Determination of Overfishing or an Overfished Condition, 104996-104997 [2024-30640]
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104996
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 247 / Thursday, December 26, 2024 / Notices
Keating, J. M., C. Woodard, M. Brown, and
D. Koster. 2023. Marine mammal harvest in
the Chugach Region, Alaska. Alaska
Department of Fish and Game Special
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D.E., J.P. Vlasic and SW Brillant. 2020.
Assessing the lethality of ship strikes on
whales using simple biophysical models.
Mar. Mam. Sci. 37: 251–267.
Lettrich, M.D., M.J. Asaro, D.L. Borggaard,
D.M. Dick, R.B. Griffis, J.A. Litz, C.D.
Orphanides, D.L. Palka, M.S. Soldevilla, B.
Balmer, S. Chavez, D. Cholewiak, D. Claridge,
R.Y. Ewing, K.L. Fazioli, D. Fertl, E.M.
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A. Gorgone, A. Hohn, S. Horstman, B.
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D.E. Pendleton, J. Robbins, J.J. Roberts, G.
Rodriguez-Ferrer, E. Ronje, P.E. Rosel, T.
Speakman, J.E. Stanistreet, T. Stevens, M.
Stolen, R. Tyson Moore, N.L. Vollmer, R.
Wells, H.R. Whitehead and A. Whitt. 2023.
Vulnerability to climate change of United
States marine mammal stocks in the western
North Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico, and
Caribbean. PLoS ONE 18(9): e0290643.
Linden, D.W. 2024a. Using known births to
account for delayed marking in population
estimation of North Atlantic right whales.
bioRxiv. https://doi.org/10.1101/
2024.10.11.617830
Linden, D.W. 2024b. Population size
estimation of North Atlantic right whales
from 1990–2023. NOAA Tech Memo NMFS–
NE 324. 20pp.
McHuron, E.A., J.T. Sterling, D.P. Costa,
and M.E. Geobel. 2019. Factors affecting
energy expenditure in a declining fur seal
population. Conserv. Physiol. 7(1): coz103.
https://doi.org/10.1093/conphys/coz103
McHuron, E.A., K. Luxa, N.A. Pelland, K.
Holsman, R. Ream, T. Zeppelin, and J.T.
Sterling. 2020. Practical application of a
bioenergetic model to inform management of
a declining fur seal population and their
commercially important prey. Front. Mar.
Sci. 7. https://doi.org/10.3389/
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Meyer-Gutbrod, E.L., and C.H. Greene.
2014. Climate-associated regime shifts drive
decadal scale variability in recovery of North
Atlantic right whale population.
Oceanography 27(3):148–153.
Meyer-Gutbrod, E.L., C.H. Greene, K.T.A.
Davies and D.G. Johns. 2021. Ocean Regime
Shift is Driving Collapse of the North
Atlantic Right Whale Population.
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Meyer-Gutbrod, E.L., Davies, K.T., Johnson,
C.L., Plourde, S., Sorochan, K.A., Kenney,
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and Greene, C.H., 2023. Redefining North
Atlantic right whale habitat-use patterns
under climate change. Limnology and
Oceanography, 68, pp.S71–S86.
NMFS. 2023. Guidelines for Preparing
Stock Assessment Reports Pursuant to the
Marine Mammal Protection Act. Protected
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Pettis, H.M., R.M. Pace and P.K. Hamilton
P.K. 2022. North Atlantic Right Whale
Consortium: 2021 annual report card. Report
to the North Atlantic Right Whale
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Rehberg, M. 2023. Status of marine
mammals for Chugach Regional Resources
Commission—Final Report. Alaska
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Rolland, R.M., R.S. Schick, H.M. Pettis,
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Ross, C.H., Runge, J.A., Roberts, J.J., Brady,
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Warrenchuk. 2021. First-year survival of
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Perryman, C.A. Miller, and M.J. Moore. 2021.
Decreasing body lengths in North Atlantic
right whales. Current Biology 31:3174–3179.
Stewart, J.D., J.W. Durban, H. Europe, H.
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maternal body length on fecundity in North
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Moore. 2017. Entanglement is a costly
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Evol. 7:92–106. DOI: 10.1002/ece3.2615
Dated: December 18, 2024.
Evan Howell,
Director, Office of Science and Technology,
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024–30664 Filed 12–23–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
[RTID 0648–XE538]
Determination of Overfishing or an
Overfished Condition
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
This action serves as a notice
that NMFS, on behalf of the Secretary of
SUMMARY:
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Commerce (Secretary), has found that
Puerto Rico Caribbean spiny lobster and
Mid-Atlantic Coast golden tilefish are
now subject to overfishing, Klamath
River fall Chinook salmon and Queets
Spring/Summer Chinook salmon
continue to be overfished, and the
Western and Central North Pacific
Ocean Striped Marlin continues to be
subject to overfishing. NMFS, on behalf
of the Secretary, is required to provide
this notice whenever it determines that
a stock or stock complex is subject to
overfishing, overfished, or approaching
an overfished condition.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Diana Perry, (301) 427–7863.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant
to section 304(e)(2) of the MagnusonStevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act, 16 U.S.C. 1854(e)(2),
NMFS, on behalf of the Secretary, must
notify councils, and publish a notice in
the Federal Register, whenever it
determines that a stock or stock
complex is subject to overfishing,
overfished, or approaching an
overfished condition.
NMFS has determined that Puerto
Rico Caribbean spiny lobster is now
subject to overfishing. This
determination is based on the most
recent assessment completed in 2022
and using data through 2021 that found
that the fishing mortality rate (F)
exceeds the maximum fishing mortality
threshold (MFMT). NMFS has notified
the Caribbean Fishery Management
Council of its requirement to end
overfishing on this stock.
NMFS has determined that MidAtlantic Coast golden tilefish is now
subject to overfishing. This
determination is based on the most
recent assessment completed in 2024
using data through 2023, which found
that the F exceeds the MFMT. NMFS
has notified the Mid-Atlantic Fishery
Management Council of its requirement
to end overfishing.
NMFS has determined that Klamath
River fall-run Chinook salmon and
Queets Spring/Summer Chinook salmon
continue to be overfished. These
determinations are based on the 3-year
geometric mean of the annual spawning
escapement for each stock completed in
2024, and using data from 2021–2023
for the Klamath River fall-run Chinook
salmon stock and data from 2020–2022
for the Queets spring/summer Chinook
salmon stock which fall below their
respective minimum stock size
threshold. NMFS continues to work
with the Pacific Fishery Management
Council to rebuild the Klamath River
fall-run Chinook and Queets spring/
summer Chinook salmon stocks.
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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 247 / Thursday, December 26, 2024 / Notices
NMFS has determined that Western
and Central North Pacific Ocean Striped
Marlin continues to be subject to
overfishing. This determination is based
on the most recent international stock
assessment, completed in 2023 and
using data through 2020, which
indicates that F exceeds the MFMT.
NMFS continues to work with the
Western and Central Pacific Fisheries
Commission to end overfishing.
Dated: December 18, 2024.
Kelly Denit,
Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries,
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024–30640 Filed 12–23–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
[RTID 0648–XE516]
Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic
Zone off Alaska; North Pacific
Observer Program Standard Ex-Vessel
Prices
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notification of standard exvessel prices.
AGENCY:
NMFS publishes standard exvessel prices for groundfish and halibut
for the calculation of the observer fee
under the North Pacific Observer
Program (Observer Program). This
notice is intended to provide
information to vessel owners,
processors, registered buyers, and other
Observer Program participants about the
standard ex-vessel prices that will be
used to calculate the Observer Program
fee associated with landings of
groundfish and halibut made in 2025.
NMFS will send invoices to processors
and registered buyers subject to the fee
by January 15, 2026. Fees are due to
NMFS on or before February 15, 2026.
DATES: The standard prices take effect
on January 1, 2025.
ADDRESSES: Additional information
about the Observer Program is available
on NMFS Alaska Region’s website at
https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/alaska/
fisheries-observers/north-pacificobserver-program.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
general questions about the observer fee
and standard ex-vessel prices, contact
Amy Hadfield at (907) 586–7376. For
questions about the fee billing process,
ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
SUMMARY:
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contact Charmaine Weeks at (907) 586–
7231.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Regulations at 50 CFR part 679,
subpart E, governing the Observer
Program, require the deployment of
NMFS-certified observers (observers)
and electronic monitoring (EM) systems
to collect information necessary for the
conservation and management of the
Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI)
and Gulf of Alaska (GOA) groundfish
and halibut fisheries. Fishery managers
use information collected by observers
and EM to monitor quotas, manage
groundfish and prohibited species
catch, and document and reduce fishery
interactions with protected resources.
Scientists use observer-collected
information for stock assessments and
marine ecosystem research.
The Observer Program includes two
observer coverage categories: the partial
coverage category and the full coverage
category. All groundfish and halibut
vessels and processors subject to
observer coverage are included in one of
these two categories. Defined at
§ 679.51, the partial coverage category
includes vessels and processors that are
not required to have an observer or EM
at all times when fishing, and the full
coverage category includes vessels and
processors required to have all of their
fishing and processing activity
observed. Vessels and processors in the
full coverage category arrange and pay
for observer services from a permitted
observer provider. Observer coverage
and EM for the partial coverage category
is funded through a system of fees based
on the ex-vessel value of groundfish and
halibut. Throughout this notice, the
term ‘‘processor’’ refers to shoreside
processors, stationary floating
processors, and catcher/processors in
the partial coverage category.
Landings Subject to Observer Coverage
Fee
Pursuant to section 313 of the
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery
Conservation and Management Act,
NMFS is authorized to assess a fee on
all landings accruing against a Federal
total allowable catch (TAC) for
groundfish or commercial halibut quota
landings made by vessels that are
subject to Federal regulations and not
included in the full coverage category.
A fee is only assessed on landings of
groundfish from vessels designated on a
Federal Fisheries Permit or from vessels
landing individual fishing quota (IFQ)
or community development quota
(CDQ) halibut or IFQ sablefish. Within
the subset of vessels subject to the
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104997
observer fee, only landings accruing
against an IFQ allocation or a Federal
TAC for groundfish are included in the
fee assessment. A table with additional
information about which landings are
subject to the observer fee is at
§ 679.55(c) and on page 2 of an
informational bulletin titled ‘‘Observer
Fee Collection’’ that can be downloaded
from the NMFS Alaska Region website
at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/
resource/document/observer-feecollection-north-pacific-groundfish-andhalibut-fisheries-observer.
Fee Determination
A fee equal to 1.65 percent of the exvessel value is assessed on the landings
of groundfish and halibut subject to the
fee. Ex-vessel value is determined by
multiplying the standard price for
groundfish by the round weight
equivalent for each species, gear, and
port combination, and the standard
price for halibut by the headed and
gutted weight equivalent. Standard
prices are determined by aggregating
prices by species, gear, and area
grouping to arrive at an average price
per pound for each grouping. NMFS
reviews each vessel landing report and
determines whether the reported
landing is subject to the observer fee
and, if so, which groundfish species in
the landing are subject to the observer
fee. All IFQ or CDQ halibut in a landing
subject to the observer fee will be
included in the observer fee calculation.
For any landed groundfish or halibut
subject to the observer fee, NMFS will
apply the appropriate standard ex-vessel
prices for the species, gear type, and
port and calculate the observer fee
associated with the landing.
Processors and registered buyers can
access the landing-specific, observer fee
information through the NMFS Web
Application (https://
alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/webapps/efish/
login) or eLandings (https://
elandings.alaska.gov/). Landing-specific
observer fee information is either
available immediately or within 24
hours after a landing report is submitted
electronically. A time lag occurs for
some landings because NMFS must
process each landing report through the
catch accounting system to determine
which groundfish in a landing accrues
against a Federal TAC and are subject to
the observer fee.
Under the fee system, catcher vessel
owners split the fee with the registered
buyers or owners of shoreside or
stationary floating processors. While the
owners of catcher vessels and
processors in the partial coverage
category are each responsible for paying
their portion of the fee, the owners of
E:\FR\FM\26DEN1.SGM
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 247 (Thursday, December 26, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 104996-104997]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-30640]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[RTID 0648-XE538]
Determination of Overfishing or an Overfished Condition
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This action serves as a notice that NMFS, on behalf of the
Secretary of Commerce (Secretary), has found that Puerto Rico Caribbean
spiny lobster and Mid-Atlantic Coast golden tilefish are now subject to
overfishing, Klamath River fall Chinook salmon and Queets Spring/Summer
Chinook salmon continue to be overfished, and the Western and Central
North Pacific Ocean Striped Marlin continues to be subject to
overfishing. NMFS, on behalf of the Secretary, is required to provide
this notice whenever it determines that a stock or stock complex is
subject to overfishing, overfished, or approaching an overfished
condition.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Diana Perry, (301) 427-7863.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to section 304(e)(2) of the
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, 16 U.S.C.
1854(e)(2), NMFS, on behalf of the Secretary, must notify councils, and
publish a notice in the Federal Register, whenever it determines that a
stock or stock complex is subject to overfishing, overfished, or
approaching an overfished condition.
NMFS has determined that Puerto Rico Caribbean spiny lobster is now
subject to overfishing. This determination is based on the most recent
assessment completed in 2022 and using data through 2021 that found
that the fishing mortality rate (F) exceeds the maximum fishing
mortality threshold (MFMT). NMFS has notified the Caribbean Fishery
Management Council of its requirement to end overfishing on this stock.
NMFS has determined that Mid-Atlantic Coast golden tilefish is now
subject to overfishing. This determination is based on the most recent
assessment completed in 2024 using data through 2023, which found that
the F exceeds the MFMT. NMFS has notified the Mid-Atlantic Fishery
Management Council of its requirement to end overfishing.
NMFS has determined that Klamath River fall-run Chinook salmon and
Queets Spring/Summer Chinook salmon continue to be overfished. These
determinations are based on the 3-year geometric mean of the annual
spawning escapement for each stock completed in 2024, and using data
from 2021-2023 for the Klamath River fall-run Chinook salmon stock and
data from 2020-2022 for the Queets spring/summer Chinook salmon stock
which fall below their respective minimum stock size threshold. NMFS
continues to work with the Pacific Fishery Management Council to
rebuild the Klamath River fall-run Chinook and Queets spring/summer
Chinook salmon stocks.
[[Page 104997]]
NMFS has determined that Western and Central North Pacific Ocean
Striped Marlin continues to be subject to overfishing. This
determination is based on the most recent international stock
assessment, completed in 2023 and using data through 2020, which
indicates that F exceeds the MFMT. NMFS continues to work with the
Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission to end overfishing.
Dated: December 18, 2024.
Kelly Denit,
Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries
Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-30640 Filed 12-23-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
