Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 172 / Thursday, September 7, 2023 / Rules and Regulations 61477 

Dated: August 31, 2023. 

Samuel D. Rauch, III, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

For the reasons set out in the 

preamble, NMFS amends 50 CFR part 

622 as follows: 

PART 622—FISHERIES OF THE 

CARIBBEAN, GULF OF MEXICO, AND 

SOUTH ATLANTIC 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 622 

continues to read as follows: 

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

■ 2. In § 622.378, revise paragraph (a) to 

read as follows: 

§ 622.378 Seasonal closures of the Gulf 

migratory group king mackerel gillnet 

fishery. 

(a) Seasonal closure of the gillnet 

component for Gulf migratory group 

king mackerel. The gillnet component 

for Gulf migratory group king mackerel 

in or from the southern zone is closed 

each fishing year from July 1 until 6 

a.m. eastern standard time on the day 

after the Martin Luther King Jr. Federal 

holiday. During the closure, a person 

aboard a vessel using or possessing a 

gillnet with a stretched-mesh size of 

4.75 inches (12.1 cm) or larger in the 

southern zone may not fish for or 

possess Gulf migratory group king 

mackerel. (See § 622.369(a)(1)(iii) for a 

description of the southern zone.) 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2023–19253 Filed 9–6–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 648 

[Docket No. 2021–27773; RTID 0648–XD333] 

Fisheries of the Northeastern United 

States; Scup Fishery; Adjustment to 

the 2023 Winter II Quota 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; in-season 

adjustment. 

SUMMARY: NMFS adjusts the 2023 

Winter II commercial scup quota and 

per-trip Federal landing limit. This 

action is necessary to comply with 

regulations implementing Framework 

Adjustment 3 to the Summer Flounder, 

Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery 

Management Plan that established the 

rollover of unused commercial scup 

quota from the Winter I to Winter II 

period. This notification is intended to 

inform the public of this quota and trip 

limit change. 

DATES: Effective October 1, 2023, 

through December 31, 2023. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Laura Deighan, Fishery Management 

Specialist, (978) 281–9184; or 

Laura.Deighan@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS 

published a final rule for Framework 

Adjustment 3 to the Summer Flounder, 

Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery 

Management Plan in the Federal 

Register on November 3, 2003 (68 FR 

62250), implementing a process to 

increase the Winter II (October 1 

through December 31) commercial scup 

quota by the amount of the Winter I 

(January 1 through April 30) underharvest and to adjust the Winter II 

possession limits consistent with the 

amount of the quota increase, based on 

the possession limits established 

through the annual specificationssetting process. 

For 2023, the initial Winter II quota is 

2,233,194 lb (1,012,960 kg). The best 

available landings information through 

June 28, 2023, indicates that 804,630 lb 

(364,974 kg) remain of the 6,319,911 lb 

(2,866,663 kg) Winter I quota. 

Consistent with Framework 3, the full 

amount of unused 2023 Winter I quota 

is being transferred to Winter II, 

resulting in a revised 2023 Winter II 

quota of 3,037,824 lb (1,377,934 kg). 

Because the amount transferred is 

between 0.5 and 1 million lb (226,796 

and 453,592 kg), the Federal per-trip 

possession limit will increase from 

12,000 lb (5,443 kg) to 13,500 lb (6,123 

kg), as outlined in the final rule that 

established the possession limit and 

quota rollover procedures for this year, 

published on January 3, 2023 (88 FR 

11). The new possession limit will be 

effective October 1 through December 

31, 2023. The possession limit will 

revert back to 12,000 lb (5,443 kg) at the 

start of the next fishing year, which 

begins January 1, 2024. 

Classification 

NMFS issues this action pursuant to 

section 305(d) of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act. This action is required by 50 CFR 

648.122(d), which was issued pursuant 

to section 304(b), and is exempted from 

review under Executive Order 12866. 

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), there 

is good cause to waive prior notice and 

an opportunity for public comment on 

this action, as notice and comment 

would be contrary to the public interest. 

This action transfers unused quota from 

the Winter I Period to the Winter II 

Period to make it accessible to the 

commercial scup fishery and increase 

fishing opportunities. If the 

implementation of this in-season action 

is delayed to solicit prior public 

comment, the objective of the fishery 

management plan to achieve the 

optimum yield from the fishery could be 

compromised. Deteriorating weather 

conditions during the latter part of the 

fishing year may reduce fishing effort, 

and could also prevent the annual quota 

from being fully harvested. If this action 

is delayed, it would reduce the amount 

of time vessels have to realize the 

benefits of this quota increase, which 

would result in negative economic 

impacts on vessels permitted to fish in 

this fishery. Moreover, the rollover 

process being applied here is routine 

and formulaic and was the subject of 

notice and comment rulemaking, and 

the range of potential trip limit changes 

were outlined in the final 2023 scup 

specifications that were published on 

January 3, 2023, which were developed 

through public notice and comment. 

The benefit of soliciting additional 

public comment on this formulaic 

adjustment would not outweigh the 

benefits of making this additional quota 

available to the fishery as quickly as 

possible. Based on these considerations, 

there is good cause under 5 U.S.C. 

553(d)(3) to waive the 30-day delayed 

effectiveness period for the reasons 

stated above. 

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

Dated: September 1, 2023. 

Jennifer M. Wallace, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2023–19309 Filed 9–6–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 679 

[RTID 0648–XC845] 

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic 

Zone Off Alaska; Snow Crab 

Rebuilding Plan in the Bering Sea and 

Aleutian Islands 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of agency decision. 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with RULES1
61478 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 172 / Thursday, September 7, 2023 / Rules and Regulations 

SUMMARY: The National Marine 

Fisheries Service (NMFS) announces the 

approval of Amendment 53 to the 

Fishery Management Plan for Bering 

Sea/Aleutian Islands King and Tanner 

Crabs (Crab FMP). Amendment 53 adds 

a new rebuilding plan for snow crab 

(Chionoecetes opilio) to the Crab FMP. 

The objective of this amendment is to 

rebuild the snow crab stock. In order to 

comply with provisions of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(Magnuson-Stevens Act), this action is 

necessary to implement a rebuilding 

plan prior to the start of the 2023/2024 

fishing season. Amendment 53 is 

intended to promote the goals and 

objectives of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, 

the Crab FMP, and other applicable 

laws. 

DATES: The amendment was approved 

on August 31, 2023. 

ADDRESSES: Electronic copies of 

Amendment 53 and the Environmental 

Assessment (referred to as the 

‘‘Analysis’’) prepared for this action 

may be obtained from https://

www.regulations.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Megan Mackey, 907–586–7228. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Magnuson-Stevens Act requires that 

each regional fishery management 

council submit any FMP amendment it 

prepares to NMFS for review and 

approval, disapproval, or partial 

approval by the Secretary of Commerce 

(Secretary). The Magnuson-Stevens Act 

also requires that NMFS, upon receiving 

an FMP amendment, immediately 

publish a notice in the Federal Register 

announcing that the amendment is 

available for public review and 

comment. 

The Notice of Availability (NOA) for 

Amendment 53 was published in the 

Federal Register on June 15, 2023 (88 

FR 39216) with a 60-day comment 

period that ended on August 14, 2023. 

NMFS received one comment during the 

public comment period on the NOA. 

NMFS summarized and responded to 

this comment under Comments and 

Responses, below. 

NMFS determined that Amendment 

53 is consistent with the MagnusonStevens Act and other applicable laws, 

and the Secretary of Commerce 

approved Amendment 53 on August 31, 

2023. The June 15, 2023 NOA contains 

additional information on this action. 

No changes to Federal regulations are 

necessary to implement the 

Amendment. 

NMFS manages the crab fisheries in 

the exclusive economic zone under the 

Crab FMP. The North Pacific Fishery 

Management Council (Council) 

prepared the Crab FMP under the 

authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, 

(16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.). Regulations 

governing U.S. fisheries and 

implementing the FMP appear at 50 

CFR parts 600 and 680. 

Through the Crab FMP, the State of 

Alaska (the State) is delegated 

management authority over certain 

aspects of the Eastern Bering Sea (EBS) 

snow crab fishery. This authority is 

limited by the Magnuson-Stevens Act 

and the FMP. For EBS snow crab, the 

State has established a harvest strategy 

to set total allowable catch (TAC) and 

announce season or area closures when 

the TAC is reached. The State’s Bering 

Sea C. opilio Tanner (snow crab) harvest 

strategy applies during rebuilding and is 

provided in the Alaska Administrative 

Code (AAC) at 5 AAC 35.517. The State 

harvest strategy is more conservative 

than the Crab FMP’s control rule 

parameters for EBS snow crab because, 

under the harvest strategy, a higher level 

of biomass is required to open directed 

fishing than under the overfishing level 

(FOFL) control rule. 

On October 19, 2021, NMFS 

determined and notified the Council 

that the EBS snow crab stock was 

overfished. To comply with provisions 

of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the 

Council developed a rebuilding plan to 

be implemented prior to the start of the 

2023/2024 fishing season. 

In February 2023, the Council chose 

a rebuilding plan for EBS snow crab that 

will allow bycatch removals and an 

opportunity for directed harvest during 

rebuilding if estimates of stock biomass 

are sufficient to open the fishery under 

the State’s snow crab harvest strategy. 

The rebuilding plan is consistent with 

the Magnuson-Stevens Act and with 

National Standard 1 Guidelines on time 

for rebuilding, specifically rebuilding 

within a time (Ttarget) that is as short as 

possible, taking into account the status 

and biology of any overfished stocks of 

fish, the needs of fishing communities, 

recommendations by international 

organizations in which the United 

States participates, and the interaction 

of the overfished stock of fish with the 

marine ecosystems. This rebuilding plan 

will allow directed fishing pursuant to 

the State harvest strategy and may 

provide important economic 

opportunities for harvesters, processors, 

and Alaska communities. Maintaining 

this economic opportunity for a limited 

directed commercial fishery under the 

State harvest strategy is important for 

harvesters, processors, and 

communities, particularly during this 

time when the majority of commercial 

crab stocks are in a state of decline and 

future openings are likely to be limited. 

Under the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the 

time period specified for rebuilding a 

fishery generally should not exceed 10 

years unless the biology of the stock or 

environmental conditions dictate 

otherwise. The projected time for 

rebuilding the EBS snow crab stock, 

taking into account the biology of the 

species and current environmental 

conditions, is 6 years. The main driver 

in the speed of rebuilding is likely 

related to recruitment and the 

ecosystem conditions that allow for 

increased recruitment into the 

population. Uncertainty surrounding 

recruitment and mortality under current 

ecosystem conditions is expected to 

heavily influence the rate at which the 

stock is able to rebuild under the 

projection parameters. Fishing mortality 

under the State’s current harvest 

strategy is expected to have only 

insignificant or minimal impacts on the 

rate of rebuilding. 

Amendment 53 adds Section 6.2.3 to 

the Crab FMP to include the rebuilding 

plan for EBS snow crab. Under the 

rebuilding plan, ecosystem indicators 

developed for the stock will be 

monitored during rebuilding. The 

NMFS EBS bottom-trawl survey 

provides data for the annual assessment 

of the status of crab stocks in the BSAI, 

including EBS snow crab, and will 

continue throughout rebuilding. The 

Council’s BSAI Crab Plan Team will 

report stock status and progress towards 

the rebuilt level in the Stock 

Assessment and Fishery Evaluation 

(SAFE) Report for the King and Tanner 

Crab Fisheries of the BSAI. 

Additionally, the State and NMFS 

monitor directed fishery catch and 

bycatch of snow crabs in other fisheries. 

When the fishery is open, the State 

requires full observer coverage (100 

percent) for catcher/processors and 

partial coverage (30 percent) for catcher 

vessels participating in the crab fishery. 

Observers monitor harvest at sea and 

landings by catcher vessels and 

shoreside processors. The State reports 

the total harvest from the commercial 

crab fishery, and that report will be 

included annually in the SAFE Report. 

The contribution of the rebuilding 

plan’s assessment and monitoring to 

stock recovery will be additive to 

measures already in place that limit the 

effects of fishing activity on EBS snow 

crab. 

In addition, Amendment 53 will 

remove rebuilding plans from the Crab 

FMP for stocks that have since been 

rebuilt or that have been replaced with 

new rebuilding plans, including 

rebuilding plans for Bering Sea Tanner 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with RULES1
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 172 / Thursday, September 7, 2023 / Rules and Regulations 61479 

crab (declared overfished on March 3, 

1999), Bering Sea snow crab (declared 

overfished on September 24, 1999), and 

St. Matthew blue king crab (declared 

overfished on September 24, 1999). 

Comments and Responses 

During the public comment period for 

the NOA for Amendment 53, NMFS 

received one unique comment from one 

member of the public. NMFS’s response 

to this comment is presented below. 

Comment 1: One commenter 

expressed general support for this 

action. 

Response: NMFS acknowledges this 

comment. 

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

Dated: September 1, 2023. 

Samuel D. Rauch, III, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2023–19300 Filed 9–6–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with RULES1