Notice2024-23559
Endangered and Threatened Species; File No. 27106
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
October 11, 2024
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
Notice is hereby given that the North Carolina Department of Marine Fisheries (NCDMF) has been issued a permit for the incidental take of Endangered Species Act listed sea turtles and sturgeon associated with the otherwise lawful commercial inshore gillnet fishery in North Carolina.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 198 (Friday, October 11, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 198 (Friday, October 11, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 82573-82575]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-23559]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[RTID 0648-XE370]
Endangered and Threatened Species; File No. 27106
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; issuance of permit.
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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the North Carolina Department of
Marine Fisheries (NCDMF) has been issued a permit for the incidental
take of Endangered Species Act listed sea turtles and sturgeon
associated with the otherwise lawful commercial inshore gillnet fishery
in North Carolina.
ADDRESSES: The incidental take permit, final environmental assessment,
and other related documents are available on the NMFS Office of
Protected Resources website at <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/incidental-take-permit-north-carolina-division-marine-fisheries-sea-turtles-and-sturgeon">https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/incidental-take-permit-north-carolina-division-marine-fisheries-sea-turtles-and-sturgeon</a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Celeste Stout, NMFS, Office of
Protected Resources at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#caa9afa6afb9beafe4b9bea5bfbe8aa4a5ababe4ada5bc"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="ec8f8980899f9889c29f98839998ac82838d8dc28b839a">[email protected]</span></a>, 301-427-8403.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 9 of the ESA and Federal regulations
prohibit the `taking' of a species listed as endangered or threatened.
The ESA defines ``take'' to mean harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot,
wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or to attempt to engage in any
such conduct. NMFS may issue permits, under limited circumstances to
take listed species incidental to, and not the purpose of, otherwise
lawful activities. Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the ESA provides a mechanism
for authorizing incidental take of listed species. NMFS regulations
governing permits for threatened and endangered species are located in
50 CFR 222.307.
Species Covered in This Permit
Kemp's ridley (Lepidochelys kempii), hawksbill (Eretmochelys
imbricata), leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea) sea turtles; North
Atlantic and South Atlantic distinct population segments (DPSs) of
green (Chelonia mydas) sea turtles; Northwest Atlantic Ocean DPS of
loggerhead (Caretta caretta) sea turtles; New York Bight, Chesapeake,
Carolina, and South Atlantic DPSs of Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser
oxyrinchus oxyrinchus); and and shortnose sturgeon (Acipenser
brevirostrum).
Background
NMFS received a draft permit application and conservation plan from
NCDMF on June 22, 2022. Based on our review of the draft application,
we requested further information and clarification on their
minimization, monitoring, and mitigation measures and take requests.
After several draft submissions and reviews, on December 2, 2022, NCDMF
submitted a complete revised application for the incidental take of
ESA-listed sea turtles and sturgeon. On December 22, 2022, we published
a notice of receipt (87 FR 78659) of application and conservation
[[Page 82574]]
plan from NCDMF for an incidental take permit. In that notice, we made
the Incidental Take Permit (ITP) application and associated
conservation plan available for public comment during a 30-day public
comment period. Subsequently, we received a request to extend the
public comment period. NMFS provided a 30-day extension (88 FR 3971,
January 23, 2023) to the comment period, which closed on February 22,
2023. We received 231 comments on the application and conservation plan
and responses to these comments are available in the draft
Environmental Assessment (EA).
On August 10, 2023, a Federal Register notice was published to
inform the public of the availability of, and request comments on, the
draft EA (88 FR 54303). The public comment period ended on September
11, 2023, and 22 comments were received. The comments received and
their accompanying responses are located in appendix D of the final EA.
Comments received were considered and any revisions needed to address
comments were incorporated in the final EA and NCDMF's final ITP
application and conservation plan.
NMFS has issued the requested incidental take permit under the
authority of the ESA of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and
the regulations governing the taking, importing, and exporting of
endangered and threatened species (50 CFR parts 222-226).
Incidental takes by species in rolling 2-year (ITP year) intervals
or ITP duration that are authorized under the permit were based on
annual take values from model predictions or observed counts based on
previous interaction data for the duration of requested ITP (10 years;
Please see section 7.A.2 Estimation of Incidental Takes of the
conservation plan). Authorized takes include the total number of
predicted takes across the fishery whenever possible; otherwise takes
are based on counts of observed takes. Takes are either combined or
separate for mesh-size category and disposition of the incidentally
captured animals. Mesh-size categories are large (>=5 Inches Stretched
Mesh (ISM), >=12.7 Centimeters Stretched Mesh (CSM) and small (<5 ISM,
<12.7 CSM).
Table 1--Authorized Takes Under Permit No. 27106
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Requested 2-
Species Mesh-size category Disposition Predicted or year rolling
observed takes take
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Atlantic Sturgeon................ Large & Small...... Live............... Predicted.......... 436
Large & Small...... Dead............... Observed........... 6
Green sea turtle (North and South Large & Small...... Live............... Predicted.......... 542
Atlantic DPSs).
Large & Small...... Dead............... Predicted.......... 170
Kemp's ridley sea turtle......... Large.............. Live............... Observed........... 10
Large.............. Dead............... Observed........... 4
Small.............. Live or Dead....... Observed........... 4
Loggerhead sea turtle (Northwest Large & Small...... Live or Dead....... Observed........... 4
Atlantic Ocean DPS).
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Total take
Species Mesh-size category Disposition Predicted or over 10-year
observed takes permit
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Shortnose sturgeon............... Large & Small...... Live or Dead....... Observed........... 4
Hawksbill sea turtle............. Large & Small...... Live or Dead....... Observed........... 2
Leatherback sea turtle........... Large & Small...... Live or Dead....... Observed........... 2
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Below we describes the approximate assignment of DPS from the
predicted number and observed count of Atlantic sturgeon take by live
or dead status across the 10 years of the requested ITP. Individuals
<500 mm total length (TL) and >=1,500 mm TL are assumed to belong to
the DPS where they were collected (ASMFC 2017) because individuals of
these sizes are generally regarded as juveniles natal to those
locations but not large enough to leave the river or adults that are
most likely returning to their natal rivers to reproduce. Thus, based
on previous interactions, 13.1 percent of total bycatch could be
assigned to the Carolina DPS without further evaluation, but the
correct DPS for the remaining portion of bycatch is unknown. For the
remaining 86.8 percent of the predicted numbers, DPS assignment was
based on proportions provided in Kazyk et al. (2021) for the geographic
area ``Mid Riverine/Estuarine''.
Approximate assignment of DPS from the predicted number and
observed count of Atlantic sturgeon takes by live or dead status across
the 10 years of the ITP are indicated in the table below. Take of
Atlantic sturgeon will affect four DPSs, at a total rate up to 15.9
percent New York Bight DPS, 4.2 percent Chesapeake Bay DPS, 66.2
percent Carolina DPS, and 13.8 percent South Atlantic DPS.
Table 2--Approximate Assignment of DPS od Atlantic Sturgon Takes
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Takes across New York Bight South atlantic
Atlantic sturgeon disposition Predicted or observed counts 10 years DPS Chesapeake DPS Carolina DPS DPS
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Live...................................... Predicted................... 2,180 346 91 1,443 300
Dead...................................... Observed Counts............. 30 5 1 20 4
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[[Page 82575]]
Due to uncertainty about the exact proportion of each DPS in the
inshore waters of North Carolina, the above breakdown may not perfectly
represent the actual proportion of each DPS. This expected variation is
influenced by natural seasonal and annual fluctuations in the
proportions of each DPS. Therefore, the take estimates provided for
each DPS do not aim to precisely estimate the proportion of each DPS to
be taken.
Conservation Plan
NCDMF's conservation plan includes measures to minimize, monitor,
and mitigate the incidental take of ESA-listed sea turtles and
sturgeon. The conservation plan addresses gill net fisheries operating
in estuarine waters and deploying anchored gill nets as regulated
through fisheries rules adopted by the North Carolina Marine Fisheries
Commission and proclamations issued by the NCDMF director. Regulations
include mandatory attendance, yardage limits, mesh size restrictions, a
minimum distance between fishing operations, gear marking requirements,
soak-time restrictions, net shot limits, net height tie-down
requirements, closed areas, and monitoring and reporting requirements.
The conservation plan includes an adaptive management and monitoring
program, fisheries reduction, outreach, and timely response to
``hotspots'' where sturgeon and/or sea turtle interactions are
unusually high.
Additionally, NCDMF will commit funds of up to $2,000 per year to
purchase Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tags, which equates to
approximately 100 PIT tags per year. As part of their Observer Program
sampling protocol, fin clips are taken from live and dead sturgeon.
These samples are stored until they can be submitted for genetic
analysis and included in the Atlantic Coast Sturgeon Tissue Research
Repository (ACSTRR) housed at the United States Geological Survey,
Leetown Science Center. The NCDMF will commit up to $3,000 per year to
fund genetic analysis; at approximately $100 per sample, this funding
provides for the analysis of approximately 30 fin clips per year. The
NCDMF will consult with NMFS to ensure samples collected during the
current ITP and future samples collected under the requested ITP are
appropriately selected based on criteria such as sturgeon length,
location, and season. Should fewer than 30 fin clips be collected for a
given year, any funds not expended from this allocation could be used
for analysis of historical samples provided by NCDMF.
NCDMF's monitoring program is funded by the North Carolina
Commercial Research is also a valuable tool to address data gaps and
inform management decisions. The assistance and cooperation of
commercial fishery stakeholders in the research can greatly benefit
scientific understanding of the species. The NCDMF will continue to
support and assist research efforts and facilitate the establishment of
relationships with the commercial fishing industry. Also, the NCDMF
will help, to the extent possible, respond to sea turtle cold-stun
events, which occur in NC with some regularity (Niemuth et al. 2020).
During future cold-stun events, the NCDMF will help provide
transportation of staff, supplies, and turtles using Observer Program
resources The NCDMF will communicate with the North Carolina Wilflife
Resources Commission (NCWRC) about this commitment to ensure they reach
out for assistance when needed.
Fishing Resource Fund (G.S. 113-173.1) state appropriations and is
supplemented through other sources such as the Atlantic Coastal
Cooperative Statistics Program and the National Fish and Wildlife
Foundation.
Criteria for Issuing an Incidental Take Permit
Issuance criteria are described in ESA section 10(a)(2)(B) and
associated implementing regulations (50 CFR 222.307(c)(2)). Under
section 10(a)(2)(B) of the ESA, NMFS shall issue the requested
incidental take permit, if NMFS finds that the following criteria are
met:
(i) The taking will be incidental;
(ii) The applicant will, to the maximum extent practicable,
monitor, minimize, and mitigate the impacts of such taking;
(iii) The taking will not appreciably reduce the likelihood of the
survival and recovery of the species in the wild;
(iv) The applicant has amended the conservation plan to include any
measures (not originally proposed by the applicant) that the Assistant
Administrator determines are necessary or appropriate; and
(v) There are adequate assurances that the conservation plan will
be funded and implemented, including any measures required by the
Assistant Administrator.
NMFS found that NCDMF met the criteria for the issuance of an
incidental take permit, and as such, NMFS issued an incidental take
permit to NCDMF for the incidental take of ESA-Listed sea turtles and
sturgeon associated with the otherwise lawful commercial inshore
gillnet fishery in North Carolina.
Dated: October 4, 2024.
Lisa Manning,
Acting Chief, Endangered Species Conservation Division, Office of
Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-23559 Filed 10-10-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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