[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 81 (Friday, April 25, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22340-22341]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-9049]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-XH38
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; request for comments
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SUMMARY: The Regional Administrator, Southwest Region, NMFS has made a
preliminary determination that an application for an Exempted Fishing
Permit (EFP) warrants further consideration. The application was
submitted to NMFS by a California-based commercial fisherman requesting
an exemption for a single vessel from the longline fishing prohibitions
within the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) off the West Coast during
the 2008 fishing year beginning mid-September 2008, or, if
administrative delays occur, during the 2009 fishing year beginning
mid-September 2009. The 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 Fishery
Management Plan for U.S. West Coast Fisheries for Highly Migratory
Species (HMS FMP). However, further review and consultation is
necessary before a final determination is made to issue the EFP.
Therefore, NMFS proposes to review the EFP and requests public comment
on the application. The application is available for review on the NMFS
Southwest Region website: https://swr.nmfs.noaa.gov/.
DATES: Comments must be received by May 27, 2008.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on this notice, identified by ``RIN
0648-XH38'' by any of the following methods:
E-mail: [email protected]. Include the RIN in the
subject line of the message.
Mail: Rodney R. McInnis, Regional Administrator, Southwest
Region, NMFS, 501 West Ocean Blvd., Suite 4200, Long Beach, CA 90802-
4213.
Fax: (562) 980-4047.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mark Helvey, Southwest Region, NMFS,
(562) 980-4040.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: An application for an EFP was submitted to
the Pacific Fisheries Management Council (Council) by Peter Dupuy, a
commercial fishing vessel owner, in March 2008. EFPs for fishing under
the HMS FMP are governed by 50 CFR 600.745 and 660.718. The EFP would
exempt a single vessel from following the gear and fishing restrictions
at 50 CFR 660.712(a) implementing the HMS FMP that prohibit owners and
operators of vessels registered for use of longline gear from using
longline gear to fish for or target HMS within the U.S. EEZ. The
applicant applied for the EFP with the intent to conduct an exploratory
test fishery with a single vessel to gather information on the economic
viability and environmental effects, including the potential impacts to
protected species and non-target finfish interactions, of fishing for
swordfish in the West Coast EEZ.
At its April 2008 meeting, the Council, with advice from its HMS
Management Team and HMS Advisory Subpanel, adopted a preferred
alternative for the EFP and forwarded that alternative to NMFS,
recommending that the agency review the proposed EFP and, if consistent
with Federal law, issue the permit. The Council recommended that the
applicant be subject to a cap of one short-finned pilot whale and 12
striped marlin, and a prohibition for fishing off the State of
Washington. The Council recommended that the fishery be managed through
limits on the amount of incidental take of protected species that may
be exposed to and adversely affected by this action. The limits will be
established based upon Section 7 consultations under the Endangered
Species Act by NMFS for marine mammals and sea turtles, and by the U.
S. Fish and Wildlife Service for seabirds. If any one of the limits set
by these consultations is reached by the fishery authorized by the EFP,
the permit would be immediately revoked. The EFP would require 100
percent NMFS observer coverage. The Council's recommendations,
described above, would be established as permit conditions.
If approved, the EFP would authorize a single vessel to longline
fish in the EEZ off of Oregon and California. Under the proposed terms
and conditions of the EFP, the vessel would target swordfish utilizing
shallow-set longline gear which is set at a shallower depth (<100 m)
than deep-set longline gear which is typically set in the deeper
thermocline zone (~300-400 m) for tunas. The applicant would be allowed
a maximum of four trips between September and December, 2008, or
between September and December, 2009, and a maximum of 14 sets per
trip. Fishing would neither be allowed within 50 nautical miles of the
coastline nor within the Southern California Bight. The Bight is
defined in general terms as coastal waters from Point Conception in the
north to just past San Diego in the south, and extending offshore of
San Nicolas Island (Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary waters
would be excluded from the fishing area). The mainline may not exceed
100 km and no more than 1,200 hooks may be deployed per set. The
applicant would be required to use 18/0 circle hooks with a 10[deg]
offset and mackerel or mackerel-type bait (as described at 50 CFR
665.33(f) and (g), respectively). To reduce potential interactions with
seabirds, gear could not be set until one hour after local sunset and
must be fully deployed before local sunrise. A certain percentage of
the deployed gear would be required to be outfitted with time/depth
recorders to measure fishing depth; the percentage would be determined
by NMFS based on the amount of data needed to extrapolate the depth of
all the hooks. The applicant would be required to use a NMFS-certified
shark de-hooking device to improve the post-release survivability of
incidentally captured sharks.
Aside from the exemptions described above, the vessel fishing under
the EFP would be subject to all other regulations implementing the HMS
FMP, including measures to protect sea turtles, marine mammals, and
seabirds.
The EFP application would be effective for 2008 or 2009 only. In
accordance with NOAA Administrative Order 216-6, an appropriate
National Environmental Policy Act document will be completed prior to
the issuance of the EFP. A draft Environmental Assessment on the EFP
was presented to the Council and public in April 2008. Further review
and consultation is necessary before a final determination is made to
issue the EFP. As required in Section 7(a)(2) of the Endangered Species
Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), NMFS will engage in formal consultation
to determine if the proposed action is likely to jeopardize the
continued existence and recovery of any endangered or threatened
species or result in the destruction or adverse modification of
critical habitat.
[[Page 22341]]
Dated: April 22, 2008.
Emily H. Menashes
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E8-9049 Filed 4-24-08; 8:45 am]
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