[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 50 (Tuesday, March 15, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13772-13774]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-05769]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
RIN 0648-XE459
Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for
Sea Turtle Conservation and Recovery Actions in Relation to the
Southeastern United States Shrimp Fishery and To Conduct Public Scoping
Meetings
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Department of Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement
and conduct public scoping meetings.
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SUMMARY: We (NMFS) intend to prepare an environmental impact statement
(EIS) and to conduct public scoping meetings to comply with the
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by assessing potential impacts
resulting from the proposed implementation of new sea turtle regulatory
requirements in the shrimp fishery of the southeastern
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United States. These requirements are proposed to protect threatened
and endangered sea turtles in the western Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of
Mexico from incidental capture, and would be implemented under the
Endangered Species Act (ESA).
DATES: The public scoping period starts March 15, 2016 and will
continue until April 29, 2016. We will consider all written comments
received or postmarked by April 29, 2016, in defining the scope of the
EIS. Comments received or postmarked after that date will be considered
to the extent practicable. Verbal comments will be accepted at the
scoping meetings as specified below.
ADDRESSES: We will hold public scoping meetings to provide the public
with an opportunity to present verbal comments on the scope of the EIS
and to learn more about the proposed action from NMFS officials.
Scoping meetings will be held at the following locations:
1. Morehead City--Crystal Coast Civic Center, 3505 Arendell Street,
Morehead City, NC 28557.
2. Larose--Larose Regional Park and Civic Center, 307 East 5th
Street, Larose, LA 70373.
3. Belle Chasse--Belle Chasse Auditorium, 8398 Highway 23, Belle
Chasse, LA 70037.
4. Biloxi--Biloxi Visitor's Center, 1050 Beach Boulevard, Biloxi, MS
39530.
5. Bayou La Batre--Bayou La Batre Community Center, 12745 Padgett
Switch Road, Bayou La Batre, AL 36509.
The meeting dates are:
1. April 13, 2016, 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., Morehead City, NC.
2. April 18, 2016, 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., Larose, LA.
3. April 19, 2016, 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., Belle Chasse, LA.
4. April 20, 2016, 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., Biloxi, MS.
5. April 21, 2016, 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., Bayou La Batre, AL.
In addition to the five scoping meetings, we will also submit a
scoping document to the Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic Fishery
Management Councils, and the Atlantic and Gulf States Marine Fisheries
Commissions.
Written comments on the scope of the EIS should be sent
electronically via email to [email protected], or physically
via U.S. mail to Michael Barnette, Southeast Regional Office, Protected
Resources Division, 263 13th Ave. South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701-5505.
Additional information, including a scoping document, can be found at:
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/turtles/regulations.htm.
All comments, whether offered verbally in person at the scoping
meetings or in writing as described above, will be considered.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michael Barnette, NMFS, Southeast
Regional Office, at the address above, or at (727) 824-5312.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
All sea turtles that occur in U.S. waters are listed as either
endangered or threatened under the ESA. The Kemp's ridley (Lepidochelys
kempii), leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea), and hawksbill
(Eretmochelys imbricata) are listed as endangered. The green (Chelonia
mydas) and the Northwest Atlantic Ocean distinct population segment
(DPS) of the loggerhead (Caretta caretta) are listed as threatened,
except for breeding populations of green sea turtles in Florida and on
the Pacific coast of Mexico, which are listed as endangered; on March
23, 2015 (80 FR 15271), NMFS and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
proposed to remove the existing ESA listings for the green sea turtle
and, in their place, list three endangered (Mediterranean, Central West
Pacific and Central South Pacific) and eight threatened (North
Atlantic, South Atlantic, Southwest Indian, North Indian, East Indian-
West Pacific, Southwest Pacific, Central North Pacific, and East
Pacific) DPSs.
Sea turtles are incidentally taken, and some are killed, as a
result of numerous activities, including fishery-related trawling
activities in the Gulf of Mexico and along the Atlantic seaboard. Under
the ESA and its implementing regulations, the taking of sea turtles is
prohibited, with exceptions identified in 50 CFR 223.206(d), or
according to the terms and conditions of a biological opinion issued
under section 7 of the ESA, or according to an incidental take permit
issued under section 10 of the ESA. The incidental taking of threatened
turtles during shrimp trawling is exempted from the taking prohibition
of section 9 of the ESA if the conservation measures specified in the
sea turtle conservation regulations (50 CFR 223.205) are followed. The
regulations require most vessels defined as ``shrimp trawlers'' (50 CFR
222.102) operating in the southeastern United States (Atlantic or Gulf
area, see 50 CFR 223.206) to have a NMFS-approved TED installed in each
net that is rigged for fishing to allow sea turtles to escape. TEDs
currently approved include single-grid hard TEDs and hooped hard TEDs
conforming to a generic description, and one type of soft TED--the
Parker soft TED (see 50 CFR 223.207). Most approved hard TEDs are
described in the regulations (50 CFR 223.207(a)) according to generic
criteria based upon certain parameters of TED design, configuration,
and installation, including height and width dimensions of the TED
opening through which the turtles escape. The regulations also describe
additional hard TEDs' specific requirements. Skimmer trawls, pusher-
head trawls, and wing nets (butterfly trawls), however, may employ
alternative tow time restrictions in lieu of TEDs, pursuant to 50 CFR
223.206(d)(2)(ii)(A). The alternative tow time restrictions limit tow
times to 55 minutes from April 1 through October 31, and 75 minutes
from November 1 through March 31.
TEDs incorporate an escape opening, usually covered by a webbing
flap, which allows sea turtles to escape from trawl nets. To be
approved, a TED design must be shown to be 97 percent effective in
excluding sea turtles during testing based upon NMFS-approved
scientific testing protocols (50 CFR 223.207(e)(1)). NMFS-approved
testing protocols established to date include the ``small turtle test''
(55 FR 41092, October 9, 1990) and the ``wild turtle test'' (52 FR
24244, June 29, 1987). Additionally, we have established a leatherback
model testing protocol to evaluate a candidate TED's ability to exclude
adult leatherback sea turtles (66 FR 24287, May 14, 2001). Because
testing with live leatherbacks is impossible, we obtained the carapace
measurements of 15 nesting female leatherback turtles and used these
data to construct an aluminum pipe-frame model of a leatherback turtle
measuring 40 inches (101.6 cm) in width, 60 inches (152.4 cm) in
length, and 21 inches (53.3 cm) in height. If the leatherback model and
a diver with full scuba gear are able to pass through the escape
opening of a candidate TED, that escape opening is judged to be capable
of excluding adult leatherback sea turtles, as well as other large
adult sea turtles.
On June 24, 2011 (76 FR 37050), we published a notice of intent to
prepare an EIS and conduct scoping meetings on potential measures to
reduce sea turtle bycatch in the shrimp fisheries. On May 10, 2012 (77
FR 27411), we published a proposed rule that, if implemented, would
require all skimmer trawls, pusher-head trawls, and wing nets
(butterfly trawls) to use TEDs in their nets. We also prepared a draft
environmental impact statement (DEIS), which included a description of
the purpose and need for evaluating the proposed action and other
potential management alternatives, the scientific methodology and data
used in the analyses, background information on
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the physical, biological, human, and administrative environments, and a
description of the effects of the proposed action and other potential
management alternatives on the aforementioned environments; a notice of
its availability was published on May 18, 2012 (77 FR 29636). At the
time the DEIS was prepared, information on the effects of the skimmer
trawl fisheries on sea turtle populations was extremely limited. New
information gained after the preparation of the DEIS indicated that a
significant number of sea turtles observed interacting with the skimmer
trawl fishery had a body depth that would allow them to pass between
the required maximum four-inch (10.16-cm) bar spacing of a standard TED
and proceed into the back of the net (i.e., they would not escape the
trawl net). Therefore, the conservation benefit of expanding the TED
requirement to skimmer trawls, pusher-head trawls, and wing nets was
much less than originally anticipated. As a result, we determined that
a final rule to withdraw the alternative tow time restriction and
require all skimmer trawls, pusher-head trawls, and wing nets to use
TEDs was not warranted (February 7, 2013; 78 FR 9024).
Following the withdrawal of the final rule, we initiated additional
TED testing, evaluating both small sea turtle exclusion and shrimp
retention within the skimmer trawl fishery. This testing has produced a
TED grid with narrow bar spacing (i.e., less than the current four-inch
bar spacing maximum) and escape-opening flap specifications that would
allow small turtles to effectively escape the trawl net, which could be
employed by skimmer and otter trawlers in areas where these small
turtles occur.
Purpose of This Action
NEPA requires Federal agencies to conduct an environmental analysis
of their proposed actions to determine if the actions may significantly
affect the quality of the human environment. We are considering a
variety of regulatory measures to reduce the bycatch of threatened and
endangered sea turtles in the shrimp fishery of the southeastern United
States in light of concerns regarding the effectiveness of existing TED
regulations in protecting sea turtles. This EIS will provide background
information and specifically evaluate the alternatives and impacts
associated with any considered management alternative. This rulemaking
would be implemented pursuant to the ESA. We are seeking public input
on the scope of the required NEPA analysis, including the range of
reasonable alternatives, associated significant impacts of any
alternatives, and suitable mitigation measures.
Scope of the Action
The EIS is expected to identify and evaluate the relevant
significant impacts and issues associated with implementing new sea
turtle regulations for the shrimp fishery of the southeastern United
States, in accordance with the Council on Environmental Quality's
Regulations at 40 CFR parts 1500-1508 and NOAA's procedures for
implementing NEPA found in NOAA Administrative Order (NAO) 216-6, dated
May 20, 1999.
Alternatives
We will evaluate a range of reasonable alternatives in the EIS to
reduce sea turtle bycatch and mortality in the shrimp fishery of the
southeastern United States. In addition to evaluating the status quo,
we will evaluate several other alternatives. These alternatives
include, but are not necessarily limited to: requiring all skimmer
trawls, pusher-head trawls, and wing nets (butterfly trawls) in both
the Atlantic and Gulf areas to use either modified TEDs with narrow bar
spacing (i.e., less than the current four-inch bar spacing maximum) or
standard TEDs; requiring all skimmer trawls, pusher-head trawls, and
wing nets in both the Atlantic and Gulf areas to use modified TEDs with
narrow bar spacing; requiring all trawlers (i.e., otter trawls, skimmer
trawls, pusher-head trawls, and wing nets) fishing in specific areas
where small sea turtles occur to use modified TEDs with narrow bar
spacing; as well as time and area closures affecting all shrimp
vessels. Potential new TED requirements could apply to vessels fishing
in both state and Federal waters.
Public Comments
We are providing this notice to advise the public and other
agencies of our intentions and to obtain suggestions and information on
the scope of the significant issues to include in the EIS. Comments and
suggestions are invited from all interested parties to ensure that the
full range of issues related to this proposed action and all
substantive issues are identified. We request that comments be as
specific as possible. In particular, we are seeking information
regarding the potential direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts on the
human environment from the proposed action. The human environment is
defined as ``. . . the natural and physical environment and the
relationship of people with that environment'' (40 CFR 1508.14). In the
context of the EIS, the human environment could include air quality,
water quality, underwater noise levels, socioeconomic resources,
fisheries, and environmental justice.
Comments concerning this environmental review process should be
directed to us (see ADDRESSES). All comments and material received,
including names and addresses, will become part of the administrative
record and may be released to the public.
Authority
The environmental review of the proposed action will be conducted
under the authority and in accordance with the requirements of the
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321
et seq.), National Environmental Policy Act Regulations (40 CFR parts
1500-1508), NOAA Administrative Order 216-6, other appropriate Federal
laws and regulations, and policies and procedures of NOAA and NMFS for
compliance with those regulations.
Scoping Meetings Code of Conduct
The public is asked to follow the following code of conduct at the
scoping meetings. At the beginning of each meeting, our representative
will explain the ground rules (e.g., alcohol is prohibited from the
meeting room; attendees will be called to give their comments in the
order in which they registered to speak; each attendee will have an
equal amount of time to speak; and attendees may not interrupt one
another). Our representative will structure the meeting so that all
attending members of the public will be able to comment, if they so
choose, regardless of the controversial nature of the subject(s).
Attendees are expected to respect the ground rules, and those that do
not will be asked to leave the meeting.
Special Accommodations
The scoping meetings are physically accessible to people with
disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other
auxiliary aids should be directed to our representative (see FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT) at least 7 days prior to the meeting.
Vietnamese translation services will be provided at the Louisiana and
Mississippi public hearings.
Dated: March 9, 2016.
Donna S. Wieting,
Director, Office of Protected Resources.
[FR Doc. 2016-05769 Filed 3-14-16; 8:45 am]
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