Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Atlantic Herring Fishery; Framework Adjustment 3, 71960-71972 [2014-28131]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 233 (Thursday, December 4, 2014)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 71960-71972]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-28131]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 648

[Docket No. 140221166-4963-02]
RIN 0648-BE01


Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Atlantic Herring 
Fishery; Framework Adjustment 3

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: NMFS implements final regulations to establish a process for 
setting river herring (alewife and blueback) and shad (American and 
hickory) catch caps for the herring fishery. This action also sets 
these catch caps for the 2014 and 2015 fishing years. The river herring 
and shad caps in the herring fishery will limit how much of these 
species will be caught in the herring fishery. This action will allow 
the New England Fishery Management Council to set river herring and 
shad catch caps and associated measures in future years through 
specifications or frameworks, whichever is appropriate. The measures in 
this action are a positive step in conservation efforts for river 
herring and shad.

DATES: Effective December 4, 2014.

ADDRESSES: The New England Fishery Management Council developed an 
environmental assessment (EA) for this action that describes the action 
and other considered alternatives and provides a thorough analysis of 
the impacts of these final measures and alternatives. Copies of the 
framework, the EA, and the Regulatory Impact Review (RIR)/Initial 
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (IRFA), are available upon request from 
Thomas A. Nies, Executive Director, New England Fishery Management 
Council, 50 Water Street, Newburyport, MA 01950. The EA/RIR/IRFA is 
accessible via the Internet at https://www.greateratlantic.fisheries.noaa.gov/sustainable/species/atlherring/.
    Copies of the small entity compliance guide are available from John 
K. Bullard, Regional Administrator, NMFS, Greater Atlantic Regional 
Fisheries Office, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930-2298, 
or available on the Internet at https://www.greateratlantic.fisheries.noaa.gov/sustainable/species/atlherring/.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carrie Nordeen, Fishery Policy 
Analyst, 978-281-9272, fax 978-281-9135.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The New England Fishery Management Council adopted Framework 
Adjustment 3 to the Atlantic Herring Fishery Management Plan (FMP) at 
its September 24, 2013, meeting. The Council submitted Framework 3 to 
NMFS for review on January 3, 2014, and resubmitted it to NMFS on March 
26, 2014. The Council reviewed the Framework 3 proposed rule 
regulations as drafted by NMFS, and deemed them to be necessary and 
appropriate as specified in section 303(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens 
Fishery Conservation and Management Act. The proposed rule for 
Framework 3 published in the Federal Register on June 13, 2014 (79 FR 
33879), with a 30-day public comment period that ended July 14, 2014. 
NMFS received four comments on the proposed measures.
    Framework 3 establishes a process for setting and modifying catch 
caps for river herring (alewife and blueback) and shad (American and 
hickory) catch caps in the Atlantic herring fishery (herring fishery), 
and sets specific river herring and shad catch caps for the 2014 and 
2015 fishing years. Catch of river herring and shad for 2014 will count 
against the cap in 2014 after the effective date of this final rule.
    River herring and shad are anadromous species that may co-occur 
seasonally with Atlantic herring and are harvested as a non-target 
species in the fishery. When river herring are encountered in the 
herring fishery, they are either discarded at sea (bycatch) or, because 
they closely resemble herring, they are retained and sold as part of 
the herring catch (incidental catch). According to the most recent 
river herring stock assessment (May 2012) conducted by the Atlantic 
States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC), river herring populations 
have declined from historic levels and many factors will need to be 
addressed to allow their recovery, including: Fishing in both state and 
Federal waters; improvement of river passageways and water quality;

[[Page 71961]]

reduced predation; and understanding the effects of climate change. The 
Council has been working on addressing river herring and shad catch 
issues in the herring fishery, most recently in Amendment 5 to the FMP 
(79 FR 8786; February 13, 2014) (Amendment 5). Amendment 5 allowed for 
river herring and shad catch caps to be implemented through a framework 
adjustment. Framework 3 allows the Council to set river herring and 
shad catch caps and associated measures in future years through 
specifications or frameworks, whichever is appropriate.
    Framework 3 outlines a process for setting and modifying the river 
herring and shad catch caps that includes: Identification of gears, 
areas, and trips that would be subject to the catch caps; changes to 
reporting requirements for vessels issued limited access and Herring 
Management Areas 2/3 open access herring permits; criteria that would 
trigger the closure of an area to directed herring fishing for a 
particular gear type; and a list of management measures related to 
setting catch caps that can be modified through the herring 
specifications process and/or framework adjustment process.

Area and Gear Provisions of the River Herring and Shad Catch Caps

    Framework 3 establishes four distinct Catch Cap Areas that could 
have associated catch caps: Gulf of Maine (GOM); Cape Cod (CC); 
Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic (SNE/MA); and Georges Bank (GB) 
(Table 1). During a given fishing year, catch of river herring and shad 
from all herring trips landing more than 6,600 lb (3 mt) of herring 
will apply against the catch caps for specific fishing gears and areas. 
The Council considered alternatives for catch caps for all gear types 
used in the herring fishery, but ultimately decided to adopt catch caps 
for midwater trawl gear in the GOM, CC, and SNE/MA, as well as bottom 
trawl gear in SNE/MA. The selection of these gear types in these areas 
is based on recent fishery data that indicate where river herring and 
shad interactions are occurring, and to what extent they may be 
occurring by each gear type used in the herring fishery. Because 
current catch data indicate that river herring and shad are not caught 
by the herring fishery in GB, the Council did not specify catch caps 
for GB during 2014-2015. The Council may consider adjustments to the 
selected gears and areas that have associated catch caps in a future 
management action.

             Table 1--River Herring and Shad Catch Cap Areas
------------------------------------------------------------------------
            Catch cap areas                     Statistical areas
------------------------------------------------------------------------
GOM....................................  464, 465, 467, 511-515.
CC.....................................  521.
GB.....................................  522, 525-526, 541-543, 561-562,
                                          640.
SNE/MA.................................  533-534, 537-539, 611-616, 621-
                                          629, 631-639, 700-705, 707-
                                          711.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Reporting Requirements and Monitoring the River Herring and Shad Catch 
Caps

    This action adjusts current Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) trip 
notification requirements in order for NMFS to monitor the catch caps. 
Vessel operators will have to report kept catch of all species by 
statistical area daily via VMS catch reports. The Council may consider 
adjustments to trip notification requirements in the future as 
necessary to ensure the effectiveness of the catch caps.
    The Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office will monitor the 
catch cap by estimating the total river herring and shad catch in the 
herring fishery using data from observed hauls on herring trips and 
extrapolating this data to unobserved herring trips. The rate of river 
herring and shad catch will be estimated as the ratio of observed river 
herring and shad catch (including discards) to the kept catch of all 
species on observed trips that land greater than 6,600 lb (3 mt) of 
herring. Total river herring and shad catch (in weight) will then be 
derived by multiplying the catch rate by total pounds of all kept 
species on all trips that land greater than 6,600 lb (3 mt) of herring. 
This methodology is identical to that used for catch cap accounting in 
the mackerel fishery. More information about our monitoring methodology 
for the river herring and shad catch can be found at https://www.greateratlantic.fisheries.noaa.gov/aps/monitoring/riverherringshad.html.

River Herring and Shad Catch Triggers and Closure Areas

    This action specifies that when 95 percent of the river herring and 
shad catch for a gear-specific catch cap is projected to be reached in 
a Catch Cap Area, all vessels fishing with that gear type in the 
respective closure area will be subject to a reduced herring possession 
limit of 2,000 lb (0.9 mt) per trip, per calendar day, in or from that 
area for the remainder of the fishing year. Vessels using other gear 
types in the closure area will not be affected in that those vessels 
will not be subject to the 2,000-lb (0.9-mt) possession limit and could 
continue directed fishing for herring in those areas with other gear 
types. Vessels participating in the herring fishery outside of the 
catch cap closure area(s) will be able to use any gear type (consistent 
with other regulations) until the applicable herring annual catch 
limits/sub-annual catch limits are harvested. This 95-percent catch 
trigger is consistent with the trigger implemented for the river 
herring and shad catch cap in the mackerel fishery (79 FR 18834; April 
4, 2014).
    The Catch Cap Closure Areas are identical to the Catch Cap Areas 
for GB, GOM, and CC. For SNE/MA, the catch cap closure area is the 
inshore portion of the SNE/MA Catch Cap Area (Table 2).

         Table 2--River Herring and Shad Catch Cap Closure Areas
------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Catch cap  closure areas                Statistical areas
------------------------------------------------------------------------
GOM....................................  464, 465, 467, 511-515.
CC.....................................  521.
GB.....................................  522, 525-526, 541-543, 561-562,
                                          640.
SNE/MA.................................  537-539, 611-616, 621-623, 625-
                                          627, 631-632, 635-636.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Modifying Future River Herring and Shad Catch Cap Management Measures

    This action specifies the mechanisms to modify measures related to 
the catch caps. Measures related to the catch cap process that could be 
established in this framework may be modified in the future through the 
specifications or framework adjustment process, depending on whether 
the modification is suitable for either specifications or framework 
adjustment. New or additional measures (e.g., new accountability 
measures to become effective when a catch cap is reached), or measures 
outside the scope already analyzed, could be implemented through 
another framework action or an amendment.

River Herring and Shad Catch Caps for Fishing Years 2014-2015

    This action sets river herring and shad catch caps for the 2014-
2015 fishing years (January 1-December 31) (Table 3). Catch of river 
herring and shad for 2014 will only be counted from the effective date 
of this action until December 31, 2014. All the catch caps in the GOM, 
CC, and SNE/MA Catch Cap Areas are based on the median value of 
estimated river herring and shad catch from 2008-2012. Current data are 
not sufficient to definitively

[[Page 71962]]

determine the magnitude of potential biological effects of such a cap 
on river herring and shad stocks. Using the median values is expected 
to provide an incentive for the industry to continue to avoid river 
herring and shad and help to minimize overall river herring and shad 
catch to the extent practicable, while still providing the opportunity 
to fully utilize the herring annual catch limit if the fleet can avoid 
river herring and shad.

  Table 3--River Herring and Shad Catch Caps by Area and Gear Type for
                              2014 and 2015
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Catch cap
          Catch cap area                  Gear type            (mt)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
GOM...............................  Midwater Trawl......              86
CC................................  Midwater Trawl......              13
SNE/MA............................  Midwater Trawl......             124
                                    Bottom Trawl........              89
GB................................  N/A.................             N/A
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Due to very low observed river herring and shad catch in GB, the 
Council did not recommend a catch cap in the GB Catch Cap Area for the 
2014-2015 fishing years. If the catch of river herring and shad 
increases in this area, the Council could consider setting a cap for 
this area in a future herring specifications.

Corrections

    This rule also contains minor corrections to existing regulations. 
NMFS makes these adjustments under the authority of section 305(d) to 
the Magnuson-Stevens Act, which provides that the Secretary of Commerce 
may promulgate regulations necessary to ensure that amendments to a 
fishery management plan are carried out in accordance with the FMP and 
the Magnuson-Stevens Act. These adjustments, which are identified and 
described below, are necessary to clarify current regulations or the 
intent of the FMP and would not change the intent of any regulations.
    NMFS clarifies the coordinates for the herring management areas, 
modified haddock stock areas, and river herring monitoring/avoidance 
areas at Sec.  648.200(f) to more accurately define various areas. For 
example, some areas were intended to be based on statistical areas, but 
the previous coordinates were unintentionally misaligned with those 
statistical areas. This action updates those coordinates to correctly 
align them with the statistical areas upon which they were based. In 
addition, some area boundaries are being revised to correctly 
incorporate coastal bodies of water, as well as the legally defined 
U.S. Canada Maritime boundary. This action also moves the coordinates 
for the GOM and GB modified haddock stock areas in the regulations from 
Sec.  648.10 to Sec.  648.200(f) so that all the herring-related 
management areas are in a single location for easy reference. Finally, 
this action adds a possession limit regulation to Sec.  648.204(a) to 
describe the possession limit requirements of the Herring Management 
Areas 2/3 Open Access Permit. This regulation was overlooked during 
rulemaking for Herring Amendment 5 and is consistent with the intent of 
that action.

Comments and Responses

    NMFS received four comment letters in response to the proposed rule 
from The Herring Alliance; Wild Oceans; the Coalition for the Atlantic 
Herring Fishery's Orderly, Informed and Responsible Long Term 
Development (CHOIR); and an individual. The following summarizes the 
comments and provides our responses.
    Comment 1: An individual commented that depleted runs of blueback 
herring and alewife in rivers and streams of Massachusetts suggest that 
conservation and management measures have not achieved sustainable 
levels of these fish. He urged NMFS to use precautionary management 
measures for the herring fishery to allow us to evaluate the benefits 
that restrictive and conservative measures would have on populations of 
river herring. The Herring Alliance noted that river herring and shad 
populations are near historic lows and that without sufficient federal 
management to complement state conservation measures, river herring and 
shad populations will not recover and fisheries for these species are 
unlikely to reopen.
    Response: River herring are managed by the ASMFC and the individual 
Atlantic coastal states. According to the most recent ASMFC river 
herring stock assessment (May 2012), river herring populations have 
declined from historic levels and many factors will need to be 
addressed to allow their recovery, including fishing (in both state and 
Federal waters), river passageways, water quality, predation, and 
climate change. In an effort to aid in the recovery of depleted or 
declining stocks, the ASMFC, in cooperation with individual states, 
prohibited state waters commercial and recreational fisheries that did 
not have approved sustainable fisheries management plans, effective 
January 1, 2012. NMFS considers river herring to be a species of 
concern, but recently (78 FR 48944, August 12, 2013) determined that 
listing river herring, as either threatened or endangered, under the 
Endangered Species Act was not warranted. NMFS established a technical 
working group and will continue to work closely with the ASMFC and 
others to develop a long-term, dynamic conservation plan for river 
herring from Canada to Florida. The working group will evaluate the 
impact of ongoing restoration and conservation efforts, as well as new 
fisheries management measures, which should benefit the species. It 
will also review new information produced from ongoing research, 
including genetic analyses, ocean migration pattern research, and 
climate change impact studies, to assess whether recent reports, 
showing higher river herring counts in the last 2 years, represent 
sustained trends. NMFS intends to revisit its river herring status 
determination within the next 5 years. In addition to the these 
actions, Amendment 5 to the FMP established river herring monitoring 
and avoidance areas for the herring fishery. NMFS asserts that setting 
river herring and shad catch caps in the herring fishery is an 
additional positive step toward reducing the impacts of herring fishing 
on river herring and shad. The caps should further help minimize river 
herring and shad catch in the herring fishery to the extent practicable 
and increase the incentive for the herring fishery to avoid river 
herring and shad catch when possible.
    Comment 2: Wild Oceans, CHOIR, and the Herring Alliance urged NMFS 
to approve and implement Framework 3, including the process for setting 
river herring and shad caps, applicable areas

[[Page 71963]]

and gears, and the caps and for 2014 and 2015.
    Response: NMFS is implementing the measures as recommended by the 
Council.
    Comment 3: Wild Oceans, CHOIR, and the Herring Alliance urged NMFS 
to quickly implement the measures in Framework 3. Wild Oceans commented 
that swift implementation is necessary in part because it believes that 
the measures to limit river herring and shad catch in the herring 
fishery are overdue. The Herring Alliance, Wild Oceans, and CHOIR urged 
NMFS to waive the 30-day delay in effectiveness required by the 
Administrative Procedure Act. CHOIR and the Herring Alliance requested 
that NMFS retroactively apply the river herring and shad catch caps to 
catch of herring, river herring, and shad, beginning January 1, 2014. 
The Herring Alliance believes that the herring fishing fleets had 
sufficient notice that this rule would take effect in 2014, and that 
the rule will not result in costs related to on-board changes to 
fishing vessels or changes to bycatch estimation methodologies.
    Response: NMFS has determined that good cause exists to waive the 
30-day delay in effectiveness for this action on the basis that it is 
important to implement the catch caps for the remainder of 2014 and it 
is in the public's interest to do so. The Council submitted its final 
version of Framework 3 for NMFS review in March 2014, meaning that 
final NMFS action would occur well after the herring fishery was 
underway. As a result, NMFS intended from the outset to implement these 
measures upon publication due to the need and the public interest. Even 
though it is near the end of 2014 and only one area remains open (Area 
2) to the herring fishery, NMFS believes that it is still important to 
implement the measures upon publication. To further delay 
implementation would reduce the benefits of the caps as the herring 
fishery will likely have harvested the vast majority of its catch 
allocated for 2014. The Council intended that the caps apply to as much 
as the 2014 herring fishery as possible, but it did not recommend a 
retroactive application of the cap. The analysis to support this action 
does not describe retroactive catch caps nor does it analyze 
retroactive catch caps. Therefore, NMFS cannot retroactively apply the 
catch caps to the beginning of 2014. NMFS did retroactively apply catch 
against the river herring and shad cap for the mackerel fishery 
implemented in April 2014 because the Mid-Atlantic Council recomended 
and analyzed applying river herring and shad catch against the cap for 
all of 2014. The Council's timeline for submission provided for 
implementation late in the 2014 fishing year. Although the herring 
fishing fleets likely knew that the Council recommended this action, it 
also likely knew that implementation is dependent upon NMFS review and 
approval. Counting all river herring and shad catch since January 1, 
2014, would unfairly penalize the herring fleet for measures that were 
not effective for the majority of their fishing year in 2014.
    Comment 4: The Herring Alliance, Wild Oceans, and CHOIR all 
expressed concern that NMFS could have difficulty monitoring the catch 
caps with a 95-percent closure threshold. They commented that 
difficulty in monitoring the herring fishery could result in late 
closure, causing the herring fishery to exceed the applicable river 
herring and shad caps. The Herring Alliance commented that it is 
concerned that the measures in Framework 3 are not enough to account 
for scientific and management uncertainty surrounding river herring and 
shad. The Herring Alliance commented that the 95-percent closure 
threshold is not conservative enough in light of a recent catch overage 
in Herring Management Area 1B and frequent historical overages of the 
area-based quotas in the herring fishery. CHOIR urged NMFS to be highly 
vigilant in monitoring the caps, and the Herring Alliance commented 
that a lower cap is warranted until NMFS is able to provide observer 
coverage necessary to accurately monitor these catch caps.
    Response: NMFS has a monitoring program in place for the herring 
fishery that enables it to project a closure date based on daily catch 
and weekly dealer data. NMFS is vigilant in monitoring this fishery and 
has effectively closed herring management areas before the area 
allocations the majority of the time. NMFS asserts that the 95-percent 
threshold is sufficient, but will advise the Council to reassess this 
threshold if it does not provide a sufficient buffer in the event the 
herring fishery has a very rapid harvest rate. NMFS cannot implement a 
lower closure threshold because one was not recommended by the Council. 
NMFS cannot implement different measures than what the Council 
recommended; it can only approve or disapprove the measures recommended 
by the Council.
    Comment 5: CHOIR commented that NMFS should pay close attention to 
new data from herring fishing activity on Georges Bank and should 
support the development and implementation of a cap on Georges Bank. 
The Herring Alliance commented that NMFS should approve the cap 
designated for George Bank, ensure sufficient observer coverage in that 
area to accurately monitor catch, and establish a limit in the next 
appropriate action.
    Response: NMFS and the Council will work together to examine catch 
on Georges Bank and all other herring management areas to determine 
whether to establish caps on Georges Bank or adjust the caps through 
the herring fishery specifications process.
    Comment 6: The Herring Alliance, Wild Oceans, and CHOIR all 
stressed the importance of coordinating river herring and shad catch 
caps between the Mid-Atlantic and New England Councils. Commenters 
suggest that this would ensure that the Councils and NMFS sufficiently 
address river herring and shad catch in areas where the herring and 
mackerel fisheries overlap, and where vessels catch substantial amounts 
of both herring and mackerel on the same trip. Comments urged the 
creation of a single river herring and shad cap to address herring and 
mackerel fishery overlap. Comments recognized that the Councils and 
NMFS could develop joint caps for the 2016 fishing year, but not for 
2014 and 2015.
    Response: NMFS agrees that the New England and Mid-Atlantic 
Councils should work cooperatively to establish river herring and shad 
caps for the herring and mackerel fisheries that do not cause 
management inconsistency in the two fisheries, in particular where they 
overlap. The Council has indicated its intent in the Framework 3 
document to work with the Mid-Atlantic Council in establishing a joint 
cap.
    Comment 7: The Herring Alliance commented that the river herring 
and shad caps are a first step in management of river herring and shad, 
but ultimately insufficient, to prevent further population declines and 
rebuild these species. It commented that the Magnuson-Stevens Act 
requires all stocks in need of conservation and management to be added 
to an FMP, and therefore believes that river herring and shad must be 
added to the FMP as a federally managed species, as well as any other 
fishery FMP that manage fisheries that catch river herring and shad.
    Response: Measures to help minimize the catch of any species may be 
added to a Federal FMP without also including that species in that 
FMP's stock in the fishery definition. Many measures have been 
implemented in the FMP to minimize bycatch to the extent practicable, 
most recently in Amendment 5 to the FMP. In addition to those measures, 
implementing river

[[Page 71964]]

herring and shad catch caps in the FMP is an additional way to minimize 
river herring and shad catch to the extent practicable in Federal 
waters while the effects of various threats (e.g., water quality, fish 
passage, predation, habitat loss, fishing mortality, and climate 
change) on river herring and shad continue to be evaluated. NMFS and 
the Council continue to monitor and evaluate whether further management 
measures to address river herring and shad catch are necessary, 
including whether to include river herring and shad as stocks in the 
fishery.
    There are many factors that must be considered when determining 
whether a species will be included as a stock in a fishery in a fishery 
management plan. Each Fishery Management Council is required by the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act to develop FMPs ``for each fishery under its 
authority that requires conservation and management'' (16 U.S.C. 
1852(h)(1)). If a stock in a fishery is determined to be overfished or 
subject to overfishing, it must be included in an FMP. Section 
303(a)(2) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act requires that each FMP contain, 
among other things, a description of the species of fish involved in 
the fishery, and a ``fishery'' is defined as ``one or more stocks of 
fish that can be treated as a unit for purposes of conservation and 
management and that are identified on the basis of geographic, 
scientific, technical, recreational, or economic characteristics'' (16 
U.S.C. 1802(13)). The National Standard 1 Guidelines provide further 
guidance that Councils should determine ``which specific target stocks 
and/or non-target stocks to include in the fishery,'' as well as 
whether it would be appropriate to designate any ``ecosystem component 
species'' (50 CFR 600.310(d)(l)). When considering which stocks ``can 
be treated as a unit for purposes of conservation and management,'' and 
therefore constitute a ``fishery,'' National Standard 3 requires that, 
``[t]o the extent practicable, an individual stock of fish shall be 
managed as a unit throughout its range, and interrelated stocks of fish 
shall be managed as a unit or in close coordination'' (16 U.S.C. 
1851(a)(3)). The National Standard 3 Guidelines further instruct that 
the choice of a management unit ``depends on the focus of the FMP's 
objectives, and may be organized around biological, geographic, 
economic, technical, social, or ecological perspectives'' (50 CFR 
600.320(d)(l)). Additionally, conservation and management measures 
shall, where practicable, minimize costs and avoid unnecessary 
duplication (16 U.S.C. 1851(a)(7)). Stocks in the fishery 
classifications must be monitored ``on a regular basis'' to determine 
whether reclassification through and Amendment to the FMP is necessary 
(50 CFR 600.310(d)(6)).
    We considered whether the FMP's definition of stocks in the fishery 
complied with the Magnuson-Stevens Act in relation to Amendment 4 to 
the FMP in response to a court order in Flaherty v. Pritzker, 2014 WL 
642658 (D.D.C. Feb. 19, 2014), and we found that it complied with the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act. The best available information at that time 
supported a conclusion that: It is impracticable to treat river herring 
and shad throughout their range in federal waters as a unit; there is 
insufficient information to support a finding that they are in need of 
conservation and management under the Magnuson-Stevens Act; and it 
would be impracticable and unnecessarily duplicative to undertake 
management and conservation of them in Federal waters at that time.
    The states have historically managed shad and river herring in 
state waters under the ASMFC's Interstate Fishery Management Plan 
(ISFMP) for Shad and River Herring. In 1998, Amendment 1 to the ASMFC's 
ISFMP for Shad and River Herring prohibited a commercial ocean fishery 
for American shad, established fishing mortality targets for specific 
American shad river fisheries, and established a daily fish limit in 
recreational fisheries for American shad and hickory shad. In 2009, 
Amendment 2 to the ISFMP for Shad and River Herring required each state 
to close its rivers to river herring fishing unless that state could 
develop a plan that ensured that such fishing could be maintained at 
sustainable levels. Any such plans had to first be submitted to the 
ASMFC's Shad and River Herring Management Board for approval before a 
state could open the river to fishing. State river herring fisheries 
without such plans were required to close by January 1, 2012. In 2010, 
Amendment 3 to the ISFMP for Shad and River Herring established 
requirements for states to develop sustainable fishery plans in order 
to maintain a commercial American shad fishery. American shad fisheries 
without such plans were required to close by January 1, 2013.
    The ASMFC's Shad and River Herring Management Board recommends 
river herring and shad management measures. At no time has the Shad and 
River Herring Management Board recommended that we create an FMP for 
river herring and shad in federal waters or designate river herring 
and/or shad as a stock in any Federal fishery. In the past, when the 
ASMFC believed that management in Federal waters was warranted, it 
requested the development of a Federal FMP, as in the case of lobster, 
striped bass, weakfish, and horseshoe crab.
    Information currently available supports a conclusion that it is 
impracticable to treat shad and river herring as a ``unit'' on a 
regional or coast-wide scale as contemplated by National Standard 3. 
ASMFC stock assessments evaluated individual rivers. The best available 
information suggests that river herring and shad from different natal 
rivers co-occur in the ocean, but the full extent and rate of mixing 
are uncertain. Catch data do not always differentiate between river 
herring and shad species and have not been determined to sufficiently 
link fish caught in the ocean with individual source rivers or stocks.
    The best available science is insufficient to support a finding 
that conservation and management of these stocks in Federal waters is 
necessary. The best available science for river herring was a 2012 
benchmark assessment. This assessment found that of the 52 stocks of 
alewife and blueback herring for which data were available for use in 
the assessment, 23 were depleted from historic levels, 1 stock was 
increasing, and the status of 28 other stocks could not be determined 
because of insufficient data. The assessment was insufficient to 
conclude overfishing was occurring or that the stocks were overfished. 
Depletion was used instead of overfished because of the many factors 
(e.g., water quality, fish passage, predation, habitat loss, and 
climate change) contributing to river herring's declining abundance. 
Also, the river herring assessment provided only river-by-river 
information, and did not include information about stocks regionally or 
coast-wide. Likewise, the 2007 shad stock assessment addressed stocks 
in 32 rivers. Of the 32 rivers, over half (19) were either stable or 
could not be determined. The assessments are available at: https://www.asmfc.org. The lack of adequate data prevented the ASMFC from 
developing estimates of abundance and fishing mortality in either 
assessment. The best scientific information currently available shows 
that encounters between the herring fishery in Federal waters and river 
herring are relatively rare (75 percent of sampled trips had no 
encounters), and that estimates about river herring catch in the 
herring fishery in Federal waters are highly variable and depend on 
gear, area, and season. Additionally, data suggest that vessels using 
small-mesh bottom trawl, and targeting species

[[Page 71965]]

other than Atlantic herring, are also encountering river herring. 
Because of the variability in encounters with river herring, there is a 
need for adequate sampling of the herring fishery by observers before 
any conclusions could be made based on the available information. In 
light of these significant data limitations, there is insufficient 
information to support a finding that river herring and shad are 
overfished or subject to overfishing. Further, given the scale and 
uncertainty associated with this information, including interactions 
between the herring fishery and river herring, there is insufficient 
information to support a finding that the river herring or shad stocks 
coast-wide otherwise require conservation and management.
    Information currently available demonstrates that conservation and 
management of river herring and/or shad in Federal waters would be 
impracticable and unnecessarily duplicative. The limited available 
stock status information is primarily related to state waters. Data on 
the incidental catch of river herring and shad in Federal waters are 
uncertain. Given these limitations, relying on the ASMFC's management 
of river herring and shad is reasonable. As more information is 
gathered about the incidental catch of river herring and shad in 
Federal waters, and as stock status information is generated on a 
regional and/or coast-wide scale, the potential benefits of Federal 
management to these stocks, the regional economy, and competing 
stakeholder groups may outweigh the costs and duplication with ASMFC 
management.
    While this comment reflects public interest in river herring and 
shad, it is not objective, science-based information that would satisfy 
NMFS's obligation to rely on the best available science. Typically, 
when new science is considered, it takes the form of a peer-reviewed 
journal article or a peer-reviewed stock assessment. Currently, the 
best available science on river herring and shad is the ASMFC's stock 
assessments. Amendment 5 to the FMP implemented bycatch measures to 
address the FMP's impact on river herring and shad and minimize bycatch 
of these species to the extent practicable. Those measures included 
increased at-sea sampling, bycatch accounting, promoting cooperative 
efforts with the industry to minimize bycatch, and set the foundation 
for implementing river herring and shad catch caps in this action. Data 
are not robust enough at this time to determine biologically-based 
river herring and shad catch caps and/or the potential impacts of such 
catch caps on the river herring and shad stocks. Setting a cap on the 
catch of these species in the herring fishery is a proactive action 
intended to manage and minimize catch to the extent practicable while 
allowing the herring fishery to continue to operate and fully utilize 
optimum yield in the upcoming fishing years, if river herring and shad 
can be avoided. The catch of river herring and shad in the herring 
fishery would likely be less under a catch cap. Additionally, there 
would be further incentive for the fleet to avoid river herring and 
shad to avoid triggering area closures resulting from the catch caps 
being fully harvested.
    Establishing river herring and shad as stocks in FMP and 
implementing all of the MSA required provisions would require an 
amendment and is not appropriate for this framework adjustment. The 
river herring and shad catch caps implemented in this action provide 
further incentive for the herring industry to avoid river herring and 
shad catch and minimize the FMP's impact to the extent practicable. In 
light of the existing management of directed fisheries for river 
herring and shad in state waters through the ASMFC's ISFMP, and the 
information currently available, we conclude that the Council's 
decision to implement these catch caps while continuing the FMP's 
designation of Atlantic herring as the only stock in the fishery is 
reasonable and complies with the Magnuson-Stevens Act. Further, the 
Council has added the consideration of whether it should include river 
herring and shad as stocks in the fishery in the FMP as one of several 
management priorities that it expects to address in the upcoming year. 
We have urged the Council to consider this issue and plan to encourage 
them to make this a priority action. If the Council finds that river 
herring and shad should be included as stocks in the FMP, it will 
initiate an amendment to do so.
    Comment 8: The Herring Alliance commented that NMFS must ensure 
that the methodology to set catch caps adheres to National Standard 2, 
National Standard 9, and the goals and objectives of Framework 3 (which 
the Herring Alliance stated is to reduce all catch--bycatch and 
incidental catch--of river herring and shad from recent levels).
    Response: NMFS has determined that the measures in Framework 3 are 
consistent with the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the FMP, and applicable laws. 
Part of this decision includes NMFS's determination that the action is 
based on the best available science as required by National Standard 2, 
and helps the FMP minimize bycatch and bycatch mortality to the extent 
practicable, as required by National Standard 9.
    The Council considered the most recent assessments for river 
herring and shad when developing these catch caps. These assessments 
are the best available science for river herring and shad. Data do not 
appear to be robust enough to determine a biologically based catch cap 
for these species or the potential effects on these populations of a 
coastwide catch cap. Nevertheless, the Council determined that capping 
the allowed level of river herring and shad in the herring fishery 
should provide a further incentive for the industry to avoid river 
herring and shad and will help minimize encounters with these species.
    National Standard 9 Guidelines advise taking into account the net 
benefits to the nation of any proposed conservation and management 
measure, including: Negative impacts on affected stocks; incomes to 
fishery participants in directed fisheries; incomes accruing to those 
targeting the bycatch species; environmental consequences; non-market 
values of bycatch species (e.g., recreational values); and impacts on 
other marine organisms. River herring and shad are caught incidentally 
in the herring fishery. River herring and shad are forage species that 
play an important role in the ecosystem, providing a benefit to 
recreational fishermen, and are of great interest to numerous 
stakeholders. While they do occur in Federal waters and are encountered 
in the herring fishery, river herring and shad are not target species 
in the fishery, and their rate of bycatch is very low overall. Even the 
rate of incidental catch of river herring and shad is relatively low. 
Available information and analysis have not shown a strong connection 
between the effects of bycatch--either in the herring fishery or in 
other fisheries subject to Federal management--and the stocks of these 
species.
    Because discarding of river herring, shad, and other species does 
not generally occur after the fish is brought on board a vessel, the 
FMP and related measures in the Northeast Multispecies FMP use measures 
aimed at directly avoiding incidental catch of these species, thereby 
avoiding any possibility of bycatch or bycatch mortality. The Herring 
FMP also seeks to gather further information that may help design 
future avoidance measures while taking into account the net benefits to 
the nation of the herring fishery and its effect on other species, 
consistent with the National Standard Guidelines. A catch cap falls 
under the concept of reducing

[[Page 71966]]

bycatch by providing an incentive to avoid the incidental catch of 
river herring and shad by triggering a low herring possession limit 
once the cap is reached. Amendment 5 included the measure to allow 
implementing a river herring catch cap through a framework or the 
specifications process as well as improvements in monitoring and 
avoidance measures. Monitoring and avoidance are critical steps to a 
better understanding of the nature and extent of incidental catch and 
bycatch in the herring fishery in order to sufficiently analyze and, if 
necessary, address bycatch issues. Because the seasonal and inter-
annual distribution of river herring and shad is highly variable in 
time and space, the most effective measures to address river herring 
and shad bycatch and bycatch mortality are those that increase catch 
monitoring and incidental catch and bycatch accounting, promote 
cooperative efforts with the industry, and reduce economic impacts to 
minimize incidental catch, bycatch, and bycatch mortality to the extent 
practicable. We have concluded that these catch caps, in addition to 
other measures in the FMP, reduce bycatch and bycatch mortality to the 
extent practicable.
    Comment 9: The Herring Alliance commented that the best available 
science demonstrates that there are a number of approaches used to set 
catch limits in data poor species that are more appropriate than the 
methodology implemented in Framework 3, which is scaled up to achieve 
maximum herring catch. The Herring Alliance, Wild Oceans, and CHOIR 
commented that the cap should be biologically based, should be focused 
on the conservation of river herring and shad, and should reduce river 
herring and shad mortality. The Herring Alliance, Wild Oceans, and 
CHOIR recommended that the New England Council should request that the 
SSC review cap limits and the methodology used to set them.
    Response: Data do not appear robust enough to determine a 
biologically-based cap at this time. Based on the best scientific 
information available, the Council determined, and NMFS agrees, that 
caps based on past performance of the herring fishery, scaled to the 
herring annual catch limit of 107,800 mt for 2013-2015, is an 
acceptable limit on the amount of catch in the herring fishery. As the 
Council considers additional information on the biology of river 
herring and shad, it can use that information to try to establish catch 
caps directly tied to river herring and shad biology.
    Comment 10: The Herring Alliance, CHOIR, and Wild Oceans commented 
on various aspects of the FMP that are related to this action but are 
not within the scope of measures considered and approved as part of 
Framework 3. These include improvements to fishery observer provisions 
for the FMP, consideration of adding river herring and shad as stocks 
in the herring fishery, development of more robust catch monitoring 
provisions (not specific to river herring and shad), and development of 
consequences for vessels that dump catch at sea before it can be 
sampled by at-sea observers on herring vessels. Specifically, the 
commenters stated or implied that the measures that NMFS disapproved as 
part of Amendment 5 are integral to the effective monitoring and 
management of river herring and shad catch in the herring fishery.
    Response: NMFS is working with the Council to develop measures 
related to these issues. Some of these issues are currently being 
considered in Framework 4 to the FMP. Other issues, such as considering 
whether to add river herring and shad as stocks in the fishery may be 
addressed in future actions. Although NMFS understands the connection 
between these measures and the river herring and shad catch caps, these 
additional issues and measures are not within the scope of this action.

Changes From Proposed Rule to Final Rule

    In Sec.  648.2, NMFS is clarifying the definitions for herring and 
blueback herring by including a definition for blueback herring and 
removing blueback herring from the definition of ``Herring.'' The 
proposed rule only included a definition for ``river herring and shad'' 
to include the four species of river herring and shad and their genus 
and species names.
    In Sec.  648.7(b)(3)(i), NMFS clarifies that the requirement for 
herring vessels to report total catch retained by statistical area only 
applies to herring vessels that are fishing with midwater trawl or 
bottom trawl gear. The proposed rule would have required all herring 
vessels issued a limited access herring permit or an Areas 2/3 open 
access herring permit to report total catch retained regardless of the 
gear type they use. NMFS will use the ``total catch retained'' portion 
of the report to monitor catch caps for river herring and shad, and 
haddock, which only apply to vessels using midwater trawl or bottom 
trawl gear. NMFS does not need the total catch retained information for 
other gear types and is therefore not requiring them to report it.
    NMFS has also made some changes to the regulatory text in 
paragraphs as clarifications to the proposed rule. These changes do not 
modify the intent or the substance of the regulations. Clarifications 
are in sections and paragraphs: 648.7(b)(3)(i); 648.14(r)(1)(ii)(B); 
648.200(f)(6) and (f)(7)(ii); 648.201(a)(2), (a)(4)(i) and (ii); and 
648.204(a)(1) through (5).

Classification

    The Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA, has determined 
that this rule is consistent with the national standards and other 
provisions of the MSA and other applicable laws.
    The Assistant Administrator also finds that the need to immediately 
limit the amount of river herring and shad catch in the herring fishery 
constitutes good cause under authority contained in 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3) 
to waive the 30-day delay in effective date. There is good cause to 
implement the river herring and shad catch caps upon publication of 
this final rule The Council intended for the caps to be in place for as 
much of the 2014 herring fishing year as possible. Delaying the 
effectiveness of the river herring and shad catch caps may cause the 
caps to be implemented after the herring fishery has already harvested 
the herring catch allocated to it for 2014, thereby undermining the 
benefits of implementing the catch caps that were specified by the 
Council to take effect in 2014. The herring fishery opened for the 2014 
fishing year on January 1, 2014, and the herring fishery has already 
harvested more than 80 percent of the allocated catch for the year. The 
cap must be in place upon publication of this final rule in order to 
constrain river herring and shad catch on as much of the herring 
fishery in 2014 as possible. If the herring fishery continues to 
operate without a cap through the rest of 2014 in Area 2 primarily, the 
benefit of the caps in 2014 will be forgone altogether if the herring 
fishery catches its remaining allocation before the final rule makes 
the river herring and shad caps effective. The Council submitted its 
final version of Framework 3 for NMFS review in March 2014, meaning 
that final NMFS action would occur well after the herring fishery was 
underway. As a result, NMFS intended from the outset to implement these 
measures upon publication due to the need and the public interest. Even 
though it is near the end of 2014 and only one area remains open (Area 
2) to the herring fishery, NMFS believes that it is still important to 
implement the measures upon publication. These species have a high 
level of importance in the ecosytems, the public is extremely 
interested in measures to protect them,

[[Page 71967]]

and this final rule implements measures that provide possible 
protection of these species from excessive catch in the herring 
fishery.
    The Office of Management and Budget has determined that this rule 
is not significant according to Executive Order 12866.
    This final rule does not contain policies with federalism or 
``takings'' implications, as those terms are defined in E.O. 13132 and 
E.O. 12630, respectively.
    NMFS, pursuant to section 604 of the Regulatory Flexibility Act 
(RFA), has completed a final regulatory flexibility analysis (FRFA) in 
support of Framework 3 in this final rule. The FRFA incorporates the 
IRFA, a summary of the significant issues raised by the public comments 
in response to the IRFA, NMFS responses to those comments, a summary of 
the analyses completed in the Framework 3 EA, and this portion of the 
preamble. A summary of the IRFA was published in the proposed rule for 
this action and is not repeated here. A description of why this action 
was considered, the objectives of, and the legal basis for this rule is 
contained in Framework 3 and in the preamble to the proposed and this 
final rule, and is not repeated here. All of the documents that 
constitute the FRFA are available from NMFS and a copy of the IRFA, the 
RIR, and the EA are available upon request (see ADDRESSES).

Summary of the Significant Issues Raised by the Public Comments in 
Response to the IRFA, a Summary of the Assessment of the Agency of Such 
Issues, and a Statement of Any Changes Made in the Proposed Rule as a 
Result of Such Comments

    NMFS received no comments in response to the IRFA.

Description and Estimate of Number of Small Entities To Which the Final 
Rule Will Apply

    On June 20, 2013, the Small Business Administration (SBA) issued a 
final rule revising the small business size standards for several 
industries effective July 22, 2013 (78 FR 37398). The rule increased 
the size standard for finfish fishing from $4.0 to $19.0 million, 
shellfish fishing from $4.0 to $5.0 million, and other marine fishing 
from $4.0 to $7.0 million. The IRFA that the Council and NMFS developed 
for this action used the SBA size standards that became effective in 
July 2013. On June 12, 2014, SBA issued an interim final rule revising 
the small business size standards for several industries effective July 
14, 2014 (79 FR 33467). The rule increased the size standard from $19.0 
to $20.5 million for finfish fishing, from $5 to $5.5 million for 
shellfish fishing, and from $7.0 million to $7.5 million for other 
marine fishing, for-hire businesses, and marinas.
    This action will affect all limited access herring vessels (i.e., 
category A, B, or C permit). In 2012, there were 94 fishing vessels 
that had a limited access herring permit. Vessels and/or permits may be 
owned by entities affiliated by stock ownership, common management, 
identity of interest, contractual relationships, or economic 
dependency. For the purposes of this analysis, affiliated ownership 
entities are determined by those entities with common ownership 
personnel as listed on permit application documentation. Only permits 
with identical ownership personnel are categorized as an ownership 
entity. For example, if five permits have the same seven personnel 
listed as co-owners on their application paperwork, those seven 
personnel form one ownership entity, covering those five permits. If 
one or several of the seven owners also own additional vessels, with 
different co-owners (i.e., either sub-sets of the original seven 
personnel or new co-owners), those ownership arrangements are deemed to 
be separate ownership entities for the purpose of this analysis.
    Pursuant to the Regulatory Flexibility Act, and prior to SBA's June 
12, 2014, interim final rule, NMFS prepared an IRFA for this action 
using SBA's former size standards. Based on ownership criterion 
explained above and NMFS dealer-reported landings data for 3 years 
ending in 2012, and the July 2013 size standards for finfish and 
shellfish firms, the Council and NMFS determined that there are 72 
directly regulated small entities and 6 large entities, as defined in 
section 601 of the RFA. Not all of these permitted firms were active: 
Only 25 directly regulated small entities and 4 large entities were 
actively fishing for herring during the last 3 years. NMFS has reviewed 
the analyses prepared for this action in light of the new size 
standards effective July 14, 2014. The new standards could result in no 
more than six additional entities being considered small.
    Taking this change into consideration, NMFS has identified no 
additional significant alternatives that accomplish statutory 
objectives and minimize any significant economic impacts of this action 
on small entities. Further, the new size standards do not affect the 
decision to prepare a FRFA for this action. The IRFA described that the 
alternatives to the proposed action would have no economic benefits, 
and in some cases may be more costly for all entities regardless of 
whether they are classified as small or large under SBA standards. 
Therefore, the addition of no more than six small entities would not 
change the assessment of impacts described in the IRFA and supported in 
this FRFA.

Description of the Steps the Agency Has Taken To Minimize the 
Significant Economic Impact on Small Entities Consistent With the 
Stated Objectives of Applicable Statutes, Including a Statement of the 
Factual, Policy, and Legal Reasons for Selecting the Alternative 
Adopted in the Final Rule and Why Each One of the Other Significant 
Alternatives to the Rule Considered by the Agency Which Affect the 
Impact on Small Entities Was Rejected

    During the development of Framework 3, NMFS and the Council 
considered ways to reduce the regulatory burden on, and provide 
flexibility for, the regulated entities in this action. Proposed 
actions and alternatives are described in detail in Framework 3, which 
includes an EA, RIR, and IRFA (available at ADDRESSES). The measures 
implemented by this final rule minimize the economic impacts on small 
entities to the extent practicable.
    Overall, this rule minimizes economic impacts (i.e., directed 
fishery closures) by dividing catch caps across various areas. If a 
catch cap in a given area for a specific gear is reached, the measures 
implemented by this action will close only that area to that gear type. 
Thus, the catch cap measures avoid closing the directed herring fishery 
in all areas due to a single catch cap overage. This seeks to minimize 
negative impacts on fishing businesses reliant on gear types subject to 
directed herring fishery closures in terms of forgone profits. The 
extent of these impacts depends on when an area is closed to directed 
fishing relative to nearby areas available for directed herring 
fishing. Further, the catch caps are not likely to preclude herring 
fishing in all areas and will provide midwater trawl vessels an 
opportunity to fish in Herring Management Area 3 (Georges Bank) without 
a catch cap, thereby potentially mitigating some of the negative 
impacts.

Small Entity Compliance Guide

    Section 212 of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness 
Act of 1996 states that, for each rule or group of related rules for 
which an agency is required to prepare a FRFA, the agency will publish 
one or more guides to assist small entities in complying with the rule, 
and will designate such

[[Page 71968]]

publications as ``small entity compliance guides.'' The agency will 
explain the actions a small entity is required to take to comply with a 
rule or group of rules. As part of this rulemaking process, a letter to 
permit holders that also serves as a small entity compliance guide (the 
guide) was prepared. Copies of this final rule are available from the 
Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, and the guide (i.e., permit 
holder letter) will be sent to all holders of permits for the herring 
fishery. The guide and this final rule will be available upon request.

Description of Projected Reporting, Recordkeeping, and Other Compliance 
Requirements

    This action does not contain any new collection-of-information, 
reporting, recordkeeping, or other compliance requirements. This action 
does not duplicate, overlap, or conflict with any other Federal rules.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 648

    Fisheries, Fishing, Recordkeeping and reporting requirements.

    Dated: November 21, 2014.
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 amended 
as follows:

PART 648--FISHERIES OF THE NORTHEASTERN UNITED STATES

0
1. The authority citation for part 648 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.


0
2. In Sec.  648.2, the definition for ``herring'' is removed and the 
definitions for ``Blueback herring,'' ``River herring,'' and ``Shad,'' 
are added in alphabetical order to read as follows:


Sec.  648.2  Definitions.

* * * * *
    Blueback herring means Alosa aestivalis.
* * * * *
    River herring means alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) and blueback 
herring (Alosa aestivalis).
* * * * *
    Shad means American shad (Alosa sapidissima) and hickory shad 
(Alosa mediocris).
* * * * *

0
3. In Sec.  648.7, paragraph (b)(3)(i) introductory text is revised to 
read as follows:


Sec.  648.7  Recordkeeping and reporting requirements.

* * * * *
    (b) * * *
    (3) * * *
    (i) Atlantic herring owners or operators issued a limited access 
permit or Areas 2/3 open access permit. The owner or operator of a 
vessel issued a limited access permit or Areas 2/3 open access permit 
to fish for herring must report catch (retained and discarded) of 
herring daily via VMS, unless exempted by the Regional Administrator. 
The report shall include at least the following information, and any 
other information required by the Regional Administrator: Fishing 
Vessel Trip Report serial number; month and day herring was caught; 
pounds retained for each herring management area; and pounds discarded 
for each herring management area. Additionally, the owner or operator 
of a vessel issued a limited access permit or Areas 2/3 open access 
permit to fish for herring using midwater trawl or bottom trawl gear 
must report daily via VMS the estimated total amount of all species 
retained (in pounds, landed weight) by statistical area for use in 
tracking catch against catch caps (haddock, river herring and shad) in 
the herring fishery. Daily Atlantic herring VMS catch reports must be 
submitted in 24-hr intervals for each day and must be submitted by 0900 
hr (9:00 a.m.) of the following day. Reports are required even if 
herring caught that day has not yet been landed. This report does not 
exempt the owner or operator from other applicable reporting 
requirements of this section.
* * * * *


Sec.  648.10  [Amended]

0
4. In Sec.  648.10, paragraph (l) is removed and reserved.


0
5. In Sec.  648.14, paragraph (r)(1)(ii)(B) is revised to read as 
follows:


Sec.  648.14  Prohibitions.

* * * * *
    (r) * * *
    (1) * * *
    (ii) * * *
    (B) Fish for, possess, transfer, receive, or sell; or attempt to 
fish for, possess, transfer, receive, or sell; more than 2,000 lb 
(907.2 kg) of herring per trip; or land, or attempt to land more than 
2,000 lb (907.2 kg) of herring per day in or from a management area 
closed pursuant to Sec.  648.201(a), or from a river herring and shad 
catch cap closure area that has been closed to specified gear pursuant 
to Sec.  648.201(a)(4)(ii), if the vessel has been issued and holds a 
valid herring permit.
* * * * *

0
6. In Sec.  648.200, paragraph (a) introductory text is revised, 
paragraph (b)(6) is added, and paragraphs (f) and (g) are revised to 
read as follows:


Sec.  648.200  Specifications.

    (a) The Atlantic Herring Plan Development Team (PDT) shall meet at 
least every 3 years, but no later than July of the year before new 
specifications are implemented, with the Atlantic States Marine 
Fisheries Commission's (Commission) Atlantic Herring Plan Review Team 
(PRT) to develop and recommend the following specifications for a 
period of 3 years for consideration by the New England Fishery 
Management Council's Atlantic Herring Oversight Committee: Overfishing 
Limit (OFL), Acceptable Biological Catch (ABC), Annual Catch Limit 
(ACL), Optimum yield (OY), domestic annual harvest (DAH), domestic 
annual processing (DAP), U.S. at-sea processing (USAP), border transfer 
(BT), the sub-ACL for each management area, including seasonal periods 
as specified at Sec.  648.201(d) and modifications to sub-ACLs as 
specified at Sec.  648.201(f), the amount to be set aside for the RSA 
(from 0 to 3 percent of the sub-ACL from any management area), and 
river herring and shad catch caps, as specified in Sec.  648.201(a)(4). 
Recommended specifications shall be presented to the New England 
Fishery Management Council.
* * * * *
    (b) * * *
    (6) River herring and shad catch caps may be allocated to the 
herring fishery by the following: Species, as defined in Sec.  648.2, 
either separately or combined; area as specified in paragraph (f)(7) of 
this section; vessel permit; gear type; or any combination of these.
* * * * *
    (f) Management areas. The specifications process establishes sub-
ACLs and other management measures for the three management areas, 
which may have different management measures. Management Area 1 is 
subdivided into inshore and offshore sub-areas. The management areas 
are defined as follows:
    (1) Management Area 1 (Gulf of Maine): All U.S. waters of the Gulf 
of Maine (GOM) north of a line extending from a point at 41[deg]39' N. 
lat, 70[deg]00' W. long. to 42[deg]53' 14.32125'' N. lat., 67[deg] 44' 
33.01613'' W. long., thence northerly along the U.S.-Canada Maritime 
Boundary to the U.S.-Canadian border, to include state and Federal 
waters

[[Page 71969]]

adjacent to the states of Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts. 
Management Area 1 is divided into Area 1A (inshore) and Area 1B 
(offshore). The line dividing these areas is described by the following 
coordinates:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
   Point          Latitude            Longitude              Note
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1..........  41[deg]58' N        70[deg] 00' W       ...................
2..........  42[deg]38' N        70[deg] 00' W       ...................
3..........  42[deg]53' N        69[deg] 40' W       ...................
4..........  43[deg]12' N        69[deg] 00' W       ...................
5..........  43[deg]40' N        68[deg] 00' W       ...................
6..........  43[deg]58'16.0314'  67[deg]             (\1\)
              ' N                 21'26.157'' W
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Point 6 falls on the U.S.-Canada Maritime Boundary.

    (2) Management Area 2 (South Coastal Area): All state and Federal 
waters inclusive of sounds and bays, bounded on the east by 70[deg]00' 
W. long. and the outer limit of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone; 
bounded on the north and west by the southern coastline of Cape Cod, 
Massachusetts, and the coastlines of Rhode Island, Connecticut, New 
York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina; and 
bounded on the south by a line following the lateral seaward boundary 
between North Carolina and South Carolina from the coast to the 
Submerged Lands Act line, approximately 33[deg]48'46.37'' N. lat, 
78[deg]29'46.46'' W. long., and then heading due east along 
38[deg]48'46.37'' N. lat. to the outer limit of the US Exclusive 
Economic Zone.
    (3) Management Area 3 (Georges Bank): All U.S. waters east of 
70[deg]00' W. long. and southeast of the line that runs from a point at 
41[deg]39' N. lat. and 70[deg]00' W. long., northeasterly to U.S.-
Canada Maritime Boundary at 42[deg]53'14.32125'' N. lat., 
67[deg]44'33.01613'' W. long.
    (4) River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Areas--(i) January-February 
River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Areas. The January-February River 
Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Areas include four sub-areas. Each sub-
area includes the waters bounded by the coordinates below, connected in 
the order listed by straight lines unless otherwise noted.
    (A) January-February River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Sub-Area 1.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Point                  Latitude                 Longitude
------------------------------------------------------------------------
JF1A.................  43[deg]00' N              71[deg]00' W
JF1B.................  43[deg]00' N              70[deg]30' W
JF1C.................  42[deg]30' N              70[deg]30' W
JF1D.................  42[deg]30' N              71[deg]00' W
JF1A.................  43[deg]00' N              71[deg]00' W
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (B) January-February River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Sub-Area 2.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Point                  Latitude                 Longitude
------------------------------------------------------------------------
JF2A.................  42[deg]00' N              70[deg]00' W
JF2B.................  42[deg]00' N              69[deg]30' W
JF2C.................  41[deg]30' N              69[deg]30' W
JF2D.................  41[deg]30' N              70[deg]00' W
JF2A.................  42[deg]00' N              70[deg]00' W
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (C) January-February River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Sub-Area 3.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Point            Latitude            Longitude            Note
------------------------------------------------------------------------
JF3A...........  41[deg]30' N        72[deg]00' W        ...............
JF3B...........  41[deg]30' N        71[deg]00' W        ...............
JF3C...........  40[deg]30' N        71[deg]00' W        ...............
JF3D...........  40[deg]30' N        72[deg]30' W        ...............
JF3E...........  (\1\)               72[deg]30' W        (\3\)
JF3F...........  (\2\)               72[deg]00' W        (\3\)
JF3A...........  41[deg]30' N        72[deg]00' W        ...............
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The southernmost shoreline of Long Island, New York.
\2\ The north-facing shoreline of Long Island, New York.
\3\ Points JF3E and JF3F are connected following the coastline of the
  south fork of eastern Long Island, New York.

    (D) January-February River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Sub-Area 4.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Point            Latitude            Longitude            Note
------------------------------------------------------------------------
JF4A...........  40[deg]30' N        74[deg]00' W        ...............
JF4B...........  40[deg]30' N        72[deg]30' W        ...............
JF4C...........  40[deg]00' N        72[deg]30' W        ...............
JF4D...........  40[deg]00' N        72[deg]00' W        ...............
JF4E...........  39[deg]30' N        72[deg]00' W        ...............
JF4F...........  39[deg]30' N        73[deg]30' W        ...............
JF4G...........  40[deg]00' N        73[deg]30' W        ...............
JF4H...........  40[deg]00' N        74[deg]00' W        (\1\)
JF4A...........  40[deg]30' N        74[deg]00' W        (\1\)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Points JF4H and JF4A are connected following 74 [deg]W longitude and
  the easternmost shoreline of New Jersey, whichever is furthest east.

    (ii) March-April River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Areas. The 
March-April River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Areas include five sub-
areas. Each sub-area includes the waters bounded by the coordinates 
below, connected in the order listed by straight lines unless otherwise 
noted.
    (A) March-April River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Sub-Area 1.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Point                  Latitude                 Longitude
------------------------------------------------------------------------
MA1A.................  43[deg]00' N              71[deg]00' W
MA1B.................  43[deg]00' N              70[deg]30' W
MA1C.................  42[deg]30' N              70[deg]30' W
MA1D.................  42[deg]30' N              71[deg]00' W
MA1A.................  43[deg]00' N              71[deg]00' W
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (B) March-April River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Sub-Area 2.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Point                  Latitude                 Longitude
------------------------------------------------------------------------
MA2A.................  42[deg]00' N              70[deg]00' W
MA2B.................  42[deg]00' N              69[deg]30' W
MA2C.................  41[deg]30' N              69[deg]30' W
MA2D.................  41[deg]30' N              70[deg]00' W
MA2A.................  42[deg]00' N              70[deg]00' W
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (C) March-April River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Sub-Area 3.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Point            Latitude            Longitude            Note
------------------------------------------------------------------------
MA3A...........  41[deg]00' N        (\1\)               ...............
MA3B...........  41[deg]00' N        71[deg]00' W        ...............
MA3C...........  40[deg]30' N        71[deg]00' W        ...............
MA3D...........  40[deg]30' N        71[deg]30' W        ...............
MA3E...........  40[deg]00' N        71[deg]30' W        ...............
MA3F...........  40[deg]00' N        72[deg]30' W        ...............
MA3G...........  (\2\)               72[deg]30' W        (\3\)
MA3A...........  41[deg]00' N        (\1\)               (\3\)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The easternmost shoreline of Long Island, New York.
\2\ The southernmost shoreline of Long Island, New York.
\3\ Points MA3G and MA3A are connected following the southern shoreline
  of Long Island, New York.

    (D) March-April River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Sub-Area 4.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Point                  Latitude                 Longitude
------------------------------------------------------------------------
MA4A.................  40[deg]00' N              73[deg]30' W
MA4B.................  40[deg]00' N              72[deg]30' W
MA4C.................  39[deg]00' N              72[deg]30' W
MA4D.................  39[deg]00' N              73[deg]30' W
MA4A.................  40[deg]00' N              73[deg]30' W
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (E) March-April River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Sub-Area 5.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Point            Latitude            Longitude            Note
------------------------------------------------------------------------
MA5A...........  40[deg]30' N        74[deg]00' W        ...............
MA5B...........  40[deg]30' N        73[deg]30' W        ...............
MA5C...........  40[deg]00' N        73[deg]30' W        ...............
MA5D...........  40[deg]00' N        74[deg]00' W        (\1\)
MA5A...........  40[deg]30' N        74[deg]00' W        (\1\)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Points MA5D and MA5A are connected following 74 [deg]W longitude and
  the easternmost shoreline of New Jersey, whichever is furthest east.

    (iii) May-June River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Areas. The May-
June River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Areas include two sub-areas. 
Each sub-area includes the waters bounded by the coordinates below, 
connected in the order listed by straight lines unless otherwise noted.
    (A) May-June River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Sub-Area 1.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Point                  Latitude                 Longitude
------------------------------------------------------------------------
MJ1A.................  44[deg]00' N              69[deg]30' W
MJ1B.................  44[deg]00' N              69[deg]00' W
MJ1C.................  43[deg]30' N              69[deg]00' W
MJ1D.................  43[deg]30' N              69[deg]30' W
MJ1A.................  44[deg]00' N              69[deg]30' W
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (B) May-June River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Sub-Area 2.

[[Page 71970]]



------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Point                  Latitude                 Longitude
------------------------------------------------------------------------
MJ2A.................  42[deg]00' N              70[deg]00' W
MJ2B.................  42[deg]00' N              69[deg]30' W
MJ2C.................  41[deg]30' N              69[deg]30' W
MJ2D.................  41[deg]30' N              70[deg]00' W
MJ2A.................  42[deg]00' N              70[deg]00' W
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (iv) July-August River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Areas. The 
July-August River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Areas include two sub-
areas. Each sub-area includes the waters bounded by the coordinates 
below, connected in the order listed by straight lines unless otherwise 
noted.
    (A) July-August River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Sub-Area 1.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Point            Latitude            Longitude            Note
------------------------------------------------------------------------
JA1A...........  44[deg]00' N        70[deg]00' W        ...............
JA1B...........  44[deg]00' N        69[deg]30' W        ...............
JA1C...........  43[deg]00' N        69[deg]30' W        ...............
JA1D...........  43[deg]00' N        70[deg]00' W        (\1\)
JA1A...........  44[deg]00' N        70[deg]00' W        (\1\)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The boundary from Points JA1D to JA1A excludes the portions Maquoit
  Bay and Middle Bay (Brunswick, ME) east of 70[deg]00' W.

    (B) July-August River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Sub-Area 2.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Point                  Latitude                 Longitude
------------------------------------------------------------------------
JA2A.................  44[deg]00' N              69[deg]00' W
JA2B.................  44[deg]00' N              68[deg]30' W
JA2C.................  43[deg]30' N              68[deg]30' W
JA2D.................  43[deg]30' N              69[deg]00' W
JA2A.................  44[deg]00' N              69[deg]00' W
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (v) September-October River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Areas. The 
September-October River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Areas include two 
sub-areas. Each sub-area includes the waters bounded by the coordinates 
below, connected in the order listed by straight lines unless otherwise 
noted.
    (A) September-October River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Sub-Area 
1.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Point            Latitude            Longitude            Note
------------------------------------------------------------------------
SO1A...........  44[deg]30' N        68[deg]00' W        ...............
SO1B...........  44[deg]30' N        (\1\)               (\2\)
SO1C...........  44[deg]00' N        (\3\)               (\2\)
SO1D...........  44[deg]00' N        68[deg]00' W        ...............
SO1A...........  44[deg]30' N        68[deg]00' W        ...............
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The intersection of 44[deg]30' N and the U.S.-Canada Maritime
  Boundary.
\2\ Point SO1B and Point SO1C are connected along the U.S.-Canada
  Maritime Boundary.
\3\ The intersection of 44[deg]00' N and the U.S.-Canada Maritime
  Boundary.

    (B) September-October River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Sub-Area 
2.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Point                  Latitude                 Longitude
------------------------------------------------------------------------
SO2A.................  43[deg]00' N              71[deg]00' W
SO2B.................  43[deg]00' N              70[deg]30' W
SO2C.................  42[deg]30' N              70[deg]30' W
SO2D.................  42[deg]30' N              71[deg]00' W
SO2A.................  43[deg]00' N              71[deg]00' W
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (vi) November-December River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Areas. 
The November-December River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Areas include 
two sub-areas. Each sub-area includes the waters bounded by the 
coordinates below, connected in the order listed by straight lines 
unless otherwise noted.
    (A) November-December River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Sub-Area 
1.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Point            Latitude            Longitude            Note
------------------------------------------------------------------------
ND1A...........  43[deg]00' N        71[deg]00' W        ...............
ND1B...........  43[deg]00' N        70[deg]00' W        ...............
ND1C...........  42[deg]00' N        70[deg]00' W        ...............
ND1D...........  42[deg]00' N        69[deg]30' W        ...............
ND1E...........  41[deg]30' N        69[deg]30' W        ...............
ND1F...........  41[deg]30' N        70[deg]00' W        ...............
ND1G...........  (\1\)               70[deg]00' W        (\3\)
ND1H...........  42[deg]00' N        (\2\)               (\3\)
ND1I...........  42[deg]00' N        70[deg]30' W        ...............
ND1J...........  42[deg]30' N        70[deg]30' W        ...............
ND1K...........  42[deg]30' N        71[deg]00' W        ...............
ND1A...........  43[deg]00' N        71[deg]00' W        ...............
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The south-facing shoreline of Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
\2\ The west-facing shoreline of Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
\3\ Point ND1G and ND1H are connected following the coastline of Cape
  Cod, Massachusetts.

    (B) November-December River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Sub-Area 
2.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Point                  Latitude                 Longitude
------------------------------------------------------------------------
ND2A.................  41[deg]30' N              72[deg]00' W
ND2B.................  41[deg]30' N              70[deg]00' W
ND2C.................  40[deg]30' N              70[deg]00' W
ND2D.................  40[deg]30' N              70[deg]30' W
ND2E.................  41[deg]00' N              70[deg]30' W
ND2F.................  41[deg]00' N              72[deg]00' W
ND2A.................  41[deg]30' N              72[deg]00' W
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (5) Gulf of Maine Modified Haddock Stock Area. The Gulf of Maine 
Modified Haddock Stock Area is composed of the portions of Greater 
Atlantic Region Statistical Areas #464, #465, #511, #512, #513, #514, 
and #515 in U.S. waters, and is defined by the following points 
connected in the order listed by straight lines unless otherwise noted:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Point            Latitude            Longitude            Note
------------------------------------------------------------------------
A..............  (\1\)               67[deg]00' W        ...............
B..............  (\2\)               67[deg]00' W        (\3\)
C..............  42[deg]20' N        (\4\)               (\3\)
D..............  42[deg]20' N        70[deg]00' W        ...............
E..............  (\5\)               70[deg]00' W        (\6\)
A..............  (\1\)               67[deg]00' W        (\6\)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The intersection of 67[deg]00' W longitude and the southern coast of
  Maine.
\2\ The intersection of 67[deg]00' W longitude and the U.S.-Canada
  Maritime Boundary.
\3\ From POINT B to POINT C along the U.S.-Canada Maritime Boundary.
\4\ The intersection of 42[deg]20' N latitude and the U.S.-Canada
  Maritime Boundary.
\5\ The intersection of 70[deg]00' W longitude and the northeast-facing
  shoreline of Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
\6\ From POINT E back to POINT A along the coastline of the United
  States.

    (6) Georges Bank Modified Haddock Stock Area. The Georges Bank 
Modified Haddock Stock Area is composed of Greater Atlantic Region 
Statistical Areas #521, #522, #525, #526, #561, and #562, and is 
defined by the following points connected in the order listed by 
straight lines unless otherwise noted:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Point            Latitude            Longitude            Note
------------------------------------------------------------------------
A..............  42[deg]20' N        70[deg]00' W        ...............
B..............  42[deg]20' N        (\1\)               (\2\)
C..............  40[deg]30' N        (\3\)               (\2\)
D..............  40[deg]30' N        66[deg]40' W        ...............
E..............  39[deg]50' N        66[deg]40' W        ...............
F..............  39[deg]50' N        70[deg]00' W        (\4\)
A..............  42[deg]20' N        70[deg]00' W        (\4\)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The intersection of 42[deg]20' N latitude and the U.S.-Canada
  Maritime Boundary.
\2\ From POINT B to POINT C following the U.S.-Canada Maritime Boundary.
\3\ The intersection of 40[deg]30' N latitude and the U.S.-Canada
  Maritime Boundary.
\4\ From POINT F back to POINT A along 70[deg]00' W longitude and the
  coastlines of Nantucket Island and mainland Cape Cod, Massachusetts,
  whichever is further east.

    (7) River herring and shad catch cap areas--(i) Gulf of Maine Catch 
Cap Area. The Gulf of Maine Catch Cap Area is composed of the portions 
of Greater Atlantic Region Statistical Areas #464, #465, #467, #511, 
#512, #513, #514, and #515 in U.S. waters. The Gulf of Maine Catch Cap 
Area is bounded on the west by the coastline of the United States, 
bounded on the east by the U.S.-Canada Maritime Boundary, and bounded 
on the south by the following coordinates connected by straight lines 
in the order listed:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Point                  Latitude                 Longitude
------------------------------------------------------------------------
A....................  (\1\)                     70[deg]00' W
B....................  42[deg]20' N              70[deg]00' W
C....................  42[deg]20' N              (\2\)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The intersection of 70[deg]00' W longitude and the northwest facing
  shoreline of Cape Cod, Massachusetts
\2\ The intersection of 42[deg]00' N latitude and the U.S.-Canada
  Maritime Boundary.

    (ii) Cape Cod Catch Cap Area. The Cape Cod Catch Cap Area is 
composed of Greater Atlantic Region Statistical Area #521, and is 
defined by the

[[Page 71971]]

following points connected in the order listed by straight lines unless 
otherwise noted:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Point            Latitude            Longitude            Note
------------------------------------------------------------------------
A..............  (\1\)               70[deg]00' W        ...............
B..............  42[deg]20' N        70[deg]00' W        ...............
C..............  42[deg]20' N        68[deg]50' W        ...............
D..............  41[deg]00' N        68[deg]50' W        ...............
E..............  41[deg]00' N        69[deg]30' W        ...............
F..............  41[deg]10' N        69[deg]30' W        ...............
G..............  41[deg]10' N        69[deg]50' W        ...............
H..............  41[deg]20' N        69[deg]50' W        ...............
I..............  41[deg]20' N        (\2\)               (\3\)
J..............  (\4\)               70[deg]00' W        (\3\)
K..............  (\5\)               70[deg]00' W        (\6\)
A..............  (\1\)               70[deg]00' W        (\6\)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The intersection of 70[deg]00' W longitude and the northeast-facing
  shoreline of Cape Cod, Massachusetts
\2\ The intersection of 41[deg]20' N latitude and the northeast-facing
  shoreline of Nantucket Island.
\3\ From Point I to Point J along the northeast-facing shoreline of
  Nantucket Island.
\4\ The intersection of 70[deg]00' W longitude and the northeast-facing
  shoreline of Nantucket Island.
\5\ The intersection of 70[deg]00' W longitude and the south-facing
  shoreline of mainland Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
\6\ From Point K back to Point A along the east-facing shoreline of Cape
  Cod, Massachusetts.

    (iii) Georges Bank Catch Cap Area. The Georges Bank Catch Cap Area 
is composed of the portions of Greater Atlantic Region Statistical 
Areas #522, #525, #526, #541, #542, #543, #561, #562, and #640 in U.S. 
waters, and is defined by the following points, connected in the order 
listed by straight lines unless otherwise noted:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Point            Latitude            Longitude            Note
------------------------------------------------------------------------
A..............  (\1\)               70[deg]00' W        ...............
B..............  (\2\)               70[deg]00' W        (\3\)
C..............  41[deg]20' N        (\4\)               (\3\)
D..............  41[deg]20' N        69[deg]50' W        ...............
E..............  41[deg]10' N        69[deg]50' W        ...............
F..............  41[deg]10' N        69[deg]30' W        ...............
G..............  41[deg]00' N        69[deg]30' W        ...............
H..............  41[deg]00' N        68[deg]50' W        ...............
I..............  42[deg]20' N        68[deg]50' W        ...............
J..............  42[deg]20' N        (\5\)               (\6\)
A..............  (\1\)               70[deg]00' W        (\6\)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The intersection of 70[deg]00' W longitude and the outer limit of
  the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone.
\2\ The intersection of 70[deg]00' W longitude and the south-facing
  shoreline of Nantucket Island.
\3\ From Point B to Point C along the south- and east-facing shorelines
  of Nantucket Island.
\4\ The intersection of 41[deg]20' N latitude and the northeast-facing
  shoreline of Nantucket Island.
\5\ The intersection of 42[deg]20' N latitude and the U.S.-Canada
  Maritime Boundary.
\6\ From Point J back to Point A along the U.S.-Canada Maritime Boundary
  and the outer limit of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone.

    (iv) Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic Catch Cap Area. The 
coordinates of this area are the same as Management Area 2 (South 
Coastal Area), as specified in paragraph (f)(2) of this section.
    (8) River herring and shad catch cap closure areas--(i) Gulf of 
Maine Catch Cap Closure Area. The coordinates of this area are the same 
as the Gulf of Maine Catch Cap Area, as specified in paragraph 
(f)(7)(i) of this section.
    (ii) Cape Cod Catch Cap Closure Area. The coordinates of this area 
are the same as the Cape Cod Catch Cap Area, as specified in paragraph 
(f)(7)(ii) of this section.
    (iii) Georges Bank Catch Cap Closure Area. The coordinates of this 
area are the same as the Georges Bank Catch Cap Area, as specified in 
paragraph (f)(7)(iii) of this section.
    (iv) Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic Catch Cap Closure Area. The 
Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic Catch Cap Closure Area is composed of 
the portions of Greater Atlantic Region Statistical Areas #537, #538, 
#539, #611, #612, #613, #614, #615, #616, #621, #622, #623, #625, #626, 
#627, #631, #632, #635, and #636 in US waters, and is defined by the 
following coordinates, connected by straight lines in the order listed 
unless otherwise noted:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
     Point            Latitude            Longitude            Note
------------------------------------------------------------------------
A..............  35[deg]00' N        (\1\)
B..............  35[deg]00' N        74[deg]00' W
C..............  37[deg]00' N        74[deg]00' W
D..............  37[deg]00' N        73[deg]00' W
E..............  38[deg]00' N        73[deg]00' W
F..............  38[deg]00' N        72[deg]00' W
G..............  39[deg]00' N        72[deg]00' W
H..............  39[deg]00' N        71[deg]40' W
I..............  39[deg]50' N        71[deg]40' W
J..............  39[deg]50' N        70[deg]00' W
K..............  (\2\)               70[deg]00' W        (\3\)
A..............  35[deg]00' N        (\1\)               (\3\)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The intersection of 35[deg]00' N latitude and the mainland shoreline
  of North Carolina.
\2\ The intersection of 70[deg]00' W longitude and the south-facing
  shoreline of mainland Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
\3\ From Point K back to Point A along the mainland shoreline of the
  United States.

    (g) All aspects of the following measures can be modified through 
the specifications process:
    (1) AMs;
    (2) Possession limits;
    (3) River Herring Monitoring/Avoidance Areas; and
    (4) River herring and shad catch caps.

0
7. In Sec.  648.201, paragraphs (a)(2) is revised, paragraph (a)(4) is 
added, and paragraph (e) is revised to read as follows:


Sec.  648.201  AMs and harvest controls.

    (a) * * *
    (2) When the Regional Administrator has determined that the GOM 
and/or GB incidental catch cap for haddock in Sec.  648.85(d) has been 
caught, no vessel issued a Federal Atlantic herring permit and fishing 
with midwater trawl gear in the applicable Accountability Measure (AM) 
Area, i.e., the Herring GOM Haddock AM Area or Herring GB Haddock AM 
Area, as defined in Sec.  648.86(a)(3)(ii)(A)(2) and (3) of this part, 
may fish for, possess, or land herring in excess of 2,000 lb (907.2 kg) 
per trip in or from the applicable AM Area, and from landing herring 
more than once per calendar day, unless all herring possessed and 
landed by a vessel were caught outside the applicable AM Area and the 
vessel's gear is not available for immediate use as defined in Sec.  
648.2 while transiting the applicable AM Area. Upon this determination, 
the haddock possession limit is reduced to 0 lb (0 kg) in the 
applicable AM area for a vessel issued a Federal Atlantic herring 
permit and fishing with midwater trawl gear or for a vessel issued an 
All Areas Limited Access Herring Permit and/or an Areas 2 and 3 Limited 
Access Herring Permit fishing on a declared herring trip, regardless of 
area fished or gear used, in the applicable AM area, unless the vessel 
also possesses a Northeast multispecies permit and is operating on a 
declared (consistent with Sec.  648.10(g)) Northeast multispecies trip.
* * * * *
    (4) River herring and shad catch cap. (i) The catch from all trips 
that land more than 6,600 lb (3 mt) of herring shall apply to the river 
herring and shad catch cap in the herring fishery. Caps by gear and by 
area shall be established through the specifications process described 
in Sec.  648.201.
    (ii) Beginning on the date that NMFS projects that river herring 
and shad catch will reach 95 percent of a catch cap for specified gear 
applicable to an area specified in Sec.  648.200(f)(7) for the 
remainder of the fishing year, NMFS shall prohibit vessels from fishing 
for, possessing, catching, transferring, or landing more than 2,000 lb 
(907.2 kg) of Atlantic herring per trip using the applicable gear in 
the applicable catch cap closure area, specified in Sec.  
648.200(f)(8), and from landing herring more than once per calendar 
day, except as provided in paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section. NMFS 
shall implement these restrictions in accordance with the APA.
* * * * *
    (e) Up to 500 mt of the Area 1A sub-ACL shall be allocated for the 
fixed gear fisheries in Area 1A (weirs and stop seines) that occur west 
of 67[deg]16.8' W. long (Cutler, Maine). This set-aside shall

[[Page 71972]]

be available for harvest by fixed gear within the specified area until 
November 1 of each fishing year. Any portion of this allocation that 
has not been utilized by November 1 shall be restored to the sub-ACL 
allocation for Area 1A.
* * * * *

0
8. In Sec.  648.204, paragraph (a) is revised to read as follows:


Sec.  648.204  Possession restrictions.

    (a) A vessel must be issued and possess a valid limited access 
herring permit to fish for, possess, or land more than 6,600 lb (3 mt) 
of Atlantic herring from any herring management area in the EEZ, 
provided none of the harvest restrictions specified in Sec.  648.201 
has been implemented.
    (1) A vessel issued an All Areas Limited Access Herring Permit may 
fish for, possess, or land Atlantic herring with no possession 
restriction from any of the herring management areas defined in Sec.  
648.200(f), provided none of the accountability measures or harvest 
restrictions specified in Sec.  648.201 have been implemented.
    (2) A vessel issued only an Areas 2 and 3 Limited Access Herring 
Permit may fish for, possess, or land Atlantic herring with no 
possession restriction only from Area 2 or Area 3, as defined in Sec.  
648.200(f), provided none of the accountability measures or harvest 
restrictions specified in Sec.  648.201 have been implemented. Such a 
vessel may fish in Area 1 only if issued an open access herring permit 
or a Limited Access Incidental Catch Herring Permit, and only as 
authorized by the respective permit.
    (3) A vessel issued a Limited Access Incidental Catch Herring 
Permit may fish for, possess, or land up to, but no more than, 55,000 
lb (25 mt) of Atlantic herring in any calendar day, and is limited to 
one landing of herring per calendar day, from any management area 
defined in Sec.  648.200(f), provided none of the accountability 
measures or harvest restrictions specified in Sec.  648.201 have been 
implemented.
    (4) A vessel issued an All Areas Open Access Permit may fish for, 
possess, or land up to, but no more than, 6,600 lb (3 mt) of Atlantic 
herring from any herring management area per trip, and is limited to 
one landing of herring per calendar day, provided none of the 
accountability measures or harvest restrictions specified in Sec.  
648.201 have been implemented.
    (5) A vessel issued an Areas 2/3 Open Access Permit may fish for, 
possess, or land up to, but no more than, 20,000 lb (9 mt) of Atlantic 
herring from only Area 2 or Area 3, as defined in Sec.  648.200(f), per 
trip, and is limited to one landing of herring per calendar day, 
provided none of the accountability measures or harvest restrictions 
specified in Sec.  648.201 have been implemented.
    (6) A vessel issued a herring permit may possess herring roe 
provided that the carcasses of the herring from which it came are not 
discarded at sea.
* * * * *

0
9. In Sec.  648.206, paragraphs (b)(36) and (37) are revised and 
(b)(38) is added to read as follows:


Sec.  648.206  Framework provisions.

* * * * *
    (b) * * *
    (36) River herring and shad catch caps, including species-specific 
caps, and vessels, permits, trips, gears, and areas to which caps 
apply;
    (37) River herring and shad Catch Cap Areas and Catch Cap Closure 
Areas; and
    (38) Any other measure currently included in the FMP.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2014-28131 Filed 12-2-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P