[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 184 (Tuesday, September 23, 2014)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 56669]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-22572]



[[Page 56669]]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 648

[Docket No. 130919816-4205-02]
RIN 0648-XD501


Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Atlantic Herring 
Fishery; 2014 Sub-Annual Catch Limit (ACL) Harvested for Management 
Area 3

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

ACTION: Temporary rule; directed fishery closure.

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SUMMARY: NMFS is closing the directed herring fishery in management 
Area 3, because it projects that 92 percent of the 2014 catch limit for 
that area will have been caught by the effective date. This action is 
necessary to comply with the regulations implementing the Atlantic 
Herring Fishery Management Plan and is intended to prevent excess 
harvest in Area 3.

DATES: Effective 0001 hr local time, September 23, 2014, through 
December 31, 2014.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carly Bari, Fishery Management 
Specialist, (978) 281-9224.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The reader can find regulations governing 
the herring fishery at 50 CFR part 648. The regulations require annual 
specification of the overfishing limit, acceptable biological catch, 
annual catch limit (ACL), optimum yield, domestic harvest and 
processing, U.S. at-sea processing, border transfer, and sub-ACLs for 
each management area. The 2014 Domestic Annual Harvest is 107,800 
metric tons (mt); the 2014 sub-ACL allocated to Area 3 is 42,000 mt, 
and 1,260 mt of the Area 3 sub-ACL is set aside for research (78 FR 
61828, October 4, 2013). The 2014 Area 3 sub-ACL was reduced to 40,675 
mt to account for a 1,325 mt overage in 2012 (79 FR 15253, March 19, 
2014).
    The regulations at Sec.  648.201 require that when the NMFS 
Administrator of the Greater Atlantic Region (Regional Administrator) 
projects herring catch will reach 92 percent of the sub-ACL allocated 
in any of the four management areas designated in the Atlantic Herring 
Fishery Management Plan (FMP), NMFS will prohibit herring vessel permit 
holders from fishing for, catching, possessing, transferring, or 
landing more than 2,000 lb (907.2 kg) of herring per trip or calendar 
day in or from the specified management area for the remainder of the 
fishing year. The Regional Administrator monitors the herring fishery 
catch in each of the management areas based on dealer reports, state 
data, and other available information. NMFS publishes notification in 
the Federal Register of the date that the catch is projected to reach 
92 percent of the management area sub-ACL and closure of the directed 
fishery in the management area for the remainder of the fishing year. 
After the closure, no vessel may offload and/or sell more than 2,000 lb 
(907.2 kg) of herring from Area 3 unless that vessel entered port 
before the closure. During the directed fishery closure, vessels may 
transit Area 3 with more than 2,000 lb (907.2 kg) of herring on board 
only under the conditions specified below.
    The Regional Administrator has determined, based on dealer reports 
and other available information, that the herring fleet will have 
caught 92 percent of the total herring sub-ACL allocated to Area 3 
(37,421 mt) for 2014 by September 23, 2014. Therefore, effective 0001 
hr local time, September 23, 2014, federally permitted vessels may not 
fish for, catch, possess, transfer, or land more than 2,000 lb (907.2 
kg) of herring per trip or calendar day, in or from Area 3 through 
December 31, 2014, except that vessels that have entered port before 
0001 hr on September 23, 2014, may offload and sell more than 2,000 lb 
(907.2 kg) of herring from Area 3 from that trip after the closure. 
During the directed fishery closure, September 23, 2014, through 
December 31, 2014, a vessel may transit through Area 3 with more than 
2,000 lb (907.2 kg) of herring on board, provided the vessel did not 
fish for or catch more than 2,000 lb (907.2 kg) of herring in Area 3 
and stows all fishing gear aboard, making it unavailable for immediate 
use as required by Sec.  648.2. Effective 0001 hr, September 23, 2014, 
NMFS also advises federally permitted dealers that they may not receive 
herring from federally permitted herring vessels that harvest more than 
2,000 lb (907.2 kg) of herring from Area 3 through 2400 hr local time, 
December 31, 2014, unless it is from a trip landed by a vessel that 
entered port before 0001 hr on September 23, 2014. Beginning on January 
1, 2015, the 2015 allocation for Area 3 becomes available.

Classification

    This action is required by 50 CFR part 648 and is exempt from 
review under Executive Order 12866.
    NMFS finds good cause pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) to waive prior 
notice and the opportunity for public comment because it would be 
contrary to the public interest and impracticable. This action closes 
the directed herring fishery for Management Area 3 through December 31, 
2014, under current regulations. The regulations at Sec.  648.201(a) 
require such action to ensure that herring vessels do not exceed the 
2014 sub-ACL allocated to Area 3. The herring fishery opened for the 
2014 fishing year on January 1, 2014. Data indicating the herring fleet 
will have landed at least 92 percent of the 2014 sub-ACL allocated to 
Area 3 have only recently become available. If implementation of this 
closure is delayed to solicit prior public comment, the sub-ACL for 
Area 3 for this fishing year may be exceeded, thereby undermining the 
conservation objectives of the FMP. If sub-ACLs are exceeded, the 
excess must also be deducted from a future sub-ACL and would reduce 
future fishing opportunities. NMFS further finds, pursuant to 5 U.S.C 
553(d)(3), good cause to waive the 30-day delayed effectiveness period 
for the reasons stated above.

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

    Dated: September 17, 2014.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2014-22572 Filed 9-18-14; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P