Notice2023-03048
Addition of Species to the Annexes of the Protocol Concerning Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife in the Wider Caribbean Region
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Published
February 14, 2023
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
During a meeting of the Scientific and Technical Advisory Committee (STAC) under the Protocol to the Cartagena Convention on Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife (SPAW Protocol), held virtually on January 30-February 1, 2023, 24 animal species were nominated to be added to the Annexes of the SPAW Protocol. The Department of State and National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) solicit comment on the nominations to add these species to the Annexes.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 30 (Tuesday, February 14, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 30 (Tuesday, February 14, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9489-9491]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-03048]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[RTID 0648-XC759]
Addition of Species to the Annexes of the Protocol Concerning
Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife in the Wider Caribbean Region
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; request for public comments.
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SUMMARY: During a meeting of the Scientific and Technical Advisory
Committee (STAC) under the Protocol to the Cartagena Convention on
Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife (SPAW Protocol), held virtually
on January 30-February 1, 2023, 24 animal species were nominated to be
added to the Annexes of the SPAW Protocol. The Department of State and
National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) solicit
[[Page 9490]]
comment on the nominations to add these species to the Annexes.
DATES: Comments must be received by March 16, 2023.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on the recommendations to add the 24
species to the Annexes of the SPAW Protocol, identified by NOAA-NMFS-
2023-0017, by the following method:
<bullet> Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic comments via
the Federal eRulemaking Portal. Go to <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> and
enter NOAA-NMFS-2023-0017 in the Search box. Click on the ``Comment''
icon, complete the required fields, and enter or attach your comments.
Instructions: Comments sent by any other method, to any other
address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period
may not be considered. All comments received are a part of the public
record and will generally be posted for public viewing on
<a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a> without change. All personal identifying
information (e.g., name, address, etc.), confidential business
information, or otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily
by the sender will be publicly accessible. Anonymous comments will be
accepted (enter N/A in the required fields if you wish to remain
anonymous).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kristen Koyama, (301) 427-8456;
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#5338213a2027363d7d383c2a323e32133d3c32327d343c25"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="a9c2dbc0daddccc787c2c6d0c8c4c8e9c7c6c8c887cec6df">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The SPAW Protocol is a protocol to the
Convention for the Protection and Development of the Marine Environment
of the Wider Caribbean Region (Cartagena Convention or Convention).
There is also a protocol to the Convention addressing land-based
sources of pollution and a protocol addressing regional cooperation on
oil pollution preparedness and response. The SPAW Protocol was adopted
in 1990 and entered into force in 2000. The United States ratified the
SPAW Protocol in 2003. There are currently 18 countries that are
Parties to the SPAW Protocol from throughout the Wider Caribbean
Region.
Participants at the January 2023 meeting of the STAC to the SPAW
Protocol included representatives from: Barbados, Belize, Colombia,
Dominican Republic, France, Guyana, Honduras, the Netherlands,
Nicaragua, Panama, Saint Lucia, Trinidad and Tobago, the United States
of America, and Venezuela. Representatives of several non-governmental
organizations also attended as observers.
The U.S. delegation included representatives from the U.S.
Department of State and NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)
and National Ocean Service. Additional information and meeting
documents can be obtained at <a href="https://www.unep.org/cep/events/scientific-and-technical-advisory-committee-meetings-stacs/spaw-stac10">https://www.unep.org/cep/events/scientific-and-technical-advisory-committee-meetings-stacs/spaw-stac10</a>.
Convention and Convention Area
The Cartagena Convention is a regional agreement for the protection
and development of the marine environment of the wider Caribbean. The
Convention was adopted in 1983 and entered into force in 1986. The
United States ratified the Convention in 1984. The Convention area
includes the marine environment of the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean
Sea and the adjacent areas of the Atlantic Ocean south of lat. 30[deg]
N and within 200 nautical miles (nmi) of the Atlantic coasts of the
Parties. The United States' responsibility within this Convention area
includes: U.S. waters off of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and
peninsular Florida, including the Atlantic coast; the waters off of a
number of islands including coastal barrier islands and the Florida
Keys; and the Gulf of Mexico waters under U.S. jurisdiction. The SPAW
Protocol provides that each Party may designate related terrestrial
areas over which they have sovereignty and jurisdiction (including
watersheds) to be covered by the SPAW Protocol. The United States has
not designated any terrestrial areas under the SPAW Protocol and ``does
not intend to designate a terrestrial area under the Protocol unless
requested to do so by an interested state or territory . . .'' (Senate
Executive Report 107-8).
The Annexes and U.S. Obligations Under Each Annex
The SPAW Protocol includes three Annexes. Plant species subject to
the highest levels of protection are listed in Annex I, and animal
species subject to the highest levels of protection are listed in Annex
II. Plants and animals subject to some management, but lesser
protections than those afforded to species listed in Annexes I or II,
are listed in Annex III.
Annexes I (flora) and II (fauna) are to include endangered and
threatened species, or subspecies, or their populations as well as rare
species. The SPAW Protocol describes rare species as those ``that are
rare because they are usually localized within restricted geographical
areas or habitats or are thinly scattered over a more extensive range
and which are potentially or actually subject to decline and possible
endangerment or extinction.''
Under Article 11(1), for fauna listed in Annex II, Parties ``shall
ensure total protection and recovery to the species . . . by
prohibiting: (i) the taking, possession or killing (including, to the
extent possible, the incidental taking, possession or killing) or
commercial trade in such species, their eggs, parts or products; [and]
(ii) to the extent possible, the disturbance of such species,
particularly during periods of breeding, incubation, estivation or
migration, as well as other periods of biological stress.''
Also under Article 11(1), for Annex III species, the SPAW Protocol
states: ``Each Party shall adopt appropriate measures to ensure the
protection and recovery of the species of flora and fauna listed in
Annex III and may regulate the use of such species in order to ensure
and maintain their populations at the highest possible levels.''
Therefore, some regulated harvest may be permitted for species on Annex
III. The protective provisions of this Annex are not intended to be
more restrictive than the provisions of Annexes I and II.
The United States ratified the SPAW Protocol, including Annexes,
subject to certain reservations, including the following with respect
to Article 11(1): ``The United States does not consider itself bound by
Article 11(1) of the [SPAW] Protocol to the extent that United States
law permits the limited taking of flora and fauna listed in Annexes I
and II which is incidental, or for the purpose of public display,
scientific research, photography for educational or commercial
purposes, or rescue and rehabilitation.''
The United States has not designated any terrestrial area under the
SPAW Protocol. As the United States explained at the time the SPAW
Protocol was ratified, ``The United States does not plan to designate
terrestrial area under the Protocol since no state or territory has
identified a need or desire to designate terrestrial area . . . .''
(Senate Treaty Document 103-5). In addition, ``Several terrestrial
species, e.g. bats (Tadarida brasiliensis and Brachyphylla cavernarum)
and falcons (Falco peregrinus), are listed in the Annexes. The listing
of these species, however, is not intended to describe the relevant
terrestrial scope of the Protocol. As the United States has not
designated any terrestrial area, the Protocol obligations will not
apply with respect to such species.'' Id.
Summary of Annexes
Annex I contains a total of 53 plant species. All plant species on
Annex I are either: (1) listed under the U.S.
[[Page 9491]]
Endangered Species Act (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); (2) endemic to
Florida and protected under Florida law; (3) occur only on Federal land
and are fully protected where they occur; (4) are not native to the
United States, and are listed in the Appendices of the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora
(CITES) where primarily commercial trade would be prohibited; or (5)
are not native nor believed to be commercially imported into the United
States. 56 FR 12026, 12028 (March 21, 1991). There have been no
additions to Annex I since the adoption of the SPAW Protocol.
Annex II currently contains 117 species and 3 groups of species,
including all sea turtles and all marine mammals in the region. Most of
these animal species are either: (1) listed under the ESA or the Marine
Mammal Protection Act (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.); (2) are not native to
the United States and are listed in Appendix I of CITES; (3) are
offered complete protection by domestic legislation in all range
countries (whereby the Lacey Act, among other things, prohibits
commercial trade in specimens taken, possessed, transported or sold in
violation of foreign law); or (4) are endemic to foreign countries and
are not commercially imported into the United States. The most recent
addition to Annex II by the SPAW Parties was in June 2019.
Annex III currently contains 43 species of plants and 42 species of
animals in addition to species of corals, mangroves, and sea-grasses
that occur in the region.
Composition of the Annexes
The plant and animal species included on each Annex can be found
here: <a href="https://www.car-spaw-rac.org/?The-SPAW-Protocol-769">https://www.car-spaw-rac.org/?The-SPAW-Protocol-769</a>.
Species Nominated To Be Added to the SPAW Protocol Annexes
Annex II
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Species Common name
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SHARKS
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Carcharhinus longimanus................... Oceanic whitetip shark.
Rhincodon typus........................... Whale shark.
Sphyrna lewini............................ Scalloped hammerhead shark.
Sphyrna mokarran.......................... Great hammerhead shark.
Sphyrna zygaena........................... Smooth hammerhead shark.
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RAYS
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Manta birostris........................... Giant manta ray.
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REPTILES
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Iguana delicatissima...................... Lesser Antillean iguana.
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Annex III
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Species Common name
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FISH
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Scaridae spp. (16 species)................ Parrotfish (16 species).
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SHARKS
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Carcharhinus perezi....................... Caribbean reef shark.
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Circumstances of SPAW Species Nominations
Article 11(4) of the SPAW Protocol details the requirements for
amending the Annexes and states, in part, that a Party may submit a
nomination of a species for inclusion in or deletion from the Annexes;
that the Party shall submit supporting documentation; and that the SPAW
STAC shall review the nomination. At the January 2023 meeting, the SPAW
STAC reviewed the species proposed by Parties for listing under the
SPAW Protocol and made recommendations to the twelfth SPAW Conference
of the Parties (COP12) meeting, expected to be held in April 2023. The
STAC recommended that the oceanic whitetip shark and the Lesser
Antillean iguana be uplisted from Annex III to Annex II, and that
parrotfish (Scaridae spp.) and the Caribbean reef shark be added to
Annex III. The STAC did not provide a consensus recommendation on the
proposals to uplist the whale shark, giant manta ray, and three species
of hammerhead sharks from Annex III to Annex II. The STAC referred
these nominations to SPAW COP12, which will take a final decision on
all species nominations at its meeting in April 2023.
Species Under the Jurisdiction of the National Marine Fisheries Service
Six species nominated to be added to Annex II at the January 2023
meeting fall under the jurisdiction of NMFS: the oceanic whitetip shark
(Carcharhinus longimanus), giant manta ray (Manta birostris), whale
shark (Rhincodon typus), scalloped hammerhead shark (Sphyrna lewini),
great hammerhead shark (S. mokarran), and smooth hammerhead shark (S.
zygaena). All six of these species are currently listed in Annex III of
the SPAW Protocol. The oceanic whitetip shark, giant manta ray, and
four distinct population segments of the scalloped hammerhead shark are
currently listed under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. All species
nominated to be added to Annex III fall under the jurisdiction of NMFS,
including all parrotfish (Scaridae) and the Caribbean reef shark
(Carcharhinus perezi).
Species Under the Jurisdiction of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
The Lesser Antillean iguana (Iguana delicatissima), which the STAC
recommended to be uplisted from Annex III to Annex II at the January
2023 meeting, falls under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service. The Lesser Antillean iguana is a terrestrial species.
As explained earlier in this notice, the United States has not
designated any terrestrial area under the SPAW Protocol and the
obligations under the SPAW Protocol do not apply in the United States
with respect to terrestrial species. Accordingly, no obligations under
the SPAW Protocol would apply to this species if it is added to SPAW
Annex II.
Comments Solicited
The Department of State and NMFS solicit comments and information
that will inform the United States' consideration of the potential
listing of these species in the SPAW Annexes.
Dated: February 8, 2023.
Kimberly Damon-Randall,
Director, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries
Service.
[FR Doc. 2023-03048 Filed 2-13-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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