[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 219 (Wednesday, November 13, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 89616-89617]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-26184]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[RTID 0648-XE405]
Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic;
Reef Fish Fishery of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands; Exempted
Fishing Permit
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of receipt of an application for an 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 the Fish/Fisheries Conservation Lab at the
University of South Carolina. If granted, the EFP would authorize the
limited harvest of red hind during spawning events in U.S. Caribbean
Federal waters around the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI) and exempt that
harvest from Federal area and seasonal closure regulations. The purpose
of the EFP is to address critical gaps in red hind demographics and
life history, which could help provide current, region-specific
information for upcoming stock assessments for the species.
DATES: Comments must be received no later than December 9, 2024.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on the application, identified by
NOAA-NMFS-2024-0127, by either 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-2024-0127 in the Search box.
Click the ``Comment'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter or
attach your comments.
Mail: Submit written comments to Sarah Stephenson, 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), 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/caribbean-exempted-fishing-permits-efps.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sarah Stephenson, 727-824-5305,
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The EFP is requested under the authority of
the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C.
1801 et seq.), and regulations at 50 CFR 600.745(b) concerning exempted
fishing.
The applicant requests authorization to harvest 60 red hind grouper
(Epinephelus guttatus) from two managed marine areas in Federal waters
off the USVI: Red Hind Spawning Aggregation Area (Lang Bank) east of
St. Croix (50 CFR 622.479(a)(2)) and the Hind Bank Marine Conservation
District (MCD) south of St. Thomas (50 CFR
[[Page 89617]]
622.514(a)(2)) for data collection. A maximum of 120 red hind would be
harvested under the EFP. The applicant is seeking to gather life
history information (e.g., age, growth, reproduction) that could be
used in future stock assessments for red hind, which provide guidance
and management recommendations specific to this species for NMFS, the
Caribbean Fishery Management Council, and the U.S. Virgin Islands'
Department of Fish and Wildlife.
The applicant was awarded funding through the Cooperative Research
Program to complete critical gaps in red hind population demographics
and life history in preparation for upcoming stock assessments in the
U.S. Caribbean. In addition to collecting life history information for
the species, the project aims to evaluate current Federal area and
seasonal closures that protect red hind spawning aggregations through
replication of previous sampling collections and analysis of temporal
trends related to size-at-age, sex ratios, and size and age frequency
distributions for red hind during spawning events. By targeting red
hind spawning aggregations, the applicant will be better able to
collect data that currently is not readily available on larger sized
fish. Data collected from this project would be made available for use
in future stock assessments for red hind in St. Croix and St. Thomas
and St. John, which are tentatively scheduled for late 2025 and 2026.
Red hind would be collected by researchers and commercial fishermen
aboard contracted commercial fishing vessels. If granted, the EFP would
exempt project participants from area and seasonal closure regulations
codified at 50 CFR 622.479(a)(2) (St. Croix) and 50 CFR 622.514(a)(2)
(St. Thomas and St. John), as identified and described below. Pending
issuance, the EFP would be expected to be effective from December 1,
2024, through March 1, 2025. The EFP would only apply to the captains
and vessels that are selected to be a part of the project. Therefore,
Fish/Fisheries Conservation Lab at the University of South Carolina
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 the EFP before the
project begins.
Activities under the EFP would consist of harvesting 60 red hind
from the Lang Bank site east of St. Croix during the 4 days around the
full moon for the months of January 2025 and February 2025, and 60 red
hind from the MCD site south of St. Thomas during the 4 days around the
full moon for the months of December 2024 and January 2025. During each
sampling event (i.e., fishing day), commercial fishermen would use a
maximum of four fishing rods, each with up to three hooks. All
activities (a maximum of 16 fishing days) would occur in Federal
waters, from depths of 82 to 246 feet (25 to 75 meters), while adrift
(i.e., no anchoring would occur). Once the 60 red hind are obtained
from each site, fishing activities would end.
The applicant would only target red hind. All other catch would be
returned to the water using a descending device, if necessary, to
ensure minimum harm. A total of 120 red hind would be retained under
the EFP. Samples would be stored on ice and transported to a field lab.
For each sample, the applicants would record standard length, fork
length, and total length (to the nearest millimeter) and weight (to the
nearest gram). Otoliths would be removed, rinsed, and stored for
further processing. Gonads would be removed, weighed, and preserved.
Eyes, muscle, stomachs, and fin clips would be collected and archived
for future research on trophic ecology and population genomics.
Under the EFP, the applicant would be exempt from the closure
regulations and allowed to fish for and harvest red hind in or from the
(1) red hind spawning aggregation area east of St. Croix during the
closure from December 1 through last day of February (50 CFR
622.479(a)(2)) and (2) Hind Bank Marine Conservation District closed
area (50 CFR 622.514(a)(2)). A maximum of 8 fishing trips would occur
in each site, 16 total during the project.
NMFS finds this application warrants further consideration based on
a preliminary review. Possible conditions the agency may impose on the
EFP, 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, and requiring
compliance with best practices in the event of interactions with any
protected species.
A final decision on issuance of the EFP will depend on NMFS' review
of public comments received on the application, consultations with
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 EFP are consistent with all other
applicable laws.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: November 6, 2024.
Karen H. Abrams,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-26184 Filed 11-12-24; 8:45 am]
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