[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 71 (Thursday, April 12, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15820-15821]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-07621]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XG149


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 warrant further consideration. The 
Exempted Fishing Permit would allow commercial fishing vessels to land 
Atlantic halibut under the minimum size limit and in excess of the 
possession limit. This EFP is required to support an Atlantic halibut 
study by the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth, School for Marine 
Science and Technology, and The Nature Conservancy to improve future 
halibut stock assessments.
    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 April 27, 2018.

ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments by any of the following 
methods:
     Email: [email protected]. Include in the subject line 
``Comments on TNC Atlantic halibut EFP.''
     Mail: Michael Pentony, Regional Administrator, NMFS, 
Northeast Regional Office, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 
01930. Mark the outside of the envelope ``TNC Atlantic Halibut EFP.''

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Spencer Talmage, Fishery Management 
Specialist, 978-281-9232, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Nature Conservancy (TNC) submitted a 
complete application for an Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) on March 6, 
2018, which requests a renewal of an EFP issued last year to collect 
biological samples of halibut. The project is funded through the 
Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Program, and seeks to address identified 
information gaps in order to improve future Atlantic halibut stock 
assessments. Research focuses on characteristics such as stock 
structure, seasonal movements, behavior, and life history. The renewal 
application requests the same exemptions from the regulations that were 
approved for the 2017 fishing year. The exemptions include the Atlantic 
halibut possession limit, as described in Sec.  648.86(c), and the 
Atlantic halibut minimum size limit, as described in Sec.  
648.83(a)(1).
    The EFP would authorize 21 commercial fishing vessels to collect 
biological samples of halibut during regular fishing operations. A 
maximum of five halibut may be sampled per trip. Participating vessels 
may land halibut under the minimum size limit and/or above the 
possession limit provided these fish are transferred to participating 
researchers for additional data collection. The EFP issued for the 2017 
fishing year allowed for a total sampling size of 250 halibut sampled 
across the entirety of the project. To date, TNC has sampled 132 
halibut. The renewed EFP would increase the total sample size to 275. 
TNC requested this increase in order to fully utilize Saltonstall-
Kennedy Grant Program funding. Sampling would include recording of fish 
length and weight, as well as removal of gonads, otoliths, and genetic 
material.
    The exemption from the minimum size limit would allow researchers 
to collect data from all sizes of halibut, which is necessary to ensure 
that results of the project are accurate and reflective of the halibut 
population. The exemption from the possession limit is necessary to 
ensure that the researchers are able to obtain sufficient biological 
samples to conduct their research. No halibut above the possession 
limit or below the minimum size limit could be landed for sale.
    Fishing under the EFP would occur during the 2018 fishing year, 
from May 1, 2018 through April 30, 2019. Participating vessels would 
use multiple gear types, including handline/jig, longline, sink 
gillnet, and otter trawl. Fishing would occur throughout both the Gulf 
of Maine and the Georges Bank Regulated Mesh Areas, primarily in 
statistical areas 514, 521, 522, 525, and 526.

[[Page 15821]]

    If approved, the applicants may request minor modifications and 
extensions to the EFPs 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: April 9, 2018.
Jennifer M. Wallace,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2018-07621 Filed 4-11-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P