Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic Fisheries; Application for Exempted Fishing Permits, 31575-31576 [2015-13468]

Download as PDF Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 106 / Wednesday, June 3, 2015 / Notices (301) 713–0572, email Richard.James@ noaa.gov. Tahara Dawkins, Director, Commercial Remote Sensing and Regulatory Affairs. Thursday, June 18, 2015 BILLING CODE 3510–HR–P DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration RIN 0648–XD955 Caribbean Fishery Management Council (CFMC); Public Meeting National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce. ACTION: Notice of public meeting. AGENCY: The Caribbean Fishery Management Council’s (Council) Panel of Experts will hold a meeting. DATES: The meeting will be held on June 16–18, 2015, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at ˜ the CFMC Headquarters, 270 Munoz Rivera Avenue, Suite 401, San Juan, Puerto Rico 00918. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Caribbean Fishery Management Council, ˜ 270 Munoz Rivera Avenue, Suite 401, San Juan, Puerto Rico 00918, telephone: (787) 766–5926. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Panel of Experts will meet to discuss the items contained in the following agenda: SUMMARY: Tuesday, June 16, 2015 9 a.m.–9:20 a.m.: Call to Order 9:20 a.m.–9:30 a.m.: Adoption of Agenda 9:30 a.m.–10 a.m.: Charge from Council: Developing a Draft List of Species to Manage Using Criteria Defined in Action 1 alternatives 10 a.m.–10:30 a.m.: Review of National Standards Guidelines on General Factors to Consider when Determining if a Fishery Needs Management 10:30 a.m.–noon: Species Selection for the Island Base FMPs Management Units (Puerto Rico) Noon–1:30 p.m.: Lunch 1:30 p.m.–5 p.m.: Species Selection for the Island Base FMPs Management Units (Puerto Rico) The established times for addressing items on the agenda may be adjusted as necessary to accommodate the timely completion of discussion relevant to the agenda items. To further accommodate discussion and completion of all items on the agenda, the meeting may be extended from, or completed prior to the date established in this notice. The meeting is open to the public, and will be conducted in English. Fishers and other interested persons are invited to attend and participate with oral or written statements regarding agenda issues. Although non-emergency issues not contained in this agenda may come before this group for discussion, those issues may not be subjects for formal action during the meeting. Actions will be restricted to those issues specifically identified in this notice, and any issues arising after publication of this notice that require emergency action under section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, provided that the public has been notified of the Council’s intent to take final action to address the emergency. Special Accommodations The meeting is physically accessible to people with disabilities. For more information or request for sign language interpretation and/other auxiliary aids, ´ please contact Mr. Miguel A. Rolon, Executive Director, Caribbean Fishery ˜ Management Council, 270 Munoz Rivera Avenue, Suite 401, San Juan, Puerto Rico 00918, telephone (787) 766– 5926, at least 5 days prior to the meeting date. Wednesday, June 17, 2015 9 a.m.–noon: Species Selection for the Island Base FMPs Management Units (Puerto Rico) Noon–1:30 p.m.: Lunch Dated: May 29, 2015. Tracey L. Thompson, Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. [FR Doc. 2015–13469 Filed 6–2–15; 8:45 am] VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:57 Jun 02, 2015 Jkt 235001 BILLING CODE 3510–22–P PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration RIN 0648–XD979 9 a.m.–noon: Species Selection for the Island Base FMPs Management Units (St. Thomas/St. John) Noon–1:30 p.m.: Lunch 1:30 p.m.–5 p.m.: Species Selection for the Island Base FMPs Management Units (St. Croix) —Other Business —Adjourn [FR Doc. 2015–13439 Filed 6–2–15; 8:45 am] tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES 1:30 p.m.–5 p.m.: Species Selection for the Island Base FMPs Management Units (Puerto Rico) 31575 Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic Fisheries; Application for Exempted Fishing Permits National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce. ACTION: Notice; request for comments. AGENCY: The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable Fisheries, Greater Atlantic Region, NMFS, has made a preliminary determination that an Exempted Fishing Permit application contains all of the required information and warrants further consideration. This Exempted Fishing Permit would allow four commercial fishing vessels to fish outside of the limited access sea scallop regulations in support of bycatch reduction research. Regulations under the MagnusonStevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act require publication of this notification to provide interested parties the opportunity to comment on applications for proposed Exempted Fishing Permits. DATES: Comments must be received on or before June 18, 2015. ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments by any of the following methods: • Email: nmfs.gar.efp@noaa.gov. Include in the subject line ‘‘DA15–036 CFF Dredge Speed on Bycatch Reduction Study EFP.’’ • Mail: John K. Bullard, Regional Administrator, NMFS, Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark the outside of the envelope ’’ DA15–036 CFF Dredge Speed on Bycatch Reduction Study EFP.’’ FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shannah Jaburek, Fisheries Management Specialist, 978–282–8456. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NOAA awarded the Coonamesset Farm Foundation (CFF) a grant through the 2015 Atlantic sea scallop research setaside program, in support of a project titled, ‘‘Determination of the Impacts of Dredge Speed on Bycatch Reduction and Scallop Selectivity.’’ CFF submitted a complete application for an EFP on March 30, 2015. The project would look at how high towing speeds using the Turtle Deflector Dredge (TDD) impact scallop catch per unit of SUMMARY: E:\FR\FM\03JNN1.SGM 03JNN1 31576 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 106 / Wednesday, June 3, 2015 / Notices effort, scallop size selectivity, and fish bycatch. The study was funded in response to feedback from the fishing industry that the TDD must be towed at relatively high speeds to perform effectively. CFF is requesting exemptions that would allow four commercial fishing vessels be exempt from the Atlantic sea scallop days-at-sea (DAS) allocations at 50 CFR 648.53(b); crew size restriction at § 648.51(c); Closed Area I Closed Area at § 648.58(a), Closed Area II Closed Area at § 648.58(b); and Nantucket Lightship Closed Area at § 648.58(c). It would also exempt the from possession limits and minimum size requirements specified in 50 CFR part 648, subparts B and D through O, for sampling purposes only. Any fishing activity conducted outside the scope of the exempted fishing activity would be prohibited. Four vessels would conduct scallop dredging in June-September 2015, on a total of four 7-day trips, for a total of 28 DAS. Each trip would complete approximately 15 tows per day for an overall total of 420 tows for the project. All trips would take place in the open areas of Southern New England and Georges Bank as well as in Georges Bank scallop closed areas. Trips would be centralized around areas with high yellowtail and winter flounder bycatch and in areas that contain a wide range of scallop sizes to examine changes in size selectivity due to tow speed. All tows would be conducted with two tandem 15-foot (4.57-meter) TDD dredges for a duration of 60 minutes with a tow speed range of 4–5.5 knots. One dredge would be rigged with a 7row apron and twine top hanging ratio of 2:1, while the other dredge would be rigged with a 5-row ring apron and 1.5:1 twine top hanging ratio. Both dredge aprons would use 4-inch (10.16-cm) rings. Each tow pair would be conducted in a straight line varying between higher and lower speeds with dredge positions in an AB–BA alternating pattern with a wire scope of three to one plus ten fathoms. For all tows the sea scallop catch would be counted into baskets and weighed. One basket from each dredge would be randomly selected and the scallops would be measured in 5-mm increments to determine size selectivity. Finfish catch would be sorted by species and then counted, weighed and measured in 1-mm increments. Depending on the volume of scallops and finfish captured, the catch would be subsampled as necessary. No catch would be retained for longer than needed to conduct sampling and no catch would be landed for sale. PROJECT CATCH ESTIMATES SNE GB Species lbs tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES Scallops ................................................................................... Yellowtail .................................................................................. Winter Flounder ....................................................................... Windowpane Flounder ............................................................. Monkfish ................................................................................... Other Fish ................................................................................ Barndoor Skate ........................................................................ NE Skate Complex .................................................................. CFF has requested these exemptions to allow them to conduct experimental dredge towing without being charged DAS, as well as deploy gear in access areas that are currently closed to scallop fishing. Participating vessels would need crew size waivers to accommodate science personnel and possession waivers would enable them to conduct finfish sampling activities. If approved, the applicant may request minor modifications and extensions to the EFP throughout the year. EFP modifications and extensions may be granted without further notice if they are deemed essential to facilitate completion of the proposed research and have minimal impacts that do not change the scope or impact of the initially approved EFP request. Any fishing activity conducted outside the scope of the exempted fishing activity would be prohibited. Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:57 Jun 02, 2015 Jkt 235001 mt 52,300 1,100 400 2,800 3,100 1,800 300 84,000 23.72 0.50 0.18 1.27 1.41 0.82 0.14 38.10 Dated: May 29, 2015. Emily H. Menashes, Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. [FR Doc. 2015–13468 Filed 6–2–15; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 3510–22–P CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION [CPSC Docket No. 15–C0004] Office Depot, Inc., Provisional Acceptance of a Settlement Agreement and Order Consumer Product Safety Commission. ACTION: Notice. AGENCY: It is the policy of the Commission to publish settlements which it provisionally accepts under the Consumer Product Safety Act in the Federal Register in accordance with the terms of 16 CFR 1118.20(e). Published below is a provisionally-accepted Settlement Agreement with Office Depot, Inc., containing a civil penalty of $3,400,000, within twenty (20) days of SUMMARY: PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 lbs mt 22,700 2,200 1,300 3,000 9,400 2,200 4,300 60,900 10.30 1.00 0.59 1.36 4.26 1.00 1.95 27.62 service of the Commission’s final Order accepting the Settlement Agreement.1 DATES: Any interested person may ask the Commission not to accept this agreement or otherwise comment on its contents by filing a written request with the Office of the Secretary by June 18, 2015. ADDRESSES: Persons wishing to comment on this Settlement Agreement should send written comments to the Comment 15–C0004 Office of the Secretary, Consumer Product Safety Commission, 4330 East West Highway, Room 820, Bethesda, Maryland 20814– 4408. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sean R. Ward, Trial Attorney, Office of the General Counsel, Division of Compliance, Consumer Product Safety Commission, 4330 East West Highway, 1 Chairman Elliot F. Kaye and Commissioners Robert S. Adler and Marietta S. Robinson voted to provisionally accept the Settlement Agreement and Order. Commissioners Joseph P. Mohorovic and Ann Marie Buerkle voted to reject the Settlement Agreement and Order. Commissioner Mohorovic submitted a statement regarding the matter. The statement will be available from the Office of the Secretariat and the CPSC Web site, www.cpsc.gov. E:\FR\FM\03JNN1.SGM 03JNN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 106 (Wednesday, June 3, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31575-31576]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-13468]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XD979


Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic 
Fisheries; Application for Exempted Fishing Permits

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

ACTION: Notice; request for comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable 
Fisheries, Greater Atlantic Region, NMFS, has made a preliminary 
determination that an Exempted Fishing Permit application contains all 
of the required information and warrants further consideration. This 
Exempted Fishing Permit would allow four commercial fishing vessels to 
fish outside of the limited access sea scallop regulations in support 
of bycatch reduction research.
    Regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act require publication of this notification to provide 
interested parties the opportunity to comment on applications for 
proposed Exempted Fishing Permits.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before June 18, 2015.

ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments by any of the following 
methods:
     Email: nmfs.gar.efp@noaa.gov. Include in the subject line 
``DA15-036 CFF Dredge Speed on Bycatch Reduction Study EFP.''
     Mail: John K. Bullard, Regional Administrator, NMFS, 
Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, 55 Great Republic Drive, 
Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark the outside of the envelope '' DA15-036 CFF 
Dredge Speed on Bycatch Reduction Study EFP.''

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shannah Jaburek, Fisheries Management 
Specialist, 978-282-8456.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NOAA awarded the Coonamesset Farm Foundation 
(CFF) a grant through the 2015 Atlantic sea scallop research set-aside 
program, in support of a project titled, ``Determination of the Impacts 
of Dredge Speed on Bycatch Reduction and Scallop Selectivity.''
    CFF submitted a complete application for an EFP on March 30, 2015. 
The project would look at how high towing speeds using the Turtle 
Deflector Dredge (TDD) impact scallop catch per unit of

[[Page 31576]]

effort, scallop size selectivity, and fish bycatch. The study was 
funded in response to feedback from the fishing industry that the TDD 
must be towed at relatively high speeds to perform effectively.
    CFF is requesting exemptions that would allow four commercial 
fishing vessels be exempt from the Atlantic sea scallop days-at-sea 
(DAS) allocations at 50 CFR 648.53(b); crew size restriction at Sec.  
648.51(c); Closed Area I Closed Area at Sec.  648.58(a), Closed Area II 
Closed Area at Sec.  648.58(b); and Nantucket Lightship Closed Area at 
Sec.  648.58(c). It would also exempt the from possession limits and 
minimum size requirements specified in 50 CFR part 648, subparts B and 
D through O, for sampling purposes only. Any fishing activity conducted 
outside the scope of the exempted fishing activity would be prohibited.
    Four vessels would conduct scallop dredging in June-September 2015, 
on a total of four 7-day trips, for a total of 28 DAS. Each trip would 
complete approximately 15 tows per day for an overall total of 420 tows 
for the project. All trips would take place in the open areas of 
Southern New England and Georges Bank as well as in Georges Bank 
scallop closed areas. Trips would be centralized around areas with high 
yellowtail and winter flounder bycatch and in areas that contain a wide 
range of scallop sizes to examine changes in size selectivity due to 
tow speed.
    All tows would be conducted with two tandem 15-foot (4.57-meter) 
TDD dredges for a duration of 60 minutes with a tow speed range of 4-
5.5 knots. One dredge would be rigged with a 7-row apron and twine top 
hanging ratio of 2:1, while the other dredge would be rigged with a 5-
row ring apron and 1.5:1 twine top hanging ratio. Both dredge aprons 
would use 4-inch (10.16-cm) rings. Each tow pair would be conducted in 
a straight line varying between higher and lower speeds with dredge 
positions in an AB-BA alternating pattern with a wire scope of three to 
one plus ten fathoms.
    For all tows the sea scallop catch would be counted into baskets 
and weighed. One basket from each dredge would be randomly selected and 
the scallops would be measured in 5-mm increments to determine size 
selectivity. Finfish catch would be sorted by species and then counted, 
weighed and measured in 1-mm increments. Depending on the volume of 
scallops and finfish captured, the catch would be subsampled as 
necessary. No catch would be retained for longer than needed to conduct 
sampling and no catch would be landed for sale.

                                             Project Catch Estimates
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                       SNE                                   GB
               Species               ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                             lbs                 mt                lbs                 mt
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Scallops............................             52,300              23.72             22,700              10.30
Yellowtail..........................              1,100               0.50              2,200               1.00
Winter Flounder.....................                400               0.18              1,300               0.59
Windowpane Flounder.................              2,800               1.27              3,000               1.36
Monkfish............................              3,100               1.41              9,400               4.26
Other Fish..........................              1,800               0.82              2,200               1.00
Barndoor Skate......................                300               0.14              4,300               1.95
NE Skate Complex....................             84,000              38.10             60,900              27.62
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    CFF has requested these exemptions to allow them to conduct 
experimental dredge towing without being charged DAS, as well as deploy 
gear in access areas that are currently closed to scallop fishing. 
Participating vessels would need crew size waivers to accommodate 
science personnel and possession waivers would enable them to conduct 
finfish sampling activities.
    If approved, the applicant may request minor modifications and 
extensions to the EFP throughout the year. EFP modifications and 
extensions may be granted without further notice if they are deemed 
essential to facilitate completion of the proposed research and have 
minimal impacts that do not change the scope or impact of the initially 
approved EFP request. Any fishing activity conducted outside the scope 
of the exempted fishing activity would be prohibited.

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

    Dated: May 29, 2015.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-13468 Filed 6-2-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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