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

This final rule approves changes to the Pacific Halibut Catch Sharing Plan for the International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC)'s regulatory Area 2A off of Washington, Oregon, and California. In addition, this final rule implements management measures governing the 2024 recreational fisheries that are not implemented through the IPHC. These management measures include the recreational fishery seasons and subarea allocations for Area 2A. This rule also adds a new inseason management provision to transfer anticipated uncaught recreational fishery allocation between the Area 2A states. Additionally, the rule establishes a new management line at Point Arena, CA, creating two subareas with separate allocations off California. These actions are intended to conserve Pacific halibut and provide angler opportunity where available.

On February 5, 2024, NMFS received a request from the Municipality of Skagway (MOS) to modify an incidental harassment authorization (IHA) that was issued to MOS on August 29, 2023 to take small numbers of eight species of marine mammals, by Level A and Level B harassment, incidental to the Skagway Ore Terminal redevelopment project. Pursuant to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is requesting comments on its proposal to modify the IHA. This modification includes changes to the amount of authorized take by Level B harassment for Steller sea lions and the addition of take by Level A and Level B harassment for the northern fur seal (Callorhinus ursinus). There are no changes to the activity, mitigation and monitoring, NMFS' findings, the effective dates of the issued IHA, or any other aspect of the IHA. NMFS will consider public comments prior to making any final decision on the requested modification of the authorization and agency responses will be summarized in the final notice of our decision.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Pacific Council) Ad Hoc Marine Planning Committee (MPC) will hold an online public meeting.

The Department of Commerce, in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), invites the general public and other Federal agencies to comment on proposed, and continuing, information collections, which helps us assess the impact of our information collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden. The purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment preceding submission of the collection to OMB.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Office for Coastal Management, will hold a virtual public meeting to solicit input on the performance evaluation of the Mississippi Coastal Management Program. NOAA also invites the public to submit written comments.

Notice is hereby given that Gregory Lewbart, VMD, North Carolina State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, 1060 William Moore Drive, Raleigh, NC 27607, has applied in due form for a permit to import and export marine mammal and protected species parts for scientific research.

This emergency rule temporarily modifies a continuous transit requirement for California recreational vessels. This modification will temporarily allow recreational vessels to anchor overnight and/or stop to fish for non-groundfish species inside the seasonal Recreational Rockfish Conservation Area off the coast of California, also known as the 50-fathom (91-meter) offshore fishery. This emergency measure will prevent the possible cancellation of thousands of recreational fishing trips during the 2024 recreational fishing season off California.

NMFS has received a request from the NMFS Alaska Fisheries Science Center (AFSC) for authorization to take marine mammals incidental to conducting fisheries and ecosystem research in the Pacific and Arctic Oceans over the course of 5 years from the date of issuance. Pursuant to regulations implementing the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is announcing receipt of AFSC's request for the development and implementation of regulations governing the incidental taking of marine mammals. NMFS invites the public to provide information, suggestions, and comments on the AFSC's application and request.

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for Pacific cod by catcher vessels less than 50 feet (15.2 meters (m)) length overall using hook-and-line (HAL) gear in the Central Regulatory Area of the Gulf of Alaska (GOA). This action is necessary to prevent exceeding the A season allowance of the 2024 total allowable catch (TAC) apportioned to catcher vessels less than 50 feet (15.2 m) length overall using HAL gear in the Central Regulatory Area of the GOA.

The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold a meeting of the Socio-Economic Panel (SEP) on April 15 and 16, 2024. The Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) will meet on April 16-18, 2024.

NMFS announces that the recreational fishing season for black sea bass in South Atlantic Federal waters will extend throughout the species' 2024-2025 fishing year. Announcing the length of recreational fishing season for black sea bass is one of the accountability measures (AMs) for the recreational sector. This announcement allows recreational fishers to maximize their opportunity to harvest the recreational annual catch limit (ACL) for black sea bass while NMFS manages harvest to protect the black sea bass resource.

NMFS implements an accountability measure (AM) for the commercial harvest of gag in South Atlantic Federal waters. NMFS has determined that commercial landings of gag exceeded the commercial annual catch limit (ACL) in 2023, and other triggers for the commercial AMs are met. Therefore, NMFS reduces the commercial ACL of gag in the 2024 fishing year by the amount of gag landings that exceeded the 2023 commercial ACL to protect the gag resource from overfishing and continue to allow the recovery of this overfished stock.

NMFS announces approval of a Marine Conservation Plan (MCP) for Guam.

NMFS announces that the Commonwealth of Virginia is transferring a portion of its 2024 commercial summer flounder quota to the State of North Carolina. This adjustment to the 2024 fishing year quota is necessary to comply with the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan (FMP) quota transfer provisions. This announcement informs the public of the revised 2024 commercial quotas for Virginia and North Carolina.

NMFS notifies the public of the aboriginal subsistence whaling quota for bowhead whales assigned to the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission (AEWC), and of limitations on the use of the quota deriving from regulations of the International Whaling Commission (IWC). For 2024, the AEWC quota is 93 bowhead whales struck. This quota and other applicable limitations govern the harvest of bowhead whales by whaling captains of the AEWC.

NOAA is soliciting nominations for members of the NOAA Science Advisory Board (SAB). The SAB is the only Federal Advisory Committee with the responsibility to advise the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans, Atmosphere, and NOAA Administrator on long- and short-range strategies for research, education, and application of science to resource management and environmental assessment and prediction. The SAB consists of approximately twenty members reflecting the full breadth of NOAA's areas of responsibility and assists NOAA in maintaining a complete and accurate understanding of scientific issues critical to the agency's missions.

The Space Weather Advisory Group (SWAG) will meet for a half day on April 12, 2024.

The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) will host a presentation on Fish Acoustic Detection Algorithm Research to Identify Fish.

NMFS approves and implements the measures included in Framework Adjustment 38 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan as adopted and submitted by the New England Fishery Management Council. Framework 38 establishes scallop specifications and other measures for fishing years 2024 and 2025. Framework 35 implements measures to protect small scallops which would thereby support rotational access area trips to the fleet in future years. To promote uniformity in the fishery, this final rule also corrects and clarifies regulatory text that is unnecessary, outdated, or unclear. This action is necessary to prevent overfishing and improve both yield-per-recruit and the overall management of the Atlantic sea scallop resource.

In accordance with the regulations implementing the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) as amended, notification is hereby given that NMFS has issued an incidental harassment authorization (IHA) to Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind, LLC (Atlantic Shores) to incidentally harass, by Level B harassment only, marine mammals during marine site characterization surveys in waters off of New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland, including in the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Commercial Lease of Submerged Lands for Renewable Energy Development on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Lease Areas OCS-A 0499, OCS-A 0541, OCS-A 0549, and associated export cable corridor (ECC) areas.

The Caribbean Fishery Management Council's (Council) Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) will hold a two-and-a-half- day public hybrid meeting to address the items contained in the tentative agenda included in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

In accordance with the regulations implementing the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) as amended, notification is hereby given that NMFS has issued an incidental harassment authorization (IHA) to Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Company LLC (Transco), to incidentally harass marine mammals during construction activities associated with a natural gas pipeline stabilization project in Sandy Hook Channel, New Jersey (NJ).

The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold a meeting via webinar of its Snapper Grouper Recreational Permitting and Reporting Technical Advisory Panel (AP) to discuss permitting and education alternatives for the private recreational component of the snapper grouper fishery.