[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 216 (Thursday, November 7, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66900-66901]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-26768]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-BD68


Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; 
Amendment 28 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Reef Fish Resources 
of the Gulf of Mexico

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

ACTION: Notice of intent (NOI) to prepare a draft environmental impact 
statement (DEIS); scoping; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS, Southeast Region, in collaboration with the Gulf of 
Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) intends to prepare a DEIS 
to describe and analyze management alternatives to be included in 
Amendment 28 to the Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for the Reef Fish 
Resources of the Gulf of Mexico (Amendment 28). These alternatives will 
consider measures to reallocate red snapper resources between the 
commercial and recreational sectors with the purpose of increasing the 
net benefits and the stability of the red snapper component of the reef 
fish fishery. The purpose of this NOI is to solicit public comments on 
the scope of issues to be addressed in the DEIS.

DATES: Written comments on the scope of issues to be addressed in the 
DEIS must be received by NMFS by December 9, 2013.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on Amendment 28 identified by 
``NOAA-NMFS-2013-0146'' by any of the following methods:
     Electronic submissions: Submit electronic comments via the 
Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Go to 
www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-2013-0146, click the 
``Comment Now!'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter or 
attach your comments.
     Mail: Submit written comments to Peter Hood, Southeast 
Regional Office, NMFS, 263 13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701.
    Instructions: Comments sent by any other method, to any other 
address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period, 
may not be considered by NMFS. All comments received are a part of the 
public record and will generally be posted for public viewing on 
www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying 
information (e.g., name, address, etc.), confidential business 
information, or otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily 
by the sender will be publicly accessible. NMFS will accept anonymous 
comments (enter ``N/A'' in the required fields if you wish to remain 
anonymous). Attachments to electronic comments will be accepted in 
Microsoft Word, Excel, or Adobe PDF file formats only.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Peter Hood, Southeast Regional Office, 
telephone: (727) 824-5305; or email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Beginning in 2006, the Council expressed its 
intent to evaluate and possibly adjust the allocation of reef fish 
resources between the commercial and recreational sectors. Amendment 28 
was initially developed by the Council to address changes in the 
allocation of grouper species, but the Council put this amendment on 
hold while they developed a fishery allocation policy consistent with 
NOAA's Catch Share Policy. For both Amendment 28 and the Council's 
catch share policy, public input was solicited at Council meetings.
    When the Council started discussing Amendment 28 again in October 
2012, the Council added red snapper to the species to be considered. In 
February 2013, the Council determined this amendment should focus 
solely on red snapper allocation to address shortened recreational 
season lengths and recreational quota overages. The Council decided the 
purpose of Amendment 28 is to consider changes to the commercial and 
recreational red snapper allocations to increase the net benefits from 
red snapper fishing and increase the stability of the red snapper 
component of the reef fish fishery, particularly for the recreational 
sector that has experienced progressively shorter seasons. The Council 
also recognized that the resulting reallocation among the sectors must 
distribute benefits expected from red snapper resources in a fair and 
equitable manner. The need for the proposed action, as stated by the 
Council, is to prevent overfishing while achieving the optimum yield, 
particularly with respect to food production and recreational 
opportunities, while rebuilding the red snapper stock.
    After considering the economic analyses conducted by NMFS, the loss 
of fishing opportunities by the recreational sector due to shorter 
fishing seasons, and public comments provided at Council meetings, the 
Council concluded that increasing the allocation

[[Page 66901]]

of red snapper to the commercial sector would not meet the purpose and 
need of Amendment 28. Therefore, the Council intends to consider 
alternatives that would increase the recreational sector's allocation 
to more than the current 49 percent. Alternatives within Amendment 28 
include a ``no action'' alternative where the current 51 percent 
commercial to 49 percent recreational allocation remains unchanged. 
Additionally, Amendment 28 also contains alternatives that shift 
allocation to the recreational sector by the amount of 3 percent, 5 
percent, or 10 percent from the commercial to the recreational sector. 
Finally, Amendment 28 contains alternatives that shift either 100 
percent or 75 percent of any total combined commercial and recreational 
quota in excess of 9.12 million lb (4.137 million kg) to the 
recreational sector. This harvest level, 9.12 million lb (4.137 million 
kg), was considered a baseline by the Council because it is the total 
allowable catch the commercial and recreational red snapper quotas were 
based on prior to the revised rebuilding plan implemented through 
Amendment 27 to the FMP. The combined 2013 commercial and recreational 
quotas currently equal 11.0 million lb (5.0 million kg).
    At the February 2013 meeting, the Council postponed further 
development of Amendment 28 until the 2013 red snapper stock assessment 
was completed. The Southeast Data, Assessment, and Review (SEDAR) 
benchmark assessment for Gulf red snapper (SEDAR 31), was completed in 
June 2013, and the Council has discussed and heard public comments on 
Amendment 28 at the June 2013 and August 2013 meetings.
    NMFS, in collaboration with the Council, will develop a DEIS to 
describe and analyze alternatives to address the management needs 
described above including the ``no action'' alternative. In accordance 
with NOAA's Administrative Order 216-6, Section 5.02(c), Scoping 
Process, NMFS, in collaboration with the Council, has identified 
preliminary environmental issues as a means to initiate discussion for 
scoping purposes only. The public is invited to provide written 
comments on the preliminary issues, which are identified as actions and 
alternative in the Amendment 28 draft options paper and action guide. 
These preliminary issues may not represent the full range of issues 
that eventually will be evaluated in the DEIS. A copy of the Amendment 
28 draft options paper and action guide are available at http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/sustainable_fisheries/gulf_fisheries/reef_fish/index.html.
    After the DEIS associated with Amendment 28 is completed, it will 
be filed with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). After filing, 
the EPA will publish a notice of availability of the DEIS for public 
comment in the Federal Register. The DEIS will have a 45-day comment 
period. This procedure is pursuant to regulations issued by the Council 
on Environmental Quality (CEQ) for implementing the procedural 
provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA; 40 CFR parts 
1500-1508) and to NOAA's Administrative Order 216-6 regarding NOAA's 
compliance with NEPA and the CEQ regulations.
    The Council and NMFS will consider public comments received on the 
DEIS in developing the final environmental impact statement (FEIS), and 
before voting to submit the final amendment to NMFS for Secretarial 
review, approval, and implementation. NMFS will announce in the Federal 
Register the availability of the final amendment and FEIS for public 
review during the Secretarial review period, and will consider all 
public comments prior to final agency action to approve, disapprove, or 
partially approve the final amendment.
    NMFS will announce, through a document published in the Federal 
Register, all public comment periods on the final amendment, its 
proposed implementing regulations, and the availability of its 
associated FEIS. NMFS will consider all public comments received during 
the Secretarial review period, whether they are on the final amendment, 
the proposed regulations, or the FEIS, prior to final agency action.

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

    Dated: November 4, 2013.
Kelly Denit,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2013-26768 Filed 11-6-13; 8:45 am]
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