Notice2024-06492
Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic Fisheries; Application for Exempted Fishing Permits
Primary source
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Published
March 27, 2024
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
Atlantic Region, NMFS, has made a preliminary determination that an Exempted Fishing Permit application contains all of the required information and warrants further consideration. The Exempted Fishing Permit would allow commercial fishing vessels to fish outside fishery regulations in support of research conducted by the applicant. Regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act require publication of this notification to provide interested parties the opportunity to comment on applications for proposed Exempted Fishing Permits.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 60 (Wednesday, March 27, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 60 (Wednesday, March 27, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21240-21241]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-06492]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[RTID 0648-XD833]
Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic
Fisheries; Application for Exempted Fishing Permits
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: Atlantic Region, NMFS, has made a preliminary determination
that an Exempted Fishing Permit application contains all of the
required information and warrants further consideration. The Exempted
Fishing Permit would allow commercial fishing vessels to fish outside
fishery regulations in support of research conducted by the applicant.
Regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act require publication of this notification to provide
interested parties the opportunity to comment on applications for
proposed Exempted Fishing Permits.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 11, 2024.
ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments by any of the following
methods:
<bullet> Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#98f6f5feebb6fff9eab6fdfee8d8f6f7f9f9b6fff7ee"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="6f0102091c41080e1d410a091f2f01000e0e41080019">[email protected]</span></a>. Include in the subject line
``NEFSC Study Fleet EFP''.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Elise Scholl, Fishery Management
Specialist, (978) 281-9189.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The applicant submitted a complete
application for an Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) to conduct commercial
fishing activities that the regulations would otherwise restrict. This
EFP would exempt the participating vessels from the following Federal
regulations:
Table 1--Requested Exemptions
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CFR citation Regulation Need for exemption
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648.83............................. Multispecies Minimum Fish Allow possession of haddock, yellowtail
Sizes. flounder, winter flounder, and American
plaice below minimum size on common pool and
sector vessels for biological sampling
purposes.
684.86(a).......................... Haddock Possession Allow possession of haddock for biological
Restriction. sampling.
648.86(d).......................... Small-Mesh Multispecies Exempt vessels from small-mesh possession
Possession Restriction. restrictions for biological sampling.
648.86(g).......................... Yellowtail Flounder Exempt common pool vessels from yellowtail
Possession Restriction. possession restrictions and limitations.
648.86(j).......................... Georges Bank Winter Exempt common pool vessels from winter
Flounder Possession flounder restrictions.
Restriction.
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Table 2--Project Summary
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Project title Study fleet program
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Applicant.................... Northeast Fisheries Science Center's
Cooperative Research Branch.
Project objectives........... Allow fishermen and Center staff to
collect biological data and biological
samples relevant to stock assessments
and fish biology.
Project period............... May 1, 2024-April 30, 2025.
Project location............. The Gulf of Maine, Georges Bank, Southern
New England, and the Mid-Atlantic.
Number of vessels............ 25.
Number of trips.............. 250.
Trip duration (days)......... 5.
Total number of days......... 1,250.
Gear type(s)................. Otter trawl, scallop dredge, midwater
otter trawl, paired trawl.
Number of tows or sets....... 7.
Duration of tows or sets..... 1 hour.
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Project Narrative
The Northeast Fisheries Science Center's Cooperative Research
Branch is requesting an EFP to allow participants in their Study Fleet
Program to collect biological information on catch. The Center
established the Study Fleet Program in 2002 to more fully characterize
commercial fishing operations and provide sampling opportunities to
augment NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service's data collection
programs. As part of the program, the Center contracts commercial
fishing vessels to collect biological data and fish specimens for use
in research relevant to stock assessments and fish biology.
Under the EFP, Study Fleet participants would be allowed to
temporarily possess catch that is below minimum size restrictions and
above possession limits for the purposes of biological sampling. When
directed by the Center, participating vessels would be authorized to
retain and land specific amounts of fish exceeding possession limits
and/or below minimum fish sizes, for research purposes only. The
captain or crew would deliver these fish to Center staff or local Port
Agents upon landing. In these limited circumstances, the Study Fleet
Program would give participating vessels a formal biological sampling
request prior to landing. This would ensure that the landed fish do not
exceed any collection needs of the Study Fleet Program, as detailed
below.
During EFP trips, crew would sort, weigh, measure, and collect
biological data from fish prior to discarding. During sampling, some
discarded fish would remain on deck slightly longer than they would
under normal sorting procedures. Exemptions from minimum fish sizes and
possession restrictions
[[Page 21241]]
would allow vessels to temporarily retain catch for at-sea sampling.
Vessels would be required to comply with all other applicable
regulations specified at 50 CFR part 648 and would not be exempt from
any inseason quota closures. All catch would be attributed to the
appropriate commercial fishing quota. For a vessel fishing on a
groundfish sector trip, all catch of groundfish stocks allocated to
sectors would be deducted from the vessel's sector's annual catch
entitlement (ACE). If the ACE for a stock has been reached in a sector,
participating vessels would no longer be allowed to fish in that stock
area unless the sector acquires additional ACE for the stock in
question. For participating common pool vessels, all groundfish catch
would be counted toward the appropriate trimester total allowable catch
(TAC). Common pool vessels would be exempt from the possession and trip
limits, but would still be subject to trimester TAC closures.
If approved, the applicant may request minor modifications and
extensions to the EFP throughout the year. EFP modifications and
extensions may be granted without further notice if they are deemed
essential to facilitate completion of the proposed research and have
minimal impacts that do not change the scope or impact of the initially
approved EFP request. Any fishing activity conducted outside the scope
of the exempted fishing activity would be prohibited.
All comments received are a part of the public record and may be
posted for public viewing 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
``anonymous'' as the signature if you wish to remain anonymous).
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: March 22, 2024.
Everett Wayne Baxter,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-06492 Filed 3-26-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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