19028 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 66 / Wednesday, April 6, 2011 / Proposed Rules 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 665 

RIN 0648–AW66 

Western Pacific Pelagic Fisheries; 

Purse Seine Prohibited Areas Around 

American Samoa 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of availability of fishery 

ecosystem plan amendment; request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the 

Western Pacific Fishery Management 

Council (Council) proposes to amend 

the Fishery Ecosystem Plan for Pelagic 

Fisheries of the Western Pacific Region 

(FEP). If approved by the Secretary of 

Commerce, Amendment 3 would 

prohibit purse seine fishing in the U.S. 

Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) within 

75 nautical miles (nm) of shore around 

American Samoa. The proposed action 

is intended to reduce catch competition 

between purse seine vessels and local 

trolling and longline fleets due to 

possible localized stock depletion by 

purse seine fishing, and to minimize 

gear conflicts between the local longline 

fleet and domestic purse seine vessels. 

DATES: Comments on Amendment 3, 

including an environmental assessment, 

must be received by June 6, 2011. 

ADDRESSES: Copies of Amendment 3, 

including an environmental assessment, 

are available from http:// 

www.regulations.gov, or the Council, 

1164 Bishop St., Suite 1400, Honolulu, 

HI 96813, tel 808–522–8220, fax 808– 

522–8226, http://www.wpcouncil.org. 

Comments on the amendment, 

including the environmental 

assessment, identified by 0648–AW66, 

may be sent to either of the following 

addresses: 

• Electronic Submission: Submit all 

electronic public comments via the 

Federal e-Rulemaking Portal http:// 

www.regulations.gov; or 

• Mail: Mail written comments to 

Michael D. Tosatto, Regional 

Administrator, NMFS, Pacific Islands 

Region (PIR), 1601 Kapiolani Blvd., 

Suite 1110, Honolulu, HI 96814–4700. 

Instructions: Comments must be 

submitted to one of the above two 

addresses to ensure that the comments 

are received, documented, and 

considered by NMFS. Comments sent to 

any other address or individual, or 

received after the end of the comment 

period, may not be considered. All 

comments received are a part of the 

public record and will generally be 

posted to http://www.regulations.gov 

without change. All personal identifying 

information (e.g., name, address, etc.) 

submitted voluntarily by the commenter 

may be publicly accessible. Do not 

submit confidential business 

information, or otherwise sensitive or 

protected information. NMFS will 

accept anonymous comments (enter 

‘‘N/A’’ in the required name and 

organization fields if you wish to remain 

anonymous). Attachments to electronic 

comments will be accepted in Microsoft 

Word or Excel, WordPerfect, or Adobe 

PDF file formats only. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Adam Bailey, NMFS PIR Sustainable 

Fisheries Division, 808–944–2248. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pelagic 

fisheries in the U.S. western Pacific are 

managed under the FEP, developed by 

the Council, and approved and 

implemented by NMFS. The Council 

submitted Amendment 3 to NMFS for 

review under the Magnuson-Stevens 

Fishery Conservation and Management 

Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act). The 

Council prepared Amendment 3 to 

address pelagic fishing concerns in 

American Samoa. Local, pelagic trolling 

vessels target skipjack and yellowfin 

tuna in the EEZ around American 

Samoa. These vessels are usually small 

and incapable of safely traveling long 

distances from shore or holding large 

quantities of fish and are, therefore, 

limited to day trips in nearshore areas 

(less than 50 nm (93 km)) from shore. 

Local pelagic longline vessels target 

albacore tuna and retain non-target 

skipjack. Small longline vessels (less 

than 50 ft) are limited to fishing within 

50 nm (93 km) of shore and large 

longline vessels (50 ft and longer) can 

travel throughout the EEZ around 

American Samoa, and beyond, to fish. 

Longline gear is deployed in the 

morning, left to fish, and brought back 

on board starting in the late afternoon 

extending into the early morning of the 

next day. The length of mainline 

averages 40 nm (74 km), is deployed 

horizontally with floats at the surface, 

and drifts with the current. Individual 

vessels usually set one line per day. 

Purse seine vessels also target 

skipjack tuna, but are much larger, and 

more sophisticated and efficient. Fish 

aggregating devices (FADs), either 

natural or man-made, are deployed to 

drift around the ocean, until sufficient 

quantities of fish are accumulated to 

them. Purse seines are then deployed 

near or around FADs. Conditions for 

purse seine fishing in the EEZ around 

American Samoa are less favorable than 

other areas, and most domestic purse 

seine fishing is conducted outside the 

EEZ, to the north and northwest. There 

are 11 vessels in the U.S. purse seine 

fleet with an endorsement to fish within 

the U.S. EEZ. The average skipjack tuna 

catch per set is approximately 2.4 mt 

(5,308 lb). 

The Council is concerned about 

possible impacts on other pelagic 

fisheries if U.S. purse seine vessels were 

to increase activity in the EEZ around 

American Samoa near areas fished by 

troll and pelagic longline vessels. 

Localized fish depletion can occur when 

a stock in a small area is reduced by the 

removal of large amounts of fish, 

thereby temporarily depleting the 

availability of the stock to fishing 

activity or other predators in that area. 

Research suggests localized depletion 

may occur when large scale fishing 

operations, such as purse seine, 

competes with small-scale fishing 

operations, triggering catch competition 

for a single resource in a limited area. 

Reductions in fish density and catch 

rate could cause small vessels to travel 

farther to maintain catch rates, resulting 

in lost revenue due to increased 

expenses and possible safety-at-sea 

issues if vessels fish farther from port 

and for longer durations. Amendment 3 

could also reduce gear conflicts by 

separating purse seine operations from 

trolling longline activity closer to shore. 

All other measures currently applicable 

to the purse seine fishery, including 

large vessel prohibited areas of 50 nm, 

would remain unchanged. 

Comments on Amendment 3 must be 

received by June 6, 2011 to be 

considered by NMFS in the decision to 

approve, partially approve, or 

disapprove the amendment. NMFS soon 

expects to publish and request public 

comment on a proposed rule that would 

implement the measures recommended 

in Amendment 3. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. 

Dated: April 1, 2011. 

Emily H. Menashes, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2011–8212 Filed 4–5–11; 8:45 am] 

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