[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 178 (Wednesday, September 16, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47557-47558]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-22269]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XR44


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

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

ACTION: Notification of a proposal for an EFP to conduct exempted 
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 the subject EFP application 
that was submitted by the University of Rhode Island (URI) warrants 
further consideration and should be issued for public comment. The EFP 
would exempt participating vessels from summer flounder size 
restrictions, scup size restrictions, scup possession restrictions, and 
possession restrictions for squid and butterfish. 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 Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass 
Fishery Management Plan (FMP); and the Atlantic Mackerel, Squid, and 
Butterfish FMP. However, further review and consultation may be 
necessary before a final determination is made.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before October 1, 2009.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted by e-mail. The mailbox address for 
providing e-mail comments is [email protected]. Include in the subject 
line of the e-mail comment the following document identifier: 
``Comments on URI Drop Chain Trawl Net EFP.'' Written comments should 
be sent to Patricia A. Kurkul, Regional Administrator, NMFS, Northeast 
Regional Office, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark 
the outside of the envelope, ``Comments on URI Drop Chain Trawl Net 
EFP.'' Comments may also be sent via facsimile (fax) to (978) 281-9135.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sarah Bland, Fishery Management 
Specialist, (978) 281-9257.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A complete application for an EFP was 
submitted by URI on August 31, 2009, for a study that would test the 
effectiveness of a drop chain small mesh net in its ability to reduce 
catches of summer flounder in the small mesh fishery. The study would 
also evaluate discard mortality of summer flounder caught using the 
Reflex Action Mortality Predictor (RAMP) method.
    The study would be conducted aboard two commercial fishing vessels 
in the directed small mesh fishery for squid in Block Island Sound and 
Rhode Island Sound. Research trips associated with the study would be 
conducted over a 12-month period, beginning in October 2009 and 
continuing through September 2010. Field work would be split into three 
time periods, consisting of a total of 12 fishing days. Vessels would 
conduct side-by-side tows, with one vessel towing a control net and the 
other towing an experimental net. The control net would be a 362 x 12-
cm two-seam polyethylene balloon net equipped with a 20-cm rockhopper 
sweep. The experimental net would be identical to the control net, but 
equipped with a 1-ft (30.5-cm) drop chain sweep.
    Each fishing day would consist of four to six tows of 1.5 hr 
duration. For each tow, total catch size would be determined prior to 
subsampling. Following Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC) 
protocols, either all of the summer flounder catch, or a subsample, 
would be weighed. Target catch species would include squid, butterfish, 
and scup. These species would also be sampled and weighed. Species 
would be sorted by sub-legal and legal-sized fish, and weights would be 
taken for each group.
    On 5 fishing days, up to 50 legal and sub-legal sized summer 
flounder would be transferred to an on-board holding tank. Individual 
fish would be measured for length, and the presence or absence of six 
RAMP tests would be noted. After visual inspection, fish would be 
tagged, transported in coolers to the Blount Aquaculture Research 
Laboratory, and held for 60 days for survival and growth studies.
    The applicants have requested exemptions from summer flounder size 
restrictions at Sec.  648.103. This exemption would allow vessels to 
retain and land summer flounder that would be transported to the Blount 
Aquaculture

[[Page 47558]]

Research Lab for a 2-month holding period to quantify delayed 
mortality. Fish surviving the 2-month holding period would be returned 
to Rhode Island coastal waters. The applicants have also requested 
temporary exemptions from scup size restrictions at Sec.  648.124; scup 
possession limits at Sec.  648.125; and possession restrictions for 
squid and butterfish at Sec.  648.25. These exemptions would allow 
incidental catch species to be temporarily retained for data collection 
purposes. Incidental catch below the minimum size, and above the 
possession limit, would be discarded immediately following data 
collection.
    The applicants anticipate that for each control net tow, the legal-
sized summer flounder catch would be 75 lb (34 kg), and the sub-legal 
sized summer flounder catch would be 12 lb (5.4 kg). Target catch, 
including squid, butterfish, and scup, would total 150 lb (68 kg). For 
each experimental net tow, both the legal-sized and sub-legal sized 
summer flounder catch would be less than 10 lb (4.5 kg). Target catch 
would remain 150 lb (68 kg). Each day of fishing would consist of four 
to six side-by-side tows, with a total of 12 fishing days for the 
project.
    The applicants may request minor modifications and extensions to 
the EFP throughout the course of research. EFP modifications and 
extensions may be granted without further public notice if they are 
deemed essential to facilitate completion of the proposed research and 
result in only a minimal change in the scope or impacts of the 
initially approved EFP request.

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

    Dated: September 11, 2009.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E9-22269 Filed 9-15-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S