[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 151 (Tuesday, August 6, 2019)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 38143-38145]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-16733]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 635

[Docket No. 180117042-8884-02]
RIN 0648-XT010


Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Atlantic Bluefin Tuna 
Fisheries

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

ACTION: Temporary rule; inseason quota transfer.

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SUMMARY: NMFS is transferring 15 metric tons (mt) of Atlantic bluefin 
tuna (BFT) quota from the Reserve category to the Harpoon category. 
With this transfer, the adjusted Harpoon category quota for the 2019 
fishing season is 91 mt. The 2019 Harpoon category fishery is open 
until November 15, 2019, or until the Harpoon category quota is 
reached, whichever comes first. The action is based on consideration of 
the regulatory determination criteria regarding inseason adjustments, 
and applies to Atlantic tunas Harpoon category (commercial) permitted 
vessels.

DATES: Effective August 1, 2019, through November 15, 2019.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sarah McLaughlin, 978-281-9260, or 
Larry Redd, 301-427-8503.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Regulations implemented under the authority 
of the Atlantic Tunas Convention Act (ATCA; 16 U.S.C. 971 et seq.) and 
the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-
Stevens Act; 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.) governing the harvest of BFT by 
persons and vessels subject to U.S. jurisdiction are found at 50 CFR 
part 635. Section 635.27 subdivides the U.S. BFT quota recommended by 
the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas 
(ICCAT) and as implemented by the United States among the various 
domestic fishing categories, per the allocations established in 
Amendment 7 to the 2006 Consolidated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species 
Fishery Management Plan (2006 Consolidated HMS FMP) (Amendment 7) (79 
FR 71510, December 2, 2014), and in accordance with implementing 
regulations. NMFS is required under ATCA and the Magnuson-Stevens Act 
to provide U.S. fishing vessels with a reasonable opportunity to 
harvest the ICCAT-recommended quota.

[[Page 38144]]

    The current baseline quotas for the Harpoon and Reserve categories 
are 46 mt and 29.5 mt, respectively. See Sec.  635.27(a). To date for 
2019, NMFS has published three actions that have adjusted the available 
2019 Reserve category quota to 113 mt, including a recent action that 
adjusted the Harpoon category quota to 76 mt (84 FR 3724, February 13, 
2019; 84 FR 6701, February 28, 2019; and 84 FR 35340, July 23, 2019). 
The 2019 Harpoon category fishery opened June 1 and is open through 
November 15, 2019, or until the Harpoon category quota is reached, 
whichever comes first.

Quota Transfer

    Under Sec.  635.27(a)(9), NMFS has the authority to transfer quota 
among fishing categories or subcategories, after considering regulatory 
determination criteria provided under Sec.  635.27(a)(8). NMFS has 
considered the relevant determination criteria and their applicability 
to the Harpoon category fishery. These considerations include, but are 
not limited to, the following:
    Regarding the usefulness of information obtained from catches in 
the particular category for biological sampling and monitoring of the 
status of the stock (Sec.  635.27(a)(8)(i)), biological samples 
collected from BFT landed by Harpoon category fishermen and provided by 
BFT dealers continue to provide valuable data for ongoing scientific 
studies of BFT age and growth, migration, and reproductive status. 
Additional opportunity to land BFT in the Harpoon category would 
support the continued collection of a broad range of data for these 
studies and for stock monitoring purposes.
    NMFS also considered the catches of the Harpoon category quota to 
date and the likelihood of closure of that segment of the fishery if no 
adjustment is made (Sec.  635.27(a)(8)(ii) and (ix)). As of July 30, 
2019, the Harpoon category has landed 71.1 mt. Commercial-size BFT are 
currently readily available to vessels fishing under the Harpoon 
category quota. Without a quota transfer at this time, Harpoon category 
participants would have to stop BFT fishing activities with very short 
notice, while commercial-sized BFT remain available in the areas 
Harpoon category permitted vessels operate. Transferring 15 mt of BFT 
quota from the Reserve category would result in a total of 91 mt being 
available for the Harpoon category for the 2019 Harpoon category 
fishing season.
    Regarding the projected ability of the vessels fishing under the 
particular category quota (here, the Harpoon category) to harvest the 
additional amount of BFT before the end of the fishing year (Sec.  
635.27(a)(8)(iii)), NMFS considered Harpoon category landings over the 
last several years. Landings are highly variable and depend on access 
to commercial-sized BFT and fishing conditions, among other factors. 
NMFS anticipates that the Harpoon category could harvest the 
transferred 15 mt prior to the end of the Harpoon category season, 
subject to weather conditions and BFT availability. NMFS may transfer 
unused Harpoon category quota to other quota categories, as 
appropriate. NMFS also anticipates that some underharvest of the 2018 
adjusted U.S. BFT quota will be carried forward to 2019 and placed in 
the Reserve category, in accordance with the regulations. Thus, this 
quota transfer would allow fishermen to take advantage of the 
availability of fish on the fishing grounds, consider the expected 
increases in available 2019 quota, and provide a reasonable opportunity 
to harvest the full U.S. BFT quota.
    NMFS also considered the estimated amounts by which quotas for 
other gear categories of the fishery might be exceeded (Sec.  
635.27(a)(8)(iv)) and the ability to account for all 2019 landings and 
dead discards. In the last several years, total U.S. BFT landings have 
been below the available U.S. quota such that the United States has 
carried forward the maximum amount of underharvest allowed by ICCAT 
from one year to the next. NMFS will need to account for 2019 landings 
and dead discards within the adjusted U.S. quota, consistent with ICCAT 
recommendations, and anticipates having sufficient quota to do that.
    NMFS also considered the effects of the adjustment on the BFT stock 
and the effects of the transfer on accomplishing the objectives of the 
FMP (Sec.  635.27(a)(8)(v) and (vi)). This transfer would be consistent 
with the current quotas, which were established and analyzed in the 
2018 BFT quota final rule (83 FR 51391, October 11, 2018), and with 
objectives of the 2006 Consolidated HMS FMP and amendments and is not 
expected to negatively impact stock health or to affect the stock in 
ways not already analyzed in those documents. Another principal 
consideration is the objective of providing opportunities to harvest 
the full annual U.S. BFT quota without exceeding it based on the goals 
of the 2006 Consolidated HMS FMP and amendments, including to achieve 
optimum yield on a continuing basis and to optimize the ability of all 
permit categories to harvest their full BFT quota allocations (related 
to Sec.  635.27(a)(8)(x)).
    Based on the considerations above, NMFS is transferring 15 mt of 
the available 113 mt of Reserve category quota to the Harpoon category. 
Therefore, NMFS adjusts the Harpoon category quota to 91 mt for the 
2019 Harpoon category fishing season (i.e., through November 15, 2019, 
or until the Harpoon category quota is reached, whichever comes first), 
and adjusts the Reserve category quota to 98 mt.

Monitoring and Reporting

    NMFS will continue to monitor the BFT fishery closely. Dealers are 
required to submit landing reports within 24 hours of a dealer 
receiving BFT. Late reporting by dealers compromises NMFS' ability to 
timely implement actions such as quota adjustments and closures, and 
may result in enforcement actions. Additionally, and separate from the 
dealer reporting requirement, Harpoon category vessel owners are 
required to report their own catch of all BFT retained or discarded 
dead, within 24 hours of the landing(s) or end of each trip, by 
accessing hmspermits.noaa.gov, using the HMS Catch Reporting app, or 
calling (888) 872-8862 (Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 4:30 
p.m.).
    Depending on the level of fishing effort and catch rates of BFT, 
NMFS may determine that additional action (i.e., quota and/or daily 
retention limit adjustment, or closure) is necessary to ensure 
available quota is not exceeded or to enhance scientific data 
collection from, and fishing opportunities in, all geographic areas. If 
needed, subsequent adjustments will be published in the Federal 
Register. In addition, fishermen may call the Atlantic Tunas 
Information Line at (978) 281-9260, or access hmspermits.noaa.gov, for 
updates on quota monitoring and inseason adjustments.

Classification

    The Assistant Administrator for NMFS (AA) finds that it is 
impracticable and contrary to the public interest to provide prior 
notice of, and an opportunity for public comment on, this action for 
the following reasons:
    The regulations implementing the 2006 Consolidated HMS FMP and 
amendments provide for inseason retention limit adjustments to respond 
to the unpredictable nature of BFT availability on the fishing grounds, 
the migratory nature of this species, and the regional variations in 
the BFT fishery. Affording prior notice and opportunity for public 
comment to implement the quota transfer for the remainder of 2019

[[Page 38145]]

is also contrary to the public interest as such a delay would likely 
result in closure of the Harpoon fishery when the baseline quota is met 
and the need to re-open the fishery, with attendant administrative 
costs and costs to the fishery. The delay would preclude the fishery 
from harvesting BFT that are available on the fishing grounds and that 
might otherwise become unavailable during a delay. Therefore, the AA 
finds good cause under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) to waive prior notice and the 
opportunity for public comment. For these reasons, there also is good 
cause under 5 U.S.C. 553(d) to waive the 30-day delay in effectiveness.
    This action is being taken under Sec.  635.27(a)(9), and is exempt 
from review under Executive Order 12866.

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 971 et seq. and 1801 et seq.

    Dated: July 31, 2019.
Alan D. Risenhoover,
Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-16733 Filed 8-1-19; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P