[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 157 (Thursday, August 14, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Page 47619]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-19242]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XD384


Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; 
Reef Fish Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico; Exempted Fishing Permit

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

ACTION: Notice; extension of duration of an exempted fishing permit.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces the effective date for an exempted fishing 
permit (EFP) for goliath grouper research by Dr. Chris Koenig (Florida 
State University) and Dr. Chris Stallings (University of South Florida) 
is extended from August 28, 2014, to October 15, 2014. The issued EFP 
authorizes Drs. Koenig and Stallings to use trained for-hire fishermen 
to temporarily possess goliath grouper for non-lethal sampling during 
the course of their normal fishing activities.

ADDRESSES: The application and related documents are available for 
review upon written request to any of the following addresses:
     Email: [email protected]. Include in the subject line of 
the email the following document identifier: ``FSU--EFP''.
     Mail: Peter Hood, Southeast Regional Office, NMFS, 263 
13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Peter Hood, 727-824-5305; email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The EFP was granted under the authority of 
the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 
1801 et seq.), and regulations at 50 CFR 600.745(b) concerning exempted 
fishing. A notice of receipt of an application for an EFP published in 
the Federal Register on June 28, 2012 (77 FR 38585) and solicited 
public comment. No public comments were received on the notice and the 
Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council supported the issuance of the 
EFP. The EFP was issued by NMFS on July 17, 2012, with an expiration 
date of August 29, 2014.
    The described research is part of a life history study of goliath 
grouper and includes a regional age structure study. This research is 
funded by NOAA through the Marine Fisheries Initiative (cooperative 
agreement number NA11NMF4330123). The research involves for-hire 
fishermen in the collection of biological information from up to 1,000 
goliath grouper. The collection activities covered under the EFP for 
scientific research involves activities that could otherwise be 
prohibited by regulations at 50 CFR part 622, as they pertain to reef 
fish managed by the Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic fishery 
management councils (councils). The applicant requests authorization to 
extend the duration of the EFP because approximately 60 percent of the 
1,000 goliath grouper have been sampled and they do not anticipate 
reaching the project's sample size by the current deadline. The EFP 
allows for-hire fishermen to temporarily possess goliath grouper for 
non-lethal sampling during the course of their normal fishing 
activities. Extending the duration of the EFP from August 28, 2014, to 
October 15, 2014, will allow the applicants the opportunity to achieve 
their desired number of samples and thereby more fully meet the 
objectives of the EFP.
    Therefore, NMFS extends the duration of the EFP from August 28, 
2014, to October 15, 2014, because sampling will remain within the 
scope of activities already approved for the EFP. This notice serves to 
notify the public of the change in duration of the EFP.

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

    Dated: August 11, 2014.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2014-19242 Filed 8-13-14; 8:45 am]
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