[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 13 (Wednesday, January 21, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2916-2918]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-00808]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-XD457
Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Atlantic Shark Management
Measures; 2015 Research Fishery
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of intent; request for applications.
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SUMMARY: NMFS announces its second request for applications for the
2015 shark research fishery from commercial shark fishermen with
directed or incidental shark limited access permits. In this second
request, NMFS is specifically requesting applications only from
commercial shark fishermen who are fishing or plan to fish in the Gulf
of Mexico fishing region. The shark research fishery allows for the
collection of fishery-dependent and biological data for future stock
assessments to meet the shark research objectives of the Agency. The
only commercial vessels authorized to land sandbar sharks are those
participating in the shark research fishery. Shark research fishery
permittees may also land other large coastal sharks (LCS), small
coastal sharks (SCS), and pelagic sharks. Commercial shark fishermen
who are interested in participating in the shark research fishery need
to submit a completed Shark Research Fishery Permit Application in
order to be considered.
DATES: Shark Research Fishery Applications must be received no later
than 5 p.m., local time, on February 5, 2015.
ADDRESSES: Please submit completed applications to the HMS Management
Division at:
Mail: Attn: Gu[yacute] DuBeck, HMS Management Division (F/
SF1), NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910.
Fax: (301) 713-1917.
[[Page 2917]]
For copies of the Shark Research Fishery Permit Application, please
write to the HMS Management Division at the address listed above, call
(301) 427-8503 (phone), or fax a request to (301) 713-1917. Copies of
the Shark Research Fishery Application are also available at the HMS
Web site at http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/sfa/hms/index.htm. Additionally,
please be advised that your application may be released under the
Freedom of Information Act.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Karyl Brewster-Geisz, Delisse Ortiz,
or Gu[yacute] DuBeck, at (301) 427-8503 (phone) or (301) 713-1917
(fax).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Atlantic shark fisheries are managed
under the authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act). The 2006 Consolidated HMS
Fishery Management Plan (FMP) is implemented by regulations at 50 CFR
part 635.
The shark research fishery was established, in part, to maintain
time series data for stock assessments and to meet NMFS' research
objectives. Since the shark research fishery was established in 2008,
the research fishery has allowed for: The collection of fishery
dependent data for current and future stock assessments; the operation
of cooperative research to meet NMFS' ongoing research objectives; the
collection of updated life-history information used in the sandbar
shark (and other species) stock assessment; the collection of data on
habitat preferences that might help reduce fishery interactions through
bycatch mitigation; and the evaluation of the utility of the mid-
Atlantic closed area on the recovery of dusky sharks and collection of
hook-timer and pop-up satellite archival tag (PSAT) information to
determine at-vessel and post-release mortality of dusky sharks.
On October 31, 2014 (79 FR 64750), NMFS published a notice
requesting applications for participation in the 2015 shark research
fishery from commercial shark fishermen. NMFS received a total of seven
applications, six of which were qualified participants distributed
among four fishing regions: North Carolina, the east coast of Florida,
the Florida Keys, and the South Atlantic. All six qualified applicants
were selected to participate in the 2015 shark research fishery.
However, none of the qualified applicants were located in the Gulf of
Mexico fishing region. Given the need to collect information that will
both aid future stock assessments and management measures in the Gulf
of Mexico fishing region, NMFS is providing a second notice requesting
applications from commercial shark fishermen who fish or plan to fish
in the Gulf of Mexico region for participation in the 2015 shark
research fishery. The October 2014 notice contains the relevant
information about the shark research fishery application process,
research objectives, selection criteria, and available quota, which
remain applicable and are incorporated except as modified herein. The
application deadline is being adjusted as specified in this notice to
allow for additional applications. This notice also provides additional
information about meetings and procedures for applicants selected
through this second call for applications. For other background
details, applicants should refer to the October 2014 notice.
The shark research fishery permit(s) issued to the fisherman
fishing in the Gulf of Mexico region will have the same permit
conditions as those issued in the other fishing regions. Those
conditions will be discussed in a Captain's Meeting to be held in early
January 2015 and announced in another notice.
In order to participate in the shark research fishery, commercial
shark fishermen need to submit a completed Shark Research Fishery
Application by the deadline noted above (see DATES) showing that the
vessel and owner(s) meet the specific criteria outlined below.
Research Objectives
The shark research fishery objectives were specified in the October
31, 2014 (79 FR 64750) notice requesting applications for participation
in the 2015 shark research fishery from commercial shark fishermen and
continue to apply.
Selection Criteria
The shark research fishery selection criteria were specified in the
October 31, 2014 (79 FR 64750) notice requesting applications for
participation in the 2015 shark research fishery from commercial shark
fishermen and continue to apply, except that applications are requested
only from commercial fishermen who fish or plan to fish in the Gulf of
Mexico fishing region.
Selection Process
The shark research fishery selection process was specified in the
October 31, 2014 (79 FR 64750) notice requesting applications for
participation in the 2015 shark research fishery from commercial shark
fishermen and applies here except as specified herein.
Once the selection process is complete, NMFS will notify the
selected applicants and issue the shark research fishery permits. The
shark research fishery permits will be valid only in calendar year
2015. NMFS held mandatory permit holders' meetings before observers
were placed on vessels in both 2013 (78 FR 14515; March 6, 2013) and
2014 (79 FR 12155; March 4, 2014). NMFS intends to hold another such
meeting again in January 2015 for commercial fishermen who have already
been selected and issued a 2015 shark research fishery permit.
Applicants selected for the Gulf of Mexico fishing region through this
notice are encouraged to call in and listen to the discussion. Once the
selected participant(s) from the Gulf of Mexico region has been issued
a 2015 shark research fishery permit, NMFS will contact them to discuss
the research objectives and protocols of the 2015 shark research
fishery to minimize any delays in collecting information in the Gulf of
Mexico fishing region and to update them with information from permit
holders' meeting as appropriate. Once the fishery starts, the shark
research fishery permit holders must contact the NMFS observer
coordinator to arrange the placement of a NMFS-approved observer for
each shark research trip.
A shark research fishery permit will only be valid for the vessel
and owner(s) and terms and conditions listed on the permit, and, thus,
cannot be transferred to another vessel or owner(s). Issuance of a
shark research permit does not guarantee that the permit holder will be
assigned a NMFS-approved observer on any particular trip. Rather,
issuance indicates that a vessel may be issued a NMFS-approved observer
for a particular trip, and on such trips, may be allowed to harvest
Atlantic sharks, including sandbar sharks, in excess of the retention
limits described in 50 CFR 635.24(a). These retention limits will be
based on available quota, number of vessels participating in the 2015
shark research fishery, the research objectives set forth by the shark
board, the extent of other restrictions placed on the vessel, and may
vary by vessel and/or location. When not operating under the auspices
of the shark research fishery, the vessel would still be able to land
LCS, SCS, and pelagic sharks subject to existing retention limits on
trips without a NMFS-approved observer.
NMFS annually invites commercial shark permit holders (directed and
incidental) to submit an application to participate in the shark
research fishery.
[[Page 2918]]
Permit applications can be found on the HMS Management Division's Web
site at http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/sfa/hms/index.htm or by calling (301)
427-8503. Final decisions on the issuance of a shark research fishery
permit will depend on the submission of all required information by the
deadline (see DATES), and NMFS' review of applicant information as
outlined above. The 2015 shark research fishery will start after the
opening of the shark fishery and under available quotas as published in
a separate Federal Register final rule.
Dated: January 14, 2015.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-00808 Filed 1-20-15; 8:45 am]
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