Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic Fisheries; Application for Exempted Fishing Permits, 15792-15793 [2018-07596]
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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 71 / Thursday, April 12, 2018 / Notices
Kyle
Molton, Fishery Management Specialist,
978–281–9236, Kyle.Molton@noaa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Two
commercial fishermen and a groundfish
sector submitted complete applications
to renew exempted fishing permits
(EFPs) on February 16, 2018, to conduct
commercial fishing activities that the
regulations would otherwise restrict.
These EFPs would authorize five
commercial fishing vessels to fish a
combined total of 150 trips in the
Western Gulf of Maine (WGOM) and
Cashes Ledge Closure Areas, excluding
the Cashes Ledge Habitat Management
Area (HMA), with hook gear, and to
temporarily retain undersized catch for
measurement and data collection.
Within the Cashes Ledge Closure Area,
access would be permitted in the
Fippennies Ledge HMA, but not in the
Cashes Ledge or Ammen Rock HMAs.
These HMAs were developed as part of
the New England Fisheries Management
Council’s Omnibus Essential Fish
Habitat Amendment 2, and approved by
NMFS on January 3, 2018.
The EFPs would authorize the
applicants to use hook gear to
selectively target pollock and haddock
while maintaining minimal bycatch. In
addition, the applicants would also
explore and develop premium markets
to increase the value of the catch. This
study would be conducted in the
WGOM and Cashes Ledge Closure
Areas. The applicants have requested
access to these areas based on reports,
and experimental fishing, which suggest
that there are high concentrations of the
target species located in these areas. The
exemptions are necessary to conduct
this study because vessels on
commercial groundfish trips are
prohibited from fishing for groundfish
in these closed areas and from retaining
undersized groundfish. EFP trips would
occur year-round, excluding existing
seasonal closures.
Participating vessels would take a
combined total of 150 trips to closed
areas. Trips would be roughly 24 hours
or less in length. Vessels would use
automated jigging machines, handline,
and rod and reel gears only. Based on
preliminary 2017 data, estimated catch
on these trips is between 1,000 and
2,000 lb (453.5 to 907.2 kg) of pollock
and haddock, combined, per trip. 2017
data indicate that catch of non-target
species is small; cod represented less
than 10 percent of catch overall, and
other species were encountered only
sporadically or in low numbers.
Because these vessels would be
fishing in closed areas, and must
minimize interactions with non-target
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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
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species like cod, the use of a vessel
monitoring system and 100-percent
monitoring would be required for all
vessels. A research technician or at-sea
monitor would accompany all trips that
occur under these EFPs to measure and
document fish caught and document
fishing gear, bait, location, and fishing
conditions to evaluate gear performance.
The vessel captains would also
document fishing practices used to
avoid bycatch of non-target species.
Undersized fish would be discarded as
quickly as possible after sampling. All
Northeast multispecies of legal size
would be landed, and all catch would
be attributed to the vessel’s sector
annual catch entitlement. The
applicants will also document ex-vessel
price for all sold catch for comparison
with other harvest methods and
markets. The participating vessels
would not be exempt from any sector
monitoring or reporting requirements.
If approved, the applicants may
request minor modifications and
extensions to the EFPs 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.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: April 9, 2018.
Jennifer M. Wallace,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2018–07597 Filed 4–11–18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
RIN 0648–XG152
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
submitted by the Cape Cod Commercial
Fishermen’s Alliance contains all of the
required information and warrants
SUMMARY:
PO 00000
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
further consideration. This exempted
fishing permit would require
participants to use electronic
monitoring systems on 100 percent of
sector trips for catch accounting in the
groundfish fishery. Additionally, vessels
would be authorized to access portions
of groundfish closed areas. 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 April 27, 2018.
ADDRESSES: You may submit written
comments by either of the following
methods:
• Email: nmfs.gar.efp@noaa.gov.
Include in the subject line ‘‘100
PERCENT EM EFP.’’
• Mail: Michael Pentony, Regional
Administrator, NMFS, Greater Atlantic
Regional Fisheries Office, 55 Great
Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930.
Mark the outside of the envelope ‘‘100
PERCENT EM EFP.’’
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Claire Fitz-Gerald, Fishery Management
Specialist, 978–281–9255.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Groundfish sectors are required to
implement and fund an at-sea
monitoring (ASM) program. Sectors may
use electronic monitoring (EM) to satisfy
this monitoring requirement, provided
that NMFS deems the technology
sufficient for catch monitoring. NMFS
has yet to approve EM as a suitable
alternative to ASM. However, NMFS is
working with industry and other
stakeholders to test the operational
feasibility of EM and resolve
outstanding barriers to implementation.
Project partners include the Cape Cod
Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance, The
Nature Conservancy, the Maine Coast
Fishermen’s Association, the Gulf of
Maine Research Institute, and fishermen
from the Northeast Fishery Sectors V &
XI, the GB Cod Fixed Gear Sector, the
Sustainable Harvest Sector, and the
Maine Coast Community Sector.
In fishing year 2017, NMFS issued an
exempted fishing permit (EFP) to these
project partners to develop an auditmodel EM program for the groundfish
fishery. The EFP required vessels to use
EM systems on 100 percent of
groundfish sector trips to verify
regulated groundfish discards. EM was
used in lieu of human observers to meet
their sector ASM requirements. Thirteen
vessels using a variety of gear types (e.g.
hook, benthic longline, sink gillnet,
bottom trawl) participated in the
E:\FR\FM\12APN1.SGM
12APN1
sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 71 / Thursday, April 12, 2018 / Notices
project. A total of 81 trips were
completed in fishing year 2017.
The project partners have submitted a
renewal request for fishing year 2018.
The proposed participant list includes
14 vessels, 13 of which participated in
this EFP in fishing year 2017. Together,
these vessels are expected to take an
estimated 400 trips. The project partners
expect up to 10 additional vessels may
join the project in fishing year 2018.
Vessels participating in this EFP
would be required to use EM on 100
percent of groundfish trips. Camera
systems would be used in lieu of human
at-sea monitors, and in addition to
Northeast Fishery Observer Program
(NEFOP) observers. Vessels would
adhere to a vessel-specific monitoring
plan detailing at-sea catch handling
protocols. Vessels would submit haullevel electronic vessel trip reports
(eVTR) with count and weight estimates
for all groundfish discards.
The discard estimates provided in the
eVTR would be used for catch
accounting, and all catch of allocated
groundfish would be deducted from the
appropriate sector’s allocation. The EM
service provider would review the video
footage and produce an EM summary
report identifying, counting, and
generating weight estimates for all
groundfish discards. The provider
would submit this report to NMFS.
NMFS would compare the eVTR and
EM summary file to ensure the
submissions match within an
established tolerance. If the trips do not
match, the eVTR would not be used for
catch accounting for that trip. For trips
that carry a NEFOP observer, the NEFOP
data would be used for catch
accounting. The EM service provider
would review 100 percent of the video
footage at the outset of the fishing year,
but may reduce the review percentage
mid-year as part of audit-model testing,
if approved by NMFS.
Because participating vessels would
be fully monitored, project partners
requested access to closed areas to
incentivize participation and create
additional fishing opportunities for
healthy stocks. Vessels would be
allowed to use hook gear and sink
gillnets in Closed Area II from May 1
through February 15, hook gear in
Western Gulf of Maine Closure Area,
and jig gear in Cashes Ledge Closure
Area.
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
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19:20 Apr 11, 2018
Jkt 244001
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: April 9, 2018.
Jennifer M. Wallace,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2018–07596 Filed 4–11–18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
RIN 0648–XG150
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
submitted by the Gulf of Maine
Research Institute contains all of the
required information and warrants
further consideration. The exempted
fishing permit would allow the use of
electronic monitoring to support testing
a maximized retention model in the
groundfish fishery.
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 April 27, 2018.
ADDRESSES: You may submit written
comments by either of the following
methods:
• Email: nmfs.gar.efp@noaa.gov.
Include in the subject line ‘‘GMRI
MREM EFP.’’
• Mail: Michael Pentony, Regional
Administrator, NMFS, Greater Atlantic
Regional Fisheries Office, 55 Great
Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930.
Mark the outside of the envelope ‘‘GMRI
MREM EFP.’’
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Claire Fitz-Gerald, Fishery Management
Specialist, 978–281–9255.
SUMMARY:
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Fmt 4703
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15793
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Groundfish sectors are required to
implement and fund an at-sea
monitoring (ASM) program. A sector is
allowed to use electronic monitoring
(EM) to satisfy this monitoring
requirement, provided that NMFS
deems the technology sufficient for
catch monitoring. NMFS has yet to
approve EM as an alternative to ASM,
but is working with industry and other
stakeholders to develop EM for catch
monitoring in the groundfish fishery.
For the groundfish fishery, the program
designs currently being considered are
the ‘‘audit model’’ and the ‘‘maximized
retention model.’’ The audit model
would use EM to verify discards
reported by a captain on a vessel trip
report. Under the maximized retention
electronic monitoring (MREM) model,
vessels would be required to retain most
fish species (e.g., allocated groundfish
stocks), and EM would be used to
ensure compliance with discarding
regulations.
GMRI submitted an exempted fishing
permit (EFP) application to test a
maximized retention electronic
monitoring (MREM) model and an
accompanying dockside monitoring
(DSM) program to monitor high-volume
bottom-trawl vessels in the groundfish
fleet. Vessels would be outfitted with
EM systems (cameras and gear sensors),
and the cameras would be on for 100
percent of groundfish trips. The EFP
would require participating vessels to
retain and land all catch of allocated
groundfish, including undersized fish
that they would normally be required to
discard. All other species would be
handled per normal commercial fishing
operations. An EM service provider
would review 100 percent of the video
footage to verify that the vessels did not
discard allocated groundfish. NMFS
Northeast Fisheries Science Center staff
would conduct a secondary review of
100 percent of the video footage for all
trips.
All catch would be assessed shoreside
via an accompanying DSM program.
The DSM program would have three
primary objectives: (1) Biological
sampling; (2) verification of dealerreported landings, and; (3) fish hold
inspections. Vessels would be
authorized to sell catch, including
undersized fish, to a limited number of
dealers. The vessel and dealer would
work with the Center to ensure that a
Federal employee or contract staff is
present to observe 100 percent of
offloads for this project. The sampler
would verify dealer landings and collect
biosamples, including length-frequency
data on a subset of fish in each market
category. The Northeast Region Office of
E:\FR\FM\12APN1.SGM
12APN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 71 (Thursday, April 12, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15792-15793]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-07596]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-XG152
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 submitted by
the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen's Alliance contains all of the
required information and warrants further consideration. This exempted
fishing permit would require participants to use electronic monitoring
systems on 100 percent of sector trips for catch accounting in the
groundfish fishery. Additionally, vessels would be authorized to access
portions of groundfish closed areas. 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 April 27, 2018.
ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments by either of the following
methods:
Email: [email protected]. Include in the subject line
``100 PERCENT EM EFP.''
Mail: Michael Pentony, Regional Administrator, NMFS,
Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, 55 Great Republic Drive,
Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark the outside of the envelope ``100 PERCENT EM
EFP.''
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Claire Fitz-Gerald, Fishery Management
Specialist, 978-281-9255.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Groundfish sectors are required to implement
and fund an at-sea monitoring (ASM) program. Sectors may use electronic
monitoring (EM) to satisfy this monitoring requirement, provided that
NMFS deems the technology sufficient for catch monitoring. NMFS has yet
to approve EM as a suitable alternative to ASM. However, NMFS is
working with industry and other stakeholders to test the operational
feasibility of EM and resolve outstanding barriers to implementation.
Project partners include the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen's Alliance,
The Nature Conservancy, the Maine Coast Fishermen's Association, the
Gulf of Maine Research Institute, and fishermen from the Northeast
Fishery Sectors V & XI, the GB Cod Fixed Gear Sector, the Sustainable
Harvest Sector, and the Maine Coast Community Sector.
In fishing year 2017, NMFS issued an exempted fishing permit (EFP)
to these project partners to develop an audit-model EM program for the
groundfish fishery. The EFP required vessels to use EM systems on 100
percent of groundfish sector trips to verify regulated groundfish
discards. EM was used in lieu of human observers to meet their sector
ASM requirements. Thirteen vessels using a variety of gear types (e.g.
hook, benthic longline, sink gillnet, bottom trawl) participated in the
[[Page 15793]]
project. A total of 81 trips were completed in fishing year 2017.
The project partners have submitted a renewal request for fishing
year 2018. The proposed participant list includes 14 vessels, 13 of
which participated in this EFP in fishing year 2017. Together, these
vessels are expected to take an estimated 400 trips. The project
partners expect up to 10 additional vessels may join the project in
fishing year 2018.
Vessels participating in this EFP would be required to use EM on
100 percent of groundfish trips. Camera systems would be used in lieu
of human at-sea monitors, and in addition to Northeast Fishery Observer
Program (NEFOP) observers. Vessels would adhere to a vessel-specific
monitoring plan detailing at-sea catch handling protocols. Vessels
would submit haul-level electronic vessel trip reports (eVTR) with
count and weight estimates for all groundfish discards.
The discard estimates provided in the eVTR would be used for catch
accounting, and all catch of allocated groundfish would be deducted
from the appropriate sector's allocation. The EM service provider would
review the video footage and produce an EM summary report identifying,
counting, and generating weight estimates for all groundfish discards.
The provider would submit this report to NMFS. NMFS would compare the
eVTR and EM summary file to ensure the submissions match within an
established tolerance. If the trips do not match, the eVTR would not be
used for catch accounting for that trip. For trips that carry a NEFOP
observer, the NEFOP data would be used for catch accounting. The EM
service provider would review 100 percent of the video footage at the
outset of the fishing year, but may reduce the review percentage mid-
year as part of audit-model testing, if approved by NMFS.
Because participating vessels would be fully monitored, project
partners requested access to closed areas to incentivize participation
and create additional fishing opportunities for healthy stocks. Vessels
would be allowed to use hook gear and sink gillnets in Closed Area II
from May 1 through February 15, hook gear in Western Gulf of Maine
Closure Area, and jig gear in Cashes Ledge Closure Area.
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: April 9, 2018.
Jennifer M. Wallace,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2018-07596 Filed 4-11-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
