[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 209 (Monday, October 29, 2001)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 54498-54500]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-27168]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Parts 648

[Docket No. 011005245-1245-01; I.D. 092401C]
RIN 0648-AP37


Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Atlantic Herring 
Fishery

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

ACTION: Proposed 2002 specifications for the Atlantic herring fishery; 
request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS proposes specifications for the 2002 Atlantic herring 
fishery. The regulations for the Atlantic herring fishery require NMFS 
to publish specifications for the upcoming year and to provide an 
opportunity for public comment. The intent of the specifications is to 
conserve and manage the herring resource and provide for sustainable 
fisheries. This rule would also correct and clarify the final rule 
implementing the Atlantic Herring Fishery Management Plan (FMP) by 
clarifying the vessel owners' or operators' reporting requirements.

DATES: Comments must be received no later than 5 p.m., Eastern Standard 
Time, on November 28, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Copies of supporting documents, including the Environmental 
Assessment, Regulatory Impact Review, Initial Regulatory Flexibility 
Analysis (EA/RIR/IRFA), Essential Fish Habitat Assessment, and the 
Stock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation (SAFE) Report for the 2000 
Atlantic Herring Fishing Year are available from Paul J. Howard, 
Executive Director, New England Fishery Management Council, 50 Water 
Street, Mill 2, Newburyport, MA 01950. Comments may also be sent via 
fax to (978) 465-0492. The EA/RIR/IRFA is accessible via the Internet 
at http:/www.nefmc.org.
    Written comments on the proposed specifications should be sent to 
the Regional Administrator at the above address. Mark on the outside of 
the envelope: ``Comments--2002 Herring Specifications.'' Comments may 
also be sent via facsimile (fax) to (978) 281-9371. Comments will not 
be accepted if submitted via e-mail or the Internet.
    Written comments regarding the collection-of-information 
requirements contained in this final rule should be sent to the 
Regional Administrator and to the Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, Washington, DC 20503 (Attn: 
NOAA Desk Officer).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Myles Raizin, Fishery Policy Analyst, 
(978) 281-9104, e-mail at [email protected], fax at (978) 281-9135.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Regulations implementing the FMP require the 
New England Fishery Management Council's (Council) Atlantic Herring 
Plan Development Team (PDT) to meet at least annually, no later than 
July each year, with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission's 
(Commission) Atlantic Herring Plan Review Team (PRT) to develop and 
recommend the following specifications for consideration by the 
Council's Atlantic Herring Oversight Committee: Allowable biological 
catch (ABC), optimum yield (OY), domestic annual harvest (DAH), 
domestic annual processing (DAP), total foreign processing (JVPt), 
joint venture processing (JVP), internal waters processing (IWP), U.S. 
at-sea processing (USAP), border transfer (BT), total allowable level 
of foreign fishing (TALFF), and reserve (if any). The PDT and PRT also 
recommend the total allowable catch (TAC) for each management area and 
sub-area identified in the FMP. As the basis for its recommendations, 
the PDT reviews available data pertaining to: Commercial and 
recreational catch; current estimates of fishing mortality; stock 
status; recent estimates of recruitment; virtual population analysis 
results and other estimates of stock size; sea sampling and

[[Page 54499]]

trawl survey data or, if sea sampling data are unavailable, length 
frequency information from trawl surveys; impact of other fisheries on 
herring mortality; and any other relevant information. Recommended 
specifications are presented to the Council for adoption and 
recommendation to NMFS.

Proposed 2002 Specifications

    The Council, at its June 2001 meeting, adopted recommendations for 
the 2002 specifications for the Atlantic herring fishery (see Table 1). 
The only change from the 2001 specifications was the recommended 
increase in estimated DAH/DAP by 5,000 mt, and the resulting decrease 
in TALFF to zero. Although the specification for JVP would remain 
unchanged from the 2001 allocation, the Council has recommended that 
harvest of herring under the JVP specification be limited to Management 
Area 2 (Area 2), rather than both Areas 2 and 3, as specified in 2001. 
Based on the Council's recommendations, NMFS proposes the 
specifications and Area TACs contained below in Table 1.

Table 1.

   Specifications and Area TACs for the 2002 Atlantic Herring Fishery
------------------------------------------------------------------------
               Specification                   Proposed Allocation (mt)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
ABC                                                              300,000
OY                                                               250,000
DAH                                                              250,000
DAP                                                              226,000
JVPt                                                              20,000
JVP                                                 10,000 (Area 2 only)
IWP                                                               10,000
USAP                                                              20,000
BT                                                                 4,000
TALFF                                                                  0
Reserve                                                                0
TAC - Area 1A                                                     60,000
TAC - Area 1B                                                     10,000
TAC - Area 2                                 50,000 (TAC reserve: 80,000
TAC - Area 3                                                      50,000
------------------------------------------------------------------------

TALFF

    Recent growth in domestic utilization, as evidenced by new domestic 
processing capabilities, has already resulted in an increase in 
domestic harvesting. The increase in the domestic harvest, and future 
anticipated increases, resulted in the Council's recommendation for 
zero TALFF. The Council believes that setting TALFF at zero will 
further promote domestic interests in the utilization of the herring 
resource by providing industry with the means to continue development 
of additional markets.
    The 2001 specifications for the Atlantic herring fishery included a 
small allocation for TALFF. At the time the Council made that 
recommendation, it was expected that the allocation of TALFF would 
enhance the probability that foreign vessels would engage in JVP, thus 
benefitting U.S. fishermen who have historically had difficulty in 
procuring markets for herring. The Council believed that growth in 
domestic utilization was inhibited by the lack of new markets, as 
evidenced by the lack of new processing capabilities. However, for the 
2002 fishery, the Council recommended, and NMFS proposes, that setting 
the TALFF at zero will promote the continued growth in the domestic 
utilization of the herring resource. The expansion of existing 
processing capabilities and the opening of new domestic processor/
freezer capacity suggest that domestic facilities are able to provide 
continued expansion in the domestic fishery, thus eliminating the 
allocation for directed foreign fishing. In addition, the Council 
recommended zero TALFF because it believed that the allocation of TALFF 
in 2001 damaged the working relationship between the U.S. and Canada on 
transboundary fishery issues.

JVP

    Under the Atlantic Herring FMP, joint venture activities are 
allowed in all management areas, subject to an annual review process. 
In addition, these activities may be specified by management area. The 
annual review and management area allocation scheme provides the 
Council with the ability to consider the impact of JVP on shoreside 
processors. For fishing year 2001, joint ventures between domestic 
fishing vessels and foreign at-sea processing vessels could occur in 
Areas 2 and 3. However, for the 2002 specifications, the Council 
considered public comment and voted to recommend that such activities 
be limited to Area 2 only because it felt that Area 3 represents the 
best alternative fishing area for domestic vessels supplying shoreside 
domestic processors, especially when Area 1A is closed to fishing under 
existing state and Federal regulations. In addition, as noted in the 
annual Stock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation (SAFE) Report, shoreside 
demand is projected to increase in the near term as a result of 
expanded cannery production and the start-up of a freezer plant in 
Gloucester, MA. Area 3 represents the best opportunity for growth in 
the domestic harvesting sector to meet increasing demand for herring by 
shoreside processors. To allow JVP in Area 3 may hinder the ability of 
harvesters to adequately supply shoreside processors.
    This rule also proposes a technical change to Sec. 648.7 
(b)(1)(iii)(B) to clarify the Council's intent concerning the reporting 
requirements for owners or operators of vessels who have been issued 
Atlantic herring permits but who are not required to have a Vessel 
Monitoring System (VMS) unit on board the vessel. This rule would 
clarify that only owners or operators of vessels that catch 2,000 lb 
(907.2 kg) or more of Atlantic herring on any one trip in a week must 
submit an Atlantic herring catch report via the Interactive Voice 
Response (IVR) reporting system by Tuesday of the following week. Even 
if the herring has not yet been landed, the operator must estimate the 
amount of herring on board the vessel and report that amount via the 
IVR system. As currently written, the regulations imply that this 
provision applies at all times to any owner or operator of a vessel 
issued a Federal permit for Atlantic herring who is not required to 
have a VMS unit on board the vessel. In addition, this rule would also 
clarify that owners or operators of vessels that catch 2,000 lb (907.2 
kg) or more of Atlantic herring, some or all of which is caught in or 
from the EEZ, on any trip in a week, must submit an Atlantic herring 
catch report via the IVR system for that week. As currently written, 
the regulations require that the reporting provision also applies at 
all times to vessels catching herring in or from the EEZ. A review of 
the FMP and background material germane to the issue shows that this 
clarifying change is consistent with Council intent.

Classification

    This proposed rule has been determined to be not significant for 
purposes of Executive Order 12866.
    The Council and NMFS prepared an Initial Regulatory Flexibility Act 
analysis that describes the economic impact that this proposed rule, if 
adopted, would have on small entities. A summary of the analysis 
follows:
    A description of the reasons why action by NMFS is being considered 
and the objectives of this proposed rule are explained in the preamble 
to this rule and are not repeated here. This action does not contain 
any additional collection-of-information, reporting, or recordkeeping 
requirements. It will not duplicate, overlap, or conflict with any 
other Federal rules.
    All of the affected businesses (fishing vessels and dealers) are 
considered small entities. These entities qualify as small entities 
under the standards described in NMFS guidelines because

[[Page 54500]]

they have profits that do not exceed $3 million annually. The last full 
year of data available for the herring fishery is the year 2000. There 
were 169 vessels, 6 processors, and 104 dealers participating in the 
fishery in 2000. Given that vessels caught less than half the current 
OY in 2000, the proposed status quo OY is not likely to result in any 
significant impact on the revenues of vessels, producer surplus or 
consumer surplus.
    For the 2001 fishery, the Council recommended 5,000 mt of TALFF and 
10,000 mt of JVPt. As part of its justification, the Council noted that 
if foreign vessels availed themselves of the opportunity to harvest 
some or all of the TALFF specification, and if those vessels are 
obligated to engage in JVP ventures with U.S. fishing vessels, there 
would be a positive impact on the revenues of those U.S. vessels 
participating in JVP ventures. Such economic benefits of TALFF would be 
indirect, since only the JVP portion of the venture would produce 
revenues for U.S. vessels. However, the indirect benefit of TALFF would 
be offset by the negative indirect impact such activity might have on 
the competitiveness of U.S.-exported herring on world markets.
    The proposed 2002 specifications contain the same JVP specification 
as the 2000 fishery; hence, they have the same potential revenue 
impact. As noted above, TALFF itself does not directly generate any 
revenues to U.S. vessels. At an estimated value of $120/ton to the 
vessel, full utilization of the JVP would result in total revenues of 
$1.2 million. This would represent an increase in overall fleet 
revenues of 10 percent, although this is an optimistic projection, 
since the price paid for herring under joint ventures is generally 
slightly less than the average price paid by shoreside processors and 
dealers for non-joint venture herring.
    The Council considered other options for TALFF, ranging up to 
20,000 mt and JVP ranging up to 40,000 mt. In all cases, they assumed 
that the JVP specifications would be twice as much as the TALFF 
allocation. The highest TALFF level considered (20,000 mt) would 
increase potential revenues to U.S. vessels by as much as four times 
(at 40,000 mt of JVP), or up to $4.8 million, if all of the JVP 
specification were utilized. However, the Council concluded that if 
U.S.-processed herring could be sold into global markets, the economic 
benefits could be greater than the benefits derived from TALFF and 
TALFF-enhanced JVP. The Council further noted that U.S. exports of 
herring are minimal, with the frozen bait market in Canada being the 
major market. Herring caught directly by foreign vessels could compete 
in this market and negatively impact revenues to U.S. exporters. 
Eliminating TALFF would reduce foreign competition and increase the 
chances for U.S. market expansion, benefitting both U.S. processors and 
U.S. vessels delivering herring shoreside. The Council expects that, if 
global markets will purchase U.S. herring, the economic benefits would 
be far greater if those fish are processed and exported by U.S. 
companies, rather than by foreign ventures. Eliminating TALFF will 
reduce foreign competition and increase the chances for market 
penetration by U.S. exporters and, therefore, increase overall economic 
benefits through both value-added production and overall market 
expansion.
    This action clarifies a collection-of-information requirement 
subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) and which has been 
approved by OMB under control number 0648-0212. Public reporting burden 
for this collection of information is estimated to average 4 minutes 
per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching 
existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and 
completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments 
regarding this burden estimate, or any other aspect of this data 
collection, including suggestions for reducing the burden, to NMFS (see 
ADDRESSES) and to OMB at the Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, Washington, DC. 20503 
(Attention: NOAA Desk Officer).
    Notwithstanding any other provision of the law, no person is 
required to respond to, nor shall any person be subject to a penalty 
for failure to comply with, a collection of information subject to the 
requirements of the PRA, unless that collection of information displays 
a currently valid OMB control number.

    Dated: October 23, 2001.
William T. Hogarth,
Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.

    For the reasons set out in the preamble, 50 CFR part 648 is 
proposed to be amended as follows:

PART 648--FISHERIES OF THE NORTHEASTERN UNITED STATES

    1. The authority citation for part 648 continues to read as 
follows:

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

    2. In Sec. 648.7, paragraph (b)(1)(iii)(B) is revised, paragraph 
(b)(1)(iii)(C) is redesignated as paragraph (b)(1)(iii)(D), and a new 
paragraph (b)(1)(iii)(C) is added to read as follows:


Sec. 648.7  Recordkeeping and reporting requirements.

* * * * *
    (b) * * *
    (1) * * *
    (iii) * * *
    (B) An owner or operator of any vessel issued a permit for Atlantic 
herring that is not required by Sec. 648.205 to have a VMS unit on 
board and that catches  2,000 lb (907.2 kg) of Atlantic 
herring on any trip in a week must submit an Atlantic herring catch 
report via the IVR system for that week as required by the Regional 
Administrator.
    (C) An owner or operator of any vessel that catches  
2,000 lb (907.2 kg) of Atlantic herring, some or all of which is caught 
in or from the EEZ, on any trip in a week, must submit an Atlantic 
herring catch report via the IVR system for that week as required by 
the Regional Administrator.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 01-27168 Filed 10-26-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S