National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 2018 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

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 Harvest Alaska, LLC (Harvest), to incidentally take, by Level B harassment, eight species of marine mammals incidental to oil and gas pipeline installation activities associated with the Cook Inlet Pipeline Cross Inlet Extension Project (CIPL), Cook Inlet, Alaska.

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 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to incidentally harass, by Level B harassment only, marine mammals during survey activities associated with the seabird and shorebird monitoring project at the Eastern Massachusetts National Wildlife Refuge Complex (Complex).

Through this final rule, NMFS establishes fishery management measures for the 2018 ocean salmon fisheries off Washington, Oregon, and California and the 2019 salmon seasons opening earlier than May 1, 2019. The temporary rule for emergency action (emergency rule), under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA), implements the 2018 annual management measures for the West Coast ocean salmon fisheries for the area from the U.S./Canada border to Cape Falcon, OR, from May 1, 2018, through October 28, 2018. The emergency rule is required because allocation of coho harvest between recreational and commercial fisheries will not be consistent with the allocation schedule specified in the Pacific Coast Salmon Fishery Management Plan (FMP) in order to limit fishery impacts on Queets and Grays Harbor coho and meet conservation and management objectives. The fishery management measures for the area from Cape Falcon, OR, to the U.S./Mexico border are consistent with the FMP and are implemented through a final rule. Specific fishery management measures vary by fishery and by area. The measures establish fishing areas, seasons, quotas, legal gear, recreational fishing days and catch limits, possession and landing restrictions, and minimum lengths for salmon taken in the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) (3-200 nautical miles (nmi)) off Washington, Oregon, and California. The management measures are intended to prevent overfishing and to apportion the ocean harvest equitably among treaty Indian, non-treaty commercial, and recreational fisheries. The measures are also intended to allow a portion of the salmon runs to escape the ocean fisheries in order to provide for spawning escapement and inside fisheries (fisheries occurring in state internal waters).

This rule provides allocations to 17 of 19 groundfish sectors for the 2018 fishing year and also approves a new regulatory exemption for sector vessels. The action is necessary because sectors must receive allocations in order to operate in the 2018 fishing year. This action is intended to maximize fishing opportunities, ensure sector allocations are based on the best scientific information available, and help achieve optimum yield for the fishery.

This action closes the Gulf of Maine Cod Trimester Total Allowable Catch Area to Northeast multispecies common pool vessels fishing with trawl gear, sink gillnet gear, and longline/hook gear. The closure is required by regulation because the common pool fishery is projected to have caught 90 percent of its Trimester 3 quota for Gulf of Maine cod. This closure is intended to prevent an overage of the common pool's quota for this stock.

NMFS has received a request from Chevron for authorization to take marine mammals incidental to incidental to pile driving and removal associated with the Long Wharf Maintenance and Efficiency Project (WMEP) in San Francisco Bay, California. Pursuant to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is requesting comments on its proposal to issue an incidental harassment authorization (IHA) to incidentally take marine mammals during the specified activities. NMFS will consider public comments prior to making any final decision on the issuance of the requested MMPA authorizations and agency responses will be summarized in the final notice of our decision.

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for Greenland turbot in the Aleutian Islands subarea of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area (BSAI). This action is necessary to prevent exceeding the 2018 Greenland turbot initial total allowable catch (ITAC) in the Aleutian Islands subarea of the BSAI.

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is scheduling a public meeting of its Groundfish Advisory Panel to consider actions affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Recommendations from this group will be brought to the full Council for formal consideration and action, if appropriate.

This notice contains corrections to the scoping meeting times published on April 2, 2018, in the DATES section of a notice of intent for the Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program (MMHSRP) to prepare a PEIS. This action is necessary to correct an error in the times of the in-person scoping meeting and webinars published in the Federal Register.

NMFS has received a request from the San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA) for authorization to take marine mammals incidental to Downtown San Francisco Ferry Terminal Expansion Project, South Basin Improvements Project in San Francisco, California. Pursuant to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS is requesting comments on its proposal to issue an incidental harassment authorization (IHA) to incidentally take marine mammals during the specified activities. NMFS will consider public comments prior to making any final decision on the issuance of the requested MMPA authorizations and agency responses will be summarized in the final notice of our decision.

The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council will hold a one day meeting of its Outreach and Education Technical Committee.

NMFS has determined that the Atlantic bluefin tuna (BFT) daily retention limit that applies to vessels permitted in the Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Angling category and the HMS Charter/Headboat category (when fishing recreationally for BFT) should be adjusted for the remainder of 2018, based on consideration of the regulatory determination criteria regarding inseason adjustments. NMFS is adjusting the Angling category BFT daily retention limit from the default of one school, large school, or small medium BFT to two school BFT and one large school/small medium BFT per vessel per day/trip for private vessels with HMS Angling category permits; and to three school BFT and one large school/small medium BFT per vessel per day/trip for vessels with HMS Charter/Headboat permits when fishing recreationally. These retention limits are effective in all areas, except for the Gulf of Mexico, where NMFS prohibits targeted fishing for BFT.

NMFS issues a final rule to approve new fishery management measures to limit incidental catch of endangered Sacramento River winter-run Chinook salmon (SRWC) in fisheries managed under the Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Council) Pacific Salmon Fishery Management Plan (FMP), as recommended by the Council for use in developing annual management measures beginning in 2018. These new management measures replace existing measures, which have been in place since 2012, with updated salmon abundance modeling methods that utilize the best available science and address concerns that the existing measures were overly conservative.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Pacific Council) Ad Hoc Ecosystem Workgroup (EWG) will hold a meeting via webinar, which is open to the public.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) Observer Advisory Committee (OAC) will meet May 16 through May 17, 2018.

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.

This notice sets forth the schedule and proposed agenda of a forthcoming meeting of the Ocean Exploration Advisory Board (OEAB). OEAB members will discuss and provide advice on Federal ocean exploration programs, with a particular emphasis National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) leadership priorities and how they align with a national ocean exploration program. Other topics will include implementation of the President's Executive Order on a Federal Strategy to Ensure Secure and Reliable Supplies of Critical Minerals; other federal agency activity in support of this executive order; NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research (OER) activities; and other matters as described in the agenda found on the OEAB website at https:// oeab.noaa.gov.

The SEDAR Steering Committee will meet to discuss the SEDAR process and assessment schedule. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council's Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish Advisory Panel and Committee will hold a public meeting.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) Crab Plan Team (CPT) will meet May 8, 2018 through May 10, 2018.

NMFS announces the 2018 recreational fishing seasons for the private angling and Federal charter vessel/headboat (for-hire) components for red snapper in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) through this temporary rule. The Federal recreational season for red snapper in the Gulf EEZ begins at 12:01 a.m., local time, on June 1, 2018. For recreational harvest by the private angling component, the season closes at 12:01 a.m., local time, on June 1, 2018. For recreational harvest by the Federal for-hire component, the season closes at 12:01 a.m., local time, on July 22, 2018. These closures are necessary to prevent the private angling and Federal for-hire components from exceeding their respective quotas, equivalent to annual catch limits (ACLs), for the 2018 fishing year and to prevent overfishing of the Gulf red snapper resource.

Notice is hereby given that permits or permit amendments have been issued to the following entities under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and the Endangered Species Act (ESA), as applicable.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Pacific Council) Coastal Pelagic Species Management Team (CPSMT) will hold a meeting via webinar that is open to the public.