Amendment 8 Revisions to Essential Fish Habitat in the Fishery Management Plan for U.S. West Coast Fisheries for Highly Migratory Species, 59888-59889 [2024-16239]
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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 142 / Wednesday, July 24, 2024 / Proposed Rules
whether Alabama shad is in danger of
extinction (endangered) or likely to
become so in the foreseeable future
(threatened) throughout all or a
significant portion of its range. As
required by section 4(b)(3)(B) of the
ESA, within 12 months of the receipt of
the petition (January 9, 2024), we will
make a finding as to whether listing the
Alabama shad as an endangered or
threatened species is warranted. If
listing is warranted, we will publish a
proposed rule and solicit public
comments before developing and
publishing a final rule.
ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with PROPOSALS1
Authority: The authority for this action is
the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as
amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).
Dated: July 19, 2024.
Samuel D. Rauch, III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for
Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
To ensure that the status review is
based on the best available scientific
and commercial data, we are soliciting
comments and information from
interested parties on the status of the
Alabama shad. Specifically, we are
soliciting information in the following
areas:
(1) Species abundance;
(2) species productivity;
(3) species distribution or population
spatial structure;
(4) genetic connectivity of historical
and contemporary populations;
(5) habitat conditions and associated
limiting factors and threats for both the
marine and freshwater environments;
(6) data concerning the status and
trends of identified limiting factors or
threats;
(7) information concerning the
impacts of environmental variability
and climate change on survival,
recruitment, distribution, and/or
extinction risk;
(8) the adequacy of existing regulatory
mechanisms and whether protections
are being implemented and are proving
effective in conserving the species;
(9) ongoing or planned efforts to
protect and restore the species and its
habitat; and
(10) other new information, data, or
corrections including, but not limited
to, identification of erroneous
information in the previous listing
determination.
We request that all data and
information be accompanied by
supporting documentation such as
maps, bibliographic references, or
reprints of pertinent publications.
Please send any comments in
accordance with the instructions
provided in the ADDRESSES section
above. We will base our findings on a
review of the best available scientific
and commercial data, including relevant
information received during the public
comment period.
16:57 Jul 23, 2024
A complete list of all references is
available upon request from the
Protected Resources Division of the
NMFS Southeast Regional Office (see
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
[FR Doc. 2024–16253 Filed 7–23–24; 8:45 am]
Information Solicited
VerDate Sep<11>2014
References Cited
Jkt 262001
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
50 CFR Part 660
[RTID 0648–XD487]
Amendment 8 Revisions to Essential
Fish Habitat in the Fishery
Management Plan for U.S. West Coast
Fisheries for Highly Migratory Species
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Announcement of availability of
a fishery management plan amendment;
request for comments.
AGENCY:
The Pacific Fishery
Management Council (Council)
submitted to NMFS Amendment 8 to
the Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for
the U.S. West Coast Highly Migratory
Species (HMS) July 15, 2024. If
approved by the Secretary of Commerce
(Secretary), these Amendments would
update essential fish habitat (EFH)
provisions in the existing HMS FMP.
This Amendment is intended to
promote the goals and objectives of the
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery
Conservation and Management Act
(MSA) which requires periodic review
and revision of EFH components of
FMPs as warranted based on available
information.
SUMMARY:
Comments on the Amendments
must be received by September 23,
2024.
DATES:
You may submit comments
on this document, identified NOAA–
NMFS–2024–0013 by the following
methods:
• Electronic Submissions: Submit all
electronic public comments via the
Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to
ADDRESSES:
PO 00000
Frm 00038
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
https://www.regulations.gov and enter
NOAA–NMFS–2024–0013 in the Search
box. Click the ‘‘Comment’’ icon,
complete the required fields, and enter
or attach your comments.
• Mail: Submit written comments to
Eric Chavez, NMFS West Coast Region
Long Beach Office, 501 W Ocean Blvd.,
Suite 4200, Long Beach, CA 90802.
Include the identifier ‘‘NOAA–NMFS–
2024–0013’’ in the comments.
Instructions: Comments must be
submitted by one of the above methods
to ensure that the comments are
received, documented, and considered
by NMFS. 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. All comments received are
a part of the public record and will
generally be posted for public viewing
on https://www.regulations.gov without
change. All personal identifying
information (e.g., name, address, etc.)
submitted voluntarily by the sender will
be publicly accessible. Do not submit
confidential business information, or
otherwise sensitive or protected
information. NMFS will accept
anonymous comments (enter ‘‘N/A’’ in
the required fields if you wish to remain
anonymous).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Nicole Nasby-Lucas at (858) 334–2826,
nicole.nasby-lucas@noaa.gov, or Eric
Chavez at (562) 980–4064, eric.chavez@
noaa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
NMFS manages the HMS fisheries off
the U.S. Pacific Coast under the HMS
FMP. The MSA requires that each
regional fishery management council
submit any FMP amendment it prepares
to NMFS for review and approval,
disapproval, or partial approval by the
Secretary (16 U.S.C. 1854(a)). The MSA
also requires that NMFS, upon receiving
an FMP amendment, immediately
publish a notice in the Federal Register
announcing that the amendment is
available for public review and
comment (16 U.S.C. 1854(a)(1)(B)). The
Council has submitted the Amendment
to the Secretary for review. This notice
announces that the proposed
Amendment is available for public
review and comment.
The MSA mandates that each FMP
describe and identify EFH for the
fishery (16 U.S.C. 1853(7)). EFH is
defined as ‘‘those waters and substrate
necessary to fish for spawning,
breeding, feeding or growth to maturity’’
(16 U.S.C. 1802(10)). Under this
authority, NMFS and the Council have
E:\FR\FM\24JYP1.SGM
24JYP1
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 142 / Wednesday, July 24, 2024 / Proposed Rules
ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with PROPOSALS1
developed a comprehensive strategy to
conserve EFH. This includes
incorporating EFH into each of the
Council’s FMPs, identifying fishing and
non-fishing impacts and associated
conservation recommendations, and
other required EFH elements. EFH
requirements and the process for
periodic EFH reviews are described in
the EFH regulations at 50 CFR
600.815(a).
The HMS FMP was approved in 2004
and has been amended seven times. The
HMS FMP includes three species of
pelagic shark (common thresher,
shortfin mako, and blue) five species of
tunas (albacore, bigeye, Pacific bluefin,
skipjack, and yellowfin), striped marlin,
swordfish, and dolphinfish (dorado) as
species in the management unit. EFH
components for each management unit
species (MUS) were included in
appendix A to the Final Environmental
Impact Statement when NMFS
approved the HMS FMP and have not
been reviewed since that time.
The Council’s relevant advisory
bodies engaged in the EFH review
process and provided recommendations
to the Council at their September 2023
Council meeting. The Council
considered these recommendations
when adopting a draft FMP Amendment
for public review. The Council took
final action at its November 2023
meeting, adopting the proposed
amendment to the HMS FMP.
The proposed amendment would not
add any new reporting requirements
and would not change any regulatory
requirements. This action would only
add to or update HMS EFH provisions
in the HMS FMP.
HMS FMP Amendment 8
Based on recommendations from the
Council, NMFS proposes to amend the
HMS FMP to update the EFH provisions
to ensure compliance with the
requirements of the MSA. This FMP
amendment includes eight major
components that would (1) update the
description and identification of EFH,
(2) include new maps for each MUS in
the HMS FMP, (3) update information
on life history, (4) update information
on fishing impacts, (5) update
information on non-fishing impacts and
conservation measures, (6) update text
on habitat areas of particular concern
(HAPCs), (7) update research and
information needs and (8) add a
reference to Council’s Operating
Procedure 22 as a description of the
review and revision process. The
revised FMP text and appendix F
include supporting information and
rationale for the modifications adopted
by the Council. The supporting
VerDate Sep<11>2014
16:57 Jul 23, 2024
Jkt 262001
information and rationale relevant to the
major EFH components are briefly
described below.
Description and Identification of EFH.
EFH descriptions including information
on distributions by life stage were
updated in appendix F and the FMP.
Proposed modifications to the
description and identification of EFH
for HMS species were informed by using
current fishery-independent information
that was not available when the original
EFH descriptions were adopted.
Maps. New maps reflecting EFH
spatial extent and global distribution
were developed. EFH maps were
developed based on species distribution
data acquired from existing species
distributions in the eastern North
Pacific from published sources, expert
opinion and a review of fisheries data.
For many of the species, the use of
fishery-independent data shifted the
EFH boundary closer to shore to
encompass nearshore distribution for all
life stages. For the warm-water species
(i.e., skipjack, bigeye, and yellowfin
tunas), Point Conception, the northern
edge of the Southern California Bight
(SCB), was selected as the northern EFH
boundary. Global range maps were also
developed to provide additional
supporting information. Additional
information on the development of the
maps can be found in section 1.1,
Review of Methods, in appendix F.
Life History Summaries. Information
on life histories summaries are
proposed, based on historic and recent
information. The revised HMS FMP
appendix F contains the descriptions of
overall species distributions, life history
summaries, trophic interactions,
primary prey species, proposed EFH
descriptions, and maps.
Fishing Impacts. Updated text
contains information on potential
adverse effects of fishing activities
including potential impacts resulting
from removal of prey species, derelict
gear/ghost fishing, and vessel
discharges. Details on these potential
impacts and minimization measures are
included in chapter 7.4 of the revised
FMP text.
Non-Fishing Impacts and
Conservation and Enhancement
Measures. In addition to the list of nonfishing impacts and conservation
measures currently described in the
HMS FMP, numerous additional nonfishing activities that may adversely
affect HMS EFH along with their
associated conservation measures were
included based on a recent NMFS
publication.
Habitat Areas of Particular Concern
(HAPC). The HMS FMP does not
currently include any HAPCs, and none
PO 00000
Frm 00039
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 9990
59889
are proposed based on the current EFH
review. Shark pupping and nursery
areas within the SCB were considered
for HAPC designation, based primarily
on the prevalence of juveniles in the
region. Migratory routes were also
considered as potential HAPCs.
However, the review of new information
did not generate information that would
allow for more precise mapping of such
habitats or provide a thorough
qualitative description of the HAPC
boundaries. There was also insufficient
information to describe the physical,
chemical, or biological characteristics of
the HAPC in detail. Therefore, HAPCs
were not recommended for adoption.
Rather, additional research is being
recommended to collect more
information that could inform
consideration of HAPCs in the future.
Additional details and rationale can be
found in the revised FMP chapter 7.3.
Research and Information Needs. The
Council adopted several Research and
Information (R&I) Needs, which are
required to be identified by the EFH
regulations. These include research
useful for identifying HAPCs, and better
understanding habitat associations and
the dynamic nature of HMS habitat,
migratory corridors and habitat
dependency, including benthic habitats,
and potential impacts to EFH from
fishing activities. These R&I Needs are
described more fully in chapter 7.7 of
the revised HMS FMP.
Review and Revision Process. The
EFH regulations require that FMPs
include a description of the EFH review
and revision process. The Council’s
Operating Procedure 22 (COP 22;
https://www.pcouncil.org/documents/
2023/07/current-operatingprocedures.pdf) describes a process to
guide all EFH reviews. This process is
referenced in FMP chapter 7.1.
All comments received by the end of
the comment period on the
Amendments (see DATES and ADDRESSES
above) will be considered in the
Secretary’s decision to approve,
disapprove, or partially approve this
amendment. To be considered in this
decision, comments must be received by
close of business on the last day of the
comment period; that does not mean
postmarked or otherwise transmitted by
that date.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: July 18, 2024.
Lindsay Fullenkamp,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024–16239 Filed 7–23–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
E:\FR\FM\24JYP1.SGM
24JYP1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 142 (Wednesday, July 24, 2024)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 59888-59889]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-16239]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 660
[RTID 0648-XD487]
Amendment 8 Revisions to Essential Fish Habitat in the Fishery
Management Plan for U.S. West Coast Fisheries for Highly Migratory
Species
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Announcement of availability of a fishery management plan
amendment; request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) submitted to
NMFS Amendment 8 to the Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for the U.S. West
Coast Highly Migratory Species (HMS) July 15, 2024. If approved by the
Secretary of Commerce (Secretary), these Amendments would update
essential fish habitat (EFH) provisions in the existing HMS FMP. This
Amendment is intended to promote the goals and objectives of the
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA) which
requires periodic review and revision of EFH components of FMPs as
warranted based on available information.
DATES: Comments on the Amendments must be received by September 23,
2024.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on this document, identified NOAA-
NMFS-2024-0013 by the following methods:
Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to https://www.regulations.gov and enter NOAA-NMFS-2024-0013 in the Search box.
Click the ``Comment'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter or
attach your comments.
Mail: Submit written comments to Eric Chavez, NMFS West
Coast Region Long Beach Office, 501 W Ocean Blvd., Suite 4200, Long
Beach, CA 90802. Include the identifier ``NOAA-NMFS-2024-0013'' in the
comments.
Instructions: Comments must be submitted by one of the above
methods to ensure that the comments are received, documented, and
considered by NMFS. 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. All comments received are a part of the public
record and will generally be posted for public viewing on https://www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying
information (e.g., name, address, etc.) submitted voluntarily by the
sender will be publicly accessible. Do not submit confidential business
information, or otherwise sensitive or protected information. NMFS will
accept anonymous comments (enter ``N/A'' in the required fields if you
wish to remain anonymous).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nicole Nasby-Lucas at (858) 334-2826,
[email protected], or Eric Chavez at (562) 980-4064,
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
NMFS manages the HMS fisheries off the U.S. Pacific Coast under the
HMS FMP. The MSA requires that each regional fishery management council
submit any FMP amendment it prepares to NMFS for review and approval,
disapproval, or partial approval by the Secretary (16 U.S.C. 1854(a)).
The MSA also requires that NMFS, upon receiving an FMP amendment,
immediately publish a notice in the Federal Register announcing that
the amendment is available for public review and comment (16 U.S.C.
1854(a)(1)(B)). The Council has submitted the Amendment to the
Secretary for review. This notice announces that the proposed Amendment
is available for public review and comment.
The MSA mandates that each FMP describe and identify EFH for the
fishery (16 U.S.C. 1853(7)). EFH is defined as ``those waters and
substrate necessary to fish for spawning, breeding, feeding or growth
to maturity'' (16 U.S.C. 1802(10)). Under this authority, NMFS and the
Council have
[[Page 59889]]
developed a comprehensive strategy to conserve EFH. This includes
incorporating EFH into each of the Council's FMPs, identifying fishing
and non-fishing impacts and associated conservation recommendations,
and other required EFH elements. EFH requirements and the process for
periodic EFH reviews are described in the EFH regulations at 50 CFR
600.815(a).
The HMS FMP was approved in 2004 and has been amended seven times.
The HMS FMP includes three species of pelagic shark (common thresher,
shortfin mako, and blue) five species of tunas (albacore, bigeye,
Pacific bluefin, skipjack, and yellowfin), striped marlin, swordfish,
and dolphinfish (dorado) as species in the management unit. EFH
components for each management unit species (MUS) were included in
appendix A to the Final Environmental Impact Statement when NMFS
approved the HMS FMP and have not been reviewed since that time.
The Council's relevant advisory bodies engaged in the EFH review
process and provided recommendations to the Council at their September
2023 Council meeting. The Council considered these recommendations when
adopting a draft FMP Amendment for public review. The Council took
final action at its November 2023 meeting, adopting the proposed
amendment to the HMS FMP.
The proposed amendment would not add any new reporting requirements
and would not change any regulatory requirements. This action would
only add to or update HMS EFH provisions in the HMS FMP.
HMS FMP Amendment 8
Based on recommendations from the Council, NMFS proposes to amend
the HMS FMP to update the EFH provisions to ensure compliance with the
requirements of the MSA. This FMP amendment includes eight major
components that would (1) update the description and identification of
EFH, (2) include new maps for each MUS in the HMS FMP, (3) update
information on life history, (4) update information on fishing impacts,
(5) update information on non-fishing impacts and conservation
measures, (6) update text on habitat areas of particular concern
(HAPCs), (7) update research and information needs and (8) add a
reference to Council's Operating Procedure 22 as a description of the
review and revision process. The revised FMP text and appendix F
include supporting information and rationale for the modifications
adopted by the Council. The supporting information and rationale
relevant to the major EFH components are briefly described below.
Description and Identification of EFH. EFH descriptions including
information on distributions by life stage were updated in appendix F
and the FMP. Proposed modifications to the description and
identification of EFH for HMS species were informed by using current
fishery-independent information that was not available when the
original EFH descriptions were adopted.
Maps. New maps reflecting EFH spatial extent and global
distribution were developed. EFH maps were developed based on species
distribution data acquired from existing species distributions in the
eastern North Pacific from published sources, expert opinion and a
review of fisheries data. For many of the species, the use of fishery-
independent data shifted the EFH boundary closer to shore to encompass
nearshore distribution for all life stages. For the warm-water species
(i.e., skipjack, bigeye, and yellowfin tunas), Point Conception, the
northern edge of the Southern California Bight (SCB), was selected as
the northern EFH boundary. Global range maps were also developed to
provide additional supporting information. Additional information on
the development of the maps can be found in section 1.1, Review of
Methods, in appendix F.
Life History Summaries. Information on life histories summaries are
proposed, based on historic and recent information. The revised HMS FMP
appendix F contains the descriptions of overall species distributions,
life history summaries, trophic interactions, primary prey species,
proposed EFH descriptions, and maps.
Fishing Impacts. Updated text contains information on potential
adverse effects of fishing activities including potential impacts
resulting from removal of prey species, derelict gear/ghost fishing,
and vessel discharges. Details on these potential impacts and
minimization measures are included in chapter 7.4 of the revised FMP
text.
Non-Fishing Impacts and Conservation and Enhancement Measures. In
addition to the list of non-fishing impacts and conservation measures
currently described in the HMS FMP, numerous additional non-fishing
activities that may adversely affect HMS EFH along with their
associated conservation measures were included based on a recent NMFS
publication.
Habitat Areas of Particular Concern (HAPC). The HMS FMP does not
currently include any HAPCs, and none are proposed based on the current
EFH review. Shark pupping and nursery areas within the SCB were
considered for HAPC designation, based primarily on the prevalence of
juveniles in the region. Migratory routes were also considered as
potential HAPCs. However, the review of new information did not
generate information that would allow for more precise mapping of such
habitats or provide a thorough qualitative description of the HAPC
boundaries. There was also insufficient information to describe the
physical, chemical, or biological characteristics of the HAPC in
detail. Therefore, HAPCs were not recommended for adoption. Rather,
additional research is being recommended to collect more information
that could inform consideration of HAPCs in the future. Additional
details and rationale can be found in the revised FMP chapter 7.3.
Research and Information Needs. The Council adopted several
Research and Information (R&I) Needs, which are required to be
identified by the EFH regulations. These include research useful for
identifying HAPCs, and better understanding habitat associations and
the dynamic nature of HMS habitat, migratory corridors and habitat
dependency, including benthic habitats, and potential impacts to EFH
from fishing activities. These R&I Needs are described more fully in
chapter 7.7 of the revised HMS FMP.
Review and Revision Process. The EFH regulations require that FMPs
include a description of the EFH review and revision process. The
Council's Operating Procedure 22 (COP 22; https://www.pcouncil.org/documents/2023/07/current-operating-procedures.pdf) describes a process
to guide all EFH reviews. This process is referenced in FMP chapter
7.1.
All comments received by the end of the comment period on the
Amendments (see DATES and ADDRESSES above) will be considered in the
Secretary's decision to approve, disapprove, or partially approve this
amendment. To be considered in this decision, comments must be received
by close of business on the last day of the comment period; that does
not mean postmarked or otherwise transmitted by that date.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: July 18, 2024.
Lindsay Fullenkamp,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-16239 Filed 7-23-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
