[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 56 (Friday, March 22, 2019)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 10719-10720]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-05429]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 190220138-9138-01]
RIN 0648-XG833
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Northeast
Multispecies Fishery; Adjustment of Georges Bank and Southern New
England/Mid-Atlantic Yellowtail Flounder Annual Catch Limits
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary final rule; adjustment of annual catch limits.
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SUMMARY: This action transfers unused quota of Georges Bank and
Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic yellowtail flounder from the Atlantic
scallop fishery to the Northeast multispecies fishery for the remainder
of the 2018 fishing year. This quota transfer is authorized when the
scallop fishery is not expected to catch its entire allocations of
yellowtail flounder. The quota transfer is intended to provide
additional fishing opportunities for groundfish vessels to help achieve
the optimum yield for these stocks while ensuring sufficient amounts of
yellowtail flounder remain available for the scallop fishery.
DATES: Effective March 21, 2019, through April 30, 2019.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Emily Keiley, Fishery Management
Specialist, (978) 281-9116.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS is required to estimate the total
amount of yellowtail flounder catch from the scallop fishery by January
15 each year. If the scallop fishery is expected to catch less than 90
percent of its Georges Bank (GB) or Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic
(SNE/MA) yellowtail flounder sub-annual catch limit (ACL), the Regional
Administrator (RA) has the authority to reduce the scallop fishery sub-
ACL for these stocks to the amount projected to be caught, and increase
the groundfish fishery sub-ACL by the same amount. This adjustment is
intended to help achieve optimum yield for these stocks, while not
threatening an overage of the ACLs for the stocks by the groundfish and
scallop fisheries.
Based on the most current available catch data, we project that the
scallop fishery will have unused quota in the 2018 fishing year. Using
the highest expected catch, the scallop fishery is projected to catch
approximately 14 mt of GB yellowtail flounder, or 44 percent of its
2018 fishing year sub-ACL, and approximately 3 mt of SNE/MA yellowtail
flounder, or 80 percent of its 2018 fishing year sub-ACL. The analysis
of the highest expected catch is based on the proportion of estimated
yellowtail flounder catch occurring in February and March compared to
catch in the remainder of the scallop fishing year. The highest
proportion observed (in this case fishing year 2016) over the past six
years is used to estimate the highest expected catch in fishing year
2018.
Because the scallop fishery is expected to catch less than 90
percent of its allocation of GB and SNE/MA yellowtail flounder, this
rule reduces the scallop sub-ACL for both stocks to the upper limit
projected to be caught, and increases the groundfish sub-ACLs for these
stocks by the same amount, effective March 21, 2019, through April 30,
2019. Using the upper limit of expected yellowtail flounder catch by
the scallop fishery is expected to minimize the risk of constraining
scallop fishing or an ACL overage by the scallop fishery while still
providing additional fishing opportunities for groundfish vessels.
Table 1 summarizes the revisions to the 2018 fishing year sub-ACLs,
and Table 2 shows the revised allocations for the groundfish fishery as
allocated between the sectors and common pool based on final sector
membership for fishing year 2018.
Table 1--Georges Bank and Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic Yellowtail Flounder Sub-ACLs
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Initial sub- Revised sub-
Stock Fishery ACL (mt) Change (mt) ACL (mt) Percent change
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GB Yellowtail Flounder........ Groundfish...... 169.4 +18.53 187.93 +11
Scallop......... 33.1 -18.53 14.57 -56
SNE/MA Yellowtail Flounder.... Groundfish...... 42.5 +0.78 43.28 +2
Scallop......... 4.0 -0.78 3.22 -19
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Table 2--Allocations for Sectors and the Common Pool
[In pounds]
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GB yellowtail flounder SNE/MA yellowtail flounder
Sector name ---------------------------------------------------------------
Revised Initial Revised Initial
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GB Cod Fixed Gear Sector........................ 3,536 3,187 858 843
Maine Coast Community Sector.................... 6,958 6,272 1,263 1,240
Maine Permit Bank............................... 57 51 30 30
Northeast Coastal Communities Sector............ 23 21 205 201
Northeast Fishery Sector I...................... 0 0 0 0
Northeast Fishery Sector II..................... 7,902 7,124 1,798 1,766
Northeast Fishery Sector III.................... 9 9 1 1
[[Page 10720]]
Northeast Fishery Sector IV..................... 8,956 8,074 2,158 2,118
Northeast Fishery Sector V...................... 5,287 4,767 20,109 19,740
Northeast Fishery Sector VI..................... 11,197 10,095 5,118 5,024
Northeast Fishery Sector VII.................... 105,711 95,299 8,142 7,993
Northeast Fishery Sector VIII................... 56,731 51,144 7,513 7,376
Northeast Fishery Sector IX..................... 114 103 0 0
Northeast Fishery Sector X...................... 5 4 523 513
Northeast Fishery Sector XI..................... 6 6 19 18
Northeast Fishery Sector XII.................... 2 2 10 10
Northeast Fishery Sector XIII................... 142,936 128,858 20,064 19,696
New Hampshire Permit Bank....................... 0 0 0 0
Sustainable Harvest Sector 1.................... 3,980 3,588 86 84
Sustainable Harvest Sector 2.................... 9,258 8,346 2,100 2,061
Sustainable Harvest Sector 3.................... 45,357 40,889 7,002 6,874
Common Pool..................................... 6,290 5,671 18,418 18,081
Sector Total.................................... 408,024 367,839 76,998 75,588
Groundfish Total................................ 414,315 373,510 95,416 93,669
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Classification
The NMFS Assistant Administrator has determined that the management
measures implemented in this final rule are necessary for the
conservation and management of the Northeast multispecies fishery and
consistent with the Magnuson-Stevens Act, and other applicable law.
This action is authorized by 50 CFR part 648 and is exempt from
review under Executive Order 12866.
The Assistant Administrator for Fisheries finds good cause pursuant
to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) and 553(d)(3) to waive prior notice and
opportunity for public comment and the thirty day cooling off period,
respectively. This rule relieves groundfish fishermen from more
restrictive ACLs for yellowtail stocks and is intended to help the
fishery achieve optimum yield. The earlier this rule is in place, the
more time the groundfish fishermen will have to plan and fish for, and
potentially catch, extra available quota. Delaying the effective date
reduces the expected benefit and undermines the purpose of the rule to
help the fishery achieve optimum yield.
The authority to transfer available yellowtail catch from the
scallop fishery to the groundfish fishery was designed to allow timely
implementation before the end of the northeast multispecies fishing
year on April 30, 2019 (see 50 CFR 648.90(a)(4)(iii)(C)). NMFS is
required to project GB and SNE/MA yellowtail flounder catch in the
scallop fishery by January 15 of each year so that projected unused
quota may be transferred to the groundfish fishery. Data available for
analysis this year were delayed, and we could not make our projection
until well after January 15. As a result, providing additional time for
prior public notice and comment or a 30-day cooling off period before
transferring quota for these yellowtail flounder would likely prevent
the rule from being in place before the end of the fishing year, or
would mean that the rule would be in place too close to the end of the
fishing year to be effective, and to confer a benefit to Groundfish
fishermen. Such a delay would reduce or eliminate any potential benefit
to the groundfish fishermen from receiving the additional allocation
that is intended to offset the current negative economic effects of
severe decreases in ACLs of several important groundfish stocks.
Scallop fishermen are not expected to be adversely affected by this
rule. Projected scallop catch for the balance of the year is designed
to avoid constraining scallop catch by using the high-end estimate of
yellowtail bycatch based on previous year's catch. Further, scallop
fishermen are aware of this potential transfer at the beginning of the
fishing year and have sufficient time to plan accordingly. It also does
not require time for adjusting to any new compliance measures or other
action on the part of the scallop or groundfish fishermen.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: March 18, 2019.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-05429 Filed 3-21-19; 8:45 am]
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