[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 117 (Monday, June 18, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32791-32793]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-15195]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[I.D. 061101H]


Availability of a Draft Environmental Assessment/Finding of No 
Significant Impact and Receipt of an Application for an Incidental Take 
Permit.

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

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: NMFS has received an application for an incidental take permit 
(ITP) from the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries (NCDMF) 
pursuant to the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA). As 
required by the ESA, NCDMF's application includes a conservation plan 
(Plan) designed to minimize and mitigate any such take of endangered or 
threatened species. The Permit application is for the incidental take 
of ESA-listed adult and juvenile sea turtles associated with commercial 
shrimp trawling without the use of a turtle excluder device (TED) off 
the coast of North Carolina from Browns Inlet to Rich Inlet due to high 
concentrations of algae which clog shrimp trawls and TEDs. The duration 
of the requested ITP is for 5 years. NMFS also announces the 
availability of a draft environmental assessment (EA) for the permit 
application. NMFS is furnishing this notice in order to allow other 
agencies and the public an opportunity to review and comment on these 
documents. All comments received will become part of the public record 
and will be available for review pursuant to the ESA.

DATES: Written comments from interested parties on the Permit 
application, Plan, and draft EA must be received at the appropriate 
address or fax number (see ADDRESSES) no later than 5 p.m. Eastern 
Daylight Time on July 18, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on this action should be addressed to the 
Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected Resources, 
NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910. Comments may 
also be sent via fax to 301-713-0376. Comments will not be accepted if 
submitted via e-mail or the Internet.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert Hoffman (ph. 727-570-5312, fax 
727-570-5517, e-mail [email protected]), or Barbara A. Schroeder 
(ph. 301-713-1401, fax 301-713-0376, e-mail 
[email protected]). Comments received will also be available 
for public inspection, by appointment, during normal business hours by 
calling 301-713-1401.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 9 of the ESA and Federal regulations 
prohibit the ``taking'' of a species listed as endangered or 
threatened. The term ``take'' is defined under the ESA 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. NMFS regulations governing 
permits for threatened and endangered species are promulgated at 50 CFR 
222.307.

Species Covered in this Notice

    The following species are included in the Plan and ITP application: 
Loggerhead (Caretta caretta), green (Chelonia mydas), leatherback 
(Dermochelys coriacea), hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata), and Kemp's 
ridley (Lepidochelys kempii) sea turtles.

Background

    On January 31, 2001, NCDMF submitted an application to NMFS to 
renew ESA section 10 (a)(1)(B) permit 1008 issued to the state of North 
Carolina. The previous permit had expired December 31, 2000 and had 
been issued for the years 1996-2000 to replace NMFS emergency rules 
which were issued from 1992 through 1995. That permit and those 
emergency rules allowed limited tow times in lieu of the use of TEDs in 
a 1-mile by approximately 30-mile long area off the North Carolina 
coast from Browns Inlet to Rich Inlet because of high concentrations of 
algae which clog shrimp trawl nets and TEDs. The bottom between Rich 
and Browns Inlets consists of scattered rocks, sea grasses, and 
concentrations of algae.
    With the institution of Federal regulations requiring the use of 
TEDs in shrimp trawls, problems developed in this area with algae 
frequently clogging TEDs rendering them useless in releasing turtles 
and filling the trawls with algae from the TEDs forward. In this 
particular area shrimpers must harvest the algae in order to catch the 
shrimp that inhabit it. TED use in these circumstances is impractical 
because they clog or exclude a large portion of the algae. The season 
for shrimp trawling activity in this area varies from year to year 
depending on shrimp abundance. During the 1996-1999 fishing seasons, 
permit 1008 allowed

[[Page 32792]]

the use of tow times rather than TEDs. In order to obtain this permit, 
the NCDMF agreed to monitor fishing activities in the described area to 
ensure compliance with tow-time requirements. The Fisheries Director of 
North Carolina is empowered to issue proclamations by which the 
Director is able to implement restrictions on fisheries activities. In 
compliance with permit 1008, the Director issued a series of such 
proclamations dealing with the described area. These proclamations 
required vessels to obtain a tow-time permit from the NCDMF if they 
wished to work without TEDs, and allowed a maximum tow time of 55 
minutes from April 1 to October 31 and 75 minutes from November 1 
through November 30.
    In the years 1992-1999, 43, 21, 28, 18, 38, 20, 20, and 14 vessels, 
respectively, were issued permits for the exemption from the use of 
TEDs. The TED exemption was not implemented by NCDMF in 2000 because 
algae concentrations were low, allowing fishermen to work effectively 
with their TEDs installed. Observations by NCDMF Marine Patrol 
personnel indicate a range from zero to over 30 vessels may be working 
in this area at any one time and that effort is concentrated in the 
early morning to early afternoon period.
    A condition of the pervious permit 1008 was the required use of 
onboard observers on 5 percent of the trips made while tow times were 
allowed. This was accomplished for all years except 1996 when slightly 
more than 3 percent of the trips were covered by observers. There were 
204 tow time restricted tows in the described area that were monitored 
by onboard observers during the 1996-1999 period. Nine loggerheads were 
captured during these tows and all were reported released in good 
condition. Analysis of log book entries for this area during this time 
period shows that 58 turtles were taken in 3591 tows. All were 
identified by the fishermen as loggerheads and were released in good 
condition, although one turtle required resuscitation.
    The North Carolina restricted area is contained within Onslow and 
Pender Counties. It is believed that any sea turtles potentially killed 
incidental to shrimp trawling operations in the described area would 
have a relatively high chance of stranding along the shoreline of the 
described area, longshore currents notwithstanding, because of the 
close proximity of trawling activity to shore (usually within 0.5 nm). 
NMFS' review of the sea turtle standings in the described area in 1992 
indicated no observed or confirmed sea turtle mortalities associated 
with shrimp trawling. Ten turtles were stranded in the described area 
in 1994; half were stranded in April and May. Twenty-six turtles were 
stranded in the area in 1995. Again, 50 percent were found in April and 
May. In both years, the majority of standings took place prior to the 
seasonal authorization to fish without TEDs. Stranding data from the 
described area for 1996-1999 shows that for the entire four-year 
period, 78 turtles stranded with 21 (27 percent) of those occurring 
during tow time use and 59 (73 percent) occurring when tow times were 
not in effect. Of the 21 strandings occurring during the use of tow 
times, 16 were loggerheads, 3 were Kemp's ridleys, and 1 each was a 
green and a leatherback sea turtle.

Conservation Plan

    The conservation plan prepared by NCDMF describes measures designed 
to monitor, minimize, and mitigate the incidental takes of ESA-listed 
sea turtles, as a result of shrimp trawling in the above-described area 
without the use of a TED.
    As part of the new permit application, the NCDMF proposes that the 
Director would issue proclamations allowing the use of tow times in 
lieu of TEDs for the described area between April 1 and November 30. 
Approximately 45 fishermen with extensive local knowledge of this area 
may participate in this fishery, and could be authorized under this new 
permit. The NCDMF proposes that tow times be 55 minutes from the date 
of the proclamation to October 31 and 75 minutes from November 1 to 
November 30. Tow times are measured from the time the trawl doors enter 
the water until the time they are removed from the water and correspond 
to the tow times of 40 minutes bottom time in the summer months and 60 
minutes during colder months as recommended by the National Academy of 
Science (1990) in ``Decline of the Sea Turtles: Causes and 
Prevention.'' The state will issue individual permits to fishermen 
allowing them to use tow time restrictions instead of TEDs. The state-
issued tow-time permits would be required to identify each vessel 
working without TEDs and to monitor activity in the area. Individuals 
would have to obtain this state permit from NCDMF prior to beginning 
operations without TEDs. This permit and the associated proclamations 
would contain conditions to protect sea turtles while using tow times 
in lieu of TEDs. Enforcement surveillance would be primarily conducted 
from the beach as the activity is visible from the shore and it is 
difficult for the vessels to determine when they are being observed. 
Other enforcement observations would be made from NCDMF's aircraft and 
vessels.
    For the new permit the NCDMF proposes to monitor mortalities of sea 
turtles in the area through stranding records collected by the NC 
Wildlife Resources Commission stranding network, rather than through 
onboard observers, as required in permit 1008. The NCDMF does not have 
funding for onboard observers for this activity. NMFS provided funding 
for observers for the previous permit. Stranding records during the 
period 1992-1995 for the tow time area ranged between 10 and 26 
loggerheads per year and one green turtle for the entire period; 
however, the majority of standings took place prior to the issuance of 
tow-time permits. The NCDMF proposes to terminate or modify the tow-
time permits if standings in the described area during times when tow 
times are in use exceed ten turtles in aggregate of Kemp's ridley, 
hawksbill, green or leatherback sea turtles or 40 loggerhead turtles.
    A permit with a duration of 5 years is being requested. The 
activities that fall under the permit will take place each year from 
April 1 through November 30 with tow times being permitted by the 
issuance of a proclamation from the Director. The Director issues the 
proclamation after consultation with staff and industry representatives 
who observe algae concentrations. The industry utilizes tow times as a 
last resort because they would rather use TEDs to avoid frequent haul-
back of their gear. Proclamations would be issued and tow times 
initiated only when algae concentrations prevent the use of TEDs. There 
were years under the previous permit, such as 2000, when tow times were 
not instituted because algae concentrations were low.
    The NCDMF knows of no measures to prevent takes of sea turtles in 
this area during the use of tow times. Past experience has indicated 
that attempting to use TEDs during periods of high algae concentration 
renders TEDs inoperable leading to incidental takes of turtles. An 
alternative action considered by NCDMF was not to apply for a permit; 
however, the experience of fishermen in this area has shown that when 
algal concentrations are heavy, both the TEDs and the nets clog to the 
extent that they no longer function. This would not protect sea turtles 
nor would it allow the shrimp fishery to continue in this area. NCDMF 
is proposing to limit the use of tow-time limitations instead of TEDs 
from Browns Inlet to Rich Inlet, North Carolina, such that the

[[Page 32793]]

incidental impacts on ESA-listed sea turtles will be minimized. NCDMF 
would use a variety of adaptive fishery management measures and 
restrictions through their state proclamation authority to reduce sea 
turtle mortality.
    The EA package includes a draft EA and a draft Finding of No 
Significant Impact (FONSI) which concludes that issuing the incidental 
take permit is not a major Federal action significantly affecting the 
quality of the human environment, within the meaning of section 
102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as 
amended. Three Federal action alternatives have been analyzed in the 
EA, including: (1) the no action alternative (deny the ITP); (2) issue 
the ITP; and (3) close this area to shrimp fishing.
    This notice is provided pursuant to section 10(c) of the ESA and 
the NEPA regulations (40 CFR 1506.6). NMFS will evaluate the 
application, associated documents, and comments submitted thereof to 
determine whether the application meets the requirements of the NEPA 
regulations and section 10 (a) of the ESA. If it is determined that the 
requirements are met, a permit will be issued for incidental takes of 
ESA-listed sea turtles under the jurisdiction of NMFS. The final NEPA 
and permit determinations will not be completed until after the end of 
the 30-day comment period and will fully consider all public comments 
received during the comment period. NMFS will publish a record of its 
final action in the Federal Register.

    Dated: June 11, 2001.
Phil Williams,
Acting Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected 
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 01-15195 Filed 6-15-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S