Rule2023-28090
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; 2024 and Projected 2025 Specifications for the Summer Flounder and Scup Fisheries, and 2024 Specifications for the Black Sea Bass Fishery
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Published
December 21, 2023
Effective
January 1, 2024
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
NMFS announces 2024 specifications for the summer flounder, scup, and black sea bass fisheries, and projected 2025 specifications for summer flounder and scup. The implementing regulations for the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan require us to publish specifications for the upcoming fishing year for each of these species and to respond to public comments received during the public comment period. This action is intended to inform the public of the specifications for the start of the 2024 fishing year for summer flounder, scup, and black sea bass. A Supplemental Information Report (SIR) was prepared for the 2024 black sea bass specifications. An Environmental Assessment (EA) was prepared for the 2024 and projected 2025 summer flounder and scup specifications.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 244 (Thursday, December 21, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 244 (Thursday, December 21, 2023)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 88266-88270]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-28090]
[[Page 88266]]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 231215-0305]
RIN 0648-BM59
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; 2024 and Projected
2025 Specifications for the Summer Flounder and Scup Fisheries, and
2024 Specifications for the Black Sea Bass Fishery
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: NMFS announces 2024 specifications for the summer flounder,
scup, and black sea bass fisheries, and projected 2025 specifications
for summer flounder and scup. The implementing regulations for the
Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan
require us to publish specifications for the upcoming fishing year for
each of these species and to respond to public comments received during
the public comment period. This action is intended to inform the public
of the specifications for the start of the 2024 fishing year for summer
flounder, scup, and black sea bass. A Supplemental Information Report
(SIR) was prepared for the 2024 black sea bass specifications. An
Environmental Assessment (EA) was prepared for the 2024 and projected
2025 summer flounder and scup specifications.
DATES: This rule is effective January 1, 2024.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the SIR and EA are available on request from Dr.
Christopher M. Moore, Executive Director, Mid-Atlantic Fishery
Management Council, Suite 201, 800 North State Street, Dover, DE 19901.
The SIR and EA are also accessible via the internet at <a href="https://www.mafmc.org/supporting-documents">https://www.mafmc.org/supporting-documents</a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Emily Keiley, Fishery Policy Analyst,
(978) 281-9116, or <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#cfaaa2a6a3b6e1a4aaa6a3aab68fa1a0aeaee1a8a0b9"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="37525a5e5b4e195c525e5b524e775958565619505841">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
General Background
The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) and the
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (Commission) cooperatively
manage the summer flounder, scup, and black sea bass fisheries. The
Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan (FMP)
outlines the Council's process for establishing specifications. The FMP
requires NMFS to set an acceptable biological catch (ABC), annual catch
limit (ACL), annual catch targets (ACT), commercial quotas,
recreational harvest limits (RHL), and other management measures, for 1
to 3 years at a time. This action establishes the 2024 ABCs, as well as
the recreational and commercial ACLs, ACTs, commercial quotas, and RHLs
for all three species, consistent with the recommendations made by the
Commission's Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Board (Board)
and the Council at their joint August 2023 meeting. This action also
sets projected 2025 ABCs and corresponding specifications for summer
flounder and scup.
Final 2024 and Projected 2025 Specifications
Summer Flounder Specifications
This action approves the Council- and Board-recommended 2024 and
projected 2025 summer flounder specifications as shown in table 1. The
recommendations are based on the averaged 2024-2025 ABCs recommended by
the Council's Science and Statistical Committee (SSC). This approach
allows for constant catch and landings limits across both years. The
ABCs are based on the overfishing limit (OFL) and the Council's risk
policy, resulting in a 32- to 38-percent probability of overfishing.
For summer flounder, this results in a 42-percent decrease in the
recommended 2024 and 2025 ABC relative to the 2023 ABC. The 2024-2025
commercial quota represents a 42-percent decrease compared to the 2023
quota, and an approximately 30-percent reduction compared to 2022
reported landings. The 2024-2025 RHL is a 40-percent decrease compared
to the 2023 RHL.
Table 1--Summary of Final 2024 and Projected 2025 Summer Flounder
Fishery Specifications
------------------------------------------------------------------------
million pounds metric tons
Specifications (lb) (mt)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
OFL.................................. 22.98 (2024) 10,422 (2024)
24.97 (2025) 11,325 (2025)
ABC.................................. 19.32 8,761
Commercial ACL = ACT................. 10.62 4,819
Commercial Quota..................... 8.79 3,987
Recreational ACL = ACT............... 8.69 3,942
Recreational Harvest Limit........... 6.35 2,879
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The final state summer flounder commercial quotas take into account
any overages that occurred during the 2022 fishing year and the current
fishing year, through October 31, 2023, as described at 50 CFR
648.103(b)(2). The final 2024 state-by-state summer flounder commercial
quotas are provided in table 2.
Table 2--Final 2024 Summer Flounder State-by-State Quotas
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Final 2024 quotas Final 2024 quotas
State (lb) (mt)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
ME............................ 4,180 1.90
NH............................ 40 0.02
MA............................ 599,507 271.93
RI............................ 1,378,507 625.28
CT............................ 198,394 89.99
NY............................ 672,157 304.89
[[Page 88267]]
NJ............................ 1,470,098 666.83
DE............................ 1,564 0.71
MD............................ 179,233 81.30
VA............................ 1,873,707 849.90
NC............................ 2,412,443 1,094.27
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Total..................... 8,789,830 3,987.02
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This action makes no changes to the current commercial management
measures, including the minimum fish size (14-inch (36-centimeter (cm))
total length), gear requirements, and possession limits. Changes to
2024 recreational management measures (bag limits, size limits, and
seasons) will be considered through a separate action.
Black Sea Bass Specifications
This action approves the Council- and Board-recommended 2024 black
sea bass specifications as shown in table 3. No updated stock
assessment information is available for black sea bass this year;
therefore, the SSC decided to set the 2024 ABC equal to the 2023 ABC.
The Council and Board made no changes to the ACLs or ACTs compared to
2023. They approved a 2024 commercial quota of 6 million lb (2,721 mt)
(25-percent increase from 2023) and a 2024 RHL of 6.27 million lb
(2,845 mt) (5-percent decrease from 2023). While these values are based
on the same methodology used to set the 2023 measures, updated dead-
discard projections for each sector led to a change in the quota and
RHL. An updated management track stock assessment is anticipated to be
available in 2024 for setting future specifications.
Table 3--Final 2024 Black Sea Bass Catch and Landings Limits
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2024
Specifications -------------------------------
million lb mt
------------------------------------------------------------------------
OFL..................................... 17.01 7,716
ABC..................................... 16.66 7,557
Expected Commercial Discards............ 1.50 680
Expected Recreational Discards.......... 2.89 1,311
Commercial ACL = ACT.................... 7.50 3,401
Commercial Quota........................ 6.00 2,721
Recreational ACL = ACT.................. 9.16 4,156
RHL..................................... 6.27 2,845
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This action implements no changes to the 2024 commercial management
measures for black sea bass, including the commercial minimum fish size
(11-inch (27.94-cm) total length) and gear requirements.
On August 2, 2023, NMFS partially approved Amendment 23 to the
Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass FMP. The approved measures
change the Federal coastwide commercial in-season accountability
measure such that the commercial fishery will now close when the quota
plus an additional buffer of up to 5-percent is projected to be landed.
The intent of this buffer is to minimize negative economic impacts when
the coastwide quota is reached before all states have fully harvested
their allocations due to overages in individual states. Each year,
through the specification process, the Council and Board will recommend
a buffer from 0- to 5-percent. For 2024, the Council and Board have
recommended a 5-percent commercial in-season closure buffer. The final
rule implementing Amendment 23 has not been published, so the buffer
cannot be implemented through this action. Implementation of the 5-
percent buffer recommended for 2024 will be considered through the
Amendment 23 final rule.
Scup Specifications
This action approves the Council- and Board-recommended 2024 scup
specifications as shown in table 4. The SSC-recommended 2024-2025 ABCs
are based on the OFL and the Council's risk policy for a stock above
1.5 times the biomass target, with an associated 49-percent probability
of overfishing. To ensure that the probability of overfishing remained
below 50-percent in each year, the SSC recommended annually varying
ABCs for 2024 and 2025. This results in a 2024 ABC that is 49-percent
higher than the 2023 ABC; and a projected 2025 ABC that is 35-percent
higher than the 2023 ABC. The scup commercial quota for 2024 is 52-
percent higher than the 2023 commercial quota. The 2024 RHL is 43-
percent higher than the 2023 RHL.
Table 4--2024-2025 Scup Catch and Landing Limits *
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2024 2025
Specifications ---------------------------------------------------------------
million lb mt million lb mt
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OFL............................................. 44.74 20,295 40.58 18,393
ABC............................................. 43.82 19,876 39.74 18,028
[[Page 88268]]
Expected Commercial Discards.................... 7.33 3,327 7.04 3,192
Expected Recreational Discards.................. 2.15 977 2.07 937
Commercial ACL = ACT............................ 28.48 12,919 25.83 11,718
Commercial Quota................................ 21.15 9,592 18.80 8,526
Recreational ACL = ACT.......................... 15.34 6,957 13.91 6,310
RHL............................................. 13.18 5,980 11.84 5,373
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* Some of the values in table 4 have been updated since the proposed rule (88 FR 80263, November 17, 2023) due
to a minor calculation error.
The commercial scup quota is divided into three commercial fishery
quota periods, as outlined in table 5.
Table 5--Commercial Scup Quota Allocations for 2024 by Quota Period
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Quota period Percent Share lb mt
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Winter I....................................................... 45.11 9,539,294 4,327
Summer......................................................... 38.95 8,236,655 3,736
Winter II...................................................... 15.94 3,370,790 1,529
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Total...................................................... 100.0 21,146,740 9,592
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The current quota period possession limits are not changed by this
action and are outlined in table 6.
Table 6--Commercial Scup Possession Limits by Quota Period
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Federal possession limits (per
trip)
Quota period Percent share -------------------------------
lb kg
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Winter I....................................................... 45.11 50,000 22,680
Summer......................................................... 38.95 N/A N/A
Winter II...................................................... 15.94 12,000 5,443
------------------------------------------------
Total...................................................... 100.0 N/A N/A
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The Winter I scup commercial possession limit will drop to 1,000 lb
(454 kg) when 80-percent of that period's allocation is landed. If the
Winter I quota is not fully harvested, the remaining quota is
transferred to Winter II. The Winter II possession limit may be
adjusted (in association with a transfer of unused Winter I quota to
the Winter II period) via notification in the Federal Register. The
regulations specify that the Winter II possession limit increases
consistent with the increase in the quota, as described in table 7.
Table 7--Potential Increase in Winter II Possession Limits Based on the Amount of Unused Scup Rolled Over From Winter I to Winter II
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Initial Winter II possession limit Rollover from Winter I to Winter Increase ininitial Winter II Final Winter II possession limit
------------------------------------------------ II possession limit after rollover from Winter I to
----------------------------------------------------------------------- Winter II
lb kg ---------------------------------
lb kg lb kg lb kg
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12,000....................... 5,443........... 0-499,999....... 0-226,796....... 0............... 0.............. 12,000......... 5,443
12,000....................... 5,443........... 500,000-999,999. 226,796-453,592. 1,500........... 680............ 13,500......... 6,123
12,000....................... 5,443........... 1,000,000-1,499, 453,592-680,388. 3,000........... 1,361.......... 15,000......... 6,804
999.
12,000....................... 5,443........... 1,500,000-1,999, 680,389-907,184. 4,500........... 2,041.......... 16,500......... 7,484
999.
[[Page 88269]]
12,000....................... 5,443........... * 2,000,000- 907,185-1,133,98 6,000........... 2,722.......... 18,000......... 8,165
2,500,000. 1.
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* This process of increasing the possession limit in 1,500 lb (680 kg) increments would continue past 2,500,000 lb (1,122,981 kg), but we end here for
the purpose of this example.
This action makes no changes to the 2024 commercial management
measures for scup, including the minimum fish size (9-inch (22.9-cm)
total length), gear requirements, and quota period possession limits.
Federal Recreational Scup Closure
Through this action, we are removing the January 1-April 30 Federal
recreational scup closure. Because of the timing of the recreational
management measures discussions and rulemaking, it would not be
possible to remove this closure prior to the January 1, 2024, start
date of the closure outside of this rulemaking. At the December 2023
meeting, the Council and Board approved a 10-percent reduction in
recreational scup harvest in 2024 and 2025. State waters measures, in
addition to the 40-fish possession limit and 10-inch minimum size in
Federal waters, will be developed to achieve the full reduction
required. The Federal closure will not be needed to achieve the
required reduction. Additionally, preliminary data on recreational scup
harvest indicate that 2023 harvest is trending lower than 2022.
Estimated scup harvest in waves 1 to 4 is 9.46 million lb (4,291 mt),
which is 31-percent lower than scup harvest during the same time period
in 2022. For these reasons, we have determined that the January 1-April
30 Federal recreational fishery closure can be removed through this
action.
Comments and Responses
We received two comments on the proposed rule (88 FR 80263,
November 17, 2023). One comment was not applicable to the proposed
measures.
Comment 1: One comment supported the removal of the January-April
30 Federal recreational scup closure, citing a preference for changes
in the possession limit or size limit instead of closed seasons.
Response: This action removes the Federal recreational scup
closure.
Changes From the Proposed Rule
Table 4 in the proposed rule has been updated as several of the
values were incorrect. The corrected numbers are shown in table 4 of
this rule.
Classification
Pursuant to section 304(b)(3) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery
Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act), the NMFS
Assistant Administrator has determined that this final rule is
consistent with the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass FMP,
other provisions of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, and other applicable law.
The Assistant Administrator for Fisheries finds that the need to
implement these measures in a timely manner constitutes good cause,
under the authority contained in 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3), to waive the 30-
day delay in effective date of this action. This action implements 2024
specifications for the summer flounder, scup, and black sea bass
fisheries. These specifications should be effective by the start of the
fishing year on January 1, 2024, and must be published on or before
December 31, 2023.
This rule is being issued at the earliest possible date.
Preparation of the final rule is dependent on the analysis of
commercial summer flounder landings for the prior fishing year (2022)
and the current fishing year through October 31, 2023, to determine
whether any overages have occurred and adjustments are needed to the
final state quotas. This process is codified in the summer flounder
regulations and, therefore, cannot be performed earlier. A proposed
rule was published on November 17, 2023, with a public comment period
through December 2, 2023. This final rule is being published as soon as
possible. Annual publication of the summer flounder quotas prior to the
start of the fishing year, by December 31, is required by Court Order
in North Carolina Fisheries Association v. Daley.
The Chief Counsel for Regulation of the Department of Commerce
certified to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business
Administration during the proposed rule stage that this action would
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small
entities. The factual basis for the certification was published in the
proposed rule and is not repeated here. No comments were received
regarding this certification. As a result, a regulatory flexibility
analysis was not required and none was prepared.
This final rule has been determined to be not significant for
purposes of Executive Order 12866.
This final rule contains no information collection requirements
under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 648
Fisheries, Fishing, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Dated: December 15, 2023.
Samuel D. Rauch, III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
For the reasons set out in the preamble, NMFS amends 50 CFR part
648 as follows:
PART 648--FISHERIES OF THE NORTHEASTERN UNITED STATES
0
1. The authority citation for part 648 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
0
2. Revise Sec. 648.127 to read as follows:
Sec. 648.127 Scup recreational fishing season.
[[Page 88270]]
Fishermen and vessels that are not eligible for a scup moratorium
permit under Sec. 648.4(a)(6), may possess scup from January 1 through
December 31, subject to the possession limit specified in Sec.
648.128(a). The recreational fishing season may be adjusted pursuant to
the procedures in Sec. 648.122. Should the recreational fishing season
be modified, non-federally permitted scup vessels abiding by state
regulations may transit with scup harvested from state waters on board
through the Block Island Sound Transit Area following the provisions
outlined in Sec. 648.131.
[FR Doc. 2023-28090 Filed 12-20-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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