[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 100 (Friday, May 23, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29743-29744]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-12022]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-XD266
Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic
Fisheries; Application for Exempted Fishing Permits
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: NOAA Fisheries has made a preliminary determination that an
exempted fishing permit application contains all of the required
information and warrants further consideration. This request was
submitted by the Gulf of Maine Research Institute and would allow
commercial fishing vessels to evaluate if whiting can be caught in
commercially viable quantities with minimal bycatch in the Gulf of
Maine Grate Raised Footrope Trawl Exemption Area using a small-mesh
trawl that has a standard cookie sweep, prior to the start of the
current season that begins July 1. The exempted fishing permit would
exempt the vessels from the Northeast multispecies minimum mesh size
and seasonal restrictions at 50 CFR 648.80(a)(3) and 648.80 (a)(16).
Regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act require publication of this notification to provide
interested parties the opportunity to comment on applications for
proposed exempted fishing permits.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before June 9, 2014.
ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments by any of the following
methods:
Email: [email protected]. Include in the subject line
``Comments on GMRI Whiting EFP.''
Mail: John K. Bullard, Regional Administrator, NMFS,
Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, 55 Great Republic Drive,
Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark the outside of the envelope ``Comments on
GMRI Whiting EFP.''
Fax: (978) 281-9135.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jason Berthiaume, Fishery Management
Specialist, 978-281-9177, [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI)
has submitted an application for an exempted fishing permit (EFP) to
conduct commercial fishing activities that the regulations would
otherwise restrict. The EFP would exempt three federally permitted
commercial fishing vessels from the minimum mesh size requirements for
the purpose of testing a small-mesh trawl fitted with an excluder grate
for harvesting silver hake. The applicant states that there has been
poor performance of the raised footrope trawl in this area due to the
rocky habitat, and that removing the raised footrope could allow for
increased catch rates while maintaining low bycatch rates. In addition,
the applicant has requested authorization to test the trawl prior to
the July 1-November 30 season in the Gulf of Maine Grate Raised
Footrope Trawl Exemption Area.
The applicant would evaluate the performance of a small-mesh trawl
that has a regulation compliant excluder grate and is fitted with a
cookie sweep. The trawl would not have a raised footrope as required by
the Gulf of Maine Grate Raised Footrope Trawl regulations.
Participating vessels would complete up to 25 days of experimental
fishing with five 1-hour tows per day with a target whiting catch of
5,000 lb (2,268 kg) per day. A research technician would accompany all
trips under the EFP, and sort and weigh all
[[Page 29744]]
catch by species. Catch rates would be calculated for target and
bycatch species and compared with historical and current catch rates.
If it is determined that whiting catch rates are commercially viable,
with minimal bycatch rates, GMRI would work on developing and obtaining
funding to conduct more robust research in the future.
Whiting catch would be landed and sold and all catch of stocks
allocated to Northeast multispecies sectors will be deducted from the
sector's annual catch entitlement for each stock. Discards would be
identified, weighed, measured, and returned to the sea as quickly as
possible. The participating vessels would be required to comply with
all other applicable requirements and restrictions specified at 50 CFR
part 648, unless specifically exempted in this EFP.
If approved, the applicant may request minor modifications and
extensions to the EFP throughout the year. EFP modifications and
extensions may be granted without further notice if they are deemed
essential to facilitate completion of the proposed research and have
minimal impacts that do not change the scope or impact of the initially
approved EFP request. Any fishing activity conducted outside the scope
of the exempted fishing activity would be prohibited.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: May 20, 2014.
James P. Burgess,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2014-12022 Filed 5-22-14; 8:45 am]
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