[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 215 (Tuesday, November 7, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65088-65089]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-18721]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[I.D. 110206C]


Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic 
Fisheries; Application for Exempted Fishing Permit

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

ACTION: Notice; receipt of exempted fishing permit application.

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SUMMARY: The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable 
Fisheries, Northeast Region, NMFS (Assistant Regional Administrator) 
has made a preliminary determination that the subject exempted fishing 
permit (EFP) application contains all the required information and 
warrants further consideration. The Assistant Regional Administrator 
has also made a preliminary determination that the activities 
authorized under the EFP would be consistent with the goals and 
objectives of the Northeast (NE) Multispecies Fishery Management Plan 
(FMP). However, further review and consultation may be necessary before 
a final determination is made to issue the EFP. Therefore, NMFS 
announces that the Assistant Regional Administrator proposes to 
recommend that an EFP be issued that would allow one commercial fishing 
vessel to conduct fishing operations that are otherwise restricted by 
the regulations governing the fisheries of the Northeastern United 
States. The EFP, which would enable researchers to investigate the 
efficacy of

[[Page 65089]]

two experimental flounder trawl designs to reduce bycatch of cod and 
sublegal-sized flounders, would allow for exemptions from the FMP as 
follows: U.S./Canada Management Area gear requirements for flounder 
trawl nets, and the NE multispecies possession restrictions.
    Regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act require publication of this notification to provide 
interested parties the opportunity to comment on applications for 
proposed EFPs.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before November 22, 2006.

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

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tobey Curtis, Fishery Management 
Specialist, (978) 281-9273, fax (978) 281-9135.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A complete application for an EFP was 
submitted on October 23, 2006, by David Chosid and Michael Pol of the 
Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF). The project was 
funded by the Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Program. The primary goal of 
the research is to test the efficacy of two experimental flounder trawl 
designs to reduce the bycatch of cod and sublegal-sized flounders. The 
intent of the researchers is that the experimental nets, if successful, 
could potentially be an acceptable alternative trawl design to be used 
in the future in flounder fisheries and/or in Special Access Programs.
    The project continues previous work conducted by DMF, which has 
preliminarily shown that these net designs significantly reduce the 
bycatch of cod and sublegal yellowtail flounder, as compared to the 
standard 2-seam flounder trawl. Specifically, DMF will test the 
effectiveness of two modified 2-seam flounder trawl designs, referred 
to as the ``Ribas'' net and the ``Topless'' net. The Ribas net is 
constructed of 6-inch (15.24 cm) diamond mesh with 75 meshes of 6.5-
inch (16.51 cm) square knotless mesh in the codend, 25 meshes wide on 
the top and bottom. The 6-inch (15.24 cm) diamond mesh normally found 
on the top middle of flounder nets is replaced with 25 meshes wide of 
8-inch (20.32 cm) square mesh from the headrope to the codend. This 
design has a headrope and footrope length of 60 ft (18.3 m). The 
Topless net has an identical bottom half and codend to the Ribas net, 
but has no top wings, and much of the top webbing of the net is 
removed. The headrope of the Topless net tapers into the top belly of 
the net, and has a length of 89 ft (27.1 m).
    The species of principal interest in the study are cod and 
yellowtail flounder, but the study will also have implications for 
other flatfishes, including winter flounder, witch flounder, and 
American plaice. All fish would be sorted and weighed, and fish of 
legal size would be retained for sale. All discards would be released 
as quickly as practicable to reduce incidental mortality. Based on 
catch data from previous experimental tows, the researchers anticipate 
that a total of 79,300 lb (35,970 kg) of fish would be harvested 
throughout the course of the study along with 204,479 lb (92,750 kg) of 
regulatory discards. All proceeds from the sale of the fish will be 
returned to DMF for the purpose of enhancing future research.
    All at-sea research would be conducted from the F/V Mary Elena 
(Permit  330739, O.N. 970254). The vessel intends to fish in 
the Eastern and Western U.S./Canada Management Areas. The vessel would 
fish exclusively outside of all closed areas. A total of 11 days would 
be used for testing the experimental trawls, carried out under A days-
at-sea (DAS). An anticipated 70, 2-hour tows, using a twin trawl rig, 
would be conducted during that time. This effort would result in a 
total of 140 hours of bottom time for the experimental trawls.
    Based on preliminary review of this project, and in accordance with 
NOAA Administrative Order 216-6, a Categorical Exclusion (CE) from 
requirements to prepare either an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) 
or an Environmental Assessment (EA) under the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA) appears to be justified. The applicant may request 
minor modifications and extensions to the EFP throughout the year. EFP 
modifications and extensions may be granted without further notice if 
they are deemed essential to facilitate completion of the proposed 
research and have minimal impacts that do not change the scope or 
impact of the initially approved EFP request.

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

    Dated: November 2, 2006.
James P. Burgess,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E6-18721 Filed 11-6-06; 8:45 am]
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