Proposed Rule2024-01120
Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Amendment 126 to the Fishery Management Plans for Groundfish of the Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands Management Area and Amendment 114 to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska To Expand Electronic Monitoring to the Pollock Fisheries
Primary source
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Published
January 22, 2024
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) submitted Amendment 126 to the Fishery Management Plans for Groundfish of the Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands Management Area (BSAI FMP) and Amendment 114 to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska (GOA FMP). If approved, Amendments 126/114 would expand electronic monitoring (EM) to pelagic trawl pollock catcher vessels and tenders delivering to shoreside processors or stationary floating processors in the Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands, and Gulf of Alaska. Amendments 126/114 are intended to promote the goals and objectives of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act), the BSAI FMP, and the GOA FMP.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 14 (Monday, January 22, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 14 (Monday, January 22, 2024)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 3902-3904]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-01120]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 679
RIN 0648-BM40
Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Amendment
126 to the Fishery Management Plans for Groundfish of the Bering Sea/
Aleutian Islands Management Area and Amendment 114 to the Fishery
Management Plan for Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska To Expand
Electronic Monitoring to the Pollock Fisheries
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of availability of fishery management plan amendment;
request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council)
submitted Amendment 126 to the Fishery Management Plans for Groundfish
of the Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands Management Area (BSAI FMP) and
Amendment 114 to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Gulf
of Alaska (GOA FMP). If approved, Amendments 126/114 would expand
electronic monitoring (EM) to pelagic trawl pollock catcher vessels and
tenders delivering to shoreside processors or stationary floating
processors in the Bering Sea, Aleutian
[[Page 3903]]
Islands, and Gulf of Alaska. Amendments 126/114 are intended to promote
the goals and objectives of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation
and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act), the BSAI FMP, and the GOA
FMP.
DATES: Comments must be received no later than March 22, 2024.
Public Meetings:
1. February 28, 2024, 6 p.m. Alaska local time, Kodiak, AK.
2. March 12, 2024, 6 p.m. Pacific time, Virtual (see ADDRESSES for
link).
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on this document, identified by
NOAA-NMFS-2023-0125, by any of the following methods:
<bullet> Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> and type NOAA-NMFS-2023-0125 in the Search box
(note: copying and pasting the FDMS Docket Number directly from this
document may not yield search results). Click on the ``Comment'' icon,
complete the required fields, and enter or attach your comments.
<bullet> Mail: Submit written comments to Gretchen Harrington,
Assistant Regional Administrator, Sustainable Fisheries Division,
Alaska Region NMFS. Mail comments to P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, AK 99802-
1668.
<bullet> 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, etc.), 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 Amendment 126 to the BSAI FMP and Amendment
114 to the GOA FMP, the Environmental Assessment/Regulatory Impact
Review prepared for this action (the Analysis), and the Finding of No
Significant Impact prepared for this action may be obtained from
<a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> and the NMFS Alaska Region website at
<a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/region/alaska">https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/region/alaska</a>.
Pursuant to section 313(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, NMFS will
hold public hearings to accept oral and written comments on the
proposed rule during the public comment period. The first public
hearing will be held at the Kodiak Fisheries Research Center, 301
Research Court, Kodiak, Alaska 99615. The second public hearings will
be held virtually, available at <a href="https://meet.google.com/gcz-emgh-kkw">https://meet.google.com/gcz-emgh-kkw</a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joel Kraski, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#a5cfcac0c98bced7c4d6cecce5cbcac4c48bc2cad3"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="91fbfef4fdbffae3f0e2faf8d1fffef0f0bff6fee7">[email protected]</span></a>,
(907) 586-7228.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Magnuson-Stevens Act requires that each
regional fishery management council submit any FMP amendment it
prepares to NMFS for review and approval, disapproval, or partial
approval by the Secretary of Commerce. The Magnuson-Stevens Act also
requires that NMFS, upon receiving an FMP amendment, immediately
publish a notice in the Federal Register announcing that the amendment
is available for public review and comment. This notice announces that
proposed Amendment 126 to the BSAI FMP and Amendment 114 to the GOA FMP
are available for public review and comment.
The Council prepared, and the Secretary approved, the BSAI FMP and
GOA FMP under the authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Act (16 U.S.C. 1801
et seq.). The BSAI FMP and GOA FMP are implemented by regulations
governing U.S. fisheries at 50 CFR parts 600 and 679.
Amendments 126/114 would amend the Council's fisheries research
plan prepared under the authority of section 313 of the Magnuson-
Stevens Act. NMFS published regulations implementing the plan on
November 21, 2012 (77 FR 70062) and integrated EM into the plan on
August 8, 2017 (82 FR 36991). The Secretary implements the fisheries
research plan through the North Pacific Observer Program (Observer
Program). Its purpose is to collect data necessary for the
conservation, management, and scientific understanding of the
groundfish and halibut fisheries off Alaska.
The Council's intent in recommending Amendments 126/114 is to
improve salmon accounting, reduce monitoring costs, improve the quality
of monitoring data, and modify current retention and/or discard
requirements as necessary to achieve these objectives in association
with catcher vessels using trawl gear in the BS, AI, and GOA Pollock
fisheries along with associated tender vessels and processors.
Amendment 126 would add to section 3.9.2 of the BSAI FMP and
Amendment 114 would add to section 3.9.2 of the GOA FMP to allow the
use of EM systems to meet fisheries monitoring requirements under the
Observer Program.
Amendments 126/114 would create an EM option--the trawl EM
category--for pelagic trawl pollock catcher vessels and tender vessels
delivering to a shoreside processor or stationary floating processor in
the Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands, and Gulf of Alaska. The BSAI and GOA
FMPs currently authorize the use of EM in the partial coverage
category, but not the full observer coverage category of the Observer
Program. Under this voluntary program, eligible catcher vessels and
tender vessels would apply annually for entry into the trawl EM
category. Shoreside processors and stationary floating processors would
indicate that they intend to receive trawl EM category deliveries
during their annual Catch Monitoring Control Plan process.
Amendments 126/114 would allow for monitoring to be conducted by an
EM system on board both full and partial coverage trawl catcher vessels
combined with sampling by observers stationed at shoreside or
stationary floating processors. For fishing trips in the trawl EM
category, the responsibilities normally conducted by at-sea observers
would be completed by observers stationed at the shoreside or
stationary floating processor plant. All fishing trips would operate
under improved retention (i.e., minimize discards to the greatest
extent practicable) and be recorded by EM as a compliance tool; all
video is reviewed and verified using logbook entries to ensure the
program elements are followed.
The use of EM and maximized retention on vessels would allow for
observers to collect unbiased data at the shoreside or stationary
floating processors. Shoreside and stationary floating processors would
indicate their intent to receive EM deliveries during Catch Monitoring
Control Plan approval process to join the trawl EM program annually.
Shoreside and stationary floating processors would also indicate
whether they expect to use tender vessels.
NMFS is soliciting public comments on proposed Amendments 126/114
through the end of the comment period (see DATES). NMFS intends to
publish in the Federal Register and seek public comment on a proposed
rule that would implement Amendments 126/114 following NMFS's
evaluation of the proposed rule under the Magnuson-Stevens Act.
Section 313 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act requires NMFS to provide a
60-day public comment period on the proposed rule and conduct a public
hearing in
[[Page 3904]]
each state represented on the Council for the purpose of receiving
public comment on the proposed regulations. The states represented on
the Council are Alaska, Oregon, and Washington. NMFS will conduct a
public hearing at a physical location in Alaska, and hold a virtual
public hearing for Washington and Oregon (see DATES).
People wanting to make an oral statement for the record at the a
public hearing are encouraged to submit a written copy of their
statement to NMFS using one of the methods identified under ADDRESSES.
If attendance at the public hearing is large, the time allotted for
individual oral statements may be limited. Oral and written statements
receive equal consideration. There are no limits on the length of
written comments submitted to NMFS. Respondents do not need to submit
the same comments on Amendments 126/114 and the proposed rule. All
relevant written comments received by the end of the applicable comment
period, whether specifically directed to the FMP amendments or this
proposed rule, will be considered by NMFS in the approval/disapproval
decision for Amendments 126/114 and addressed in the response to
comments in the final decision. Comments received after the end of the
comment period may not be considered in the approval/disapproval
decision on Amendment 126/114. To be certain of consideration, comments
would need to be received, not just postmarked or otherwise
transmitted, by the last day of the comment period (see DATES).
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: January 17, 2024.
Everett Wayne Baxter,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-01120 Filed 1-19-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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