[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 67 (Friday, April 5, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23977-23979]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-07270]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[RTID 0648-XD752]
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 two applications for exempted fishing
permits; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: NMFS announces the receipt of two applications for exempted
fishing permits (EFPs) from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation
Commission (FWC). If granted, the EFPs would authorize limited
recreational harvest of red snapper outside of any Federal recreational
season in South Atlantic Federal waters and exempt that harvest from
the red snapper recreational bag and possession limits, recreational
annual catch limits (ACLs), and accountability measures (AMs). FWC's
projects are intended to test alternative recreational management
strategies that could be used by the South Atlantic Fishery Management
Council (Council) to reduce the numbers of discards of red snapper and
other federally managed snapper-grouper species, create additional
opportunities to participate in sustainable recreational harvest, and
improve angler satisfaction.
DATES: Written comments must be received on or before April 22, 2024.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on the applications, identified by
[NOAA-NMFS-2024-0035] by any of the following methods:
Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Visit https://www.regulations.gov and type [NOAA-NMFS-2024-0035] in the Search box.
Click the ``Comment'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter or
attach your comments.
Mail: Rick DeVictor, 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
https://www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying
information (e.g., name, address),
[[Page 23978]]
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 applications may be obtained from the
Southeast Regional Office website at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/southeast/recreational-fishing/south-atlantic-red-snapper-exempted-fishing-permit-applications. This notice discusses applications 1 and 3
on the website.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Caroline Potter, 727-824-5305; email:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The EFPs are 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.
The projects described in these EFP requests are two of several
projects that NMFS has recommended for funding based on a notice of
funding opportunity that NMFS published last fall, seeking projects
that would explore new approaches to better understand and reduce red
snapper dead discards and increase fishing opportunities in the South
Atlantic snapper-grouper fishery.
The most recent South Atlantic red snapper stock assessment
(Southeast Data, Assessment, and Review (SEDAR) 73, 2021) indicates
that the South Atlantic red snapper stock is undergoing overfishing and
is overfished. Discard mortality continues to be the primary source of
fishing mortality, with a high number of discards coming from the
recreational sector. Therefore, NMFS has identified a need to test
management strategies that could be used by the Council to reduce
recreational discards of red snapper and other managed snapper-grouper
species, ensure opportunities for sustainable harvest, and improve
angler satisfaction.
Considering this need, the FWC has proposed two projects that would
accomplish the following objectives: (1) Directly collaborate with
members of the snapper-grouper recreational sector and collect catch
and discard information at a representative scale within the snapper-
grouper fishery; (2) Recruit recreational fishermen to test a unique
snapper-grouper aggregate recreational bag limit, and compare that with
control groups to quantify the potential impact alternative management
strategies have on reducing the magnitude of snapper-grouper regulatory
discards; (3) Allow a select number of recreational fishermen recruited
for these projects to harvest red snapper outside of the South Atlantic
Federal red snapper recreational season, accompanied by a mandatory
reporting requirement and provisions for validation and proof of
participation; (4) Develop a unique web-based application to record
information from project participants; (5) Develop an education course
required for all project participants that highlights best fishing
practices, species identification, and methods to safely descend fish
experiencing barotrauma; and (6) Evaluate recreational fisherman
satisfaction through pre- and post-participation surveys and semi-
structured interviews with project participants.
NMFS notes that this notification of receipt of applications for
EFPs encompasses two FWC projects. Each of these projects is identical
in project scope, purpose, and exempted Federal regulations. The
primary differences between the two requested projects are location of
the project and the maximum allowed number of recreational fishing
trips per participant for each location.
One proposed project boundary is offshore of the east coast of
Florida from the Florida/Georgia state line south to 28[deg]35.1' north
latitude in the Atlantic Ocean (due east of the NASA Vehicle Assembly
Building, Cape Canaveral, Florida). The other project boundary is
offshore of the east coast of Florida from 28[deg]35.1' north latitude
in the Atlantic Ocean (due east of the NASA Vehicle Assembly Building,
Cape Canaveral, Florida) south to the Dry Tortugas, the southern
boundary of the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council
jurisdictional waters(50 CFR 600.105(c)). The project locations
includes state and Federal waters, but FWC expects that the majority of
snapper-grouper harvest and fishing effort would occur in Federal
waters.
The EFPs would begin on July 1, 2024, and end on June 30, 2025. FWC
would solicit applications from individual recreational fishermen who
would be entered into a lottery to participate in either study. The
application and lottery process, both administered by FWC, would occur
once every 3 months and FWC would select 200 participants for each 3-
month study. Participants would be screened by the FWC for resource
violations and randomly assigned to either a control group or an
experimental group. Participants in the northern study would be
referred to as the ``Experimental Hot Spot Fleet'' and participants in
the southern study would be referred to as the ``Southeast Florida
Snapper Grouper Fleet.'' Each participant would be required to hold a
valid saltwater recreational fishing license issued by the State of
Florida (or be state exempt), have declared themselves a Florida State
Reef Fish Survey angler, and take an educational course aimed at
reducing discard mortality of snapper-grouper species. The EFPs would
only apply to recreational fishermen who apply for and are selected to
be part of FWC's Experimental Hot Spot Fleet or Southeast Florida
Snapper-Grouper Fleet. Therefore, under each EFP, for each 3-month
period, FWC would be able to account for and provide NMFS with a list
of participants (e.g., state license, registration of each vessel and
vessel name during designated fishing trips, name of participants and
contact information, etc.) to be covered under each EFP before
operations begin under the EFPs.
Every 3 months during the 12-month fishing period of each EFP, half
of the fishermen would be selected for a control group and the other
half for an experimental group. Participants assigned to the control
group of either fleet would follow the current recreational Federal
regulations for snapper-grouper species. Each participant in the
Experimental Hot Spot Fishing Fleet, regardless of group assignment,
would be able to take a maximum of three recreational fishing trips per
3-month period. Each participant in the Southeast Florida Snapper-
Grouper Fleet, regardless of group assignment, would be able to take a
maximum of two recreational fishing trips per 3-month period.
For both fleets, participants assigned to an experimental group
would be permitted to harvest no more than 15 fish under a unique
snapper-grouper aggregate bag limit per person per day in state and
Federal waters combined, in addition to the three red snapper described
below. Participants in an experimental group would be required to stop
directed snapper-grouper recreational trips once their unique aggregate
snapper-grouper bag limit has been reached, and they would not be
allowed to target or harvest any snapper-grouper species managed by the
Council for the remainder of the trip. Participants may then target
other species such as coastal migratory pelagics and dolphinfish. In
addition to the unique aggregate bag limit described above,
participants in an experimental group would be allowed to harvest three
red snapper outside of any Federal red
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snapper recreational fishing season under the EFPs until the unique
aggregate snapper-grouper bag limit is reached. If approved, the EFPs
would exempt those recreational fishermen in an experimental group
participating in FWC's Experimental Hot Spot Fleet or Southeast Florida
Snapper-Grouper Fleet from the Federal regulations at 50 CFR
622.183(b)(5) (recreational sector closures for red snapper), 50 CFR
622.187(b)(9) (bag and possession limits for red snapper), and 50 CFR
622.193(y)(2) (ACLs and AMs for red snapper). The FWC is not requesting
exemptions from any Federal regulations other than these. Participants
would have to abide by all fishery regulations otherwise not exempted
from this study.
Under the EFPs, the unique 15-fish snapper-grouper aggregate
recreational bag limit requested by FWC is as follows:
Only 1 fish can be gag, black grouper, or scamp.
Up to 2 fish can be red grouper, yellowfin grouper,
yellowmouth grouper, coney, graysby, red hind, or rock hind.
Only 1 fish can be red porgy, blueline tilefish, or golden
tilefish.
Only 1 fish can be greater amberjack.
Up to 3 fish can be lesser amberjack, almaco jack, or
banded rudderfish.
Up to 5 fish can be black sea bass.
Up to 5 fish can be gray triggerfish.
Up to 10 fish can be grunts.
Up to 10 fish can be Atlantic spadefish or bar jack.
Up to 10 fish can be porgies (excluding red porgy).
Up to 10 fish can be schoolmaster snapper, gray snapper,
lane snapper, yellowtail snapper, queen snapper, silk snapper, or
blackfin snapper.
Up to 5 fish can be vermilion snapper, cubera snapper, or
mutton snapper.
Until the unique snapper-grouper aggregate bag limit is reached,
all species within the snapper-grouper fishery, except those with
regulatory closures, could be harvested by participants. Should a
regulatory closure occur for any species (other than red snapper),
participants would be prohibited from harvesting those species. The
requested recreational bag limits within FWC's proposed 15-fish
snapper-grouper aggregate bag limit do not exceed current Federal
recreational bag limits for any of the included snapper-grouper
species. This aggregate bag limit is intended to cause recreational
fishermen to reach their daily bag limit faster, which would then
result in them stopping fishing. This would likely then lead to reduced
discards and enhanced fisherman satisfaction across the snapper-grouper
recreational sector. Throughout the duration of the proposed projects,
the total amount of South Atlantic red snapper allowed to be harvested
under these EFPs by the recreational fishermen is 3,600 on Experimental
Hot Spot Fleet trips and 2,400 on Southeast Florida Snapper-Grouper
Fleet trips.
Recreational fishermen can choose the date and time of each trip
within each 3-month period of the project. Prior to taking a fishing
trip, the selected participant, using their unique FWC provided
identification number, must notify FWC 24 hours in advance of a planned
trip and report the date and state registration number of the vessel
they intend to fish from in order to receive an FWC authorization
document, which must then be available to present to law enforcement if
requested, either at sea or dockside. Selected participants can also
elect to take their fishing trips on a charter vessel or headboat (for-
hire). Aboard that for-hire vessel, only participants who have been
selected to participate in an EFP and declared they are taking a trip
authorized under an EFP on the identified for-hire vessel can take red
snapper (if in an experimental group). As the vessel, private or for-
hire, with the participant onboard is returning to port, the
participant must hail in and let FWC know the estimated time and
location of arrival. Upon return to port from a trip, all participants
would be required to submit catch and discard data to the FWC within 48
hours through an FWC web-based application. To evaluate recreational
fishermen satisfaction, FWC social scientists would conduct pre- and
post-participation surveys and randomly select a subset of participants
in each group to participate in semi-structured interviews.
NMFS finds the applications warrants further consideration based on
a preliminary review. Possible conditions the agency may impose on the
EFPs, 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 EFPs will depend on NMFS'
review of public comments received on the applications, consultations
with the appropriate fishery management agencies of the affected
states, the Council, and the U.S. Coast Guard, and a determination that
the activities to be taken under the EFPs are consistent with all other
applicable laws.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: April 1, 2024.
Everett Wayne Baxter,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-07270 Filed 4-4-24; 8:45 am]
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