Proposed Rule2023-24829
Marine Mammals; Subsistence Taking of Northern Fur Seals; Pribilof and Aleutian Islands
Primary source
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Published
November 9, 2023
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
NMFS announces the receipt of a petition for rulemaking under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). The Aleut Community of St. Paul Island (ACSPI), the Traditional Council of St. George Island (TCSGI), and the Aleut Marine Mammal Commission (AMMC) have petitioned NMFS to revise regulations governing the subsistence taking of northern fur seals. The revisions requested include: changing the current hunting season on St. Paul Island, Alaska to begin on October 15, creating an annual hunting season on St. George Island, Alaska to begin on October 15 and end on May 31, and creating an annual hunting season in the Aleutian Islands in Alaska to begin on November 1 and end on April 30, with an upper take limit for the Aleutian Islands of 100 non-breeding male fur seals. NMFS solicits public comments on this request. NMFS will consider all comments and available information when determining whether to proceed with rulemaking.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 216 (Thursday, November 9, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 216 (Thursday, November 9, 2023)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 77245-77246]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-24829]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 216
[RTID 0648-XD169]
Marine Mammals; Subsistence Taking of Northern Fur Seals;
Pribilof and Aleutian Islands
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notification of receipt of petition for rulemaking; request for
comments.
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SUMMARY: NMFS announces the receipt of a petition for rulemaking under
the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). The Aleut Community of St. Paul
Island (ACSPI), the Traditional Council of St. George Island (TCSGI),
and the Aleut Marine Mammal Commission (AMMC) have petitioned NMFS to
revise regulations governing the subsistence taking of northern fur
seals. The revisions requested include: changing the current hunting
season on St. Paul Island, Alaska to begin on October 15, creating an
annual hunting season on St. George Island, Alaska to begin on October
15 and end on May 31, and creating an annual hunting season in the
Aleutian Islands in Alaska to begin on November 1 and end on April 30,
with an upper take limit for the Aleutian Islands of 100 non-breeding
male fur seals. NMFS solicits public comments on this request. NMFS
will consider all comments and available information when determining
whether to proceed with rulemaking.
DATES: Comments must be received by December 11, 2023.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on this document, identified by
NOAA-NMFS-2023-091, by any of the following methods:
<bullet> Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public
comments via the Federal eRulemaking Portal. Go to <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> and enter [NOAA-NMFS-2023-091] in the Search box.
Click the ``Comment'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter or
attach your comments.
<bullet> Mail: Submit written comments to Anne Marie Eich, NMFS
Alaska Regional Office, 709 W. 9th St., P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, AK
99802.
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 by NMFS. All comments received are a part of the
public record and will generally be posted for public viewing on
<a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> without change. All personal identifying
information (e.g., name, address), confidential business information,
or otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily by the sender
will be publicly accessible. NMFS will accept anonymous comments (enter
``N/A'' in the required fields if you wish to remain anonymous).
Electronic copies of the petitions and letters are available at:
<a href="https://www.regulations.gov/docket/NOAA-NMFS-2023-091">https://www.regulations.gov/docket/NOAA-NMFS-2023-091</a> or the NMFS
Alaska Region website: <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/alaska/marine-mammal-protection/northern-fur-seal-subsistence-harvest-estimates-and-reports#subsistence-harvest-estimates">https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/alaska/marine-mammal-protection/northern-fur-seal-subsistence-harvest-estimates-and-reports#subsistence-harvest-estimates</a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michael Williams, NMFS Alaska Region,
907-271-5117, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#81ece8e2e9e0e4edaff6e8edede8e0ecf2c1efeee0e0afe6eef7"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="c1aca8a2a9a0a4adefb6a8adada8a0acb281afaea0a0efa6aeb7">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The subsistence use of northern fur seals on the Pribilof Islands
is governed by regulations established under the Fur Seal Act in 50 CFR
216.71-74. These regulations were most recently revised on October 30,
2014 (79 FR 65327, November 4, 2014), and September 27, 2019 (84 FR
52372, October 2, 2019), to increase food security, consistent with
traditional and cultural practices, and deregulate aspects of the
subsistence use of northern fur seals on the Pribilof Islands. ACSPI,
TCSGI, and AMMC report that Alaska Native subsistence users have
experienced the direct effects of climate change through unprecedented
storm frequency, timing, and duration. This has resulted in the
reduction of the availability of and opportunity to obtain subsistence
resources. As a result, the ACSPI, TCSGI, and the AMMC submitted
requests to NMFS to change the regulations to expand fur seal hunting
and harvesting opportunities to meet their customary and traditional
needs and practices, as well as their subsistence needs. NMFS considers
these requests to be a formal petition for rulemaking under the APA.
The requests are as follows:
[[Page 77246]]
1. Change the Current Hunting Season on St. Paul Island
On November 2, 2022, ACSPI requested in a letter to NMFS that
representatives from NMFS and ACSPI investigate the feasibility of
changing the duration of the hunting season on St. Paul Island.
Subsequent discussions by the St. Paul Island Marine Mammal Co-
Management Council (which includes both NMFS and ACSPI representatives)
identified regulatory changes to create greater food security and
subsistence use opportunities on St. Paul Island.
Current regulations at 50 CFR 216.72(e)(1) allow subsistence
hunting of northern fur seals with firearms from January 1 through May
31, annually. ACSPI requests NMFS modify regulations to allow the
annual hunting season with firearms to begin October 15 and end
consistent with the provisions at 50 CFR 216.72(g)(1)(i). This would
result in a northern fur seal hunting season with firearms on St. Paul
Island from October 15 through May 31, or when the overall quota for a
calendar year is reached (2,000 juvenile male fur seals). ACSPI did not
request any change to the overall quota of 2,000 juvenile northern fur
seal males or the female mortality limit of 20 northern fur seals.
Therefore, NMFS is not considering any changes to the quota or female
mortality limit at this time.
2. Create a Hunting Season on St. George Island
Current regulations at 50 CFR 216.72(d) do not allow subsistence
use of northern fur seals with firearms on St. George Island. The
regulatory changes in 2014 (79 FR 65327, November 4, 2014) and 2019 (84
FR 52372, October 2, 2019) did not contemplate a hunting season to use
firearms to take fur seals for subsistence on St. George Island.
The TCSGI submitted a letter to NMFS on June 8, 2023, requesting
equitable subsistence hunting opportunities for the community of St.
George by creating a hunting season using firearms annually from
October 15 to May 31, similar to that proposed on St. Paul Island. The
letter requested no change to the overall quota of 500 juvenile males,
150 male pups, or the female mortality limit of 3 northern fur seals.
Therefore, NMFS is not considering any changes to the quota or female
mortality limit at this time.
3. Create a Hunting Season and Associated Upper Take Limit in the
Aleutian Islands in Alaska
On May 1, 2023, AMMC submitted a letter to NMFS outlining their
interest in resuming their traditional subsistence practices of taking
fur seals. Harvesting fur seals on land in the Aleutian Islands is not
practical, as the only breeding location is the uninhabited Bogoslof
Island. However, northern fur seals migrate through the AMMC region
(i.e., the Aleutian Islands and Alaska Peninsula), which if authorized
for subsistence use, could provide an additional subsistence resource
for AMMC member communities. The 2019 Alaska Marine Mammal Stock
Assessment Report (SAR) indicates declining availability of harbor
seals over the past decade in the Aleutian Islands (Muto et al., 2020).
The 2019 SAR for the Western Distinct Population Segment (DPS) of
Steller sea lion, which includes most sea lions in the Aleutian Islands
where hunting may occur, also notes historically low abundance and
availability in this region (some Eastern DPS animals may occur in the
area, but it is unclear to what extent) (Jemison et al., 2013; Jemison
et al., 2018; Muto et al., 2020). Both harbor seals and Steller sea
lions are important subsistence resources in the Aleutian region, and
hunting of northern fur seals for subsistence would improve food
security for AMMC member tribes. The AMMC letter requests a revision of
the regulations at 50 CFR 216.72(b) to allow a total take of 100 non-
breeding male fur seals by hunting with firearms from November 1
through April 30 in the AMMC region from their 11 member tribes in the
communities of Atka, Belkofski, Akutan, False Pass, Agdaagux, Nelson
Lagoon, Nikolski, Pauloff Harbor, Qagan Tayagungin, Unalaska, and Unga.
Request for Information
The Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, has determined that the
petition contains enough information to enable NMFS to consider the
substance of the petition. NMFS solicits public comment on these three
related requests to modify regulations that govern the taking of fur
seals for subsistence purposes by Alaska Native residents of the
Pribilof and Aleutian Islands. NMFS is particularly interested in
information that would allow an evaluation of the effects these
potential changes may have on food security, the fur seal population,
and the temporal and spatial distribution of hunting effort. NMFS will
consider public comments received in determining whether to proceed
with the requested regulations revisions. Upon determining whether to
initiate the requested rulemaking, the Assistant Administrator for
Fisheries, will publish in the Federal Register the Agency's notice of
proposed rulemaking with a request for public comment.
References
Jemison, L.A., G.W. Pendleton, L.W. Fritz, K.K. Hastings, J.M.
Maniscalco, A.W. Trites, and T.S. Gelatt. 2013. Inter-population
movements of Steller sea lions in Alaska with implications for
population separation. PLoS ONE 8(8):e70167.
Jemison, L.A., G.W. Pendleton, K.K. Hastings, J.M. Maniscalco, and
L.W. Fritz. 2018. Spatial distribution, movements, and geographic
range of Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus) in Alaska. PLoS ONE
13(12):e0208093.
Muto, M.M., V.T. Helker, B.J. Delean, R.P. Angliss, P.L. Boveng,
J.M. Breiwick, B.M. Brost, M.F. Cameron, P.J. Clapham, S.P. Dahle,
M.E. Dahlheim, B.S. Fadely, M.C. Ferguson, L.W. Fritz, R.C. Hobbs,
Y.V. Ivaschenko, A.S. Kennedy, J.M. London, S.A. Mizroch, R.R. Ream,
E.L. Richmond, K.E.W. Shelden, K.L. Sweeney, R.G. Towell, P.R. Wade,
J.M. Waite, and A.N. Zerbini. 2020. Alaska Marine Mammal Stock
Assessments, 2019. U.S. Dept. of Commerce, National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service,
Alaska Fisheries Science Center, Seattle, WA, July 2020. NOAA
Technical Memorandum NMFS-AFSC-404, 395 pp.
Dated: November 6, 2023.
Samuel D. Rauch, III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2023-24829 Filed 11-8-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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