List of Fisheries for 2021, 59258-59278 [2020-20709]
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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 183 / Monday, September 21, 2020 / Proposed Rules
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Defense Acquisition Regulations
System
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
48 CFR Parts 227 and 252
50 CFR Part 229
[Docket No. 200915–0244]
[Docket DARS–2020–0033]
RIN 0648–BJ72
RIN 0750–AK84
List of Fisheries for 2021
Defense Federal Acquisition
Regulation Supplement: Small
Business Innovation Research
Program Data Rights (DFARS Case
2019–D043)
AGENCY:
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Proposed rule, request for
comment.
Defense Acquisition
Regulations System, Department of
Defense (DoD).
AGENCY:
Advance notice of proposed
rulemaking; correction.
ACTION:
On August 31, 2020, DoD
published a notice requesting
information to assist in the development
of a revision to the Defense Federal
Acquisition Regulation Supplement
(DFARS) to implement the data rights
portions of the Small Business
Innovation Research Program and Small
Business Technology Transfer Program
Policy Directives. The document
heading carried an incorrect Docket
Number. This document reflects the
correct Docket Number.
SUMMARY:
Comments for the advance notice
of proposed rulemaking published on
August 31, 2020, at 85 FR 53758,
continue to be accepted on or before
October 30, 2020, to be considered in
the formulation of a proposed rule.
DATES:
Ms.
Jennifer L. Hawes, Defense Acquisition
Regulations System,
OUSD(A&S)DPC(DARS), Room 3B938,
3060 Defense Pentagon, Washington, DC
20301–3060. Telephone 571–372–6115.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
On August
31, 2020, at 85 FR 53758, DoD
published an advanced notice of
proposed rulemaking. The document’s
heading contained an incorrect Docket
number ‘‘DARS–2019–0043.’’ The
correct Docket Number is ‘‘DARS–2020–
0033’’ and is reflected in the heading of
this correction.
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SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Jennifer Lee Hawes,
Regulatory Control Officer, Defense
Acquisition Regulations System.
[FR Doc. 2020–20761 Filed 9–18–20; 8:45 am]
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The National Marine
Fisheries Service (NMFS) publishes its
proposed List of Fisheries (LOF) for
2021, as required by the Marine
Mammal Protection Act (MMPA). The
LOF for 2021 reflects new information
on interactions between commercial
fisheries and marine mammals. NMFS
must classify each commercial fishery
on the LOF into one of three categories
under the MMPA based upon the level
of mortality and serious injury of marine
mammals that occurs incidental to each
fishery. The classification of a fishery on
the LOF determines whether
participants in that fishery are subject to
certain provisions of the MMPA, such as
registration, observer coverage, and take
reduction plan (TRP) requirements.
DATES: Comments must be received by
October 21, 2020.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments
on this document, identified by NOAA–
NMFS–2020–0054, by either of the
following methods:
Electronic Submission: Submit all
electronic public comments via the
Federal e-Rulemaking Portal:
1. Go to www.regulations.gov/
#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-20200054;
2. Click the ‘‘Comment Now!’’ icon,
complete the required fields;
3. Enter or attach your comments.
Mail: Submit written comments to
Chief, Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle
Conservation Division, Office of
Protected Resources, NMFS, 1315 EastWest Highway, Silver Spring, MD
20910.
Instructions: Comments sent by any
other method, to any other address or
individual, or received after the end of
the comment period, may not be
considered by NMFS. All comments
received are a part of the public record
and will generally be posted for public
viewing on www.regulations.gov
without change. All personal identifying
information (e.g., name, address, etc.),
SUMMARY:
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confidential business information, or
otherwise sensitive information
submitted voluntarily by the sender will
be publicly accessible. NMFS will
accept anonymous comments (enter N/
A in the required fields if you wish to
remain anonymous).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Jaclyn Taylor, Office of Protected
Resources, 301–427–8402; Allison
Rosner, Greater Atlantic Region, 978–
281–9328; Jessica Powell, Southeast
Region, 727–824–5312; Dan Lawson,
West Coast Region, 206–526–4740;
Suzie Teerlink, Alaska Region, 907–
586–7240; Diana Kramer, Pacific Islands
Region, 808–725–5167. Individuals who
use a telecommunications device for the
hearing impaired may call the Federal
Information Relay Service at 1–800–
877–8339 between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.
Eastern time, Monday through Friday,
excluding Federal holidays.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
What is the list of fisheries?
Section 118 of the MMPA requires
NMFS to place all U.S. commercial
fisheries into one of three categories
based on the level of incidental
mortality and serious injury of marine
mammals occurring in each fishery (16
U.S.C. 1387(c)(1)). The classification of
a fishery on the LOF determines
whether participants in that fishery may
be required to comply with certain
provisions of the MMPA, such as
registration, observer coverage, and take
reduction plan requirements. NMFS
must reexamine the LOF annually,
considering new information in the
Marine Mammal Stock Assessment
Reports (SARs) and other relevant
sources, and publish in the Federal
Register any necessary changes to the
LOF after notice and opportunity for
public comment (16 U.S.C. 1387
(c)(1)(C)).
How does NMFS determine in which
category a fishery is placed?
The definitions for the fishery
classification criteria can be found in
the implementing regulations for section
118 of the MMPA (50 CFR 229.2). The
criteria are also summarized here.
Fishery Classification Criteria
The fishery classification criteria
consist of a two-tiered, stock-specific
approach that first addresses the total
impact of all fisheries on each marine
mammal stock and then addresses the
impact of individual fisheries on each
stock. This approach is based on
consideration of the rate, in numbers of
animals per year, of incidental
mortalities and serious injuries of
marine mammals due to commercial
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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 183 / Monday, September 21, 2020 / Proposed Rules
fishing operations relative to the
potential biological removal (PBR) level
for each marine mammal stock. The
MMPA (16 U.S.C. 1362 (20)) defines the
PBR level as the maximum number of
animals, not including natural
mortalities, that may be removed from a
marine mammal stock while allowing
that stock to reach or maintain its
optimum sustainable population (OSP).
This definition can also be found in the
implementing regulations for section
118 of the MMPA (50 CFR 229.2).
Tier 1: Tier 1 considers the
cumulative fishery mortality and serious
injury for a particular stock. If the total
annual mortality and serious injury of a
marine mammal stock, across all
fisheries, is less than or equal to 10
percent of the PBR level of the stock, all
fisheries interacting with the stock will
be placed in Category III (unless those
fisheries interact with other stock(s) for
which total annual mortality and
serious injury is greater than 10 percent
of PBR). Otherwise, these fisheries are
subject to the next tier (Tier 2) of
analysis to determine their
classification.
Tier 2: Tier 2 considers fisheryspecific mortality and serious injury for
a particular stock.
Category I: Annual mortality and
serious injury of a stock in a given
fishery is greater than or equal to 50
percent of the PBR level (i.e., frequent
incidental mortality and serious injury
of marine mammals).
Category II: Annual mortality and
serious injury of a stock in a given
fishery is greater than 1 percent and less
than 50 percent of the PBR level (i.e.,
occasional incidental mortality and
serious injury of marine mammals).
Category III: Annual mortality and
serious injury of a stock in a given
fishery is less than or equal to 1 percent
of the PBR level (i.e., a remote
likelihood of or no known incidental
mortality and serious injury of marine
mammals).
Additional details regarding how the
categories were determined are
provided in the preamble to the final
rule implementing section 118 of the
MMPA (60 FR 45086; August 30, 1995).
Because fisheries are classified on a
per-stock basis, a fishery may qualify as
one category for one marine mammal
stock and another category for a
different marine mammal stock. A
fishery is typically classified on the LOF
at its highest level of classification (e.g.,
a fishery qualifying for Category III for
one marine mammal stock and for
Category II for another marine mammal
stock will be listed under Category II).
Stocks driving a fishery’s classification
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are denoted with a superscript ‘‘1’’ in
Tables 1 and 2.
Other Criteria That May Be Considered
The tier analysis requires a minimum
amount of data, and NMFS does not
have sufficient data to perform a tier
analysis on certain fisheries. Therefore,
NMFS has classified certain fisheries by
analogy to other fisheries that use
similar fishing techniques or gear that
are known to cause mortality or serious
injury of marine mammals, or according
to factors discussed in the final LOF for
1996 (60 FR 67063; December 28, 1995)
and listed in the regulatory definition of
a Category II fishery. In the absence of
reliable information indicating the
frequency of incidental mortality and
serious injury of marine mammals by a
commercial fishery, NMFS will
determine whether the incidental
mortality or serious injury is
‘‘occasional’’ by evaluating other factors
such as fishing techniques, gear used,
methods used to deter marine mammals,
target species, seasons and areas fished,
qualitative data from logbooks or
fishermen reports, stranding data, and
the species and distribution of marine
mammals in the area, or at the
discretion of the Assistant
Administrator for Fisheries (50 CFR
229.2).
Further, eligible commercial fisheries
not specifically identified on the LOF
are deemed to be Category II fisheries
until the next LOF is published (50 CFR
229.2).
How does NMFS determine which
species or stocks are included as
incidentally killed or injured in a
fishery?
The LOF includes a list of marine
mammal species and/or stocks
incidentally killed or injured in each
commercial fishery. The list of species
and/or stocks incidentally killed or
injured includes ‘‘serious’’ and ‘‘nonserious’’ documented injuries as
described later in the List of Species
and/or Stocks Incidentally Killed or
Injured in the Pacific Ocean and List of
Species and/or Stocks Incidentally
Killed or Injured in the Atlantic Ocean,
Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean sections.
To determine which species or stocks
are included as incidentally killed or
injured in a fishery, NMFS annually
reviews the information presented in
the current SARs and injury
determination reports. SARs are brief
reports summarizing the status of each
stock of marine mammals occurring in
waters under U.S. jurisdiction,
including information on the identity
and geographic range of the stock,
population statistics related to
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abundance, trend, and annual
productivity, notable habitat concerns,
and estimates of human-caused
mortality and serious injury (M/SI) by
source. The SARs are based upon the
best available scientific information and
provide the most current and inclusive
information on each stock’s PBR level
and level of interaction with
commercial fishing operations. The best
available scientific information used in
the SARs and reviewed for the 2021
LOF generally summarizes data from
2013–2017. NMFS also reviews other
sources of new information, including
injury determination reports, bycatch
estimation reports, observer data,
logbook data, stranding data,
disentanglement network data,
fishermen self-reports (i.e., MMPA
mortality/injury reports), and anecdotal
reports from that time period. In some
cases, more recent information may be
available and used in the LOF.
For fisheries with observer coverage,
species or stocks are generally removed
from the list of marine mammal species
and/or stocks incidentally killed or
injured if no interactions are
documented in the 5-year timeframe
summarized in that year’s LOF. For
fisheries with no observer coverage and
for observed fisheries with evidence
indicating that undocumented
interactions may be occurring (e.g.,
fishery has low observer coverage and
stranding network data include
evidence of fisheries interactions that
cannot be attributed to a specific
fishery) species and stocks may be
retained for longer than 5 years. For
these fisheries, NMFS will review the
other sources of information listed
above and use its discretion to decide
when it is appropriate to remove a
species or stock.
Where does NMFS obtain information
on the level of observer coverage in a
fishery on the LOF?
The best available information on the
level of observer coverage and the
spatial and temporal distribution of
observed marine mammal interactions is
presented in the SARs. Data obtained
from the observer program and observer
coverage levels are important tools in
estimating the level of marine mammal
mortality and serious injury in
commercial fishing operations. Starting
with the 2005 SARs, each Pacific and
Alaska SAR includes an appendix with
detailed descriptions of each Category I
and II fishery on the LOF, including the
observer coverage in those fisheries. For
Atlantic fisheries, this information can
be found in the LOF Fishery Fact
Sheets. The SARs do not provide
detailed information on observer
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coverage in Category III fisheries
because, under the MMPA, Category III
fisheries are not required to
accommodate observers aboard vessels
due to the remote likelihood of
mortality and serious injury of marine
mammals. Fishery information
presented in the SARs’ appendices and
other resources referenced during the
tier analysis may include: Level of
observer coverage; target species; levels
of fishing effort; spatial and temporal
distribution of fishing effort;
characteristics of fishing gear and
operations; management and
regulations; and interactions with
marine mammals. Copies of the SARs
are available on the NMFS Office of
Protected Resources website at: https://
www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/
marine-mammal-protection/marinemammal-stock-assessment-reportsregion. Information on observer
coverage levels in Category I, II, and III
fisheries can be found in the fishery fact
sheets on the NMFS Office of Protected
Resources’ website: https://
www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/
marine-mammal-protection/listfisheries-summary-tables. Additional
information on observer programs in
commercial fisheries can be found on
the NMFS National Observer Program’s
website: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/
national/fisheries-observers/nationalobserver-program.
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How do I find out if a specific fishery
is in Category I, II, or III?
The LOF includes three tables that list
all U.S. commercial fisheries by
Category. Table 1 lists all of the
commercial fisheries in the Pacific
Ocean (including Alaska); Table 2 lists
all of the commercial fisheries in the
Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and
Caribbean; and Table 3 lists all U.S.
authorized commercial fisheries on the
high seas. A fourth table, Table 4, lists
all commercial fisheries managed under
applicable TRPs or take reduction teams
(TRT).
Are high seas fisheries included on the
LOF?
Beginning with the 2009 LOF, NMFS
includes high seas fisheries in Table 3
of the LOF, along with the number of
valid High Seas Fishing Compliance Act
(HSFCA) permits in each fishery. As of
2004, NMFS issues HSFCA permits only
for high seas fisheries analyzed in
accordance with the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and
the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The
authorized high seas fisheries are broad
in scope and encompass multiple
specific fisheries identified by gear type.
For the purposes of the LOF, the high
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seas fisheries are subdivided based on
gear type (e.g., trawl, longline, purse
seine, gillnet, troll, etc.) to provide more
detail on composition of effort within
these fisheries. Many fisheries operate
in both U.S. waters and on the high
seas, creating some overlap between the
fisheries listed in Tables 1 and 2 and
those in Table 3. In these cases, the high
seas component of the fishery is not
considered a separate fishery, but an
extension of a fishery operating within
U.S. waters (listed in Table 1 or 2).
NMFS designates those fisheries in
Tables 1, 2, and 3 with an asterisk (*)
after the fishery’s name. The number of
HSFCA permits listed in Table 3 for the
high seas components of these fisheries
operating in U.S. waters does not
necessarily represent additional effort
that is not accounted for in Tables 1 and
2. Many vessels/participants holding
HSFCA permits also fish within U.S.
waters and are included in the number
of vessels and participants operating
within those fisheries in Tables 1 and 2.
HSFCA permits are valid for 5 years,
during which time Fishery Management
Plans (FMPs) can change. Therefore,
some vessels/participants may possess
valid HSFCA permits without the ability
to fish under the permit because it was
issued for a gear type that is no longer
authorized under the most current FMP.
For this reason, the number of HSFCA
permits displayed in Table 3 is likely
higher than the actual U.S. fishing effort
on the high seas. For more information
on how NMFS classifies high seas
fisheries on the LOF, see the preamble
text in the final 2009 LOF (73 FR 73032;
December 1, 2008). Additional
information about HSFCA permits can
be found at https://
www.fisheries.noaa.gov/permit/highseas-fishing-permits.
Where can I find specific information
on fisheries listed on the LOF?
Starting with the 2010 LOF, NMFS
developed summary documents, or
fishery fact sheets, for each Category I
and II fishery on the LOF. These fishery
fact sheets provide the full history of
each Category I and II fishery, including:
When the fishery was added to the LOF;
the basis for the fishery’s initial
classification; classification changes to
the fishery; changes to the list of species
and/or stocks incidentally killed or
injured in the fishery; fishery gear and
methods used; observer coverage levels;
fishery management and regulation; and
applicable TRPs or TRTs, if any. These
fishery fact sheets are updated after each
final LOF and can be found under ‘‘How
Do I Find Out if a Specific Fishery is in
Category I, II, or III?’’ on the NMFS
Office of Protected Resources’ website:
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https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/
national/marine-mammal-protection/
marine-mammal-protection-act-listfisheries, linked to the ‘‘List of Fisheries
Summary’’ table. NMFS is developing
similar fishery fact sheets for each
Category III fishery on the LOF.
However, due to the large number of
Category III fisheries on the LOF and the
lack of accessible and detailed
information on many of these fisheries,
the development of these fishery fact
sheets is taking significant time to
complete. NMFS began posting Category
III fishery fact sheets online with the
LOF for 2016.
Am I required to register under the
MMPA?
Owners of vessels or gear engaging in
a Category I or II fishery are required
under the MMPA (16 U.S.C. 1387(c)(2)),
as described in 50 CFR 229.4, to register
with NMFS and obtain a marine
mammal authorization to lawfully take
non-endangered and non-threatened
marine mammals incidental to
commercial fishing operations. Owners
of vessels or gear engaged in a Category
III fishery are not required to register
with NMFS or obtain a marine mammal
authorization.
How do I register, renew and receive
my Marine Mammal Authorization
Program authorization certificate?
NMFS has integrated the MMPA
registration process, implemented
through the Marine Mammal
Authorization Program (MMAP), with
existing state and Federal fishery
license, registration, or permit systems
for Category I and II fisheries on the
LOF. Participants in these fisheries are
automatically registered under the
MMAP and are not required to submit
registration or renewal materials.
In the Pacific Islands, West Coast, and
Alaska regions, NMFS will issue vessel
or gear owners an authorization
certificate via U.S. mail or with their
state or Federal license or permit at the
time of issuance or renewal. In the
Greater Atlantic and Southeast Regions,
NMFS will issue vessel or gear owners
an authorization certificate via U.S. mail
automatically at the beginning of each
calendar year.
Vessel or gear owners who participate
in fisheries in these regions and have
not received authorization certificates
by the beginning of the calendar year, or
with renewed fishing licenses, must
contact the appropriate NMFS Regional
Office (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION).
Authorization certificates may also be
obtained by visiting the MMAP website
https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/
national/marine-mammal-protection/
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marine-mammal-authorizationprogram#obtaining-a-marine-mammalauthorization-certificate.
The authorization certificate, or a
copy, must be on board the vessel while
it is operating in a Category I or II
fishery, or for non-vessel fisheries, in
the possession of the person in charge
of the fishing operation (50 CFR
229.4(e)). Although efforts are made to
limit the issuance of authorization
certificates to only those vessel or gear
owners that participate in Category I or
II fisheries, not all state and Federal
license or permit systems distinguish
between fisheries as classified by the
LOF. Therefore, some vessel or gear
owners in Category III fisheries may
receive authorization certificates even
though they are not required for
Category III fisheries.
Individuals fishing in Category I and
II fisheries for which no state or Federal
license or permit is required must
register with NMFS by contacting their
appropriate Regional Office (see
ADDRESSES).
Am I required to submit reports when
I kill or injure a marine mammal
during the course of commercial fishing
operations?
In accordance with the MMPA (16
U.S.C. 1387(e)) and 50 CFR 229.6, any
vessel owner or operator, or gear owner
or operator (in the case of non-vessel
fisheries), participating in a fishery
listed on the LOF must report to NMFS
all incidental mortalities and injuries of
marine mammals that occur during
commercial fishing operations,
regardless of the category in which the
fishery is placed (I, II, or III) within 48
hours of the end of the fishing trip or,
in the case of non-vessel fisheries,
fishing activity. ‘‘Injury’’ is defined in
50 CFR 229.2 as a wound or other
physical harm. In addition, any animal
that ingests fishing gear or any animal
that is released with fishing gear
entangling, trailing, or perforating any
part of the body is considered injured,
regardless of the presence of any wound
or other evidence of injury, and must be
reported.
Mortality/injury reporting forms and
instructions for submitting forms to
NMFS can be found at: https://
www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/
marine-mammal-protection/marinemammal-authorizationprogram#reporting-a-death-or-injury-ofa-marine-mammal-during-commercialfishing-operations or by contacting the
appropriate regional office (see FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION). Forms may be
submitted via any of the following
means: (1) Online using the electronic
form; (2) emailed as an attachment to
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nmfs.mireport@noaa.gov; (3) faxed to
the NMFS Office of Protected Resources
at 301–713–0376; or (4) mailed to the
NMFS Office of Protected Resources
(mailing address is provided on the
postage-paid form that can be printed
from the web address listed above).
Reporting requirements and procedures
are found in 50 CFR 229.6.
Am I required to take an observer
aboard my vessel?
Individuals participating in a
Category I or II fishery are required to
accommodate an observer aboard their
vessel(s) upon request from NMFS.
MMPA section 118 states that the
Secretary is not required to place an
observer on a vessel if the facilities for
quartering an observer or performing
observer functions are so inadequate or
unsafe that the health or safety of the
observer or the safe operation of the
vessel would be jeopardized; thereby
authorizing the exemption of vessels too
small to safely accommodate an
observer from this requirement.
However, U.S. Atlantic Ocean,
Caribbean, or Gulf of Mexico large
pelagics longline vessels operating in
special areas designated by the Pelagic
Longline Take Reduction Plan
implementing regulations (50 CFR
229.36(d)) will not be exempted from
observer requirements, regardless of
their size. Observer requirements are
found in 50 CFR 229.7.
Am I required to comply with any
marine mammal TRP regulations?
Table 4 provides a list of fisheries
affected by TRPs and TRTs. TRP
regulations are found at 50 CFR 229.30
through 229.37. A description of each
TRT and copies of each TRP can be
found at: https://
www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/
marine-mammal-protection/marinemammal-take-reduction-plans-andteams. It is the responsibility of fishery
participants to comply with applicable
take reduction regulations.
Where can I find more information
about the LOF and the MMAP?
Information regarding the LOF and
the MMAP, including registration
procedures and forms; current and past
LOFs; descriptions of each Category I
and II fishery and some Category III
fisheries; observer requirements; and
marine mammal mortality/injury
reporting forms and submittal
procedures; may be obtained at: https://
www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/
marine-mammal-protection/marinemammal-protection-act-list-fisheries, or
from any NMFS Regional Office at the
addresses listed below:
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NMFS, Greater Atlantic Regional
Fisheries Office, 55 Great Republic
Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930–2298,
Attn: Allison Rosner;
NMFS, Southeast Region, 263 13th
Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701,
Attn: Jessica Powell;
NMFS, West Coast Region, Long
Beach Office, 501 W. Ocean Blvd., Suite
4200, Long Beach, CA 90802–4213,
Attn: Dan Lawson;
NMFS, Alaska Region, Protected
Resources, P.O. Box 22668, 709 West
9th Street, Juneau, AK 99802, Attn:
Suzie Teerlink; or
NMFS, Pacific Islands Regional
Office, Protected Resources Division,
1845 Wasp Blvd., Building 176,
Honolulu, HI 96818, Attn: Diana
Kramer.
Sources of Information Reviewed for
the 2021 LOF
NMFS reviewed the marine mammal
incidental mortality and serious injury
information presented in the SARs for
all fisheries to determine whether
changes in fishery classification are
warranted. The SARs are based on the
best scientific information available at
the time of preparation, including the
level of mortality and serious injury of
marine mammals that occurs incidental
to commercial fishery operations and
the PBR levels of marine mammal
stocks. The information contained in the
SARs is reviewed by regional Scientific
Review Groups (SRGs) representing
Alaska, the Pacific (including Hawaii),
and the U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico,
and Caribbean. The SRGs were
established by the MMPA to review the
science that informs the SARs, and to
advise NMFS on marine mammal
population status, trends, and stock
structure, uncertainties in the science,
research needs, and other issues.
NMFS also reviewed other sources of
new information, including marine
mammal stranding and entanglement
data, observer program data, fishermen
self-reports, reports to the SRGs,
conference papers, FMPs, and ESA
documents.
The LOF for 2021 was based on,
among other things, stranding data;
fishermen self-reports; and SARs,
primarily the 2019 SARs, which are
based on data from 2013–2017. The
SARs referenced in this LOF include:
2016 (82 FR 29039; June 27, 2017), 2018
(84 FR 28489; June 19, 2019), and 2019
(84 FR 65353; November 27, 2019). The
SARs are available at: https://
www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/
marine-mammal-protection/marinemammal-stock-assessment-reportsregion.
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Summary of Changes to the LOF for
2021
The following summarizes changes to
the LOF for 2021, including the
classification of fisheries, fisheries
listed, the estimated number of vessels/
persons in a particular fishery, and the
species and/or stocks that are
incidentally killed or injured in a
particular fishery. NMFS re-classifies
one fishery in the LOF for 2021. NMFS
also makes changes to the estimated
number of vessels/persons and list of
species and/or stocks killed or injured
in certain fisheries. The classifications
and definitions of U.S. commercial
fisheries for 2021 are identical to those
provided in the LOF for 2020 with the
changes discussed below. State and
regional abbreviations used in the
following paragraphs include: AK
(Alaska), CA (California), HI (Hawaii),
OR (Oregon), WA (Washington), and
WNA (Western North Atlantic).
Commercial Fisheries in the Pacific
Ocean
Classification of Fisheries
NMFS proposes to reclassify the AK
Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands Pacific cod
pot fishery from a Category III to a
Category II fishery based on an observed
entanglement of a western North Pacific
humpback whale in the Pacific cod pot
fishery in 2017 (Delean et al., 2020).
This entanglement was determined to be
a serious injury and resulted in a mean
annual estimated M/SI level of 0.2 (6.7
percent of PBR) for AK Bering Sea,
Aleutian Islands Pacific cod pot fishery.
Therefore, because the estimated M/SI is
between 1 and 50 percent of PBR (Tier
2 analysis), NMFS proposes to reclassify
the AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands
Pacific cod pot fishery from a Category
III to a Category II fishery.
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Fishery Name and Organizational
Changes
NMFS proposes to add a superscript
‘‘1’’ to the CA/OR/WA stock of minke
whale indicating it is driving the
Category II classification of the CA
thresher shark/swordfish drift gillnet (>/
=14 in mesh) fishery. The CA/OR/WA
minke whale mean annual estimated M/
SI is 0.1 whales (2.86 percent of PBR)
for the CA thresher shark/swordfish
drift gillnet (>/=14 in mesh) fishery
(Carretta, 2020) and warrants a Category
II classification (M/SI is between 1 and
50 percent of PBR) for this fishery.
Number of Vessels/Persons
NMFS proposes to update the
estimated number of vessels/persons in
the Pacific Ocean (Table 1) as follows:
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Category I
• HI deep-set longline fishery from
145 to 143 vessels/persons;
Category II
• HI shallow-set longline fishery from
18 to 11 vessels/persons;
• American Samoa longline fishery
from 15 to 13 vessels/persons; and
Category III
• American Samoa bottomfish
handline fishery from fewer than 30 to
fewer than 20 vessels/persons.
List of Species and/or Stocks
Incidentally Killed or Injured in the
Pacific Ocean
NMFS proposed to add the Aleutian
Islands stock of harbor seal to the list of
species/stocks incidentally killed or
injured in the Category II AK Bering
Sea, Aleutian Islands rockfish trawl
fishery based on an observed mortality
in 2014.
NMFS proposes to add three stocks to
the list of species/stocks incidentally
killed or injured in the Category II AK
Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands Pacific cod
pot fishery: (1) Bristol Bay stock of
harbor seal based on two observed
mortalities in 2014, (2) Western North
Pacific stock of humpback whale, and
(3) Central North Pacific stock of
humpback whale. In 2017, a humpback
whale was observed entangled in the
State-managed parallel Pacific cod pot
fishery. This entanglement occurred in
an area of humpback whale stock
overlap and consistent with the current
Guidelines for Assessing Marine
Mammal Stocks (GAMMS), the serious
injury was assigned to both the Western
North Pacific and Central North Pacific
stocks (Delean et al., 2020).
NMFS proposes to add the both
Eastern North Pacific Gulf of Alaska,
Aleutian Islands, and Bering Sea
Transient stock, and West Coast
Transient stock, of killer whales to the
list of species/stocks incidentally killed
or injured in the Category II CA
Dungeness crab pot fishery. In 2015, a
dead killer whale was reported
entangled in CA Dungeness crab pot
gear in California. Genetic analysis
indicated the animal was a transient
whale from either the Eastern North
Pacific Gulf of Alaska, Aleutian Islands,
and Bering Sea Transient stock, or the
West Coast Transient stock (Delean et
al., 2020). In 2016, a West Coast
transient killer whale was reported
entangled in CA Dungeness crab pot
gear before self-releasing without
serious injury (Delean et al., 2020).
NMFS proposes to add two stocks to
the list of species/stocks incidentally
killed or injured in the Category III CA
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squid purse seine fishery: (1) CA/OR/
WA stock of Risso’s dolphin and (2)
U.S. stock of California sea lion. In
2020, NMFS received video footage
taken in 2018 depicting evidence of
Risso’s dolphins and California sea lions
incidentally captured in a squid purse
seine operating off the coast of
California.
NMFS proposes to add the Cook Inlet
stock of harbor seal to the list of species/
stocks incidentally killed or injured in
the Category III AK Gulf of Alaska
halibut longline fishery based on an
observed mortality in 2015.
NMFS proposes to add the Aleutian
Islands stock of harbor seal to the list of
species/stocks incidentally killed or
injured in the Category III AK Bering
Sea, Aleutian Islands Atka mackerel
trawl fishery based on an observed
mortality in 2016.
NMFS proposes to add the U.S. stock
of California sea lion to the list of
species/stocks incidentally killed or
injured in the Category III WA/OR/CA
shrimp trawl fishery. In 2017, a
California sea lion was incidentally
captured and released (non-serious
injury) from a ridgeback prawn trawl net
off the coast of California (Carretta et al.,
2020).
NMFS proposes to add two stocks to
the list of species/stocks incidentally
killed or injured in the Category III WA/
OR/CA groundfish trawl fishery: (1)
California breeding stock of northern
elephant seal and (2) CA/OR/WA stock
of northern right whale dolphin. Six
northern elephant seal mortalities
occurred off the coast of California,
Oregon and Washington, four in 2015
and two in 2016 (Carretta et al., 2020).
In 2016, northern right whale dolphin
was incidentally killed in a catcher
processor midwater trawl gear off the
coast of Oregon (Carretta et al., 2020).
NMFS proposes to add to the Western
North Pacific stock of humpback whale
to the list of species/stocks incidentally
killed or injured in the Category III AK/
WA/OR/CA commercial passenger
fishing vessel fishery for a ship strike
that occurred in 2017. NMFS proposes
to remove three stocks from the list of
species/stocks incidentally killed or
injured in the Category II AK Bering
Sea, Aleutian Islands pollock trawl
fishery: (1) Alaska stock of ringed seal,
(2) Central North Pacific stock of
humpback whale and (3) Western North
Pacific stock of humpback whale based
on no recently observed mortalities or
injuries.
NMFS proposes to remove the Alaska
stock of ringed seal from the list of
species/stocks incidentally killed or
injured in the Category II AK Bering
Sea, Aleutian Islands Pacific cod
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longline fishery based on no recently
observed mortalities or injuries.
NMFS proposes to remove the
Western U.S. stock of Steller sea lion
from the list of species/stocks
incidentally killed or injured in the
Category II AK Gulf of Alaska sablefish
longline fishery based on no recently
observed mortalities or injuries.
NMFS proposes to remove the Alaska
stock of ringed seal from the list of
species/stocks incidentally killed or
injured in the Category III AK Bering
Sea, Aleutian Islands Pacific cod trawl
based on no recently observed
mortalities or injuries.
NMFS proposes to remove the Alaska
stock of harbor seal from the list of
species/stocks incidentally killed or
injured in the Category III AK Gulf of
Alaska flatfish trawl fishery based on no
recently observed mortalities or injuries.
Commercial Fisheries in the Atlantic
Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean
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Fishery Name and Organizational
Changes and Clarification
NMFS proposes to add a superscript
‘‘1’’ to the following four stocks to
indicate they are driving the Category II
classification of the Northeast trawl
fishery: (1) Western North Atlantic stock
of Risso’s dolphin, (2) Western North
Atlantic stock of long-finned pilot
whale, (3) Western North Atlantic
offshore stock of bottlenose dolphin,
and (4) Western North Atlantic stock of
gray seal. The Risso’s dolphin mean
annual mortality in the Northeast trawl
fishery is an estimated 4.2 animals,
which represents 1.4 percent of the
stock’s PBR (303). The long-finned pilot
whale mean annual mortality in this
fishery is an estimated 15 animals,
which represents 4.9 percent of the
stock’s PBR (306). The bottlenose
dolphin mean annual mortality is an
estimated 10.4 animals, which
represents 2 percent of the stock’s PBR
(519). The gray seal mean annual
mortality is an estimated 16 animals,
which represents 1.2 percent of the
stock’s PBR (1,389). Observer coverage
for this fishery from 2013–2017 was 15,
17, 19, 12 and 16 percent, respectively
NMFS proposes to clarify the fishery
description of the Category II
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of
Mexico shrimp trawl fishery. NMFS
clarifies that this fishery targets shrimp
species with various gear types, but
mainly utilizes skimmer or otter trawls.
These gear types likely entangle marine
mammals, particularly bottlenose
dolphins, in very similar ways. The
common entangling mechanism of these
gear types are the ‘‘lazy’’ or ‘‘easy’’ line.
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NMFS proposes to clarify the fishery
description of the Category I Atlantic
Ocean, Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico large
pelagics longline fishery. NMFS clarifies
that the fishery does not target bluefin
tuna, shortfin mako sharks and other
shark species.
NMFS clarifies its response to
Comment 14 in the 2020 Final LOF (85
FR 21079; April 16, 2020). In Comment
#14, Maine Lobstermen’s Association
(MLA) notes ‘‘there has been only one
right whale entangled in Maine gear in
April 2002, and the entanglement was
determined to be a non-serious injury.
There are two additional non-serious
injury entanglement cases that involved
Maine lobster gear. However, Maine
lobster gear was not the primary
entangling gear in these cases.’’ In the
2020 Final LOF, NMFS’ response in part
to this comment stated: ‘‘We recognize
that there has only been one confirmed
mortality (in 2012) in American lobster
gear in the past decade. All other
documented lobster interactions were
determined to result in non-serious
injuries. However, there have been a
number of entanglements for which
interventions occurred because these
entanglements were determined to be
resulting in serious injuries (Henry et
al., 2019).’’
NMFS clarifies part of the response to
Comment #14 to state: We recognize
there has been only one confirmed
mortality (in 2012) in the past decade in
U.S. Northern inshore/nearshore trap/
pot gear which could be gear from the
Northeast/Mid-Atlantic American
lobster trap/pot fishery or the Atlantic
mixed species trap/pot fishery. All other
documented lobster interactions were
determined to result in non-serious
injuries. However, there have been a
number of entanglements for which
interventions occurred because these
entanglements were determined to be
resulting in serious injuries (Henry et
al., 2019).
Number of Vessels/Persons
NMFS proposes updates to the
estimated number of vessels/persons in
the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and
Caribbean (Table 2) as follows:
Category I
• Mid-Atlantic gillnet fishery from
3,950 to 4,020 vessels/person;
• Northeast sink gillnet fishery from
3,163 to 4,072 vessels/persons;
Category II
• Chesapeake Bay inshore gillnet
fishery from 248 to 265 vessels/persons;
• Northeast bottom trawl fishery from
2,238 to 968 vessels/persons;
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• Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of
Mexico shrimp trawl fishery from 4,950
to 10,824 vessels/persons;
• Atlantic mixed species trap/pot
fishery from 3,332 to 3,493 vessels/
persons;
• Mid-Atlantic menhaden purse seine
fishery from 19 to 17 vessels/persons;
• Virginia pound net fishery from 26
to 20 vessels/persons;
Category III
• Caribbean gillnet fishery from >991
to 127 vessels/persons;
• Caribbean mixed species trap/pot
fishery from >501 to 154 vessels/
persons;
• Caribbean spiny lobster trap/pot
fishery from >197 to 40 vessels/persons;
and
• Caribbean haul/beach seine fishery
from 15 to 38 vessels/person.
NMFS notes there is variability in the
estimated number of vessels/persons in
the Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of
Mexico shrimp trawl fishery. This
variability is due to multiple permitting
agencies, differences in fishery
management, and artifacts with
available data sets. A complete
explanation of the variability is
available in the Environmental Impact
Statement to Reduce the Incidental
Bycatch and Mortality of Sea Turtles in
the Southeastern U.S. Shrimp Fisheries
(November 4, 2019).
List of Species and/or Stocks
Incidentally Killed or Injured in the
Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and
Caribbean
NMFS proposes to add the Mobile
Bay, Bonsecour Bay stock of bottlenose
dolphin to the list of species/stocks
incidentally killed or injured in the
Category II Gulf of Mexico gillnet
fishery based on one dead, stranded
dolphin with gillnet lesions on the
rostrum and a sliced ventrum in 2016.
Dolphins entangled in gillnet gear often
present with diagnostic lesions when
stranded that can be identified by
trained personnel (Kuiken, 1996, Read
and Murray, 2000, Moore and Barco,
2013). In addition, gillnet fishermen
will sometimes make a longitudinal slit
along the ventral surface of the abdomen
before discarding the carcass to reduce
floating (Read and Murray, 2000). The
Gulf of Mexico gillnet fishery is the only
gillnet fishery in the Gulf of Mexico.
NMFS proposes to add the Western
North Atlantic offshore stock of
bottlenose dolphin to the list of species/
stocks incidentally killed or injured in
the Category II mid-Atlantic mid-water
trawl (including pair trawl) fishery
based on a self-reported mortality in
2016.
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NMFS proposes to add the Puerto
Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands stock of
bottlenose dolphin to the list of species/
stocks incidentally killed or injured in
Category III Caribbean mixed species
trap/pot fishery. In 2014, one dolphin
was entangled in trap/pot line. The
animal was rescued and subsequently
died.
Following consultation with the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service, NMFS
proposes to add the Antillean
subspecies (Puerto Rico stock) of West
Indian manatee to the list of species/
stocks incidentally killed or injured in
Category III Caribbean haul/beach seine
fishery based on two documented
entanglements of manatees, one in 2009
and one in 2018.
NMFS proposes to remove the
Western North Atlantic offshore stock of
bottlenose dolphin from the list of
species/stocks incidentally killed or
injured in the Category III Gulf of
Maine, U.S. mid-Atlantic tuna, shark,
swordfish hook-and line/harpoon
fishery. From 2013 through 2017, there
were no reported or observed mortalities
or injuries in this fishery (Hayes et al.,
in review).
Commercial Fisheries on the High Seas
Number of Vessels/Persons
NMFS proposes updates to the
estimated number of HSFCA permits for
high seas fisheries (Table 3) as follows:
Category I
• Atlantic highly migratory species
longline fishery from 53 to 45 HSFCA
permits;
• Western Pacific pelagic longline (HI
deep-set component) fishery from 145 to
143 HSFCA permits;
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Category II
• South Pacific tuna purse seine
fishery from 33 to 26 HSFCA permits;
• South Pacific tuna longline fishery
from 2 to 3 HSFCA permits;
• Western Pacific pelagic longline (HI
shallow-set component) fishery from 18
to 11 HSFCA permits;
• Atlantic highly migratory species
handline/pole and line fishery from 2 to
1 HSFCA permits;
• Pacific highly migratory species
handline/pole and line fishery from 41
to 43 HSFCA permits;
• South Pacific albacore troll
handline/pole and line fishery from 11
to 10 HSFCA permits;
• South Pacific albacore troll fishery
from 17 to 18 HSFCA permits;
• Western Pacific pelagic troll fishery
from 5 to 4 HSFCA permits;
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Category III
• Northwest Atlantic bottom longline
fishery from 3 to 2 HSFCA permits;
• Pacific highly migratory species
longline fishery from 108 to 105 HSFCA
permits; and
• Pacific highly migratory species
troll fishery from 119 to 111 HSFCA
permits.
List of Fisheries
The following tables set forth the list
of U.S. commercial fisheries according
to their classification under section 118
of the MMPA. Table 1 lists commercial
fisheries in the Pacific Ocean (including
Alaska), Table 2 lists commercial
fisheries in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of
Mexico, and Caribbean, Table 3 lists
commercial fisheries on the high seas,
and Table 4 lists fisheries affected by
TRPs or TRTs.
In Tables 1 and 2, the estimated
number of vessels or persons
participating in fisheries operating
within U.S. waters is expressed in terms
of the number of active participants in
the fishery, when possible. If this
information is not available, the
estimated number of vessels or persons
licensed for a particular fishery is
provided. If no recent information is
available on the number of participants,
vessels, or persons licensed in a fishery,
then the number from the most recent
LOF is used for the estimated number of
vessels or persons in the fishery. NMFS
acknowledges that, in some cases, these
estimates may be inflations of actual
effort. For example, the State of Hawaii
does not issue fishery-specific licenses,
and the number of participants reported
in the LOF represents the number of
commercial marine license holders who
reported using a particular fishing gear
type/method at least once in a given
year, without considering how many
times the gear was used. For these
fisheries, effort by a single participant is
counted the same whether the
fisherman used the gear only once or
every day. In the Mid-Atlantic and New
England fisheries, the numbers
represent the potential effort for each
fishery, given the multiple gear types for
which several state permits may allow.
Changes made to Mid-Atlantic and New
England fishery participants will not
affect observer coverage or bycatch
estimates, as observer coverage and
bycatch estimates are based on vessel
trip reports and landings data. Tables 1
and 2 serve to provide a description of
the fishery’s potential effort (state and
Federal). If NMFS is able to extract more
accurate information on the gear types
used by state permit holders in the
future, the numbers will be updated to
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reflect this change. For additional
information on fishing effort in fisheries
found on Table 1 or 2, contact the
relevant regional office (contact
information included above in Where
can I find more information about the
LOF and the MMAP? subsection).
For high seas fisheries, Table 3 lists
the number of valid HSFCA permits
currently held. Although this likely
overestimates the number of active
participants in many of these fisheries,
the number of valid HSFCA permits is
the most reliable data on the potential
effort in high seas fisheries at this time.
As noted previously in this LOF, the
number of HSFCA permits listed in
Table 3 for the high seas components of
fisheries that also operate within U.S.
waters does not necessarily represent
additional effort that is not accounted
for in Tables 1 and 2. Many vessels
holding HSFCA permits also fish within
U.S. waters and are included in the
number of vessels and participants
operating within those fisheries in
Tables 1 and 2.
Tables 1, 2, and 3 also list the marine
mammal species and/or stocks
incidentally killed or injured (seriously
or non-seriously) in each fishery based
on SARs, injury determination reports,
bycatch estimation reports, observer
data, logbook data, stranding data,
disentanglement network data,
fishermen self-reports (i.e., MMAP
reports), and anecdotal reports. The best
available scientific information
included in these reports is based on
data through 2017. This list includes all
species and/or stocks known to be killed
or injured in a given fishery, but also
includes species and/or stocks for
which there are anecdotal records of a
mortality or injury. Additionally,
species identified by logbook entries,
stranding data, or fishermen self-reports
(i.e., MMAP reports) may not be
verified. In Tables 1 and 2, NMFS has
designated those species/stocks driving
a fishery’s classification (i.e., the fishery
is classified based on mortalities and
serious injuries of a marine mammal
stock that are greater than or equal to 50
percent (Category I), or greater than 1
percent and less than 50 percent
(Category II), of a stock’s PBR) by a ‘‘1’’
after the stock’s name.
In Tables 1 and 2, there are several
fisheries classified as Category II that
have no recent documented mortalities
or serious injuries of marine mammals,
or fisheries that did not result in a
mortality or serious injury rate greater
than 1 percent of a stock’s PBR level
based on known interactions. NMFS has
classified these fisheries by analogy to
other Category I or II fisheries that use
similar fishing techniques or gear that
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are known to cause mortality or serious
injury of marine mammals, as discussed
in the final LOF for 1996 (60 FR 67063;
December 28, 1995), and according to
factors listed in the definition of a
‘‘Category II fishery’’ in 50 CFR 229.2
(i.e., fishing techniques, gear types,
methods used to deter marine mammals,
target species, seasons and areas fished,
qualitative data from logbooks or
fishermen reports, stranding data, and
the species and distribution of marine
mammals in the area). NMFS has
designated those fisheries listed by
analogy in Tables 1 and 2 by adding a
‘‘2’’ after the fishery’s name.
There are several fisheries in Tables 1,
2, and 3 in which a portion of the
fishing vessels cross the exclusive
59265
economic zone (EEZ) boundary and
therefore operate both within U.S.
waters and on the high seas. These
fisheries, though listed separately on
Table 1 or 2 and Table 3, are considered
the same fisheries on either side of the
EEZ boundary. NMFS has designated
those fisheries in each table with an
asterisk (*) after the fishery’s name.
TABLE 1—LIST OF FISHERIES—COMMERCIAL FISHERIES IN THE PACIFIC OCEAN
Estimated
number of
vessels/
persons
Fishery description
Marine mammal species and/or stocks incidentally
killed or injured
Category I
Longline/Set Line Fisheries:
HI deep-set longline * ∧ ........................................................
143
Bottlenose dolphin, HI Pelagic.
False killer whale, HI Pelagic.1
False killer whale, MHI Insular.1
False killer whale, NWHI.
Humpback whale. Central North Pacific.
Kogia spp. (Pygmy or dwarf sperm whale), HI.
Pygmy killer whale, HI.
Risso’s dolphin, HI.
Rough-toothed dolphin, HI.
Short-finned pilot whale, HI.
Striped dolphin, HI.
Category II
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Gillnet Fisheries:
CA thresher shark/swordfish drift gillnet (≥14 in mesh) * ....
14
CA halibut/white seabass and other species set gillnet
(>3.5 in mesh).
37
CA yellowtail, barracuda, and white seabass drift gillnet
(mesh size ≥3.5 in and <14 in) 2.
22
AK Bristol Bay salmon drift gillnet 2 .....................................
1,862
AK Bristol Bay salmon set gillnet 2 ......................................
979
AK Kodiak salmon set gillnet ...............................................
188
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Bottlenose dolphin, CA/OR/WA offshore.
California sea lion, U.S.
Dall’s porpoise, CA/OR/WA.
Gray whale, Eastern North Pacific.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/WA.
Long-beaked common dolphin, CA.
Minke whale, CA/OR/WA.1
Northern elephant seal, CA breeding.
Northern right-whale dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Pacific white-sided dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Risso’s dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Short-beaked common dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Short-finned pilot whale, CA/OR/WA.1
Sperm Whale, CA/OR/WA.1
California sea lion, U.S.
Gray whale, Eastern North Pacific.
Harbor seal, CA.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/WA.1
Long-beaked common dolphin, CA.
Northern elephant seal, CA breeding.
Sea otter, CA.
Short-beaked common dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
California sea lion, U.S.
Long-beaked common dolphin, CA.
Short-beaked common dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Beluga whale, Bristol Bay.
Gray whale, Eastern North Pacific.
Harbor seal, Bering Sea.
Northern fur seal, Eastern Pacific.
Pacific white-sided dolphin, North Pacific.
Spotted seal, AK.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.
Beluga whale, Bristol Bay.
Gray whale, Eastern North Pacific.
Harbor seal, Bering Sea.
Northern fur seal, Eastern Pacific.
Spotted seal, AK.
Harbor porpoise, GOA.1
Harbor seal, GOA.
Humpback whale, Central North Pacific.
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TABLE 1—LIST OF FISHERIES—COMMERCIAL FISHERIES IN THE PACIFIC OCEAN—Continued
Estimated
number of
vessels/
persons
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Fishery description
AK Cook Inlet salmon set gillnet .........................................
736
AK Cook Inlet salmon drift gillnet ........................................
569
AK Peninsula/Aleutian Islands salmon drift gillnet 2 ............
162
AK Peninsula/Aleutian Islands salmon set gillnet 2 .............
113
AK Prince William Sound salmon drift gillnet ......................
537
AK Southeast salmon drift gillnet ........................................
474
AK Yakutat salmon set gillnet 2 ...........................................
168
WA Puget Sound Region salmon drift gillnet (includes all
inland waters south of U.S.-Canada border and eastward of the Bonilla-Tatoosh line-Treaty Indian fishing is
excluded).
Trawl Fisheries:
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands flatfish trawl .....................
154
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands pollock trawl ....................
102
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands rockfish trawl ...................
17
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Marine mammal species and/or stocks incidentally
killed or injured
Humpback whale, Western North Pacific.
Sea otter, Southwest AK.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.
Beluga whale, Cook Inlet.
Dall’s porpoise, AK.
Harbor porpoise, GOA.
Harbor seal, GOA.
Humpback whale, Central North Pacific.1
Sea otter, South central AK.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.
Beluga whale, Cook Inlet.
Dall’s porpoise, AK.
Harbor porpoise, GOA.1
Harbor seal, GOA.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.
Dall’s porpoise, AK.
Harbor porpoise, GOA.
Harbor seal, GOA.
Northern fur seal, Eastern Pacific.
Harbor porpoise, Bering Sea.
Northern sea otter, Southwest AK.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.
Dall’s porpoise, AK.
Harbor porpoise, GOA.1
Harbor seal, GOA.
Northern fur seal, Eastern Pacific.
Pacific white-sided dolphin, North Pacific.
Sea otter, South central AK.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.1
Dall’s porpoise, AK.
Harbor porpoise, Southeast AK.
Harbor seal, Southeast AK.
Humpback whale, Central North Pacific.1
Pacific white-sided dolphin, North Pacific.
Steller sea lion, Eastern U.S.
Gray whale, Eastern North Pacific.
Harbor Porpoise, Southeastern AK.
Harbor seal, Southeast AK.
Humpback whale, Central North Pacific (Southeast AK).
Dall’s porpoise, CA/OR/WA.
Harbor porpoise, inland WA.1
Harbor seal, WA inland.
Bearded seal, AK.
Gray whale, Eastern North Pacific.
Harbor porpoise, Bering Sea.
Harbor seal, Bering Sea.
Humpback whale, Western North Pacific.1
Killer whale, AK resident.1
Killer whale, GOA, AI, BS transient.1
Northern fur seal, Eastern Pacific.
Ringed seal, AK.
Ribbon seal, AK.
Spotted seal, AK.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.1
Walrus, AK.
Bearded seal, AK.
Beluga whale, Bristol Bay.
Beluga whale, Eastern Bering Sea.
Beluga whale, Eastern Chukchi Sea.
Harbor seal, AK.
Northern fur seal, Eastern Pacific.
Ribbon seal, AK.
Spotted seal, AK.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.1
Harbor seal, Aleutian Islands.
Killer whale, ENP AK resident.1
Killer whale, GOA, AI, BS transient.1
E:\FR\FM\21SEP1.SGM
21SEP1
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 183 / Monday, September 21, 2020 / Proposed Rules
59267
TABLE 1—LIST OF FISHERIES—COMMERCIAL FISHERIES IN THE PACIFIC OCEAN—Continued
Estimated
number of
vessels/
persons
Fishery description
Marine mammal species and/or stocks incidentally
killed or injured
Ribbon seal, AK.
Pot, Ring Net, and Trap Fisheries:
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands Pacific cod pot ................
59
CA coonstripe shrimp pot ....................................................
14
CA spiny lobster ..................................................................
186
CA spot prawn pot ...............................................................
23
CA Dungeness crab pot ......................................................
501
OR Dungeness crab pot ......................................................
342
WA/OR/CA sablefish pot .....................................................
WA coastal Dungeness crab pot .........................................
155
197
Longline/Set Line Fisheries:
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands Pacific cod longline .........
45
AK Gulf of Alaska sablefish longline ...................................
295
HI shallow-set longline * ∧ ....................................................
11
American Samoa longline 2 ..................................................
13
HI shortline 2 .........................................................................
9
Harbor seal, Bristol Bay.
Humpback whale, Central North Pacific.
Humpback whale, Western North Pacific.
Gray whale, Eastern North Pacific.
Harbor seal, CA.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/WA.
Bottlenose dolphin, CA/OR/WA offshore.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/WA.1
Gray whale, Eastern North Pacific.
Southern sea otter.
Gray whale, Eastern North Pacific.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/WA.1
Long-beaked common dolphin, CA.
Blue whale, Eastern North Pacific.1
Gray whale, Eastern North Pacific.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/WA.1
Killer whale, Eastern North Pacific GOA, BSAI transient.
Killer whale, West Coast transient.
Gray whale, Eastern North Pacific.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/WA.1
Humpback whale, CA/OR/WA.1
Gray whale, Eastern North Pacific.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/WA.1
Killer whale, Eastern North Pacific AK resident.
Killer whale, GOA, BSAI transient.1
Northern fur seal, Eastern Pacific.
Spotted seal, AK.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.
Sperm whale, North Pacific.
Steller sea lion, Eastern U.S.
Blainville’s beaked whale, HI.
Bottlenose dolphin, HI Pelagic.
False killer whale, HI Pelagic.1
Humpback whale, Central North Pacific.
Risso’s dolphin, HI.
Rough-toothed dolphin, HI.
Striped dolphin, HI.
False killer whale, American Samoa.
Rough-toothed dolphin, American Samoa.
Short-finned pilot whale, unknown.
None documented.
Category III
jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
Gillnet Fisheries:
AK Kuskokwim, Yukon, Norton Sound, Kotzebue salmon
gillnet.
AK Prince William Sound salmon set gillnet .......................
1,778
29
AK roe herring and food/bait herring gillnet ........................
CA set gillnet (mesh size <3.5 in) .......................................
HI inshore gillnet ..................................................................
920
296
36
WA Grays Harbor salmon drift gillnet (excluding treaty
Tribal fishing).
WA/OR Mainstem Columbia River eulachon gillnet ............
WA/OR lower Columbia River (includes tributaries) drift
gillnet.
WA Willapa Bay drift gillnet .................................................
24
15
110
82
Miscellaneous Net Fisheries:
AK Cook Inlet salmon purse seine ......................................
AK Kodiak salmon purse seine ...........................................
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Harbor porpoise, Bering Sea.
Harbor seal, GOA.
Humpback whale, Central North Pacific.
Sea otter, South central AK.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.
None documented.
None documented.
Bottlenose dolphin, HI.
Spinner dolphin, HI.
Harbor seal, OR/WA coast.
None documented.
California sea lion, U.S.
Harbor seal, OR/WA coast.
Harbor seal, OR/WA coast.
Northern elephant seal, CA breeding.
Humpback whale, Central North Pacific.
Dall’s porpoise, AK.
Humpback whale, Central North Pacific.
E:\FR\FM\21SEP1.SGM
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59268
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 183 / Monday, September 21, 2020 / Proposed Rules
TABLE 1—LIST OF FISHERIES—COMMERCIAL FISHERIES IN THE PACIFIC OCEAN—Continued
Estimated
number of
vessels/
persons
Fishery description
AK Southeast salmon purse seine ......................................
AK roe herring and food/bait herring beach seine ..............
AK roe herring and food/bait herring purse seine ...............
AK salmon beach seine .......................................................
AK salmon purse seine (Prince William Sound, Chignik,
Alaska Peninsula).
WA/OR sardine purse seine ................................................
CA anchovy, mackerel, sardine purse seine .......................
315
10
356
31
936
CA squid purse seine ..........................................................
80
CA tuna purse seine * ..........................................................
WA/OR Lower Columbia River salmon seine .....................
WA/OR herring, smelt, squid purse seine or lampara ........
WA salmon purse seine ......................................................
WA salmon reef net .............................................................
HI lift net ..............................................................................
HI inshore purse seine ........................................................
HI throw net, cast net ..........................................................
HI seine net .........................................................................
Dip Net Fisheries:
CA squid dip net ..................................................................
Marine Aquaculture Fisheries:
CA marine shellfish aquaculture ..........................................
CA salmon enhancement rearing pen .................................
CA white seabass enhancement net pens ..........................
HI offshore pen culture ........................................................
WA salmon net pens ...........................................................
10
10
130
75
11
17
<3
23
24
Humpback whale, Western North Pacific.
Humpback whale, Central North Pacific.
None documented.
None documented.
None documented.
Harbor seal, GOA.
Harbor seal, Prince William Sound.
None documented.
California sea lion, U.S.
Harbor seal, CA.
California sea lion, U.S.
Long-beaked common dolphin, CA.
Risso’s dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Short-beaked common dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
None documented.
None documented.
None documented.
None documented.
None documented.
None documented.
None documented.
None documented.
None documented.
115
None documented.
WA/OR shellfish aquaculture ...............................................
Troll Fisheries:
WA/OR/CA albacore surface hook and line/troll .................
CA halibut hook and line/handline .......................................
CA white seabass hook and line/handline ..........................
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands groundfish hand troll and
dinglebar troll.
AK Gulf of Alaska groundfish hand troll and dinglebar troll
AK salmon troll ....................................................................
jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
Marine mammal species and/or stocks incidentally
killed or injured
42
65
unknown
>1
13
2
14
23
705
unknown
unknown
unknown
None
None
None
None
unknown
1,908
None documented.
Steller sea lion, Eastern U.S.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.
None documented.
None documented.
Pantropical spotted dolphin, HI.
None documented.
None documented.
None documented.
American Samoa tuna troll ..................................................
CA/OR/WA salmon troll .......................................................
HI troll ..................................................................................
HI rod and reel .....................................................................
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands tuna troll
Guam tuna troll ....................................................................
Longline/Set Line Fisheries:
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands Greenland turbot longline
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands sablefish longline ............
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands halibut longline ................
13
4,300
2,117
322
40
432
AK Gulf of Alaska halibut longline .......................................
855
AK Gulf of Alaska Pacific cod longline ................................
AK octopus/squid longline ...................................................
AK state-managed waters longline/setline (including sablefish, rockfish, lingcod, and miscellaneous finfish).
WA/OR/CA groundfish, bottomfish longline/set line ............
92
3
464
WA/OR Pacific halibut longline ............................................
CA pelagic longline ..............................................................
HI kaka line ..........................................................................
HI vertical line ......................................................................
Trawl Fisheries:
350
1
15
3
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None documented.
None documented.
California sea lion, U.S.
None documented.
California sea lion, U.S.
Harbor seal, WA inland waters.
None documented.
4
22
127
367
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
documented.
documented.
documented.
documented.
Killer whale, AK resident.
None documented.
Northern fur seal, Eastern Pacific.
Sperm whale, North Pacific.
Harbor seal, Cook Inlet.
Steller sea lion, Eastern U.S.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.
None documented.
None documented.
Bottlenose dolphin, CA/OR/WA offshore.
California sea lion, U.S.
Northern elephant seal, California breeding.
Sperm whale, CA/OR/WA.
Steller sea lion, Eastern U.S.
None documented.
None documented in the most recent five years of data.
None documented.
None documented.
E:\FR\FM\21SEP1.SGM
21SEP1
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 183 / Monday, September 21, 2020 / Proposed Rules
59269
TABLE 1—LIST OF FISHERIES—COMMERCIAL FISHERIES IN THE PACIFIC OCEAN—Continued
Estimated
number of
vessels/
persons
jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
Fishery description
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands Atka mackerel trawl ........
13
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands Pacific cod trawl ..............
72
AK Gulf of Alaska flatfish trawl ............................................
36
AK Gulf of Alaska Pacific cod trawl .....................................
55
AK Gulf of Alaska pollock trawl ...........................................
67
AK Gulf of Alaska rockfish trawl ..........................................
AK Kodiak food/bait herring otter trawl ...............................
AK shrimp otter trawl and beam trawl .................................
AK state-managed waters of Prince William Sound
groundfish trawl.
CA halibut bottom trawl .......................................................
43
4
38
2
CA sea cucumber trawl .......................................................
WA/OR/CA shrimp trawl ......................................................
WA/OR/CA groundfish trawl ................................................
16
300
160–180
Pot, Ring Net, and Trap Fisheries:
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands sablefish pot ....................
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands crab pot ...........................
6
540
AK Gulf of Alaska crab pot ..................................................
AK Gulf of Alaska Pacific cod pot .......................................
AK Gulf of Alaska sablefish pot ...........................................
AK Southeast Alaska crab pot ............................................
AK Southeast Alaska shrimp pot .........................................
AK shrimp pot, except Southeast ........................................
AK octopus/squid pot ...........................................................
CA rock crab pot ..................................................................
271
116
248
375
99
141
15
124
WA/OR/CA hagfish pot ........................................................
WA/OR shrimp pot/trap .......................................................
WA Puget Sound Dungeness crab pot/trap ........................
HI crab trap ..........................................................................
HI fish trap ...........................................................................
HI lobster trap ......................................................................
HI shrimp trap ......................................................................
HI crab net ...........................................................................
HI Kona crab loop net .........................................................
Hook and Line, Handline, and Jig Fisheries:
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands groundfish jig ..................
AK Gulf of Alaska groundfish jig .........................................
AK halibut jig ........................................................................
American Samoa bottomfish ...............................................
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
bottomfish.
Guam bottomfish .................................................................
HI aku boat, pole, and line ..................................................
HI bottomfish handline .........................................................
HI inshore handline ..............................................................
HI pelagic handline ..............................................................
WA groundfish, bottomfish jig ..............................................
54
254
249
5
9
<3
10
4
33
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2
214
71
fewer than 20
28
>300
<3
578
357
534
679
Fmt 4702
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Marine mammal species and/or stocks incidentally
killed or injured
Bearded seal, AK.
Harbor seal, Aleutian Islands.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.
Bearded seal, AK.
Ribbon seal, AK.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.
Northern elephant seal, North Pacific.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.
Harbor seal, AK.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.
Dall’s porpoise, AK.
Fin whale, Northeast Pacific.
Northern elephant seal, North Pacific.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.
None documented.
None documented.
None documented.
California sea lion, U.S.
Harbor porpoise, unknown.
Harbor seal, unknown.
Northern elephant seal, CA breeding.
Steller sea lion, unknown.
None documented.
California sea lion, U.S.
California sea lion, U.S.
Dall’s porpoise, CA/OR/WA.
Harbor seal, OR/WA coast.
Northern elephant seal, CA breeding.
Northern fur seal, Eastern Pacific.
Northern right whale dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Pacific white-sided dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Steller sea lion, Eastern U.S.
None documented.
Bowhead whale, Western Arctic.
Gray whale, Eastern North Pacific.
None documented.
Harbor seal, GOA.
None documented.
Humpback whale, Central North Pacific (Southeast AK).
Humpback whale, Central North Pacific (Southeast AK).
None documented.
None documented.
Gray whale, Eastern North Pacific.
Harbor seal, CA.
None documented.
None documented.
None documented.
Humpback whale, Central North Pacific.
None documented.
None documented in recent years.
None documented.
None documented.
None documented.
None documented.
Fin whale, Northeast Pacific.
None documented.
None documented.
None documented.
None
None
None
None
None
None
documented.
documented.
documented in recent years.
documented.
documented.
documented.
E:\FR\FM\21SEP1.SGM
21SEP1
59270
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 183 / Monday, September 21, 2020 / Proposed Rules
TABLE 1—LIST OF FISHERIES—COMMERCIAL FISHERIES IN THE PACIFIC OCEAN—Continued
Estimated
number of
vessels/
persons
Fishery description
Western Pacific squid jig .....................................................
Harpoon Fisheries:
CA swordfish harpoon .........................................................
Pound Net/Weir Fisheries:
AK herring spawn on kelp pound net ..................................
AK Southeast herring roe/food/bait pound net ....................
HI bullpen trap .....................................................................
Bait Pens:
WA/OR/CA bait pens ...........................................................
Dredge Fissheries:
AK scallop dredge ...............................................................
Dive, Hand/Mechanical Collection Fisheries:
AK clam ...............................................................................
AK Dungeness crab .............................................................
AK herring spawn on kelp ...................................................
AK miscellaneous invertebrates handpick ...........................
HI black coral diving ............................................................
HI fish pond .........................................................................
HI handpick ..........................................................................
HI lobster diving ...................................................................
HI spearfishing .....................................................................
WA/CA kelp .........................................................................
WA/OR bait shrimp, clam hand, dive, or mechanical collection.
OR/CA sea urchin, sea cucumber hand, dive, or mechanical collection.
Commercial Passenger Fishing Vessel (Charter Boat) Fisheries:
AK/WA/OR/CA commercial passenger fishing vessel .........
Marine mammal species and/or stocks incidentally
killed or injured
0
None documented.
6
None documented.
291
2
3
None documented.
None documented.
None documented.
13
108 (5 AK)
130
2
266
214
<3
5
46
19
163
4
201
10
>7,000 (1,006
AK)
Live Finfish/Shellfish Fisheries:
CA nearshore finfish live trap/hook-and-line .......................
HI aquarium collecting .........................................................
93
90
California sea lion, U.S.
None documented.
None
None
None
None
None
None
None
None
None
None
None
documented.
documented.
documented.
documented.
documented.
documented.
documented.
documented.
documented.
documented.
documented.
None documented.
Humpback whale, Western North Pacific.
Killer whale, unknown.
Steller sea lion, Eastern U.S.
Steller sea lion, Western U.S.
None documented.
None documented.
List of Abbreviations and Symbols Used in Table 1:
AI—Aleutian Islands; AK—Alaska; BS—Bering Sea; CA—California; ENP—Eastern North Pacific; GOA—Gulf of Alaska; HI—Hawaii; MHI—
Main Hawaiian Islands; OR—Oregon; WA—Washington;
1 Fishery classified based on mortalities and serious injuries of this stock, which are greater than or equal to 50 percent (Category I) or greater
than 1 percent and less than 50 percent (Category II) of the stock’s PBR;
2 Fishery classified by analogy;
* Fishery has an associated high seas component listed in Table 3; and
∧ The list of marine mammal species and/or stocks killed or injured in this fishery is identical to the list of species and/or stocks killed or injured
in high seas component of the fishery, minus species and/or stocks that have geographic ranges exclusively on the high seas. The species and/
or stocks are found, and the fishery remains the same, on both sides of the EEZ boundary. Therefore, the EEZ components of these fisheries
pose the same risk to marine mammals as the components operating on the high seas.
TABLE 2—LIST OF FISHERIES—COMMERCIAL FISHERIES IN THE ATLANTIC OCEAN, GULF OF MEXICO, AND CARIBBEAN
Estimated
number of
vessels/
persons
Fishery description
Marine mammal species and/or stocks incidentally
killed or injured
jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
Category I
Gillnet Fisheries:
Mid-Atlantic gillnet ................................................................
4,020
Northeast sink gillnet ...........................................................
4,072
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Bottlenose dolphin, Northern Migratory coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Southern Migratory coastal.1
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern NC estuarine system.1
Bottlenose dolphin, Southern NC estuarine system.1
Bottlenose dolphin, WNA offshore.
Common dolphin, WNA.
Gray seal, WNA.
Harbor porpoise, GME/BF.
Harbor seal, WNA.
Hooded seal, WNA.
Humpback whale, Gulf of Maine.
Minke whale, Canadian east coast.
Bottlenose dolphin, WNA offshore.
E:\FR\FM\21SEP1.SGM
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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 183 / Monday, September 21, 2020 / Proposed Rules
59271
TABLE 2—LIST OF FISHERIES—COMMERCIAL FISHERIES IN THE ATLANTIC OCEAN, GULF OF MEXICO, AND CARIBBEAN—
Continued
Estimated
number of
vessels/
persons
Fishery description
Marine mammal species and/or stocks incidentally
killed or injured
Common dolphin, WNA.
Fin whale, WNA.
Gray seal, WNA.1
Harbor porpoise, GME/BF.
Harbor seal, WNA.
Harp seal, WNA.
Humpback whale, Gulf of Maine.
Minke whale, Canadian east coast.
North Atlantic right whale, WNA.
Risso’s dolphin, WNA.
White-sided dolphin, WNA.
Trap/Pot Fisheries:
Northeast/Mid-Atlantic American lobster trap/pot ................
8,485
Longline Fisheries:
Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico large pelagics
longline *.
201
Humpback whale, Gulf of Maine.
Minke whale, Canadian east coast.
North Atlantic right whale, WNA.1
Atlantic spotted dolphin, Northern GMX.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern GMX oceanic.
Bottlenose dolphin, WNA offshore.
Common dolphin, WNA.
Cuvier’s beaked whale, WNA.
False killer whale, WNA.
Harbor porpoise, GME, BF.
Kogia spp. (Pygmy or dwarf sperm whale), WNA.
Long-finned pilot whale, WNA.
Mesoplodon beaked whale, WNA.
Minke whale, Canadian East coast.
Pantropical spotted dolphin, Northern GMX.
Pygmy sperm whale, GMX.
Risso’s dolphin, Northern GMX.
Risso’s dolphin, WNA.
Rough-toothed dolphin, Northern GMX.
Short-finned pilot whale, Northern GMX.
Short-finned pilot whale, WNA.1
Sperm whale, Northern GMX.
jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
Category II
Gillnet Fisheries:
Chesapeake Bay inshore gillnet 2 ........................................
265
Gulf of Mexico gillnet 2 ................................................................
248
NC inshore gillnet ................................................................
2,676
Northeast anchored float gillnet 2 ................................................
852
Northeast drift gillnet 2 ..........................................................
Southeast Atlantic gillnet 2 ...................................................
1,036
273
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic shark gillnet .....................................
21
Trawl Fisheries:
Mid-Atlantic mid-water trawl (including pair trawl) ...............
320
Mid-Atlantic bottom trawl .....................................................
633
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Bottlenose dolphin, unknown (Northern migratory coastal or
Southern migratory coastal).
Bottlenose dolphin, Eastern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, GMX bay, sound, and estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin, Mobile Bay, Bonsecour Bay.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Western GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern NC estuarine system.1
Bottlenose dolphin, Southern NC estuarine system.1
Harbor seal, WNA.
Humpback whale, Gulf of Maine.
White-sided dolphin, WNA.
None documented.
Bottlenose dolphin, Central FL coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern FL coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, SC/GA coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Southern migratory coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, unknown (Central FL, Northern FL, SC/GA
coastal, or Southern migratory coastal).
North Atlantic right whale, WNA.
Bottlenose dolphin, WNA offshore.
Harbor seal, WNA.
Bottlenose dolphin, WNA offshore.1
Common dolphin, WNA.1
Gray seal, WNA.1
Harbor seal, WNA.
Risso’s dolphin, WNA.1
E:\FR\FM\21SEP1.SGM
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59272
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 183 / Monday, September 21, 2020 / Proposed Rules
TABLE 2—LIST OF FISHERIES—COMMERCIAL FISHERIES IN THE ATLANTIC OCEAN, GULF OF MEXICO, AND CARIBBEAN—
Continued
Estimated
number of
vessels/
persons
jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
Fishery description
Northeast mid-water trawl (including pair trawl) .........................
542
Northeast bottom trawl ........................................................
968
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico shrimp trawl ....
10,824
Trap/Pot Fisheries:
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico stone crab trap/
pot 2.
1,101
Atlantic mixed species trap/pot 2 ..........................................
3,493
Atlantic blue crab trap/pot ....................................................
6,679
Purse Seine Fisheries:
Gulf of Mexico menhaden purse seine ...............................
40–42
Mid-Atlantic menhaden purse seine 2 ..................................
17
Haul/Beach Seine Fisheries:
Mid-Atlantic haul/beach seine ..............................................
359
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Marine mammal species and/or stocks incidentally
killed or injured
White-sided dolphin, WNA.
Common dolphin, WNA.
Gray seal, WNA.
Harbor seal, WNA.
Long-finned pilot whale, WNA.1
Bottlenose dolphin, WNA offshore.1
Common dolphin, WNA.
Gray seal, WNA.1
Harbor porpoise, GME/BF.
Harbor seal, WNA.
Harp seal, WNA.
Long-finned pilot whale, WNA.1
Risso’s dolphin, WNA.1
White-sided dolphin, WNA.1
Atlantic spotted dolphin, Northern Gulf of Mexico.
Bottlenose dolphin, Charleston estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin, Eastern GMX coastal.1
Bottlenose dolphin, GMX bay, sound, estuarine.1
Bottlenose dolphin, GMX continental shelf.
Bottlenose dolphin, Mississippi River Delta.
Bottlenose dolphin, Mobile Bay, Bonsecour Bay.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern GMX coastal.1
Bottlenose dolphin, SC/GA coastal.1
Bottlenose dolphin, Southern migratory coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Western GMX coastal.1
Bottlenose dolphin, Biscayne Bay estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin, Central FL coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Eastern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, FL Bay.
Bottlenose dolphin, GMX bay, sound, estuarine (FL west
coast portion).
Bottlenose dolphin, Indian River Lagoon estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin, Jacksonville estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Sarasota Bay, Little Sarasota Bay.
Fin whale, WNA.
Humpback whale, Gulf of Maine.
Bottlenose dolphin, Central FL coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Central GA estuarine system.1
Bottlenose dolphin, Charleston estuarine system.1
Bottlenose dolphin, Indian River Lagoon estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin, Jacksonville estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern FL coastal.1
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern GA/Southern SC estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern Migratory coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern NC estuarine system.1
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern SC estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin, SC/GA coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Southern GA estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin, Southern Migratory coastal.1
Bottlenose dolphin, Southern NC estuarine system.
West Indian manatee, FL.
Bottlenose dolphin, GMX bay, sound, estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin, Mississippi River Delta.
Bottlenose dolphin, Mississippi Sound, Lake Borgne, Bay
Boudreau.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern GMX coastal.1
Bottlenose dolphin, Western GMX coastal.1
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern Migratory coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Southern Migratory coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern Migratory coastal.1
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern NC estuarine system.1
Bottlenose dolphin, Southern Migratory coastal.1
E:\FR\FM\21SEP1.SGM
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59273
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 183 / Monday, September 21, 2020 / Proposed Rules
TABLE 2—LIST OF FISHERIES—COMMERCIAL FISHERIES IN THE ATLANTIC OCEAN, GULF OF MEXICO, AND CARIBBEAN—
Continued
Estimated
number of
vessels/
persons
Fishery description
Marine mammal species and/or stocks incidentally
killed or injured
NC long haul seine ..............................................................
22
Stop Net Fisheries:
NC roe mullet stop net ........................................................
1
Pound Net Fisheries:
VA pound net .......................................................................
20
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern NC estuarine system.1
Bottlenose dolphin, Southern NC estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern NC estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin, unknown (Southern migratory coastal or
Southern NC estuarine system).
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern migratory coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern NC estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin, Southern Migratory coastal.1
Category III
Gillnet Fisheries:
Caribbean gillnet ..................................................................
DE River inshore gillnet .......................................................
Long Island Sound inshore gillnet .......................................
RI, southern MA (to Monomoy Island), and NY Bight (Raritan and Lower NY Bays) inshore gillnet.
Southeast Atlantic inshore gillnet ........................................
Trawl Fisheries:
Atlantic shellfish bottom trawl ..............................................
Gulf of Mexico butterfish trawl .............................................
jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
Gulf of Mexico mixed species trawl .....................................
GA cannonball jellyfish trawl ...............................................
Marine Aquaculture Fisheries:
Finfish aquaculture ..............................................................
Shellfish aquaculture ...........................................................
Purse Seine Fisheries:
Gulf of Maine Atlantic herring purse seine ..........................
Gulf of Maine menhaden purse seine .................................
FL West Coast sardine purse seine ....................................
U.S. Atlantic tuna purse seine * ...........................................
Longline/Hook and Line Fisheries:
Northeast/Mid-Atlantic bottom longline/hook-and-line .........
Gulf of Maine, U.S. Mid-Atlantic tuna, shark, swordfish
hook-and-line/harpoon.
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean
snapper-grouper and other reef fish bottom longline/
hook-and-line.
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico shark bottom
longline/hook-and-line.
127
unknown
unknown
unknown
None
None
None
None
unknown
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern SC estuarine system.
>58
2
20
1
48
unknown
>7
>2
10
5
39
Gulf of Mexico blue crab trap/pot ........................................
4,113
Gulf of Mexico mixed species trap/pot ................................
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico golden crab
trap/pot.
unknown
10
Frm 00067
680
154
Fmt 4702
recent
recent
recent
recent
five
five
five
five
years
years
years
years
Sfmt 4702
of
of
of
of
data.
data.
data.
data.
None documented.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern GMX oceanic.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern GMX continental shelf.
None documented.
Bottlenose dolphin, SC/GA coastal.
Harbor seal, WNA.
None documented.
Harbor seal, WNA.
None documented.
Bottlenose dolphin, Eastern GMX coastal.
None documented in most recent five years of data.
Bottlenose dolphin, GMX continental shelf.
40
1,268
PO 00000
most
most
most
most
>5,000
Caribbean spiny lobster trap/pot .........................................
FL spiny lobster trap/pot ......................................................
Jkt 250001
the
the
the
the
None documented.
Humpback whale, Gulf of Maine.
unknown
16:55 Sep 18, 2020
in
in
in
in
>1,207
2,846
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean
pelagic hook-and-line/harpoon.
U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico trotline ...................................
Trap/Pot Fisheries:
Caribbean mixed species trap/pot .......................................
VerDate Sep<11>2014
documented
documented
documented
documented
Bottlenose dolphin, Eastern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern GMX continental shelf.
None documented.
None documented.
Bottlenose dolphin, Puerto Rico and United States Virgin Islands.
None documented.
Bottlenose dolphin, Biscayne Bay estuarine. Bottlenose dolphin, Central FL coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Eastern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, FL Bay estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin, FL Keys.
Bottlenose dolphin, Barataria Bay.
Bottlenose dolphin, Eastern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, GMX bay, sound, estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin, Mississippi Sound, Lake Borgne, Bay
Boudreau.
Bottlenose dolphin, Mobile Bay, Bonsecour Bay.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Western GMX coastal.
West Indian manatee, FL.
None documented.
None documented.
E:\FR\FM\21SEP1.SGM
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59274
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 183 / Monday, September 21, 2020 / Proposed Rules
TABLE 2—LIST OF FISHERIES—COMMERCIAL FISHERIES IN THE ATLANTIC OCEAN, GULF OF MEXICO, AND CARIBBEAN—
Continued
Estimated
number of
vessels/
persons
Fishery description
U.S. Mid-Atlantic eel trap/pot ...............................................
Stop Seine/Weir/Pound Net/Floating Trap/Fyke Net Fisheries:
Gulf of Maine herring and Atlantic mackerel stop seine/
weir.
jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
U.S. Mid-Atlantic crab stop seine/weir ................................
U.S. Mid-Atlantic mixed species stop seine/weir/pound net
(except the NC roe mullet stop net).
RI floating trap .....................................................................
Northeast and Mid-Atlantic fyke net ....................................
Dredge Fisheries:
Gulf of Maine sea urchin dredge .........................................
Gulf of Maine mussel dredge ..............................................
Gulf of Maine, U.S. Mid-Atlantic sea scallop dredge ..........
Mid-Atlantic blue crab dredge ..............................................
Mid-Atlantic soft-shell clam dredge .....................................
Mid-Atlantic whelk dredge ...................................................
U.S. Mid-Atlantic/Gulf of Mexico oyster dredge ..................
New England and Mid-Atlantic offshore surf clam/quahog
dredge.
Haul/Beach Seine Fisheries:
Caribbean haul/beach seine ................................................
Gulf of Mexico haul/beach seine .........................................
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic haul/beach seine ......................
Dive, Hand/Mechanical Collection Fisheries:
Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean shellfish dive,
hand/mechanical collection.
Gulf of Maine urchin dive, hand/mechanical collection .......
Gulf of Mexico, Southeast Atlantic, Mid-Atlantic, and Caribbean cast net.
Commercial Passenger Fishing Vessel (Charter Boat) Fisheries:
Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean commercial
passenger fishing vessel.
unknown
>1
Marine mammal species and/or stocks incidentally
killed or injured
None documented.
Harbor porpoise, GME/BF.
2,600
unknown
Harbor seal, WNA.
Minke whale, Canadian east coast.
Atlantic white-sided dolphin, WNA.
None documented.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern NC estuarine system.
9
unknown
None documented.
None documented.
unknown
unknown
>403
unknown
unknown
unknown
7,000
unknown
None
None
None
None
None
None
None
None
38
unknown
25
West Indian manatee, Puerto Rico.
None documented.
None documented.
documented.
documented.
documented.
documented.
documented.
documented.
documented.
documented.
20,000
None documented.
unknown
unknown
None documented.
None documented.
4,000
Bottlenose dolphin, Barataria Bay estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin, Biscayne Bay estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin, Central FL coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Choctawhatchee Bay.
Bottlenose dolphin, Eastern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, FL Bay.
Bottlenose dolphin, GMX bay, sound, estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin, Indian River Lagoon estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin, Jacksonville estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin, Mississippi Sound, Lake Borgne, Bay
Boudreau.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern FL coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern GA/Southern SC estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern migratory coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern NC estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin, Southern migratory coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Southern NC estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin, SC/GA coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, Western GMX coastal.
Short-finned pilot whale, WNA.
List of Abbreviations and Symbols Used in Table 2:
DE—Delaware; FL—Florida; GA—Georgia; GME/BF—Gulf of Maine/Bay of Fundy; GMX—Gulf of Mexico; MA—Massachusetts; NC—North
Carolina; NY—New York; RI—Rhode Island; SC—South Carolina; VA—Virginia; WNA—Western North Atlantic;
1 Fishery classified based on mortalities and serious injuries of this stock, which are greater than or equal to 50 percent (Category I) or greater
than 1 percent and less than 50 percent (Category II) of the stock’s PBR;
2 Fishery classified by analogy; and
* Fishery has an associated high seas component listed in Table 3.
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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 183 / Monday, September 21, 2020 / Proposed Rules
59275
TABLE 3—LIST OF FISHERIES—COMMERCIAL FISHERIES ON THE HIGH SEAS
Number of
HSFCA
permits
Fishery description
Marine mammal species and/or stocks incidentally
killed or injured
Category I
Longline Fisheries:
Atlantic Highly Migratory Species * ......................................
45
Western Pacific Pelagic (HI Deep-set component) * ∧ ........
143
Atlantic spotted dolphin, WNA.
Bottlenose dolphin, Northern GMX oceanic.
Bottlenose dolphin, WNA offshore.
Common dolphin, WNA.
Cuvier’s beaked whale, WNA.
False killer whale, WNA.
Killer whale, GMX oceanic.
Kogia spp. whale (Pygmy or dwarf sperm whale), WNA.
Long-finned pilot whale, WNA.
Mesoplodon beaked whale, WNA.
Minke whale, Canadian East coast.
Pantropical spotted dolphin, WNA.
Risso’s dolphin, GMX.
Risso’s dolphin, WNA.
Short-finned pilot whale, WNA.
Bottlenose dolphin, HI Pelagic.
False killer whale, HI Pelagic.
Humpback whale, Central North Pacific.
Kogia spp. (Pygmy or dwarf sperm whale), HI.
Pygmy killer whale, HI.
Risso’s dolphin, HI.
Short-finned pilot whale, HI.
Striped dolphin, HI.
Category II
Drift Gillnet Fisheries:.
Pacific Highly Migratory Species * ∧ ....................................
jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
Trawl Fisheries:
Atlantic Highly Migratory Species ** ....................................
CCAMLR ..............................................................................
Purse Seine Fisheries:
South Pacific Tuna Fisheries ...............................................
Western Pacific Pelagic .......................................................
Longline Fisheries:
CCAMLR ..............................................................................
South Pacific Albacore Troll ................................................
South Pacific Tuna Fisheries ** ...........................................
Western Pacific Pelagic (HI Shallow-set component) * ∧ ....
Handline/Pole and Line Fisheries:
Atlantic Highly Migratory Species ........................................
Pacific Highly Migratory Species .........................................
South Pacific Albacore Troll ................................................
Western Pacific Pelagic .......................................................
Troll Fisheries:
Atlantic Highly Migratory Species ........................................
South Pacific Albacore Troll ................................................
South Pacific Tuna Fisheries ** ...........................................
Western Pacific Pelagic .......................................................
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5
Long-beaked common dolphin, CA.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/WA.
Northern right-whale dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Pacific white-sided dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Risso’s dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Short-beaked common dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
1
0
No information.
Antarctic fur seal.
26
1
No information.
No information.
0
6
3
11
None documented.
No information.
No information.
Blainville’s beaked whale, HI.
Bottlenose dolphin, HI Pelagic.
False killer whale, HI Pelagic.
Fin whale, HI.
Guadalupe fur seal.
Humpback whale, Central North Pacific.
Mesoplodon sp., unknown.
Northern elephant seal, CA breeding.
Risso’s dolphin, HI.
Rough-toothed dolphin, HI.
Short-beaked common dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Striped dolphin, HI.
1
43
10
5
No
No
No
No
information.
information.
information.
information.
0
18
1
4
No
No
No
No
information.
information.
information.
information.
Sfmt 4702
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59276
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 183 / Monday, September 21, 2020 / Proposed Rules
TABLE 3—LIST OF FISHERIES—COMMERCIAL FISHERIES ON THE HIGH SEAS—Continued
Number of
HSFCA
permits
Fishery description
Marine mammal species and/or stocks incidentally
killed or injured
Category III
Longline Fisheries:
Northwest Atlantic Bottom Longline ....................................
Pacific Highly Migratory Species .........................................
Purse Seine Fisheries:
Pacific Highly Migratory Species * ∧ ....................................
Trawl Fisheries:
Northwest Atlantic ................................................................
Troll Fisheries:
Pacific Highly Migratory Species * .......................................
2
105
None documented.
None documented in the most recent 5 years of data.
5
None documented.
4
None documented.
111
None documented.
List of Terms, Abbreviations, and Symbols Used in Table 3:
CA—California; GMX—Gulf of Mexico; HI—Hawaii; OR—Oregon; WA—Washington; WNA—Western North Atlantic;
* Fishery is an extension/component of an existing fishery operating within U.S. waters listed in Table 1 or 2. The number of permits listed in
Table 3 represents only the number of permits for the high seas component of the fishery;
** These gear types are not authorized under the Pacific HMS FMP (2004), the Atlantic HMS FMP (2006), or without a South Pacific Tuna
Treaty license (in the case of the South Pacific Tuna fisheries). Because HSFCA permits are valid for 5 years, permits obtained in past years
exist in the HSFCA permit database for gear types that are now unauthorized. Therefore, while HSFCA permits exist for these gear types, it
does not represent effort. In order to land fish species, fishers must be using an authorized gear type. Once these permits for unauthorized gear
types expire, the permit-holder will be required to obtain a permit for an authorized gear type; and
∧ The list of marine mammal species and/or stocks killed or injured in this fishery is identical to the list of marine mammal species and/or
stocks killed or injured in U.S. waters component of the fishery, minus species and/or stocks that have geographic ranges exclusively in coastal
waters, because the marine mammal species and/or stocks are also found on the high seas and the fishery remains the same on both sides of
the EEZ boundary. Therefore, the high seas components of these fisheries pose the same risk to marine mammals as the components of these
fisheries operating in U.S. waters.
TABLE 4—FISHERIES AFFECTED BY TAKE REDUCTION TEAMS AND PLANS
Take reduction plans
Affected fisheries
Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan (ALWTRP)—
50 CFR 229.32.
Bottlenose Dolphin Take Reduction Plan (BDTRP)—50
CFR 229.35.
jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
False Killer Whale Take Reduction Plan (FKWTRP)—50
CFR 229.37.
Harbor Porpoise Take Reduction Plan (HPTRP)—50
CFR 229.33 (New England) and 229.34 (Mid-Atlantic).
Pelagic Longline Take Reduction Plan (PLTRP)—50 CFR
229.36.
Category I
Mid-Atlantic gillnet.
Northeast/Mid-Atlantic American lobster trap/pot.
Northeast sink gillnet.
Category II
Atlantic blue crab trap/pot.
Atlantic mixed species trap/pot.
Northeast anchored float gillnet.
Northeast drift gillnet.
Southeast Atlantic gillnet.
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic shark gillnet.*
Southeastern, U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico stone crab trap/pot.∧
Category I
Mid-Atlantic gillnet.
Category II
Atlantic blue crab trap/pot.
Chesapeake Bay inshore gillnet fishery.
Mid-Atlantic haul/beach seine.
Mid-Atlantic menhaden purse seine.
NC inshore gillnet.
NC long haul seine.
NC roe mullet stop net.
Southeast Atlantic gillnet.
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic shark gillnet.
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico shrimp trawl.∧
Southeastern, U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico stone crab trap/pot.∧
VA pound net.
Category I
HI deep-set longline.
Category II
HI shallow-set longline.
Category I
Mid-Atlantic gillnet.
Northeast sink gillnet.
Category I
Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico large pelagics longline.
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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 183 / Monday, September 21, 2020 / Proposed Rules
59277
TABLE 4—FISHERIES AFFECTED BY TAKE REDUCTION TEAMS AND PLANS—Continued
Take reduction plans
Pacific Offshore Cetacean Take
(POCTRP)—50 CFR 229.31.
Affected fisheries
Reduction
Plan
Atlantic Trawl Gear Take Reduction Team (ATGTRT) .....
Category II
CA thresher shark/swordfish drift gillnet (≥14 in mesh).
Category II
Mid-Atlantic bottom trawl.
Mid-Atlantic mid-water trawl (including pair trawl).
Northeast bottom trawl.
Northeast mid-water trawl (including pair trawl).
List of Symbols Used in Table 4:
* Only applicable to the portion of the fishery operating in U.S. waters; and
∧ Only applicable to the portion of the fishery operating in the Atlantic Ocean.
jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
Classification
The Chief Counsel for Regulation of
the Department of Commerce has
certified to the Chief Counsel for
Advocacy of the Small Business
Administration (SBA) that this proposed
rule would not have a significant
economic impact on a substantial
number of small entities. Any entity
with combined annual fishery landing
receipts less than $11 million is
considered a small entity for purposes
of the Regulatory Flexibility Act. Under
the size standard, all entities subject to
this action were considered small
entities; thus, they all would continue to
be considered small under the new
standards.
Under existing regulations, all
individuals participating in Category I
or II fisheries must register under the
MMPA and obtain an authorization
certificate. The authorization certificate
authorizes the taking of non-endangered
and non-threatened marine mammals
incidental to commercial fishing
operations. Additionally, individuals
may be subject to a TRP and requested
to carry an observer. NMFS has
estimated that up to approximately
55,329 fishing vessels, most with annual
revenues below the SBA’s small entity
thresholds, may operate in Category I or
II fisheries. As fishing vessels operating
in Category I or II fisheries, they are
required to register with NMFS. The
MMPA registration process is integrated
with existing state and Federal
licensing, permitting, and registration
programs. Therefore, individuals who
have a state or Federal fishing permit or
landing license, or who are authorized
through another related state or Federal
fishery registration program, are
currently not required to register
separately under the MMPA or pay the
$25 registration fee. Through this
integrated process, registration under
the MMPA, including the $25
registration fee, is only required for
vessels participating in a Category I or
II non-permitted fishery. All Category I
VerDate Sep<11>2014
16:55 Sep 18, 2020
Jkt 250001
and II fisheries listed on the 2021
proposed LOF are permitted through
state or Federal processes, and
registration under the MMPA is covered
through the integrated process.
Therefore, this proposed rule would not
impose any direct costs on small
entities.
The MMPA requires any vessel owner
or operator participating in a fishery
listed on the LOF to report to NMFS,
within 48 hours of the end of the fishing
trip, all marine mammal incidental
mortalities and injuries that occur
during commercial fishing operations.
These marine mammal mortalities and
injuries are reported using a postagepaid, Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) approved form (OMB Control
Number 0648–0292). This postage-paid
form requires less than 15 minutes to
complete and can be dropped in any
mailbox, faxed, emailed, or completed
online within 48 hours of the vessels
return to port. Therefore, record keeping
and reporting costs associated with this
LOF are minimal and would not have a
significant impact on a substantial
number of small entities.
If a vessel is requested to carry an
observer, vessels will not incur any
direct economic costs associated with
carrying that observer. As a result of this
certification, an initial regulatory
flexibility analysis is not required and
none has been prepared. In the event
that reclassification of a fishery to
Category I or II results in a TRP,
economic analyses of the effects of that
TRP would be summarized in
subsequent rulemaking actions.
This proposed rule contains existing
collection-of-information (COI)
requirements subject to the Paperwork
Reduction Act and would not impose
additional or new COI requirements.
The COI for the registration of
individuals under the MMPA has been
approved by the OMB under OMB
Control Number 0648–0293 (0.15 hours
per report for new registrants). The
requirement for reporting marine
mammal mortalities or injuries has been
PO 00000
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Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
approved by OMB under OMB Control
Number 0648–0292 (0.15 hours per
report). These estimates include the
time for reviewing instructions,
searching existing data sources,
gathering and maintaining the data
needed, and completing and reviewing
the COI. Send comments regarding these
reporting burden estimates or any other
aspect of the COI, including suggestions
for reducing burden, to NMFS (see
ADDRESSES). You may also submit
comments on these or any other aspects
of the collection of information at
www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain.
Notwithstanding any other provision
of law, no person is required to respond
to, nor shall a person be subject to a
penalty for failure to comply with a COI,
subject to the requirements of the
Paperwork Reduction Act, unless that
COI displays a currently valid OMB
control number.
This proposed rule has been
determined to be not significant for the
purposes of Executive Orders 12866 and
13563.
This rule is not expected to be an
Executive Order 13771 regulatory action
because this rule is not significant under
Executive Order 12866.
In accordance with the Companion
Manual for NOAA Administrative Order
(NAO) 216–6A, NMFS preliminarily
determined that publishing this
proposed LOF qualifies to be
categorically excluded from further
NEPA review, consistent with categories
of activities identified in Categorical
Exclusion G7 (‘‘Preparation of policy
directives, rules, regulations, and
guidelines of an administrative,
financial, legal, technical, or procedural
nature, or for which the environmental
effects are too broad, speculative or
conjectural to lend themselves to
meaningful analysis and will be subject
later to the NEPA process, either
collectively or on a case-by-case basis’’)
of the Companion Manual and we have
not identified any extraordinary
circumstances listed in Chapter 4 of the
Companion Manual for NAO 216–6A
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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 183 / Monday, September 21, 2020 / Proposed Rules
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that would preclude application of this
categorical exclusion. If NMFS takes a
management action, for example,
through the development of a TRP,
NMFS would first prepare an
Environmental Impact Statement or
Environmental Assessment, as required
under NEPA, specific to that action.
This proposed rule would not affect
species listed as threatened or
endangered under the ESA or their
associated critical habitat. The impacts
of numerous fisheries have been
analyzed in various biological opinions,
and this proposed rule will not affect
the conclusions of those opinions. The
classification of fisheries on the LOF is
not considered to be a management
action that would adversely affect
threatened or endangered species. If
NMFS takes a management action, for
example, through the development of a
TRP, NMFS would consult under ESA
section 7 on that action.
This proposed rule would have no
adverse impacts on marine mammals
and may have a positive impact on
marine mammals by improving
knowledge of marine mammals and the
VerDate Sep<11>2014
16:55 Sep 18, 2020
Jkt 250001
fisheries interacting with marine
mammals through information collected
from observer programs, stranding and
sighting data, or take reduction teams.
This proposed rule would not affect
the land or water uses or natural
resources of the coastal zone, as
specified under section 307 of the
Coastal Zone Management Act.
References
Carretta, J.V. 2020. Estimates of marine
mammal, sea turtle, and seabird bycatch
from the California large-mesh drift gillnet
fishery: 1990–2018. Draft reviewed by the
Pacific Scientific Review Group. March,
2020. 84 p.
Carretta, J.V., B. Delean, V. Helker, M.M.
Muto, J. Greenman, K. Wilkinson, D.
Lawson, J. Viezbicke, and J. Jannot. 2020.
Sources of human-related injury and
mortality for U.S. Pacific west coast marine
mammal stock assessments, 2014–2018.
Draft reviewed by the Pacific Scientific
Review Group. March, 2020. 151 p.
Delean, B.J., V.T. Helker, M.M. Muto, K.
Savage, S. Teerlink, L.A. Jemison, K.
Wilkinson, J. Jannot, and N.C. Young.
2020. Human-caused mortality and injury
of NMFS-managed Alaska marine mammal
stocks 2013–2017 U.S. Department of
PO 00000
Frm 00072
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 9990
Commerce, NOAA Technical
Memorandum NMFS–AFSC–401. 86 p.
Hayes, S.A., Josephson, E., Maze-Foley, K.,
Rosel, P.E., In Review. Draft US Atlantic
and Gulf of Mexico Marine Mammal Stock
Assessments 2019.
Kuiken, T. 1996. Diagnosis of By-Catch in
Cetaceans. Montpellier: European Cetacean
Society.
Maze-Foley, K. and L.P. Garrison. 2018.
Serious Injury Determinations for Small
Cetaceans off the Southeast U.S. Coast,
2012–2016. Southeast Fisheries Science
Center Reference Document PRBD–2018–
04.
Moore, K.T., and Barco, S. 2013. Handbook
for Recognizing, Evaluating, and
Documenting Human Interaction in
Cetaceans and Pinnipeds. NOAA–
TMNMFS–SWFSC–510:102.
Read, A.J., and Murray, K.T. 2000. Gross
Evidence of Human-Induced Mortality in
Small Cetaceans. NOAA.
Dated: September 15, 2020.
Samuel D. Rauch, III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for
Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2020–20709 Filed 9–18–20; 8:45 am]
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[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 183 (Monday, September 21, 2020)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 59258-59278]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-20709]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 229
[Docket No. 200915-0244]
RIN 0648-BJ72
List of Fisheries for 2021
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Proposed rule, request for comment.
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SUMMARY: The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) publishes its
proposed List of Fisheries (LOF) for 2021, as required by the Marine
Mammal Protection Act (MMPA). The LOF for 2021 reflects new information
on interactions between commercial fisheries and marine mammals. NMFS
must classify each commercial fishery on the LOF into one of three
categories under the MMPA based upon the level of mortality and serious
injury of marine mammals that occurs incidental to each fishery. The
classification of a fishery on the LOF determines whether participants
in that fishery are subject to certain provisions of the MMPA, such as
registration, observer coverage, and take reduction plan (TRP)
requirements.
DATES: Comments must be received by October 21, 2020.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on this document, identified by
NOAA-NMFS-2020-0054, by either of the following methods:
Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public comments via
the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal:
1. Go to www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-2020-0054;
2. Click the ``Comment Now!'' icon, complete the required fields;
3. Enter or attach your comments.
Mail: Submit written comments to Chief, Marine Mammal and Sea
Turtle Conservation Division, Office of Protected Resources, NMFS, 1315
East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910.
Instructions: Comments sent by any other method, to any other
address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period,
may not be considered by NMFS. All comments received are a part of the
public record and will generally be posted for public viewing on
www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying
information (e.g., name, address, etc.), confidential business
information, or otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily
by the sender will be publicly accessible. NMFS will accept anonymous
comments (enter N/A in the required fields if you wish to remain
anonymous).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jaclyn Taylor, Office of Protected
Resources, 301-427-8402; Allison Rosner, Greater Atlantic Region, 978-
281-9328; Jessica Powell, Southeast Region, 727-824-5312; Dan Lawson,
West Coast Region, 206-526-4740; Suzie Teerlink, Alaska Region, 907-
586-7240; Diana Kramer, Pacific Islands Region, 808-725-5167.
Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the hearing
impaired may call the Federal Information Relay Service at 1-800-877-
8339 between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Eastern time, Monday through Friday,
excluding Federal holidays.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
What is the list of fisheries?
Section 118 of the MMPA requires NMFS to place all U.S. commercial
fisheries into one of three categories based on the level of incidental
mortality and serious injury of marine mammals occurring in each
fishery (16 U.S.C. 1387(c)(1)). The classification of a fishery on the
LOF determines whether participants in that fishery may be required to
comply with certain provisions of the MMPA, such as registration,
observer coverage, and take reduction plan requirements. NMFS must
reexamine the LOF annually, considering new information in the Marine
Mammal Stock Assessment Reports (SARs) and other relevant sources, and
publish in the Federal Register any necessary changes to the LOF after
notice and opportunity for public comment (16 U.S.C. 1387 (c)(1)(C)).
How does NMFS determine in which category a fishery is placed?
The definitions for the fishery classification criteria can be
found in the implementing regulations for section 118 of the MMPA (50
CFR 229.2). The criteria are also summarized here.
Fishery Classification Criteria
The fishery classification criteria consist of a two-tiered, stock-
specific approach that first addresses the total impact of all
fisheries on each marine mammal stock and then addresses the impact of
individual fisheries on each stock. This approach is based on
consideration of the rate, in numbers of animals per year, of
incidental mortalities and serious injuries of marine mammals due to
commercial
[[Page 59259]]
fishing operations relative to the potential biological removal (PBR)
level for each marine mammal stock. The MMPA (16 U.S.C. 1362 (20))
defines the PBR level as the maximum number of animals, not including
natural mortalities, that may be removed from a marine mammal stock
while allowing that stock to reach or maintain its optimum sustainable
population (OSP). This definition can also be found in the implementing
regulations for section 118 of the MMPA (50 CFR 229.2).
Tier 1: Tier 1 considers the cumulative fishery mortality and
serious injury for a particular stock. If the total annual mortality
and serious injury of a marine mammal stock, across all fisheries, is
less than or equal to 10 percent of the PBR level of the stock, all
fisheries interacting with the stock will be placed in Category III
(unless those fisheries interact with other stock(s) for which total
annual mortality and serious injury is greater than 10 percent of PBR).
Otherwise, these fisheries are subject to the next tier (Tier 2) of
analysis to determine their classification.
Tier 2: Tier 2 considers fishery-specific mortality and serious
injury for a particular stock.
Category I: Annual mortality and serious injury of a stock in a
given fishery is greater than or equal to 50 percent of the PBR level
(i.e., frequent incidental mortality and serious injury of marine
mammals).
Category II: Annual mortality and serious injury of a stock in a
given fishery is greater than 1 percent and less than 50 percent of the
PBR level (i.e., occasional incidental mortality and serious injury of
marine mammals).
Category III: Annual mortality and serious injury of a stock in a
given fishery is less than or equal to 1 percent of the PBR level
(i.e., a remote likelihood of or no known incidental mortality and
serious injury of marine mammals).
Additional details regarding how the categories were determined are
provided in the preamble to the final rule implementing section 118 of
the MMPA (60 FR 45086; August 30, 1995).
Because fisheries are classified on a per-stock basis, a fishery
may qualify as one category for one marine mammal stock and another
category for a different marine mammal stock. A fishery is typically
classified on the LOF at its highest level of classification (e.g., a
fishery qualifying for Category III for one marine mammal stock and for
Category II for another marine mammal stock will be listed under
Category II). Stocks driving a fishery's classification are denoted
with a superscript ``1'' in Tables 1 and 2.
Other Criteria That May Be Considered
The tier analysis requires a minimum amount of data, and NMFS does
not have sufficient data to perform a tier analysis on certain
fisheries. Therefore, NMFS has classified certain fisheries by analogy
to other fisheries that use similar fishing techniques or gear that are
known to cause mortality or serious injury of marine mammals, or
according to factors discussed in the final LOF for 1996 (60 FR 67063;
December 28, 1995) and listed in the regulatory definition of a
Category II fishery. In the absence of reliable information indicating
the frequency of incidental mortality and serious injury of marine
mammals by a commercial fishery, NMFS will determine whether the
incidental mortality or serious injury is ``occasional'' by evaluating
other factors such as fishing techniques, gear used, methods used to
deter marine mammals, target species, seasons and areas fished,
qualitative data from logbooks or fishermen reports, stranding data,
and the species and distribution of marine mammals in the area, or at
the discretion of the Assistant Administrator for Fisheries (50 CFR
229.2).
Further, eligible commercial fisheries not specifically identified
on the LOF are deemed to be Category II fisheries until the next LOF is
published (50 CFR 229.2).
How does NMFS determine which species or stocks are included as
incidentally killed or injured in a fishery?
The LOF includes a list of marine mammal species and/or stocks
incidentally killed or injured in each commercial fishery. The list of
species and/or stocks incidentally killed or injured includes
``serious'' and ``non-serious'' documented injuries as described later
in the List of Species and/or Stocks Incidentally Killed or Injured in
the Pacific Ocean and List of Species and/or Stocks Incidentally Killed
or Injured in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean
sections. To determine which species or stocks are included as
incidentally killed or injured in a fishery, NMFS annually reviews the
information presented in the current SARs and injury determination
reports. SARs are brief reports summarizing the status of each stock of
marine mammals occurring in waters under U.S. jurisdiction, including
information on the identity and geographic range of the stock,
population statistics related to abundance, trend, and annual
productivity, notable habitat concerns, and estimates of human-caused
mortality and serious injury (M/SI) by source. The SARs are based upon
the best available scientific information and provide the most current
and inclusive information on each stock's PBR level and level of
interaction with commercial fishing operations. The best available
scientific information used in the SARs and reviewed for the 2021 LOF
generally summarizes data from 2013-2017. NMFS also reviews other
sources of new information, including injury determination reports,
bycatch estimation reports, observer data, logbook data, stranding
data, disentanglement network data, fishermen self-reports (i.e., MMPA
mortality/injury reports), and anecdotal reports from that time period.
In some cases, more recent information may be available and used in the
LOF.
For fisheries with observer coverage, species or stocks are
generally removed from the list of marine mammal species and/or stocks
incidentally killed or injured if no interactions are documented in the
5-year timeframe summarized in that year's LOF. For fisheries with no
observer coverage and for observed fisheries with evidence indicating
that undocumented interactions may be occurring (e.g., fishery has low
observer coverage and stranding network data include evidence of
fisheries interactions that cannot be attributed to a specific fishery)
species and stocks may be retained for longer than 5 years. For these
fisheries, NMFS will review the other sources of information listed
above and use its discretion to decide when it is appropriate to remove
a species or stock.
Where does NMFS obtain information on the level of observer coverage in
a fishery on the LOF?
The best available information on the level of observer coverage
and the spatial and temporal distribution of observed marine mammal
interactions is presented in the SARs. Data obtained from the observer
program and observer coverage levels are important tools in estimating
the level of marine mammal mortality and serious injury in commercial
fishing operations. Starting with the 2005 SARs, each Pacific and
Alaska SAR includes an appendix with detailed descriptions of each
Category I and II fishery on the LOF, including the observer coverage
in those fisheries. For Atlantic fisheries, this information can be
found in the LOF Fishery Fact Sheets. The SARs do not provide detailed
information on observer
[[Page 59260]]
coverage in Category III fisheries because, under the MMPA, Category
III fisheries are not required to accommodate observers aboard vessels
due to the remote likelihood of mortality and serious injury of marine
mammals. Fishery information presented in the SARs' appendices and
other resources referenced during the tier analysis may include: Level
of observer coverage; target species; levels of fishing effort; spatial
and temporal distribution of fishing effort; characteristics of fishing
gear and operations; management and regulations; and interactions with
marine mammals. Copies of the SARs are available on the NMFS Office of
Protected Resources website at: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-protection/marine-mammal-stock-assessment-reports-region. Information on observer coverage levels in Category I,
II, and III fisheries can be found in the fishery fact sheets on the
NMFS Office of Protected Resources' website: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-protection/list-fisheries-summary-tables. Additional information on observer programs
in commercial fisheries can be found on the NMFS National Observer
Program's website: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/fisheries-observers/national-observer-program.
How do I find out if a specific fishery is in Category I, II, or III?
The LOF includes three tables that list all U.S. commercial
fisheries by Category. Table 1 lists all of the commercial fisheries in
the Pacific Ocean (including Alaska); Table 2 lists all of the
commercial fisheries in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and
Caribbean; and Table 3 lists all U.S. authorized commercial fisheries
on the high seas. A fourth table, Table 4, lists all commercial
fisheries managed under applicable TRPs or take reduction teams (TRT).
Are high seas fisheries included on the LOF?
Beginning with the 2009 LOF, NMFS includes high seas fisheries in
Table 3 of the LOF, along with the number of valid High Seas Fishing
Compliance Act (HSFCA) permits in each fishery. As of 2004, NMFS issues
HSFCA permits only for high seas fisheries analyzed in accordance with
the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Endangered Species
Act (ESA). The authorized high seas fisheries are broad in scope and
encompass multiple specific fisheries identified by gear type. For the
purposes of the LOF, the high seas fisheries are subdivided based on
gear type (e.g., trawl, longline, purse seine, gillnet, troll, etc.) to
provide more detail on composition of effort within these fisheries.
Many fisheries operate in both U.S. waters and on the high seas,
creating some overlap between the fisheries listed in Tables 1 and 2
and those in Table 3. In these cases, the high seas component of the
fishery is not considered a separate fishery, but an extension of a
fishery operating within U.S. waters (listed in Table 1 or 2). NMFS
designates those fisheries in Tables 1, 2, and 3 with an asterisk (*)
after the fishery's name. The number of HSFCA permits listed in Table 3
for the high seas components of these fisheries operating in U.S.
waters does not necessarily represent additional effort that is not
accounted for in Tables 1 and 2. Many vessels/participants holding
HSFCA permits also fish within U.S. waters and are included in the
number of vessels and participants operating within those fisheries in
Tables 1 and 2.
HSFCA permits are valid for 5 years, during which time Fishery
Management Plans (FMPs) can change. Therefore, some vessels/
participants may possess valid HSFCA permits without the ability to
fish under the permit because it was issued for a gear type that is no
longer authorized under the most current FMP. For this reason, the
number of HSFCA permits displayed in Table 3 is likely higher than the
actual U.S. fishing effort on the high seas. For more information on
how NMFS classifies high seas fisheries on the LOF, see the preamble
text in the final 2009 LOF (73 FR 73032; December 1, 2008). Additional
information about HSFCA permits can be found at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/permit/high-seas-fishing-permits.
Where can I find specific information on fisheries listed on the LOF?
Starting with the 2010 LOF, NMFS developed summary documents, or
fishery fact sheets, for each Category I and II fishery on the LOF.
These fishery fact sheets provide the full history of each Category I
and II fishery, including: When the fishery was added to the LOF; the
basis for the fishery's initial classification; classification changes
to the fishery; changes to the list of species and/or stocks
incidentally killed or injured in the fishery; fishery gear and methods
used; observer coverage levels; fishery management and regulation; and
applicable TRPs or TRTs, if any. These fishery fact sheets are updated
after each final LOF and can be found under ``How Do I Find Out if a
Specific Fishery is in Category I, II, or III?'' on the NMFS Office of
Protected Resources' website: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-protection/marine-mammal-protection-act-list-fisheries,
linked to the ``List of Fisheries Summary'' table. NMFS is developing
similar fishery fact sheets for each Category III fishery on the LOF.
However, due to the large number of Category III fisheries on the LOF
and the lack of accessible and detailed information on many of these
fisheries, the development of these fishery fact sheets is taking
significant time to complete. NMFS began posting Category III fishery
fact sheets online with the LOF for 2016.
Am I required to register under the MMPA?
Owners of vessels or gear engaging in a Category I or II fishery
are required under the MMPA (16 U.S.C. 1387(c)(2)), as described in 50
CFR 229.4, to register with NMFS and obtain a marine mammal
authorization to lawfully take non-endangered and non-threatened marine
mammals incidental to commercial fishing operations. Owners of vessels
or gear engaged in a Category III fishery are not required to register
with NMFS or obtain a marine mammal authorization.
How do I register, renew and receive my Marine Mammal Authorization
Program authorization certificate?
NMFS has integrated the MMPA registration process, implemented
through the Marine Mammal Authorization Program (MMAP), with existing
state and Federal fishery license, registration, or permit systems for
Category I and II fisheries on the LOF. Participants in these fisheries
are automatically registered under the MMAP and are not required to
submit registration or renewal materials.
In the Pacific Islands, West Coast, and Alaska regions, NMFS will
issue vessel or gear owners an authorization certificate via U.S. mail
or with their state or Federal license or permit at the time of
issuance or renewal. In the Greater Atlantic and Southeast Regions,
NMFS will issue vessel or gear owners an authorization certificate via
U.S. mail automatically at the beginning of each calendar year.
Vessel or gear owners who participate in fisheries in these regions
and have not received authorization certificates by the beginning of
the calendar year, or with renewed fishing licenses, must contact the
appropriate NMFS Regional Office (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION).
Authorization certificates may also be obtained by visiting the MMAP
website https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-
protection/
[[Page 59261]]
marine-mammal-authorization-program#obtaining-a-marine-mammal-
authorization-certificate.
The authorization certificate, or a copy, must be on board the
vessel while it is operating in a Category I or II fishery, or for non-
vessel fisheries, in the possession of the person in charge of the
fishing operation (50 CFR 229.4(e)). Although efforts are made to limit
the issuance of authorization certificates to only those vessel or gear
owners that participate in Category I or II fisheries, not all state
and Federal license or permit systems distinguish between fisheries as
classified by the LOF. Therefore, some vessel or gear owners in
Category III fisheries may receive authorization certificates even
though they are not required for Category III fisheries.
Individuals fishing in Category I and II fisheries for which no
state or Federal license or permit is required must register with NMFS
by contacting their appropriate Regional Office (see ADDRESSES).
Am I required to submit reports when I kill or injure a marine mammal
during the course of commercial fishing operations?
In accordance with the MMPA (16 U.S.C. 1387(e)) and 50 CFR 229.6,
any vessel owner or operator, or gear owner or operator (in the case of
non-vessel fisheries), participating in a fishery listed on the LOF
must report to NMFS all incidental mortalities and injuries of marine
mammals that occur during commercial fishing operations, regardless of
the category in which the fishery is placed (I, II, or III) within 48
hours of the end of the fishing trip or, in the case of non-vessel
fisheries, fishing activity. ``Injury'' is defined in 50 CFR 229.2 as a
wound or other physical harm. In addition, any animal that ingests
fishing gear or any animal that is released with fishing gear
entangling, trailing, or perforating any part of the body is considered
injured, regardless of the presence of any wound or other evidence of
injury, and must be reported.
Mortality/injury reporting forms and instructions for submitting
forms to NMFS can be found at: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-protection/marine-mammal-authorization-program#reporting-a-death-or-injury-of-a-marine-mammal-during-commercial-fishing-operations or by contacting the appropriate regional office (see FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION). Forms may be submitted via any of the following
means: (1) Online using the electronic form; (2) emailed as an
attachment to [email protected]; (3) faxed to the NMFS Office of
Protected Resources at 301-713-0376; or (4) mailed to the NMFS Office
of Protected Resources (mailing address is provided on the postage-paid
form that can be printed from the web address listed above). Reporting
requirements and procedures are found in 50 CFR 229.6.
Am I required to take an observer aboard my vessel?
Individuals participating in a Category I or II fishery are
required to accommodate an observer aboard their vessel(s) upon request
from NMFS. MMPA section 118 states that the Secretary is not required
to place an observer on a vessel if the facilities for quartering an
observer or performing observer functions are so inadequate or unsafe
that the health or safety of the observer or the safe operation of the
vessel would be jeopardized; thereby authorizing the exemption of
vessels too small to safely accommodate an observer from this
requirement. However, U.S. Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean, or Gulf of Mexico
large pelagics longline vessels operating in special areas designated
by the Pelagic Longline Take Reduction Plan implementing regulations
(50 CFR 229.36(d)) will not be exempted from observer requirements,
regardless of their size. Observer requirements are found in 50 CFR
229.7.
Am I required to comply with any marine mammal TRP regulations?
Table 4 provides a list of fisheries affected by TRPs and TRTs. TRP
regulations are found at 50 CFR 229.30 through 229.37. A description of
each TRT and copies of each TRP can be found at: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-protection/marine-mammal-take-reduction-plans-and-teams. It is the responsibility of fishery
participants to comply with applicable take reduction regulations.
Where can I find more information about the LOF and the MMAP?
Information regarding the LOF and the MMAP, including registration
procedures and forms; current and past LOFs; descriptions of each
Category I and II fishery and some Category III fisheries; observer
requirements; and marine mammal mortality/injury reporting forms and
submittal procedures; may be obtained at: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-protection/marine-mammal-protection-act-list-fisheries, or from any NMFS Regional Office at the
addresses listed below:
NMFS, Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, 55 Great Republic
Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930-2298, Attn: Allison Rosner;
NMFS, Southeast Region, 263 13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL
33701, Attn: Jessica Powell;
NMFS, West Coast Region, Long Beach Office, 501 W. Ocean Blvd.,
Suite 4200, Long Beach, CA 90802-4213, Attn: Dan Lawson;
NMFS, Alaska Region, Protected Resources, P.O. Box 22668, 709 West
9th Street, Juneau, AK 99802, Attn: Suzie Teerlink; or
NMFS, Pacific Islands Regional Office, Protected Resources
Division, 1845 Wasp Blvd., Building 176, Honolulu, HI 96818, Attn:
Diana Kramer.
Sources of Information Reviewed for the 2021 LOF
NMFS reviewed the marine mammal incidental mortality and serious
injury information presented in the SARs for all fisheries to determine
whether changes in fishery classification are warranted. The SARs are
based on the best scientific information available at the time of
preparation, including the level of mortality and serious injury of
marine mammals that occurs incidental to commercial fishery operations
and the PBR levels of marine mammal stocks. The information contained
in the SARs is reviewed by regional Scientific Review Groups (SRGs)
representing Alaska, the Pacific (including Hawaii), and the U.S.
Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean. The SRGs were established by
the MMPA to review the science that informs the SARs, and to advise
NMFS on marine mammal population status, trends, and stock structure,
uncertainties in the science, research needs, and other issues.
NMFS also reviewed other sources of new information, including
marine mammal stranding and entanglement data, observer program data,
fishermen self-reports, reports to the SRGs, conference papers, FMPs,
and ESA documents.
The LOF for 2021 was based on, among other things, stranding data;
fishermen self-reports; and SARs, primarily the 2019 SARs, which are
based on data from 2013-2017. The SARs referenced in this LOF include:
2016 (82 FR 29039; June 27, 2017), 2018 (84 FR 28489; June 19, 2019),
and 2019 (84 FR 65353; November 27, 2019). The SARs are available at:
https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-protection/marine-mammal-stock-assessment-reports-region.
[[Page 59262]]
Summary of Changes to the LOF for 2021
The following summarizes changes to the LOF for 2021, including the
classification of fisheries, fisheries listed, the estimated number of
vessels/persons in a particular fishery, and the species and/or stocks
that are incidentally killed or injured in a particular fishery. NMFS
re-classifies one fishery in the LOF for 2021. NMFS also makes changes
to the estimated number of vessels/persons and list of species and/or
stocks killed or injured in certain fisheries. The classifications and
definitions of U.S. commercial fisheries for 2021 are identical to
those provided in the LOF for 2020 with the changes discussed below.
State and regional abbreviations used in the following paragraphs
include: AK (Alaska), CA (California), HI (Hawaii), OR (Oregon), WA
(Washington), and WNA (Western North Atlantic).
Commercial Fisheries in the Pacific Ocean
Classification of Fisheries
NMFS proposes to reclassify the AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands
Pacific cod pot fishery from a Category III to a Category II fishery
based on an observed entanglement of a western North Pacific humpback
whale in the Pacific cod pot fishery in 2017 (Delean et al., 2020).
This entanglement was determined to be a serious injury and resulted in
a mean annual estimated M/SI level of 0.2 (6.7 percent of PBR) for AK
Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands Pacific cod pot fishery. Therefore,
because the estimated M/SI is between 1 and 50 percent of PBR (Tier 2
analysis), NMFS proposes to reclassify the AK Bering Sea, Aleutian
Islands Pacific cod pot fishery from a Category III to a Category II
fishery.
Fishery Name and Organizational Changes
NMFS proposes to add a superscript ``1'' to the CA/OR/WA stock of
minke whale indicating it is driving the Category II classification of
the CA thresher shark/swordfish drift gillnet (>/=14 in mesh) fishery.
The CA/OR/WA minke whale mean annual estimated M/SI is 0.1 whales (2.86
percent of PBR) for the CA thresher shark/swordfish drift gillnet (>/
=14 in mesh) fishery (Carretta, 2020) and warrants a Category II
classification (M/SI is between 1 and 50 percent of PBR) for this
fishery.
Number of Vessels/Persons
NMFS proposes to update the estimated number of vessels/persons in
the Pacific Ocean (Table 1) as follows:
Category I
HI deep-set longline fishery from 145 to 143 vessels/
persons;
Category II
HI shallow-set longline fishery from 18 to 11 vessels/
persons;
American Samoa longline fishery from 15 to 13 vessels/
persons; and
Category III
American Samoa bottomfish handline fishery from fewer than
30 to fewer than 20 vessels/persons.
List of Species and/or Stocks Incidentally Killed or Injured in the
Pacific Ocean
NMFS proposed to add the Aleutian Islands stock of harbor seal to
the list of species/stocks incidentally killed or injured in the
Category II AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands rockfish trawl fishery
based on an observed mortality in 2014.
NMFS proposes to add three stocks to the list of species/stocks
incidentally killed or injured in the Category II AK Bering Sea,
Aleutian Islands Pacific cod pot fishery: (1) Bristol Bay stock of
harbor seal based on two observed mortalities in 2014, (2) Western
North Pacific stock of humpback whale, and (3) Central North Pacific
stock of humpback whale. In 2017, a humpback whale was observed
entangled in the State-managed parallel Pacific cod pot fishery. This
entanglement occurred in an area of humpback whale stock overlap and
consistent with the current Guidelines for Assessing Marine Mammal
Stocks (GAMMS), the serious injury was assigned to both the Western
North Pacific and Central North Pacific stocks (Delean et al., 2020).
NMFS proposes to add the both Eastern North Pacific Gulf of Alaska,
Aleutian Islands, and Bering Sea Transient stock, and West Coast
Transient stock, of killer whales to the list of species/stocks
incidentally killed or injured in the Category II CA Dungeness crab pot
fishery. In 2015, a dead killer whale was reported entangled in CA
Dungeness crab pot gear in California. Genetic analysis indicated the
animal was a transient whale from either the Eastern North Pacific Gulf
of Alaska, Aleutian Islands, and Bering Sea Transient stock, or the
West Coast Transient stock (Delean et al., 2020). In 2016, a West Coast
transient killer whale was reported entangled in CA Dungeness crab pot
gear before self-releasing without serious injury (Delean et al.,
2020).
NMFS proposes to add two stocks to the list of species/stocks
incidentally killed or injured in the Category III CA squid purse seine
fishery: (1) CA/OR/WA stock of Risso's dolphin and (2) U.S. stock of
California sea lion. In 2020, NMFS received video footage taken in 2018
depicting evidence of Risso's dolphins and California sea lions
incidentally captured in a squid purse seine operating off the coast of
California.
NMFS proposes to add the Cook Inlet stock of harbor seal to the
list of species/stocks incidentally killed or injured in the Category
III AK Gulf of Alaska halibut longline fishery based on an observed
mortality in 2015.
NMFS proposes to add the Aleutian Islands stock of harbor seal to
the list of species/stocks incidentally killed or injured in the
Category III AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands Atka mackerel trawl
fishery based on an observed mortality in 2016.
NMFS proposes to add the U.S. stock of California sea lion to the
list of species/stocks incidentally killed or injured in the Category
III WA/OR/CA shrimp trawl fishery. In 2017, a California sea lion was
incidentally captured and released (non-serious injury) from a
ridgeback prawn trawl net off the coast of California (Carretta et al.,
2020).
NMFS proposes to add two stocks to the list of species/stocks
incidentally killed or injured in the Category III WA/OR/CA groundfish
trawl fishery: (1) California breeding stock of northern elephant seal
and (2) CA/OR/WA stock of northern right whale dolphin. Six northern
elephant seal mortalities occurred off the coast of California, Oregon
and Washington, four in 2015 and two in 2016 (Carretta et al., 2020).
In 2016, northern right whale dolphin was incidentally killed in a
catcher processor midwater trawl gear off the coast of Oregon (Carretta
et al., 2020).
NMFS proposes to add to the Western North Pacific stock of humpback
whale to the list of species/stocks incidentally killed or injured in
the Category III AK/WA/OR/CA commercial passenger fishing vessel
fishery for a ship strike that occurred in 2017. NMFS proposes to
remove three stocks from the list of species/stocks incidentally killed
or injured in the Category II AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands pollock
trawl fishery: (1) Alaska stock of ringed seal, (2) Central North
Pacific stock of humpback whale and (3) Western North Pacific stock of
humpback whale based on no recently observed mortalities or injuries.
NMFS proposes to remove the Alaska stock of ringed seal from the
list of species/stocks incidentally killed or injured in the Category
II AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands Pacific cod
[[Page 59263]]
longline fishery based on no recently observed mortalities or injuries.
NMFS proposes to remove the Western U.S. stock of Steller sea lion
from the list of species/stocks incidentally killed or injured in the
Category II AK Gulf of Alaska sablefish longline fishery based on no
recently observed mortalities or injuries.
NMFS proposes to remove the Alaska stock of ringed seal from the
list of species/stocks incidentally killed or injured in the Category
III AK Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands Pacific cod trawl based on no
recently observed mortalities or injuries.
NMFS proposes to remove the Alaska stock of harbor seal from the
list of species/stocks incidentally killed or injured in the Category
III AK Gulf of Alaska flatfish trawl fishery based on no recently
observed mortalities or injuries.
Commercial Fisheries in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and
Caribbean
Fishery Name and Organizational Changes and Clarification
NMFS proposes to add a superscript ``1'' to the following four
stocks to indicate they are driving the Category II classification of
the Northeast trawl fishery: (1) Western North Atlantic stock of
Risso's dolphin, (2) Western North Atlantic stock of long-finned pilot
whale, (3) Western North Atlantic offshore stock of bottlenose dolphin,
and (4) Western North Atlantic stock of gray seal. The Risso's dolphin
mean annual mortality in the Northeast trawl fishery is an estimated
4.2 animals, which represents 1.4 percent of the stock's PBR (303). The
long-finned pilot whale mean annual mortality in this fishery is an
estimated 15 animals, which represents 4.9 percent of the stock's PBR
(306). The bottlenose dolphin mean annual mortality is an estimated
10.4 animals, which represents 2 percent of the stock's PBR (519). The
gray seal mean annual mortality is an estimated 16 animals, which
represents 1.2 percent of the stock's PBR (1,389). Observer coverage
for this fishery from 2013-2017 was 15, 17, 19, 12 and 16 percent,
respectively
NMFS proposes to clarify the fishery description of the Category II
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico shrimp trawl fishery. NMFS
clarifies that this fishery targets shrimp species with various gear
types, but mainly utilizes skimmer or otter trawls. These gear types
likely entangle marine mammals, particularly bottlenose dolphins, in
very similar ways. The common entangling mechanism of these gear types
are the ``lazy'' or ``easy'' line.
NMFS proposes to clarify the fishery description of the Category I
Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico large pelagics longline
fishery. NMFS clarifies that the fishery does not target bluefin tuna,
shortfin mako sharks and other shark species.
NMFS clarifies its response to Comment 14 in the 2020 Final LOF (85
FR 21079; April 16, 2020). In Comment #14, Maine Lobstermen's
Association (MLA) notes ``there has been only one right whale entangled
in Maine gear in April 2002, and the entanglement was determined to be
a non-serious injury. There are two additional non-serious injury
entanglement cases that involved Maine lobster gear. However, Maine
lobster gear was not the primary entangling gear in these cases.'' In
the 2020 Final LOF, NMFS' response in part to this comment stated: ``We
recognize that there has only been one confirmed mortality (in 2012) in
American lobster gear in the past decade. All other documented lobster
interactions were determined to result in non-serious injuries.
However, there have been a number of entanglements for which
interventions occurred because these entanglements were determined to
be resulting in serious injuries (Henry et al., 2019).''
NMFS clarifies part of the response to Comment #14 to state: We
recognize there has been only one confirmed mortality (in 2012) in the
past decade in U.S. Northern inshore/nearshore trap/pot gear which
could be gear from the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic American lobster trap/pot
fishery or the Atlantic mixed species trap/pot fishery. All other
documented lobster interactions were determined to result in non-
serious injuries. However, there have been a number of entanglements
for which interventions occurred because these entanglements were
determined to be resulting in serious injuries (Henry et al., 2019).
Number of Vessels/Persons
NMFS proposes updates to the estimated number of vessels/persons in
the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean (Table 2) as follows:
Category I
Mid-Atlantic gillnet fishery from 3,950 to 4,020 vessels/
person;
Northeast sink gillnet fishery from 3,163 to 4,072
vessels/persons;
Category II
Chesapeake Bay inshore gillnet fishery from 248 to 265
vessels/persons;
Northeast bottom trawl fishery from 2,238 to 968 vessels/
persons;
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico shrimp trawl
fishery from 4,950 to 10,824 vessels/persons;
Atlantic mixed species trap/pot fishery from 3,332 to
3,493 vessels/persons;
Mid-Atlantic menhaden purse seine fishery from 19 to 17
vessels/persons;
Virginia pound net fishery from 26 to 20 vessels/persons;
Category III
Caribbean gillnet fishery from >991 to 127 vessels/
persons;
Caribbean mixed species trap/pot fishery from >501 to 154
vessels/persons;
Caribbean spiny lobster trap/pot fishery from >197 to 40
vessels/persons; and
Caribbean haul/beach seine fishery from 15 to 38 vessels/
person.
NMFS notes there is variability in the estimated number of vessels/
persons in the Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico shrimp trawl
fishery. This variability is due to multiple permitting agencies,
differences in fishery management, and artifacts with available data
sets. A complete explanation of the variability is available in the
Environmental Impact Statement to Reduce the Incidental Bycatch and
Mortality of Sea Turtles in the Southeastern U.S. Shrimp Fisheries
(November 4, 2019).
List of Species and/or Stocks Incidentally Killed or Injured in the
Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean
NMFS proposes to add the Mobile Bay, Bonsecour Bay stock of
bottlenose dolphin to the list of species/stocks incidentally killed or
injured in the Category II Gulf of Mexico gillnet fishery based on one
dead, stranded dolphin with gillnet lesions on the rostrum and a sliced
ventrum in 2016. Dolphins entangled in gillnet gear often present with
diagnostic lesions when stranded that can be identified by trained
personnel (Kuiken, 1996, Read and Murray, 2000, Moore and Barco, 2013).
In addition, gillnet fishermen will sometimes make a longitudinal slit
along the ventral surface of the abdomen before discarding the carcass
to reduce floating (Read and Murray, 2000). The Gulf of Mexico gillnet
fishery is the only gillnet fishery in the Gulf of Mexico.
NMFS proposes to add the Western North Atlantic offshore stock of
bottlenose dolphin to the list of species/stocks incidentally killed or
injured in the Category II mid-Atlantic mid-water trawl (including pair
trawl) fishery based on a self-reported mortality in 2016.
[[Page 59264]]
NMFS proposes to add the Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands stock
of bottlenose dolphin to the list of species/stocks incidentally killed
or injured in Category III Caribbean mixed species trap/pot fishery. In
2014, one dolphin was entangled in trap/pot line. The animal was
rescued and subsequently died.
Following consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
NMFS proposes to add the Antillean subspecies (Puerto Rico stock) of
West Indian manatee to the list of species/stocks incidentally killed
or injured in Category III Caribbean haul/beach seine fishery based on
two documented entanglements of manatees, one in 2009 and one in 2018.
NMFS proposes to remove the Western North Atlantic offshore stock
of bottlenose dolphin from the list of species/stocks incidentally
killed or injured in the Category III Gulf of Maine, U.S. mid-Atlantic
tuna, shark, swordfish hook-and line/harpoon fishery. From 2013 through
2017, there were no reported or observed mortalities or injuries in
this fishery (Hayes et al., in review).
Commercial Fisheries on the High Seas
Number of Vessels/Persons
NMFS proposes updates to the estimated number of HSFCA permits for
high seas fisheries (Table 3) as follows:
Category I
Atlantic highly migratory species longline fishery from 53
to 45 HSFCA permits;
Western Pacific pelagic longline (HI deep-set component)
fishery from 145 to 143 HSFCA permits;
Category II
South Pacific tuna purse seine fishery from 33 to 26 HSFCA
permits;
South Pacific tuna longline fishery from 2 to 3 HSFCA
permits;
Western Pacific pelagic longline (HI shallow-set
component) fishery from 18 to 11 HSFCA permits;
Atlantic highly migratory species handline/pole and line
fishery from 2 to 1 HSFCA permits;
Pacific highly migratory species handline/pole and line
fishery from 41 to 43 HSFCA permits;
South Pacific albacore troll handline/pole and line
fishery from 11 to 10 HSFCA permits;
South Pacific albacore troll fishery from 17 to 18 HSFCA
permits;
Western Pacific pelagic troll fishery from 5 to 4 HSFCA
permits;
Category III
Northwest Atlantic bottom longline fishery from 3 to 2
HSFCA permits;
Pacific highly migratory species longline fishery from 108
to 105 HSFCA permits; and
Pacific highly migratory species troll fishery from 119 to
111 HSFCA permits.
List of Fisheries
The following tables set forth the list of U.S. commercial
fisheries according to their classification under section 118 of the
MMPA. Table 1 lists commercial fisheries in the Pacific Ocean
(including Alaska), Table 2 lists commercial fisheries in the Atlantic
Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean, Table 3 lists commercial
fisheries on the high seas, and Table 4 lists fisheries affected by
TRPs or TRTs.
In Tables 1 and 2, the estimated number of vessels or persons
participating in fisheries operating within U.S. waters is expressed in
terms of the number of active participants in the fishery, when
possible. If this information is not available, the estimated number of
vessels or persons licensed for a particular fishery is provided. If no
recent information is available on the number of participants, vessels,
or persons licensed in a fishery, then the number from the most recent
LOF is used for the estimated number of vessels or persons in the
fishery. NMFS acknowledges that, in some cases, these estimates may be
inflations of actual effort. For example, the State of Hawaii does not
issue fishery-specific licenses, and the number of participants
reported in the LOF represents the number of commercial marine license
holders who reported using a particular fishing gear type/method at
least once in a given year, without considering how many times the gear
was used. For these fisheries, effort by a single participant is
counted the same whether the fisherman used the gear only once or every
day. In the Mid-Atlantic and New England fisheries, the numbers
represent the potential effort for each fishery, given the multiple
gear types for which several state permits may allow. Changes made to
Mid-Atlantic and New England fishery participants will not affect
observer coverage or bycatch estimates, as observer coverage and
bycatch estimates are based on vessel trip reports and landings data.
Tables 1 and 2 serve to provide a description of the fishery's
potential effort (state and Federal). If NMFS is able to extract more
accurate information on the gear types used by state permit holders in
the future, the numbers will be updated to reflect this change. For
additional information on fishing effort in fisheries found on Table 1
or 2, contact the relevant regional office (contact information
included above in Where can I find more information about the LOF and
the MMAP? subsection).
For high seas fisheries, Table 3 lists the number of valid HSFCA
permits currently held. Although this likely overestimates the number
of active participants in many of these fisheries, the number of valid
HSFCA permits is the most reliable data on the potential effort in high
seas fisheries at this time. As noted previously in this LOF, the
number of HSFCA permits listed in Table 3 for the high seas components
of fisheries that also operate within U.S. waters does not necessarily
represent additional effort that is not accounted for in Tables 1 and
2. Many vessels holding HSFCA permits also fish within U.S. waters and
are included in the number of vessels and participants operating within
those fisheries in Tables 1 and 2.
Tables 1, 2, and 3 also list the marine mammal species and/or
stocks incidentally killed or injured (seriously or non-seriously) in
each fishery based on SARs, injury determination reports, bycatch
estimation reports, observer data, logbook data, stranding data,
disentanglement network data, fishermen self-reports (i.e., MMAP
reports), and anecdotal reports. The best available scientific
information included in these reports is based on data through 2017.
This list includes all species and/or stocks known to be killed or
injured in a given fishery, but also includes species and/or stocks for
which there are anecdotal records of a mortality or injury.
Additionally, species identified by logbook entries, stranding data, or
fishermen self-reports (i.e., MMAP reports) may not be verified. In
Tables 1 and 2, NMFS has designated those species/stocks driving a
fishery's classification (i.e., the fishery is classified based on
mortalities and serious injuries of a marine mammal stock that are
greater than or equal to 50 percent (Category I), or greater than 1
percent and less than 50 percent (Category II), of a stock's PBR) by a
``1'' after the stock's name.
In Tables 1 and 2, there are several fisheries classified as
Category II that have no recent documented mortalities or serious
injuries of marine mammals, or fisheries that did not result in a
mortality or serious injury rate greater than 1 percent of a stock's
PBR level based on known interactions. NMFS has classified these
fisheries by analogy to other Category I or II fisheries that use
similar fishing techniques or gear that
[[Page 59265]]
are known to cause mortality or serious injury of marine mammals, as
discussed in the final LOF for 1996 (60 FR 67063; December 28, 1995),
and according to factors listed in the definition of a ``Category II
fishery'' in 50 CFR 229.2 (i.e., fishing techniques, gear types,
methods used to deter marine mammals, target species, seasons and areas
fished, qualitative data from logbooks or fishermen reports, stranding
data, and the species and distribution of marine mammals in the area).
NMFS has designated those fisheries listed by analogy in Tables 1 and 2
by adding a ``2'' after the fishery's name.
There are several fisheries in Tables 1, 2, and 3 in which a
portion of the fishing vessels cross the exclusive economic zone (EEZ)
boundary and therefore operate both within U.S. waters and on the high
seas. These fisheries, though listed separately on Table 1 or 2 and
Table 3, are considered the same fisheries on either side of the EEZ
boundary. NMFS has designated those fisheries in each table with an
asterisk (*) after the fishery's name.
Table 1--List of Fisheries--Commercial Fisheries in the Pacific Ocean
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Estimated Marine mammal species
number of and/or stocks
Fishery description vessels/ incidentally killed or
persons injured
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Category I
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Longline/Set Line Fisheries:
HI deep-set longline * 143 Bottlenose dolphin, HI
[supcaret]. Pelagic.
False killer whale, HI
Pelagic.\1\
False killer whale, MHI
Insular.\1\
False killer whale,
NWHI.
Humpback whale. Central
North Pacific.
Kogia spp. (Pygmy or
dwarf sperm whale),
HI.
Pygmy killer whale, HI.
Risso's dolphin, HI.
Rough-toothed dolphin,
HI.
Short-finned pilot
whale, HI.
Striped dolphin, HI.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Category II
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gillnet Fisheries:
CA thresher shark/swordfish 14 Bottlenose dolphin, CA/
drift gillnet (>=14 in OR/WA offshore.
mesh) *. California sea lion,
U.S.
Dall's porpoise, CA/OR/
WA.
Gray whale, Eastern
North Pacific.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/
WA.
Long-beaked common
dolphin, CA.
Minke whale, CA/OR/
WA.\1\
Northern elephant seal,
CA breeding.
Northern right-whale
dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Pacific white-sided
dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Risso's dolphin, CA/OR/
WA.
Short-beaked common
dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Short-finned pilot
whale, CA/OR/WA.\1\
Sperm Whale, CA/OR/
WA.\1\
CA halibut/white seabass 37 California sea lion,
and other species set U.S.
gillnet (>3.5 in mesh). Gray whale, Eastern
North Pacific.
Harbor seal, CA.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/
WA.\1\
Long-beaked common
dolphin, CA.
Northern elephant seal,
CA breeding.
Sea otter, CA.
Short-beaked common
dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
CA yellowtail, barracuda, 22 California sea lion,
and white seabass drift U.S.
gillnet (mesh size >=3.5 Long-beaked common
in and <14 in) \2\. dolphin, CA.
Short-beaked common
dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
AK Bristol Bay salmon drift 1,862 Beluga whale, Bristol
gillnet \2\. Bay.
Gray whale, Eastern
North Pacific.
Harbor seal, Bering
Sea.
Northern fur seal,
Eastern Pacific.
Pacific white-sided
dolphin, North
Pacific.
Spotted seal, AK.
Steller sea lion,
Western U.S.
AK Bristol Bay salmon set 979 Beluga whale, Bristol
gillnet \2\. Bay.
Gray whale, Eastern
North Pacific.
Harbor seal, Bering
Sea.
Northern fur seal,
Eastern Pacific.
Spotted seal, AK.
AK Kodiak salmon set 188 Harbor porpoise,
gillnet. GOA.\1\
Harbor seal, GOA.
Humpback whale, Central
North Pacific.
[[Page 59266]]
Humpback whale, Western
North Pacific.
Sea otter, Southwest
AK.
Steller sea lion,
Western U.S.
AK Cook Inlet salmon set 736 Beluga whale, Cook
gillnet. Inlet.
Dall's porpoise, AK.
Harbor porpoise, GOA.
Harbor seal, GOA.
Humpback whale, Central
North Pacific.\1\
Sea otter, South
central AK.
Steller sea lion,
Western U.S.
AK Cook Inlet salmon drift 569 Beluga whale, Cook
gillnet. Inlet.
Dall's porpoise, AK.
Harbor porpoise,
GOA.\1\
Harbor seal, GOA.
Steller sea lion,
Western U.S.
AK Peninsula/Aleutian 162 Dall's porpoise, AK.
Islands salmon drift Harbor porpoise, GOA.
gillnet \2\.
Harbor seal, GOA.
Northern fur seal,
Eastern Pacific.
AK Peninsula/Aleutian 113 Harbor porpoise, Bering
Islands salmon set gillnet Sea.
\2\. Northern sea otter,
Southwest AK.
Steller sea lion,
Western U.S.
AK Prince William Sound 537 Dall's porpoise, AK.
salmon drift gillnet. Harbor porpoise,
GOA.\1\
Harbor seal, GOA.
Northern fur seal,
Eastern Pacific.
Pacific white-sided
dolphin, North
Pacific.
Sea otter, South
central AK.
Steller sea lion,
Western U.S.\1\
AK Southeast salmon drift 474 Dall's porpoise, AK.
gillnet.
Harbor porpoise,
Southeast AK.
Harbor seal, Southeast
AK.
Humpback whale, Central
North Pacific.\1\
Pacific white-sided
dolphin, North
Pacific.
Steller sea lion,
Eastern U.S.
AK Yakutat salmon set 168 Gray whale, Eastern
gillnet \2\. North Pacific.
Harbor Porpoise,
Southeastern AK.
Harbor seal, Southeast
AK.
Humpback whale, Central
North Pacific
(Southeast AK).
WA Puget Sound Region 154 Dall's porpoise, CA/OR/
salmon drift gillnet WA.
(includes all inland Harbor porpoise, inland
waters south of U.S.- WA.\1\
Canada border and eastward Harbor seal, WA inland.
of the Bonilla-Tatoosh
line-Treaty Indian fishing
is excluded).
Trawl Fisheries:
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian 32 Bearded seal, AK.
Islands flatfish trawl. Gray whale, Eastern
North Pacific.
Harbor porpoise, Bering
Sea.
Harbor seal, Bering
Sea.
Humpback whale, Western
North Pacific.\1\
Killer whale, AK
resident.\1\
Killer whale, GOA, AI,
BS transient.\1\
Northern fur seal,
Eastern Pacific.
Ringed seal, AK.
Ribbon seal, AK.
Spotted seal, AK.
Steller sea lion,
Western U.S.\1\
Walrus, AK.
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian 102 Bearded seal, AK.
Islands pollock trawl. Beluga whale, Bristol
Bay.
Beluga whale, Eastern
Bering Sea.
Beluga whale, Eastern
Chukchi Sea.
Harbor seal, AK.
Northern fur seal,
Eastern Pacific.
Ribbon seal, AK.
Spotted seal, AK.
Steller sea lion,
Western U.S.\1\
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian 17 Harbor seal, Aleutian
Islands rockfish trawl. Islands.
Killer whale, ENP AK
resident.\1\
Killer whale, GOA, AI,
BS transient.\1\
[[Page 59267]]
Ribbon seal, AK.
Pot, Ring Net, and Trap
Fisheries:
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian 59 Harbor seal, Bristol
Islands Pacific cod pot. Bay.
Humpback whale, Central
North Pacific.
Humpback whale, Western
North Pacific.
CA coonstripe shrimp pot... 14 Gray whale, Eastern
North Pacific.
Harbor seal, CA.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/
WA.
CA spiny lobster........... 186 Bottlenose dolphin, CA/
OR/WA offshore.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/
WA.\1\
Gray whale, Eastern
North Pacific.
Southern sea otter.
CA spot prawn pot.......... 23 Gray whale, Eastern
North Pacific.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/
WA.\1\
Long-beaked common
dolphin, CA.
CA Dungeness crab pot...... 501 Blue whale, Eastern
North Pacific.\1\
Gray whale, Eastern
North Pacific.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/
WA.\1\
Killer whale, Eastern
North Pacific GOA,
BSAI transient.
Killer whale, West
Coast transient.
OR Dungeness crab pot...... 342 Gray whale, Eastern
North Pacific.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/
WA.\1\
WA/OR/CA sablefish pot..... 155 Humpback whale, CA/OR/
WA.\1\
WA coastal Dungeness crab 197 Gray whale, Eastern
pot. North Pacific.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/
WA.\1\
Longline/Set Line Fisheries:
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian 45 Killer whale, Eastern
Islands Pacific cod North Pacific AK
longline. resident.
Killer whale, GOA, BSAI
transient.\1\
Northern fur seal,
Eastern Pacific.
Spotted seal, AK.
Steller sea lion,
Western U.S.
AK Gulf of Alaska sablefish 295 Sperm whale, North
longline. Pacific.
Steller sea lion,
Eastern U.S.
HI shallow-set longline * 11 Blainville's beaked
[supcaret]. whale, HI.
Bottlenose dolphin, HI
Pelagic.
False killer whale, HI
Pelagic.\1\
Humpback whale, Central
North Pacific.
Risso's dolphin, HI.
Rough-toothed dolphin,
HI.
Striped dolphin, HI.
American Samoa longline \2\ 13 False killer whale,
American Samoa.
Rough-toothed dolphin,
American Samoa.
Short-finned pilot
whale, unknown.
HI shortline \2\........... 9 None documented.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Category III
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gillnet Fisheries:
AK Kuskokwim, Yukon, Norton 1,778 Harbor porpoise, Bering
Sound, Kotzebue salmon Sea.
gillnet.
AK Prince William Sound 29 Harbor seal, GOA.
salmon set gillnet. Humpback whale, Central
North Pacific.
Sea otter, South
central AK.
Steller sea lion,
Western U.S.
AK roe herring and food/ 920 None documented.
bait herring gillnet.
CA set gillnet (mesh size 296 None documented.
<3.5 in).
HI inshore gillnet......... 36 Bottlenose dolphin, HI.
Spinner dolphin, HI.
WA Grays Harbor salmon 24 Harbor seal, OR/WA
drift gillnet (excluding coast.
treaty Tribal fishing).
WA/OR Mainstem Columbia 15 None documented.
River eulachon gillnet.
WA/OR lower Columbia River 110 California sea lion,
(includes tributaries) U.S.
drift gillnet. Harbor seal, OR/WA
coast.
WA Willapa Bay drift 82 Harbor seal, OR/WA
gillnet. coast.
Northern elephant seal,
CA breeding.
Miscellaneous Net Fisheries:
AK Cook Inlet salmon purse 83 Humpback whale, Central
seine. North Pacific.
AK Kodiak salmon purse 376 Dall's porpoise, AK.
seine. Humpback whale, Central
North Pacific.
[[Page 59268]]
Humpback whale, Western
North Pacific.
AK Southeast salmon purse 315 Humpback whale, Central
seine. North Pacific.
AK roe herring and food/ 10 None documented.
bait herring beach seine.
AK roe herring and food/ 356 None documented.
bait herring purse seine.
AK salmon beach seine...... 31 None documented.
AK salmon purse seine 936 Harbor seal, GOA.
(Prince William Sound, Harbor seal, Prince
Chignik, Alaska Peninsula). William Sound.
WA/OR sardine purse seine.. 42 None documented.
CA anchovy, mackerel, 65 California sea lion,
sardine purse seine. U.S.
Harbor seal, CA.
CA squid purse seine....... 80 California sea lion,
U.S.
Long-beaked common
dolphin, CA.
Risso's dolphin, CA/OR/
WA.
Short-beaked common
dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
CA tuna purse seine *...... 10 None documented.
WA/OR Lower Columbia River 10 None documented.
salmon seine.
WA/OR herring, smelt, squid 130 None documented.
purse seine or lampara.
WA salmon purse seine...... 75 None documented.
WA salmon reef net......... 11 None documented.
HI lift net................ 17 None documented.
HI inshore purse seine..... <3 None documented.
HI throw net, cast net..... 23 None documented.
HI seine net............... 24 None documented.
Dip Net Fisheries:
CA squid dip net........... 115 None documented.
Marine Aquaculture Fisheries:
CA marine shellfish unknown None documented.
aquaculture.
CA salmon enhancement >1 None documented.
rearing pen.
CA white seabass 13 California sea lion,
enhancement net pens. U.S.
HI offshore pen culture.... 2 None documented.
WA salmon net pens......... 14 California sea lion,
U.S.
Harbor seal, WA inland
waters.
WA/OR shellfish aquaculture 23 None documented.
Troll Fisheries:
WA/OR/CA albacore surface 705 None documented.
hook and line/troll.
CA halibut hook and line/ unknown None documented.
handline.
CA white seabass hook and unknown None documented.
line/handline.
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian unknown None documented.
Islands groundfish hand
troll and dinglebar troll.
AK Gulf of Alaska unknown None documented.
groundfish hand troll and
dinglebar troll.
AK salmon troll............ 1,908 Steller sea lion,
Eastern U.S.
Steller sea lion,
Western U.S.
American Samoa tuna troll.. 13 None documented.
CA/OR/WA salmon troll...... 4,300 None documented.
HI troll................... 2,117 Pantropical spotted
dolphin, HI.
HI rod and reel............ 322 None documented.
Commonwealth of the 40 None documented.
Northern Mariana Islands
tuna troll.
Guam tuna troll............ 432 None documented.
Longline/Set Line Fisheries:
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian 4 Killer whale, AK
Islands Greenland turbot resident.
longline.
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian 22 None documented.
Islands sablefish longline.
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian 127 Northern fur seal,
Islands halibut longline. Eastern Pacific.
Sperm whale, North
Pacific.
AK Gulf of Alaska halibut 855 Harbor seal, Cook
longline. Inlet.
Steller sea lion,
Eastern U.S.
AK Gulf of Alaska Pacific 92 Steller sea lion,
cod longline. Western U.S.
AK octopus/squid longline.. 3 None documented.
AK state-managed waters 464 None documented.
longline/setline
(including sablefish,
rockfish, lingcod, and
miscellaneous finfish).
WA/OR/CA groundfish, 367 Bottlenose dolphin, CA/
bottomfish longline/set OR/WA offshore.
line. California sea lion,
U.S.
Northern elephant seal,
California breeding.
Sperm whale, CA/OR/WA.
Steller sea lion,
Eastern U.S.
WA/OR Pacific halibut 350 None documented.
longline.
CA pelagic longline........ 1 None documented in the
most recent five years
of data.
HI kaka line............... 15 None documented.
HI vertical line........... 3 None documented.
Trawl Fisheries:
[[Page 59269]]
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian 13 Bearded seal, AK.
Islands Atka mackerel Harbor seal, Aleutian
trawl. Islands.
Steller sea lion,
Western U.S.
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian 72 Bearded seal, AK.
Islands Pacific cod trawl. Ribbon seal, AK.
Steller sea lion,
Western U.S.
AK Gulf of Alaska flatfish 36 Northern elephant seal,
trawl. North Pacific.
Steller sea lion,
Western U.S.
AK Gulf of Alaska Pacific 55 Harbor seal, AK.
cod trawl. Steller sea lion,
Western U.S.
AK Gulf of Alaska pollock 67 Dall's porpoise, AK.
trawl. Fin whale, Northeast
Pacific.
Northern elephant seal,
North Pacific.
Steller sea lion,
Western U.S.
AK Gulf of Alaska rockfish 43 Steller sea lion,
trawl. Western U.S.
AK Kodiak food/bait herring 4 None documented.
otter trawl.
AK shrimp otter trawl and 38 None documented.
beam trawl.
AK state-managed waters of 2 None documented.
Prince William Sound
groundfish trawl.
CA halibut bottom trawl.... 47 California sea lion,
U.S.
Harbor porpoise,
unknown.
Harbor seal, unknown.
Northern elephant seal,
CA breeding.
Steller sea lion,
unknown.
CA sea cucumber trawl...... 16 None documented.
WA/OR/CA shrimp trawl...... 300 California sea lion,
U.S.
WA/OR/CA groundfish trawl.. 160-180 California sea lion,
U.S.
Dall's porpoise, CA/OR/
WA.
Harbor seal, OR/WA
coast.
Northern elephant seal,
CA breeding.
Northern fur seal,
Eastern Pacific.
Northern right whale
dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Pacific white-sided
dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Steller sea lion,
Eastern U.S.
Pot, Ring Net, and Trap
Fisheries:
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian 6 None documented.
Islands sablefish pot.
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian 540 Bowhead whale, Western
Islands crab pot. Arctic.
Gray whale, Eastern
North Pacific.
AK Gulf of Alaska crab pot. 271 None documented.
AK Gulf of Alaska Pacific 116 Harbor seal, GOA.
cod pot.
AK Gulf of Alaska sablefish 248 None documented.
pot.
AK Southeast Alaska crab 375 Humpback whale, Central
pot. North Pacific
(Southeast AK).
AK Southeast Alaska shrimp 99 Humpback whale, Central
pot. North Pacific
(Southeast AK).
AK shrimp pot, except 141 None documented.
Southeast.
AK octopus/squid pot....... 15 None documented.
CA rock crab pot........... 124 Gray whale, Eastern
North Pacific.
Harbor seal, CA.
WA/OR/CA hagfish pot....... 54 None documented.
WA/OR shrimp pot/trap...... 254 None documented.
WA Puget Sound Dungeness 249 None documented.
crab pot/trap.
HI crab trap............... 5 Humpback whale, Central
North Pacific.
HI fish trap............... 9 None documented.
HI lobster trap............ <3 None documented in
recent years.
HI shrimp trap............. 10 None documented.
HI crab net................ 4 None documented.
HI Kona crab loop net...... 33 None documented.
Hook and Line, Handline, and
Jig Fisheries:
AK Bering Sea, Aleutian 2 None documented.
Islands groundfish jig.
AK Gulf of Alaska 214 Fin whale, Northeast
groundfish jig. Pacific.
AK halibut jig............. 71 None documented.
American Samoa bottomfish.. fewer than 20 None documented.
Commonwealth of the 28 None documented.
Northern Mariana Islands
bottomfish.
Guam bottomfish............ >300 None documented.
HI aku boat, pole, and line <3 None documented.
HI bottomfish handline..... 578 None documented in
recent years.
HI inshore handline........ 357 None documented.
HI pelagic handline........ 534 None documented.
WA groundfish, bottomfish 679 None documented.
jig.
[[Page 59270]]
Western Pacific squid jig.. 0 None documented.
Harpoon Fisheries:
CA swordfish harpoon....... 6 None documented.
Pound Net/Weir Fisheries:
AK herring spawn on kelp 291 None documented.
pound net.
AK Southeast herring roe/ 2 None documented.
food/bait pound net.
HI bullpen trap............ 3 None documented.
Bait Pens:
WA/OR/CA bait pens......... 13 California sea lion,
U.S.
Dredge Fissheries:
AK scallop dredge.......... 108 (5 AK) None documented.
Dive, Hand/Mechanical
Collection Fisheries:
AK clam.................... 130 None documented.
AK Dungeness crab.......... 2 None documented.
AK herring spawn on kelp... 266 None documented.
AK miscellaneous 214 None documented.
invertebrates handpick.
HI black coral diving...... <3 None documented.
HI fish pond............... 5 None documented.
HI handpick................ 46 None documented.
HI lobster diving.......... 19 None documented.
HI spearfishing............ 163 None documented.
WA/CA kelp................. 4 None documented.
WA/OR bait shrimp, clam 201 None documented.
hand, dive, or mechanical
collection.
OR/CA sea urchin, sea 10 None documented.
cucumber hand, dive, or
mechanical collection.
Commercial Passenger Fishing
Vessel (Charter Boat)
Fisheries:
AK/WA/OR/CA commercial >7,000 (1,006 Humpback whale, Western
passenger fishing vessel. AK) North Pacific.
Killer whale, unknown.
Steller sea lion,
Eastern U.S.
Steller sea lion,
Western U.S.
Live Finfish/Shellfish
Fisheries:
CA nearshore finfish live 93 None documented.
trap/hook-and-line.
HI aquarium collecting..... 90 None documented.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
List of Abbreviations and Symbols Used in Table 1:
AI--Aleutian Islands; AK--Alaska; BS--Bering Sea; CA--California; ENP--
Eastern North Pacific; GOA--Gulf of Alaska; HI--Hawaii; MHI--Main
Hawaiian Islands; OR--Oregon; WA--Washington;
\1\ Fishery classified based on mortalities and serious injuries of this
stock, which are greater than or equal to 50 percent (Category I) or
greater than 1 percent and less than 50 percent (Category II) of the
stock's PBR;
\2\ Fishery classified by analogy;
* Fishery has an associated high seas component listed in Table 3; and
[supcaret] The list of marine mammal species and/or stocks killed or
injured in this fishery is identical to the list of species and/or
stocks killed or injured in high seas component of the fishery, minus
species and/or stocks that have geographic ranges exclusively on the
high seas. The species and/or stocks are found, and the fishery
remains the same, on both sides of the EEZ boundary. Therefore, the
EEZ components of these fisheries pose the same risk to marine mammals
as the components operating on the high seas.
Table 2--List of Fisheries--Commercial Fisheries in the Atlantic Ocean,
Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Estimated Marine mammal species
number of and/or stocks
Fishery description vessels/ incidentally killed or
persons injured
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Category I
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gillnet Fisheries:
Mid-Atlantic gillnet....... 4,020 Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern Migratory
coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Southern Migratory
coastal.\1\
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern NC estuarine
system.\1\
Bottlenose dolphin,
Southern NC estuarine
system.\1\
Bottlenose dolphin, WNA
offshore.
Common dolphin, WNA.
Gray seal, WNA.
Harbor porpoise, GME/
BF.
Harbor seal, WNA.
Hooded seal, WNA.
Humpback whale, Gulf of
Maine.
Minke whale, Canadian
east coast.
Northeast sink gillnet..... 4,072 Bottlenose dolphin, WNA
offshore.
[[Page 59271]]
Common dolphin, WNA.
Fin whale, WNA.
Gray seal, WNA.\1\
Harbor porpoise, GME/
BF.
Harbor seal, WNA.
Harp seal, WNA.
Humpback whale, Gulf of
Maine.
Minke whale, Canadian
east coast.
North Atlantic right
whale, WNA.
Risso's dolphin, WNA.
White-sided dolphin,
WNA.
Trap/Pot Fisheries:
Northeast/Mid-Atlantic 8,485 Humpback whale, Gulf of
American lobster trap/pot. Maine.
Minke whale, Canadian
east coast.
North Atlantic right
whale, WNA.\1\
Longline Fisheries:
Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean, 201 Atlantic spotted
Gulf of Mexico large dolphin, Northern GMX.
pelagics longline *.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern GMX oceanic.
Bottlenose dolphin, WNA
offshore.
Common dolphin, WNA.
Cuvier's beaked whale,
WNA.
False killer whale,
WNA.
Harbor porpoise, GME,
BF.
Kogia spp. (Pygmy or
dwarf sperm whale),
WNA.
Long-finned pilot
whale, WNA.
Mesoplodon beaked
whale, WNA.
Minke whale, Canadian
East coast.
Pantropical spotted
dolphin, Northern GMX.
Pygmy sperm whale, GMX.
Risso's dolphin,
Northern GMX.
Risso's dolphin, WNA.
Rough-toothed dolphin,
Northern GMX.
Short-finned pilot
whale, Northern GMX.
Short-finned pilot
whale, WNA.\1\
Sperm whale, Northern
GMX.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Category II
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gillnet Fisheries:
Chesapeake Bay inshore 265 Bottlenose dolphin,
gillnet \2\. unknown (Northern
migratory coastal or
Southern migratory
coastal).
Gulf of Mexico gillnet \2\..... 248 Bottlenose dolphin,
Eastern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, GMX
bay, sound, and
estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Mobile Bay, Bonsecour
Bay.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Western GMX coastal.
NC inshore gillnet......... 2,676 Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern NC estuarine
system.\1\
Bottlenose dolphin,
Southern NC estuarine
system.\1\
Northeast anchored float 852 Harbor seal, WNA.
gillnet \2\.
Humpback whale, Gulf of
Maine.
White-sided dolphin,
WNA.
Northeast drift gillnet \2\ 1,036 None documented.
1Southeast Atlantic gillnet 273 Bottlenose dolphin,
\2\. Central FL coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern FL coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, SC/
GA coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Southern migratory
coastal.
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic 21 Bottlenose dolphin,
shark gillnet. unknown (Central FL,
Northern FL, SC/GA
coastal, or Southern
migratory coastal).
North Atlantic right
whale, WNA.
Trawl Fisheries:
1Mid-Atlantic mid-water 320 Bottlenose dolphin, WNA
trawl (including pair offshore.
trawl).
Harbor seal, WNA.
Mid-Atlantic bottom trawl.. 633 Bottlenose dolphin, WNA
offshore.\1\
Common dolphin, WNA.\1\
Gray seal, WNA.\1\
Harbor seal, WNA.
Risso's dolphin,
WNA.\1\
[[Page 59272]]
White-sided dolphin,
WNA.
Northeast mid-water trawl 542 Common dolphin, WNA.
(including pair trawl).
Gray seal, WNA.
Harbor seal, WNA.
Long-finned pilot
whale, WNA.\1\
Northeast bottom trawl..... 968 Bottlenose dolphin, WNA
offshore.\1\
Common dolphin, WNA.
Gray seal, WNA.\1\
Harbor porpoise, GME/
BF.
Harbor seal, WNA.
Harp seal, WNA.
Long-finned pilot
whale, WNA.\1\
Risso's dolphin,
WNA.\1\
White-sided dolphin,
WNA.\1\
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, 10,824 Atlantic spotted
Gulf of Mexico shrimp dolphin, Northern Gulf
trawl. of Mexico.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Charleston estuarine
system.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Eastern GMX
coastal.\1\
Bottlenose dolphin, GMX
bay, sound,
estuarine.\1\
Bottlenose dolphin, GMX
continental shelf.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Mississippi River
Delta.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Mobile Bay, Bonsecour
Bay.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern GMX
coastal.\1\
Bottlenose dolphin, SC/
GA coastal.\1\
Bottlenose dolphin,
Southern migratory
coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Western GMX
coastal.\1\
Trap/Pot Fisheries:
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, 1,101 Bottlenose dolphin,
Gulf of Mexico stone crab Biscayne Bay
trap/pot \2\. estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Central FL coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Eastern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, FL
Bay.
Bottlenose dolphin, GMX
bay, sound, estuarine
(FL west coast
portion).
Bottlenose dolphin,
Indian River Lagoon
estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Jacksonville estuarine
system.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Sarasota Bay, Little
Sarasota Bay.
Atlantic mixed species trap/ 3,493 Fin whale, WNA.
pot \2\.
Humpback whale, Gulf of
Maine.
Atlantic blue crab trap/pot 6,679 Bottlenose dolphin,
Central FL coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Central GA estuarine
system.\1\
Bottlenose dolphin,
Charleston estuarine
system.\1\
Bottlenose dolphin,
Indian River Lagoon
estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Jacksonville estuarine
system.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern FL
coastal.\1\
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern GA/Southern
SC estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern Migratory
coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern NC estuarine
system.\1\
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern SC estuarine
system.
Bottlenose dolphin, SC/
GA coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Southern GA estuarine
system.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Southern Migratory
coastal.\1\
Bottlenose dolphin,
Southern NC estuarine
system.
West Indian manatee,
FL.
Purse Seine Fisheries:
Gulf of Mexico menhaden 40-42 Bottlenose dolphin, GMX
purse seine. bay, sound, estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Mississippi River
Delta.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Mississippi Sound,
Lake Borgne, Bay
Boudreau.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern GMX
coastal.\1\
Bottlenose dolphin,
Western GMX
coastal.\1\
Mid-Atlantic menhaden purse 17 Bottlenose dolphin,
seine \2\. Northern Migratory
coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Southern Migratory
coastal.
Haul/Beach Seine Fisheries:
Mid-Atlantic haul/beach 359 Bottlenose dolphin,
seine. Northern Migratory
coastal.\1\
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern NC estuarine
system.\1\
Bottlenose dolphin,
Southern Migratory
coastal.\1\
[[Page 59273]]
NC long haul seine......... 22 Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern NC estuarine
system.\1\
Bottlenose dolphin,
Southern NC estuarine
system.
Stop Net Fisheries:
NC roe mullet stop net..... 1 Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern NC estuarine
system.
Bottlenose dolphin,
unknown (Southern
migratory coastal or
Southern NC estuarine
system).
Pound Net Fisheries:
VA pound net............... 20 Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern migratory
coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern NC estuarine
system.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Southern Migratory
coastal.\1\
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Category III
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gillnet Fisheries:
Caribbean gillnet.......... 127 None documented in the
most recent five years
of data.
DE River inshore gillnet... unknown None documented in the
most recent five years
of data.
Long Island Sound inshore unknown None documented in the
gillnet. most recent five years
of data.
RI, southern MA (to Monomoy unknown None documented in the
Island), and NY Bight most recent five years
(Raritan and Lower NY of data.
Bays) inshore gillnet.
Southeast Atlantic inshore unknown Bottlenose dolphin,
gillnet. Northern SC estuarine
system.
Trawl Fisheries:
Atlantic shellfish bottom >58 None documented.
trawl.
Gulf of Mexico butterfish 2 Bottlenose dolphin,
trawl. Northern GMX oceanic.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern GMX
continental shelf.
Gulf of Mexico mixed 20 None documented.
species trawl.
GA cannonball jellyfish 1 Bottlenose dolphin, SC/
trawl. GA coastal.
Marine Aquaculture Fisheries:
Finfish aquaculture........ 48 Harbor seal, WNA.
Shellfish aquaculture...... unknown None documented.
Purse Seine Fisheries:
Gulf of Maine Atlantic >7 Harbor seal, WNA.
herring purse seine.
Gulf of Maine menhaden >2 None documented.
purse seine.
FL West Coast sardine purse 10 Bottlenose dolphin,
seine. Eastern GMX coastal.
U.S. Atlantic tuna purse 5 None documented in most
seine *. recent five years of
data.
Longline/Hook and Line
Fisheries:
Northeast/Mid-Atlantic >1,207 None documented.
bottom longline/hook-and-
line.
Gulf of Maine, U.S. Mid- 2,846 Humpback whale, Gulf of
Atlantic tuna, shark, Maine.
swordfish hook-and-line/
harpoon.
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, >5,000 Bottlenose dolphin, GMX
Gulf of Mexico, and continental shelf.
Caribbean snapper-grouper
and other reef fish bottom
longline/hook-and-line.
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, 39 Bottlenose dolphin,
Gulf of Mexico shark Eastern GMX coastal.
bottom longline/hook-and-
line.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern GMX
continental shelf.
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, 680 None documented.
Gulf of Mexico, and
Caribbean pelagic hook-and-
line/harpoon.
U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of unknown None documented.
Mexico trotline.
Trap/Pot Fisheries:
Caribbean mixed species 154 Bottlenose dolphin,
trap/pot. Puerto Rico and United
States Virgin Islands.
Caribbean spiny lobster 40 None documented.
trap/pot.
FL spiny lobster trap/pot.. 1,268 Bottlenose dolphin,
Biscayne Bay
estuarine. Bottlenose
dolphin, Central FL
coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Eastern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, FL
Bay estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin, FL
Keys.
Gulf of Mexico blue crab 4,113 Bottlenose dolphin,
trap/pot. Barataria Bay.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Eastern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, GMX
bay, sound, estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Mississippi Sound,
Lake Borgne, Bay
Boudreau.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Mobile Bay, Bonsecour
Bay.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Western GMX coastal.
West Indian manatee,
FL.
Gulf of Mexico mixed unknown None documented.
species trap/pot.
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, 10 None documented.
Gulf of Mexico golden crab
trap/pot.
[[Page 59274]]
U.S. Mid-Atlantic eel trap/ unknown None documented.
pot.
Stop Seine/Weir/Pound Net/
Floating Trap/Fyke Net
Fisheries:
Gulf of Maine herring and >1 Harbor porpoise, GME/
Atlantic mackerel stop BF.
seine/weir.
Harbor seal, WNA.
Minke whale, Canadian
east coast.
Atlantic white-sided
dolphin, WNA.
U.S. Mid-Atlantic crab stop 2,600 None documented.
seine/weir.
U.S. Mid-Atlantic mixed unknown Bottlenose dolphin,
species stop seine/weir/ Northern NC estuarine
pound net (except the NC system.
roe mullet stop net).
RI floating trap........... 9 None documented.
Northeast and Mid-Atlantic unknown None documented.
fyke net.
Dredge Fisheries:
Gulf of Maine sea urchin unknown None documented.
dredge.
Gulf of Maine mussel dredge unknown None documented.
1Gulf of Maine, U.S. Mid- >403 None documented.
Atlantic sea scallop
dredge.
Mid-Atlantic blue crab unknown None documented.
dredge.
Mid-Atlantic soft-shell unknown None documented.
clam dredge.
Mid-Atlantic whelk dredge.. unknown None documented.
U.S. Mid-Atlantic/Gulf of 7,000 None documented.
Mexico oyster dredge.
New England and Mid- unknown None documented.
Atlantic offshore surf
clam/quahog dredge.
Haul/Beach Seine Fisheries:
Caribbean haul/beach seine. 38 West Indian manatee,
Puerto Rico.
Gulf of Mexico haul/beach unknown None documented.
seine.
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic 25 None documented.
haul/beach seine.
Dive, Hand/Mechanical
Collection Fisheries:
Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of 20,000 None documented.
Mexico, Caribbean
shellfish dive, hand/
mechanical collection.
Gulf of Maine urchin dive, unknown None documented.
hand/mechanical collection.
Gulf of Mexico, Southeast unknown None documented.
Atlantic, Mid-Atlantic,
and Caribbean cast net.
Commercial Passenger Fishing
Vessel (Charter Boat)
Fisheries:
Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of 4,000 Bottlenose dolphin,
Mexico, Caribbean Barataria Bay
commercial passenger estuarine system.
fishing vessel.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Biscayne Bay
estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Central FL coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Choctawhatchee Bay.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Eastern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin, FL
Bay.
Bottlenose dolphin, GMX
bay, sound, estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Indian River Lagoon
estuarine system.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Jacksonville estuarine
system.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Mississippi Sound,
Lake Borgne, Bay
Boudreau.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern FL coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern GA/Southern
SC estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern GMX coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern migratory
coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern NC estuarine.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Southern migratory
coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Southern NC estuarine
system.
Bottlenose dolphin, SC/
GA coastal.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Western GMX coastal.
Short-finned pilot
whale, WNA.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
List of Abbreviations and Symbols Used in Table 2:
DE--Delaware; FL--Florida; GA--Georgia; GME/BF--Gulf of Maine/Bay of
Fundy; GMX--Gulf of Mexico; MA--Massachusetts; NC--North Carolina; NY--
New York; RI--Rhode Island; SC--South Carolina; VA--Virginia; WNA--
Western North Atlantic;
\1\ Fishery classified based on mortalities and serious injuries of this
stock, which are greater than or equal to 50 percent (Category I) or
greater than 1 percent and less than 50 percent (Category II) of the
stock's PBR;
\2\ Fishery classified by analogy; and
* Fishery has an associated high seas component listed in Table 3.
[[Page 59275]]
Table 3--List of Fisheries--Commercial Fisheries on the High Seas
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Marine mammal species
Number of and/or stocks
Fishery description HSFCA permits incidentally killed or
injured
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Category I
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Longline Fisheries:
Atlantic Highly Migratory 45 Atlantic spotted
Species *. dolphin, WNA.
Bottlenose dolphin,
Northern GMX oceanic.
Bottlenose dolphin, WNA
offshore.
Common dolphin, WNA.
Cuvier's beaked whale,
WNA.
False killer whale,
WNA.
Killer whale, GMX
oceanic.
Kogia spp. whale (Pygmy
or dwarf sperm whale),
WNA.
Long-finned pilot
whale, WNA.
Mesoplodon beaked
whale, WNA.
Minke whale, Canadian
East coast.
Pantropical spotted
dolphin, WNA.
Risso's dolphin, GMX.
Risso's dolphin, WNA.
Short-finned pilot
whale, WNA.
Western Pacific Pelagic (HI 143 Bottlenose dolphin, HI
Deep-set component) * Pelagic.
[caret].
False killer whale, HI
Pelagic.
Humpback whale, Central
North Pacific.
Kogia spp. (Pygmy or
dwarf sperm whale),
HI.
Pygmy killer whale, HI.
Risso's dolphin, HI.
Short-finned pilot
whale, HI.
Striped dolphin, HI.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Category II
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Drift Gillnet Fisheries:...
Pacific Highly Migratory 5 Long-beaked common
Species * [caret]. dolphin, CA.
Humpback whale, CA/OR/
WA.
Northern right-whale
dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Pacific white-sided
dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Risso's dolphin, CA/OR/
WA.
Short-beaked common
dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Trawl Fisheries:
Atlantic Highly Migratory 1 No information.
Species **.
CCAMLR..................... 0 Antarctic fur seal.
Purse Seine Fisheries:
South Pacific Tuna 26 No information.
Fisheries.
Western Pacific Pelagic.... 1 No information.
Longline Fisheries:
CCAMLR..................... 0 None documented.
South Pacific Albacore 6 No information.
Troll.
South Pacific Tuna 3 No information.
Fisheries **.
Western Pacific Pelagic (HI 11 Blainville's beaked
Shallow-set component) * whale, HI.
[caret].
Bottlenose dolphin, HI
Pelagic.
False killer whale, HI
Pelagic.
Fin whale, HI.
Guadalupe fur seal.
Humpback whale, Central
North Pacific.
Mesoplodon sp.,
unknown.
Northern elephant seal,
CA breeding.
Risso's dolphin, HI.
Rough-toothed dolphin,
HI.
Short-beaked common
dolphin, CA/OR/WA.
Striped dolphin, HI.
Handline/Pole and Line
Fisheries:
Atlantic Highly Migratory 1 No information.
Species.
Pacific Highly Migratory 43 No information.
Species.
South Pacific Albacore 10 No information.
Troll.
Western Pacific Pelagic.... 5 No information.
Troll Fisheries:
Atlantic Highly Migratory 0 No information.
Species.
South Pacific Albacore 18 No information.
Troll.
South Pacific Tuna 1 No information.
Fisheries **.
Western Pacific Pelagic.... 4 No information.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[[Page 59276]]
Category III
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Longline Fisheries:
Northwest Atlantic Bottom 2 None documented.
Longline.
Pacific Highly Migratory 105 None documented in the
Species. most recent 5 years of
data.
Purse Seine Fisheries:
Pacific Highly Migratory 5 None documented.
Species * [caret].
Trawl Fisheries:
Northwest Atlantic......... 4 None documented.
Troll Fisheries:
Pacific Highly Migratory 111 None documented.
Species *.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
List of Terms, Abbreviations, and Symbols Used in Table 3:
CA--California; GMX--Gulf of Mexico; HI--Hawaii; OR--Oregon; WA--
Washington; WNA--Western North Atlantic;
* Fishery is an extension/component of an existing fishery operating
within U.S. waters listed in Table 1 or 2. The number of permits
listed in Table 3 represents only the number of permits for the high
seas component of the fishery;
** These gear types are not authorized under the Pacific HMS FMP (2004),
the Atlantic HMS FMP (2006), or without a South Pacific Tuna Treaty
license (in the case of the South Pacific Tuna fisheries). Because
HSFCA permits are valid for 5 years, permits obtained in past years
exist in the HSFCA permit database for gear types that are now
unauthorized. Therefore, while HSFCA permits exist for these gear
types, it does not represent effort. In order to land fish species,
fishers must be using an authorized gear type. Once these permits for
unauthorized gear types expire, the permit-holder will be required to
obtain a permit for an authorized gear type; and
[caret] The list of marine mammal species and/or stocks killed or
injured in this fishery is identical to the list of marine mammal
species and/or stocks killed or injured in U.S. waters component of
the fishery, minus species and/or stocks that have geographic ranges
exclusively in coastal waters, because the marine mammal species and/
or stocks are also found on the high seas and the fishery remains the
same on both sides of the EEZ boundary. Therefore, the high seas
components of these fisheries pose the same risk to marine mammals as
the components of these fisheries operating in U.S. waters.
Table 4--Fisheries Affected by Take Reduction Teams and Plans
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Take reduction plans Affected fisheries
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Atlantic Large Whale Take Category I
Reduction Plan (ALWTRP)--50 CFR
229.32.
Mid-Atlantic gillnet.
Northeast/Mid-Atlantic American
lobster trap/pot.
Northeast sink gillnet.
Category II
Atlantic blue crab trap/pot.
Atlantic mixed species trap/pot.
Northeast anchored float gillnet.
Northeast drift gillnet.
Southeast Atlantic gillnet.
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic shark
gillnet.*
Southeastern, U.S. Atlantic, Gulf
of Mexico stone crab trap/
pot.[caret]
Bottlenose Dolphin Take Reduction Category I
Plan (BDTRP)--50 CFR 229.35.
Mid-Atlantic gillnet.
Category II
Atlantic blue crab trap/pot.
Chesapeake Bay inshore gillnet
fishery.
Mid-Atlantic haul/beach seine.
Mid-Atlantic menhaden purse
seine.
NC inshore gillnet.
NC long haul seine.
NC roe mullet stop net.
Southeast Atlantic gillnet.
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic shark
gillnet.
Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, Gulf
of Mexico shrimp trawl.[caret]
Southeastern, U.S. Atlantic, Gulf
of Mexico stone crab trap/
pot.[caret]
VA pound net.
False Killer Whale Take Reduction Category I
Plan (FKWTRP)--50 CFR 229.37.
HI deep-set longline.
Category II
HI shallow-set longline.
Harbor Porpoise Take Reduction Category I
Plan (HPTRP)--50 CFR 229.33 (New
England) and 229.34 (Mid-
Atlantic).
Mid-Atlantic gillnet.
Northeast sink gillnet.
Pelagic Longline Take Reduction Category I
Plan (PLTRP)--50 CFR 229.36.
Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean, Gulf
of Mexico large pelagics
longline.
[[Page 59277]]
Pacific Offshore Cetacean Take Category II
Reduction Plan (POCTRP)--50 CFR
229.31.
CA thresher shark/swordfish drift
gillnet (>=14 in mesh).
Atlantic Trawl Gear Take Reduction Category II
Team (ATGTRT).
Mid-Atlantic bottom trawl.
Mid-Atlantic mid-water trawl
(including pair trawl).
Northeast bottom trawl.
Northeast mid-water trawl
(including pair trawl).
------------------------------------------------------------------------
List of Symbols Used in Table 4:
* Only applicable to the portion of the fishery operating in U.S.
waters; and
[caret] Only applicable to the portion of the fishery operating in the
Atlantic Ocean.
Classification
The Chief Counsel for Regulation of the Department of Commerce has
certified to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business
Administration (SBA) that this proposed rule would not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.
Any entity with combined annual fishery landing receipts less than $11
million is considered a small entity for purposes of the Regulatory
Flexibility Act. Under the size standard, all entities subject to this
action were considered small entities; thus, they all would continue to
be considered small under the new standards.
Under existing regulations, all individuals participating in
Category I or II fisheries must register under the MMPA and obtain an
authorization certificate. The authorization certificate authorizes the
taking of non-endangered and non-threatened marine mammals incidental
to commercial fishing operations. Additionally, individuals may be
subject to a TRP and requested to carry an observer. NMFS has estimated
that up to approximately 55,329 fishing vessels, most with annual
revenues below the SBA's small entity thresholds, may operate in
Category I or II fisheries. As fishing vessels operating in Category I
or II fisheries, they are required to register with NMFS. The MMPA
registration process is integrated with existing state and Federal
licensing, permitting, and registration programs. Therefore,
individuals who have a state or Federal fishing permit or landing
license, or who are authorized through another related state or Federal
fishery registration program, are currently not required to register
separately under the MMPA or pay the $25 registration fee. Through this
integrated process, registration under the MMPA, including the $25
registration fee, is only required for vessels participating in a
Category I or II non-permitted fishery. All Category I and II fisheries
listed on the 2021 proposed LOF are permitted through state or Federal
processes, and registration under the MMPA is covered through the
integrated process. Therefore, this proposed rule would not impose any
direct costs on small entities.
The MMPA requires any vessel owner or operator participating in a
fishery listed on the LOF to report to NMFS, within 48 hours of the end
of the fishing trip, all marine mammal incidental mortalities and
injuries that occur during commercial fishing operations. These marine
mammal mortalities and injuries are reported using a postage-paid,
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approved form (OMB Control Number
0648-0292). This postage-paid form requires less than 15 minutes to
complete and can be dropped in any mailbox, faxed, emailed, or
completed online within 48 hours of the vessels return to port.
Therefore, record keeping and reporting costs associated with this LOF
are minimal and would not have a significant impact on a substantial
number of small entities.
If a vessel is requested to carry an observer, vessels will not
incur any direct economic costs associated with carrying that observer.
As a result of this certification, an initial regulatory flexibility
analysis is not required and none has been prepared. In the event that
reclassification of a fishery to Category I or II results in a TRP,
economic analyses of the effects of that TRP would be summarized in
subsequent rulemaking actions.
This proposed rule contains existing collection-of-information
(COI) requirements subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act and would not
impose additional or new COI requirements. The COI for the registration
of individuals under the MMPA has been approved by the OMB under OMB
Control Number 0648-0293 (0.15 hours per report for new registrants).
The requirement for reporting marine mammal mortalities or injuries has
been approved by OMB under OMB Control Number 0648-0292 (0.15 hours per
report). These estimates include the time for reviewing instructions,
searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data
needed, and completing and reviewing the COI. Send comments regarding
these reporting burden estimates or any other aspect of the COI,
including suggestions for reducing burden, to NMFS (see ADDRESSES). You
may also submit comments on these or any other aspects of the
collection of information at www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person is required
to respond to, nor shall a person be subject to a penalty for failure
to comply with a COI, subject to the requirements of the Paperwork
Reduction Act, unless that COI displays a currently valid OMB control
number.
This proposed rule has been determined to be not significant for
the purposes of Executive Orders 12866 and 13563.
This rule is not expected to be an Executive Order 13771 regulatory
action because this rule is not significant under Executive Order
12866.
In accordance with the Companion Manual for NOAA Administrative
Order (NAO) 216-6A, NMFS preliminarily determined that publishing this
proposed LOF qualifies to be categorically excluded from further NEPA
review, consistent with categories of activities identified in
Categorical Exclusion G7 (``Preparation of policy directives, rules,
regulations, and guidelines of an administrative, financial, legal,
technical, or procedural nature, or for which the environmental effects
are too broad, speculative or conjectural to lend themselves to
meaningful analysis and will be subject later to the NEPA process,
either collectively or on a case-by-case basis'') of the Companion
Manual and we have not identified any extraordinary circumstances
listed in Chapter 4 of the Companion Manual for NAO 216-6A
[[Page 59278]]
that would preclude application of this categorical exclusion. If NMFS
takes a management action, for example, through the development of a
TRP, NMFS would first prepare an Environmental Impact Statement or
Environmental Assessment, as required under NEPA, specific to that
action.
This proposed rule would not affect species listed as threatened or
endangered under the ESA or their associated critical habitat. The
impacts of numerous fisheries have been analyzed in various biological
opinions, and this proposed rule will not affect the conclusions of
those opinions. The classification of fisheries on the LOF is not
considered to be a management action that would adversely affect
threatened or endangered species. If NMFS takes a management action,
for example, through the development of a TRP, NMFS would consult under
ESA section 7 on that action.
This proposed rule would have no adverse impacts on marine mammals
and may have a positive impact on marine mammals by improving knowledge
of marine mammals and the fisheries interacting with marine mammals
through information collected from observer programs, stranding and
sighting data, or take reduction teams.
This proposed rule would not affect the land or water uses or
natural resources of the coastal zone, as specified under section 307
of the Coastal Zone Management Act.
References
Carretta, J.V. 2020. Estimates of marine mammal, sea turtle, and
seabird bycatch from the California large-mesh drift gillnet
fishery: 1990-2018. Draft reviewed by the Pacific Scientific Review
Group. March, 2020. 84 p.
Carretta, J.V., B. Delean, V. Helker, M.M. Muto, J. Greenman, K.
Wilkinson, D. Lawson, J. Viezbicke, and J. Jannot. 2020. Sources of
human-related injury and mortality for U.S. Pacific west coast
marine mammal stock assessments, 2014-2018. Draft reviewed by the
Pacific Scientific Review Group. March, 2020. 151 p.
Delean, B.J., V.T. Helker, M.M. Muto, K. Savage, S. Teerlink, L.A.
Jemison, K. Wilkinson, J. Jannot, and N.C. Young. 2020. Human-caused
mortality and injury of NMFS-managed Alaska marine mammal stocks
2013-2017 U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA Technical Memorandum
NMFS-AFSC-401. 86 p.
Hayes, S.A., Josephson, E., Maze-Foley, K., Rosel, P.E., In Review.
Draft US Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico Marine Mammal Stock Assessments
2019.
Kuiken, T. 1996. Diagnosis of By-Catch in Cetaceans. Montpellier:
European Cetacean Society.
Maze-Foley, K. and L.P. Garrison. 2018. Serious Injury
Determinations for Small Cetaceans off the Southeast U.S. Coast,
2012-2016. Southeast Fisheries Science Center Reference Document
PRBD-2018-04.
Moore, K.T., and Barco, S. 2013. Handbook for Recognizing,
Evaluating, and Documenting Human Interaction in Cetaceans and
Pinnipeds. NOAA-TMNMFS-SWFSC-510:102.
Read, A.J., and Murray, K.T. 2000. Gross Evidence of Human-Induced
Mortality in Small Cetaceans. NOAA.
Dated: September 15, 2020.
Samuel D. Rauch, III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2020-20709 Filed 9-18-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P