Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Small-Mesh Multispecies Fishery; Adjustment to the Commercial Northern Red Hake Inseason Possession Limit, 52366-52367 [2016-18715]
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Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 152 / Monday, August 8, 2016 / Rules and Regulations
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
50 CFR Part 622
[Docket No. 120815345–3525–02]
RIN 0648–XE774
Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South
Atlantic; 2016 Recreational
Accountability Measure and Closure
for the South Atlantic Other Jacks
Complex
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; closure.
AGENCY:
NMFS implements an
accountability measure (AM) for the
recreational sector for the other jacks
complex (lesser amberjack, almaco jack,
and banded rudderfish) in the South
Atlantic for the 2016 fishing year
through this temporary rule. NMFS
projects that recreational landings of the
other jacks complex will reach their
combined recreational annual catch
limit (ACL) by August 9, 2016.
Therefore, NMFS closes the recreational
sector for this complex on August 9,
2016, through the remainder of the
fishing year in the exclusive economic
zone (EEZ) of the South Atlantic. This
closure is necessary to protect the lesser
amberjack, almaco jack, and banded
rudderfish resources.
DATES: This rule is effective 12:01 a.m.,
local time, August 9, 2016, until 12:01
a.m., local time, January 1, 2017.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Mary Vara, NMFS Southeast Regional
Office, telephone: 727–824–5305, email:
mary.vara@noaa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
snapper-grouper fishery of the South
Atlantic includes lesser amberjack,
almaco jack, and banded rudderfish,
and is managed under the Fishery
Management Plan for the SnapperGrouper Fishery of the South Atlantic
Region (FMP). The FMP was prepared
by the South Atlantic Fishery
Management Council and is
implemented by NMFS under the
authority of the Magnuson-Stevens
Fishery Conservation and Management
Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) by
regulations at 50 CFR part 622.
The recreational ACL for the other
jacks complex is 267,799 lb (121,472
kg), round weight. Under 50 CFR
622.193(l)(2)(i), NMFS is required to
close the recreational sector for the
other jacks complex when the
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SUMMARY:
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13:12 Aug 05, 2016
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recreational ACL has been reached, or is
projected to be reached, by filing a
notification to that effect with the Office
of the Federal Register. NMFS has
determined that the recreational sector
for this complex is projected to reach its
ACL by August 9, 2016. Therefore, this
temporary rule implements an AM to
close the recreational sector for the
other jacks complex in the South
Atlantic, effective 12:01 a.m., local time,
August 9, 2016, until January 1, 2017,
the start of the next fishing year.
During the recreational closure, the
bag and possession limits for the fish in
the other jacks complex in or from the
South Atlantic EEZ are zero.
Additionally, NMFS closed the
commercial sector for the other jacks
complex effective on August 9, 2016,
upon reaching the commercial ACL.
Therefore, on August 9, 2016, no
commercial or recreational harvest of
fish in the other jacks complex from the
South Atlantic EEZ is permitted for the
remainder of 2016. The commercial
sector for the other jacks complex reopens on January 1, 2017.
Classification
The Regional Administrator,
Southeast Region, NMFS, has
determined this temporary rule is
necessary for the conservation and
management of the fish in the other
jacks complex, a component of the
South Atlantic snapper-grouper fishery,
and is consistent with the MagnusonStevens Act and other applicable laws.
This action is taken under 50 CFR
622.193(l)(2)(i) and is exempt from
review under Executive Order 12866.
These measures are exempt from the
procedures of the Regulatory Flexibility
Act because the temporary rule is issued
without opportunity for prior notice and
public comment.
This action responds to the best
scientific information available. The
Assistant Administrator for NOAA
Fisheries (AA) finds that the need to
immediately implement this action to
close the recreational sector for the
other jacks complex constitutes good
cause to waive the requirements to
provide prior notice and opportunity for
public comment pursuant to the
authority set forth in 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B),
as such procedures are unnecessary and
contrary to the public interest. Such
procedures are unnecessary because the
rule implementing the AM itself has
been subject to notice and comment,
and all that remains is to notify the
public of the closure. Such procedures
are contrary to the public interest
because of the need to immediately
implement this action to protect the
other jacks complex. Prior notice and
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Frm 00042
Fmt 4700
Sfmt 4700
opportunity for public comment would
require time and would potentially
allow the recreational sector to exceed
its ACL.
For the aforementioned reasons, the
AA also finds good cause to waive the
30-day delay in the effectiveness of this
action under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3).
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: August 2, 2016.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2016–18677 Filed 8–2–16; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 120109034–2171–01]
RIN 0648–XE778
Fisheries of the Northeastern United
States; Small-Mesh Multispecies
Fishery; Adjustment to the Commercial
Northern Red Hake Inseason
Possession Limit
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; inseason
adjustment.
AGENCY:
We announce the reduction of
the commercial possession limit for
northern red hake for the remainder of
the 2016 fishing year. This action is
required to prevent the northern red
hake total allowable landing limit from
being exceeded. This announcement
informs the public that the northern red
hake possession limit is reduced.
DATES: Effective August 8, 2016, through
April 30, 2017.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Reid
Lichwell, Fishery Management
Specialist, 978–675–9112.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The smallmesh multispecies fishery is managed
primarily through a series of exemptions
from the Northeast Multispecies
Fisheries Management Plan. Regulations
governing the red hake fishery are found
at 50 CFR part 648. The regulations
describing the process to adjust
inseason commercial possession limits
of northern red hake are described in
§ 648.86(d)(4) and (5). These regulations
require the Regional Administrator to
reduce the northern red hake possession
limit from 3,000 lb (1,361 kg) to 1,500
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\08AUR1.SGM
08AUR1
Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 152 / Monday, August 8, 2016 / Rules and Regulations
lb (680 kg) when landings have been
projected to reach or exceed 45 percent
of the total allowable landings (TAL).
The northern red hake possession limit
is required to be further reduced to 400
lb (181 kg) if landings are projected to
reach or exceed 62.5 percent of the TAL,
unless such a reduction would be
expected to prevent the TAL from being
reached. The setting of these inseason
adjustment thresholds were established
in the final rule implementing the
small-mesh multispecies specifications
for 2015–2017, published in the Federal
Register on May 28, 2015 (80 FR 30379).
These measures were imposed
because the annual catch limits (ACL)
for northern red hake were exceeded for
the 2012 and 2013 fishing years, and
northern red hake was experiencing
overfishing. To reduce the risk of
continued overfishing on the stock and
to better constrain catch to the ACL, we
implemented this possession limit
reduction trigger.
Based on commercial landings data
reported through July 23, 2016, the
northern red hake fishery is projected to
reach 45 percent of the TAL on July 31,
2016. Based on this projection, reducing
the commercial northern red hake
possession limit to 1,500 lb (680 kg) is
required to prevent the TAL from being
exceeded. Upon the effective date of this
action, no person may possess on board
or land more than 1,500 lb (680 kg) of
northern red hake, per trip for the
remainder of the fishing year.
Classification
This action is taken under 50 CFR
part 648 and is exempt from review
under Executive Order 12866.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: August 2, 2016.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2016–18715 Filed 8–5–16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
50 CFR Part 679
[Docket No. 150916863–6211–02]
RIN 0648–XE789
Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic
Zone Off Alaska; Reallocation of
Pollock in the Bering Sea and Aleutian
Islands
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule.
AGENCY:
NMFS is reallocating the
projected unused amounts of the Aleut
Corporation pollock directed fishing
allowance from the Aleutian Islands
subarea to the Bering Sea subarea. This
action is necessary to provide
opportunity for harvest of the 2016 total
allowable catch of pollock, consistent
with the goals and objectives of the
Fishery Management Plan for
Groundfish of the Bering Sea and
Aleutian Islands Management Area.
DATES: Effective 1200 hrs, Alaska local
time (A.l.t.), August 8, 2016, through
2400 hrs, A.l.t., December 31, 2016.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Steve Whitney, 907–586–7228.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS
manages the groundfish fishery in the
BSAI exclusive economic zone
according to the Fishery Management
Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea
and Aleutian Islands Management Area
(FMP) prepared by the North Pacific
Fishery Management Council (Council)
under authority of the MagnusonStevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act. Regulations governing
fishing by U.S. vessels in accordance
SUMMARY:
52367
with the FMP appear at subpart H of 50
CFR part 600 and 50 CFR part 679.
In the Aleutian Islands subarea, the
portion of the 2016 pollock total
allowable catch (TAC) allocated to the
Aleut Corporation directed fishing
allowance (DFA) is 9,700 metric tons
(mt) as established by the final 2016 and
2017 harvest specifications for
groundfish in the BSAI (81 FR 14773,
March 18, 2016), and as adjusted by
reallocations (81 FR 16097, March 25,
2016).
As of August 1, 2016, the
Administrator, Alaska Region, NMFS,
(Regional Administrator) has
determined that 8,000 mt of the Aleut
Corporation pollock DFA in the
Aleutian Islands subarea will not be
harvested. Therefore, in accordance
with § 679.20(a)(5)(iii)(B)(4), NMFS
reallocates 8,000 mt of A season pollock
DFA from the Aleutian Islands subarea
to the 2016 Bering Sea subarea DFAs.
The 8,000 mt of the Aleut Corporation
pollock DFA is added to the 2016 Bering
Sea non-CDQ DFAs. As a result, the
2016 harvest specifications for pollock
in the Aleutian Islands subarea included
in the final 2016 and 2017 harvest
specifications for groundfish in the
BSAI (81 FR 14773, March 18, 2016),
and as adjusted by reallocations (81 FR
16097, March 25, 2016) are revised as
follows: 1,700 mt to the annual Aleut
Corporation pollock DFA and 1,700 mt
to the A season Aleut Corporation
pollock DFA. Furthermore, pursuant to
§ 679.20(a)(5), Table 5 of the final 2016
and 2017 harvest specifications for
groundfish in the Bering Sea and
Aleutian Islands (81 FR 14773, March
18, 2016, and 81 FR 16097, March 25,
2016), is revised to make 2016 pollock
allocations consistent with this
reallocation. This reallocation results in
adjustments to the 2016 pollock
allocations established at § 679.20(a)(5).
TABLE 5—FINAL 2016 ALLOCATIONS OF POLLOCK TACS TO THE DIRECTED POLLOCK FISHERIES AND TO THE CDQ
DIRECTED FISHING ALLOWANCES (DFA) 1
[Amounts are in metric tons]
2016 A season 1
2016
Allocations
rmajette on DSK2TPTVN1PROD with RULES
Area and sector
Bering Sea subarea TAC 1 ..............................................................................
CDQ DFA .........................................................................................................
ICA 1 .................................................................................................................
AFA Inshore .....................................................................................................
AFA Catcher/Processors 3 ...............................................................................
Catch by C/Ps ..........................................................................................
Catch by CVs 3 .........................................................................................
Unlisted C/P Limit 4 ...................................................................................
AFA Motherships .............................................................................................
VerDate Sep<11>2014
13:12 Aug 05, 2016
Jkt 238001
PO 00000
Frm 00043
Fmt 4700
Sfmt 4700
1,354,900
135,900
48,240
585,380
468,304
428,498
39,806
2,342
117,076
A season DFA
n/a
54,360
n/a
234,152
187,322
171,399
15,922
937
46,830
E:\FR\FM\08AUR1.SGM
08AUR1
SCA harvest
limit 2
n/a
38,052
n/a
163,906
131,125
n/a
n/a
n/a
32,781
2016
B season 1
B season DFA
n/a
81,540
n/a
351,228
280,982
257,099
23,884
1,405
70,246
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 152 (Monday, August 8, 2016)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 52366-52367]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-18715]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 120109034-2171-01]
RIN 0648-XE778
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Small-Mesh
Multispecies Fishery; Adjustment to the Commercial Northern Red Hake
Inseason Possession Limit
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; inseason adjustment.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: We announce the reduction of the commercial possession limit
for northern red hake for the remainder of the 2016 fishing year. This
action is required to prevent the northern red hake total allowable
landing limit from being exceeded. This announcement informs the public
that the northern red hake possession limit is reduced.
DATES: Effective August 8, 2016, through April 30, 2017.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Reid Lichwell, Fishery Management
Specialist, 978-675-9112.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The small-mesh multispecies fishery is
managed primarily through a series of exemptions from the Northeast
Multispecies Fisheries Management Plan. Regulations governing the red
hake fishery are found at 50 CFR part 648. The regulations describing
the process to adjust inseason commercial possession limits of northern
red hake are described in Sec. 648.86(d)(4) and (5). These regulations
require the Regional Administrator to reduce the northern red hake
possession limit from 3,000 lb (1,361 kg) to 1,500
[[Page 52367]]
lb (680 kg) when landings have been projected to reach or exceed 45
percent of the total allowable landings (TAL). The northern red hake
possession limit is required to be further reduced to 400 lb (181 kg)
if landings are projected to reach or exceed 62.5 percent of the TAL,
unless such a reduction would be expected to prevent the TAL from being
reached. The setting of these inseason adjustment thresholds were
established in the final rule implementing the small-mesh multispecies
specifications for 2015-2017, published in the Federal Register on May
28, 2015 (80 FR 30379).
These measures were imposed because the annual catch limits (ACL)
for northern red hake were exceeded for the 2012 and 2013 fishing
years, and northern red hake was experiencing overfishing. To reduce
the risk of continued overfishing on the stock and to better constrain
catch to the ACL, we implemented this possession limit reduction
trigger.
Based on commercial landings data reported through July 23, 2016,
the northern red hake fishery is projected to reach 45 percent of the
TAL on July 31, 2016. Based on this projection, reducing the commercial
northern red hake possession limit to 1,500 lb (680 kg) is required to
prevent the TAL from being exceeded. Upon the effective date of this
action, no person may possess on board or land more than 1,500 lb (680
kg) of northern red hake, per trip for the remainder of the fishing
year.
Classification
This action is taken under 50 CFR part 648 and is exempt from
review under Executive Order 12866.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: August 2, 2016.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2016-18715 Filed 8-5-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
