[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 243 (Wednesday, December 22, 2021)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 72532-72533]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-27761]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 635

[Docket No. 180117042-8884-02; RTID 0648-XB675]


Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Atlantic Bluefin Tuna 
Fisheries

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

ACTION: Temporary rule; fishery reopening.

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SUMMARY: NMFS reopens the General category fishery for four days within 
the December 2021 General category subquota period. This action is 
intended to provide a reasonable opportunity to harvest the annual U.S. 
bluefin tuna (BFT) quota without exceeding it, while maintaining an 
equitable distribution of fishing opportunities across time periods. 
This action affects Atlantic Tunas General category (commercial) 
permitted vessels and Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Charter/Headboat 
permitted vessels with a commercial sale endorsement when fishing 
commercially for BFT.

DATES: Effective 12:30 a.m., local time, December 20, 2021, through 
11:30 p.m., local time, December 23, 2021.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Larry Redd, Jr., [email protected], 
301-427-8503, Nicholas Velseboer, [email protected], 978-281-
9260, or Thomas Warren, [email protected], 978-281-9347.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Atlantic HMS fisheries, including BFT 
fisheries, are managed 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.). The 2006 Consolidated Atlantic HMS Fishery 
Management Plan (FMP) and its amendments are implemented by regulations 
at 50 CFR part 635. Section 635.27 divides 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 the 2006 Consolidated HMS FMP and its amendments. NMFS 
is required under the Magnuson-Stevens Act to provide U.S. fishing 
vessels with a reasonable opportunity to harvest quotas under relevant 
international fishery agreements such as the ICCAT Convention, which is 
implemented domestically pursuant to ATCA.
    The 2021 baseline quota for the General category is 555.7 mt. The 
General category baseline subquota for the December time period is 28.9 
mt. Effective January 1, 2021, NMFS transferred 19.5 mt of BFT quota 
from the December 2021 subquota time-period to the January through 
March 2021 subquota time-period resulting in an adjusted subquota of 
9.4 mt for the December 2021 time period (85 FR 83832, December 23, 
2020). Effective December 1, 2021, NMFS transferred 9.5 mt of Reserve 
category quota and 20.2 mt of Harpoon category quota to the General 
category resulting in an adjusted December subquota of 39.1 mt (86 FR 
66975, November 24, 2021). NMFS recently adjusted the December General 
category subquota by adding 15.5 mt of underharvest from the adjusted 
September and October through November time periods resulting in an 
adjusted December subquota of 54.6 mt (86 FR 71393, December 16, 2021). 
In that same action, NMFS projected that the adjusted December 2021 
subquota of 54.6 mt would be reached shortly, and accordingly, closed 
the General category on December 14, 2021.

General Category Reopening

    As of December 16, 2021, preliminary landings data indicate that 
the General category December fishery landed 48.8 mt of the adjusted 
54.6 mt subquota before closing, leaving resulting in 5.8

[[Page 72533]]

mt (54.6 mt - 48.8 mt = 5.8 mt) of quota unused. Under Sec.  
635.28(a)(2), NMFS may reopen the fishery if NMFS determines that 
reasonable fishing opportunities are available. Based on these landings 
data, as well as average catch rates and anticipated fishing 
conditions, NMFS has determined that reopening the General category 
fishery for four days is appropriate given the amount of unused 
December subquota. Depending on weather conditions and fish 
availability, a longer reopening could risk exceeding the unused quota 
available for the December subquota period. NMFS will need to account 
for 2021 landings and dead discards within the adjusted U.S. quota, 
consistent with ICCAT recommendations, and anticipates having 
sufficient quota to do that. Thus, this action would allow fishermen to 
take advantage of the availability of fish on the fishing grounds to 
the extent consistent with the available amount of quota and other 
management objectives, while avoiding quota exceedance.
    Therefore, the General category fishery will reopen at 12:30 a.m., 
Monday, December 20, 2021, and close at 11:30 p.m., Thursday, December 
23, 2021. The General category daily retention limit during this 
reopening remains the same as prior to closing: One large medium or 
giant (i.e., measuring 73 inches (185 cm) curved fork length or 
greater) BFT per vessel per day/trip. This action applies to Atlantic 
tunas General category (commercial) permitted vessels and HMS Charter/
Headboat category permitted vessels with a commercial sale endorsement 
when fishing commercially for BFT. Retaining, possessing, or landing 
large medium or giant BFT by persons aboard vessels permitted in the 
General and HMS Charter/Headboat categories must cease at 11:30 p.m. 
local time on December 23, 2021. The General category will 
automatically reopen January 1, 2022, for the January through March 
2022 subquota time period.
    Fishermen aboard General category permitted vessels and HMS 
Charter/Headboat permitted vessels may catch-and-release and tag and 
release BFT of all sizes, subject to the requirements of the catch-and-
release and tag-and-release programs at Sec.  635.26. All BFT that are 
released must be handled in a manner that will maximize their survival, 
and without removing the fish from the water, consistent with 
requirements at Sec.  635.21(a)(1). For additional information on safe 
handling, see the ``Careful Catch and Release'' brochure available at 
https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/resource/outreach-and-education/careful-catch-and-release-brochure/.

Monitoring and Reporting

    NMFS will continue to monitor the BFT fisheries 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 and retention limit adjustment, 
as well as closures, and may result in enforcement actions. 
Additionally, and separate from the dealer reporting requirement, 
General and HMS Charter/Headboat category vessel owners are required to 
report the 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.).

Classification

    This action is taken pursuant to regulations at 50 CFR part 635, 
which were issued pursuant to section 304(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens 
Act, and is exempt from review under Executive Order 12866.
    The Assistant Administrator for NMFS finds that pursuant to 5 
U.S.C. 553(b)(B), there is good cause to waive 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 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 reopen the fishery is impracticable and contrary to the public 
interest. The General category recently closed, but based on the 
available category subquota, fishery performance in recent weeks, and 
the availability of BFT on the fishing grounds, is reopened in this 
action to allow fishermen to take advantage of availability of fish and 
of quota. NMFS could not have proposed this action earlier, as it 
needed to consider and respond to updated data and information about 
fishery conditions and this year's landings. If NMFS were to offer a 
public comment period now, after having appropriately considered that 
data, it would preclude fishermen from harvesting BFT that are legally 
available. For all of the above reasons, there is good cause under 5 
U.S.C. 553(d) to waive the 30-day delay in effectiveness.

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

    Dated: December 17, 2021.
Ngagne Jafnar Gueye,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2021-27761 Filed 12-17-21; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P