Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Snapper-Grouper Fishery off the Southern Atlantic States; Amendment 15B, 26827-26829 [E9-13089]
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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 106 / Thursday, June 4, 2009 / Proposed Rules
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[FR Doc. E9–13056 Filed 6–3–09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712–01–P
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
50 CFR Part 622
RIN 0648–AW12
Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of
Mexico, and South Atlantic; SnapperGrouper Fishery off the Southern
Atlantic States; Amendment 15B
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of availability of fishery
management plan amendment; request
for comments.
SUMMARY: The South Atlantic Fishery
Management Council (Council) has
submitted Amendment 15B to the
Fishery Management Plan for the
Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South
Atlantic Region (FMP) for review,
approval, and implementation by
NMFS. Amendment 15B proposes
actions to require a private recreational
vessel that fishes in the exclusive
economic zone (EEZ), if selected by
NMFS, to maintain and submit fishing
records; require a vessel that fishes in
the EEZ, if selected by NMFS, to carry
an observer and install an electronic
logbook (ELB) and/or video monitor
provided by NMFS; prohibit the sale of
snapper-grouper harvested under the
bag limits by a vessel for which a
Federal charter vessel/headboat permit
for South Atlantic snapper-grouper has
been issued, regardless of where the
snapper-grouper were harvested; require
an owner and operator of a vessel for
which a commercial or charter vessel/
headboat permit has been issued and
that has on board any hook-and-line
gear to comply with sea turtle and
smalltooth sawfish release protocols,
possess on board specific gear to ensure
proper release of such species that are
incidentally caught; expand the
allowable transfer of a commercial
vessel permit under the limited access
program and extend the allowable
period for renewal of such a permit.
Amendment 15B also proposes to revise
the stock status determination criteria
for golden tilefish and specify
commercial/recreational allocations for
snowy grouper and red porgy. The
intended effects of this amendment are
to provide additional information for,
and otherwise improve the effective
management of, the South Atlantic
snapper-grouper fishery; minimize the
impacts on incidentally caught
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26827
threatened and endangered sea turtles
and smalltooth sawfish.
DATES: Comments must be received no
later than 5 p.m., eastern time, on
August 3, 2009.
ADDRESSES: You many submit
comments, identified by ‘‘0648–AW12’’,
by any of the following methods:
• Electronic Submissions: Submit all
electronic public comments via the
Federal e-Rulemaking Portal https://
www.regulations.gov.
• Fax: 727–824–5308, Attn: Kate
Michie.
• Mail: Kate Michie, Southeast
Regional Office, NMFS, 263 13th
Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701.
Instructions: All comments received
are a part of the public record and will
generally be posted to https://
www.regulations.gov without change.
All Personal Identifying Information (for
example, name, address, etc.)
voluntarily submitted by the commenter
may be publicly accessible. Do not
submit Confidential Business
Information or otherwise sensitive or
protected information.
NMFS will accept anonymous
comments. Enter ‘‘N/A’’ in the required
fields if you wish to remain anonymous.
Attachments to electronic comments
will be accepted in Microsoft Word,
Excel, WordPerfect, or Adobe PDF file
formats only.
Requests for copies of Amendment
15B, which includes an environmental
impact statement, a regulatory impact
review, a regulatory flexibility analysis,
and a fishery impact statement, should
be sent to the South Atlantic Fishery
Management Council, 4055 Faber Place,
Suite 201, North Charleston, SC 29405;
telephone 843–571–4366; fax 843–769–
4520; e-mail safmc@safmc.net.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kate
Michie, telephone: 727–824–5305; fax:
727–824–5308.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The South Atlantic snapper-grouper
fishery is managed under the FMP. The
FMP was prepared by the Council and
implemented by NMFS under the
authority of the Magnuson-Stevens
Fishery Conservation and Management
Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) by
regulations at 50 CFR part 622.
Specifying Allocations for Snowy
Grouper and Red Porgy
In order to ensure the adverse
socioeconomic impacts of ending
overfishing and rebuilding overfished
stocks are fairly and equitably
distributed, the Council is specifying
allocations between the commercial and
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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 106 / Thursday, June 4, 2009 / Proposed Rules
recreational sectors for snowy grouper
and red porgy. An allocation for snowy
grouper and red porgy is needed to
divide the future allowable harvest as
designated by the rebuilding trajectory
between commercial and recreational
sectors. Without the designation of an
allocation, the Council is unable to
identify the allowable catch in either
sector.
Updating Management Reference Points
for Golden Tilefish
A recent stock assessment of golden
tilefish has provided numerical values
for benchmarks, including optimum
yield (OY) and minimum stock size
threshold (MSST). The OY redefinition
is more consistent with National
Standard 1 of the Magnuson-Stevens
Act, which states conservation and
management measures shall prevent
overfishing while achieving, on a
continuing basis, the OY for each
fishery for the United States fishing
industry. The MSST redefinition for
golden tilefish is set at a level that
establishes a more appropriate
difference between an overfished
condition and the rebuilding goal.
Modification of Snapper-grouper Sale
Provisions
Through Amendment 15B the Council
would prohibit bag limit sales of
snapper-grouper in the South Atlantic
in order to address socioeconomic, data
quality, and enforcement concerns.
Current regulations allow the sale of
snapper-grouper taken from the South
Atlantic EEZ, up to the allowed bag
limit, to be sold to a licensed dealer if
the seller possesses a state-issued
license to sell fish, whether or not the
seller has a commercial vessel permit.
Fish harvested and marketed in this
manner, whether harvested by for-hire
vessels or private anglers, are counted
against the commercial quotas, resulting
in accelerated quota closure and
reducing the amount and value of
harvests allocated to the commercial
sector. Accelerated closures impose
additional economic losses through
market disruption and forced alteration
of fishing practices, including transfer of
effort other resources that may be less
valuable and/or more expensive to
catch. The effects of this situation are
exacerbated by the current reduced
commercial quotas. In addition, such
fish are also counted against the
recreational allocations, thus
complicating fishery assessments.
Accordingly, this rule would prohibit
the sale of South Atlantic snappergrouper harvested in the EEZ and
possessed under the bag limits. The
prohibition would apply not only to a
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person fishing from a private
recreational vessel but also to a person
fishing from a vessel operating as a
charter vessel or headboat even if such
charter vessel/headboat has a
commercial vessel permit. In addition,
this rule would prohibit the sale of
snapper-grouper harvested under the
bag limits by a vessel for which a
Federal charter vessel/headboat permit
for South Atlantic snapper-grouper has
been issued, regardless of where the
snapper-grouper were harvested, i.e., in
state or Federal waters.
Improvements to Bycatch Monitoring
The Council also addresses bycatch
issues in the snapper-grouper fishery in
Amendment 15B. A significant number
of snapper-grouper are released by
fishermen, often resulting in incidental
mortality of bycatch. Biologically, such
bycatch mortality may constitute a
significant portion of the mortality for
many species and cause ecological
changes to the environment in the form
of altered predator-prey relationships.
Therefore, the Council is seeking to
implement a long-term, standardized
monitoring and assessment program
through the expansion of the existing
requirement for fishing reports to
include such private recreational vessels
as are selected by the Science and
Research Director, Southeast Fisheries
Science Center, NMFS (SRD). Other
actions aimed at improving bycatch
monitoring include a requirement for an
owner and operator of a vessel with a
commercial vessel or charter vessel/
headboat permit for South Atlantic
snapper-grouper and an owner and
operator of a private recreational vessel
in that fishery, if selected by the SRD,
to carry a NMFS-approved observer on
trips selected by the SRD and/or
participate in a NMFS sponsored ELB
video monitoring reporting program as
directed by the SRD. Video monitoring
hardware and software could provide a
cost-effective and reliable system of
monitoring bycatch, release mortality,
handling of fish, and other shipboard
practices. Pertinent data collected by a
video electronic monitoring system
would include species caught, number
of hooks, location, depth, date, time,
and disposition of released organisms.
NMFS would also rely on state
corporation, specifically funded
projects, and the Atlantic Coastal
Cooperative Statistics Program’s
Release, Discard, and Protected Species
Module, as the module is implemented.
Reduce Bycatch Mortality of ESA Listed
Species
On June 7, 2006, NMFS completed a
formal Section 7 consultation under the
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Endangered Species Act on the South
Atlantic snapper-grouper fishery. The
biological opinion stated the vertical
line and bottom longline gear used in
the snapper-grouper fishery were likely
to adversely affect threatened and
endangered sea turtles and smalltooth
sawfish, via entanglement, hooking,
and/or forced submergence. One of the
terms and conditions to implement a
reasonable and prudent measure
established under the biological
opinion, requires NMFS, in cooperation
with the Council, to implement sea
turtle bycatch release equipment
requirements, and sea turtle and
smalltooth sawfish handling protocols
and/or guidelines in the permitted
commercial and for-hire snappergrouper fishery. Therefore, this
amendment would require a vessel for
which a commercial or charter vessel/
headboat permit has been issued for
South Atlantic snapper-grouper to
possess a document provided by NMFS
titled, ‘‘Careful Release Protocols for Sea
Turtle Release With Minimal Injury;’’
post the sea turtle handling and release
guidelines placard provided by NMFS
on the vessel; have sea turtle release
gear on board; and follow specified
release handling measures for a sea
turtle or smalltooth sawfish that is
caught incidentally.
Permit Renewal and Transferability
Requirement Modifications
In Amendment 15B the Council has
also included measures to address
permit renewal and transferability
issues. Currently, South Atlantic
commercial snapper-grouper permits
must be renewed within 60 days of the
date they expire. The Council believes
the 60-day requirement is overly
restrictive and presents an unnecessary
hardship to fishery participants. As a
result, the Council is considering
extending the commercial snappergrouper permit renewal deadline to one
year. Additionally, current regulations
state that a transferable commercial
vessel permit issued under the limited
access program may be transferred only
to an immediate family member of the
holder. An ‘‘immediate family member’’
is specified as a husband, wife, son,
daughter, brother, sister, mother, or
father. This restriction has precluded
owners of individually owned vessels
from changing to corporate ownership
and the realization of the associated
benefits. Accordingly, Amendment 15B
proposes to allow transfer to a
corporation, provided the shareholders
of the corporation are limited to the
original permit holder and/or his/her
immediate family members. Subsequent
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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 106 / Thursday, June 4, 2009 / Proposed Rules
additional shareholders would be
limited to immediate family members.
The Council has submitted
Amendment 15B for Secretarial review,
approval, and implementation. NMFS’
decision to approve, partially approve,
or disapprove Amendment 15B will be
based, in part, on consideration of
comments, recommendations, and
information received during the
comment period on this notice of
availability. After consideration of these
factors, and consistency with the
Magnuson-Stevens Act and other
applicable laws, NMFS will publish a
final rule in the Federal Register
announcing the Agency’s decision to
approve, partially approve, or
disapprove Amendment 15B, and the
associated rationale. If approved, the
provisions of Amendment 15B would be
specified in regulations.
Public comments received by 5 p.m.
eastern time, on August 3, 2009, will be
considered by NMFS in the approval/
disapproval decision regarding
Amendment 15B.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: May 29, 2009.
Kristen C. Koch,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E9–13089 Filed 6–3–09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–S
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
50 CFR Part 622
RIN 0648–AS65
Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of
Mexico, and South Atlantic;
Aquaculture
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of Availability of the
Fishery Management Plan for Regulating
Offshore Marine Aquaculture in the
Gulf of Mexico (FMP); request for
comments.
SUMMARY: The Gulf of Mexico Fishery
Management Council (Council) has
submitted the FMP for review, approval,
and implementation by NMFS. The
FMP is intended to establish a
comprehensive permitting and
regulatory framework to manage the
development of an environmentally
sound and economically sustainable
aquaculture industry in the Gulf of
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14:50 Jun 03, 2009
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Mexico exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
The FMP would establish application
and permit requirements, aquaculture
operational requirements and
restrictions, siting requirements and
conditions, and recordkeeping and
reporting requirements; specify
allowable aquaculture species; provide
for evaluation and approval/disapproval
of proposed aquaculture systems (e.g.,
cages or net pens); establish restricted
access zones around aquaculture
facilities; and establish a regulatory
framework for modifying certain
aquaculture-related management
measures consistent with the provisions
of the FMP. In addition, the FMP would
establish biological reference points and
status determination criteria specific to
aquaculture in the EEZ.
DATES: Comments must be received no
later than 5 p.m., eastern time, on
August 3, 2009.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments
on the proposed rule, identified by
‘‘0648–AS65’’, by any one of the
following methods:
• Electronic Submissions: Submit all
electronic public comments via the
Federal eRulemaking Portal https://
www.regulations.gov.
• Mail: Jess Beck, Southeast Regional
Office, NMFS, 263 13th Avenue South,
St. Petersburg, FL 33701.
Instructions: All comments received
are a part of the public record and will
generally be posted to https://
www.regulations.gov without change.
All Personal Identifying Information (for
example, name, address, etc.)
voluntarily submitted by the commenter
may be publicly accessible. Do not
submit confidential business
information or otherwise sensitive or
protected information.
To submit comments through the
Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: https://
www.regulations.gov, enter ‘‘NOAANMFS–2008–0233’’ in the keyword
search, then check the box labeled
‘‘Select to find documents accepting
comments or submissions’’, then select
‘‘Send a Comment or Submission.’’
NMFS will accept anonymous
comments (enter N/A in the required
fields, if you wish to remain
anonymous). Attachments to electronic
comments will be accepted in Microsoft
Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or Adobe
PDF file formats only.
Copies of the FMP may be obtained
from the Gulf of Mexico Fishery
Management Council, 2203 North Lois
Avenue, Suite 1100, Tampa, FL 33607;
telephone 813–348–1630; fax 813–348–
1711; e-mail:
gulfcouncil@gulfcouncil.org; or may be
downloaded from the Council’s website
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26829
at https://www.gulfcouncil.org/. The FMP
includes a Programmatic Environmental
Impact Statement (PEIS), an Initial
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, a
Regulatory Impact Review, and a Social
Impact Assessment/Fishery Impact
Statement.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jess
Beck, telephone: 727–824–5301; fax:
727–824–5320; e-mail:
Jess.Beck@noaa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FMP
was prepared by the Council and is
implemented through regulations at 50
CFR part 622 under the authority of the
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery
Conservation and Management Act
(Magnuson-Stevens Act).
Background
Demand for protein is increasing in
the United States. Today imports
account for over 80 percent of the U.S.
seafood consumption. As demand for
seafood as protein continues to increase
many commercial wild-capture fisheries
are being fished at or above sustainable
levels and are likely unable to meet
such growing demand. Aquaculture of
commercially and recreationally
important species has been suggested as
one method to meet the current and
future demands for seafood.
Currently, there is no process for
accommodating commercial scale
offshore aquaculture in Gulf of Mexico
exclusive economic zone, other than
live rock aquaculture which is
authorized under Amendments 2 and 3
to the Coral and Coral Reefs FMP.
NOAA Fisheries Service may issue an
exempted fishing permit (EFP) to
conduct offshore aquaculture in federal
waters; however, an EFP is of limited
duration and is not intended for
commercial production of fish and
shellfish. The Council has submitted the
FMP to NMFS for agency review under
procedures of the Magnuson-Stevens
Act. The purpose of this FMP is to
establish a comprehensive permitting
and regulatory framework to manage the
development of an environmentally
sound and economically sustainable
aquaculture industry in the EEZ.
The Council chose alternatives that
would: establish application and permit
requirements, aquaculture operational
requirements and restrictions, siting
requirements and conditions, and
recordkeeping and reporting
requirements; specify allowable
aquaculture species; provide for
evaluation and approval/disapproval of
proposed aquaculture systems (e.g.,
cages or net pens); establish restricted
access zones around aquaculture
facilities; establish a regulatory
E:\FR\FM\04JNP1.SGM
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 106 (Thursday, June 4, 2009)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 26827-26829]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-13089]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 622
RIN 0648-AW12
Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic;
Snapper-Grouper Fishery off the Southern Atlantic States; Amendment 15B
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of availability of fishery management plan amendment;
request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) has
submitted Amendment 15B to the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-
Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region (FMP) for review,
approval, and implementation by NMFS. Amendment 15B proposes actions to
require a private recreational vessel that fishes in the exclusive
economic zone (EEZ), if selected by NMFS, to maintain and submit
fishing records; require a vessel that fishes in the EEZ, if selected
by NMFS, to carry an observer and install an electronic logbook (ELB)
and/or video monitor provided by NMFS; prohibit the sale of snapper-
grouper harvested under the bag limits by a vessel for which a Federal
charter vessel/headboat permit for South Atlantic snapper-grouper has
been issued, regardless of where the snapper-grouper were harvested;
require an owner and operator of a vessel for which a commercial or
charter vessel/headboat permit has been issued and that has on board
any hook-and-line gear to comply with sea turtle and smalltooth sawfish
release protocols, possess on board specific gear to ensure proper
release of such species that are incidentally caught; expand the
allowable transfer of a commercial vessel permit under the limited
access program and extend the allowable period for renewal of such a
permit. Amendment 15B also proposes to revise the stock status
determination criteria for golden tilefish and specify commercial/
recreational allocations for snowy grouper and red porgy. The intended
effects of this amendment are to provide additional information for,
and otherwise improve the effective management of, the South Atlantic
snapper-grouper fishery; minimize the impacts on incidentally caught
threatened and endangered sea turtles and smalltooth sawfish.
DATES: Comments must be received no later than 5 p.m., eastern time, on
August 3, 2009.
ADDRESSES: You many submit comments, identified by ``0648-AW12'', by
any of the following methods:
Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal https://www.regulations.gov.
Fax: 727-824-5308, Attn: Kate Michie.
Mail: Kate Michie, Southeast Regional Office, NMFS, 263
13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701.
Instructions: All comments received are a part of the public record
and will generally be posted to https://www.regulations.gov without
change. All Personal Identifying Information (for example, name,
address, etc.) voluntarily submitted by the commenter may be publicly
accessible. Do not submit Confidential Business Information or
otherwise sensitive or protected information.
NMFS will accept anonymous comments. Enter ``N/A'' in the required
fields if you wish to remain anonymous. Attachments to electronic
comments will be accepted in Microsoft Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or
Adobe PDF file formats only.
Requests for copies of Amendment 15B, which includes an
environmental impact statement, a regulatory impact review, a
regulatory flexibility analysis, and a fishery impact statement, should
be sent to the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council, 4055 Faber
Place, Suite 201, North Charleston, SC 29405; telephone 843-571-4366;
fax 843-769-4520; e-mail safmc@safmc.net.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kate Michie, telephone: 727-824-5305;
fax: 727-824-5308.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The South Atlantic snapper-grouper fishery is managed under the
FMP. The FMP was prepared by the Council and implemented by NMFS under
the authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) by regulations at 50 CFR part
622.
Specifying Allocations for Snowy Grouper and Red Porgy
In order to ensure the adverse socioeconomic impacts of ending
overfishing and rebuilding overfished stocks are fairly and equitably
distributed, the Council is specifying allocations between the
commercial and
[[Page 26828]]
recreational sectors for snowy grouper and red porgy. An allocation for
snowy grouper and red porgy is needed to divide the future allowable
harvest as designated by the rebuilding trajectory between commercial
and recreational sectors. Without the designation of an allocation, the
Council is unable to identify the allowable catch in either sector.
Updating Management Reference Points for Golden Tilefish
A recent stock assessment of golden tilefish has provided numerical
values for benchmarks, including optimum yield (OY) and minimum stock
size threshold (MSST). The OY redefinition is more consistent with
National Standard 1 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, which states
conservation and management measures shall prevent overfishing while
achieving, on a continuing basis, the OY for each fishery for the
United States fishing industry. The MSST redefinition for golden
tilefish is set at a level that establishes a more appropriate
difference between an overfished condition and the rebuilding goal.
Modification of Snapper-grouper Sale Provisions
Through Amendment 15B the Council would prohibit bag limit sales of
snapper-grouper in the South Atlantic in order to address
socioeconomic, data quality, and enforcement concerns. Current
regulations allow the sale of snapper-grouper taken from the South
Atlantic EEZ, up to the allowed bag limit, to be sold to a licensed
dealer if the seller possesses a state-issued license to sell fish,
whether or not the seller has a commercial vessel permit. Fish
harvested and marketed in this manner, whether harvested by for-hire
vessels or private anglers, are counted against the commercial quotas,
resulting in accelerated quota closure and reducing the amount and
value of harvests allocated to the commercial sector. Accelerated
closures impose additional economic losses through market disruption
and forced alteration of fishing practices, including transfer of
effort other resources that may be less valuable and/or more expensive
to catch. The effects of this situation are exacerbated by the current
reduced commercial quotas. In addition, such fish are also counted
against the recreational allocations, thus complicating fishery
assessments. Accordingly, this rule would prohibit the sale of South
Atlantic snapper-grouper harvested in the EEZ and possessed under the
bag limits. The prohibition would apply not only to a person fishing
from a private recreational vessel but also to a person fishing from a
vessel operating as a charter vessel or headboat even if such charter
vessel/headboat has a commercial vessel permit. In addition, this rule
would prohibit the sale of snapper-grouper harvested under the bag
limits by a vessel for which a Federal charter vessel/headboat permit
for South Atlantic snapper-grouper has been issued, regardless of where
the snapper-grouper were harvested, i.e., in state or Federal waters.
Improvements to Bycatch Monitoring
The Council also addresses bycatch issues in the snapper-grouper
fishery in Amendment 15B. A significant number of snapper-grouper are
released by fishermen, often resulting in incidental mortality of
bycatch. Biologically, such bycatch mortality may constitute a
significant portion of the mortality for many species and cause
ecological changes to the environment in the form of altered predator-
prey relationships. Therefore, the Council is seeking to implement a
long-term, standardized monitoring and assessment program through the
expansion of the existing requirement for fishing reports to include
such private recreational vessels as are selected by the Science and
Research Director, Southeast Fisheries Science Center, NMFS (SRD).
Other actions aimed at improving bycatch monitoring include a
requirement for an owner and operator of a vessel with a commercial
vessel or charter vessel/headboat permit for South Atlantic snapper-
grouper and an owner and operator of a private recreational vessel in
that fishery, if selected by the SRD, to carry a NMFS-approved observer
on trips selected by the SRD and/or participate in a NMFS sponsored ELB
video monitoring reporting program as directed by the SRD. Video
monitoring hardware and software could provide a cost-effective and
reliable system of monitoring bycatch, release mortality, handling of
fish, and other shipboard practices. Pertinent data collected by a
video electronic monitoring system would include species caught, number
of hooks, location, depth, date, time, and disposition of released
organisms. NMFS would also rely on state corporation, specifically
funded projects, and the Atlantic Coastal Cooperative Statistics
Program's Release, Discard, and Protected Species Module, as the module
is implemented.
Reduce Bycatch Mortality of ESA Listed Species
On June 7, 2006, NMFS completed a formal Section 7 consultation
under the Endangered Species Act on the South Atlantic snapper-grouper
fishery. The biological opinion stated the vertical line and bottom
longline gear used in the snapper-grouper fishery were likely to
adversely affect threatened and endangered sea turtles and smalltooth
sawfish, via entanglement, hooking, and/or forced submergence. One of
the terms and conditions to implement a reasonable and prudent measure
established under the biological opinion, requires NMFS, in cooperation
with the Council, to implement sea turtle bycatch release equipment
requirements, and sea turtle and smalltooth sawfish handling protocols
and/or guidelines in the permitted commercial and for-hire snapper-
grouper fishery. Therefore, this amendment would require a vessel for
which a commercial or charter vessel/headboat permit has been issued
for South Atlantic snapper-grouper to possess a document provided by
NMFS titled, ``Careful Release Protocols for Sea Turtle Release With
Minimal Injury;'' post the sea turtle handling and release guidelines
placard provided by NMFS on the vessel; have sea turtle release gear on
board; and follow specified release handling measures for a sea turtle
or smalltooth sawfish that is caught incidentally.
Permit Renewal and Transferability Requirement Modifications
In Amendment 15B the Council has also included measures to address
permit renewal and transferability issues. Currently, South Atlantic
commercial snapper-grouper permits must be renewed within 60 days of
the date they expire. The Council believes the 60-day requirement is
overly restrictive and presents an unnecessary hardship to fishery
participants. As a result, the Council is considering extending the
commercial snapper-grouper permit renewal deadline to one year.
Additionally, current regulations state that a transferable commercial
vessel permit issued under the limited access program may be
transferred only to an immediate family member of the holder. An
``immediate family member'' is specified as a husband, wife, son,
daughter, brother, sister, mother, or father. This restriction has
precluded owners of individually owned vessels from changing to
corporate ownership and the realization of the associated benefits.
Accordingly, Amendment 15B proposes to allow transfer to a corporation,
provided the shareholders of the corporation are limited to the
original permit holder and/or his/her immediate family members.
Subsequent
[[Page 26829]]
additional shareholders would be limited to immediate family members.
The Council has submitted Amendment 15B for Secretarial review,
approval, and implementation. NMFS' decision to approve, partially
approve, or disapprove Amendment 15B will be based, in part, on
consideration of comments, recommendations, and information received
during the comment period on this notice of availability. After
consideration of these factors, and consistency with the Magnuson-
Stevens Act and other applicable laws, NMFS will publish a final rule
in the Federal Register announcing the Agency's decision to approve,
partially approve, or disapprove Amendment 15B, and the associated
rationale. If approved, the provisions of Amendment 15B would be
specified in regulations.
Public comments received by 5 p.m. eastern time, on August 3, 2009,
will be considered by NMFS in the approval/disapproval decision
regarding Amendment 15B.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: May 29, 2009.
Kristen C. Koch,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E9-13089 Filed 6-3-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S
