[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 213 (Monday, November 4, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 67150-67151]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-28009]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[I.D. 072202A]


Receipt of an Application for an Incidental Take Permit (1398)

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

ACTION: Issuance of Permit 1398.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given of that NMFS issued on August 30, 2002, 
an incidental take permit (Permit 1398) to the North Carolina Division 
of Marine Fisheries (NCDMF) pursuant to the Endangered Species Act of 
1973 (ESA), as amended. As required by the ESA, NCDMF's Permit 1398 
includes a conservation plan designed to minimize and mitigate any such 
take of endangered or threatened species. Permit 1398 is for the 
incidental take of ESA-listed adult and juvenile sea turtles associated 
with otherwise lawful commercial fall gill net fisheries for flounder 
operating in Pamlico Sound, NC. The duration of Permit 1398 is for 3 
years.

ADDRESSES: The application and related documents are available for 
review in the following office by appointment:
    Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected Resources, NMFS, 
1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910 or Protected Resources 
Division, S/SER, 9721 Executive Center Dr. N., St. Petersburg, FL 33702 
(ph: 727-570-5312, fax: 727-570-5517).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dennis Klemm (ph. 727-570-5312, fax 
727-570-5517, e-mail [email protected]) or Therese Conant (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: Issuance of permits and permit 
modifications, as required by the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1531-1543), is based 
on a finding that such permits/modifications: (1) are applied for in 
good faith; (2) would not operate to the disadvantage of the listed 
species which are the subject of the permits; and (3) are consistent 
with the purposes and policies set forth in section 2 of the ESA. 
Incidental take permits are issued under Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the 
ESA. Authority to take listed species is subject to conditions set 
forth in the permits. NMFS regulations governing permits for threatened 
and endangered species are promulgated at 50 CFR 222.307.

Permit 1398

    The following species are included in Permit 1398 conservation 
plan: Loggerhead (Caretta caretta), green (Chelonia mydas), leatherback 
(Dermochelys coriacea), hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata), and Kemp's 
ridley (Lepidochelys kempii) sea turtles. The conservation plan 
includes managing the shallow water large and small mesh gill net 
fishery operating from September through mid-December in areas adjacent 
to the Outer Banks and mainland in Pamlico Sound. Permit 1398 includes 
measures to limit the commercial fall gill net fishery for flounder 
such that the 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. Specific measures to be implemented each 
year include: (1) require tending for gillnets less than 5-inch (12.7-
cm) stretched mesh from September 1 through October 31; (2) prohibit 
gillnets  5-inch ( 12.7-cm) stretched mesh in 
areas adjacent to Ocracoke, Hatteras, and Oregon Inlets from September 
1 through December 15: (3) restrict the maximum net per fishing 
operation to 2,000 yards (1,828 m); (4) require NCDMF-issued permits 
for individual fishing operations employing large mesh gillnets in 
restricted areas between September 1 and December 15; (5) monitor gear 
interactions through a mandatory observer program for large and small 
mesh gillnets as well as through reports from fishermen and NCDMF 
Marine Patrol.

Comments

    NMFS published a notice of availability on July 29, 2002 (67 FR 
49009), and requested comments on the NCDMF. Two comment letters were 
submitted with the following comments.
    Comment 1: The 3-year duration for the permit may not allow for 
adjustments to management measures such as adding the small mesh 
fishery under the permit in subsequent years. In addition, the annual 
evaluation of the permit may not be as rigorous given the permit is 
already in hand.
    Response. Annual renewal of this permit is not automatic. Yearly 
evaluation of this permit by NMFS will include re-analyses of all data 
and a re-assessment of the take levels prior to 2nd and 3rd year re-
authorization. The permit requires weekly, monthly, and yearly 
reporting. This requirement is unchanged from the previous 1-year 
permits issued to NCDMF. NCDMF has agreed to modify the conservation 
plan to cover the small mesh fishery and to achieve 10 percent observer 
coverage for this component of the shallow water fishery.
    Comment 2: Given a 12.5 percent mortality rate, the estimated 
lethal take should be 61 not 71 as identified in the application. The 
take levels should also be reviewed on a yearly basis with the goal to 
reduce both actual and authorized take.
    Response. NMFS felt that the take levels authorized in the 2001 
permit should not be used in Permit 1398 for 2002-2004. The spatial and 
temporal

[[Page 67151]]

scope of the management program was sufficiently different from the 
2001 permit. Although NCDMF applied for a September 1 begin date and a 
December 1 end date for the management measures, they agreed to adjust 
the end date to December 15 to be consistent with NMFS regulations 
which close Pamlico Sound to large mesh fishing from September 1 
through December 15. The management area also was expanded to include 
the shallow water areas of Hyde and Pamlico Counties along the 
mainland. Thus, the take levels were revised based on the observer data 
collected for the shallow water fishery in 2000 and 2001 and expanded 
to account for the additional 2-week period in September and the 
increase in fishing effort from the mainland area. Green turtles are 
the only species documented in the shallow water fishery. The upper 
limit of the live and lethal take was estimated to be 160 and 50 
respectively. Although Kemp's ridleys and loggerheads have not been 
documented in the shallow water fishery, interactions are likely. Thus, 
NMFS determined that the live and lethal take for the Kemp's ridley and 
loggerhead would be 80 and 25 for each species. NMFS and NCDMF will 
review these take estimates on an annual basis and modify them as 
necessary.
    Comment 3: The North Carolina Trip Ticket program does not 
subdivide Pamlico Sound geographically. In order to constructively 
apply the information collected through the observer program, a simple 
latitude and longitude subdivision of Pamlico Sound should be 
considered.
    Response. The North Carolina Trip Ticket Program data are used to 
validate the effort data obtained through the mandatory fishermen 
reports. These reports require fishermen to identify the restricted 
area fished. There are 8 restricted areas consisting of only shallow 
waters adjacent to the Outer Banks and mainland. The majority of the 
Pamlico Sound waters are closed to fishing with large mesh gillnets and 
small mesh gillnets appear to not interact with sea turtles. Thus, NMFS 
and NCDMF believe that the identification of 8 separate restricted 
areas within an overall limited geographic area is sufficient to 
determine fishing effort distribution to apply towards the estimates of 
sea turtle interactions collected through the observer program.
    Comment 4: The applicant considered, but rejected, to not apply for 
a permit and to close the area to gillnet fisheries. Georgia and 
Florida have banned gill nets in their state waters and this should be 
considered the preferred alternative for gill nets in Pamlico Sound, 
NC.
    Response. The closure of the deep water large mesh fishery 
concurrent with the management of the shallow water fishery in 2001 
resulted in a 67-percent reduction in strandings and an 88- percent 
reduction in the estimated take level when compared to 2000. The 
reduction in sea turtle interactions in the gillnet fishery clearly 
demonstrates the effectiveness of the management measures. NMFS does 
not believe that the prohibition of all gill nets is necessary at this 
time.
    Upon a review of the application, relevant documents, public 
comments, and further discussions with NCDMF, NMFS found that the 
application met the criteria for issuance of 50 CFR 222.307(c). Permit 
1398 was issued on August 30, 2002, and expires on December 15, 2004.

    Dated: October 29, 2002.
Phil Williams,
Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected Resources, 
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 02-28009 Filed 11-01-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S