[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 1 (Monday, January 3, 2005)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 68-69]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-28738]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 648

[I.D. 122304D]
RIN 0648-AN25


Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 
Provisions; Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Monkfish 
Fishery; Amendment 2 to the Monkfish Fishery Management Plan

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

ACTION: Notice of availability of a fishery management plan amendment; 
request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the New England Fishery Management Council 
(NEFMC) and the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (MAFMC) have 
submitted Amendment 2 to the Monkfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP) 
(Amendment 2) incorporating the draft Final Supplemental Environmental 
Impact Statement (FSEIS), Regulatory Impact Review (RIR), and the 
Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (IRFA), for Secretarial review 
and is requesting comments from the public. Amendment 2 was developed 
to address essential fish habitat (EFH) and bycatch issues, and to 
revise the FMP to address several issues raised during the public 
scoping process. The intent of this action is to provide efficient 
management of the monkfish fishery and to meet conservation objectives.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before March 3, 2005.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on the proposed interim rule may be 
submitted by any of the following methods:
     E-mail: E-mail comments may be submitted to http://[email protected]. Include in the subject line the following: 
``Comments on the Monkfish Amendment 2.''
     Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
     Mail: Comments submitted by mail should be sent to 
Patricia A. Kurkul, Regional Administrator, Northeast Region, NMFS, One 
Blackburn Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930-2298. Mark the outside of the 
envelope ``Comments on the Monkfish Amendment 2.''
     Facsimile (fax): Comments submitted by fax should be faxed 
to (978) 281-9135.
    Copies of Amendment 2, the FSEIS, RIR, and IRFA are available from 
Paul J. Howard, Executive Director, New England Fishery Management 
Council, 50 Water Street, Newburyport, MA 01950. These documents are 
also available online at http://www.nefmc.org.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Allison R. Ferreira, Fishery Policy 
Analyst, (978) 281-9103; fax (978) 281-9135; e-mail: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A notice of availability for the Draft 
Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (DSEIS) for Amendment 2 was 
published in the Federal Register on April 30, 2004 (69 FR 23571), with 
public comment accepted through July 28, 2004. After considering all 
comments on the DSEIS, the NEFMC and MAFMC adopted the final measures 
to be included in Amendment 2 at their respective September 14-16, 
2004, and October 4-6, 2004, meetings, and voted to submit the 
Amendment 2 document, including the FSEIS, to NMFS.
    The NEFMC and MAFMC developed Amendment 2 to address a number of 
issues that arose out of the implementation of the original FMP, as 
well as issues that were identified during public scoping. Issues 
arising from the original FMP include: (1) The displacement of vessels 
from their established monkfish fisheries due to restrictive trip 
limits; (2) unattainable permit qualification criteria for vessels in 
the southern end of the range of the fishery; (3) discards (bycatch) of 
monkfish due to regulations (i.e., minimum size restrictions and 
incidental catch limits); and (4) deficiencies in meeting Magnuson-
Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) 
requirements pertaining to protection of EFH in accordance with the 
Joint Stipulation and Order resulting from the legal challenge American 
Oceans Campaign, et al. v. Daley. Issues arising from public scoping 
include: (1) Deficiencies in meeting Magnuson-Stevens Act requirements, 
including preventing overfishing and rebuilding overfished stocks; (2) 
a need to improve monkfish data collection and research; (3) the need 
to establish a North Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) exemption 
program for monkfish; multiple vessel baseline specifications for 
limited access monkfish vessels; (4) a need to update environmental 
documents describing the impact of the FMP; and, (5) a need to reduce 
FMP complexity where possible.
    Amendment 2 evaluates and includes the following measures to 
minimize the adverse effects of fishing on EFH: A maximum disc diameter 
of 6 inches (15.2 cm) for trawl gear vessels fishing in the Southern 
Fishery Management Area (SFMA); and closure of two deep-sea canyon 
areas to all gears when fishing under the monkfish day-at-sea (DAS) 
program. Amendment 2 also proposes the following management measures: 
(1) A new limited access permit for qualified vessels fishing south of 
38o 20' N. lat.; (2) an offshore trawl fishery in the SFMA; 
establishment of a research DAS set-aside program; (3) an exemption 
program for vessels fishing outside of the Exclusive Economic Zone; (4) 
adjustments to the incidental monkfish catch limits; a decrease in the 
minimum monkfish size in the SFMA; (5) removal of the 20-day block 
requirement; revisions to the monkfish baseline provisions; and (6) 
additions to the frameworable measures.
    Public comments are being solicited on Amendment 2 and its 
incorporated documents through the end of the comment period stated in 
this notice of availability. A proposed rule that would implement 
Amendment 2 may be published in the Federal Register for public 
comment, following NMFS's evaluation of the proposed rule under the 
procedures of the Magnuson-Stevens Act. Public comments on the proposed 
rule must be received by the end of the comment period provided in this 
notice of availability of Amendment 2 to be considered in the approval/
disapproval decision on the amendment. All comments received by March 
3, 2005, whether specifically directed to Amendment 2 or the proposed 
rule, will be considered in the approval/disapproval decision on 
Amendment 2. Comments received after that date will not be considered 
in the decision to approve or disapprove Amendment 2. Therefore, to be 
considered, comments must be received by close of business on the last 
date of the comment period, March 3, 2005; that does not mean 
postmarked or otherwise transmitted by that date.


[[Page 69]]


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

    Dated: December 27, 2004.
Alan D. Risenhoover,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 04-28738 Filed 12-30-04; 8:45 am]
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