[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 128 (Tuesday, July 3, 2012)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 39460-39462]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-16341]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 622

RIN 0648-BB97


Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; 
Reef Fish Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico; Amendment 35

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

ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) has 
submitted Amendment 35 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Reef Fish 
Resources of the Gulf of Mexico (FMP) for review, approval, and 
implementation by NMFS. Amendment 35 proposes to modify the greater 
amberjack rebuilding plan; establish greater amberjack sector annual 
catch limits (ACLs) and sector annual catch targets (ACTs); establish a 
commercial trip limit for greater amberjack; and revise the sector 
accountability measures (AMs) for greater amberjack. The intent of 
Amendment 35 is to end overfishing of greater amberjack, modify the 
greater amberjack rebuilding plan and help achieve optimum yield (OY) 
for the greater amberjack resource in accordance with the requirements 
of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 
(Magnuson-Stevens Act).

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before September 4, 
2012.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on the amendment identified by 
``NOAA-NMFS-2012-0107'' by any of the following methods:
     Electronic submissions: Submit electronic comments via the 
Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 
``Instructions'' for submitting comments.
     Mail: Rich Malinowski, Southeast Regional Office, NMFS, 
263 13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701.
    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 (enter N/A in the required field if you wish to 
remain anonymous).
    To submit comments through the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov, enter ``NOAA-NMFS-2012-0107'' in the search field 
and click on ``search.'' After you locate the document ``Fisheries of 
the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Reef Fish Fishery of 
the Gulf of Mexico; Amendment 35,'' click the ``Submit a Comment'' link 
in that row. This will display the comment Web form. You can then enter 
your submitter information (unless you prefer to remain anonymous), and 
type your comment on the Web form. You can also attach additional files 
(up to 10MB) in Microsoft Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or Adobe PDF file 
formats only.
    Comments received through means not specified in this notice will 
not be considered.
    For further assistance with submitting a comment, see the 
``Commenting'' section at http://www.regulations.gov/#!faqs or the Help 
section at http://www.regulations.gov.
    Electronic copies of the amendment may be obtained from the 
Southeast Regional Office Web site at http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rich Malinowski, Southeast Regional 
Office, NMFS, telephone 727-824-5305; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Reef fish fishery of the Gulf of Mexico 
(Gulf) is managed under the FMP. The FMP was prepared by the Council 
and is implemented through regulations at 50 CFR part 622 under the 
authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Act. The Magnuson-Stevens Act also 
requires that NMFS, upon receiving a plan or amendment, publish an 
announcement in the Federal Register notifying the public that the plan 
or amendment is available for review and comment. All greater amberjack 
weights discussed in this notice are in round weight.

Background

    The Magnuson-Stevens Act requires NMFS and regional fishery 
management councils to prevent overfishing and achieve, on a continuing 
basis, the OY from federally managed fish stocks. These mandates are 
intended to ensure fishery resources are managed for the greatest 
overall benefit to the nation, particularly with respect to providing 
food production and recreational opportunities, and protecting marine 
ecosystems. To further this goal, the

[[Page 39461]]

Magnuson-Stevens Act requires fishery managers to specify their 
strategy to rebuild overfished stocks to a sustainable level within a 
certain time frame, to minimize bycatch and bycatch mortality to the 
extent practicable, and to establish AMs for a stock to ensure ACLs are 
not exceeded. Amendment 35 addresses these issues for greater 
amberjack.
    Since 1990, the Council and NMFS have implemented a series of 
management measures to prevent overfishing of the greater amberjack 
stock and achieve OY. Amendment 1 to the FMP added greater amberjack to 
the list of species in the FMP, set a recreational minimum size limit 
of 28 inches (71 cm), established a three-fish recreational bag limit, 
and set a commercial minimum size limit of 36 inches (91 cm)(55 FR 
2079, January 22, 1990). Amendment 12 to the FMP reduced the greater 
amberjack recreational bag limit to one fish per person per day (61 FR 
65983, December 16, 1996).
    Greater amberjack were first determined to be overfished and 
undergoing overfishing in 2000. Secretarial Amendment 2 established a 
rebuilding plan for greater amberjack, starting in 2003, based on a 
stock assessment conducted in 2000 (68 FR 39898, July 3, 2003). A 2006 
SEDAR benchmark stock assessment (SEDAR 9 2006c) determined that the 
greater amberjack stock was still overfished and undergoing 
overfishing. Amendment 30A to the FMP set the greater amberjack stock 
total allowable catch at 1,871,000 lb (848,671 kg), for the 2008 
through 2010 fishing years. Using an allocation of 73 percent for the 
recreational sector and 27 percent for the commercial sector, Amendment 
30A to the FMP established a recreational quota of 1,368,000 lb 
(620,514 kg), and a commercial quota of 503,000 lb (228,157 kg)(73 FR 
38139, July 3, 2008). Amendment 30A also established greater amberjack 
AMs. These AMs state that if a sector's landings reach, or are 
projected to reach the applicable quota, the sector would be closed for 
the remainder of the fishing year. Additionally, in the event of a 
quota overage, the respective sector's quota will be reduced in the 
following fishing year by the amount of the respective sector's quota 
overage in the prior fishing year.

Status of Stock

    In 2010, the Southeast Data, Assessment, and Review (SEDAR) stock 
assessment update (SEDAR 9 Update) was conducted for greater amberjack. 
The SEDAR 9 Update indicated that the greater amberjack stock was both 
overfished and undergoing overfishing. In January 2011, the Council's 
Science and Statistical Committee (SSC) reviewed the update assessment, 
determined the assessment to be the best scientific information 
available, and accepted its conclusions that the stock was undergoing 
overfishing and is overfished. However, the SSC rejected as unreliable 
the absolute values that resulted in the conclusions and rejected the 
assessment's yield projections. Therefore, instead of relying on 
assessment projections to set the greater amberjack overfishing limit 
(OFL) and acceptable biological catch (ABC), the SSC used the ABC 
control rule adopted by the Council in the Generic Annual Catch Limit/
Accountability Measure Amendment (Generic ACL Amendment (76 FR 82044, 
December 29, 2011)). The SSC recommended that the greater amberjack ABC 
for the next 3 years (2011-2013) be set at 1,780,000 lb (807,394 kg), 
which is 75 percent of the 2000-2009 commercial and recreational 
landings mean. The Council was notified of the greater amberjack stock 
status determination in October of 2011. A new benchmark assessment for 
greater amberjack is scheduled to occur in 2013.

Actions Contained in Amendment 35

    Amendment 35 proposes to modify the greater amberjack rebuilding 
plan, establish greater amberjack sector ACLs and ACTs (which are 
expressed as quotas in the regulatory text), revise the greater 
amberjack sector AMs, and establish a greater amberjack commercial trip 
limit.

Modifications to the Greater Amberjack Rebuilding Plan

    The 10-year greater amberjack rebuilding plan ends in 2012. This 
action would modify the rebuilding plan in response to the results from 
the SEDAR 9 Update (2010), subsequent SSC review and SSC 
recommendations for the greater amberjack ABC.
    After reviewing the SEDAR 9 Update (2010) and to emphasize the need 
for a new benchmark stock assessment, the SSC recommended a constant 
ABC of 1,780,000 lb (807,394 kg), for a 3-year time period starting in 
2011. The new stock ACL that would be established in Amendment 35 would 
equal the ABC and remain in effect unless changed in a subsequent 
amendment or framework action, but not prior to the next assessment 
which occurs in 2013. NMFS believes that ABC recommendation and 
management measures implemented by the Council will provide the 
reduction in greater amberjack fishing mortality necessary to end 
overfishing and rebuild the greater amberjack stock. When the new stock 
assessment is completed NMFS and the Council will be able to confirm 
that the greater amberjack stock has met its rebuilding schedule.

ACLs and ACTs

    An ACT is a management target established for a fishery to account 
for management uncertainty in controlling the actual catch at or below 
the ACL and is used to assist in the ACL not being exceeded. Therefore, 
a sector ACT should be set with a buffer below the sector ACL, so that 
the appropriate sector may be closed when the ACT is projected to be 
reached.
    Amendment 35 would establish the greater amberjack ACL equal to the 
ABC, and set the ACT less than the ACL to account for management 
uncertainty. The greater amberjack stock ACL would be set at 1,780,000 
lb (807,394 kg), and the stock ACT would be set at 1,539,000 lb 
(698,079 kg). Based on a 27 percent commercial and a 73 percent 
recreational allocation, the commercial sector ACL would be set at 
481,000 lb (218,178 kg), and the recreational sector ACL would be set 
at 1,299,000 lb (589,116 kg), respectively. The commercial ACT would be 
set at 409,000 lb (185,519 kg), based on a 15 percent reduction of the 
ACL to account for management uncertainty. The recreational ACT would 
be set at 1,130,000 lb (512,559 kg), based upon a 13 percent reduction 
of the ACL to account for management uncertainty.

AMs

    Amendment 35 proposes to modify the greater amberjack AMs, based on 
the sector ACLs and ACTs. Through Amendment 35, if the sector ACT is 
reached or projected to be reached, the appropriate sector would be 
closed to fishing for the remainder of the fishing year. Post-season 
AMs, such as overage adjustments, would only occur if the respective 
sector ACL was exceeded. Any ACL overage by a sector would then reduce 
both the respective sector's ACL and ACT the following year by the 
amount of the sector ACL overage in the prior fishing year.

Other Recreational Management Measures

    Amendment 35 also contains actions to consider a modification to 
the greater amberjack recreational minimum size limit and recreational 
sector's closed season. As decided by the Council, the current greater 
amberjack recreational sector minimum size limit of 30 inches (76 cm) 
and the recreational sector

[[Page 39462]]

closed season of June through July would not be modified in Amendment 
35.

Other Commercial Management Measures

    Amendment 35 contains actions to modify the commercial closed 
season and establish a commercial trip limit. In Amendment 35, the 
Council decided not to modify the current March through May commercial 
seasonal closure that was established to protect spawning aggregations 
of greater amberjack. However, Amendment 35 would establish a 2,000-lb 
(907-kg), commercial trip limit to help extend the commercial sector 
fishing season.

Proposed Rule for Amendment 35

    A proposed rule that would implement Amendment 35 has been drafted. 
In accordance with the Magnuson-Stevens Act, NMFS is evaluating 
Amendment 35 to determine whether it is consistent with the FMP, the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act, and other applicable law. If the determination is 
affirmative, NMFS will publish the proposed rule in the Federal 
Register for public review and comment.

Consideration of Public Comments

    The Council submitted Amendment 35 for Secretarial review, 
approval, and implementation. NMFS' decision to approve, partially 
approve, or disapprove Amendment 35 will be based, in part, on 
consideration of comments, recommendations, and information received 
during the comment period on this notice of availability.
    Public comments received by 5 p.m. eastern time, on September 4, 
2012, will be considered by NMFS in the approval/disapproval decision 
regarding Amendment 35.

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

    Dated: June 28, 2012.
James P. Burgess,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2012-16341 Filed 7-2-12; 8:45 am]
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