[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 158 (Tuesday, August 17, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51068-51069]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-18826]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[I.D. 081004B]


Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic 
Fisheries; Application for Exempted Fishing Permits (EFPs)

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

ACTION: Notification of a proposal for EFPs to conduct experimental 
fishing; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable 
Fisheries, Northeast Region, NMFS (Assistant Regional Administrator), 
has made a preliminary determination that an application for EFPs 
contains all of the required information and warrants further 
consideration. The Assistant Regional Administrator is considering the 
impacts of the activities to be authorized under the EFPs with respect 
to the Northeast (NE) Multispecies Fishery Management Plan (FMP). 
However, further review and consultation may be necessary before a 
final determination is made to issue EFPs. Therefore, NMFS announces 
that the Assistant Regional Administrator proposes to issue EFPs in 
response to an application submitted by Manomet Center for Conservation 
Sciences (Manomet) that would allow three vessels to conduct fishing 
operations that are otherwise restricted by the regulations governing 
the fisheries of the Northeastern United States. The EFP would exempt 
three vessels from the minimum mesh size requirements for the Gulf of 
Maine (GOM) Regulated Mesh Area (RMA); regulations pertaining to the 
GOM Rolling Closure Areas V; and minimum fish size requirements. The 
experiment proposes to conduct a study to target cod and other 
groundfish species using modified bottom trawl gear to assess the 
effectiveness of square and hexagonal mesh escape windows, both with 
and without visual stimuli, in reducing the bycatch of non-target and 
undersized fish in the GOM groundfish fishery. The EFP would allow 
these exemptions for three commercial fishing vessels, for not more 
than 16 days of sea trials. All experimental work would be monitored at 
sea by observers trained to NMFS standards as part of this Cooperative 
Research Partners Initiative-funded project. Regulations under the 
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-
Stevens Act) require publication of this notification to provide 
interested parties the opportunity to comment on applications for 
proposed EFPs.

DATES: Comments on this document must be received on or before 
September 1, 2004.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be sent to Patricia A. Kurkul, 
Regional Administrator, NMFS, NE Regional Office, 1 Blackburn Drive, 
Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark the outside of the envelope ``Comments on 
Visual Stimuli EFP Proposal.'' Comments may also be sent via fax to 
(978) 281-9135, or submitted via e-mail to the following address: 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Heather Sagar, Fishery Management 
Specialist, phone: 978-281-9341, fax: 978-281-9135.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A final application for an EFP was submitted 
on July 13, 2004, by Dr. Christopher Glass. This request would build 
upon data collected by Manomet under an approved EFP that began October 
1, 2003. The purpose of the experiment is to assess the selective 
efficiency of various codend configurations, specifically escape 
windows and visual stimuli, that could effectively reduce bycatch of 
non-target and undersized fish in the GOM groundfish fishery and allow 
better and more effective management of groundfish stocks. Specific 
objectives of the study include comparing the catch selectivity of each 
of the experimental codend configurations to regulated mesh codends 
currently used by the fishing industry and to quantify the behavioral 
responses of different species to the experimental codend 
configurations. The results of this study will be submitted to NMFS, 
the New England Fishery Management Council, and any

[[Page 51069]]

other interested parties through newsletters, popular articles, and 
meetings throughout the region.
    This research would consist of the development of modified bottom 
trawl nets containing different configurations of an escape window and 
visual stimuli surrounded by 3-inch (7.6-cm) mesh codend covers to 
measure the escapement of undersized fish. These nets would test the 
difference in juvenile retention between square and hexagonal mesh 
escape windows, both with and without visual stimuli in the form of a 
black panel wrapped around the net between the extension and the codend 
of the net. A total of four experimental extension/codend 
configurations would be developed, including: (1) A codend made of 6.5-
inch (16.5-cm) diamond mesh preceded by a 7-inch (17.7-cm) square mesh 
escape window in the extension; (2) a codend made of 6.5-inch (16.5-cm) 
diamond mesh preceded by a 7-inch (17.7-cm) hexagonal mesh escape 
window in the extension; (3) a codend made of 6.5-inch (16.5-cm) 
diamond mesh preceded by a 7-inch (17.7-cm) square mesh escape window 
in the extension, with additional visual stimulus by a black panel 
wrapped around the codend between the escape window and the codend; and 
(4) a codend made of 6.5-inch (16.5-cm) diamond mesh preceded by a 7-
inch (17.7-cm) hexagonal mesh escape window in the extension, with 
additional visual stimulus by a black panel wrapped around the codend 
between the escape window and the codend ball. Two conventional nets of 
6.5-inch (16.5-cm) diamond mesh and 6.5-inch (16.5-cm) square mesh 
codends would be used to compare the effectiveness of the experimental 
extension configurations.
    The EFP would allow three commercial vessels to conduct a total of 
16 days of sea trials in support of this study. During these sea 
trials, vessels would test all four experimental codend configurations 
and control codends. Five 1-hour experimental tows, and ten 20-minute 
control tows would be made per vessel per days-at-sea (DAS). All fish 
retained in the codend and the cover would be weighed and measured as 
quickly as possible. All legal-sized fish would be landed and sold to 
offset vessel costs. No undersized fish would be retained as part of 
this study, and any caught would be returned to the sea as quickly as 
possible. All vessels would be required to use DAS.
    This work would examine the use of inexpensive visual stimuli to 
reduce bycatch of undersized fish. It is estimated that the use of 
visual stimuli can induce escape behavior in nearly all species, and 
may increase escapement of undersized fish by up to 90 percent. 
Therefore, it is necessary to have an exemption to allow the use of a 
3-inch (7.6-cm) codend cover on the net in order to quantify the number 
of undersized fish, and to assess the success of the visual stimuli and 
escape windows. This work also would examine seasonal effects on gear 
selectivity. Seasonal variation has been demonstrated for fisheries in 
other parts of the world. It is speculated that codends and other 
bycatch reduction devices may not perform in the same manner in all 
areas at all times. Therefore, in order to vary the season and have the 
maximum likelihood of catching a wide range of groundfish species, it 
is necessary to have access to the GOM Rolling Closure Area V.
    Underwater video cameras would be placed within the net and in the 
codend cover to record reaction behavior of fish to the escape windows, 
visual stimuli, and codend mesh. Videotapes would be analyzed to 
develop behavioral traces of reaction behavior for each species. The 
catches of each codend configuration would be compared and analyzed to 
assess the effectiveness of the escape windows, visual stimuli, and 
codend mesh shapes (diamond versus square mesh).
    The intended sampling area includes the western GOM, including 30-
minute statistical squares 124, 125, 138, and 139, during September and 
October 2004. This area includes the GOM Rolling Closure Area V. Access 
to this areas is necessary to be able to sample a wide range of fish 
species in sufficient numbers during the proposed project time frame. 
Sampling would not take place in the Western GOM Closed Area during 
this research.
    The participating vessels would be required to report all landings 
in their Vessel Trip Reports. The data collection activities aboard the 
participating vessel would be conducted by observers trained to NMFS 
standards to ensure compliance with the experimental fishery 
objectives.
    Regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Act require publication of 
this notification to provide interested parties the opportunity to 
comment on applications for proposed EFPs.

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

    Dated: August 12, 2004.
Alan D. Risenhoover,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 04-18826 Filed 8-16-04; 8:45 am]
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