Department of Commerce March 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

NMFS proposes regulations to modify both the Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) Program and the Community Development Quota (CDQ) Program for the fixed-gear commercial Pacific halibut and sablefish fisheries. This action would amend current regulations to remove a prohibition against the use of longline pot fishing gear in the Bering Sea sablefish IFQ and sablefish CDQ fisheries in the month of June. This action also would add regulatory provisions to allow members of the National Guard and military reserves who are mobilized to active duty to temporarily transfer their annual halibut and sablefish IFQ to other eligible IFQ recipients. This action is necessary to increase the efficiency of fishermen operating longline pot vessels in the Bering Sea sablefish fishery and to allow guardsmen and reservists to accrue some economic benefit from their annual IFQ if unable to harvest it due to military service. This proposed action is intended to promote the conservation and management provisions in the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (FMP) and the Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 1982 (Halibut Act).

The Department of Commerce (the Department) is conducting an administrative review of the antidumping duty order on certain forged stainless steel flanges (stainless steel flanges) from India manufactured by Shree Ganesh Forgings, Ltd. (Shree Ganesh) and Nakshatra Enterprises Pvt., Ltd. (Nakshatra). The period of review (POR) covers February 1, 2006, through January 31, 2007. We preliminarily determine that Shree Ganesh sold subject merchandise in the United States at less than normal value (NV) during the POR. We also preliminarily determine that Nakshatra's U.S. sales were not bona fide sales. Therefore, we intend to rescind the administrative review with respect to Nakshatra. We invite interested parties to comment on these preliminary results. Parties who submit written argument in these proceedings are requested to submit with the argument (1) a statement of the issues, and (2) a brief summary of the argument.

NMFS has received an application from the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (L-DEO) for an Incidental Harassment Authorization (IHA) to take small numbers of marine mammals, by harassment, incidental to conducting two marine seismic surveys in the Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean (ETP) during 2008. Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is requesting comments on its proposed IHA for these activities.

We, NMFS, announce the 90-day finding for a petition to reclassify loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) in the western North Atlantic Ocean as a Distinct Population Segment (DPS) with endangered status and designate critical habitat under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA). The loggerhead is currently listed as threatened throughout its range. We find that the petition presents substantial scientific information indicating that the petitioned action may be warranted. We have initiated a review of the status of the species to determine whether the petitioned action is warranted and to determine whether any additional changes to the current listing of the loggerhead turtle are warranted. To ensure a comprehensive review, we solicit information and comments pertaining to this species from any interested party.

The New England Fishery Management Council's (Council) Herring Oversight Committee will meet to consider actions affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

The Assistant Administrator for Fisheries (AA), NOAA, announces temporary restrictions consistent with the requirements of the Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan's (ALWTRP) implementing regulations. These regulations apply to lobster trap/pot and anchored gillnet fishermen in an area totaling approximately 1,238 nm\2\ (4,246 km\2\), east of Chatham, Massachusetts for 15 days. The purpose of this action is to provide protection to an aggregation of northern right whales (right whales).

This action allocates calendar year 2008 duty exemptions for watch producers located in the Virgin Islands pursuant to Public Law 97-446, as amended by Public Law 103-465, Public Law 106-36 and Public Law 108-429 (``the Act'').

The invention listed below is jointly owned by the U.S. Government as represented by the Department of Commerce, and Cree Inc. The invention is available for licensing in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 207 and 37 CFR part 404 to achieve expeditious commercialization of results of federally funded research and development.

On November 20, 2007, the U.S. Court of International Trade (``CIT'') sustained the remand redetermination issued by the Department of Commerce (``the Department'') pursuant to the CIT's remand of the final results of the twelfth administrative review of the antidumping duty orders on heavy forged hand tools from the People's Republic of China (``PRC''). See Shandong Huarong Machinery Co. Ltd., Shandong Machinery Import & Export Corporation, Liaoning Machinery Import & Export Corporation, and Tianjin Machinery Import & Export Corporation v. United States, Slip Op. 07-169 (CIT, 2007) (``Shandong Huarong II''). The CIT issued the public version of Shandong Huarong II on January 8, 2008. The period of review (``POR'') for the twelfth review is February 1, 2002, through January 31, 2003. In its redetermination, the Department assigned dumping margins to sales of (1) bars/wedges by Shandong Huarong Machinery Corporation Limited (``Huarong''); (2) bars/wedges by Liaoning Machinery Import & Export Corporation/Liaoning Machinery Import & Export Corporation Ltd. (collectively ``LMC/LIMAC''); (3) bars/wedges by Shandong Machinery Import & Export Corporation (``SMC''); and (4) axes/adzes, bars/wedges, hammers/sledges, and picks/mattocks by Tianjin Machinery Import & Export Corporation (``TMC''). As there is now a final and conclusive court decision in this case which is not in harmony with the underlying results of the disputed administrative review, the Department is amending the final results of the 2002-2003 antidumping duty administrative review of heavy forged hand tools from the PRC.

NMFS announces free Atlantic Shark Identification Workshops and Protected Species Safe Handling, Release, and Identification Workshops to be held in April, May, and June 2008. Fishermen and shark dealers are required to attend a workshop to meet new regulatory requirements and maintain valid permits. The Atlantic Shark Identification Workshops are mandatory for all federally permitted Atlantic shark dealers. The Protected Species Safe Handling, Release, and Identification Workshops are mandatory for vessel owners and operators who use bottom longline, pelagic longline, or gillnet gear, and have also been issued shark or swordfish limited access permits. Additional free workshops will be held in 2008 and announced in the Federal Register.

NMFS issues this final rule to decrease the incidental catch allowance for weakfish caught in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) from 300 lb (135 kg) to no more than 150 lb (67 kg) per day or trip, whichever is longer in duration. The intent of this final rule is to modify regulations for the Atlantic coast stock of weakfish to be consistent with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission's (Commission) Interstate Fishery Management Plan (ISFMP) for weakfish, as set forth in the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act (Atlantic Coastal Act).

The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

NMFS is reallocating the projected unused amount of Pacific cod from vessels using jig gear to catcher vessels less than 60 feet (< 18.3 meters (m)) length overall (LOA) using pot or hook-and-line gear in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area (BSAI). This action is necessary to allow the A season apportionment of the 2008 total allowable catch (TAC) of Pacific cod to be harvested.

This announcement provides notice that Mr. G. Walter Swain has filed an administrative appeal with the Department of Commerce asking that the Secretary override the State of Delaware's objection to Mr. Swain's proposed construction of a marina and associated structures at the confluence of Cedar Creek and Mispillion River, in Milford, Delaware.

In accordance with section 751(c) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (``the Act''), the Department of Commerce (``the Department'') is automatically initiating a five-year review (``Sunset Review'') of the antidumping duty order listed below. The International Trade Commission (``the Commission'') is publishing concurrently with this notice its notice of Institution of Five-year Review which covers the same order.

The Georges Bank (GB) Cod Hook Sector (Hook Sector) has submitted an Operations Plan and Sector Contract entitled, ``Georges Bank Cod Hook Sector Fishing Year 2008-2009 Operations Plan and Agreement'' (together referred to as the Sector Agreement), and an Environmental Assessment (EA), and has requested an allocation of GB cod, consistent with the Northeast (NE) Multispecies Fishery Management Plan (FMP). This rule proposes to modify the eligibility criteria for membership in both the Hook Sector and the GB Cod Fixed Gear Sector (Fixed Gear Sector). This proposed rule provides interested parties an opportunity to comment on the proposed Hook Gear Sector Agreement prior to final approval or disapproval of the Hook Sector Operations Plan and allocation of GB cod Total Allowable Catch (TAC) to the Hook Sector for the 2008 fishing year (FY).

This announcement provides notice that the Secretary of Commerce has stayed, for a period of 60 days, closure of the decision record in administrative appeals filed by Weaver's Cove, LLC and Mill River Pipeline, LLC (Weaver's Cove and Mill River Consistency Appeals).