[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 7 (Thursday, January 10, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2254-2255]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-00355]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XC397


Fisheries Off West Coast States and in the Western Pacific; 
Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; Application for an Exempted Fishing 
Permit

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

ACTION: Notice; receipt of EFP applications; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces the receipt of exempted fishing permit (EFP) 
applications for 2013 and 2014, and is considering issuance of EFPs for 
vessels participating in the EFP fisheries. The EFPs are necessary to 
allow activities that are otherwise prohibited by Federal regulations. 
The EFPs would be effective no earlier than February 11, 2013, and 
would expire no later than December 31, 2014, but could be terminated 
earlier under terms and conditions of the EFPs and other applicable 
laws.

DATES: Comments must be received no later than 5 p.m., local time on 
February 11, 2013.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by RIN 0648-XC397, by 
any one of the following methods:
     Email: [email protected].
     Fax: 206-526-6736, Attn: Gretchen Hanshew.
     Mail: William W. Stelle, Regional Administrator, Northwest 
Region, NMFS, 7600 Sand Point Way NE., Seattle, WA 98115-0070, Attn: 
Gretchen Hanshew.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To view copies of the EFP 
applications,

[[Page 2255]]

visit the Pacific Council Web site at www.pcouncil.org and browse the 
June 2012 Briefing Book; or contact Gretchen Hanshew (Northwest Region, 
NMFS), phone: 206-526-6147, fax: 206-526-6736.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This action is authorized by the Pacific 
Coast Groundfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP) and the Magnuson-Stevens 
Fishery Conservation and Management Act provisions at 50 CFR 600.745, 
which states that EFPs may be used to authorize fishing activities that 
would otherwise be prohibited. At the June 2012 Pacific Fishery 
Management Council (Council) meeting in San Mateo, CA, the Council 
considered applications for three EFPs from: (1) Steven Fosmark; (2) 
the San Francisco Community Fishing Association and Dan Platt; and (3) 
the Central Coast Sustainable Groundfish Association and their 
collaborators. An opportunity for public testimony was provided during 
the Council meeting. For more details on these EFP applications and to 
view copies of the applications, see the Pacific Council's Web site at 
www.pcouncil.org and browse the June 2012 Briefing Book. The Council 
recommended that NMFS consider issuing the following EFPs, and that 
those EFPs be issued for 2 years. The 2-year duration is intended 
coincide with the 2013-2014 biennial harvest specifications and 
management measures process. Therefore, to reduce the administrative 
burden of issuing annual EFPs during the 2-year management cycle, NMFS 
is considering issuing the EFPs described below for a 2-year period. 
The EFPs issued for this 2-year period would expire no later than 
December 31, 2014, but could be terminated earlier under terms and 
conditions of the EFPs and other applicable laws.

Commercial Chilipepper EFP

    Steven Fosmark submitted an application for a 2-year EFP. The 
primary purpose of the EFP is to test if a specific longline gear 
configuration can be used in the commercial fishery to target 
underutilized chilipepper rockfish, while keeping bycatch of overfished 
species low.

Commercial Yellowtail EFP

    The San Francisco Community Fishing Association and Dan Platt 
submitted an application for a 2-year EFP. The primary purpose of the 
EFP is to test a commercial hook and line gear to target underutilized 
yellowtail rockfish, while keeping bycatch of overfished species low.

Collaborative Fishing Survey EFP

    The Central Coast Sustainable Groundfish Association submitted a 
proposal for a 2-year EFP, along with their collaborators: The Nature 
Conservancy; Environmental Defense Fund; various local industry 
research partners; and various academic scientific advisors and 
partners. The primary purpose of the EFP is to ground-truth estimates 
of spatial distribution of overfished species within parts of the 
rockfish conservation area, an area closed to groundfish fishing to 
protect overfished species, in order to see if there are areas that may 
be fished with low impacts to overfished species.

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

    Dated: January 7, 2013.
Lindsay Fullenkamp,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2013-00355 Filed 1-9-13; 8:45 am]
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