[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 36 (Monday, February 24, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10101-10102]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-03945]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-XD121
Criteria To Assist the Assistant Administrator in Determining if
an Observer Program is Qualified and Authorized
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: NMFS requests comments on criteria to determine if observers
participating in observer programs are qualified and authorized to
certify that no dolphins were killed or seriously injured in the sets
or other gear deployments in which the tuna were caught and, if
applicable, that no purse seine net was intentionally deployed on or
used to encircle dolphins during the fishing trip in which the tuna
were caught. The criteria are intended to
[[Page 10102]]
assist the Assistant Administrator for Fisheries when making a
determination of whether an observer program is ``qualified and
authorized'' for purposes of the dolphin-safe labeling program under
the Dolphin Protection Consumer Information Act.
DATES: Written comments must be received on or before March 26, 2014.
ADDRESSES: Written comments may be sent by any of the following
methods:
Email to the following address:
[email protected].
Mail or hand deliver to Bill Jacobson, National Marine
Fisheries Service, 501 West Ocean Boulevard, Suite 4200, Long Beach,
California 90802. Mark the outside of the envelope ``Public Comment on
Observer Criteria.''
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bill Jacobson by phone at (562) 980-
4035.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On July 9, 2013, NMFS published a final rule
under the Dolphin Protection Consumer Information Act titled ``Enhanced
Document Requirements to Support Use of the Dolphin Safe Label on Tuna
Products'' (78 FR 40997) that amended regulations at 50 CFR part 216,
subpart H. Sections 216.91(a)(2)(iii)(B) and (a)(4)(ii) authorize the
Assistant Administrator for Fisheries to determine if observers
participating in observer programs using any gear type in any ocean are
qualified and authorized to certify that no dolphins were killed or
seriously injured in the sets or other gear deployments in which the
tuna were caught and, if applicable, that no purse seine net was
intentionally deployed on or used to encircle dolphins during the
fishing trip in which the tuna were caught. That determination triggers
a requirement that when an observer from the qualified and authorized
program is on board a vessel that harvests tuna during a fishing trip,
such tuna would require a certification executed by the observer or by
an authorized representative of the nation participating in the
observer program in order to be used in tuna products labeled ``dolphin
safe.'' This certification would be in addition to the requirement that
tuna used in tuna products labeled ``dolphin safe,'' be accompanied by
a written statement executed by the Captain of the harvesting vessel
(codified in Sec. 216.91(a)(2)(ii), (a)(2)(iii)(A) and (a)(4)(i)).
NMFS anticipates that qualified observers will have undergone
training programs that include such topics as recognizing an
intentional set, dolphin species identification, recognizing dolphin
mortality and how to collect the information needed for determining a
serious injury. NMFS acknowledges that these skills are complex. NMFS
will determine an observer program is ``qualified and authorized''
based on a rigorous scrutiny of the observer program's training
programs and a finding that the observers or a designated program
representative is capable of making the requisite determinations.
Using the criteria, the Assistant Administrator for Fisheries will
determine which observer programs are qualified and authorized and will
announce such determinations in the Federal Register and also on the
NMFS West Coast Region Web site at http://www.westcoast.fisheries.noaa.gov. Only tuna used in tuna products
labeled dolphin-safe and harvested on fishing trips that began after
the date of a determination would be subject to the new requirement for
an observer certification, and only for fishing trips on which an
observer is on board the vessel.
In this notice, NMFS requests public input on criteria to assist
the Assistant Administrator in making a determination of whether an
observer program is ``qualified and authorized.'' After consideration
of public comments, NMFS will publish the final criteria in the Federal
Register.
Dated: February 18, 2014.
Rodney R. McInnis,
Acting Director, Office of International Affairs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2014-03945 Filed 2-21-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P