[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 106 (Friday, May 31, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47134-47135]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-11913]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[RTID 0648-XE005]


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 contains all 
of the required information and warrants further consideration. The 
exempted fishing permit would allow federally permitted fishing vessels 
to fish outside fishery regulations in support of exempted fishing 
activities proposed by the Coonamessett Farm Foundation. 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.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before June 14, 2024.

ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments by the following method:
     Email: [email protected]. Include in the subject line 
``Investigation of baiting practices on catch and bycatch in gillnets 
and design of an effective outreach program to minimize seabird 
bycatch''.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anjali Bhardwaj, Fishery Management 
Specialist, [email protected], 978-281-9293.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The applicant 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 the following Federal 
regulations:

[[Page 47135]]



                      Table 1--Requested Exemptions
------------------------------------------------------------------------
         CFR citation               Regulation       Need for exemption
------------------------------------------------------------------------
50 CFR 648.11, but not to       Monitoring         The three vessels
 include 648.11(l)(3).           Coverage.          participating in
                                                    this EFP have
                                                    limited deck space
                                                    and/or life raft
                                                    capacity and cannot
                                                    accommodate both an
                                                    observer and a
                                                    project scientist.
                                                    As stated in
                                                    648.11(l)(3), the
                                                    participating
                                                    vessels are still
                                                    required to submit
                                                    pre-trip
                                                    notifications.
------------------------------------------------------------------------


                        Table 2--Project Summary
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Project title.....................  Investigation of baiting practices
                                     on catch and bycatch in gillnets
                                     and design of an effective outreach
                                     program to minimize seabird
                                     bycatch.
Project start.....................  July 1, 2024.
Project end.......................  October 15, 2024.
Project objectives................  Investigate differences in levels of
                                     shearwater bycatch during spiny
                                     dogfish sets utilizing different
                                     gillnet baiting strategies.
Project location..................  Georges Bank.
Number of vessels.................  3.
Number of trips...................  40 total, up to 15 per vessel.
Trip duration (days)..............  1.
Total number of days..............  20 (each trip includes 2 vessels).
Gear type(s)......................  Gillnet.
Number of tows or sets............  1 set per trip.
Duration of tows or sets..........  1 hour.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Project Narrative

    The Coonamesset Farm Foundation, Inc. (CFF) is requesting an EFP in 
support of a study aimed at better understanding how demersal gillnet 
baiting practices influence shearwater bycatch off the coast of Cape 
Cod. In the subject fishery, vessels harvest and process skates, and 
then use the skate racks to bait gillnets that are deployed to target 
dogfish, which can result in bycaught seabirds. This EFP would be for 
the first year of a 2-year study.
    Under the EFP, three participating vessels would be exempt from 
Northeast Fishery Observer Program monitoring coverage due to limited 
vessel space and safety equipment needed to accommodate CFF personnel 
during research trips. No other exemptions are needed to perform this 
project. Vessels will target dogfish using 6.5-inch (16.5-centimeter) 
mesh gillnets set in strings consisting of 12 nets each. Of the 12 
nets, half will utilize either forward baiting (baiting nets before 
setting) or after baiting (baiting nets after setting), and the 
remaining nets will not include bait. CFF intends to use retained and 
discarded catch weights to assess the effect that different baiting 
treatments have on catch. Any entangled seabird will be documented in 
detail. CFF intends to use cameras to quantify behavior and abundance 
of seabird species in the study area using cameras. The results will 
determine if high levels of seabird bycatch correlate with specific 
gillnet baiting strategies.
    CFF, or contracted scientific personnel, will accompany trips under 
the EFP. Legal catch will be landed for sale. 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.
    All comments received are a part of the public record and may be 
posted for public viewing without change. All personal identifying 
information (e.g., name, address), confidential business information, 
or otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily by the sender 
will be publicly accessible. NMFS will accept anonymous comments (enter 
``anonymous'' as the signature if you wish to remain anonymous).
    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.

    Dated: May 24, 2024.
Karen H. Abrams,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-11913 Filed 5-30-24; 8:45 am]
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