[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 36 (Thursday, February 25, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11503-11504]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-03889]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[RTID 0648-XA853]


Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; 
Exempted Fishing Permits

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

ACTION: Notice of receipt of an application for exempted fishing 
permit; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces the receipt of an application for an exempted 
fishing permit (EFP) from Dr. David Portnoy, Texas A&M University, 
Corpus Christi. If granted, the EFP would allow a limited harvest of 
speckled hind in South Atlantic Federal waters by select commercial 
fishermen. The samples collected would be used to assess the speckled 
hind population structure, genetic diversity, and life history in the 
South Atlantic.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before March 12, 2021.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on the application, identified by 
``NOAA-NMFS-2021-0007'' by any of the following methods:
     Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to https://www.regulations.gov and enter ``NOAA-NMFS-2021-0007'' in the Search 
box. Click on the ``Comment'' icon, complete the required fields, and 
enter or attach your comments.
     Mail: Submit written comments to Frank Helies, Southeast 
Regional Office, NMFS, 263 13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701.
    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 will 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 will be publicly accessible. NMFS will accept anonymous 
comments (enter ``N/A'' in the required fields if you wish to remain 
anonymous).
    Electronic copies of the EFP application may be obtained from the 
Southeast Regional Office website at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/southeast/about-us/south-atlantic-speckled-hind-exempted-fishing-permit-application/.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Frank Helies, 727-824-5305; email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The EFP is requested under the authority of 
the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-
Stevens Act; 16 U.S.C 1801 et seq.), and regulations at 50 CFR 
600.745(b) concerning exempted fishing.
    Currently, Federal regulations at 50 CFR 622.181 (b)(3) prohibit 
the harvest and possession of speckled hind in or from South Atlantic 
Federal waters. Speckled hind are sedentary, long-lived, deep-water 
groupers and are considered to be undergoing overfishing in the U.S. 
South Atlantic. There are no known data regarding the stock structure 
of speckled hind in South Atlantic waters and little is known about 
their biology; consequently, there are not enough data to accurately 
determine whether the species is overfished.
    Dr. Portnoy was awarded a Marine Fisheries Initiative grant to 
assess the population structure, genetic diversity, and life history of 
speckled hind in the U.S. South Atlantic. Beginning in 2018, Dr. 
Portnoy has already acquired some of his project's needed speckled hind 
samples from fishery independent surveys conducted by NMFS and the 
South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. However, as a result of 
low encounter rates with the species since 2018, and reduced fishery 
independent survey effort in 2020, additional samples will need to be 
collected through this EFP to obtain a sufficient number of samples for 
the project.
    If granted, the EFP would be valid through August 31, 2022, and 
would allow a limited harvest of up to 40 speckled hind per calendar 
year (up to 80 total for the duration of the EFP) in the Federal waters 
of the South Atlantic. The EFP would exempt select commercial fishermen 
from Federal regulations prohibiting the harvest and possession of 
speckled hind in Federal waters of the South Atlantic at 50 CFR 
622.181(b)(3). Because speckled hind would be harvested incidentally 
during routine commercial fishing trips, NMFS does not expect that any 
additional environmental impacts would occur through the issuance of 
the EFP.
    Dr. Portnoy proposes to collect speckled hind from select 
commercial fishermen who occasionally encounter speckled hind in South 
Atlantic Federal waters during routine commercial

[[Page 11504]]

fishing operations. Currently, two commercial fishermen have 
volunteered to participate in the EFP while using hook-and-line gear 
fishing in South Atlantic Federal waters in depths ranging from 70 ft 
(21 m) to 600 ft (183 m). If the fishermen encounter a speckled hind, a 
fin clip would be taken from the harvested speckled hind and shipped to 
the Marine Genomics Laboratory at Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi, 
Texas. The sampled fin clip would be used for genetic studies. All 
sampled speckled hind carcasses would be shipped to the NMFS Southeast 
Fisheries Science Center for otolith extraction to determine age and 
growth parameters. The results of the EFP are expected to contribute to 
improved understanding of speckled hind population structure, genetic 
diversity, and life history in the U.S. South Atlantic. The EFP results 
could help support future scientific and management decisions for the 
speckled hind stock in the South Atlantic.
    NMFS finds the application warrants further consideration based on 
a preliminary review. Possible conditions the agency may impose on the 
permit, if granted, include but are not limited to, a prohibition on 
fishing within marine protected areas, marine sanctuaries, or special 
management zones without additional authorization. A final decision on 
issuance of the EFP will depend on NMFS' review of public comments 
received on the application, consultations with the appropriate fishery 
management agencies of the affected states, the South Atlantic Fishery 
Management Council, and the U.S. Coast Guard, and a determination that 
the activities to be taken under the EFP are consistent with all other 
applicable laws.

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

    Dated: February 22, 2021.
Jennifer M. Wallace,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2021-03889 Filed 2-24-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P