National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration January 2022 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

NMFS proposes to implement management measures described in Amendment 53 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Reef Fish Resources of the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf)(FMP), as prepared by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council)(Amendment 53). This proposed rule and Amendment 53 would modify the allocation of Gulf red grouper catch between the commercial and recreational sectors as well as revise sector annual catch limits (ACLs) and annual catch targets (ACTs). The purposes of this proposed rule and Amendment 53 are to revise the red grouper sector allocations using the best scientific information available and to modify the allowable harvest of red grouper based on results of the recent stock assessment.

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for groundfish by vessels using nonpelagic trawl gear in the Red King Crab Savings Subarea of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area (BSAI). This action is necessary because the State of Alaska, Department of Fish and Game did not established a guideline harvest level fishery for red king crab in the Bristol Bay area for the 2021/2022 fishing year.

NMFS announces the receipt of an application for an exempted fishing permit (EFP) from the Sustainable Seas Technology, LLC. If granted, the EFP would authorize the applicant to deploy modified black sea bass pots with Acoustic Subsea Buoy Retrieval Systems (ASBRS) in South Atlantic Federal waters off North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. The project would examine the potential usefulness of ASBRSs for use in the black sea bass pot gear component for the commercial sector of the snapper-grouper fishery in minimizing impacts to protected species.

NMFS implements regulations to clarify terms used in the Direct Enhancement of Snapper Conservation and the Economy through Novel Devices Act of 2020 (Descend Act). Section 3 of the Descend Act requires commercial and recreational fishermen to have a descending device or a venting tool on the vessel and ready for use when fishing for federally managed reef fish species in Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) Federal waters. The purpose of this final rule is to clarify the definitions of descending device and venting tool in the Descend Act.

NMFS notifies the public of the aboriginal subsistence whaling quota for bowhead whales that it has 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 2022, the quota is 93 bowhead whales struck. This quota and other applicable limitations govern the harvest of bowhead whales by members of the AEWC.

NMFS announces that the New England Fishery Management Council has transmitted Amendment 23 to the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan, incorporating the Environmental Impact Statement and the Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, for review by the Secretary of Commerce, and is requesting comments from the public. This action would adjust the existing industry-funded at-sea monitoring program for groundfish sectors to improve the accuracy of collected catch data (landings and discards) and catch accounting in order to better determine total catch and effort and achieve coverage levels sufficient to minimize effects of potential monitoring bias. The measures recommended by the New England Fishery Management Council in Amendment 23 are intended to ensure there is a precise and accurate representation of catch to set catch limits at levels that prevent overfishing and to determine when catch limits are exceeded.

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council, NEFMC) will hold a three-day meeting to consider actions affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Due to ongoing public safety considerations related to COVID-19, this meeting will be conducted entirely by webinar.

NMFS has received a request from the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (L-DEO) for authorization to take marine mammals incidental to geophysical surveys of the Guerrero Gap off the coast of Mexico in the Eastern Tropical Pacific. 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-time, 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 authorization and agency responses will be summarized in the final notice of our decision.

The Caribbean Fishery Management Council (CFMC) will hold the 177th public meeting to address the items contained in the tentative agenda included in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. The meeting will be an in-person/virtual hybrid meeting.

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

The SEDAR 77 assessment of the Atlantic stocks of hammerhead sharks will consist of a stock identification (ID) process, data webinars/workshop, a series of assessment webinars, and a review workshop. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

NMFS implements the measures included in Amendment 21 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan as adopted and submitted by the New England Fishery Management Council. This action allows for more controlled access to the scallop resource by the limited access and limited access general category fleets and increases monitoring to a growing directed scallop fishery in Federal waters, including the Northern Gulf of Maine Management Area. These management measures are intended to promote conservation of the scallop resource in the Northern Gulf of Maine Management Area and to manage total removals from the area by all fishery components. Amendment 21 also expands flexibility in the limited access general category individual fishing quota fishery to reduce impacts of potential decreases in ex-vessel price and increases in operating costs.

This temporary rule implements interim specifications for the 2022 fishing year to address new assessment information regarding the status of the Atlantic mackerel stock. This action is intended to reduce potential Atlantic mackerel overfishing based on new 2021 assessment findings while a rebuilding plan is being developed.

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

NMFS corrects the temporary rule that published in the Federal Register on January 3, 2022, which announced the incorrect effective date of January 3, 2022, for the closure of the Atlantic southern zone to commercial harvest of Spanish mackerel. The correct effective date for the closure is January 5, 2022. NMFS identified several errors with references to incorrect dates, so the purpose of this correction is to fix those errors.

This notice sets forth the U.S. Global Change Research Program seeks public comment on the proposed themes and framework of the Fifth National Climate Assessment as indicated by the chapter annotated outlines linked here. Based on input received from this notice, chapter author teams will develop their draft chapters.

NMFS is extending the effective date of temporary specifications that implement three short-notice decisions of the Commission on the Conservation and Management of Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (Commission or WCPFC). NMFS issued temporary specifications on June 11, 2021, to implement short-notice WCPFC decisions regarding purse seine observer coverage, purse seine transshipments at sea, and transshipment observer coverage. NMFS is extending the effective date of those temporary specifications until April 14, 2022. NMFS is undertaking this action under the authority of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Convention Implementation Act (WCPFC Implementation Act) to satisfy the obligations of the United States as a Contracting Party to the Convention on the Conservation and Management of Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (Convention).

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 South Fork Wind, LLC (South Fork Wind) to take, by Level A harassment and Level B harassment, marine mammals during construction of a commercial wind energy project offshore New York, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts.

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is scheduling a public joint meeting of its Habitat Committee via webinar 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 received a request from [Oslash]rsted Wind Power North America, LLC, ([Oslash]rsted) for the Renewal of their 2020 IHA to take marine mammals incidental marine site characterization surveys, using high-resolution geophysical (HRG) equipment, in coastal waters from New York to Massachusetts. [Oslash]rsted is also planning to conduct marine site characterization surveys along one or more potential submarine export cable routes (ECRs). The activities for which [Oslash]rsted has requested a Renewal IHA are identical to those covered under the initial IHA, which expired on September 24, 2021. Pursuant to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), prior to issuing the initial IHA in 2020, NMFS requested comments on both the proposed IHA and the potential for renewing the initial authorization if certain requirements were satisfied. The Renewal requirements have been satisfied, and NMFS is now providing an additional 15-day comment period to allow for any additional comments on the proposed Renewal not previously provided during the initial 30-day comment period. If issued, the Renewal would be effective through September 24, 2022.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) Bering Sea Fishery Ecosystem Plan Climate Change Taskforce will meet January 18, 2022 through January 20, 2022.

Through this temporary rule, NMFS implements accountability measures (AMs) for the red snapper recreational sector private angling component in the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) off Texas for the 2021 fishing year. Based on information provided by the State of Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD), NMFS has determined that the 2020 Texas regional management area private angling component annual catch limit (ACL) for Gulf red snapper was exceeded. Therefore, NMFS reduces the 2021 private angling component ACL of Gulf red snapper for the Texas regional management area. This reduction will remain in effect through the remainder of the current fishing year on December 31, 2021, and is necessary to protect the Gulf red snapper resource.