[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 81 (Friday, April 25, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22339-22340]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-9048]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-XH46
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: The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable
Fisheries, Northeast Region, NMFS (Assistant Regional Administrator),
has made a preliminary determination that an Exempted Fishing Permit
(EFP) application submitted by David Beutel and Laura Skrobe of the
University of Rhode Island (URI) contains all of the required
information and warrants further consideration. The EFP would enable
researchers to test an experimental net that uses very large mesh
panels to increase escapement of cod relative to haddock by granting
exemption from the Gulf of Maine (GOM) Rolling Closure Areas II and
III. The Assistant Regional Administrator has made a preliminary
determination that the activities authorized under this EFP would be
consistent with the goals and objectives of the Northeast (NE)
Multispecies Fishery Management Plan (FMP). However, further review and
consultation may be necessary before a final determination is made to
issue an EFP. Therefore, NMFS announces that the Assistant Regional
Administrator proposes to recommend that an EFP be issued that would
allow two commercial fishing vessels to conduct fishing operations that
are otherwise restricted by the regulations governing the fisheries of
the Northeastern United States.
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 EFPs.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before May 12, 2008.
ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments by any of the following
methods:
Email: [email protected]. Include in the subject line
``Comments on Eliminator Trawl EFP.''
Mail: Patricia A. Kurkul, Regional Administrator, NMFS, NE
Regional Office, 1 Blackburn Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark the
outside of the envelope ``Comments on Eliminator Trawl EFP.''
Fax: (978) 281-9135.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Douglas Potts, Fishery Management
Specialist, 978-281-9341.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A complete application for an EFP was
submitted on April 2, 2008, by David Beutel and Laura Skrobe for a
project entitled ``Exploring Bycatch Reduction in the Haddock Fishery
Through the Use of the Eliminator Trawl with Fishing Vessels in the 250
to 550 Horsepower Range'' funded under the Northeast Region Cooperative
Research Partnership Program. The study would conduct field testing of
a new net design, referred to as the Eliminator Trawl, specifically
scaled for vessels with 250 to 550 horsepower engines. This trawl net
is equipped with very large mesh in selected portions of the body to
increase escapement of cod and flatfish while retaining haddock. The
original Eliminator Trawl, currently being considered as an additional
gear in special programs in the NE multispecies fishery, is not
designed to allow smaller powered vessels to utilize this net.
The EFP would exempt two vessels from the seasonal GOM Rolling
Closure Areas II and III, as specified at 50 CFR 648.81(f)(1)(ii) and
(iii), while conducting research trips. These closure areas are
believed to provide the mix of species needed, while still being close
enough to shore for the safe operation of these smaller vessels. The
goal of the research is to demonstrate the efficiency of this net
design to selectively target haddock. The applicants intend that, if
sufficiently effective, the gear be proposed by the New England Fishery
Management Council for use in existing Special Access Programs (SAPs)
or for the development of a new SAP in the study area.
Research trips would be conducted within 30-minute squares 132 and
133 and the vessels would conduct side-by-side tows. One vessel would
fish with the experimental trawl and the other with a standard legal
groundfish trawl. The experimental trawl net employs graduated webbing
starting with 5 foot (1.524 m) meshes and ending with the legal minimum
6-inch (15.24-cm) mesh size in the body and 6.5-inch (16.51-cm) mesh in
the codend. Each vessel would conduct four to six 1-hour tows per day
over six days between the start of the EFP and May 30, 2008, and again
between April 1 and May 30, 2009. The researchers believe the best mix
of haddock, Atlantic cod, and flounders would be present in this area
during this period. Overall, the total expected catch from both the
experimental and commercial trawls would be:
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Species Estimated Catch
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Atlantic Cod 14,400 lb (6,531.7 kg)
Haddock 30,000 lb (13,607.8 kg)
American Plaice 400 lb (181.4 kg)
Yellowtail Flounder 10 lb (4.5 kg)
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Based on other previous research conducted in the proposed area and
season, the researchers estimate that the vessels would catch less that
50 lb (22.7 kg) each of other regulated groundfish species, white hake,
winter flounder, witch flounder, windowpane flounder, redfish, and
pollock. The vessels would be charged A days-at-sea (DAS) during the
research trips and would be subject to applicable size and possession
limits. Undersized, or otherwise protected fish, would not be retained
or landed. Legal sized fish would be landed and sold under normal NE
multispecies DAS and other applicable regulations.
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.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
[[Page 22340]]
Dated: April 22, 2008.
Emily H. Menashes
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E8-9048 Filed 4-24-08; 8:45 am]
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