National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration March 18, 2005 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This notice announces receipt of an application for an exempted fishing permit (EFP) from John Gauvin and John Gruver. If granted, this permit would be used to continue the development and testing of a salmon excluder device in the Bering Sea pollock trawl fishery. It is intended to promote the objectives of the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (FMP) by developing a method for reducing salmon bycatch in the Bering Sea pollock trawl fishery.

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council announces its intention to hold scoping meetings to seek public comment on issues to be addressed when developing Amendment 1 to the Tilefish Fishery Management Plan pursuant to the Magnuson Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976, as amended. The purpose of these scoping meetings is to solicit input on management issues to be included in Amendment 1. It is anticipated that the following issues will be discussed at these meetings: the possible implementation of an individual fishing quota system; consideration of possible new methods to collect landings information for the commercial fishery; recreational management measures; a required minimum hook size and/or hook configuration in the commercial tilefish fishery; and, methods to allow new entrants into the commercial fishery as the stock recovers.

NMFS is closing directed fishing for yellowfin sole by vessels using trawl gear in Bycatch Limitation Zone 1 (Zone 1) of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area (BSAI). This action is necessary to prevent exceeding the 2005 bycatch allowance of red king crab specified for the trawl yellowfin sole fishery in Zone 1.

This document contains corrections to the final regulations that were published in the Federal Register on Thursday, December 23, 2004. These regulations implemented the 2005-2006 fishery specifications and management measures for groundfish taken in the U.S. exclusive economic zone off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California.

NMFS proposes to establish target total allowable catch (TAC) levels for the monkfish fishery for the 2005 fishing year (FY), and adjust trip limits for limited access monkfish vessels fishing in the Southern Fishery Management Area (SFMA) based upon the annual target TAC setting and trip limit adjustment methods established in Framework Adjustment 2 (Framework 2) to the Monkfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP). The proposed action is necessary to comply with the rebuilding plan established in the FMP and modified in Framework 2. The target TACs for FY 2005, based upon the target TAC setting method, would be 13,160 mt for the Northern Fishery Management Area (NFMA), and 9,673 mt for the SFMA. This action would also adjust the trip limits for vessels fishing in the SFMA, in accordance with the trip limit analysis method established in Framework 2, to be 700 lb (318 kg) tail weight per day- at-sea (DAS) for limited access Category A and C vessels, and 600 lb (272 kg) tail weight per DAS for limited access Category B and D vessels. The intent of this action is to eliminate overfishing and rebuild the monkfish resource in accordance with Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) requirements.

NMFS announces a 12-month finding on a petition to add the elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata), staghorn coral (A. cervicornis), and fused-staghorn coral (A. prolifera), throughout their known range, to the list of threatened and endangered wildlife and to designate critical habitat under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Based on a review of the best available scientific and commercial information on the status of the species, NMFS finds that the petitioned action is warranted with respect to elkhorn and staghorn corals and will promptly publish a proposed rule to list these two species as threatened. Furthermore, NMFS concludes that listing fused-staghorn coral is not warranted as it is a hybrid and does not constitute a species.