[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 149 (Friday, August 2, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46923-46925]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-18676]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-BA53
Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic;
Snapper-Grouper Fishery off the South Atlantic States; Amendment 22
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Supplemental Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare a draft
environmental impact statement (DEIS); request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: NMFS, Southeast Region, in collaboration with the South
Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council), is publishing this
supplemental NOI to
[[Page 46924]]
provide notice to the public of the broadened scope of Amendment 22 to
the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery in the
South Atlantic Region (Amendment 22) and to solicit public comments on
the scope of issues to be addressed in the DEIS. The Council modified
Amendment 22 to include all snapper-grouper species with low annual
catch limits (ACLs), not just red snapper, in a harvest tag program.
The intent of Amendment 22 is to closely control recreational harvest
of snapper-grouper species with low ACLs.
DATES: Written comments on the scope of issues to be addressed in the
DEIS will be accepted until September 3, 2013.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on this document, identified by
``NOAA-NMFS-2010-0264'', by any of the following methods:
Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to
www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-2013-0264, click the
``Comment Now!'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter or
attach your comments.
Mail: Submit written comments to Kate Michie, 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.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kate Michie, Southeast Regional
Office, telephone: 727-824-5305, or email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
An NOI to prepare a DEIS for Amendment 22 was published on January
3, 2011 (76 FR 101). The NOI listed several options the Council could
consider when addressing long-term management for red snapper,
including trip limits, bag limits, a catch share program, temporal and
spatial closures including those to protect spawning stocks, a tag
program, and gear prohibitions. Subsequent to the publication of the
2011 NOI, the Council modified the amendment to remove all species-
specific options and create a harvest tag program that could be applied
to any snapper-grouper species with small recreational ACLs. Based on
these modifications, NMFS is publishing this supplemental NOI to
provide notice to the public of the broadened scope of Amendment 22 and
to solicit public comments on the scope of issues to be addressed in
the DEIS.
In Amendment 22, the Council is considering actions to establish a
framework for a recreational harvest tag program that could be applied
to any snapper-grouper species that have low ACLs, for example snowy
grouper, golden tilefish, and wreckfish. The Council is also
considering development of a recreational data collection program that
would be linked to the use of harvest tags.
Recreational Harvest Tag Program Framework
Under the Council's purview are several snapper-grouper species
with very low recreational ACLs, which are difficult to monitor to
prevent the ACLs from being exceeded and triggering accountability
measures (AMs). AMs that would reduce the following season's ACL, or
shorten the length of the recreational season following an ACL overage,
could have adverse economic and social impacts on fishery participants.
Additionally, exceeding recreational ACLs could have negative
biological effects for the affected species, because the ACLs
implemented are intended to prevent overfishing.
Therefore, the Council is considering establishing a framework for
a recreational harvest tag program that could be applied to any
snapper-grouper species with low recreational ACLs. The intent of such
a program is to control recreational harvest by issuing a specific
number of harvest tags to individuals or entities that wish to fish for
those snapper-grouper species. Each tag would allow its holder to
harvest a pre-determined number of a particular species. Only tag
holders would be allowed to harvest species included in the tag
program.
Harvest Tag Issuance Criteria
The Council is also considering how tags should be distributed and
what the process of tag issuance would entail. Amendment 22 contains
several options that could be applied to a tag issuance process.
Data Collection
In addition to the use of harvest tags, the Council is considering
adding a data collection component that could be tied to the tag
program. Amendment 22 contains options for voluntary and required data
collection methods that would apply to tag holders.
NMFS, in collaboration with the Council, will develop a DEIS to
describe and analyze alternatives to address the management needs
described above. Those alternatives will include a ``no action''
alternative for each action. In accordance with NOAA's Administrative
Order 216-6, Section 5.02(c), Scoping Process, NMFS, in collaboration
with the Council, has identified preliminary environmental issues as a
means to initiate discussion for scoping purposes only. These
preliminary issues may not represent the full range of issues that
eventually will be evaluated in the DEIS.
After the DEIS associated with Amendment 22 is completed, it will
be filed with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). After filing,
the EPA will publish a notice of availability of the DEIS for public
comment in the Federal Register. The DEIS will have a 45-day comment
period. This procedure is pursuant to regulations issued by the Council
on Environmental Quality (CEQ) for implementing the procedural
provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA; 40 CFR parts
1500-1508) and to NOAA's Administrative Order 216-6 regarding NOAA's
compliance with NEPA and the CEQ regulations.
The Council and NMFS will consider public comments received on the
DEIS in developing the final environmental impact statement (FEIS), and
before voting to submit the final amendment to NMFS for Secretarial
review, approval, and implementation. NMFS will announce in the Federal
Register the availability of the final amendment and FEIS for public
review during the Secretarial review period, and will consider all
public comments prior to final agency action to approve, disapprove, or
partially approve the final amendment.
NMFS will announce, through a document published in the Federal
Register, all public comment periods on the final amendment, its
proposed implementing regulations, and the availability of its
associated FEIS. NMFS will consider all public comments received during
the Secretarial review period, whether they are on the final
[[Page 46925]]
amendment, the proposed regulations, or the FEIS, prior to final agency
action.
Public Hearings, Times, and Locations
The Council will hold public hearings to discuss the actions
included in Amendment 22. Exact dates, times, and locations will be
announced by the Council. The public will be informed, via a
notification in the Federal Register, of the exact times, dates, and
locations of future scoping meetings and public hearings for Amendment
22.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: July 29, 2013.
Emily H. Menashes,
Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2013-18676 Filed 8-1-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P