[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 139 (Friday, July 23, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38990-38991]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-15725]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[RTID 0648-XB253]


Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic 
Fisheries; Application for Exempted Fishing Permits

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, Greater Atlantic Region, NMFS, has made a preliminary 
determination that an Exempted Fishing Permit application submitted by 
Nordic, Inc. in partnership with the Coonamessett Farm Foundation 
contains all of the required information and warrants further 
consideration. 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 Permits.

[[Page 38991]]


DATES: Comments must be received on or before August 9, 2021.

ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments by the following method:
     Email: [email protected]. Include in the subject line 
``Nordic Scallop Transplanting EFP.''

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shannah Jaburek, Fishery Management 
Specialist, [email protected], (978) 281-9135.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Nordic, Inc. submitted a complete 
application for an Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) to conduct commercial 
fishing activities that the regulations would otherwise restrict. This 
EFP would exempt the participating vessels from: Day-at-sea 
requirements at 50 CFR 648.53; crew size restrictions at Sec.  
648.51(c); scallop fishing restrictions in the Nantucket Lightship 
Closed Area--South at Sec.  648.60(g); scallop trawl restrictions at 
Sec.  648.51(a)(1) and (f); scallop dredge restrictions at Sec.  
648.51(b)(2) and (b)(3); and minimum size and possession restrictions 
for onboard sampling and scallop transplanting in Sec.  648 subparts B 
and D through O.
    Nordic, Inc., Eastern Fisheries, Quinn Fisheries, and Fulcher 
Trawling applied for an EFP on April 22, 2021, to work with the 
Coonamessett Farm Foundation (CFF) on a scallop transplanting study. 
This project would continue previous scallop transplanting work done by 
CFF and investigate the feasibility of using scallop transplanting to 
increase scallop growth by moving them from deep, scallop dense areas 
to shallower, less populated areas.
    The proposed EFP would allow Nordic, Inc. and CFF to transplant 
750,000 scallops in the Nantucket Lightship Access Area-South with 
trawls and a dredge. A subsample of the catch would be tagged (i.e., 
10,000 scallops), along with a subsample of previously transplanted 
scallops caught in the proposed research area. Transplanting work would 
begin when an EFP is issued, and monitoring of the harvest and 
transplant areas would occur during scallop Research Set-Aside (RSA) 
funded surveys conducted by CFF, the Virginia Institute of Technology, 
and the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth School of Marine 
Science and Technology.
    CFF would provide scientific staff to oversee transplant 
operations, tag scallops, and collect data during field operations. 
Scallops would be harvested by a commercial scalloping vessel that 
already preformed transplanting operations. Four vessels would harvest 
scallops with a two-panel box net towed between 2.5 and 3.5 knots (4.6 
and 6.5 km per hour) for 10 minutes per tow. These vessels would steam 
to the transplant area with the trawl doors closed and the net 
remaining in the water. One vessel would harvest scallops by towing 
two, 4.57-meter wide New Bedford style dredges for 10 minutes per tow. 
No catch will be landed for sale.
    Once catch is brought on board, it would be sorted by size, marked, 
and stored in cooled fish totes. A subsample of scallops would be 
tagged with disc tags. Tagging would occur between dusk and dawn to 
minimize mortality. Scallops would be released overboard at the 
transplanting area.
    If approved, the applicant may request minor modifications and 
extensions to the EFP throughout the year. EFP modifications and 
extensions may be granted without further notice if they are deemed 
essential to facilitate completion of the proposed research and have 
minimal impacts that do not change the scope or impact of the initially 
approved EFP request. Any fishing activity conducted outside the scope 
of the exempted fishing activity would be prohibited.
    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.

    Dated: July 20, 2021.
Jennifer M. Wallace,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2021-15725 Filed 7-22-21; 8:45 am]
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