Proposed Rule2024-17106
Pacific Island Fisheries; Amendment 7 to the Fishery Ecosystem Plan for the American Samoa Archipelago; Discontinue Rebuilding Plan for American Samoa Bottomfish and Implement Annual Catch Limits and Accountability Measures for Fishing Years 2024-2026
Primary source
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Published
August 2, 2024
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
NMFS announces that the Western Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) proposes to amend the Fishery Ecosystem Plan for the American Samoa Archipelago (FEP). If approved, the FEP would be amended to discontinue the rebuilding plan for American Samoa bottomfish and NMFS would implement annual catch limits (ACL) and accountability measures (AM) for American Samoa bottomfish. The action is necessary because new best scientific information indicates the fishery is not overfished or experiencing overfishing. The proposed action considers the best available scientific, commercial, and other information about the fishery, and supports the long-term sustainability of the fishery.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 149 (Friday, August 2, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 149 (Friday, August 2, 2024)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 63155-63156]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-17106]
[[Page 63155]]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 665
RIN 0648-BN03
Pacific Island Fisheries; Amendment 7 to the Fishery Ecosystem
Plan for the American Samoa Archipelago; Discontinue Rebuilding Plan
for American Samoa Bottomfish and Implement Annual Catch Limits and
Accountability Measures for Fishing Years 2024-2026
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Availability of proposed fishery ecosystem plan amendment;
request for comments.
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SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the Western Pacific Fishery Management
Council (Council) proposes to amend the Fishery Ecosystem Plan for the
American Samoa Archipelago (FEP). If approved, the FEP would be amended
to discontinue the rebuilding plan for American Samoa bottomfish and
NMFS would implement annual catch limits (ACL) and accountability
measures (AM) for American Samoa bottomfish. The action is necessary
because new best scientific information indicates the fishery is not
overfished or experiencing overfishing. The proposed action considers
the best available scientific, commercial, and other information about
the fishery, and supports the long-term sustainability of the fishery.
DATES: NMFS must receive comments on the proposed amendment by October
1, 2024.
ADDRESSES: A plain language summary of this proposed amendment is
available at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov/docket/NOAA-NMFS-2024-0088">https://www.regulations.gov/docket/NOAA-NMFS-2024-0088</a>.
You may submit comments on the proposed amendment, identified by NOAA-
NMFS-2024-0088, by either 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-2024-0088 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: Send written comments to Sarah Malloy, Deputy
Regional Administrator, NMFS Pacific Islands Regional Office (PIRO),
1845 Wasp Blvd., Bldg. 176, Honolulu, HI 96818.
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).
Amendment 7 includes a draft environmental assessment (EA) and
regulatory impact review (RIR) that analyzes the potential impacts of
the proposed action and alternatives considered. Copies of amendment 7,
including the EA and RIR, and other supporting documents, are available
from <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> or the Council, 1164 Bishop St., Suite
1400, Honolulu, HI 96813, telephone 808-522-8220, fax 808-522-8226,
<a href="https://www.wpcouncil.org">https://www.wpcouncil.org</a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Heather Nelson, Sustainable Fisheries
Division, NMFS PIR, 808-725-5179.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS announces the availability of amendment
7 to the FEP for the American Samoa Archipelago. This amendment would
discontinue the stock rebuilding plan (see 50 CFR 600.310(j))
established through amendment 5 to the FEP and associated ACLs and AMs
implemented to end overfishing and rebuild the stock (87 FR 25590, May
5, 2022), and would implement new ACLs and AMs to prevent overfishing
(see 50 CFR 600.310(g)-(f)).
The Council and NMFS manage Federal fisheries in the Pacific
Islands Region pursuant to the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery and
Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act). Management of
the American Samoa bottomfish fishery is organized through the American
Samoa Archipelago FEP. There are 11 bottomfish management unit species
(BMUS) managed under the FEP: 8 snappers, 1 emperor, 1 jack, and 1
grouper. Fishing for bottomfish primarily occurs within 20 miles (32
kilometers) from shore using aluminum catamarans less than 32 feet (9.7
meters) long, known locally as alia. The fishery is relatively small
and primarily non-commercial, but it is still of importance to the
local economy, and from social, cultural, and food security
standpoints. In 2022, nine vessels participated in the bottomfish
fishery. During the most recent 3 years of available data (2020-2022),
American Samoa bottomfish fishermen caught an average of 4,114 pounds
(lb) (1,866 kilograms (kg)) of bottomfish annually. Catches were higher
between 2017 and 2019 before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the
overfished determination, and American Samoa bottomfish fishermen
caught an average of 12,499 lb (5,669 kg) of bottomfish annually. The
fishery is culturally important in spite of the relatively modest catch
totals, as deep-water snappers are used for chiefly position
entitlements and fa'a lalave ceremonies (e.g., funerals, weddings,
births, and special birthdays).
The fishery is currently managed under a rebuilding plan
established to address an overfished stock status determination for all
11 BMUS as a multi-species stock complex (85 FR 26940, May 6, 2020).
This status determination was based on the results of the 2019
benchmark stock assessment, which analyzed fishery data through 2017.
Consistent with section 304(e) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act and
implementing regulations at 50 CFR 600.310(j), the Council prepared,
and NMFS implemented, a rebuilding plan under amendment 5 to the FEP.
The rebuilding plan implemented an ACL of 5,000 lb (2,268 kg) of BMUS
starting in 2022, and harvests from both territorial and Federal waters
are counted toward the ACL. The rebuilding plan also includes an in-
season AM and a higher performance standard. As an in-season AM, if
NMFS projects that the fishery will reach the ACL in any year, then the
fishery will be closed in Federal waters for the remainder of that
year. If the total annual catch exceeds the ACL during a year, NMFS
will close the fishery in Federal waters until NMFS and the Territory
of American Samoa implement a coordinated management approach to ensure
that catch in Federal and territorial waters is maintained at levels
that allow the stock to rebuild or the rebuilding plan is modified
based on the best scientific information available.
In June 2023 NMFS completed a new benchmark stock assessment for
bottomfish in American Samoa that used single-species, age-structured
models to determine stock status relative to overfishing and overfished
reference points defined in the FEP. The 2023 benchmark stock
assessment evaluated 9 of the 11 BMUS and found that none of the
assessed species were overfished or experiencing overfishing
[[Page 63156]]
in 2017 or in any year since. That none of the stocks were overfished
in the final data year of the previous assessment or since is
significant because that is a criterion for discontinuing a rebuilding
plan (see 50 CFR 600.310(j)(5)). Insufficient data were available to
assess two species, Etelis carbunculus and Pristipomoides filamentosus.
The assessment recommended using taxonomically and ecologically similar
species (E. coruscans and P. flavipinnis, respectively) as indicator
species to manage the unassessed species. This practice is consistent
both with management practices in the FEP and National Standard 1 of
the Magnuson-Stevens Act (50 CFR 600.31(d)(2)(ii)), and it was
supported by the Council's Scientific and Statistical Committee.
NMFS determined the 2023 benchmark stock assessment to be the best
scientific information available, consistent with National Standard 2
of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, and issued a notification informing the
Council of its determination that none of the American Samoa bottomfish
stocks assessed in the 2023 benchmark assessment were overfished or
subject to overfishing. Therefore, at its 197th meeting in December
2023, in accordance with the ACL process approved by NMFS, and in
consideration of the best available scientific, commercial, and other
information, the Council recommended discontinuing the rebuilding plan,
specifying ACLs and accountability measures (AMs) for nine assessed
BMUS for fishing years 2024-2026, and using Etelis coruscans as an
indicator species for E. carbunculus and Pristipomoides flavipinnis as
an indicator species for P. filamentosus.
Separate ACLs and AMs would not be implemented for E. carbunculus
and P. filamentosus. Instead, they would be subject to the post-season
AM based on monitoring of catch of the indicator species. There are no
Federal reporting requirements for bottomfish fishing in Federal waters
around American Samoa. Therefore, monitoring of the fishery depends
largely on data voluntarily provided by fishermen to the American Samoa
Department of Marine and Wildlife Resources (DMWR) through a creel
survey program. Additionally, DMWR reviews sales data from its
mandatory commercial fish purchase system. As a post-season AM, if NMFS
and the Council determine that the average catch from the most recent
3-year period exceeds the ACL for any species, NMFS would reduce the
ACL for that species in subsequent years by the amount of overage. If
approved, amendment 7 would discontinue the rebuilding plan for
American Samoa bottomfish and implement single-species ACLs for the
nine assessed American Samoa BMUS for fishing years 2024-2026 as
recommended by the Council.
Public comments are being solicited on amendment 7 to the FEP
through the end of the comment period stated in this Notice of
Availability. NMFS must receive comments on the proposed amendment by
October 1, 2024 for consideration in the decision to approve, partially
approve, or disapprove the amendment.
A proposed rule that would implement the FEP amendment may be
published in the Federal Register for public comment, following NMFS'
evaluation under the Magnuson-Stevens Act procedures. Public comments
on the proposed rule must be received by the end of the comment period
on the FEP amendment to be considered in the decision to approve,
partially approve, or disapprove the FEP amendment.
All comments received by the end of the comment period on the FEP
amendment, whether specifically directed to the FEP amendment or the
proposed rule, will be considered in the approval/disapproval decision.
Comments received after that date will not be considered in the
decision of the FEP amendment. To be considered, comments must be
received by the close of business on the last day of the comment
period; that does not mean postmarked or otherwise transmitted by that
date.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: July 30, 2024.
Lindsay Fullenkamp,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-17106 Filed 8-1-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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