
determine when a state’s commercial
quota has been harvested. NMFS then
publishes a notification in the Federal
Register to advise the state and to notify
Federal vessel and dealer permit holders
that, effective upon a specific date, the
state’s commercial quota has been
harvested and no commercial quota is
available for landing summer flounder
in that state. The Regional
Administrator has determined, based
upon dealer reports and other available
information, that Connecticut has
harvested its quota for 2007.
The regulations at § 648.4(b) provide
that Federal permit holders agree, as a
condition of the permit, not to land
summer flounder in any state that the
Regional Administrator has determined
no longer has commercial quota
available. Therefore, effective 0001
hours, December 4, 2007, further
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04DER1
68096
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 232 / Tuesday, December 4, 2007 / Rules and Regulations
landings of summer flounder in
Connecticut by vessels holding summer
flounder commercial Federal fisheries
permits are prohibited for the remainder
of the 2007 calendar year, unless
additional quota becomes available
through a transfer and is announced in
the Federal Register. Effective 0001
hours, December 4, 2007, federally
permitted dealers are also notified that
they may not purchase summer flounder
from federally permitted vessels that
land in Connecticut for the remainder of
the calendar year, or until additional
quota becomes available through a
transfer from another state.
Classification
This action is required by 50 CFR part
648 and is exempt from review under
Executive Order 12866.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: November 28, 2007.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E7–23509 Filed 12–3–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–S
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 071106654–7655–01]
RIN 0648–AW20
Fisheries of the Northeastern United
States; Regulatory Amendment to
Modify Recordkeeping and Reporting
and Observer Requirements;
Correction
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Final rule; correcting
amendment.
sroberts on PROD1PC70 with RULES
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: On April 23, 2007, NMFS
published in the Federal Register a final
rule to implement measures requiring
observers for participating hagfish
vessels in the Federal Register as part
of the hagfish information collection
program. On June 13, 2007, NMFS
published a separate final rule that
inadvertently deleted these regulations
implemented in the April 23, 2007, rule.
This correcting amendment corrects this
error by reinstating the language
regarding hagfish observer
requirements.
DATES:
Effective December 4, 2007.
VerDate Aug<31>2005
18:18 Dec 03, 2007
Jkt 214001
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Emily Bryant, Fishery Management
Specialist, (978) 281–9244.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On
October 3, 2006, the New England
Fishery Management Council (Council)
sent NMFS a request to prepare an
information collection program for the
Atlantic hagfish fishery under the
provisions of section 402(a) of the
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery
Conservation and Management Act
(Magnuson-Stevens Act). On April 23,
2007, in response to the Council’s
request, NMFS published a final rule to
implement measures to modify the
existing reporting and recordkeeping
requirements for federally permitted
seafood dealers/processors and the
observer requirements for participating
hagfish vessels in the Federal Register
(72 FR 20036). The adjustments made to
the at-sea sea sampler/observer coverage
regulations at 50 CFR 648.11 through
the April 23, 2007, final rule were
inadvertently deleted when another
final rule that revised the same section
of regulations was published in the
Federal Register on June 13, 2007 (72
FR 32549). This correcting amendment
corrects this error by reinstating
language previously added to 50 CFR
648.11, stating that under the hagfish
information collection program, any
vessel owner/operator that fishes for,
catches, or lands hagfish, or intends to
fish for, catch, or land hagfish in or from
the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) will
be required to carry an observer when
requested by the Regional
Administrator. This language is
reinstated so as to maintain the
regulatory text implementing
Amendment 13 of the Atlantic Sea
Scallop Fishery Management Plan.
Classification
Frm 00054
Fmt 4700
List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 648
Fisheries, Fishing, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements.
Dated: November 28, 2007.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator For
Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
For the reasons set out in the
preamble, 50 CFR part 648 is corrected
by making a correcting amendment as
follows:
I
Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), the
Assistant Administrator finds good
cause to waive prior notice and
opportunity for additional public
comment for this action because any
delay of this action would be contrary
to the public interest. As explained
above, this rule reinstates regulatory text
that had already been implemented but
was unintentionally and inadvertently
deleted during the implementation of
another unrelated rule. Observer
coverage is particularly important to
determine potentially high discard rates
that have been reported to occur in the
hagfish fishery in order to determine
what management measures may be
necessary to reduce such discard.
Further, without data collected from the
observer program, the status of the stock
can not be adequately determined and it
PO 00000
is not possible to capture accurately the
geographic and seasonal aspects of the
fishery, which reflect overseas demand,
and ensure that the resource may be
sustained for future years. Without this
information, future management efforts
cannot be developed and, therefore, will
be delayed unnecessarily. Such a delay
may negatively impact commercial
fishermen that fish for hagfish, who
have reported that regional depletion in
the fishery is occurring. Moreover,
pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(d), the
Assistant Administrator finds good
cause to waive the 30-day delay in
effective date for the reasons given
above. Without data collected from the
observer program, the status of the stock
can not be adequately determined and it
is not possible to capture accurately the
geographic and seasonal aspects of the
fishery, which reflect overseas demand,
and ensure that the resource may be
sustained for future years. Without this
information, future management efforts
cannot be developed and, therefore, will
be delayed unnecessarily. Delaying the
rule for 30 days may negatively impact
fishermen who fish for hagfish and have
observed regional depletion occurring in
this fishery. In addition, the final rule
that had added the subsequently deleted
text had already been subjected to a 30day delay in implementation and,
therefore, an additional delay to correct
the deletion is unnecessarily
duplicative.
Sfmt 4700
PART 648—FISHERIES OF THE
NORTHEASTERN UNITED STATES
1. The authority citation for part 648
continues to read as follows:
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
2. In § 648.11, paragraph (a) is revised
to read as follows:
I
§ 648.11 At-sea sampler/observer
coverage.
(a) The Regional Administrator may
request any vessel holding a permit for
Atlantic sea scallops, NE multispecies,
monkfish, skates, Atlantic mackerel,
squid, butterfish, scup, black sea bass,
bluefish, spiny dogfish, Atlantic herring,
tilefish, or Atlantic deep-sea red crab; or
E:\FR\FM\04DER1.SGM
04DER1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 232 (Tuesday, December 4, 2007)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 68095-68096]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-23509]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 061020273-7001-03]
RIN 0648-XE14
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Summer Flounder
Fishery; Commercial Quota Harvested for Connecticut
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; closure.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the 2007 summer flounder commercial quota
allocated to the State of Connecticut has been harvested. Vessels
issued a commercial Federal fisheries permit for the summer flounder
fishery may not land summer flounder in Connecticut for the remainder
of calendar year 2007, unless additional quota becomes available
through a transfer from another state. Regulations governing the summer
flounder fishery require publication of this notification to advise
Connecticut that the quota has been harvested and to advise vessel
permit holders and dealer permit holders that no commercial quota is
available for landing summer flounder in Connecticut.
DATES: Effective 0001 hours, December 4, 2007, through 2400 hours,
December 31, 2007.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Emily Bryant, Fishery Management
Specialist, (978) 281-9244.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Regulations governing the summer flounder
fishery are found at 50 CFR part 648. The regulations require annual
specification of a commercial quota that is apportioned on a percentage
basis among the coastal states from North Carolina through Maine. The
process to set the annual commercial quota and the percent allocated to
each state is described in Sec. 648.100.
The initial total commercial quota for summer flounder for the 2007
calendar year was set equal to 7,789,800 lb (3,533 mt) (71 FR 75134,
December 14, 2006). This quota was increased through an emergency
action to 10,267,098 lb (4,658 mt) (72 FR 2458, January 19, 2007). The
percent allocated to vessels landing summer flounder in Connecticut is
2.25708 percent, resulting in a commercial quota of 231,739 lb (106
mt). The 2007 allocation was reduced to 226,464 lb (103 mt) when
research set-aside was deducted and then reduced to 209,994 (96 mt)
after the 2006 overages had been applied.
Section 648.101(b) requires the Administrator, Northeast Region,
NMFS (Regional Administrator) to monitor state commercial quotas and to
determine when a state's commercial quota has been harvested. NMFS then
publishes a notification in the Federal Register to advise the state
and to notify Federal vessel and dealer permit holders that, effective
upon a specific date, the state's commercial quota has been harvested
and no commercial quota is available for landing summer flounder in
that state. The Regional Administrator has determined, based upon
dealer reports and other available information, that Connecticut has
harvested its quota for 2007.
The regulations at Sec. 648.4(b) provide that Federal permit
holders agree, as a condition of the permit, not to land summer
flounder in any state that the Regional Administrator has determined no
longer has commercial quota available. Therefore, effective 0001 hours,
December 4, 2007, further
[[Page 68096]]
landings of summer flounder in Connecticut by vessels holding summer
flounder commercial Federal fisheries permits are prohibited for the
remainder of the 2007 calendar year, unless additional quota becomes
available through a transfer and is announced in the Federal Register.
Effective 0001 hours, December 4, 2007, federally permitted dealers are
also notified that they may not purchase summer flounder from federally
permitted vessels that land in Connecticut for the remainder of the
calendar year, or until additional quota becomes available through a
transfer from another state.
Classification
This action is required by 50 CFR part 648 and is exempt from
review under Executive Order 12866.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: November 28, 2007.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E7-23509 Filed 12-3-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S
