National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration February 2020 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

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 Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council's (Council) Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) of the will hold a meeting.

Notice is hereby given that NMFS has issued one direct take permit (#14741) pursuant to the Endangered Species Act (ESA) of 1973, as amended, to the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District (District) for the Carmel River Steelhead Rescue and Rearing Enhancement Program (Program) for a five year period (with the opportunity for a five year renewal). On June 4, 2018, NMFS provided notice of our receipt of this permit application and Rescue and Rearing Management Plan (RRMP) in the Federal Register. The RRMP specifies operational methods for South-Central California Coast (S-CCC) steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) rescue, rearing, and translocation activities associated with the Sleepy Hollow Steelhead Rearing Facility (Facility). The Facility is located on the Carmel River on the Central California Coast.

The SEDAR 65 assessment of the Atlantic stock of Blacktip Shark will consist of a series of workshops and webinars: Data Workshop; Assessment Webinars; and a Review workshop.

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

NMFS issues regulations to modify the medical and beneficiary transfer provisions of the Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) Program for the fixed-gear commercial Pacific halibut and sablefish fisheries. This final rule is intended to simplify administration of the medical and beneficiary transfer provisions while promoting the long-standing objective of maintaining an owner-operated IFQ fishery. This final rule makes minor technical corrections to regulations for improved accuracy and clarity. This final rule is intended to promote the goals and objectives of the IFQ Program, the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, the Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 1982, and other applicable laws.

NMFS announces that the quotas for the Atlantic surfclam and ocean quahog fisheries for 2020 will remain status quo. NMFS also suspends the minimum size limit for Atlantic surfclams for the 2020 fishing year. Regulations for these fisheries require NMFS to notify the public of the allowable harvest levels for Atlantic surfclams and ocean quahogs from the Exclusive Economic Zone if the previous year's quota specifications remain unchanged.

On December 20, 2019, NMFS published a final rule under the Tuna Conventions Act of 1950 (TCA), as amended, and the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), as amended, to implement International Maritime Organization (IMO) requirements in Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) Resolution C-18-06 (Resolution (Amended) on a Regional Vessel Register) and amendments to existing regulations governing inclusion on the IATTC Regional Vessel Register (Vessel Register) by purse seine vessels fishing in the eastern Pacific Ocean (EPO). The December 20th final rule inadvertently contained provisions allowing for the collection of a ``business email address'' without Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval under the Paperwork Reduction Act. This amendment is necessary to correct those two revised collection-of-information requirements, because they became effective before approval by OMB.

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

The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold meetings of the following: Habitat Protection and Ecosystem-Based Management Committee; Mackerel Cobia Committee; Shrimp Committee; Dolphin Wahoo Committee; Statement of Organization Practices and Procedures (SOPPs) Committee (Closed Session); Executive Finance Committee; and Snapper Grouper Committee. The meeting week will also include a meeting of the Committee of the Whole, a formal public comment session, and a meeting of the Full Council.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Pacific Council) and its advisory entities will hold public meetings.

NMFS has received a request from Vineyard Wind, LLC (Vineyard Wind) for authorization to take marine mammals incidental to marine site characterization surveys of Massachusetts in the areas of the Commercial Lease of Submerged Lands for Renewable Energy Development on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS-A 0501 and OCS-A 0522) and along potential submarine cable routes to a landfall location in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New York. 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 is also requesting comments on a possible one-year renewal that could be issued under certain circumstances and if all requirements are met, as described in Request for Public Comments at the end of this notice. 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 establishes the annual harvest guideline for the commercial lobster fishery in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI) for calendar year 2020 at zero lobsters.

On behalf of the Ocean Policy Committee, Ocean Science and Technology Subcommittee and the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) as Co-Chairs of the Ocean Policy Committee, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) requests input from all interested parties on the development of a National Strategy for Mapping, Exploring, and Characterizing the United States Exclusive Economic Zone (U.S. EEZ). Through this Request for Information (RFI), the Ocean Policy Committee seeks input from the public on ways to map, explore, and characterize the U.S. EEZ; that is, to reveal the terrain of the ocean floor and identify areas of particular interest, and to identify and evaluate natural and cultural resources within these areas. The public input provided in response to this RFI will inform the Ocean Policy Committee as it works with Federal agencies and other stakeholders to develop the strategy.

This action corrects errors in the comment identifier and the comments link specified in the ADDRESSES section of the proposed rule to implement permitting and reporting for private recreational tilefish vessel published in the Federal Register on January 29, 2020.

On December 19, 2019, NMFS received a request from the City and Borough of Juneau (CBJ) to modify an incidental harassment authorization (IHA) that was issued to CBJ on May 16, 2019 to take small numbers of harbor seals, by harassment, incidental to the Juneau dock and harbor waterfront improvement 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 prescribed mitigation and to the amount of authorized take by Level A harassment. The total amount of authorized taking remains the same. There are no changes to the activity, 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.

NMFS is publishing regulations under the authority of Section 303(b) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA) to implement an immediate closure of the California/Oregon drift gillnet (DGN) fishery for swordfish and thresher shark (14 inch (36 cm) minimum mesh size) if a hard cap (i.e., limit) on mortality/injury is met or exceeded for certain protected species during a rolling 2-year period. The length of the closure will be dependent on when the hard cap is reached. The implementation of hard caps is intended to manage the fishery under the MSA to protect certain non-target species. The publication of this final rule is necessary to comply with a court order issued January 8, 2020, as further described in SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION below.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) Cook Inlet Salmon Committee will meet on February 25, 2020 through February 26, 2020.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Pacific Council) Salmon Technical Team (STT) and Scientific and Statistical Committee salmon subcommittee (SSCSC) will hold a joint one-day methodology review meeting. This meeting will be held via webinar and is open to the public.

This notice sets forth the proposed schedule and agenda of a forthcoming meeting of the Marine Fisheries Advisory Committee's (MAFAC's) Columbia Basin Partnership Task Force (CBP Task Force). The CBP Task Force will discuss the issues outlined in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION below.

Notice is hereby given that Andrew Trites, Ph.D., University of British Columbia, Room 247, Aquatic Ecosystems Research Laboratory, 2202 Main Mall, Vancouver, BC, Canada, has applied in due form for a permit to conduct research on marine mammals.

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 comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council announces its intent to prepare, in cooperation with the National Marine Fisheries Service and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, an amendment to the Atlantic Bluefish Fishery Management Plan. An Environmental Impact Statement may be necessary for the amendment under the National Environmental Policy Act to analyze the impacts of any proposed management measures. The Council has initiated this amendment in order to perform a review of the sector-based allocations, commercial allocations to the states, goals and objectives of the management plan, transfer processes, and develop a rebuilding plan. This notice announces the Council's supplemental public process for determining the scope of issues to be addressed, and for identifying the significant issues related to the bluefish fishery in the Greater Atlantic region. This notice is to alert the interested public of the Council's scoping process, the potential development of a draft Environmental Impact Statement, and to provide for public participation in that process.

NMFS proposes to approve changes to the Pacific Halibut Catch Sharing Plan for the International Pacific Halibut Commission's regulatory Area 2A off Washington, Oregon, and California. In addition, NMFS proposes to implement the portions of the Plan and management measures that are not implemented through the International Pacific Halibut Commission. These measures include the recreational fishery seasons and allocations and management measures for Area 2A. These actions are intended to conserve Pacific halibut and provide angler opportunity where available.

NMFS issues regulations to implement Regulatory Amendment 30 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region (FMP) (Regulatory Amendment 30), as prepared and submitted by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council). This final rule modifies the spawning season closures for the commercial and recreational sectors in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off North Carolina and South Carolina and establishes a commercial trip limit. Additionally, Regulatory Amendment 30 revises the rebuilding schedule for red grouper. The purpose of this final rule and Regulatory Amendment 30 is to modify the rebuilding schedule and extend protections for red grouper during the spawning season.