Rule2022-28635
Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Fisheries; General Category January Through March Quota Transfer
Primary source
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Published
January 5, 2023
Effective
January 3, 2023
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
NMFS is transferring 20.5 metric tons (mt) of Atlantic bluefin tuna (BFT) quota from the General category December 2023 subquota to the January through March 2023 subquota period. The adjusted General category January through March 2023 subquota is 58.2 mt. This action is provides further opportunities for General category fishermen to participate in the January through March General category fishery, based on consideration of the regulatory determination criteria regarding inseason adjustments. This action would affect 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 88 Issue 3 (Thursday, January 5, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 3 (Thursday, January 5, 2023)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 786-788]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-28635]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 635
[Docket No. 220919-0193; RTID 0648-XC610]
Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Atlantic Bluefin Tuna
Fisheries; General Category January Through March Quota Transfer
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; quota transfer.
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SUMMARY: NMFS is transferring 20.5 metric tons (mt) of Atlantic bluefin
tuna (BFT) quota from the General category December 2023 subquota to
the January through March 2023 subquota period. The adjusted General
category January through March 2023 subquota is 58.2 mt. This action is
provides further opportunities for General category fishermen to
participate in the January through March General category fishery,
based on consideration of the regulatory determination criteria
regarding inseason adjustments. This action would affect 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 January 3, 2023, through March 31, 2023.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Larry Redd, Jr., <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f79b9685858ed985929393b799989696d9909881"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="fb979a898982d5899e9f9fbb95949a9ad59c948d">[email protected]</span></a>,
301-427-8503, Ann Williamson, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#7716191959001e1b1b1e161a041819371918161659101801"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="ed8c8383c39a848181848c809e8283ad83828c8cc38a829b">[email protected]</span></a>, 301-427-8503, or
Nicholas Velseboer, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#5d33343e3532313c2e732b38312e3f32382f1d33323c3c733a322b"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="711f1812191e1d10025f07141d02131e1403311f1e10105f161e07">[email protected]</span></a>, 978-281-9260.
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 baseline General category quota is 710.7 mt. The General
category baseline subquotas for the January through March time-period
and for the December time-period are 37.7 mt and 37.0 mt, respectively.
In this action, NMFS is transferring 20.5 mt from the December 2023
subquota period to the January through March subquota period. This
transfer results in 58.2 mt (37.7 mt + 20.5 mt = 58.2 mt) being
available for the January through March 2023 subquota period and 16.5
mt (37.0-20.5 = 16.5 mt) being available for the December 2023 subquota
period.
Transfer From the December 2023 Subquota to the January Through March
2023 Subquota
Under Sec. 635.27(a)(1)(ii), NMFS has the authority to transfer
subquota from one time period to another time period through inseason
action after considering determination criteria provided under Sec.
635.27(a)(8). NMFS has considered all of the relevant determination
criteria and their applicability to this inseason quota transfer. These
considerations include, but are not limited to, the following.
Regarding the usefulness of information obtained from catches in
the particular category for biological sampling and monitoring of the
status of the stock (Sec. 635.27(a)(8)(i)), biological samples
collected from BFT landed by General category fishermen continue to
provide NMFS with valuable parts and data for ongoing scientific
studies of
[[Page 787]]
BFT age and growth, migration, and reproductive status. Additional
opportunity to land BFT in the General category would support the
continued collection of a broad range of data for these studies and for
stock monitoring purposes.
NMFS also considered recent catches of the General category quota
(including in December 2022 and during the January through March
fishery in the last several years) and the likelihood of closure of
that segment of the fishery if no adjustment is made (Sec.
635.27(a)(8)(ii) and (ix)). Without a quota transfer from the December
2023 subquota period, the quota available for the 2023 January through
March period would be 37.7 mt and participants would have to stop BFT
fishing activities once that amount is met, while commercial-sized BFT
remain available in the areas where General category permitted vessels
operate. A quota transfer of 20.5 mt would provide limited additional
opportunities to harvest the U.S. BFT quota while avoiding exceeding
it.
Regarding the projected ability of the vessels fishing under the
General category quota to harvest the additional amount of BFT quota
transferred before the end of the fishing year (Sec.
635.27(a)(8)(iii)), NMFS considered General category landings over the
last several years. Landings are highly variable and depend on access
to commercial-sized BFT and fishing conditions, among other factors.
NMFS may adjust each period's subquota based on overharvest or
underharvest in the prior period and may transfer subquota from one
time period to another time period. By allowing for such quota
adjustments and transfers, NMFS anticipates that the General category
quota would be used before the end of the fishing year. For 2022, NMFS
transferred 19.5 mt of quota from the December 2022 subquota period to
the January through March 2022 subquota period, resulting in an
adjusted subquota of 49 mt for the January through March 2022 period
and an adjusted subquota of 9.4 mt for the December 2022 period (86 FR
72857, December 23, 2021). NMFS also made a transfer of 26 mt from the
Reserve to the General category effective January 28, 2022, resulting
in an adjusted subquota of 75 mt for the January through March 2022
period (87 FR 5737, February 2, 2022), and closed the General category
fishery for the January through March subquota period effective
February 11, 2022 (87 FR 8432, February 15, 2022).
NMFS also considered the estimated amounts by which quotas for
other gear categories of the BFT fishery might be exceeded (Sec.
635.27(a)(8)(iv)) and the ability to account for all 2023 landings and
dead discards. In the last several years, total U.S. BFT landings have
been below the available U.S. quota such that the United States has
carried forward the maximum amount of underharvest allowed by ICCAT
from one year to the next. NMFS will need to account for 2023 landings
and dead discards within the adjusted U.S. quota, consistent with ICCAT
recommendations, and anticipates having sufficient quota to do that.
NMFS also considered the effects of the adjustment on the BFT stock
and the effects of the transfer on accomplishing the objectives of the
2006 Consolidated FMP (Sec. 635.27(a)(8)(v) and (vi)). This transfer
would be consistent with established quotas and subquotas, which are
implemented consistent with ICCAT recommendations (established in
Recommendation 21-07), ATCA, and the objectives of the 2006
Consolidated HMS FMP and amendments. In establishing these quotas and
subquotas and associated management measures, ICCAT and NMFS considered
the best scientific information available, objectives for stock
management and status, and effects on the stock. This quota transfer is
in line with the established management measures and stock status
determinations. Another principal consideration is the objective of
providing opportunities to harvest the available General category quota
without exceeding the annual quota, based on the objectives of the 2006
Consolidated HMS FMP and its amendments, including to achieve optimum
yield on a continuing basis and to allow all permit categories a
reasonable opportunity to harvest available BFT quota allocations
(related to Sec. 635.27(a)(8)(x)). Specific to the General category,
this includes providing opportunities equitably across all time
periods.
Given these considerations, NMFS is transferring 20.5 mt from the
December 2023 period to the January through March 2023 period,
resulting in an adjusted January through March 2023 subquota of 58.2 mt
and an adjusted December 2023 subquota of 16.5 mt. The General category
fishery will remain open until March 31, 2023, or until the adjusted
General category quota is reached, whichever comes first.
Monitoring and Reporting
NMFS will continue to monitor the BFT fishery 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 adjustments,
as well as closures, and may result in enforcement actions.
Additionally, and separate from the dealer reporting requirement,
General category and HMS Charter/Headboat vessel owners are required to
report the catch of all BFT retained or discarded dead within 24 hours
of the landing(s) or the end of each trip, by accessing
<a href="http://hmspermits.noaa.gov">hmspermits.noaa.gov</a> or by using the HMS Catch Reporting app or calling
(888) 872-8862 (Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.).
Depending on the level of fishing effort and catch rates of BFT,
NMFS may determine that additional adjustments are necessary to ensure
available quota is not exceeded or to enhance scientific data
collection from, and fishing opportunities in, all geographic areas. If
needed, subsequent adjustments will be published in the Federal
Register. In addition, fishermen may call the Atlantic Tunas
Information Line at (978) 281-9260, or access <a href="http://hmspermits.noaa.gov">hmspermits.noaa.gov</a>, for
updates on quota monitoring and inseason adjustments.
Classification
NMFS issues this action pursuant to section 305(d) of the Magnuson-
Stevens Act and regulations at 50 CFR part 635 and is exempt from
review under Executive Order 12866.
The Assistant Administrator for NMFS (AA) finds that pursuant to 5
U.S.C. 553(b)(B), it is impracticable and contrary to the public
interest to provide prior notice of, and an opportunity for public
comment on, this action for the following reasons. Specifically, the
regulations implementing the 2006 Consolidated HMS FMP and amendments
provide for inseason retention limit 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. Providing prior notice and opportunity for public comment
on this quota transfer for the January through March 2023 time period
is impracticable. NMFS could not have proposed this action earlier, as
it needed to consider and respond to updated landings data, including
the recently available December 2022 data, in deciding to transfer a
portion of the December 2023 subquota to the January through March 2023
subquota. Delaying this action is contrary to public interest, not only
because it would likely result in a General category closure and
associated costs to the fishery, but also administrative costs due to
further agency action needed to re-open the fishery after quota is
transferred. The
[[Page 788]]
delay would preclude the fishery from harvesting BFT that are available
on the fishing grounds that might otherwise become unavailable during a
delay. This action does not raise conservation and management concerns.
Transferring quota within the General category does not affect the
overall U.S. BFT quota, and the adjustment would have a minimal risk of
exceeding the ICCAT-allocated quota. NMFS notes that the public had an
opportunity to comment on the underlying rulemakings that established
the U.S. BFT quota and the inseason adjustment criteria.
For all of the above reasons, the AA finds that pursuant to 5
U.S.C. 553(d), there also is good cause to waive the 30-day delay in
effective date.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 971 et seq. and 1801 et seq.
Dated: December 30, 2022.
Jennifer M. Wallace,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-28635 Filed 1-3-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on January 5, 2023.
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