[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 216 (Wednesday, November 7, 2018)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 55640-55641]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-24368]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 900124-0127]
RIN 0648-XG418
Atlantic Surfclam and Ocean Quahog Fisheries; 2019 Fishing Quotas
for Atlantic Surfclams and Ocean Quahogs; and Suspension of Minimum
Atlantic Surfclam Size Limit
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule.
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SUMMARY: NMFS suspends the minimum size limit for Atlantic surfclams
for the 2019 fishing year. NMFS also announces that the quotas for the
Atlantic surfclam and ocean quahog fisheries for 2019 will remain
status quo. Regulations governing these fisheries require NMFS to
notify the public of the allowable harvest levels for Atlantic
surfclams and ocean quahogs from the Exclusive Economic Zone if the
previous year's quota specifications remain unchanged.
DATES: Effective January 1, 2019, through December 31, 2019.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Douglas Potts, Fishery Policy Analyst,
978-281-9341.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The regulations implementing the Atlantic
Surfclam and Ocean Quahog Fishery Management Plan (FMP) at 50 CFR
648.75(b)(3) authorize the Administrator, Greater Atlantic Region, NMFS
(Regional Administrator), to suspend annually, by publication in the
Federal Register, the minimum size limit for Atlantic surfclams. This
action may be taken unless discard, catch, and biological sampling data
indicate that 30 percent or more of the Atlantic surfclam resource have
a shell length less than 4.75 inches (120 mm), and the overall reduced
size is not attributable to harvest from beds where growth of the
individual clams has been reduced because of density-dependent factors.
At its June 2018 meeting, the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council
recommended the Regional Administrator suspend the minimum size limit
for Atlantic surfclams for the 2019 fishing year. Commercial surfclam
data for 2018 were analyzed to determine the percentage of surfclams
that were smaller than the minimum size requirement. The analysis
indicated that 20.2 percent of the overall commercial landings were
composed of surfclams that were less than the 4.75-in (120-mm) default
minimum size.
Based on the information available, the Regional Administrator
concurs with the Council's recommendation, and is suspending the
minimum size limit for Atlantic surfclams in the upcoming fishing year
(January 1 through December 31, 2019).
The Atlantic Surfclam and Ocean Quahog FMP requires that NMFS issue
a notice in the Federal Register of the upcoming year's quota, even in
cases where the quota remains unchanged from the previous year. At its
June 2018 meeting, the Council recommended no change to the quota
specifications for Atlantic surfclams and ocean quahogs for the 2019
fishing year. As a result, we are announcing that the 2018 quota levels
of 3.4 million bu (181 million L) for Atlantic surfclams, 5.33 million
bu (288 million L) for ocean quahogs, and 100,000 Maine bu (3.52
million L) for Maine ocean quahogs, as announced in
[[Page 55641]]
the Federal Register on February 6, 2018 (83 FR 5212), remain effective
for the 2019 fishing year.
Classification
This action is authorized by 50 CFR part 648 and is exempt from
review under Executive Order 12866.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: November 2, 2018.
Karen H. Abrams,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2018-24368 Filed 11-6-18; 8:45 am]
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