[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 22 (Thursday, February 4, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8182-8183]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-02336]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[RTID 0648-XA758]


Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; Fisheries of the Northeastern 
United States; Northeast Multispecies Fishery; Approved Monitoring 
Service Providers

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

ACTION: Notification of approved monitoring service providers.

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SUMMARY: NMFS has approved six companies to provide Northeast 
multispecies sector at-sea and/or electronic monitoring services in 
fishing years 2021 and 2022. Regulations implementing the Northeast 
Multispecies Fishery Management Plan require at-sea and electronic 
monitoring companies to apply to, and be approved by, NMFS in order to 
be eligible to provide monitoring services to sectors. This action will 
allow sectors to contract for at-sea and electronic monitoring services 
with any of the approved service providers for fishing years 2021 and 
2022.

ADDRESSES: The list of NMFS-approved sector monitoring service 
providers is available at: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/resource/data/observer-providers-northeast-and-mid-atlantic-programs.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Claire Fitz-Gerald, Fishery Policy 
Analyst, (978) 281-9255, email [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Northeast Multispecies Fishery 
Management Plan includes a requirement for industry-funded monitoring 
of catch by sector vessels. Sectors must contract with independent 
third-party service providers to provide at-sea and/or electronic 
monitoring services to their vessels. In order to provide at-sea or 
electronic monitoring services to sectors, monitoring companies must 
apply to, and be approved by, NMFS. Once approved, service providers 
must meet specified performance requirements outlined in 50 CFR 
648.87(b)(4), including required coverage levels, in order to maintain 
eligibility.

At-Sea and Electronic Monitoring Service Provider Approval Process

    Applications approved this year will cover both fishing year 2021 
and fishing year 2022 (May 1, 2021 through April 30, 2023). There will 
be an opportunity in the fall of 2021 for additional monitoring 
companies to apply for approval to provide at-sea and electronic 
monitoring services in fishing year 2022.
    The regulations at Sec.  648.87(b)(4) describe the criteria for 
approval of at-sea and electronic monitoring service providers. We 
approve service providers based on: (1) Completeness and sufficiency of 
applications; and (2) determination of the applicant's ability to meet 
the performance requirements of a sector monitoring service provider. 
We must notify service providers, in writing, if NMFS withdraws 
approval for any reason.

Approved Monitoring Service Providers

    NMFS approved six companies to provide monitoring services to the 
Northeast multispecies sectors in fishing years 2021 and 2022. Four of 
the six companies are approved to provide both at-sea and electronic 
monitoring services: A.I.S., Inc.; East West Technical Services, LLC; 
Fathom Research, LLC; and Saltwater, Inc. NMFS approved the other two 
companies to provide electronic monitoring services: Flywire Cameras 
and Teem Fish.
    We approved these six companies to provide at-sea and/or electronic 
monitoring services in fishing years 2021 and 2022 because they have 
met the application requirements and documented their ability to comply 
with service provider standards. In addition, A.I.S., Inc., East West 
Technical Services, LLC, and Fathom Research, LLC are currently 
approved to provide at-sea monitoring services to sectors in fishing 
years 2019 and 2020 and have a history of meeting or exceeding the 
requirements of the at-sea monitoring program in the region. We will 
closely monitor the performance of approved providers, and we will 
withdraw approval during the current approval term, or disapprove a 
provider in future fishing years, if we determine performance standards 
are not being met.
    We received applications from two additional companies, but need 
further information before their application is sufficiently complete 
for us to make an approval determination. Typically, we engage in an 
iterative process with provider companies to assist them in assembling 
and submitting a complete application for our consideration. Because 
this is our first time approving electronic monitoring companies to 
provider monitoring services, we are continuing to work with these 
companies to help them through this process. In the meantime, we are 
continuing with the approval process for the providers that have 
submitted complete applications and demonstrated their ability to meet 
program requirements. Moving forward with notification of our approval 
of the completed applications while continuing to work with the two 
remaining applicants is necessary to allow sectors sufficient time to 
negotiate monitoring contracts for the upcoming fishing year. If we 
subsequently decide to approve these companies, we will publish an 
additional notice in the Federal Register announcing our decision.

                                                                   Table 1--Approved Providers for Fishing Years 2021 and 2022
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               Provider                         Services *                   Address                 Phone                Fax                                   Website
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A.I.S., Inc..........................  ASM/EM.....................  540 Hawthorn St.,               508-990-9054        508-990-9055  https://aisobservers.com/
                                                                     Dartmouth, MA 02747.

[[Page 8183]]

 
East West Technical Services, LLC....  ASM/EM.....................  91 Point Judith Rd.,            860-910-4957        860-223-6005  https://www.ewts.com/
                                                                     Unit 347, Narragansett,
                                                                     RI 02882.
Fathom Resources, LLC................  ASM/EM.....................  855 Aquidneck Ave., Unit        508-990-0997        508-991-7372  https://fathomresources.com/
                                                                     9, Middletown, RI 02842.
Flywire Cameras......................  EM.........................  PO BOX 55048, Lexington,        888-315-7796        502-861-6568  https://www.flywirecameras.com/
                                                                     KY 40511.
Saltwater, Inc.......................  ASM/EM.....................  733 N St., Anchorage, AK        907-276-3241        907-258-5999  https://www.saltwaterinc.com/
                                                                     99501.
Teem Fish............................  EM.........................  90-425 Carrall St.,             778-884-2598  ..................  https://teem.fish/
                                                                     Vancouver, BC V6B 6E3
                                                                     Canada.
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* ASM/EM = At-sea and electronic monitoring; EM = Electronic monitoring only.


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

    Dated: January 29, 2021.
Jennifer M. Wallace,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2021-02336 Filed 2-3-21; 8:45 am]
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