[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 17 (Friday, January 25, 2002)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 3679-3680]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-1872]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 622

[I.D. 010302D]
RIN 0648-AL86


Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; 
Comprehensive Sustainable Fishery Act Amendment to the Fishery 
Management Plans of the U.S. Caribbean

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

ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the Caribbean Fishery Management Council 
(Council) has submitted a Comprehensive Amendment Addressing 
Sustainable Fishery Act Definitions and Other Required Provisions of 
the Magnuson-Stevens Act in the Fishery Management Plans of the U.S. 
Caribbean (Comprehensive SFA Amendment) for review, approval, and 
implementation by NMFS. The Comprehensive SFA Amendment would define 
status determination criteria and overfishing thresholds (e.g., maximum 
sustainable yield (MSY), optimum yield (OY), minimum stock size 
threshold (MSST), and maximum fishing mortality threshold (MFMT)) for 
the species or species complexes under the Council's authority, 
establish rebuilding plans for three overfished species: queen conch, 
Nassau grouper, and goliath grouper (formerly known as jewfish), and 
modify existing or add new framework adjustment procedures to all 
Caribbean FMPs.
    These new and modified framework procedures would allow timely 
modification/addition of required stock parameters and management 
measures relating to preventing overfishing and rebuilding overfished 
stocks. The proposed measures should result in improved management of 
U.S. Caribbean marine fishery resources.
    In addition, the Comprehensive SFA Amendment also would provide 
descriptions of the U.S. Caribbean

[[Page 3680]]

fisheries and fishing communities based on the best information 
available and recommend future establishment of a socio-economic data 
collection program and permanent expansion of NMFS' Marine Recreational 
Fisheries Statistical Survey to include Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin 
Islands to enhance the available information. The comprehensive SFA 
Amendment would also address bycatch in the fisheries managed under the 
Council's FMPs and recommend future development of a standardized 
bycatch reporting program.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before March 26, 2002.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on the Comprehensive SFA Amendment should 
be sent to Peter Eldridge, Southeast Regional Office, NMFS, 9721 
Executive Center Drive N., St. Petersburg, FL 33702. Comments may also 
be sent via fax to 727-570-5583. Comments will not be accepted if 
submitted via e-mail or the Internet.
    Requests for copies of the Comprehensive SFA Amendment, which 
includes a regulatory impact review and an environmental assessment, 
should be sent to the Caribbean Fishery Management Council, 268 Munoz 
Rivera Ave., Suite 1108, San Juan, Puerto Rico 00918-1920; e-mail: 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Peter Eldridge, telephone: 727-570-
5305; fax: 727-570-5583; e-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Comprehensive SFA Amendment includes 
Amendment 2 to the FMP for Corals and Reef Associated Plants and 
Invertebrates, Amendment 1 to the FMP for Queen Conch Resources, 
Amendment 3 to the FMP for the Reef Fish Fishery, and Amendment 2 to 
the FMP for the Spiny Lobster Fishery. These FMPs were prepared by the 
Council, approved by NMFS, and implemented under the authority of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act by regulations at 50 CFR part 622.
    Section 303 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act requires, in part, that 
FMPs provide descriptions of the applicable fisheries and fishing 
communities; assess the amount and types of bycatch and include 
management measures that, to the extent practicable, minimize bycatch 
and bycatch mortality; specify objective and measurable criteria for 
identifying when a stock is overfished, i.e., status determination 
criteria; and rebuild stocks to achieve MSY. The Council developed its 
Comprehensive SFA Amendment to address these requirements.
    The Comprehensive SFA Amendment would define status determination 
criteria and overfishing thresholds (e.g., maximum sustainable yield 
(MSY), optimum yield (OY), minimum stock size threshold (MSST), and 
maximum fishing mortality threshold (MFMT)) for the species or species 
complexes under the Council's authority, establish rebuilding plans for 
three overfished species: queen conch, Nassau grouper, and goliath 
grouper (formerly known as jewfish), and modify existing or add new 
framework adjustment procedures to all Caribbean FMPs.
    Because information on U.S. Caribbean fisheries is sparse and 
incomplete, the fisheries can be classified as data-poor (among other 
parameters, biomass and fishing mortality rates are not available for 
most Caribbean fishery resources). Thus, managers must use biomass-
based proxies for the MSY, OY, MFMT, and MSST parameters for the 
respective fishery resources. Formulae for the derivation of these 
proxies are presented in the Comprehensive SFA Amendment. In general, 
the MSY proxies are based on average landings of commercial fisheries 
for a specified time period. OY must be less than or equal to the MSY 
proxy. The proxies for MSST are defined either as the greater of (1--M) 
xBmsy or 0.5 x Bmsy where M is the estimated 
instantaneous natural mortality rate and B is the estimated spawning 
biomass. MFMT is considered equal to the estimated M for the respective 
species or species complex. Values for each proxy, when available, are 
presented in the Comprehensive SFA Amendment. Assessment information 
provided in the Comprehensive SFA Amendment reflects conditions in the 
commercial fisheries. Due to lack of adequate catch and effort data, 
the status of recreational fisheries is currently unknown.
    The NMFS 2000 Report to Congress on the Status of U.S. Fisheries 
listed Nassau grouper, goliath grouper, and queen conch as overfished 
in the U.S. Caribbean. The Comprehensive SFA Amendment would establish 
rebuilding timeframes for these species.
    In addition, the Comprehensive SFA Amendment also would provide 
descriptions of the U.S. Caribbean fisheries and fishing communities 
based on the best information available and recommend future 
establishment of a socio-economic data collection program and permanent 
expansion of NMFS' Marine Recreational Fisheries Statistical Survey to 
include Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands to enhance the 
available information. The comprehensive SFA Amendment would also 
address bycatch in the fisheries managed under the Council's FMPs and 
recommend future development of standardized bycatch reporting program.
    NMFS is requesting comment on the proposed framework procedures, 
especially concerning any changes that would allow the public to 
comment more fully on proposed management measures. Also, NMFS invites 
comment concerning the types of information that should be collected to 
more precisely describe Caribbean fisheries and fishing communities.
    Comments received by March 26, 2002, whether specifically directed 
to those management measures in the Comprehensive SFA Amendment that 
would amend the Caribbean FMPs or to the proposed rule that NMFS plans 
to publish that would implement the Comprehensive SFA Amendment, will 
be considered by NMFS in its decision to approve, disapprove, or 
partially approve those measures amending the FMPs. Comments received 
after that date will not be considered by NMFS in this decision. All 
comments received by NMFS on the Comprehensive SFA Amendment or the 
proposed rule during their respective comment periods will be addressed 
in the preamble of the final rule.

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

    Dated: January 18, 2002.
Jonathan Kurland,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 02-1872 Filed 1-24-02; 8:45 am]
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