National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration April 9, 2013 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

NMFS is closing the directed herring fishery in Management Area 2, because over 95 percent of the catch limit for that area has been caught. Effective 0001 hr, April 7, 2013, federally permitted vessels may not fish for, catch, possess, transfer, or land more than 2,000 lb (907.2 kg) of Atlantic herring (herring) per trip or calendar day in or from Management Area 2 until January 1, 2014, when the 2014 allocation for Area 2 becomes available. Also effective 0001 hr, April 7, 2013, federally permitted dealers may not receive more than 2,000 lb (907.2 kg) of herring caught within Management Area 2 per trip or calendar day.

Notice is hereby given that (1) Paul Nachtigall, Ph.D., Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology, University of Hawaii, P.O. Box 1106, Kailua, HI 96734, has applied in due form for a permit to conduct research on captive cetaceans; and (2) Colleen Reichmuth, Ph.D., Long Marine Laboratory, University of California at Santa Cruz, 100 Shaffer Road, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, has applied in due form for an amendment to Permit No. 14535-01 to conduct research on captive pinnipeds.

The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable Fisheries, Northeast Region, NMFS (Assistant Regional Administrator), has made a preliminary determination that an exempted fishing permit application contains all of the required information and warrants further consideration. This exempted fishing permit would facilitate compensation fishing under the monkfish Research Set-Aside Program by exempting vessels from monkfish days-at-sea possession limits. The compensation fishing is in support of a 2012 Monkfish Research Set- Aside project that is attempting to determine if monkfish constitute one or more stocks over their coast-wide distribution. The project is being conducted by the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County Marine Program. Regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act require publication of this notification to provide interested parties the opportunity to comment on applications for proposed exempted fishing permits.