Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Summer Flounder Fishery; Commercial Quota Harvested for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 56669-56670 [2014-22599]
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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 184 / Tuesday, September 23, 2014 / Rules and Regulations
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 130919816–4205–02]
RIN 0648–XD501
Fisheries of the Northeastern United
States; Atlantic Herring Fishery; 2014
Sub-Annual Catch Limit (ACL)
Harvested for Management Area 3
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; directed fishery
closure.
AGENCY:
NMFS is closing the directed
herring fishery in management Area 3,
because it projects that 92 percent of the
2014 catch limit for that area will have
been caught by the effective date. This
action is necessary to comply with the
regulations implementing the Atlantic
Herring Fishery Management Plan and
is intended to prevent excess harvest in
Area 3.
DATES: Effective 0001 hr local time,
September 23, 2014, through December
31, 2014.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Carly Bari, Fishery Management
Specialist, (978) 281–9224.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The reader
can find regulations governing the
herring fishery at 50 CFR part 648. The
regulations require annual specification
of the overfishing limit, acceptable
biological catch, annual catch limit
(ACL), optimum yield, domestic harvest
and processing, U.S. at-sea processing,
border transfer, and sub-ACLs for each
management area. The 2014 Domestic
Annual Harvest is 107,800 metric tons
(mt); the 2014 sub-ACL allocated to
Area 3 is 42,000 mt, and 1,260 mt of the
Area 3 sub-ACL is set aside for research
(78 FR 61828, October 4, 2013). The
2014 Area 3 sub-ACL was reduced to
40,675 mt to account for a 1,325 mt
overage in 2012 (79 FR 15253, March
19, 2014).
The regulations at § 648.201 require
that when the NMFS Administrator of
the Greater Atlantic Region (Regional
Administrator) projects herring catch
will reach 92 percent of the sub-ACL
allocated in any of the four management
areas designated in the Atlantic Herring
Fishery Management Plan (FMP), NMFS
will prohibit herring vessel permit
holders from fishing for, catching,
possessing, transferring, or landing more
than 2,000 lb (907.2 kg) of herring per
mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with RULES
SUMMARY:
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18:51 Sep 22, 2014
Jkt 232001
trip or calendar day in or from the
specified management area for the
remainder of the fishing year. The
Regional Administrator monitors the
herring fishery catch in each of the
management areas based on dealer
reports, state data, and other available
information. NMFS publishes
notification in the Federal Register of
the date that the catch is projected to
reach 92 percent of the management
area sub-ACL and closure of the
directed fishery in the management area
for the remainder of the fishing year.
After the closure, no vessel may offload
and/or sell more than 2,000 lb (907.2 kg)
of herring from Area 3 unless that vessel
entered port before the closure. During
the directed fishery closure, vessels may
transit Area 3 with more than 2,000 lb
(907.2 kg) of herring on board only
under the conditions specified below.
The Regional Administrator has
determined, based on dealer reports and
other available information, that the
herring fleet will have caught 92 percent
of the total herring sub-ACL allocated to
Area 3 (37,421 mt) for 2014 by
September 23, 2014. Therefore, effective
0001 hr local time, September 23, 2014,
federally permitted vessels may not fish
for, catch, possess, transfer, or land
more than 2,000 lb (907.2 kg) of herring
per trip or calendar day, in or from Area
3 through December 31, 2014, except
that vessels that have entered port
before 0001 hr on September 23, 2014,
may offload and sell more than 2,000 lb
(907.2 kg) of herring from Area 3 from
that trip after the closure. During the
directed fishery closure, September 23,
2014, through December 31, 2014, a
vessel may transit through Area 3 with
more than 2,000 lb (907.2 kg) of herring
on board, provided the vessel did not
fish for or catch more than 2,000 lb
(907.2 kg) of herring in Area 3 and stows
all fishing gear aboard, making it
unavailable for immediate use as
required by § 648.2. Effective 0001 hr,
September 23, 2014, NMFS also advises
federally permitted dealers that they
may not receive herring from federally
permitted herring vessels that harvest
more than 2,000 lb (907.2 kg) of herring
from Area 3 through 2400 hr local time,
December 31, 2014, unless it is from a
trip landed by a vessel that entered port
before 0001 hr on September 23, 2014.
Beginning on January 1, 2015, the 2015
allocation for Area 3 becomes available.
Classification
This action is required by 50 CFR part
648 and is exempt from review under
Executive Order 12866.
NMFS finds good cause pursuant to 5
U.S.C. 553(b)(B) to waive prior notice
and the opportunity for public comment
PO 00000
Frm 00039
Fmt 4700
Sfmt 4700
56669
because it would be contrary to the
public interest and impracticable. This
action closes the directed herring
fishery for Management Area 3 through
December 31, 2014, under current
regulations. The regulations at
§ 648.201(a) require such action to
ensure that herring vessels do not
exceed the 2014 sub-ACL allocated to
Area 3. The herring fishery opened for
the 2014 fishing year on January 1,
2014. Data indicating the herring fleet
will have landed at least 92 percent of
the 2014 sub-ACL allocated to Area 3
have only recently become available. If
implementation of this closure is
delayed to solicit prior public comment,
the sub-ACL for Area 3 for this fishing
year may be exceeded, thereby
undermining the conservation
objectives of the FMP. If sub-ACLs are
exceeded, the excess must also be
deducted from a future sub-ACL and
would reduce future fishing
opportunities. NMFS further finds,
pursuant to 5 U.S.C 553(d)(3), good
cause to waive the 30-day delayed
effectiveness period for the reasons
stated above.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: September 17, 2014.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2014–22572 Filed 9–18–14; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 140117052–4402–02]
RIN 0648–XD486
Fisheries of the Northeastern United
States; Summer Flounder Fishery;
Commercial Quota Harvested for the
Commonwealth of Massachusetts
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; closure.
AGENCY:
NMFS announces that the
2014 summer flounder commercial
quota allocated to the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts has been harvested.
Vessels issued a commercial Federal
fisheries permit for the summer
flounder fishery may not land summer
flounder in Massachusetts for the
remainder of calendar year 2014, unless
additional quota becomes available
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\23SER1.SGM
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mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with RULES
56670
Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 184 / Tuesday, September 23, 2014 / Rules and Regulations
through a transfer from another state.
Regulations governing the summer
flounder fishery require publication of
this notification to advise Massachusetts
that the quota has been harvested and to
advise vessel permit holders and dealer
permit holders that no Federal
commercial quota is available for
landing summer flounder in
Massachusetts.
DATES: Effective 0001 hours, September
22, 2014, through December 31, 2014.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Carly Bari, (978) 281–9224, or
Carly.Bari@noaa.gov.
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 § 648.102.
The initial total commercial quota for
summer flounder for the 2014 fishing
year was set at 10,835,720 lb (4,915,000
kg) (79 FR 29371, May 22, 2014). The
percent allocated to vessels landing
summer flounder in Massachusetts is
6.82046 percent, resulting in a
commercial quota of 739,046 lb (335,226
kg). The 2014 allocation was adjusted to
688,593 lb (312,340 kg) after the
deduction of research set-aside and
quota overages for 2013.
The Administrator, Greater Atlantic
Region, NMFS (Regional Administrator),
monitors the state commercial landings
and determines when a state’s
commercial quota has been harvested.
NMFS is required to publish
notification in the Federal Register
advising and notifying commercial
vessels 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 the
2014 Massachusetts commercial
summer flounder quota will be
harvested by September 22, 2014.
Section 648.4(b) provides 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,
September 22, 2014, landings of
summer flounder in Massachusetts by
vessels holding summer flounder
commercial Federal fisheries permits
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18:51 Sep 22, 2014
Jkt 232001
are prohibited for the remainder of the
2014 calendar year, unless additional
quota becomes available through a
transfer and is announced in the
Federal Register. Effective 0001 hours,
September 22, 2014, federally permitted
dealers are also notified that they may
not purchase summer flounder from
federally permitted vessels that land in
Massachusetts 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.
The Assistant Administrator for
Fisheries, NOAA (AA), finds good cause
pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) to waive
prior notice and the opportunity for
public comment because it would be
contrary to the public interest. This
action closes the summer flounder
fishery for Massachusetts until January
1, 2015, under current regulations. The
regulations at § 648.103(b) require such
action to ensure that summer flounder
vessels do not exceed quotas allocated
to the states. If implementation of this
closure was delayed to solicit prior
public comment, the quota for this
fishing year will be exceeded, thereby
undermining the conservation
objectives of the Summer Flounder
Fishery Management Plan. The AA
further finds, pursuant to 5 U.S.C.
553(d)(3), good cause to waive the 30day delayed effectiveness period for the
reason stated above.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: September 18, 2014.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2014–22599 Filed 9–18–14; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
50 CFR Part 660
[Docket No. 140417346–4575–02]
RIN 0648–XD514
Fisheries Off West Coast States;
Coastal Pelagic Species Fisheries;
Closure
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
AGENCY:
PO 00000
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Fmt 4700
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ACTION:
Temporary rule; closure.
Through this action NMFS is
prohibiting directed fishing for Pacific
sardine off the coasts of Washington,
Oregon and California. This action is
necessary because the adjusted nontribal directed harvest allocation of
approximately 7,274 metric tons (mt) for
the second harvest allocation period
from September 15, 2014, through
December 31, 2014, has been projected
to have been reached. The allocation for
the second period increased from the
initial assigned allocation primarily as a
result of the release to the non-treaty
sector of 2,500 mt by the Quinault
Indian Nation and the coastal treaty
tribes from overall the treaty set-aside of
4,000 mt. From the effective date of this
rule until December 31, 2014, Pacific
sardine may be harvested only as part of
either the live bait or tribal fishery or
incidental to other fisheries; the
incidental harvest of Pacific sardine is
limited to 45-percent by weight of all
fish per trip. Fishing vessels must cease
fishing (be at shore and in the process
of offloading) at or before the effective
date of this closure.
DATES: Effective 12:01 a.m. Pacific
Daylight Time (PDT) September, 20,
2014, through 11:59 p.m., December 31,
2014.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Joshua Lindsay, West Coast Region,
NMFS, (562) 980–4034.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
document announces that based on the
best available information recently
obtained from the fishery and
information on past fishing effort, the
non-tribal directed fishing harvest
allocation for the 2014–2015 harvest
allocation period from September 15,
2014, through December 31, 2014, will
be reached and therefore directed
fishing for Pacific sardine is being
closed until the next allocation period
begins on January 1, 2015. Fishing
vessels must cease fishing (be at shore
and in the process of offloading) at or
before the effective date of this closure.
From the effectiveness of this closure,
through December 31, 2014, Pacific
sardine may be harvested only as part of
either the live bait or tribal fishery or
incidental to other fisheries, with the
incidental harvest of Pacific sardine
limited to 45-percent by weight of all
fish caught during a trip.
NMFS manages the Pacific sardine
fishery in the U.S. exclusive economic
zone (EEZ) off the Pacific coast
(California, Oregon, and Washington) in
accordance with the Coastal Pelagic
Species (CPS) Fishery Management Plan
(FMP). Annual specifications published
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\23SER1.SGM
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 184 (Tuesday, September 23, 2014)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 56669-56670]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-22599]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 140117052-4402-02]
RIN 0648-XD486
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Summer Flounder
Fishery; Commercial Quota Harvested for the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; closure.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the 2014 summer flounder commercial quota
allocated to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts has been harvested.
Vessels issued a commercial Federal fisheries permit for the summer
flounder fishery may not land summer flounder in Massachusetts for the
remainder of calendar year 2014, unless additional quota becomes
available
[[Page 56670]]
through a transfer from another state. Regulations governing the summer
flounder fishery require publication of this notification to advise
Massachusetts that the quota has been harvested and to advise vessel
permit holders and dealer permit holders that no Federal commercial
quota is available for landing summer flounder in Massachusetts.
DATES: Effective 0001 hours, September 22, 2014, through December 31,
2014.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carly Bari, (978) 281-9224, or
Carly.Bari@noaa.gov.
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. 648.102.
The initial total commercial quota for summer flounder for the 2014
fishing year was set at 10,835,720 lb (4,915,000 kg) (79 FR 29371, May
22, 2014). The percent allocated to vessels landing summer flounder in
Massachusetts is 6.82046 percent, resulting in a commercial quota of
739,046 lb (335,226 kg). The 2014 allocation was adjusted to 688,593 lb
(312,340 kg) after the deduction of research set-aside and quota
overages for 2013.
The Administrator, Greater Atlantic Region, NMFS (Regional
Administrator), monitors the state commercial landings and determines
when a state's commercial quota has been harvested. NMFS is required to
publish notification in the Federal Register advising and notifying
commercial vessels 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 the 2014 Massachusetts
commercial summer flounder quota will be harvested by September 22,
2014.
Section 648.4(b) provides 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, September 22, 2014,
landings of summer flounder in Massachusetts by vessels holding summer
flounder commercial Federal fisheries permits are prohibited for the
remainder of the 2014 calendar year, unless additional quota becomes
available through a transfer and is announced in the Federal Register.
Effective 0001 hours, September 22, 2014, federally permitted dealers
are also notified that they may not purchase summer flounder from
federally permitted vessels that land in Massachusetts 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.
The Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA (AA), finds good
cause pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) to waive prior notice and the
opportunity for public comment because it would be contrary to the
public interest. This action closes the summer flounder fishery for
Massachusetts until January 1, 2015, under current regulations. The
regulations at Sec. 648.103(b) require such action to ensure that
summer flounder vessels do not exceed quotas allocated to the states.
If implementation of this closure was delayed to solicit prior public
comment, the quota for this fishing year will be exceeded, thereby
undermining the conservation objectives of the Summer Flounder Fishery
Management Plan. The AA further finds, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3),
good cause to waive the 30-day delayed effectiveness period for the
reason stated above.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: September 18, 2014.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2014-22599 Filed 9-18-14; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
