[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 48 (Tuesday, March 12, 2013)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 15672-15674]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-05644]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 622
RIN 0648-BC63
Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic;
Snapper-Grouper Fishery Off the Southern Atlantic States; Amendment 28
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) has
submitted Amendment 28 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-
Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region (FMP) for review,
approval, and implementation by NMFS. Amendment 28 proposes actions to
establish a process for determining whether the limited harvest and
possession of red snapper in or from the South Atlantic exclusive
economic zone (EEZ) could occur during a given fishing year. Amendment
28 specifies the process and formula for setting commercial and
recreational annual catch limits (ACLs) for red snapper if a limited
fishing season may occur and specifies accountability measures (AMs).
Amendment 28 also proposes during a limited fishing season to eliminate
the current red snapper minimum size limit, establish a recreational
bag limit and a commercial trip limit for red snapper, and establish a
process for setting commercial and recreational fishing seasons for red
snapper beginning in 2013. The intent of Amendment 28 is to continue
the rebuilding of the red snapper stock and to provide socio-economic
benefits to snapper-grouper fishermen and communities that utilize the
red snapper resource.
DATES: Written comments must be received on or before May 13, 2013.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on Amendment 28 identified by
``NOAA-NMFS-2013-0040'' by any of the following methods:
Electronic submissions: Submit electronic comments via the
Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Go to
www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-2013-0040, click the
``Comment Now!'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter or
attach your comments.
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Mail: Submit written comments to 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
www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying
information (e.g., name, address, etc.), 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). Attachments to electronic comments will be accepted in
Microsoft Word, Excel, or Adobe PDF file formats only.
Electronic copies of Amendment 28, which includes an environmental
assessment, a regulatory flexibility analysis, and a regulatory impact
review, may be obtained from the Southeast Regional Office Web site at
http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/sf/pdfs/SGAmend28.pdf.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rick DeVictor, Southeast Regional
Office, telephone: 727-824-5305, or email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The snapper-grouper fishery of the South
Atlantic, which includes red snapper, is managed under the FMP. The FMP
was prepared by the Council and is implemented through regulations at
50 CFR part 622 under the authority of Magnuson-Stevens Act. The
Magnuson-Stevens Act also requires that NMFS, upon receiving a plan or
amendment, publish an announcement in the Federal Register notifying
the public that the plan or amendment is available for review and
comment.
Background
Red snapper are overfished and undergoing overfishing. The harvest
and possession of red snapper has been prohibited since January 4,
2010, initially through temporary rules (74 FR 63673, December 4, 2009
and 75 FR 27658, May 18, 2010), and then through the final rule to
implement Amendment 17A to the FMP (75 FR 76874, December 9, 2010).
Amendment 17A continued the prohibition on a permanent basis by
implementing an ACL for red snapper of zero (landings only). Amendment
17A also implemented a rebuilding plan for red snapper, which specifies
that red snapper biomass must increase to the target rebuilt level in
35 years, starting from 2010. The final rule implementing Amendment 17A
also included a large area closure for most snapper-grouper species,
however, this area closure did not become effective because it was
determined not to be necessary to end the overfishing of red snapper
(76 FR 23728, April 28, 2011). At its June 2012 meeting, the Council
received new information from NMFS regarding discard estimates for red
snapper. Using these data, the Council and NMFS determined that a
limited season for red snapper was possible in 2012. At the Council's
request, NMFS implemented emergency rulemaking to allow for the limited
harvest and possession of red snapper in or from the South Atlantic EEZ
in 2012 (77 FR 51939, August 28, 2012).
Status of the Stock
The most recent Southeast Data, Assessment, and Review (SEDAR)
benchmark stock assessment for red snapper, SEDAR 24, was completed in
October 2010. Much like the stock assessment completed in 2008, this
assessment showed red snapper to be overfished and undergoing
overfishing, but also showed that red snapper were undergoing
overfishing at a lower rate than found in the 2008 stock assessment.
The next benchmark stock assessment for red snapper is scheduled for
2014.
Actions Contained in Amendment 28
Amendment 28 would implement several management measures to allow
for the limited harvest and possession of red snapper in or from the
South Atlantic EEZ. When the Council approved, and NMFS implemented,
the temporary rule through emergency action in 2012, they determined
that retention of a limited number of red snapper (13,097 fish) would
not jeopardize the rebuilding of the red snapper stock if the
acceptable biological catch (ABC) was not exceeded in the previous
year. In Amendment 28, the Council has made a similar determination
depending on certain conditions, beginning in 2013.
Process for Determining the Annual Red Snapper Harvest
Amendment 28 describes the annual process developed by the Council
for determining whether a limited fishing season for red snapper will
occur and how much red snapper may be harvested. The ABC is determined
through the Council's ABC control rule and the rebuilding projections
from the most recent stock assessment. Estimated landings and dead
discards of red snapper from the previous year should be available
around March of each year, and NMFS would use that information in
formulas approved by the Council in Amendment 28. If NMFS determines
that the estimated landings and dead discards that occurred in the
previous year are equal to or greater than the ABC for the current
year, no harvest would be allowed and the ACL would remain equal to
zero. However, if NMFS determines that the previous year's estimated
landings and dead discards are less than the ABC, then the ACL would be
set to the amount of harvest that may be allowed for the current year.
Setting the Commercial and Recreational Red Snapper Fishing Seasons
If NMFS determines commercial and recreational fishing seasons are
allowed for that fishing year, NMFS would announce the commercial and
recreational fishing season start dates in the Federal Register and by
other methods, as deemed appropriate. The commercial fishing season
would begin on the second Monday in July, and the recreational fishing
season would begin on the second Friday in July. NMFS would project
when the recreational ACL would be reached and announce the fishing
season end date in the Federal Register. The recreational season length
would be based on an evaluation of historical harvest levels and
fishing effort. The recreational fishing season would consist of
weekends only (Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays). NMFS would not
announce the season end date for the commercial sector before the
season starts, but would close the commercial sector when the
commercial ACL has been reached or projected to be reached by filing an
in-season closure notification with the Office of the Federal Register.
After the commercial sector closes, sale and purchase of red snapper is
prohibited and harvest and possession of red snapper is limited to the
bag and possession limit.
If the NMFS Regional Administrator (RA) determines tropical storm
or hurricane conditions exist, or are projected to exist, in the South
Atlantic during the commercial or recreational fishing season,
Amendment 28 would allow the RA to modify the opening and closing dates
by filing a notification to that effect with the Office of the Federal
Register, and announcing via NOAA Weather Radio and Fishery Bulletin
any change in the red snapper commercial or recreational fishing
seasons. If the projected commercial and/or recreational fishing
seasons are determined by NMFS to be 3 days or
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less, then the commercial and/or recreational fishing seasons would not
open for that fishing year.
Formula for Setting the ACLs
Amendment 28 includes a formula for determining the commercial and
recreational ACLs on an annual basis. The formula is based on total
removals (landings plus discards) from prior fishing years. The formula
would provide the total ACL for a limited fishing season. Then using
the current allocation ratio for red snapper (28.07 percent commercial
and 71.93 percent recreational), NMFS would determine the commercial
and recreational ACLs. When finalized data from the prior fishing years
are available, NMFS would publish a notification with the Office of the
Federal Register to announce the commercial and recreational ACLs for a
limited fishing season for that fishing year.
AMs
The Council and NMFS would establish in-season AMs during a limited
fishing season to prevent these ACLs from being exceeded. If red
snapper harvest is allowed in a given fishing year, the commercial in-
season AM requires that if commercial landings reach or are projected
to reach the commercial ACL, then NMFS would close the commercial
sector for red snapper for the remainder of the fishing year. After the
commercial sector closes, sale and purchase of red snapper is
prohibited and harvest and possession of red snapper is limited to the
bag and possession limit. The recreational in-season AM is the length
of the recreational fishing season as determined by NMFS and announced
in the Federal Register.
Other Management Measures
In order to reduce the probability of an overage of the commercial
and recreational ACLs during the limited open seasons, Amendment 28
would implement a 75-lb (34-kg) commercial trip limit and a 1-fish per
person recreational bag limit. Amendment 28 would also remove the 20-
inch (51-cm), total length (TL), minimum size limit for both the
commercial and recreational sectors to decrease regulatory discards of
red snapper (fish returned to the water because they are below the
minimum size limit).
A proposed rule that would implement measures outlined in Amendment
28 has been drafted. In accordance with the Magnuson-Stevens Act, NMFS
is evaluating Amendment 28 to determine whether it is consistent with
the FMP, the Magnuson-Stevens Act, and other applicable law. If the
determination is affirmative, NMFS will publish the proposed rule in
the Federal Register for public review and comment.
Consideration of Public Comments
The Councils submitted Amendment 28 for Secretarial review,
approval, and implementation. NMFS' decision to approve, partially
approve, or disapprove Amendment 28 will be based, in part, on
consideration of comments, recommendations, and information received
during the comment period on this notice of availability.
Public comments received by 5 p.m. eastern time, on May 13, 2013,
will be considered by NMFS in the approval/disapproval decision
regarding Amendment 28.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: March 7, 2013.
Kara Meckley,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2013-05644 Filed 3-11-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P