[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 201 (Tuesday, October 18, 2011)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 64248-64249]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-26923]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 622

[Docket No. 040205043-4043-01]
RIN 0648-XA766


Gulf of Mexico Reef Fish Fishery; Closure of the 2011 Gulf of 
Mexico Commercial Sector for Greater Amberjack

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

ACTION: Temporary rule; closure.

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SUMMARY: NMFS closes the commercial sector for greater amberjack in the 
exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf). These 
actions are necessary to reduce overfishing of the Gulf greater 
amberjack resource.

DATES: The closure of the commercial sector for Gulf greater amberjack 
is effective 12:01 a.m., local time, October 20, 2011, until 12:01 
a.m., local time, on January 1, 2012.

ADDRESSES: Electronic copies of the final rule for Amendment 30A, the 
Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (FSEIS) for Amendment 
30A, and other supporting documentation may be obtained from Steve 
Branstetter, NMFS, Southeast Regional Office, 263 13th Avenue, South, 
St. Petersburg, FL 33701; telephone: 727-824-5305.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Steve Branstetter, telephone: 727-824-
5305, e-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The reef fish fishery of the Gulf is managed 
under the Fishery Management Plan for Reef Fish Resources of the Gulf 
of Mexico (FMP). The FMP was prepared by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery 
Management Council (Council) and is implemented under the authority of 
the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-
Stevens Act) by regulations at 50 CFR part 622.

Background

    The 2006 reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Act implemented 
new requirements that annual catch limits (ACLs) and accountability 
measures (AMs) be established to end overfishing and prevent 
overfishing from occurring. AMs are management controls to prevent ACLs 
from being exceeded, and to correct or mitigate overages of the ACL if 
they occur. Section 303(a)(15) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act mandates the 
establishment of ACLs at a level such that overfishing does not occur 
in the fishery, including measures to ensure accountability.
    On July 3, 2008, NMFS issued a final rule (73 FR 38139) to 
implement Amendment 30A to the FMP (Amendment 30A). Amendment 30A 
established a commercial quota for Gulf greater amberjack of 503,000 lb 
(228,157 kg) and an AM that would go into effect if the commercial 
quota for greater amberjack is exceeded. In accordance with regulations 
at 50 CFR 622.49(a)(1)(i), when the applicable commercial quota is 
reached, or projected to be reached, the Assistant Administrator for 
Fisheries, NOAA, (AA), will file a notification with the Office of the 
Federal Register to close the commercial sector for the remainder of 
the fishing year. If despite such closure, commercial landings exceed 
the quota, the AA will reduce the quota the year following an overage 
by the amount of the overage of the prior fishing year.

[[Page 64249]]

    Landings data for 2010, provided by the Southeast Fisheries Science 
Center (SEFSC) in April, 2011, indicated that 562,172 lb (254,997 kg) 
were landed by the commercial sector for the 2010 fishing year, for a 
commercial sector overage of 189,100 lb (85,774 kg). Therefore, for 
2011, NMFS published a rule in the Federal Register (76 FR 23909, April 
29, 2011) announcing the 503,000-lb commercial quota would be adjusted 
to 313,900 lb (142,383 kg) to account for the 2010 overage of the 
commercial sector.
    The greater amberjack commercial sector was closed on June 18, 
2011, when NMFS estimated the 313,900-lb (142,383-kg) adjusted quota 
would be reached (76 FR 23909, April 29, 2011). However, subsequent 
updated landings data, provided by the SEFSC in 2011, indicated that 
the actual commercial harvest for 2010 was 533,981 lb (242,210 kg), 
28,191 lb (12,787 kg) less than was previously reported. Therefore, for 
the 2011 fishing year, NMFS published a rule in the Federal Register 
(76 FR 51905, August 19, 2011) announcing the 503,000-lb commercial 
quota was again adjusted to establish a new 2011 adjusted commercial 
quota of 342,091 lb (155,170 kg).
    Additional landings data that became available in August of 2011 
indicated that the adjusted commercial quota had not been met when the 
commercial sector was previously closed on June 18, 2011,and that 
86,452 lb (39,214 kg) of commercial quota remained available for the 
2011 fishing year. Based on historical catch rates, NMFS projected that 
the remaining 86,452 lb (39,214 kg) of the greater amberjack commercial 
quota would be harvested in 61 days. Therefore, NMFS reopened the 
commercial greater amberjack fishing season beginning at 12:01 a.m., 
local time, September 1, 2011, until 12:01 a.m., local time, on October 
31, 2011 to allow for the commercial harvest of the remaining 
commercial adjusted quota (August 19, 2011, 76 FR 51905).
    Based on current statistics, NMFS has determined that the remaining 
2011 adjusted commercial quota has been met. Accordingly, NMFS is 
closing the commercial harvest of greater amberjack in the Gulf EEZ at 
12:01 a.m., local time, on October 20, 2011, and it will remain closed 
until 12:01 a.m., local time, on January 1, 2012. The operator of a 
vessel with a valid commercial vessel permit for Gulf reef fish having 
greater amberjack aboard must have landed and bartered, traded, or sold 
such greater amberjack prior to 12:01 a.m., local time, October 20, 
2011.
    During the closure, all commercial harvest or possession of greater 
amberjack in or from the Gulf EEZ, and the sale or purchase of greater 
amberjack taken from the EEZ is prohibited. The prohibition on sale or 
purchase does not apply to sale or purchase of greater amberjack that 
were harvested, landed ashore, and sold prior to 12:01 a.m., local 
time, October 20, 2011, and were held in cold storage by a dealer or 
processor. In addition to the Gulf EEZ closure, a person on board a 
vessel for which a commercial vessel permit for Gulf reef fish has been 
issued must comply with these closure provisions regardless of where 
the Gulf greater amberjack are harvested, i.e., in state or Federal 
waters. This closure is intended to prevent overfishing of Gulf greater 
amberjack and increase the likelihood that the 2011 quota will not be 
exceeded.
    The 2012 commercial quota for greater amberjack will return to the 
quota specified at 50 CFR 622.42(a)(1)(v) unless accountability 
measures are implemented due to a quota overage and a reduced quota is 
specified through notification in the Federal Register, or subsequent 
regulatory action is taken to adjust the quota.

Classification

    The Administrator, Southeast Region, NMFS, (RA) has determined this 
temporary rule is necessary for the conservation and management of the 
Gulf greater amberjack component of the Gulf reef fish fishery and is 
consistent with the Magnuson-Stevens Act and other applicable laws.
    The temporary rule has been determined to be not significant for 
purposes of Executive Order 12866.
    These measures are exempt from the procedures of the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act because the temporary rule is issued without 
opportunity for prior notice and comment.
    NMFS prepared a FSEIS for Amendment 30A. A notice of availability 
for the FSEIS was published on April 18, 2008 (73 FR 21124). A copy of 
the FSEIS and the Record of Decision are available from NMFS (see 
ADDRESSES).
    This action responds to the best available information recently 
obtained from the fishery. The AA, finds good cause to waive the 
requirement to provide prior notice and opportunity for public comment 
pursuant to the authority set forth at 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(3)(B). Such 
procedures would be unnecessary because the rule implementing the quota 
and the associated requirement for closure of commercial harvest when 
the quota is reached or projected to be reached already has been 
subject to notice and comment, and all that remains is to notify the 
public of the closure.
    Providing prior notice and opportunity for public comment on this 
action would be contrary to the public interest because any delay in 
the closure of commercial harvest could result in the commercial quota 
for greater amberjack being exceeded, which in turn, would trigger the 
accountability measure for greater amberjack. The accountability 
measure would require NMFS to reduce the quota for the following year 
by the amount of the quota overage from the prior fishing year. 
Reducing the quota the following year would produce additional adverse 
economic impacts for Gulf reef fish fishermen. There is a need to 
implement this measure in a timely fashion to prevent a quota overrun 
of the greater amberjack commercial sector, given the capacity of the 
fishing fleet to harvest the quota quickly.
    For the aforementioned reasons, the AA also finds good cause to 
waive the 30-day delay in the effectiveness of this action under 5 
U.S.C. 553(d)(3).

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

    Dated: October 13, 2011.
Steven Thur,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2011-26923 Filed 10-13-11; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P