[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 143 (Tuesday, July 27, 1999)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 40542-40544]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-19171]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Parts 600 and 648

[I.D. 063099A]
RIN 0648-AI78


Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 
Provisions; Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Atlantic 
Herring Fishery; Atlantic Herring Fishery Management Plan

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of availability of a fishery management plan; request 
for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the New England Fishery Management Council 
(Council) has submitted the Atlantic Herring Fishery Management Plan 
(FMP) for Secretarial review and is requesting comments from the 
public. The FMP would allow for the development of a sustainable 
fishery that targets the entire U.S. Atlantic herring resource more 
evenly to achieve optimum yield (OY). Overfishing would be prevented 
through the use of total allowable catch (TAC) allocations for distinct 
management areas. An annual scientific review of the resource would 
allow for adjustments to the fishery as a result of fluctuations in 
stock size. Development of the FMP was coordinated closely with the 
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (Commission) and Mid-
Atlantic Fishery Management Council (MAFMC) in order to assure 
complementary management measures in both state and Federal waters.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before September 27, 1999.
ADDRESSES: Comments on the Atlantic Herring FMP should be sent to 
Patricia A. Kurkul, Regional Administrator, Northeast Region, NMFS, One 
Blackburn Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930-3799. Mark the outside of the 
envelope, ``Comments on Herring FMP.''
    Copies of the Atlantic Herring FMP, its regulatory impact review, 
initial regulatory flexibility analysis, the final environmental impact 
statement, the Omnibus Essential Fish Habitat Amendment, and supporting 
documentation are available from Paul J. Howard, Executive Director, 
New England Fishery Management Council, 5 Broadway, Saugus, MA 01906-
1036.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: E. Martin Jaffe, Fishery Policy 
Analyst, 978-281-9272.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    The FMP proposes an overfishing definition and implementation of 
the following measures under authority of the the Magnuson-Stevens 
Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act): (1) TAC 
levels for each of the three management areas, one of which is divided 
into inshore and offshore sub-areas; (2) a procedure to develop annual 
specifications; (3) initial plan specifications for the 1999 fishing 
year; (4) effort limits through mandatory days out of the fishery; (5) 
spawning closures; (6) trip limits for incidental harvest during 
spawning closures or when effort controls are in effect; (7) a vessel 
monitoring system (VMS) requirement; (8) vessel size limits; (9) a 
framework adjustment process; (10) permitting and reporting 
requirements; (11) restrictions on transfers at sea; and (12) other 
measures for administration and enforcement. The

[[Page 40543]]

FMP also discusses the reduction and monitoring of bycatch and a roe 
fishery.
    The purpose of the FMP is to achieve, on a continuing basis, OY 
from the fishery and to prevent overfishing of the Atlantic herring 
resource. In addition, the FMP will provide for the orderly development 
of the offshore and inshore fisheries.

Overfishing Definition

    The FMP proposes an overfishing definition for Atlantic herring 
comprised of two status determination criteria. If stock biomass is 
equal or greater than BMSY (the biomass level at maximum 
sustainable yield), overfishing occurs when the fishing mortality rate 
exceeds FMSY (the fishing mortality rate that yields 
BMSY). If stock biomass is below BMSY, 
overfishing occurs when the fishing mortality rate exceeds the level 
that has a 50-percent probability of rebuilding stock biomass to 
BMSY in 5 years (Fthreshold). The stock is in an 
overfished condition when stock biomass is below \1/2\BMSY 
and overfishing occurs when fishing mortality exceeds 
Fthreshold. These criteria are thresholds and form the basis 
for the control rule.
    The control rule also specifies risk averse fishing mortality rate 
targets, accounting for uncertainty in the estimate of FMSY. 
If stock biomass is equal to or greater than \1/2\BMSY, the 
target fishing mortality rate will be the lower limit of the 80-percent 
confidence interval about FMSY. When biomass is below 
BMSY, the target fishing mortality rate will be reduced 
consistent with the 5-year rebuilding schedule used to determine 
Fthreshold. Since the Atlantic herring stock is not listed 
as ``overfished'' or ``approaching an overfished condition'' in the 
Annual Report to Congress for 1998, the Council was not required to 
submit a rebuilding strategy as part of the FMP at this time.

Essential Fish Habitat (EFH)

    The Council submitted an omnibus EFH amendment to address EFH 
provisions for several FMPs for Northeastern fisheries. The omnibus EFH 
amendment document also included the EFH components of the proposed 
Atlantic herring FMP, which was then still under development by the 
Council. Although the Atlantic herring EFH components were included in 
the omnibus EFH amendment, they were not considered during Secretarial 
review of the omnibus EFH amendment. For Atlantic herring, the notice 
of availability for the omnibus EFH amendment (63 FR 66110, December 1, 
1998) stated that ``the omnibus amendment includes the EFH components 
of the Atlantic Herring FMP that is being developed by the NEFMC. The 
EFH information for Atlantic Herring will be incorporated by reference 
into the Atlantic Herring FMP when that FMP is submitted for 
Secretarial approval.'' Therefore, with publication of this notice of 
availability for the Atlantic Herring FMP, the public is also invited 
to comment on the appprovability of the herring EFH provisions in the 
Council's omnibus EFH amendment. The EFH component of the omnibus EFH 
amendment describes and identifies EFH for Atlantic herring, discusses 
measures to address the effects of fishing and non-fishing impacts on 
EFH, and identifies other actions for the conservation and enhancement 
of EFH. The comment period for the EFH provisions of the Atlantic 
herring FMP is the same as it is for this notice of FMP availability. 
The Council intends to review periodically the EFH designations for 
Atlantic herring under this FMP and, if needed, will update them. This 
FMP would authorize any revision to the EFH components through the 
FMP's framework process.

Management Measures of Concern

    While NMFS seeks comment on all of the management issues in the 
FMP, it invites specific public comment on the following measures for 
the reasons stated:

Restrictions on the Size of Domestic Fishing and Processing Vessels

    This measure would prohibit domestic vessels > 165 ft (50.3 m) in 
length, or > 750 gross registered tons (GRT)(680.4 mt), or > 3,000 
horsepower from fishing for Atlantic herring in the exclusive economic 
zone (EEZ), but would allow such vessels to process herring if U.S. at-
sea processing (USAP) is specified in a given year. Foreign vessels, 
regardless of size, could also process herring in the EEZ if joint 
venture processing (JVP) is specified. This could create the 
possibility that some foreign processing vessels would receive larger 
allocations than some domestic processing vessels. For example, the 
proposed 1999 specifications for USAP is zero, whereas the JVP is 
specified to be 40,000 mt.
    Regarding the proposed harvesting vessel size restriction, NMFS 
notes discrepancies in the size, capacity and/or horsepower 
restrictions between the Atlantic herring and Atlantic mackerel 
fisheries. NMFS seeks comment on this measure because the same vessels 
often participate in the herring and mackerel fisheries; the incidental 
catch in the herring fishery is likely to consist of mackerel; the 
incidental catch in the mackerel fishery is likely to consist of 
herring; and differences in the size, capacity and/or horsepower 
restrictions within similar fisheries in the same waters may prove to 
be confusing, administratively burdensome, and difficult to enforce.

Proposed Scheme to Restrict Fishing to Specific Days Based on the 
Proportion of the TAC Caught in a Management Area

    This measure would require NMFS to determine when harvesters have 
reached 40, 65, and 80 percent of the TAC in any of the four management 
areas, at which time NMFS would be required to project further when the 
catch would exceed 50, 75, and 90 percent of the TAC, and if the TAC 
will be exceeded. If NMFS projects that the TAC will be exceeded, then 
fishermen would be required to stop fishing for herring for a certain 
number of days in order to prevent the TAC from being exceeded.
    NMFS is concerned that this ``days out of the fishery'' measure may 
be administratively burdensome. Further, considering that there is no 
limited or controlled access in the fishery other than restrictions on 
the size of domestic fishing and processing vessels, fishermen could 
increase their participation in the fishery (through additional vessels 
or hours), adjust their schedules to work around the days-out 
restriction, or substitute other forms of effort (increased landings 
during the days available for fishing or shift effort into other 
management areas) in response to the restricted days, thereby reducing 
or eliminating the conservation benefit of the ``days-out-of-the-
fishery'' measure.

Spawning Area Closures

    To protect spawning concentrations of herring, the FMP would 
implement five closed areas in the GOM to directed fishing for herring. 
These areas would be closed on a rotating basis for specified time 
periods. When an area is closed, fishing vessels could possess, land, 
or transfer up to 2,000 lb (907.2 kg) of herring per calendar day or 
per trip, whichever is least, from or in that area.
    Allowing vessels to fish in areas designated closed during certain 
times of the year for spawning herring and allowing an incidental catch 
of spawning herring may be counter-productive and fail to protect 
spawning herring. Further, it may pose enforcement problems.

[[Page 40544]]

Adjustment of the TAC for Management Area 1A

    This measure would require the Regional Administrator to adjust the 
TAC for Management Area 1A if she determines that the New Brunswick, 
Canada, fixed gear fishery will not harvest 20,000 mt of Atlantic 
herring by October 1. This measure may be problematic because a real-
time mechanism to monitor the Canadian catch does not exist, and 
adjusting the TAC after October 1 might not provide much benefit before 
the fishing year is over on December 31.

Specification of the Amount of Herring to be Used for Roe in a Roe 
Fishery

    This measure would require that the Regional Administrator specify 
the amount of herring to be used for roe, should the amount harvested 
become a concern. Even though the Regional Administrator would make the 
decision based upon the recommendation of the Council (which would 
first consult with the Commission), the FMP as submitted by the Council 
provides no standards by which the Regional Administrator could base 
her determination.
    A proposed rule that would implement the FMP will be published in 
the Federal Register for public comment after NMFS has evaluated it 
under the procedures of the Magnuson-Stevens Act. Public comments on 
the proposed rule must be received by September 27, 1999, the end of 
the comment period for this notice of availability on the FMP, to be 
considered in the decision concerning approval or disapproval of the 
management measures contained in the FMP. All comments received by 
September 27, 1999, whether specifically directed to the FMP or the 
proposed rule, will be considered in the approval/disapproval decision 
on the FMP. Comments received after that date will not be considered in 
the approval/disapproval decision on the FMP. All comments received on 
the FMP or on the proposed rule will be responded to in the preamble to 
the final rule.

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.

    Dated: July 21, 1999.
Bruce C. Morehead,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 99-19171 Filed 7-26-99; 8:45 am]
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