[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 98 (Tuesday, May 21, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23020-23023]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-10565]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-BI08
Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Amendment 13 to the 2006
Consolidated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Fishery Management Plan
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of intent (NOI) to prepare an environmental impact
analysis; notice of availability of issues and options paper; request
for comments.
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SUMMARY: NMFS announces its intent to prepare an environmental impact
analysis under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and the
availability of the Issues and Options Paper for Amendment 13 to the
2006 Consolidated Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Fishery Management
Plan (FMP) (Issues and Options Paper). This notice announces the start
of a public process for determining the scope of significant issues
related to the management of Atlantic bluefin tuna (bluefin), and
addressing issues identified by considering modification of bluefin
regulations. The catalysts for beginning this regulatory process are
the release of the Draft Three-Year Review of the IBQ Program (Three-
Year Review), recent changes in the bluefin fishery, and advice and
input from the HMS Advisory Panel and the public.
The environmental impact analysis will include an assessment of the
potential effects of alternative measures for management of bluefin
under the 2006 Consolidated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Fishery
Management Plan (2006 Consolidated HMS FMP). The subjects in the Issues
and Options Paper include refining the Individual Bluefin Quota (IBQ)
Program, reassessing allocation of the bluefin quota and subquota,
including the potential elimination or phasing out of the Purse Seine
category, and other regulatory provisions regarding directed fisheries
and incidental pelagic longline fisheries. The scoping process and
environmental impact analysis would determine whether existing
management measures are the best means of achieving current management
objectives and providing flexibility to adapt to variability in the
future, consistent with the 2006 Consolidated HMS FMP, the Magnuson-
Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act),
the Atlantic Tunas Convention Act (ATCA), and other relevant Federal
laws. NMFS will use the scoping process and the draft environmental
impact analysis to consider development of Amendment 13 to the 2006
Consolidated HMS FMP, if warranted.
NMFS is requesting comments on this NOI and the management options
described in the Issues and Options Paper, and other potential
regulatory provisions regarding the bluefin directed fisheries and
incidental pelagic longline fishery that would meet the purpose and
need for this action. NMFS will hold public scoping meetings and a
webinar to gather comment on these measures and potential management
options. The time and location details of the scoping meetings and
webinar will be announced in a separate Federal Register notice. NMFS
will also present
[[Page 23021]]
the Issues and Options Paper at the HMS Advisory Panel Meeting on May
22, 2019 (https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/event/may-2019-hms-advisory-panel-meeting).
DATES: Written comments on this NOI and the scoping document must be
received on or before July 31, 2019.
ADDRESSES: The presentation at the HMS Advisory Panel will be held at
the Sheraton Silver Spring Hotel, 8777 Georgia Avenue, Silver Spring,
MD 20910. You may submit comments, identified by ``NOAA-NMFS-2019-
0042,'' by either of the following methods:
Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for: NOAA-NMFS-2019-0042, click the
``Comment Now!'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter or
attach your comments.
Mail: Tom Warren, Highly Migratory Species Management
Division, NOAA Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, 55 Great
Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930.
Instructions: Comments sent by any other method, or to any other
address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period,
may not be considered. All comments received are a part of the public
record and will generally be posted to http://www.regulations.gov
without change. All Personal Identifying Information (e.g., name,
address), confidential business information, or otherwise sensitive
information submitted voluntarily by the sender will be publicly
accessible. NMFS will accept anonymous comments (enter ``N/A'' in the
required fields if you wish to remain anonymous).
The Issues and Options Paper is available by sending your request
to Tom Warren at the mailing address specified above, or by calling the
phone numbers indicated below. The Issues and Options Paper, the Three-
Year Review, the 2006 Consolidated HMS FMP, and FMP amendments may also
be downloaded from the HMS website at: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/amendment-13-2006-consolidated-hms-fishery-management-plan-bluefin-management-measures.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tom Warren at 978-281-9347, or Carrie
Soltanoff at 301-427-8587, or online at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/topic/atlantic-highly-migratory-species.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Regulations implemented under the authority of ATCA (16 U.S.C. 971
et seq.) and the Magnuson-Stevens Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.)
governing the harvest of Atlantic HMS, including bluefin, by persons
and vessels subject to U.S. jurisdiction are found at 50 CFR part 635.
The 1999 Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Tunas, Swordfish, and
Sharks (1999 FMP) allocated the annual U.S. bluefin quota recommended
by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas
(ICCAT) to bluefin quota categories based on landings from 1983-1991.
Landings were the only portion of catch (i.e., ``catch'' includes both
landings and dead discards) that were factored into the 1999 FMP
percentage allocation analysis for the various bluefin fisheries at
that time, as dead discards were accounted for under a separate ICCAT
allocation. In 2006, NMFS finalized the 2006 Consolidated Atlantic HMS
FMP, to simplify management and better coordinate domestic conservation
and management of Atlantic HMS. This consolidated HMS FMP carried
forward many of the objectives and measures from the 1999 FMP (e.g.,
reduce dead discard and post-release mortality of Atlantic HMS in
directed and non-directed fisheries; reduce bycatch and bycatch
mortality). The bluefin quota category percentage allocations continued
unchanged in the 2006 Consolidated HMS FMP.
Amendment 7 to the 2006 Consolidated HMS FMP (Amendment 7; 79 FR
71510, December 2, 2014) implemented several measures for the pelagic
longline fishery including, but not limited to, gear restricted areas,
the IBQ catch share program, and catch reporting of each pelagic
longline set using vessel monitoring systems. Amendment 7 also
implemented an annual adjustment of the Purse Seine category quota,
using a formula based on the catch by purse seine fishery participants
in the previous year. This allows NMFS to adjust the Purse Seine
category quota either upwards or downwards based on recent fishing
activity. Amendment 7 provided the opportunity for Purse Seine category
participants to lease quota to (or from) pelagic longline vessels to
ensure that the IBQ leasing market met the needs of the pelagic
longline fishery to account for bluefin catch, and provided additional
flexibility for the Purse Seine category participants.
The most recent stock assessment for western Atlantic bluefin was
conducted in 2017 by the Standing Committee on Research and Statistics
(SCRS), the scientific body of ICCAT. At its November 2017 meeting,
after considering the SCRS advice, ICCAT adopted a recommendation for
an interim conservation and management plan for western Atlantic
bluefin tuna for 2018 through 2020 (ICCAT Recommendation 17-06).
Following the 2017 stock assessment, and after applying domestic stock
status determination criteria, NMFS concluded that the overfished
status of the bluefin stock was unknown, and that the stock was not
subject to overfishing. NMFS stated that changing from ``overfished''
to ``unknown'' status was appropriate, given the continued inability to
resolve the two widely divergent stock recruitment scenarios approach
taken under past SCRS stock assessments, and the SCRS' use of a
different approach based on the fishing mortality rate in the 2017
assessment.
In Amendment 7, NMFS proposed and finalized a plan to formally
evaluate the success and performance of the IBQ Program after three
years of operation and to provide the HMS Advisory Panel with a
publicly-available written document with its findings. The Draft Three-
Year Review contains preliminary conclusions of the program's
effectiveness in meeting the goals and objectives specified in
Amendment 7, as well as evaluates the various components of this catch
share program. The Three-Year Review was released on May 10, 2019, and
included analyses of the IBQ Program since its inception. Amendment 7
anticipated that NMFS would consider regulatory changes to the IBQ
Program after its formal review. The Draft Three-Year Review provides a
large amount of data and is relevant for consideration of such changes.
The Draft Three-Year Review made a preliminary conclusion that the
IBQ Program fully achieved many Amendment 7 objectives such as reducing
bluefin dead discards, providing incentives to avoid bluefin,
implementing individual accountability for bluefin catch, providing
flexibility to obtain quota from other vessels, and minimizing
constraints on fishing for target species. However, the review found
that the IBQ Program only partially achieved the objective of
maintaining profitability. The Three-Year Review also made the
following preliminary recommendations regarding the IBQ Program
components (not to be confused with the objectives). Regarding share
distributions and IBQ individual accountability rules, the Three-Year
Review recommended considering a different method of share or quota
distribution among participants. The current share distribution method
[[Page 23022]]
reflects historical catch and participants in the fishery, but may not
reflect current fishery participation, nor align with the need for
quota. Regarding Accumulation Caps, the Draft Three-Year Review stated:
``A more conservative cap on the amount of IBQ used or owned should be
considered to reduce the risk of entities controlling a large
percentage of IBQ.'' The Issues and Options Paper for Amendment 13
includes options to address these issues.
Similar to the pelagic longline fishery, the directed bluefin
fisheries have evolved over time, and the Issues and Options Paper
includes several issues related to the directed bluefin fisheries.
Since 1982, the Purse Seine category has been limited to participants
who historically were financially dependent on the fishery. Although
new entrants are prohibited, an owner of a vessel with an Atlantic
Tunas permit in the Purse Seine category may transfer the permit to
another purse seine vessel that he or she owns. In the purse seine
fishery, since 2015, there have been no landings of bluefin by purse
seine vessels. Only one purse seine vessel operated, made only a small
number of sets over a couple of years, and accounted for only a small
percentage of commercial bluefin landings between 2005 and 2015 (one,
twelve, two, less than one, eight, six, and five percent of commercial
bluefin landings in 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015,
respectively). While the purse seine fishery has been mostly inactive
over the past decade-plus, handgear fisheries have remained very
active, landing large amounts of bluefin in recent years, and have
renewed interest in the optimal and fair allocation of bluefin quota
among seasons and geographic areas.
HMS Advisory Panel members and the public have suggested sun-
setting or phasing out the purse seine fishery to optimize the
utilization of bluefin quota and increase certainty in the bluefin
fishery. Many permitted commercial and recreational vessels that may
target bluefin, as well as the pelagic longline vessels that may not
target bluefin, but that rely on bluefin quota to facilitate directed
fishing operations for target species, would benefit from additional
bluefin quota and increased certainty regarding quota availability.
Prior to Amendment 7, the Purse Seine category was allocated 18.5
percent (over 150 mt) of the U.S. bluefin quota. Since 2015, when
Amendment 7 implemented an annual redistribution of Purse Seine
category quota (to the Reserve category) based on the previous year's
catch by the purse seine fishery, the Purse Seine category quota has
been adjusted downward. Amendment 7 also implemented the ability of the
purse seine fishery participants to lease IBQ to or from the pelagic
longline fishery. In 2018 and 2019, the Purse Seine category quota was
adjusted downward from its baseline amount of 219.5 to 55 mt
(representing four percent of the bluefin quota), and limited amounts
of bluefin quota were leased to pelagic longline vessels within the IBQ
Program. Although limited in scope, IBQ leases from Purse Seine
participants to pelagic longline vessel owners were a meaningful
initial component of the IBQ Program, contributing to a successful
leasing market. Redistribution of Purse Seine category quota may
provide more quota to active bluefin fisheries, which may address
desire for more flexibility and concerns about premature fishery
closures, as well as provide additional quota for allocation to the
pelagic longline fishery.
The Amendment 13 Issues and Options Paper will be used in 2019 for
scoping, a public process during which NMFS will consider a range of
issues and objectives, as well as possible options, for bluefin
management. The options being presented in the Issues and Options Paper
consider the preliminary results of the Draft Three-Year Review and
respond to recent changes in the bluefin fishery and input from the
public and HMS Advisory Panel. The options include refining the IBQ
program, reassessing allocation of bluefin tuna quotas (including the
potential elimination or phasing out of the Purse Seine category) and
other regulatory provisions regarding bluefin directed fisheries and
bycatch in the pelagic longline fishery, to determine if existing
measures are the best means of achieving current management objectives
for bluefin management. During scoping, public feedback will be
accepted via written comments or at scoping meetings as described in
separate Federal Register notices.
NMFS has several ongoing actions affecting HMS management that are,
or soon will be, available for public comment. While each of these
actions are separate, they are interrelated in some ways, and the
comment periods may overlap. Depending on the outcomes, each action
could have impacts on the other actions. As noted above, NMFS recently
released the Draft Three-Year Review, which is expected to be finalized
in September 2019 after consideration by the HMS Advisory Panel. The
following details about these ongoing actions are provided for the
regulated community's information and background.
NMFS is currently in the process of developing a Proposed Rule
Modifying Pelagic Longline Bluefin Tuna Area-Based and Weak Hook
Management Measures. To analyze the potential environmental effects of
a range of alternatives, NMFS recently released a Draft Environmental
Impact Statement (DEIS). The DEIS evaluates whether current area-based
and gear management measures remain necessary to reduce and/or maintain
low numbers of bluefin tuna discards and interactions in the pelagic
longline fishery, given more recent management measures, including the
IBQ Program. The DEIS prefers alternatives that undertake a process to
evaluate the need for the Northeastern United States Closed Area and
the Gulf of Mexico Gear Restricted Area; removes the Cape Hatteras Gear
Restricted Area; and adjusts the Gulf of Mexico weak hook effective
period from year-round to seasonal (January-June). The comment period
for the DEIS and for an anticipated Proposed Rule will be open through
July 31, 2019. After consideration of public comment, NMFS expect to
finalize the rule in the late fall of 2019. The proposed rule related
to this DEIS is expected to be released shortly.
Recently, NMFS also released an Issues and Options Paper
considering approaches to collect data and perform research in areas
that are currently closed to certain gears or fishing activities for
Atlantic HMS. Such research will help evaluate and support spatial
fisheries management for Atlantic HMS. ``Spatial management'' refers to
a suite of fisheries conservation and management measures that are
based on geographic area. When some spatial management tools, such as
closed areas, are deployed, the collection of fishery-dependent data is
reduced or eliminated. This loss of data can compromise effective
fisheries management. The Issues and Options Paper considers approaches
to collect data and perform research in areas that may otherwise
restrict commercial or recreational fishing, making the collection of
fisheries-dependent data challenging or not possible. During scoping,
public feedback will be accepted via written comments or at scoping
meetings as described in separate Federal Register notices.
Finally, NMFS has also recently published an Issues and Options
Paper for Amendment 14 that reviews annual catch limits and other
target reference points for sharks. This action could result in a
different process for establishing the annual catch limits for sharks,
and therefore could affect all fishermen, commercial and recreational,
that target or incidentally catch sharks. During scoping, public
feedback will be
[[Page 23023]]
accepted via written comments or scoping meetings as described a
separate Federal Register notice.
Scoping Process
NMFS encourages all persons affected or otherwise interested in
bluefin management measures to participate in the process to determine
the scope and significance of issues to be analyzed in the draft
environmental impact analysis and regulatory action for Amendment 13.
All such persons are encouraged to submit written comments (see
ADDRESSES), and are welcome to address the specific measures in the
Issues and Options Paper. Comments may also be submitted at one of the
scoping meetings or the public webinar to be identified in a future
Federal Register notice.
NMFS intends to hold scoping meetings in the geographic areas that
may be affected by these measures, including locations on the Atlantic
and Gulf of Mexico coasts, and will consult with the regional fishery
management councils in the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico. NMFS expects to
present the scoping document at the May 21-23, 2019 HMS Advisory Panel
meeting (see ADDRESSES).
After scoping has been completed and public comment gathered and
analyzed, NMFS will determine if it is necessary to proceed with
preparation of a draft environmental impact analysis and proposed rule
for Amendment 13, which would include additional opportunities for
public comment. The scope of the draft environmental impact analysis
would consist of the range of actions, alternatives, and impacts to be
considered. Alternatives may include, but are not limited to, the
following: Not amending the current regulations (i.e., taking no
action); developing a regulatory action that contains management
measures such as those described in the Issues and Options Paper; or
other reasonable courses of action. This scoping process also will
identify, and eliminate from further detailed analysis, issues that may
not meet the purpose and need of the action.
The process of developing a regulatory action is expected to take
approximately two years.
Until the draft environmental impact analysis and proposed rule are
finalized or until other regulations are put into place, the current
regulations remain in effect.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 971 et seq.; 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: May 16, 2019.
Kelly L. Denit,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-10565 Filed 5-20-19; 8:45 am]
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