Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 169 / Friday, August 31, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 50257 

Flooding source(s) Location of referenced elevation 

*Elevation in 

feet (NGVD) 

+Elevation 

in feet 

(NAVD) 

# Depth in 

feet above 

ground. 

Modified 

Communities affected 

Magazine Branch ...................... Starts at approximately 920 feet downstream of Pennsylvania 

Avenue.

+594 City of Charleston, Kanawha 

County (Unincorporated 

Areas). 

Ends approximately at 100 feet upstream of Pacific Street ...... +688 

Middle Fork ............................... Begins at approximately 480 feet downstream of Middle Fork 

Road.

+606 Kanawha County (Unincorporated Areas). 

Ends approximately at 135 feet upstream of Middle Fork Road +630 

Mill Creek .................................. Begins at approximately 90 feet downstream of Rail Road 

Bridge.

+605 Kanawha County (Unincorporated Areas). 

Ends approximately at 4550 feet upstream of Mill Creek Road +775 

Two and Three Quarter Mile 

Creek.

Begins at approximately 220 feet downstream of U.S. Route 

60.

+589 Kanawha County (Unincorporated Areas). 

Ends approximately at 1880 feet upstream of Cane Fork Road +618 

*National Geodetic Vertical Datum. 

#Depth in feet above ground. 

+North American Vertical Datum. 

ADDRESSES 

City of Charleston 

Maps are available for inspection at 501 East Virginia Street, Charleston, WV 25301. 

City of Dunbar 

Maps are available for inspection at 210 12th Street, Dunbar, WV 25064. 

Kanawha County (Unincorporated Areas) 

Maps are available for inspection at 501 East Virginia Street, Charleston, WV 25301. 

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance No. 

97.022, ‘‘Flood Insurance.’’) 

Dated: August 22, 2007. 

David I. Maurstad, 

Federal Insurance Administrator of the 

National Flood Insurance Program, 

Department of Homeland Security, Federal 

Emergency Management Agency. 

[FR Doc. E7–17319 Filed 8–30–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9110–12–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 635 

RIN 0648–XC23 

Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; 

Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Fisheries 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; inseason 

retention limit adjustment. 

SUMMARY: NMFS has determined that 

the Atlantic tunas General category 

daily Atlantic bluefin tuna (BFT) 

retention limit should be adjusted for 

the September and October time period 

of the 2007 fishing year. The adjustment 

will allow for maximum utilization of 

the General category quota. Therefore, 

NMFS increases the daily BFT retention 

limits to provide enhanced commercial 

fishing opportunities without risking 

overharvest of the General category 

quota. 

DATES: The effective dates for the BFT 

daily retention limits are provided in 

Table 1 under SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brad 

McHale, 978–281–9260. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Regulations implemented under the 

authority of the Atlantic Tunas 

Convention Act (16 U.S.C. 971 et seq.) 

and the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(Magnuson-Stevens Act; 16 U.S.C. 1801 

et seq.) governing the harvest of BFT by 

persons and vessels subject to U.S. 

jurisdiction are found at 50 CFR part 

635. Section 635.27 subdivides the U.S. 

BFT quota recommended by the 

International Commission for the 

Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) 

among the various domestic fishing 

categories. 

The 2007 fishing year began on June 

1, 2007, and ends December 31, 2007. 

NMFS proposed 2007 fishing year 

specifications to set BFT quotas and 

General category effort controls on April 

4, 2007 (72 FR 16318). These proposed 

specifications considered adjusting the 

daily retention limits throughout the 

2007 season and received favorable 

public support. NMFS published final 

specifications on June 18, 2007 (72 FR 

33401) and increased the default 

General category retention limit of one 

large medium or giant BFT (measuring 

73 inches (185 cm) curved fork length 

(CFL) or greater) per vessel per day/trip 

to three large medium or giant BFT, 

measuring 73 inches CFL or greater, per 

vessel per day/trip through August 31, 

2007. This action enhances commercial 

BFT fishing opportunities to those 

vessels permitted in the Atlantic tunas 

General category and the Highly 

Migratory Species (HMS) Charter/ 

Headboat category, while fishing 

commercially. In addition, NMFS stated 

that it would consider adjustment of 

retention of retention limits for future 

time periods, if warranted. 

Daily Retention Limits 

Pursuant to this action, the daily BFT 

retention limits for the Atlantic tunas 

General and HMS Charter/Headboat 

categories are as follows: 


sroberts on PROD1PC70 with RULES
50258 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 169 / Friday, August 31, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

TABLE 1. EFFECTIVE DATES FOR RETENTION LIMIT ADJUSTMENTS

Permit Category Effective Dates Areas BFT Size Class Daily Limit 

June 1 through August 31, 2007, inclusive. All Three BFT per vessel per trip, measuring 73 inches (185 cm) curved fork 

length (CFL) or greater. 

Atlantic tunas General and HMS Charter/ 

Headboat (while fishing commercially) 

September 1 through October 31, 

2007, inclusive. 

All Three BFT per vessel per trip, measuring 73 inches (185 cm) CFL or 

greater. 

November 1 through December 31, 

2007, inclusive. 

All One BFT per vessel per trip, measuring 73 inches (185 cm) CFL or 

greater. 

Adjustment of General Category Daily 

Retention Limits 

Under 50 CFR 635.23(a)(4), NMFS 

may increase or decrease the daily 

retention limit of large medium and 

giant BFT over a range of zero to a 

maximum of three per vessel to provide 

for maximum utilization of the General 

category quota for BFT. Such 

adjustments to the commercial retention 

limit are based on NMFS’ consideration 

of the criteria provided under 

§ 635.27(a)(8), which include: the 

usefulness of information obtained from 

catches in the particular category for 

biological sampling and monitoring of 

the status of the stock; the catches of the 

particular category quota to date and the 

likelihood of closure of that segment of 

the fishery if no adjustment is made; the 

projected ability of the vessels fishing 

under the particular category quota to 

harvest the additional amount of BFT 

before the end of the fishing year; the 

estimated amounts by which quotas for 

other gear categories of the fishery might 

be exceeded; effects of the adjustment 

on BFT rebuilding and overfishing; 

effects of the adjustment on 

accomplishing the objectives of the 

fishery management plan; variations in 

seasonal distribution, abundance, or 

migration patterns of BFT; effects of 

catch rates in one area precluding 

vessels in another area from having a 

reasonable opportunity to harvest a 

portion of the category’s quota; and a 

review of dealer reports, daily landing 

trends, and the availability of the BFT 

on the fishing grounds. 

As of August 24, 2007, the coast wide 

General category has landed 29.4 metric 

tons (mt) out of a possible 643.6 mt, and 

catch rates remain less that 1.0 mt per 

day even though the General category 

retention limit was increased to three 

BFT per vessel per trip, measuring 73 

inches (185 cm) CFL or greater for the 

June through August time period. 

Starting on September 1, 2007, the 

General category daily retention limit, 

located at § 635.23(a)(2), is scheduled to 

revert back to the default retention limit 

of one large medium or giant BFT 

(measuring 73 inches (185 cm) CFL) or 

greater per vessel per day/trip. This 

scheduled retention limit applies to 

General category permitted vessels and 

HMS Charter/Headboat category 

permitted vessels (when fishing 

commercially for BFT). 

NMFS has considered the set of 

criteria cited above and their 

applicability to the commercial BFT 

retention limit for the September and 

October portion of the 2007 fishing year. 

The criteria include but are not limited 

to: the usefulness of information 

obtained from catches for biological 

sampling and monitoring of the status of 

the stock; the date and the likelihood of 

closure if no adjustment is made; the 

effects of the adjustment on BFT 

rebuilding and overfishing; variations in 

seasonal distribution, abundance, or 

migration patterns of BFT; effects of 

catch rates in one area precluding 

vessels in another area from having a 

reasonable opportunity to harvest a 

portion of the category’s quota; and a 

review of dealer reports, daily landing 

trends, and the availability of the BFT 

on the fishing grounds. Based on these 

considerations, NMFS has determined 

that the General category retention 

should be adjusted. Therefore, NMFS 

increases the General category retention 

limit from the default limits effective 

September 1 through October 31, 2007. 

This adjustment increases the General 

category daily retention limit to three 

large medium or giant BFT, measuring 

73 inches (185 cm) CFL or greater, per 

vessel per day/trip. This General 

category retention limit is effective in all 

areas, except for the Gulf of Mexico, and 

applies to those vessel permitted in the 

General category as well as to those 

HMS Charter/Headboat permitted 

vessels fishing commercially for BFT. 

Monitoring and Reporting 

NMFS selected the daily retention 

limit and the duration after examining 

an array of data as it pertains to the 

determination criteria. These data 

included, but were not limited to, 

current and previous catch and effort 

rates, quota availability, previous public 

comments on inseason management 

measures, stock status, etc. NMFS will 

continue to monitor the BFT fishery 

closely through the mandatory dealer 

landing reports. Depending on the level 

of fishing effort and catch rates of BFT, 

NMFS may determine that additional 

retention limit adjustments are 

necessary to ensure available quota is 

not exceeded or to enhance scientific 

data collection from, and fishing 

opportunities in, all geographic areas. 

Closures or subsequent adjustments to 

the daily retention limits, if any, will be 

published in the Federal Register. In 

addition, fishermen may call the 

Atlantic Tunas Information Line at (888) 

872–8862 or (978) 281–9260, or access 

the internet at www.hmspermits.gov, for 

updates on quota monitoring and 

retention limit adjustments. 

Classification 

The Assistant Administrator for 

NMFS (AA), finds that it is 

impracticable and contrary to the public 

interest to provide prior notice of, and 

an opportunity for public comment on, 

this action for the following reasons: 

NMFS continues to receive 

information refining its understanding 

of the commercial sector’s specific 

needs regarding retention limits midway through the 2007 season. NMFS 

assessments and analyses show catch 

rates to date have been low and that 

there is sufficient quota for an increase 

to the General category retention limit 

during the months of September and 

October. 

NMFS has recently become aware of 

increased availability of large medium 

and giant BFT off northern Atlantic 

fishing grounds from fishing reports, 

vessels participating in other fisheries, 

and landings data from dealers. This 

increase in abundance provides the 

potential to increase General category 

landings rates if fishery participants are 


sroberts on PROD1PC70 with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 169 / Friday, August 31, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 50259 

authorized to harvest three large 

medium or giant BFT per day. 

The regulations implementing the 

HMS FMP provide for inseason 

retention limit adjustments to respond 

to the unpredictable nature of BFT 

availability on the fishing grounds, the 

migratory nature of this species, and the 

regional variations in the BFT fishery. 

Affording prior notice and opportunity 

for public comment to implement these 

retention limits is impracticable as it 

would preclude NMFS from acting 

promptly to allow harvest of BFT that 

are available on the fishing grounds. 

Analysis of available data shows that 

the General category BFT retention 

limits may be increased with minimal 

risks of exceeding the ICCAT allocated 

quota. 

Delays in increasing these retention 

limits would adversely affect those 

General and Charter/Headboat category 

vessels that would otherwise have an 

opportunity to harvest more than the 

default retention limit of one BFT per 

day and may exacerbate the problem of 

low catch rates and quota rollovers. 

Limited opportunities to harvest the 

respective quotas may have negative 

social and economic impacts to U.S. 

fishermen that either depend upon 

catching the available quota within the 

time periods designated in the HMS 

FMP. Adjustment to the retention limit 

needs to be effective September 1, 2007, 

to minimize any unnecessary disruption 

in fishing patterns and for the impacted 

sectors to benefit from the adjustments 

so as to not preclude fishing 

opportunities from fishermen who only 

have access to the fishery during this 

time period. 

Therefore, the AA finds good cause 

under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) to waive prior 

notice and the opportunity for public 

comment. For all of the above reasons, 

and because this action relieves a 

restriction (i.e., current default retention 

limit is one fish per vessel/trip but this 

action increases that limit and allows 

retention of more fish), there is also 

good cause under 5 U.S.C. 553(d) to 

waive the 30-day delay in effectiveness. 

This action is being taken under 50 

CFR 635.23(a)(4) and (b)(3) and is 

exempt from review under Executive 

Order 12866. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 971 et seq. and 1801 

et seq. 

Dated: August 28, 2007. 

Alan D. Risenhoover, 

Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 07–4283 Filed 8–28–07; 1:20 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 


sroberts on PROD1PC70 with RULES