Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic; Re-Opening of the Recreational Sector for Red Snapper, 56178-56179 [2017-25645]
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56178
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 227 / Tuesday, November 28, 2017 / Rules and Regulations
currently approved NOAA collections of
information may be viewed at: https://
www.cio.noaa.gov/services_programs/
prasubs.html
Regulatory Flexibility Act
Pursuant to the Regulatory Flexibility
Act, 5 U.S.C. 605(b), the Chief Counsel
for Regulation of the Department of
Commerce certified to the Chief Counsel
for Advocacy of the Small Business
Administration that this action would
not have a significant economic impact
on a substantial number of small
entities. The factual basis for the
certification was published in the
proposed rule and is not repeated here.
No comments were received regarding
this certification. As a result, a
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis was not
required and none was prepared.
Dated: November 21, 2017.
Alan D. Risenhoover,
Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator for
Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
For the reasons set out in the
preamble, 50 CFR part 300 is amended
as follows:
PART 300—INTERNATIONAL
FISHERIES REGULATIONS
Subpart C—Eastern Pacific Tuna
Fisheries
1. The authority citation for part 300,
subpart C, continues to read as follows:
■
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 951 et seq.
2. In § 300.21, add a definition for
‘‘Shark line’’ in alphabetical order to
read as follows:
■
Definitions.
jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with RULES
*
*
*
*
*
Shark line means a type of fishing
gear used to target sharks and consisting
of an individual hooked line or hooked
lines attached to the floatline or directly
to the floats of longline gear and
deployed in the water column at depths
shallower than the mainline.
*
*
*
*
*
■ 3. In § 300.24, revise paragraphs (w),
(x), (cc), and (dd), and add paragraphs
(ii) and (jj) to read as follows:
§ 300.24
Prohibitions.
*
*
*
*
*
(w) Set or attempt to set a purse seine
on or around a whale shark (Rhincodon
typus) in contravention of § 300.27(g).
VerDate Sep<11>2014
15:23 Nov 27, 2017
Jkt 244001
§ 300.27 Incidental catch and tuna
retention requirements.
*
List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 300
Fish, Fisheries, Fishing, Fishing
vessels, International organizations,
Marine resources, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements, Treaties.
§ 300.21
(x) Fail to release a whale shark
encircled in a purse seine net of a
fishing vessel as required in § 300.27(h).
*
*
*
*
*
(cc) To retain on board, transship,
store, land, sell, or offer for sale any part
or whole carcass of a mobulid ray, as
described in § 300.27(i).
(dd) Fail to handle or release a
mobulid ray as required in § 300.27(j).
*
*
*
*
*
(ii) Fail to handle or release a shark
as required in § 300.27(k).
(jj) Use a shark line in contravention
of § 300.27(l).
■ 4. In § 300.27, revise paragraphs (b)
and (h), and add paragraphs (k) and (l)
to read as follows:
*
*
*
*
(b) Release requirements for non-tuna
species on purse seine vessels. All purse
seine vessels must release all billfish,
ray (not including mobulid rays, which
are subject to paragraph (i) of this
section), dorado (Coryphaena hippurus),
and other non-tuna fish species, except
those being retained for consumption
aboard the vessel, as soon as practicable
after being identified on board the
vessel during the brailing operation.
Sharks caught in the IATTC Convention
Area and that are not retained for
consumption aboard the vessel must be
released according to the requirements
in paragraph (k) of this section.
*
*
*
*
*
(h) Whale shark release. The crew,
operator, and owner of a fishing vessel
of the United States commercially
fishing for tuna in the Convention Area
must release as soon as possible, any
whale shark that is encircled in a purse
seine net, and must ensure that all
reasonable steps are taken to ensure its
safe release. No whale shark may be
towed out of a purse seine net (e.g.,
using towing ropes).
*
*
*
*
*
(k) Shark handling and release
requirements for purse seine vessels.
The crew, operator, and owner of a U.S.
commercial purse seine fishing vessel
must promptly release unharmed, to the
extent practicable, any shark (whether
live or dead) caught in the IATTC
Convention Area, as soon as it is seen
in the net or on the deck, without
compromising the safety of any persons.
If a shark is live when caught, the crew,
operator, or owner must follow release
procedures in the following two
paragraphs.
(1) Sharks must be released out of the
purse seine net by directly releasing the
shark from the brailer into the ocean.
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Fmt 4700
Sfmt 4700
Sharks that cannot be released without
compromising the safety of persons or
the sharks before being landed on deck
must be returned to the water as soon
as possible, either utilizing a ramp from
the deck connecting to an opening on
the side of the boat, or through escape
hatches. If ramps or escape hatches are
not available, the sharks must be
lowered with a sling or cargo net, using
a crane or similar equipment, if
available.
(2) No shark may be gaffed or hooked,
lifted by the head, tail, gill slits or
spiracles, or lifted by using bind wire
against or inserted through the body,
and no holes may be punched through
the bodies of sharks (e.g., to pass a cable
through for lifting the shark).
(l) Shark line prohibition for longline
vessels. Any U.S. longline vessel used to
fish for tuna or swordfish is prohibited
from using any shark line in the IATTC
Convention Area.
[FR Doc. 2017–25617 Filed 11–27–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
50 CFR Part 622
[Docket No. 170803719–7719–01]
RIN 0648–XF848
Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of
Mexico, and South Atlantic; SnapperGrouper Fishery of the South Atlantic;
Re-Opening of the Recreational Sector
for Red Snapper
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; re-opening.
AGENCY:
NMFS announces the reopening of the recreational sector for red
snapper in the exclusive economic zone
(EEZ) of the South Atlantic through this
temporary rule. The most recent
preliminary recreational harvest
information for red snapper indicate the
recreational annual catch limit (ACL) for
the limited 2017 fishing season has not
yet been reached. Therefore, NMFS reopens the recreational sector for red
snapper in the South Atlantic EEZ for 3
days (see DATES) to allow the
recreational ACL to be caught, while
minimizing the risk of the recreational
ACL being exceeded.
DATES: This rule is effective 12:01 a.m.,
local time, December 8, 2017, and closes
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\28NOR1.SGM
28NOR1
jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 227 / Tuesday, November 28, 2017 / Rules and Regulations
at 12:01 a.m., local time, on December
11, 2017.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Nikhil Mehta, NMFS Southeast Regional
Office, telephone: 727–824–5305, email:
nikhil.mehta@noaa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
snapper-grouper fishery of the South
Atlantic includes red snapper 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.
On November 2, 2017, NMFS
published a temporary rule through
emergency action for South Atlantic red
snapper in the 2017 fishing year (82 FR
50839). The temporary rule authorized
the limited harvest and possession of
red snapper in or from the South
Atlantic EEZ in the 2017 fishing year.
The 2017 commercial ACL was set at
124,815 lb (56,615 kg), round weight,
and the 2017 recreational ACL was set
at 29,656 fish. The recreational season
was open for two consecutive weekends
made up of Fridays, Saturdays, and
Sundays. The recreational season
opened for the weekends of November
3 through 5, 2017, and November 10
through 12, 2017. The temporary rule
additionally set a 1 fish per person
recreational bag limit. No size limits
were implemented for either sector
through the temporary rule in an effort
to decrease regulatory discards. The
temporary rule also set a daily
commercial trip limit 75 lb (34 kg),
gutted weight. The intended effect of the
temporary rule through emergency
action is to reduce, to the extent
practicable, existing adverse socioeconomic impacts to fishermen and
fishing communities that utilize the red
snapper portion of the snapper-grouper
fishery, without allowing overfishing or
preventing the stock from rebuilding.
Additionally, limited commercial and
recreational harvest of red snapper in
2017 provides an opportunity to collect
fishery-dependent data that will be
useful for future red snapper stock
assessments and management decisions.
During the limited harvest season in
2017, the South Atlantic states and
NMFS collected harvest information
through fishing effort and dockside
surveys, survey of private anglers and
charter and headboat captains, and
voluntary donations of fish carcasses
from recreational anglers. NMFS notes
VerDate Sep<11>2014
15:23 Nov 27, 2017
Jkt 244001
that the majority of recreational harvest
of red snapper occurs off Florida and
the majority of the sector landings are
attributable to private anglers.
NMFS is required to close the
recreational sector for red snapper when
the recreational ACL specified at 50 CFR
622.193(aa)(2) is reached, or is projected
to be reached, by filing a notification to
that effect with the Office of the Federal
Register. NMFS previously projected
and announced in the Federal Register
that the recreational ACL for South
Atlantic red snapper for the 2017
limited fishing season would be reached
by the end of the second recreational
open weekend at 12:01 a.m., local time,
on November 13, 2017 (82 FR 50839,
November 2, 2017). However,
preliminary recreational harvest
information indicates that the
recreational ACL for red snapper was
not met as of that date. Based on these
preliminary data, NMFS has projected
that the recreational sector may reopen
for additional 3 days, which is not
expected to result in harvest exceeding
the 2017 recreational sector ACL.
Therefore, in accordance with 50 CFR
622.8(c), NMFS temporarily re-opens
the recreational sector for 3 days
(Friday, Saturday, and Sunday)
beginning at 12:01 a.m., local time,
December 8, 2017, to allow the
recreational sector to have the
opportunity to harvest the red snapper
ACL. The recreational sector will close
3 days later, at 12:01 a.m., local time,
December 11, 2017, and will remain
closed in accordance with the
effectiveness of the implemented
emergency measures (82 FR 50839,
November 2, 2017). NMFS has
determined that this re-opening will
allow for an additional opportunity to
recreationally harvest red snapper while
minimizing the risk of exceeding the
recreational ACL. NMFS notes that the
commercial harvest of red snapper that
was authorized through the temporary
rule implementing emergency measures
is currently open through December 31,
2017, unless the commercial ACL is
projected to be reached prior to that
date.
Once the recreational sector closes,
the bag and possession limits are zero
for red snapper in or from the South
Atlantic EEZ. Additionally, these bag
and possession limits apply to the
harvest of red snapper in both state and
Federal waters in the South Atlantic on
board a vessel with a valid Federal
commercial or charter vessel/headboat
permit for South Atlantic snappergrouper.
PO 00000
Frm 00029
Fmt 4700
Sfmt 9990
56179
Classification
The Regional Administrator, NMFS
Southeast Region, has determined this
temporary rule is necessary for the
conservation and management of red
snapper and the South Atlantic snappergrouper fishery and is consistent with
the temporary rule implementing
emergency measures, the MagnusonStevens Act and other applicable laws.
This action is taken under 50 CFR
622.8(c) 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
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
temporarily re-open the recreational
sector for red snapper 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
conditions and justification for
temporary rule implementing the
recreational ACL in 2017 are still in
effect, and all that remains is to notify
the public of the re-opening. Such
procedures are contrary to the public
interest because of the need to
immediately implement this action to
allow recreational fishers to harvest the
recreational ACL of red snapper from
the EEZ, while minimizing the risk of
exceeding the recreational ACL. Prior
notice and opportunity for public
comment would be contrary to the
public interest because it would not
allow for harvest of the recreational ACL
before the end of the fishing season.
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: November 22, 2017.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2017–25645 Filed 11–22–17; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 227 (Tuesday, November 28, 2017)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 56178-56179]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-25645]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 622
[Docket No. 170803719-7719-01]
RIN 0648-XF848
Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic;
Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic; Re-Opening of the
Recreational Sector for Red Snapper
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; re-opening.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: NMFS announces the re-opening of the recreational sector for
red snapper in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the South Atlantic
through this temporary rule. The most recent preliminary recreational
harvest information for red snapper indicate the recreational annual
catch limit (ACL) for the limited 2017 fishing season has not yet been
reached. Therefore, NMFS re-opens the recreational sector for red
snapper in the South Atlantic EEZ for 3 days (see DATES) to allow the
recreational ACL to be caught, while minimizing the risk of the
recreational ACL being exceeded.
DATES: This rule is effective 12:01 a.m., local time, December 8, 2017,
and closes
[[Page 56179]]
at 12:01 a.m., local time, on December 11, 2017.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nikhil Mehta, NMFS Southeast Regional
Office, telephone: 727-824-5305, email: nikhil.mehta@noaa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The snapper-grouper fishery of the South
Atlantic includes red snapper and is managed under the Fishery
Management Plan for the Snapper-Grouper 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.
On November 2, 2017, NMFS published a temporary rule through
emergency action for South Atlantic red snapper in the 2017 fishing
year (82 FR 50839). The temporary rule authorized the limited harvest
and possession of red snapper in or from the South Atlantic EEZ in the
2017 fishing year. The 2017 commercial ACL was set at 124,815 lb
(56,615 kg), round weight, and the 2017 recreational ACL was set at
29,656 fish. The recreational season was open for two consecutive
weekends made up of Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. The recreational
season opened for the weekends of November 3 through 5, 2017, and
November 10 through 12, 2017. The temporary rule additionally set a 1
fish per person recreational bag limit. No size limits were implemented
for either sector through the temporary rule in an effort to decrease
regulatory discards. The temporary rule also set a daily commercial
trip limit 75 lb (34 kg), gutted weight. The intended effect of the
temporary rule through emergency action is to reduce, to the extent
practicable, existing adverse socio-economic impacts to fishermen and
fishing communities that utilize the red snapper portion of the
snapper-grouper fishery, without allowing overfishing or preventing the
stock from rebuilding. Additionally, limited commercial and
recreational harvest of red snapper in 2017 provides an opportunity to
collect fishery-dependent data that will be useful for future red
snapper stock assessments and management decisions.
During the limited harvest season in 2017, the South Atlantic
states and NMFS collected harvest information through fishing effort
and dockside surveys, survey of private anglers and charter and
headboat captains, and voluntary donations of fish carcasses from
recreational anglers. NMFS notes that the majority of recreational
harvest of red snapper occurs off Florida and the majority of the
sector landings are attributable to private anglers.
NMFS is required to close the recreational sector for red snapper
when the recreational ACL specified at 50 CFR 622.193(aa)(2) is
reached, or is projected to be reached, by filing a notification to
that effect with the Office of the Federal Register. NMFS previously
projected and announced in the Federal Register that the recreational
ACL for South Atlantic red snapper for the 2017 limited fishing season
would be reached by the end of the second recreational open weekend at
12:01 a.m., local time, on November 13, 2017 (82 FR 50839, November 2,
2017). However, preliminary recreational harvest information indicates
that the recreational ACL for red snapper was not met as of that date.
Based on these preliminary data, NMFS has projected that the
recreational sector may reopen for additional 3 days, which is not
expected to result in harvest exceeding the 2017 recreational sector
ACL.
Therefore, in accordance with 50 CFR 622.8(c), NMFS temporarily re-
opens the recreational sector for 3 days (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday)
beginning at 12:01 a.m., local time, December 8, 2017, to allow the
recreational sector to have the opportunity to harvest the red snapper
ACL. The recreational sector will close 3 days later, at 12:01 a.m.,
local time, December 11, 2017, and will remain closed in accordance
with the effectiveness of the implemented emergency measures (82 FR
50839, November 2, 2017). NMFS has determined that this re-opening will
allow for an additional opportunity to recreationally harvest red
snapper while minimizing the risk of exceeding the recreational ACL.
NMFS notes that the commercial harvest of red snapper that was
authorized through the temporary rule implementing emergency measures
is currently open through December 31, 2017, unless the commercial ACL
is projected to be reached prior to that date.
Once the recreational sector closes, the bag and possession limits
are zero for red snapper in or from the South Atlantic EEZ.
Additionally, these bag and possession limits apply to the harvest of
red snapper in both state and Federal waters in the South Atlantic on
board a vessel with a valid Federal commercial or charter vessel/
headboat permit for South Atlantic snapper-grouper.
Classification
The Regional Administrator, NMFS Southeast Region, has determined
this temporary rule is necessary for the conservation and management of
red snapper and the South Atlantic snapper-grouper fishery and is
consistent with the temporary rule implementing emergency measures, the
Magnuson-Stevens Act and other applicable laws.
This action is taken under 50 CFR 622.8(c) 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 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 temporarily re-open the
recreational sector for red snapper 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 conditions and justification for
temporary rule implementing the recreational ACL in 2017 are still in
effect, and all that remains is to notify the public of the re-opening.
Such procedures are contrary to the public interest because of the need
to immediately implement this action to allow recreational fishers to
harvest the recreational ACL of red snapper from the EEZ, while
minimizing the risk of exceeding the recreational ACL. Prior notice and
opportunity for public comment would be contrary to the public interest
because it would not allow for harvest of the recreational ACL before
the end of the fishing season.
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: November 22, 2017.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2017-25645 Filed 11-22-17; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
