[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 188 (Friday, September 27, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51115-51116]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-21029]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XW009


Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic 
Fisheries; Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; Application for an 
Exempted Fishing Permit

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, West Coast Region, NMFS, has made a preliminary 
determination that an exempted fishing permit application titled, 
``Annual Vessel Limit Pooling for Groundfish IFQ Vessels Operating 
Under a Collective Enforcement Agreement in 2019-2020,'' contains all 
of the required information and warrants further consideration. The 
application, submitted by the Fort Bragg Association and the Half Moon 
Bay Groundfish Marketing Association, requests approval to test the use 
of a voluntary collective agreement to manage a pool of annual vessel 
limits of cowcod quota pounds using a risk pooling model. This exempted 
fishing permit project would allow individual vessels participating in 
the California Groundfish Collective to exceed their annual vessel 
limit for cowcod, however the collective pooled annual vessel limit 
would not be exceeded. The primary goal of this exempted fishing permit 
project is to reduce the operational risk of catching cowcod for 
participating vessels, while allowing participating vessels to increase 
landings of more abundant groundfish stocks. 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 
permit projects.

DATES: Comments must be received no later than 5 p.m., local time on 
October 15, 2019.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on this document, identified by 
NOAA-NMFS-2019-0101, by any of the following methods:
     Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to 
www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-2019-0101, click the 
``Comment Now!'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter or 
attach your comments. The EFP application will be available under 
``Supporting Documents'' through the same link.
     Mail: Submit written comments to Lynn Massey, West Coast 
Region, NMFS, 501 W Ocean Blvd., Ste. 4200, Long Beach, CA 90802-4250.
    Instructions: Comments sent by any other method, to any other 
address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period, 
may not be considered by NMFS. All comments received are a part of the 
public record and would generally be posted for public viewing on 
www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying 
information (e.g., name, address, etc.), confidential business 
information, or otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily 
by the sender would be publicly accessible. NMFS would accept anonymous 
comments (enter ``N/A'' in the required fields if you wish to remain 
anonymous). Attachments to electronic comments would be accepted in 
Microsoft Word, Excel, or Adobe PDF file formats only.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lynn Massey, West Coast Region, NMFS, 
at (562) 436-2462, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This action is authorized under Magnuson-
Stevens Conservation and Management (Magnuson-Stevens Act) regulations 
at 50 CFR 600.745, which allow NMFS Regional Administrators to issue 
exempted fishing permits (EFP) to test fishing activities that would 
otherwise be prohibited.
    The California Groundfish Collective (CGC) is comprised of fishing 
associations from Fort Bragg and Half Moon Bay, and includes fishermen 
from three ports along the California Coast. CGC fishermen collect and 
share information about where, when, and what type of fish they catch, 
and use this information to adaptively manage fishing strategies to 
reduce bycatch of overfished groundfish stocks (i.e., yelloweye 
rockfish and cowcod) and increase catch of healthy target groundfish 
stocks (e.g., chilipepper rockfish, bocaccio, and petrale sole).
    CGC vessels participate in the Trawl Rationalization Program's 
Shorebased Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) Program. Annual vessel limits 
are used in the Shorebased IFQ Program to restrict the consolidation of 
quota pounds among vessels in the fishery, particularly for 
constraining stocks and stock complexes (e.g., overfished stocks). 
Vessels may not purchase or fish quota pounds in excess of the annual 
vessel limit. For example, if a vessel owns 100 quota pounds of a 
stock, and the annual vessel limit is 500 quota pounds, the vessel can 
only purchase 400 additional quota pounds, and fish up to a total of 
500 quota pounds. The annual vessel limit for stocks or stock complexes 
is calculated as a fixed percentage of the Shorebased IFQ allocation.
    The region where the CGC operates off the coast of California 
(south of the 40[deg]10' North latitude (N lat.) management line) is 
the only area where cowcod are encountered and managed as an individual 
IFQ species, and few trawl vessels operate in the area. The annual 
catch limit for cowcod is small due to its overfished stock status. 
Vessels have historically caught cowcod

[[Page 51116]]

in this region, but were previously able to avoid encounters to limit 
cowcod catch below the annual vessel limit. However, as the cowcod 
stock rebuilds, vessels are encountering cowcod more often and in 
higher numbers. The draft 2019 cowcod stock assessment, which will be 
reviewed at the September Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) 
meeting, indicates that the stock has improved compared to the previous 
assessment, which projected that the stock would rebuild by 2020. If 
the Council's Scientific and Statistical Committee determines the draft 
2019 cowcod stock assessment is the best scientific information 
available, the resulting biomass estimates may be used to support 
adjustments in future catch limits or changes to cowcod's stock status.
    At the June 2018, April 2019, and June 2019 Council meetings, the 
CGC made public comments that annual vessel limits for cowcod have been 
constraining fishing operations in CGC ports. The CGC reported that in 
2017-2019, its participating vessels experienced significant catch 
increases for cowcod early in the fishing season, and that, if this 
continues through the 2019 and 2020 fishing years, vessels may attain 
their cowcod annual vessel limit and be forced to depart fishing 
grounds early despite not having attained quotas for healthy target 
stocks. This would reduce economic opportunity for CGC vessels and 
likely adversely impact other components of the fishing industry (e.g., 
processors).
    On June 18, 2019, the CGC submitted an application for an EFP 
project to exempt CGC vessels from the Federal regulations at 50 CFR 
660.140(b)(1)(iii) through (v), which include requirements applicable 
to individual vessels with any species deficit in their IFQ account. If 
NMFS approves this EFP project, CGC vessels fishing on an EFP trip 
would be permitted to exceed the current annual vessel limit for cowcod 
(i.e., 858 pounds or 17.7 percent of the 4,850-pound cowcod Shorebased 
IFQ allocation), however collectively, the CGC vessels' catch would not 
be permitted to exceed the amount specified for the pool (i.e., 858 
pounds x total number of CGC participant vessels). The goals of this 
EFP project are to:
     Test and evaluate the merits of permitting a regional 
collective of vessels operating under a Collective Enforcement 
Agreement, similar to a regional fishery association, to pool 
constraining species quota pounds, allocate those pounds among members 
as needed (potentially exceeding annual vessel limits), and stay within 
a pool limit;
     identify if managing annual vessel limits using a risk 
pool model can allow additional attainment of target species while 
mitigating the impact of catching constraining species to the point of 
ending fishing seasons early;
     establish and share best practices for collectively 
managing and allocating constraining species quota pounds using a 
Collective Enforcement Agreement;
     gather and share information that may inform an impact 
analysis should the Council scope potential changes to the groundfish 
IFQ vessel limit regulations; and
     gather and share information that may inform an 
exploration into the types of provisions to include in regional fishery 
associations as defined in the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 
and Management Act as well as community fishing groups that are already 
allowed within the current fishery management system.
    Currently, there are five CGC vessels. If this EFP project is 
approved, NMFS would provide EFPs to these five vessels in 2019, and 
any additional vessels that join the CGC in 2019 or 2020.
    NMFS is proposing to approve the 2019-2020 EFP project covering the 
exemptions stated above, following the conclusion of the public comment 
period and review of public comment. Pending approval, NMFS would issue 
the permits for the EFP project to the vessel owner or designated 
representative as the ``EFP holder.'' NMFS intends to use an adaptive 
management approach in which NMFS may revise requirements and protocols 
to improve the program without issuing another Federal Register Notice, 
provided that the modifications fall within the scope of the original 
EFP project. In addition, the applicants may request minor 
modifications and extensions to the EFP project throughout the course 
of research. NMFS may grant EFP modifications and extensions without 
further public notice if the changes are essential to facilitate 
completing the proposed research and result in only a minimal change in 
the scope or impacts of the initially approved EFP request.
    All CGC vessels participate in NMFS' electronic monitoring (EM) EFP 
project, which exempts certain vessels from the requirement to carry a 
human observer on all IFQ fishing trips. While NMFS has primary 
jurisdiction over EM EFP management, the Nature Conservancy is an EFP 
holder that manages CGC vessels operating under the EM EFP pursuant to 
a Collective Enforcement Agreement, which outlines rules that CGC 
vessels must follow, including catch requirements and EM system 
specifications. If NMFS approves this EFP application, the specific 
terms and conditions of the EFP would be partially managed by the 
Nature Conservancy via an extended version of the EM EFP Collective 
Enforcement Agreement. NMFS may adjust these specifics in cooperation 
with the EFP applicant and following the public comment period.
    After publication of this document in the Federal Register, NMFS 
may approve and issue permits for the EFP project after the close of 
the public comment period. NMFS will consider comments submitted, as 
well as any discussion that may occur at the September 2019 Council 
meeting, in deciding whether to approve the application as requested. 
NMFS may approve the application in its entirety or may make any 
alterations needed to achieve the goals of the EFP project.

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.; 16 U.S.C. 773 et seq.; 16 
U.S.C. 7001 et seq.

    Dated: September 24, 2019.
Jennifer M. Wallace,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-21029 Filed 9-26-19; 8:45 am]
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