National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration March 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

NMFS issues this proposed rule to implement a regulatory amendment to the Fishery Management Plan for the Reef Fish Resources of the Gulf of Mexico (FMP) prepared by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council). This proposed rule would establish a recreational bag limit for Gulf red grouper of one fish per person per day; prohibit the captain and crew of a vessel operating as a charter vessel or headboat from retaining any Gulf grouper, i.e.,establish a zero bag limit for captain and crew; and establish a seasonal closure of the recreational fishery for gag, red grouper, and black grouper in or from the Gulf exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The intended effect of this proposed rule is to maintain recreational landings at levels consistent with the red grouper rebuilding plan while minimizing potential shift of fishing effort to associated grouper species.

This notice announces the date and location of the public meeting being held prior to the 58\th\ annual International Whaling Commission (IWC) meeting.

NMFS announces that it is considering, and is seeking public comment on, proposed rulemaking to control future access to the open access charter and party boat (charter/party) fishery in the NE multispecies fishery if a management regime is developed and implemented under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) to limit the number of participants in this sector of the NE multispecies fishery. This sector of the fishery includes vessels with open access charter/party permits, as well as limited access NE multispecies permits, while not on a NE multispecies day-at-sea (DAS). This announcement is intended, in part, to promote awareness of potential eligibility criteria for future access so as to discourage speculative entry into the fishery while the New England Fishery Management Council (Council) considers whether and how access to the charter/party fishery should be controlled.

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.

The purpose of this document is to advise the public that NOAA's Office of Civil Rights is soliciting proposals from non-profit organizations to design and provide administrative services for NOAA- sponsored internship program aimed at providing training, educational, and research opportunities to faculty, as well as graduate and undergraduate students pursuing degrees related to NOAA's mission. NOAA is seeking applicants with the capacity to design and implement a program that will improve NOAA's outreach and recruitment efforts of underrepresented individuals in the scientific mission-related occupational fields, i.e., fishery biology, environmental law, meteorology, cartography, oceanography, hydrology, computer science, ecology, environmental economics, and engineering. When implemented, the program will provide both student and faculty member participants with stipends, housing assistance, and limited travel expenses. Applicants to design and implement the program must demonstrate a focused and effective outreach and recruitment strategy targeting minority serving institutions and others. It is expected that approximately $250,000 to $300,000 annually will be available for the project.

NMFS announces its intent to prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), for the Subsistence Harvest Management of Cook Inlet, Alaska, Beluga Whales by Alaska Natives.

NMFS proposes to amend regulations for excluding tagged halibut and tagged sablefish catches from deduction from fishermen's Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) and from Western Alaska Community Development Quota (CDQ) accounts. This action is necessary to ensure that only halibut and sablefish that are tagged with an external research tag are excluded from IFQ deduction, and to extend the same exclusion to halibut and sablefish harvested under the CDQ Program, which allocates specific harvesting privileges among U.S. fishermen and eligible western Alaska communities. This action is intended to improve administration of the IFQ and CDQ Programs, to enhance collection of scientific data from external tags, and to further the goals and objectives of the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (BSAI), the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska (FMPs), and the halibut management program.

NMFS announces that the Administrator, Northeast (NE) Region, NMFS (Regional Administrator), is removing the Georges Bank (GB) yellowtail flounder trip limit for NE multispecies days-at-sea (DAS) vessels fishing in the U.S./Canada Management Area. This action is authorized by the regulations implementing Amendment 13 to the NE Multispecies Fishery Management Plan and is intended to prevent under- harvesting of the Total Allowable Catch (TAC) for GB yellowtail flounder while ensuring that the TAC will not be exceeded during the 2005 fishing year. This action is being taken to provide additional opportunities for vessels to fully harvest the GB yellowtail flounder TAC under the authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act).

We (NMFS) have completed an updated Endangered Species Act (ESA) status review of steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) populations in the Puget Sound area (Washington). We initiated this review in response to a petition received from Mr. Sam Wright on September 13, 2004, to list Puget Sound steelhead as a threatened or endangered species. We have determined that naturally spawned winter- and summer-run steelhead populations and two hatchery steelhead stocks, below natural and manmade impassable barriers, in the river basins of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Puget Sound, and Hood Canal (Washington) constitute a Distinct Population Segment (DPS) and hence a ``species'' for listing consideration under the ESA. After reviewing the best available scientific and commercial information, evaluating threats facing the species, and taking into account those efforts being made to protect the species, we conclude that the Puget Sound steelhead DPS is likely to become an endangered species within the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range. Therefore, we are proposing that the Puget Sound steelhead DPS be listed under the ESA as a threatened species. We will announce the timing and location of a public hearing to be held in the Puget Sound area, and propose 4(d) protective regulations and critical habitat for the Puget Sound steelhead DPS in subsequent Federal Register notices. We are soliciting public comment on this proposed listing determination, as well as any other information relevant to the designation of critical habitat and the promulgation of 4(d) protective regulations for the Puget Sound steelhead DPS.

Notice is hereby given that the Alaska SeaLife Center (ASLC), P.O. Box 1329, Seward, Alaska 99664 (Dr. Shannon Atkinson, Principal Investigator), has been issued a permit to conduct scientific research on captive Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus).

Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), this notice advises the public that NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) intends to gather the necessary information to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The EIS will examine the proposed implementation of a Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) and issuance of one incidental take permit (ITP) in accordance the Federal Endangered Species Act (ESA), as amended. The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) will be participating as Federal cooperating agencies. The USFS manages land in close proximity to the project area and, therefore, has an interest is the analysis of the proposed action. The applicant may seek an ITP from the USFWS for coverage for species under its jurisdiction; therefore, the USFWS is participating in the scoping process for EIS development.

The SAFMC and GMFMC will hold a joint Scientific and Statistical Committees (SSC) ad hoc Sub-Committee meeting to determine appropriate king mackerel mixing rates for the South Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico. The meeting will be held in Atlanta, GA. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

The SEDAR Steering Committee will meet to discuss the SEDAR schedule of events for 2006; composition of the SEDAR 10, gag grouper, Review Panel; and scheduling of management activities for 2006. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

NMFS proposes to close the Chiniak Gully region on the east side of Kodiak Island in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) to all commercial trawl fishing and testing of trawl gear from August 1 to a date no later than September 20 from 2006 through 2010. NMFS plans to conduct controlled experiments on the effects of commercial fishing on pollock distribution and abundance, as part of a comprehensive investigation of Steller sea lion (SSL) and commercial fishery interactions. This action is needed to support the proposed experimental design by prohibiting commercial trawl fishing in the control site of Chiniak Gully. The proposed research could improve information on pollock movements and on the potential impacts of commercial pollock harvests on prey availability to SSLs. This action is intended to improve information used to evaluate fishery management actions to protect SSLs and their designated critical habitat.

We, NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), intend to review the status of the Cook Inlet beluga whale pursuant to the ESA to determine if this group of beluga whales should be listed as an endangered or threatened species. We previously reviewed the status of these whales in 1998, and in 2000 concluded that a listing under the ESA was not warranted at that time. We solicit information to be used in reassessing the status of the Cook Inlet beluga whale.

In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and implementing regulations, notification is hereby given that a 1-year letter of authorization (LOA) has been issued to the 30th Space Wing, U.S. Air Force, to harass seals and sea lions incidental to rocket and missile launches on Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB), California.

In accordance with the provisions of the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) as amended, notification is hereby given that NMFS has issued an Incidental Harassment Authorization (IHA) to the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO) to take marine mammals by Level B harassment incidental to conducting a marine seismic survey in the Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean (ETP).

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for pollock in Statistical Area 620 of the Gulf of Alaska (GOA). This action is necessary to prevent exceeding the B season allowance of the 2006 total allowable catch (TAC) of pollock for Statistical Area 620 of the GOA.

This notice announces receipt of an application for an exempted fishing permit (EFP) from the Alaska Longline Fishermen's Association (ALFA). If granted, the EFP would support a project to develop hook-and-line, troll, and jig techniques specific to the harvest of several rockfish species in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA), Southeast Outside District (SEO). This project is intended to promote the objectives of the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the GOA by improving utilization of the rockfish resources in the SEO. The project also would provide important biological information about rockfish in the SEO.

Notice is hereby given that permits to conduct scientific research on marine mammals have been issued to Dr. Alejandro Acevedo- Gutierrez, Biology Department, Western Washington University, Bellingham, Washington (File No. 1070-1783); and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Division of Wildlife Conservation, Juneau, Alaska (File No. 358-1787).

NMFS proposes to establish target total allowable catch (TAC) levels for the monkfish fishery for the 2006 fishing year (FY), adjust trip limits, and establish days-at-sea (DAS) restrictions for limited access monkfish vessels fishing in the Southern Fishery Management Area (SFMA) based upon the annual target TAC setting, trip limit, and DAS 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 intent of this action is to help eliminate overfishing and rebuild the monkfish resource in accordance with Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson- Stevens Act) requirements.

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 issues a proposed rule that would implement Amendments 78 and 65 to the Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (BSAI), Amendments 73 and 65 to the FMP for Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska (GOA), Amendments 16 and 12 to the FMP for Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands King and Tanner Crabs, Amendments 7 and 9 to the FMP for the Scallop Fishery Off Alaska, and Amendments 7 and 8 to the FMP for Salmon Fisheries in the Exclusive Economic Zone off the Coast of Alaska. These amendments, if approved, would revise the FMPs by identifying and describing essential fish habitat (EFH), designating habitat areas of particular concern (HAPCs), and including measures to minimize to the extent practicable adverse effects on EFH. This action is necessary to update the descriptions of EFH in the FMPs based on the best available scientific information and to protect those areas that have important habitat features for the sustainability of managed fish stocks.

NMFS is providing notice that it is increasing the number of fisheries for which the Marine Mammal Authorization Program (MMAP) registration is integrated with existing state and Federal fishery licensing and permitting programs. NMFS is integrating MMAP registration for state fisheries permitted through the states of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Texas, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) and its advisory committees will hold public meetings April 5-11, 2006 at the Anchorage Hilton Hotel, 500 West Third Avenue, Anchorage, Alaska.