National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration August 2019 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This notice announces an additional public hearing for a proposed rule NMFS published on July 12, 2019. The proposed rule would adjust regulatory measures that reduce bluefin tuna bycatch in the pelagic longline fishery for Atlantic highly migratory species (HMS).

Free Atlantic Shark Identification Workshops and Safe Handling, Release, and Identification Workshops will be held in October, November, and December of 2019. Certain fishermen and shark dealers are required to attend a workshop to meet regulatory requirements and to maintain valid permits. Specifically, the Atlantic Shark Identification Workshop is mandatory for all federally permitted Atlantic shark dealers. The Safe Handling, Release, and Identification Workshop is mandatory for vessel owners and operators who use bottom longline, pelagic longline, or gillnet gear, and who have also been issued shark or swordfish limited access permits. Additional free workshops will be conducted during 2020 and will be announced in a future notice.

NMFS announces that the Pacific Fishery Management Council submitted Amendment 21-4 to the Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery Management Plan to the Secretary of Commerce for review. If approved, Amendment 21-4 would adjust the Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery Catch Share Program to complete outstanding elements of the program, respond to problems identified after program implementation, and modify outdated regulations. The proposed Amendment would convert bycatch allocations of canary and widow rockfish to set-asides in the at-sea whiting fishery and remove fixed formulas used to determine bycatch amounts of Pacific Ocean Perch, darkblotched rockfish and widow rockfish in the at-sea whiting sectors. Bycatch amounts would instead be determined through the biennial harvest specification process, which would offer more flexible bycatch management for the at-sea sectors. The proposed rule implementing this proposed FMP amendment includes other regulatory changes which would provide increased opportunity to trade individual fishing quota, accumulation limits for catcher-processor permits, and expand economic data collections. The rule will help to ensure the Pacific Coast Groundfish fishery achieves optimum yield, minimize costs of participation, provide fair and equitable access to fishery resources, and avoid adverse economic impacts to fishing communities.

The Advisory Committee (Committee) to the U.S. Section to the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) announces a special meeting to be held September 5-6, 2019. The meeting is open to the public and will be accessible via conference call and webinar.

NMFS implements accountability measures for commercial red snapper in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the South Atlantic. NMFS projects commercial landings for red snapper will reach the commercial annual catch limit (ACL) for the 2019 fishing year. Therefore, NMFS is closing the commercial sector for red snapper in the South Atlantic EEZ on August 30, 2019. This closure is necessary to protect the red snapper resource.

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is scheduling a public meeting of its Monkfish Committee 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.

NMFS proposes regulations to implement Amendment 18 to the Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for the Shrimp Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico, U.S. Waters (Amendment 18), as prepared and submitted by the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) Fishery Management Council (Council). This proposed rule would modify the target reduction goal for juvenile red snapper mortality in the Federal Gulf penaeid shrimp trawl fishery, and would modify the FMP framework procedures. The purposes of Amendment 18 are to promote economic stability, to achieve optimum yield in the Federal Gulf shrimp fishery by reducing effort constraints, and to equitably distribute the benefits from red snapper rebuilding, while continuing to protect, the Gulf red snapper stock.

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council's Spiny Dogfish Monitoring Committee will hold a public meeting to review annual (2020) specifications and management measures and make any appropriate recommendations.

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council's (Council) Atlantic Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish (MSB) Committee will hold a meeting.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Pacific Council) Southern Resident Killer Whale (SRKW) Workgroup (Workgroup), will hold a webinar, which is open to the public.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) Groundfish Plan Teams will meet September 16, 2019 through September 19, 2019.

The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council will hold a one- day meeting of its Coral Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC), Coral and Shrimp Advisory Panels (AP).

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council's (MAFMC's) Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Monitoring Committee (MC) will hold a public meeting.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Ocean Service, Office for Coastal Management will hold a public meeting to solicit comments on the performance evaluation of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Coastal Management Program.

NMFS is prohibiting retention of Pacific cod by catcher/ processors using trawl gear in the Central Regulatory Area of the Gulf of Alaska (GOA). This action is necessary because the 2019 total allowable catch of Pacific cod allocated to catcher/processors using trawl gear in the Central Regulatory Area of the GOA has been reached.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) (collectively referred to as the ``Services'' or ``we''), revise portions of our regulations that implement section 4 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The revisions to the regulations clarify, interpret, and implement portions of the Act concerning the procedures and criteria used for listing or removing species from the Lists of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants and designating critical habitat.

NMFS announces that the New England Fishery Management Council has submitted the Omnibus Deep-Sea Coral Amendment, incorporating the Environmental Assessment and the Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, for review by the Secretary of Commerce, and is requesting comments from the public. This action would protect deep-sea corals from the impacts of commercial fishing gear on Georges Bank and in the Gulf of Maine. These proposed management measures are intended to reduce, to the extent practicable, impacts of fishing gear on deep-sea corals in New England while balancing their costs to commercial fisheries.

This action serves as a notice that NMFS, on behalf of the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary), has found that the northern subpopulation of Pacific sardine is now overfished. NMFS, on behalf of the Secretary, notifies the appropriate regional fishery management council (Council) whenever it determines that overfishing is occurring, a stock is in an overfished condition, or a stock is approaching an overfished condition.

Notice is hereby given that Sea Life Park Hawaii, 41-202 Kalanianaole Highway #7, Waimanalo, HI 96795 (Valerie King, Responsible Party), has applied in due form for a permit to maintain non-releasable Hawaiian monk seals (Neomonachus schauinslandi) in captivity for enhancement purposes.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council has submitted Amendment 119 to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (BSAI FMP) and Amendment 107 to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska (GOA FMP) (collectively Amendments 119/107) to the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) for review. If approved, Amendments 119/107 would require that the operator of a catcher vessel required to have a federal fishery permit using hook-and-line, pot, or jig in the EEZ of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI) and Gulf of Alaska (GOA) to retain and land all rockfish (Sebastes and Sebastolobus species) caught while fishing for groundfish or for Pacific halibut and establish a limit on the amount of rockfish caught as incidental catch allowed to enter commerce through barter, sale or trade. Amendments 119/107 are necessary to improve identification of rockfish species, improve data collection by providing more accurate estimates of total catch, reduce incentives to discard rockfish, reduce waste, reduce overall enforcement burden, and provide regulatory consistency. Amendments 119/ 107 are intended to promote the goals and objectives of the Magnuson- Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, the BSAI FMP, the GOA FMP, and other applicable laws.

NMFS implements an accountability measure (AM) for commercial Spanish mackerel in the northern zone of the Atlantic exclusive economic zone (EEZ) through this temporary rule. NMFS has determined that the commercial quota for Spanish mackerel in the northern zone of the Atlantic EEZ will be reached by August 24, 2019. Therefore, NMFS closes the northern zone of the Atlantic EEZ to commercial harvest of Spanish mackerel on August 24, 2019. This closure is necessary to protect the Spanish mackerel resource in the Atlantic.

NMFS is reallocating the projected unused amount of Pacific cod total allowable catch (TAC) from trawl catcher vessels, vessels using jig gear, and catcher vessels greater than or equal to 60 feet (18.3 m) length overall (LOA) using hook-and-line gear to catcher vessels less than 60 feet (18.3 meters) LOA using hook-and-line or pot gear in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area. This action is necessary to allow the 2019 TAC of Pacific cod to be harvested.

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for Atka mackerel in the Central Aleutian district (CAI) of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area (BSAI) by vessels participating in the BSAI trawl limited access sector fishery. This action is necessary to prevent exceeding the 2019 total allowable catch (TAC) of Atka mackerel in the CAI allocated to vessels participating in the BSAI trawl limited access sector fishery.

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is scheduling a public meeting of its Groundfish Committee 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.

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is scheduling a public meeting of its Herring Joint Committee and 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.