[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 69 (Thursday, April 10, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19870-19871]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-08063]
[[Page 19870]]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-XD226
International Fisheries; Western and Central Pacific Fisheries
for Highly Migratory Species; Capacity Limits in Purse Seine Fisheries
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of request for information.
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SUMMARY: NMFS is requesting information about any individual's or
company's plan or intent to seek authorization for a U.S. purse seine
vessel to participate in the western and central Pacific Ocean (WCPO)
purse seine fishery, as managed under the Western and Central Pacific
Fisheries Convention Implementation Act (WCPFC Implementation Act), the
South Pacific Tuna Act of 1988 (SPTA) and other law, if it is not
currently authorized to do so. The Commission for the Conservation and
Management of Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the Western and Central
Pacific Ocean (Commission) recently agreed to new restrictions on the
replacement of purse seine vessels in Commission members' fleets. NMFS
intends to use information submitted in response to this notice to
identify any purse seine vessels, whether existing, under construction,
or yet to be constructed, that might replace one or more currently
licensed vessels. This information will be used to help satisfy the
obligations of the United States as a party to the Convention on the
Conservation and Management of Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the
Western and Central Pacific Ocean (Convention) and as a member of the
Commission.
DATES: Information must be submitted in writing by May 12, 2014 to be
considered.
ADDRESSES: You may submit information by either of the following
methods:
Electronic Mail: Submit written information via email to:
[email protected].
Mail: Submit written information by mail to: Michael D.
Tosatto, Regional Administrator, NMFS, Pacific Islands Regional Office
(PIRO), 1845 Wasp Blvd., Building 176, Honolulu, HI 96818.
Instructions: Information sent by any other method, to any other
address or individual, or received after May 12, 2014, might not be
considered by NMFS. Attachments to electronic mail will be accepted in
Microsoft Word, Excel, or Adobe PDF file formats only.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tom Graham, NMFS PIRO, 808-725-5032.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Several authorizations are necessary for a U.S. purse seine vessel
to participate in the WCPO purse seine fishery. The U.S. WCPO purse
seine fishery is regulated in part under the authority of the SPTA (16
U.S.C. 973-973r) through implementing regulations at 50 CFR Part 300,
subpart D. The SPTA and its implementing regulations implement the
terms of a treaty between the United States and 16 Members of the
Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency (Treaty on Fisheries between the
Governments of Certain Pacific Island States and the Government of the
United States of America and its annexes, schedules, and implementing
agreements, as amended; hereafter called ``the Treaty''). The Treaty
generally governs the conduct of U.S. fishing vessel operations in the
Treaty Area, which comprises much of the WCPO. The Treaty provides
access by U.S. purse seine vessels to a large portion of the WCPO by
authorizing, and regulating through a licensing system, U.S. purse
seine vessel operations within all or portions of the exclusive
economic zones of the 16 Pacific Island Parties to the Treaty (PIPs).
License applications are first submitted to NMFS, which are approved or
disapproved according to procedures established at 50 CFR 300.32. NMFS
forwards approved applications to the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries
Agency (FFA, located in Solomon Islands), which acts as the Treaty
administrator on behalf of the PIPs, and which issues the licenses.
In addition to being governed by the Treaty and the SPTA, the U.S.
WCPO purse seine fishery is subject to the authority of the WCPFC
Implementation Act (16 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.), which authorizes the
Secretary of Commerce to implement the provisions of the Convention and
the decisions of the Commission as they apply to the United States. The
area of competence of the Commission, or the Convention Area, includes
the majority of the Treaty Area. As a Party to the Convention and a
Member of the Commission, the United States is obligated to implement
the decisions of the Commission. The decisions of the Commission can be
found on its Web site (http://www.wcpfc.int/). Pursuant to the
Convention and the decisions of the Commission, a U.S. fishing vessel
must have a high seas fishing permit (see below) with a valid WCPFC
Area Endorsement, issued by NMFS under 50 CFR 300.212, in order to be
used for commercial fishing for highly migratory species on the high
seas in the Convention Area.
The WCPO purse seine fishery is also subject to the authority of
the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C.
1801 et seq.), particularly with respect to the operation of the
fishery within the U.S. exclusive economic zone. The fishery is also
subject to the authority of the High Seas Fishing Compliance Act (16
U.S.C. 5501 et seq.), which governs the conduct of U.S. fishing vessels
on the high seas, and under which a high seas fishing permit is
required for a U.S. fishing vessel to be used for commercial fishing
anywhere on the high seas.
Recent Decision of the Commission on the Numbers and Capacities of
Vessels in Purse Seine Fleets
In December 2013, the Commission adopted a conservation and
management measure for bigeye tuna, yellowfin tuna, and skipjack tuna
(CMM 2013-01). Most of the CMM's provisions are in effect from February
4, 2014, until December 31, 2017. Among other provisions, the CMM
obligates certain flag States, including the United States, to limit
the number of their purse seine vessels more than 24 meters in length
with freezing capacity that operate between the latitudes of 20[deg]
North and 20[deg] South to the current level (paragraph 49 of CMM 2013-
01). CMM 2013-01 also obligates certain flag States, including the
United States, to ensure that purse seine vessels in their fleets are
not replaced with vessels with greater carrying capacity or well
volume, or that the catch or fishing effort of such vessels is not
greater than that of the replaced vessels (paragraph 50 of CMM 2013-
01). Notwithstanding this latter obligation, CMM 2013-01 provides for
flag States to allow the replacement of purse seine vessels in their
fleets with vessels for which building approval has been granted and
the Commission has been notified of such approval before March 1, 2014
(paragraph 50 of CMM 2013-01; this allowance is hereafter referred to
as ``the paragraph 50 allowance'').
[[Page 19871]]
Solicitation of Information About Prospective Vessels Entering the WCPO
Purse Seine Fishery
The paragraph 50 allowance enables purse seine vessels to be
replaced with vessels having greater carrying capacity and well volume
and for the replacement vessels to make greater catches and exert
greater fishing effort than the replaced vessels provided certain
criteria are met. In order for the United States to comply with the
paragraph 50 allowance, NMFS must be informed of any plan or intent to
bring U.S. vessels into the WCPO purse seine fishery. CMM 2013-01
requires that ``building approval'' for the replacement vessel must
have been granted before March 1, 2014, and the Commission must have
been notified of such approval before March 1, 2014, for such
replacement. Although this date has passed, we have notified the
Commission that the agency is required to follow administrative
rulemaking requirements, and it was not possible for us to solicit and
evaluate information from the public within the extremely short
deadlines under CMM 2013-01. Accordingly, NMFS will seek public input
on the paragraph 50 allowance notwithstanding the passage of the
Commission's deadline.
NMFS invites any individual or company that plans or intends to
seek authorization for a purse seine vessel more than 24 meters in
length with freezing capacity to participate in the WCPO purse seine
fishery (and that is not currently authorized to participate in the
fishery) to notify NMFS of such plan or intent by providing the
information listed below. ``To participate in the WCPO purse seine
fishery'' means to use a U.S.-flagged purse seine vessel to fish in the
Convention Area, regardless of the vessel's carrying capacity, well
volume, or other characteristics. Specifically, NMFS requests that the
following information be submitted to the NMFS Pacific Islands Regional
Administrator (see ADDRESSES): (1) Whether the vessel is already built,
under construction, or not yet under construction; (2) if not yet under
construction, whether an agreement has been reached with a builder
concerning its construction, and if so, the date of the agreement; (3)
the name of the vessel, if known; (4) the U.S. Coast Guard Certificate
of Documentation number of the vessel, if assigned; (5) the
international radio call sign of the vessel, if assigned; (6) the
vessel's length, if known; (7) the approximate date of fishing
authorization that will be sought, if known; (8) the name and contact
information of the individual or company most likely to seek
authorization for the vessel to participate in the WCPO purse seine
fishery; and (9) the name(s) of the currently authorized purse seine
vessel(s) that that person or company intends to remove from the WCPO
purse seine fishery coincident with the entry of the subject vessel, if
any.
NMFS intends to use the information collected to identify
prospective WCPO purse seine fishing vessels, and to determine whether
any such vessel would replace one or more vessels currently authorized
to participate in the WCPO purse seine fishery. Information provided in
response to this request will be used only for making determinations
related to the paragraph 50 allowance.
Failure to respond to this notice of solicitation of information
could affect future eligibility of replacement vessels to compete for
licenses and other authorizations to participate in the WCPO purse
seine fishery. Responses for a plan or intent for a prospective purse
seine vessel must be submitted in writing by May 12, 2014. Information
submitted in response to this notice will, as appropriate, be subject
to the confidentiality provisions of the WCPFC Implementation Act,
section 506(d), and implementing regulations.
This request for information is subject to the Paperwork Reduction
Act. It is part of a collection-of-information that has been approved
by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under control number 0648-
0218, ``South Pacific Tuna Act.'' A change to that collection-of-
information to accommodate this request for information has been
approved by the OMB.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.
Dated: April 7, 2014.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2014-08063 Filed 4-9-14; 8:45 am]
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