[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 233 (Wednesday, December 5, 2007)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 68551-68552]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-23596]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 622

[Docket No. 071029623-7624-01]
RIN 0648-AW21


Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; 
Commercial Dolphin/Wahoo Fishery off the Southern Atlantic States; 
Control Date

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

ACTION: Advanced notice of proposed rulemaking; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces that it is considering, and is seeking public 
comment on proposed rulemaking to control future access to the 
commercial dolphin/wahoo fishery operating in the exclusive economic 
zone (EEZ)of the South Atlantic. If changes to the management regime 
are developed and implemented under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 
Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act), a control date 
could be used to limit the number of participants in the fishery. This 
announcement is intended, in part, to promote awareness of the 
potential eligibility criteria for future access so as to discourage 
speculative entry into the fishery while the South Atlantic Fishery 
Management Council (Council) and NMFS consider whether and how access 
to the dolphin/wahoo commercial fishery should be controlled.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before 5 p.m., local 
time, January 4, 2008.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by 0648-AW03, by any one 
of the following methods:
     Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal eRulemaking Portal http://www.regulations.gov.
     Fax: Attn: Kate Michie 727-824-5308.
     Mail: Kate Michie, NMFS Southeast Regional Office, 
Sustainable Fisheries Division, 263 13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, 
FL 33701.

[[Page 68552]]

    Instructions: All comments received are a part of the public record 
and will generally be posted to http://www.regulations.gov without 
change. All Personal Identifying Information (for example, name, 
address, etc.) voluntarily submitted by the commenter may be publicly 
accessible. Do not submit Confidential Business Information or 
otherwise sensitive or protected information.
    NMFS will accept anonymous comments. Attachments to electronic 
comments will be accepted in Microsoft Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or 
Adobe PDF file formats only.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kim Iverson, Public Information 
Officer, South Atlantic Fishery Management Council; toll free 1-866-
SAFMC-10 or 843-571-4366; [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: At the September 2007 Council meeting, the 
Council recommended a control date of December 5, 2007 for the 
commercial dolphin/wahoo fishery. The control date would apply to 
persons who are contemplating entering the commercial dolphin/wahoo 
fishery in the EEZ of the South Atlantic region. The Council requested 
that this control date be published in the Federal Register to notify 
fishermen that if they enter such a fishery after December 5, 2007, 
they may not be assured of future access if the Council and/or NMFS 
decide to limit entry or impose other measures to manage these 
fisheries. Establishment of the control date would allow the Council to 
evaluate the level of participation in the subject fishery and address 
any level of overcapacity. Control dates are intended to discourage 
speculative entry into a fishery, as new entrants entering the fishery 
after the control date are forewarned that they are not guaranteed 
future participation in the fishery.
    Establishment of this control date does not commit the Council or 
NMFS to any particular management regime or criteria for entry into the 
commercial dolphin/wahoo fishery. Fishermen are not guaranteed future 
participation in the fishery regardless of their level of participation 
before or after the control date. The Council may recommend a different 
control date or it may recommend a management regime that does not 
involve a control date. Other criteria, such as documentation of 
landings or fishing effort, may be used to determine eligibility for 
participation in a limited access fishery. The Council and/or NMFS also 
may choose to take no further action to control entry or access to the 
fisheries, in which case the control date may be rescinded. Any action 
by the Council will be taken pursuant to the requirements for fishery 
management plan and amendment development established under the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act.
    This notification also gives the public notice that interested 
participants should locate and preserve records that substantiate and 
verify their participation in the commercial dolphin/wahoo fishery in 
the South Atlantic EEZ.

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

    Dated: November 29, 2007.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator For Regulatory Programs, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E7-23596 Filed 12-4-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S