[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 87 (Monday, May 8, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21367-21368]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-09280]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XF384


Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic 
Fisheries; Application for Exempted Fishing Permits

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

ACTION: Notice; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable 
Fisheries, Greater Atlantic Region, NMFS, has made a preliminary 
determination that an Exempted Fishing Permit application contains all 
of the required information and warrants further consideration. This 
Exempted Fishing Permit would allow four commercial fishing vessels, 
directed by Coonamessett Farm Foundation, to be exempt from Atlantic 
sea scallop regulations for the purpose of bycatch reduction research.
    Regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act require publication of this notification to provide 
interested parties the opportunity to comment on applications for 
proposed Exempted Fishing Permits.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before May 23, 2017.

[[Page 21368]]


ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments by any of the following 
methods:
     Email: [email protected]. Include in the subject line 
``Comments on CFF Extended Link Apron EFP.''
     Mail: John K. Bullard, Regional Administrator, NMFS, NE 
Regional Office, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark 
the outside of the envelope ``Comments on CFF Extended Link Apron 
EFP.''

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Alyson Pitts, Fishery Management 
Specialist, 978-281-9352, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Coonamessett Farm Foundation (CFF) submitted 
a complete application for an Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) on March 
30, 2017, to conduct commercial fishing activities that the regulations 
would otherwise restrict. The EFP would authorize four vessels to test 
the efficacy of an extended link scallop dredge apron at reducing the 
capture of yellowtail and windowpane flounder and small scallops over 
the duration of four directed research cruises. The EFP would support 
research associated with a project titled ``Development of an Extended 
Link Apron: A Broad Range Tool for Bycatch Reduction,'' that has been 
funded under the 2017 Atlantic Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside (RSA) 
Program.
    CFF is requesting exemptions that would exempt four commercial 
fishing vessels from the following regulations:

 Atlantic sea scallop days-at-sea (DAS) allocations at 50 CFR 
648.53(b)
 Crew size restrictions at Sec.  648.51(c)
 Atlantic sea scallop observer program requirements at Sec.  
648.11(g)
 Access area program requirements at Sec.  648.59(a)(1)-(3), 
(b)(2), (b)(4)
 Rotational closed area exemptions for Closed Area I Access 
Area at Sec.  648.60(c), Closed Area II Access Area at Sec.  648.60(d), 
Closed Area II Extension Scallop Rotational Area at Sec.  648.60(e) and 
Nantucket Lightship Scallop Rotational Area at Sec.  648.60(f)
 Possession limits and minimum size requirements specified in 
50 CFR part 648, subsections B and D through O, to allow temporary 
possession for biological sampling. Any fishing activity conducted 
outside the scope of the exempted fishing activity would be prohibited.

    Four vessels would conduct scallop dredging in July 1, 2017-January 
31, 2018, on a total of four 7-day trips, for a total of 28 DAS. Each 
trip would complete approximately 15 tows per DAS for an overall total 
of 420 tows for the project. In addition to open areas, tows could 
occur in Closed Area I and II Scallop Access Areas, Closed Area II 
Extension Scallop Rotational Area, and Nantucket Lightship Scallop 
Rotational Area. Trips would be centralized around areas with high 
yellowtail and winter flounder bycatch and in areas with a mixed 
abundance of harvestable size and pre-recruit scallops.
    The four trips would fish two 15-foot (4.57-m) Turtle Deflector 
Dredges, towed for a maximum duration of 30 minutes with a tow speed of 
4.8-5.1 knots. One dredge would be rigged with a standard linked bag 
while the other would be rigged with a uni-directional extended link 
apron. Standard linking is defined as a single link between ring 
spaces, and the extended link is defined as two links linked together 
between rings. Both dredges would use 4-inch (10.16-cm) rings and a 10-
inch (25.40-cm) twine top.
    For all tows, the sea scallop catch would be counted into baskets 
and weighed. One basket from each dredge would be randomly selected and 
the scallops would be measured in 5-mm increments to determine size 
selectivity. Finfish catch would be sorted by species and then counted, 
weighed, and measured in 1-mm increments. Depending on the volume of 
scallops and finfish captured, the catch would be subsampled as 
necessary. No catch would be retained for longer than needed to conduct 
sampling and no finfish or scallop catch would be landed for sale. 
Table 1, below contains an estimate of the finfish catch anticipated 
for the project.

                            Table 1--CFF Extended Link Apron Project Catch Estimates
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                Species                      Scientific name          Number       Weight (lbs)     Weight (kg)
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NE Skate Complex (excluding barndoor    Rajidae Species.........          56,250         100,000          45,359
 skate).
Barndoor Skate........................  Dipturus laevis.........             375             500             226
Summer Flounder.......................  Paralichthys dentatus...              75             150              68
Winter Flounder.......................  Pseudopleuronectes                   225             500             226
                                         americanus.
Yellowtail Flounder...................  Limanda ferruginea......           1,500           1,500             680
Windowpane Flounder...................  Scopthalmus aquosus.....           1,500           1,500             680
Monkfish..............................  Lophius americanus......           1,750           3,500           1,587
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    CFF needs these exemptions to allow them to conduct experimental 
dredge towing without being charged DAS, and to deploy gear in closed 
access areas where concentrations of primary bycatch species are 
sufficiently high to provide statistically robust results. 
Participating vessels need crew size waivers to accommodate science 
personnel, and possession waivers will enable researchers to conduct 
finfish sampling activities. The project would be exempt from the sea 
scallop observer program requirements because activities conducted on 
the trip are not consistent with normal fishing operations.
    If approved, the applicant may request minor modifications and 
extensions to the EFP throughout the year. EFP modifications and 
extensions may be granted without further notice if they are deemed 
essential to facilitate completion of the proposed research and have 
minimal impacts that do not change the scope or impact of the initially 
approved EFP request. Any fishing activity conducted outside the scope 
of the exempted fishing activity would be prohibited.

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

    Dated: May 3, 2017.
Karen H. Abrams,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2017-09280 Filed 5-5-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P