Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Atlantic Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish Fisheries; Specifications and Management Measures
Federal Register, Volume 79 Issue 65 (Friday, April 4, 2014)
Federal Register Volume 79, Number 65 (Friday, April 4, 2014)
Rules and Regulations
Pages 18834-18844
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office www.gpo.gov
FR Doc No: 2014-07610
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
Docket No. 130903775-4276-02
RIN 0648-BD65
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Atlantic Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish Fisheries; Specifications and Management Measures
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: NMFS is implementing the specifications for fishing year (FY) 2014 for butterfish, as well as other management measures for the species managed under the Atlantic Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish Fishery Management Plan. NMFS previously set specifications for longfin squid and Illex squid for 3 years in 2012 (FYs 2012-2014) and, therefore, new specifications for these species are not included in this year's specification rulemaking. Likewise, NMFS set specifications for mackerel for 3 years in 2013 (2013-2015), so new mackerel specifications are not included in this action. This action increases the butterfish acceptable biological catch by 8 percent and the butterfish landings limit by 24 percent compared to FY 2013. This action also increases the butterfish Phase 3 trip limit from 500 lb (0.23 mt) to 600 lb (0.27 mt) for longfin squid/butterfish moratorium permit holders; establishes a 236-mt cap on river herring (blueback and alewife) and shad (American and hickory) catch in the mackerel fishery; and raises the post-closure possession limit for longfin squid to 15,000 lb (6.80 mt) for vessels targeting Illex squid.
DATES: Effective April 4, 2014.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the 2014 specifications document, including the Environmental Assessment (EA), is available from John K. Bullard, Regional Administrator, Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (formerly Northeast Regional Office), National Marine Fisheries Service, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930. This document is also accessible via the Internet at http://www.nero.noaa.gov. NMFS prepared a Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (FRFA), which is contained in the Classification section of this rule. Copies of the FRFA and the Small Entity Compliance Guide are available from: John K. Bullard, Regional Administrator, at the address provided above.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Aja Szumylo, Fishery Policy Analyst, 978-281-9195.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Specifications, as referred to in this rule, are the combined suite of commercial and recreational catch levels established for 1 or more FYs. The specification process also allows for the modification of a select number of management measures, such as closure thresholds, gear restrictions, and possession limits. The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council's (Council) process for establishing specifications relies on provisions within the Atlantic Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish (MSB) Fishery Management Plan (FMP) and its implementing regulations, as well as requirements established by the Magnuson-
Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act). Specifically, section 302(g)(1)(B) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act states that the Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) for each Regional Fishery Management Council shall provide its Council ongoing scientific advice for fishery management decisions, including recommendations for acceptable biological catch (ABC), preventing overfishing, maximum sustainable yield, and achieving rebuilding targets. The ABC is a level of catch that accounts for the scientific uncertainty in the estimate of the stock's defined overfishing level (OFL).
The Council's SSC met on May 15 and 16, 2013, confirming FY 2014 specifications for Illex squid, longfin squid, and Atlantic mackerel (mackerel) and recommending ABCs for the FY 2014 butterfish specifications. A proposed rule for FY 2014 MSB specifications and management measures was published on January 10, 2014 (79 FR 1813); the public comment period for the proposed rule ended February 10, 2014. NMFS set the specifications for longfin squid and Illex squid for 3 years in 2012 (77 FR 51858; August 27, 2012) and for mackerel in 2013 (78 FR 3346; January 16, 2013). Information on these specifications is not included in this action (except for in Table 1), but can be found in the final rules for those actions, as referenced above.
The MSB regulations require the specification of annual catch limits (ACL) and accountability measures (AM) for mackerel and butterfish (both
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squid species are exempt from the ACL/AM requirements because they have a life cycle of less than 1 year). In addition, the regulations require the specification of domestic annual harvest (DAH), domestic annual processing (DAP), and total allowable level of foreign fishing (TALFF), along with joint venture processing for (JVP) commercial and recreational annual catch totals (ACT) for mackerel, the butterfish mortality cap in the longfin squid fishery, and initial optimum yield (IOY) for both squid species. Details concerning the Council's development of these measures were presented in the preamble of the proposed rule and are not repeated here.
The Council recommended that up to 3 percent of the total ACL for mackerel, up to 3 percent of the IOY for Illex and longfin squid, and up to 2 percent of the butterfish ACT could be set aside to fund projects selected under the 2014 Mid-Atlantic Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program. The final RSA allocation for longfin squid, 635 mt, is subtracted from the IOY for longfin squid in the table below. The butterfish award, 115 mt, is accounted for within the 1,106-mt unallocated portion of the butterfish ACT that covers discards in other fisheries (i.e., the ACL minus the Commercial ACT), and is thus not reflected in the table below.
Table 1--Final Specifications, in Metric Tons (mt), for Mackerel for
2013-2015, Butterfish for FY 2014, and Longfin and Illex Squid for the
FY 2013-2014 Fishing Year
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Specifications Mackerel Butterfish Illex Longfin
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OFL........................... Unknown 18,200 Unknow Unknown
n
ABC........................... 43,781 9,100 24,000 23,400
ACL........................... 43,781 9,100 N/A N/A
Commercial ACT................ 34,907 8,190 N/A N/A
Recreational ACT/RHL.......... 2,443 N/A N/A N/A
IOY........................... N/A N/A 22,915 21,810
DAH/DAP....................... 33,821 3,200 22,915 21,810
JVP........................... 0 N/A N/A N/A
TALFF......................... 0 0 N/A N/A
RSA........................... N/A ** N/A 635
Butterfish Mortality Cap...... 3,884
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** Part of ACT that accounts for discards in other fisheries.
Final FY 2014 Specifications for Butterfish
Details regarding the derivation of the Council's recommended butterfish specifications were included in the proposed rule, and are not repeated here. This action establishes the butterfish specifications as recommended by the Council. The butterfish ACL is set equal to the ABC, and there is a 10-percent buffer between ACL and ACT for management uncertainty, which results in an ACT of 8,190 mt. The DAH and DAP are set at 3,200 mt, and the butterfish discard cap in the longfin fishery is maintained at 3,884 mt. The remaining 1,106 mt of the ACT allows for discards in other fisheries to minimize the likelihood of an ACL overage, and covers the RSA allocation of 115 mt. Additionally, consistent with MSB regulations, butterfish TALFF is set at zero for FY 2014. Butterfish TALFF is only specified to address bycatch by foreign fleets targeting mackerel TALFF. Because no mackerel TALFF was allocated for FYs 2013-2015, butterfish TALFF is also set at zero.
Consistent with FY 2013, the FY 2014 butterfish mortality cap is allocated by Trimester, as follows:
Table 2--Trimester Allocation of Butterfish Mortality Cap on the Longfin
Squid Fishery for 2014
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Metric
Trimester Percent tons
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I (Jan-Apr)......................................... 65 2,525
II (May-Aug)........................................ 3.3 128
III (Sep-Dec)....................................... 31.7 1,231
Total........................................... 100 3,884
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This action also increases the butterfish possession limit in Phase 3 of the directed butterfish fishery. Currently, NMFS manages the directed butterfish fishery in three phases. Table 3 shows the phases and possession limits, and the fishery moves from Phase 1, to Phase 2, and to Phase 3 when catch reaches specified thresholds throughout the year. When NMFS projects the butterfish harvest to reach the catch threshold for Phase 3, the trip limit for all limited access permit holders is currently reduced to 500 lb (0.23 mt) to avoid quota overages, but the incidental trip limit remains at 600 lb (0.27 mt). This action increases the Phase 3 possession limit from 500 lb (0.23 mt) to 600 lb (0.27 mt) to be consistent with the current incidental butterfish trip limit.
Table 3--Three-Phase Butterfish Management System
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Longfin squid/butterfish moratorium permit trip
limit Squid/butterfish
Phase -------------------------------------------------- incidental catch permit
>= 3 inch (7.62 cm)
