Rule2021-27761
Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Fisheries
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
December 22, 2021
Effective
December 20, 2021
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
NMFS reopens the General category fishery for four days within the December 2021 General category subquota period. This action is intended to provide a reasonable opportunity to harvest the annual U.S. bluefin tuna (BFT) quota without exceeding it, while maintaining an equitable distribution of fishing opportunities across time periods. This action affects Atlantic Tunas General category (commercial) permitted vessels and Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Charter/Headboat permitted vessels with a commercial sale endorsement when fishing commercially for BFT.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 243 (Wednesday, December 22, 2021)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 243 (Wednesday, December 22, 2021)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 72532-72533]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2021-27761]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 635
[Docket No. 180117042-8884-02; RTID 0648-XB675]
Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Atlantic Bluefin Tuna
Fisheries
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; fishery reopening.
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SUMMARY: NMFS reopens the General category fishery for four days within
the December 2021 General category subquota period. This action is
intended to provide a reasonable opportunity to harvest the annual U.S.
bluefin tuna (BFT) quota without exceeding it, while maintaining an
equitable distribution of fishing opportunities across time periods.
This action affects Atlantic Tunas General category (commercial)
permitted vessels and Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Charter/Headboat
permitted vessels with a commercial sale endorsement when fishing
commercially for BFT.
DATES: Effective 12:30 a.m., local time, December 20, 2021, through
11:30 p.m., local time, December 23, 2021.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Larry Redd, Jr., <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#167a7764646f3864737272567879777738717960"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="5c303d2e2e25722e3938381c32333d3d723b332a">[email protected]</span></a>,
301-427-8503, Nicholas Velseboer, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#036d6a606b6c6f62702d75666f70616c6671436d6c62622d646c75"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="96f8fff5fef9faf7e5b8e0f3fae5f4f9f3e4d6f8f9f7f7b8f1f9e0">[email protected]</span></a>, 978-281-
9260, or Thomas Warren, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#c7b3afa8aaa6b4e9b0a6b5b5a2a987a9a8a6a6e9a0a8b1"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="b5c1dddad8d4c69bc2d4c7c7d0dbf5dbdad4d49bd2dac3">[email protected]</span></a>, 978-281-9347.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Atlantic HMS fisheries, including BFT
fisheries, are managed under the authority of the Atlantic Tunas
Convention Act (ATCA; 16 U.S.C. 971 et seq.) and the Magnuson-Stevens
Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act; 16
U.S.C. 1801 et seq.). The 2006 Consolidated Atlantic HMS Fishery
Management Plan (FMP) and its amendments are implemented by regulations
at 50 CFR part 635. Section 635.27 divides the U.S. BFT quota
recommended by the International Commission for the Conservation of
Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) and as implemented by the United States among
the various domestic fishing categories, per the allocations
established in the 2006 Consolidated HMS FMP and its amendments. NMFS
is required under the Magnuson-Stevens Act to provide U.S. fishing
vessels with a reasonable opportunity to harvest quotas under relevant
international fishery agreements such as the ICCAT Convention, which is
implemented domestically pursuant to ATCA.
The 2021 baseline quota for the General category is 555.7 mt. The
General category baseline subquota for the December time period is 28.9
mt. Effective January 1, 2021, NMFS transferred 19.5 mt of BFT quota
from the December 2021 subquota time-period to the January through
March 2021 subquota time-period resulting in an adjusted subquota of
9.4 mt for the December 2021 time period (85 FR 83832, December 23,
2020). Effective December 1, 2021, NMFS transferred 9.5 mt of Reserve
category quota and 20.2 mt of Harpoon category quota to the General
category resulting in an adjusted December subquota of 39.1 mt (86 FR
66975, November 24, 2021). NMFS recently adjusted the December General
category subquota by adding 15.5 mt of underharvest from the adjusted
September and October through November time periods resulting in an
adjusted December subquota of 54.6 mt (86 FR 71393, December 16, 2021).
In that same action, NMFS projected that the adjusted December 2021
subquota of 54.6 mt would be reached shortly, and accordingly, closed
the General category on December 14, 2021.
General Category Reopening
As of December 16, 2021, preliminary landings data indicate that
the General category December fishery landed 48.8 mt of the adjusted
54.6 mt subquota before closing, leaving resulting in 5.8
[[Page 72533]]
mt (54.6 mt - 48.8 mt = 5.8 mt) of quota unused. Under Sec.
635.28(a)(2), NMFS may reopen the fishery if NMFS determines that
reasonable fishing opportunities are available. Based on these landings
data, as well as average catch rates and anticipated fishing
conditions, NMFS has determined that reopening the General category
fishery for four days is appropriate given the amount of unused
December subquota. Depending on weather conditions and fish
availability, a longer reopening could risk exceeding the unused quota
available for the December subquota period. NMFS will need to account
for 2021 landings and dead discards within the adjusted U.S. quota,
consistent with ICCAT recommendations, and anticipates having
sufficient quota to do that. Thus, this action would allow fishermen to
take advantage of the availability of fish on the fishing grounds to
the extent consistent with the available amount of quota and other
management objectives, while avoiding quota exceedance.
Therefore, the General category fishery will reopen at 12:30 a.m.,
Monday, December 20, 2021, and close at 11:30 p.m., Thursday, December
23, 2021. The General category daily retention limit during this
reopening remains the same as prior to closing: One large medium or
giant (i.e., measuring 73 inches (185 cm) curved fork length or
greater) BFT per vessel per day/trip. This action applies to Atlantic
tunas General category (commercial) permitted vessels and HMS Charter/
Headboat category permitted vessels with a commercial sale endorsement
when fishing commercially for BFT. Retaining, possessing, or landing
large medium or giant BFT by persons aboard vessels permitted in the
General and HMS Charter/Headboat categories must cease at 11:30 p.m.
local time on December 23, 2021. The General category will
automatically reopen January 1, 2022, for the January through March
2022 subquota time period.
Fishermen aboard General category permitted vessels and HMS
Charter/Headboat permitted vessels may catch-and-release and tag and
release BFT of all sizes, subject to the requirements of the catch-and-
release and tag-and-release programs at Sec. 635.26. All BFT that are
released must be handled in a manner that will maximize their survival,
and without removing the fish from the water, consistent with
requirements at Sec. 635.21(a)(1). For additional information on safe
handling, see the ``Careful Catch and Release'' brochure available at
<a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/resource/outreach-and-education/careful-catch-and-release-brochure/">https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/resource/outreach-and-education/careful-catch-and-release-brochure/</a>.
Monitoring and Reporting
NMFS will continue to monitor the BFT fisheries closely. Dealers
are required to submit landing reports within 24 hours of a dealer
receiving BFT. Late reporting by dealers compromises NMFS' ability to
timely implement actions such as quota and retention limit adjustment,
as well as closures, and may result in enforcement actions.
Additionally, and separate from the dealer reporting requirement,
General and HMS Charter/Headboat category vessel owners are required to
report the catch of all BFT retained or discarded dead within 24 hours
of the landing(s) or end of each trip, by accessing
<a href="http://hmspermits.noaa.gov">hmspermits.noaa.gov</a>, using the HMS Catch Reporting app, or calling
(888) 872-8862 (Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.).
Classification
This action is taken pursuant to regulations at 50 CFR part 635,
which were issued pursuant to section 304(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens
Act, and is exempt from review under Executive Order 12866.
The Assistant Administrator for NMFS finds that pursuant to 5
U.S.C. 553(b)(B), there is good cause to waive prior notice of, and an
opportunity for public comment on, this action for the following
reasons:
The regulations implementing the 2006 Consolidated HMS FMP and
amendments provide for inseason adjustments to respond to the
unpredictable nature of BFT availability on the fishing grounds, the
migratory nature of this species, and the regional variations in the
BFT fishery. Affording prior notice and opportunity for public comment
to reopen the fishery is impracticable and contrary to the public
interest. The General category recently closed, but based on the
available category subquota, fishery performance in recent weeks, and
the availability of BFT on the fishing grounds, is reopened in this
action to allow fishermen to take advantage of availability of fish and
of quota. NMFS could not have proposed this action earlier, as it
needed to consider and respond to updated data and information about
fishery conditions and this year's landings. If NMFS were to offer a
public comment period now, after having appropriately considered that
data, it would preclude fishermen from harvesting BFT that are legally
available. For all of the above reasons, there is good cause under 5
U.S.C. 553(d) to waive the 30-day delay in effectiveness.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 971 et seq. and 1801 et seq.
Dated: December 17, 2021.
Ngagne Jafnar Gueye,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2021-27761 Filed 12-17-21; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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