[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 74 (Thursday, April 17, 2003)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 18942-18943]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-9490]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 622

[I.D. 040703A]
RIN 0648-AN87


Fisheries of the South Atlantic; Pelagic Sargassum Habitat in the 
South Atlantic; Fishery Management Plan

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

ACTION: Notice of availability of a revised fishery management plan for 
the pelagic Sargassum habitat of the South Atlantic Region (FMP); 
request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (SAFMC) has 
submitted the subject FMP for review, approval, and implementation by 
NMFS. The FMP would: establish the management unit for Sargassum and 
stock status criteria for that management unit, designate essential 
fish habitat (EFH) and EFH habitat areas of particular concern (EFH-
HAPC) for Sargassum, and establish harvesting restrictions for 
Sargassum taken in or from the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off the 
southern Atlantic states.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before June 16, 2003.

ADDRESSES: Comments on the FMP, which includes an Environmental Impact 
Statement, an Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, a Regulatory 
Impact Review, and a Social Impact Assessment/Fishery Impact Statement 
must be mailed to the Southeast Regional Office, NMFS, 9721 Executive 
Center Drive N., St. Petersburg, FL 33702. Comments may also be sent 
via fax to 727-522-5583. Comments will not be accepted if submitted via 
e-mail or Internet.
    Requests for copies of the FMP should be sent to the South Atlantic 
Fishery Management Council, One Southpark Circle, Suite 306, 
Charleston, SC 29407-4699; Phone: 843-571-4366; fax: 843-769-4520; e-
mail: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Steve Branstetter, 727-570-5305.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 
and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act), as amended by the 
Sustainable Fisheries Act, requires each Regional Fishery Management 
Council to submit any fishery management plan or amendment to NMFS for 
review and approval, disapproval, or partial approval. The Magnuson-
Stevens Act also requires that NMFS, upon receiving a plan or 
amendment, publish a notice in the Federal Register stating that the 
plan or amendment is available for public review and comment.
    Sargassum is an abundant brown algae that occurs near the surface 
in warm waters of the western North Atlantic. Most Sargassum drifts 
between 2[deg] N. and 40[deg] N. lat. and 30[deg] W. long. and the 
western edge of the Gulf Stream. The static standing crop of Sargassum 
is estimated to be 4 to 11 million metric tons (mt) or roughly 9 to 24 
billion lb. Sargassum supports a diverse assemblage of marine 
organisms, including over 100 species of fish, fungi, micro- and macro-
epiphytes, at least 145 species of invertebrates, five species of sea 
turtles, and numerous marine birds. Sargassum creates an unusual 
situation in regards to fishery management. As plants that may increase 
their biomass as much as 10 percent per day, floating mats or rafts of 
Sargassum represent a highly renewable natural resource that can be 
harvested or fished. Sargassum vegetation is considered a ``fish'' 
under the Magnuson-Stevens Act, and the harvest or take of this natural 
resource could be managed under a fishery management plan. 
Additionally, these mats or rafts of Sargassum vegetation provide 
habitat and protection for numerous species of vertebrates and 
invertebrates, including threatened or endangered sea turtles. 
Recognizing the importance of Sargassum as habitat, the SAFMC 
previously designated Sargassum as EFH and as EFH-HAPC for snapper-
grouper species and coastal migratory pelagic (mackerel) species.
    The SAFMC is concerned about the impacts of commercial harvest of 
this important resource. Over a 22-year period (1976-1997), 203.2 mt 
(448,000 lb) of Sargassum were harvested off the southern Atlantic 
states. The SAFMC has developed this FMP to protect and manage 
Sargassum as a fishery resource and to conserve this resource as EFH 
off the U.S. Atlantic coast from the North Carolina/Virginia boundary 
through the east coast of Florida, including the Atlantic side of the 
Florida Keys. In analyzing the proposed actions and alternatives in the 
FMP, Sargassum is discussed as both a fishery resource and as habitat 
for other managed species. The reader is reminded that discussions of 
importance of Sargassum as EFH for other species, as designated in 
other FMPs, should not be confused with the SAFMC's designations of EFH 
for Sargassum as a fishery resource in this FMP.
    The FMP would establish the management unit for Sargassum as the 
population of Sargassum occurring within the SAFMC's area of 
jurisdiction and within state waters of North Carolina, South Carolina, 
Georgia, and the east coast of Florida. Based on that management unit, 
the FMP would establish stock status criteria as the following: Maximum 
Sustainable Yield (MSY) would be designated as 100,000 mt (220,448,550 
lb). This is the estimated static standing stock (carrying capacity) 
off North Carolina, the current area of commercial harvest. Optimum 
Yield (OY) would be designated as 2.268 mt (5,000 lb). This value 
represents the average harvest during the period 1990 through 1999. 
Overfishing would be defined as the rate of harvest which compromises 
the stock's ability to produce MSY. Overfishing would be determined by 
establishing a maximum fishing mortality threshold using a measure of 
the stock's intrinsic rate of increase (r) as a proxy for a fishing 
mortality rate at MSY, where ``r'' is estimated to be 9-18 units per 
year. This overfishing definition would be associated with an MSY of 
456,250 to 912,500 mt (100,584,210 to 201,168,430 lb) per year, which 
is larger than the SAFMC's preferred alternative of 100,000 mt for MSY. 
The stock would be considered overfished if the stock was reduced below 
the minimum stock size threshold (MSST). MSST would be established as 
25,000 mt (55,114,638 lb), which would be BMSY/2, where 
BMSY is defined as one-half the carrying capacity (MSY) of 
the harvest area.
    In a broad interpretation of the EFH final rule (67 FR 2343, 
January 17, 2002), the SAFMC would designate EFH and EFH-HAPC as 
places/locations where Sargassum occurs in the SAFMC's area of 
jurisdiction, including state waters off North Carolina, South 
Carolina, Georgia, and the east coast of Florida, including the Gulf 
Stream where it occurs in the EEZ, and the

[[Page 18943]]

water column from the surface to the sea floor.
    To limit the impacts of fishing on Sargassum, which already is 
designated as EFH for snapper and grouper species and coastal migratory 
pelagic species in other FMPs, the FMP would establish the following 
harvesting restrictions: (1) prohibit all harvest and possession of 
Sargassum from the South Atlantic EEZ south of the latitude line 
representing the North Carolina/South Carolina border (34[deg] N. 
latitude); (2) prohibit all harvest of Sargassum from the South 
Atlantic EEZ within 100 nautical miles of shore between the 34[deg] N. 
latitude line and the latitude line representing the North Carolina/
Virginia border; (3) allow the harvest of Sargassum from that portion 
of the South Atlantic EEZ that is greater than 100 nautical miles from 
shore between the 34[deg] N. latitude line and the latitude line 
representing the North Carolina/Virginia border during the months of 
November through June; (4) establish an annual Total Allowable Catch 
(TAC) of 2.268 mt (5,000 lb) landed wet weight of Sargassum; (5) 
require that a NMFS-approved observer be present on each Sargassum 
harvesting trip; and (6) require that nets used to harvest Sargassum be 
constructed of 4-inch (10-cm) stretch mesh or larger fitted to a frame 
no larger than 4 ft (1.22 meters) by 6 ft (1.83 meters).
    A proposed rule that would implement measures outlined in the FMP 
has been received from the SAFMC. In accordance with the Magnuson-
Stevens Act, NMFS is evaluating the proposed rule to determine whether 
it is consistent with the FMP, the Magnuson-Stevens Act, and other 
applicable law. If that determination is affirmative, NMFS will publish 
the proposed rule in the Federal Register for public review and 
comment.
    Comments received by June 16, 2003, whether specifically directed 
to the FMP or the proposed rule, will be considered by NMFS in its 
decision to approve, disapprove, or partially approve the FMP. Comments 
received after that date will not be considered by NMFS in this 
decision. All comments received by NMFS on the FMP 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: April 11, 2003.
Richard W. Surdi,
Acting Office Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 03-9490 Filed 4-16-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S