[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 137 (Monday, July 18, 2016)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 46615]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-16891]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 648

[Docket No. 151211999-6343-02]
RIN 0648-XE720


Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Northeast 
Multispecies Fishery; Georges Bank Cod Trimester Total Allowable Catch 
Area Closure for the Common Pool Fishery

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

ACTION: Temporary rule; area closure.

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SUMMARY: This action closes the Georges Bank Cod Trimester Total 
Allowable Catch Area to Northeast multispecies common pool vessels 
fishing with trawl gear, sink gillnet gear, and longline/hook gear for 
the remainder of Trimester 1, through August 31, 2016. The closure is 
required by regulation because the common pool fishery has caught 90 
percent of its Trimester 1 quota for Georges Bank cod. This closure is 
intended to prevent an overage of the common pool's quota for this 
stock.This action is effective July 13, 2016, through August 31, 2016.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Liz Sullivan, Fishery Management 
Specialist, (978) 282-8493.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Federal regulations at Sec.  
648.82(n)(2)(ii) require the Regional Administrator to close a common 
pool Trimester Total Allowable Catch (TAC) Area for a stock when 90 
percent of the Trimester TAC is projected to be caught. The closure 
applies to all common pool vessels fishing with gear capable of 
catching that stock for the remainder of the trimester.
    As of July 11, 2016, the common pool fishery caught between 79 and 
89 percent of the Trimester 1 TAC (3.3 mt) for Georges Bank (GB) cod. 
We project that 90 percent of the Trimester 1 TAC will be caught within 
a few days. The fishing year 2016 common pool sub-annual catch limit 
(sub-ACL) for GB cod is 13.2 mt.
    Effective July 13, 2016, the GB Cod Trimester TAC Area is closed 
for the remainder of Trimester 1, through August 31, 2016, to all 
common pool vessels fishing with trawl gear, sink gillnet gear, and 
longline/hook gear. The GB Cod Trimester TAC Area consists of 
statistical areas 521, 522, 525, and 561. The area reopens at the 
beginning of Trimester 2 on September 1, 2016.
    If a vessel declared its trip through the Vessel Monitoring System 
(VMS) or the interactive voice response system, and crossed the VMS 
demarcation line prior to July 13, 2016, it may complete its trip 
within the Trimester TAC Area.
    Any overage of the Trimester 1 or 2 TACs must be deducted from the 
Trimester 3 TAC. If the common pool fishery exceeds its sub-ACL for the 
2016 fishing year, the overage must be deducted from the common pool's 
sub-ACL for fishing year 2017. Any uncaught portion of the Trimester 1 
and Trimester 2 TACs is carried over into the next trimester. However, 
any uncaught portion of the common pool's sub-ACL may not be carried 
over into the following fishing year.
    Weekly quota monitoring reports for the common pool fishery are on 
our Web site at: http://www.greateratlantic.fisheries.noaa.gov/ro/fso/MultiMonReports.htm. We will continue to monitor common pool catch 
through vessel trip reports, dealer-reported landings, VMS catch 
reports, and other available information, and, if necessary, we will 
make additional adjustments to common pool management measures.

Classification

    This action is required by 50 CFR part 648 and is exempt from 
review under Executive Order 12866.
    The Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA, finds good cause 
pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) and 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3) to waive prior 
notice and the opportunity for public comment and the 30-day delayed 
effectiveness period because it would be impracticable and contrary to 
the public interest.
    Regulations require the Regional Administrator to close a trimester 
TAC area to the common pool fishery when 90 percent of the Trimester 
TAC for a stock has been caught. Updated catch information only 
recently became available indicating that the common pool fishery will 
catch 90 percent of its Trimester 1 TAC for GB cod in the week of July 
11, 2016. The time necessary to provide for prior notice and comment, 
and a 30-day delay in effectiveness, prevents the immediate closure of 
the GB Cod Trimester 1 TAC Area. Delaying the effective date of a 
closure increases the likelihood that the common pool fishery will 
exceed its quota of GB cod to the detriment of this stock, which could 
undermine management objectives of the Northeast Multispecies Fishery 
Management Plan. Additionally, an overage of the common pool quota 
could cause negative economic impacts to the common pool fishery as a 
result of overage paybacks in a future trimester or fishing year.

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

    Dated: July 13, 2016.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2016-16891 Filed 7-13-16; 4:15 pm]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P