8758 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 31 / Wednesday, February 15, 2012 / Proposed Rules 

tanks, Water pollution control, Water 

supply. 

40 CFR Part 281 

Environmental protection, 

Administrative practice and procedures, 

Hazardous materials, Petroleum, State 

program approval, Underground storage 

tanks. 

Dated: February 8, 2012. 

Carolyn Hoskinson, 

Director, Office of Underground Storage 

Tanks, Office of Solid Waste and Emergency 

Response. 

[FR Doc. 2012–3589 Filed 2–14–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 300 

[Docket No. 120118051–1693–01] 

RIN 0648–BB64 

International Fisheries; Western and 

Central Pacific Fisheries for Highly 

Migratory Species; High Seas 

Transshipment Prohibitions 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce 

ACTION: Advance notice of proposed 

rulemaking; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: NMFS is considering 

promulgating regulations under the 

authority of the Western and Central 

Pacific Fisheries Convention 

Implementation Act (WCPFC 

Implementation Act) to prohibit the 

transshipment of highly migratory 

species (HMS) on the high seas to or 

from certain types of U.S. vessels that 

operate in the area of application of the 

Convention on the Conservation and 

Management of Highly Migratory Fish 

Stocks in the Western and Central 

Pacific Ocean (Convention). These 

regulations would implement certain 

decisions of the Commission for the 

Conservation and Management of 

Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the 

Western and Central Pacific Ocean 

(Commission or WCPFC) in order to 

meet the obligations of the United States 

under the Convention. NMFS issues this 

advance notice of proposed rulemaking 

to solicit information and comments 

about HMS transshipment activities by 

U.S. vessels, and the potential effects 

of a prohibition on high seas 

transshipments in the Convention Area. 

DATES: Comments must be submitted in 

writing by April 16, 2012. 

ADDRESSES: Comments on this advance 

notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPR), 

identified by NOAA–NMFS–2012–0001, 

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 

Regional Office (PIRO), 1601 Kapiolani 

Blvd., Suite 1110, Honolulu, HI 96814– 

4700. 

Instructions: Comments must be 

submitted to one of the 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 

part of the public record and generally 

will be posted for public viewing on 

http://www.regulations.gov without 

change. All personal identifying 

information (for example, name and 

address) voluntarily submitted 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 relevant required 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: Rini 

Ghosh, NMFS PIRO, (808) 944–2273. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Electronic Access 

This advance notice of proposed 

rulemaking is also accessible at http:// 

www.gpoaccess.gov/fr. 

Background on the Convention and the 

WCPFC 

The Convention Area comprises the 

majority of the western and central 

Pacific Ocean. A map showing the 

boundaries of the Convention Area can 

be found on the WCPFC Web site at: 

http://www.wcpfc.int/doc/conventionarea-map. The Convention focuses on 

the conservation and management of 

HMS and the management of fisheries 

for HMS. 

As a Contracting Party to the 

Convention and a Member of the 

WCPFC, the United States is obligated 

to implement the decisions of the 

WCPFC. The WCPFC Implementation 

Act (16 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.) authorizes 

the Secretary of Commerce, in 

consultation with the Secretary of State 

and the Secretary of the Department in 

which the United States Coast Guard is 

operating (currently the Department of 

Homeland Security), to promulgate such 

regulations as may be necessary to carry 

out the obligations of the United States 

under the Convention, including the 

decisions of the WCPFC. The authority 

to promulgate regulations has been 

delegated to NMFS. 

WCPFC Decision Regarding the 

Prohibition of Transshipments on the 

High Seas in the Convention Area 

At its Sixth Regular Annual Session, 

in December 2009, the WCPFC adopted 

Conservation and Management Measure 

(CMM) 2009–06, ‘‘Conservation and 

Management Measure on the Regulation 

of Transhipment.’’ The CMM, available 

with other decisions of the WCPFC at 

http://www.wcpfc.int/conservation-andmanagement-measures, furthers the 

objectives of Article 29 of the 

Convention and includes specific 

obligations for WCPFC Members, 

Participating Territories, and 

Cooperating Non-Members (collectively, 

CCMs) to regulate transshipment 

activities in the Convention Area and 

transshipments elsewhere of HMS 

caught in the Convention Area. NMFS is 

implementing the majority of the 

provisions of CMM 2009–06 in a 

separate rulemaking proceeding (see 

NOAA–NMFS–2011–0281 at 

www.regulations.gov). 

Under the Convention, CCMs are 

obligated with limited exceptions to 

prohibit transshipments at sea involving 

purse seine vessels in the Convention 

Area. NMFS has implemented this 

prohibition (see 50 CFR 300.216(b)). 

CMM 2009–06 contains a provision 

obligating CCMs to prohibit their vessels 

(other than purse seine vessels) from 

transshipping HMS on the high seas in 

the Convention Area, subject to certain 

considerations. The prohibition does 

not apply to vessels for which the flag 

CCM has determined that it is 

impracticable for them to operate 

without being able to transship on the 

high seas, and has advised the WCPFC 

of such. Paragraph 37 of CMM 2009–06 

sets forth interim guidelines for CCMs to 

use in making such determinations. 

CMM 2009–06 calls for the WCPFC to 

consider adopting definitive guidelines 

in 2012. 

Under the interim guidelines, vessels 

are to be excepted from the prohibition 

on transshipment on the high seas when 

the flag CCM determines that: (1) The 

prohibition of transshipment on the 

high seas would cause a significant 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 31 / Wednesday, February 15, 2012 / Proposed Rules 8759 

economic hardship, which would be 

assessed in terms of the cost that would 

be incurred to transship or land fish at 

feasible and allowable locations other 

than on the high seas, as compared to 

total operating costs, net revenues, or 

some other meaningful measure of costs 

and/or revenues; and (2) the vessel 

would have to make significant and 

substantial changes to its historical 

mode of operation as a result of the 

prohibition of transshipment on the 

high seas. 

Pursuant to a number of fisheries 

regulations, NMFS collects data from 

vessel owners and operators on some 

transshipment activities. However, the 

data do not cover all transshipment 

activities that could be subject to this 

regulation; they do not identify the 

locations of transshipments (e.g., with 

respect to in-port versus at-sea, on the 

high seas versus in waters under 

national jurisdiction, and inside versus 

outside the Convention Area), and the 

types of data collected differ among the 

fishing fleets. Accordingly, the available 

data may not provide complete 

information on historical transshipment 

activities by U.S. vessels on the high 

seas in the Convention Area. 

Based on the best available data, 

NMFS is aware that from 1993–2009 an 

average of 12 transshipments per year 

were conducted by the U.S. longline 

fleets operating in the area of 

application of the Convention, 

excluding transshipments involving the 

receipt of only shark fins from foreignflagged vessels—an activity that was 

curtailed after the passage of the Shark 

Finning Prohibition Act in 2000. It is 

likely that most of these transshipments 

took place at sea, but it is unknown how 

many of these transshipments took 

place on the high seas. It also appears 

that these transshipments involved 

vessels in the Hawaii-based longline 

fleet and the American Samoa-based 

longline fleet. 

NMFS data indicate that U.S. albacore 

troll vessels operating in the Convention 

Area conduct at-sea transshipments. For 

example, from 1990–2004 an average of 

49 transshipments per year were 

conducted by U.S. albacore troll vessels 

in the area of application of the 

Convention. It is likely that all of these 

transshipments took place on the high 

seas. The available data indicate that no 

U.S. albacore troll vessel has 

transshipped at sea in the Convention 

Area since 2004. 

NMFS has no information on high 

seas transshipments in the Convention 

Area for vessels in the pole-and-line, 

handline, tropical troll, or any other 

HMS fleets. 

NMFS is issuing this advance notice 

of proposed rulemaking to seek public 

comment on transshipment activities by 

U.S. HMS fishing fleets in the 

Convention Area and the impacts that a 

prohibition on high seas transshipment 

would have on fishing operations. 

NMFS would like information that 

would help it apply the interim 

guidelines of CMM 2009–06 to 

determine whether it would be 

impracticable for certain fishing vessels 

to operate without being able to 

transship on the high seas in the 

Convention Area. In particular, NMFS 

would like to receive information and 

comments from potentially affected 

entities and others on the following: 

(1) Transshipment activity that has 

occurred on the high seas in the 

Convention Area in the past; (2) 

transshipment activity that presently 

takes place on the high seas in the 

Convention Area; (3) transshipment 

activity that is likely to take place or is 

anticipated to take place on the high 

seas in the Convention Area in the 

future; (4) changes to fishing patterns 

and practices that could be caused by a 

prohibition on high seas transshipment 

in the Convention Area; and (5) the 

effects (economic or otherwise) that 

could be caused by a prohibition on 

high seas transshipment in the 

Convention Area. 

NMFS will consider the information 

and comments received in order to 

determine how best to implement the 

high seas prohibition provision of CMM 

2009–06 and any applicable exceptions. 

Classification 

This advance notice of proposed 

rulemaking has been determined to be 

not significant for the purposes of 

Executive Order 12866. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 6901 et seq. 

Dated: February 9, 2012. 

Alan D. Risenhoover, 

Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2012–3545 Filed 2–14–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 300 

[Docket No. 110209128–1694–01] 

RIN 0648–BA85 

International Fisheries; Western and 

Central Pacific Fisheries for Highly 

Migratory Species; Transshipping, 

Bunkering, Reporting, and Purse Seine 

Discard Requirements 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Proposed rule; request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: NMFS proposes regulations 

under the authority of the Western and 

Central Pacific Fisheries Convention 

Implementation Act (WCPFC 

Implementation Act) to implement 

requirements for U.S. fishing vessels 

used for commercial fishing that offload 

or receive transshipments of highly 

migratory species (HMS), U.S. fishing 

vessels used for commercial fishing that 

provide bunkering or other support 

services to fishing vessels, and U.S. 

fishing vessels used for commercial 

fishing that receive bunkering or engage 

in other support services, in the area of 

application of the Convention on the 

Conservation and Management of 

Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the 

Western and Central Pacific Ocean 

(Convention). Some of the requirements 

would also apply to transshipments of 

fish caught in the area of application of 

the Convention (Convention Area) and 

transshipped elsewhere. NMFS also 

proposes requirements regarding 

notification of entry into and exit from 

the ‘‘Eastern High Seas Special 

Management Area’’ (Eastern SMA) and 

requirements relating to discards from 

purse seine fishing vessels. This action 

is necessary for the United States to 

implement decisions of the Commission 

for the Conservation and Management of 

Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the 

Western and Central Pacific Ocean 

(Commission or WCPFC) and to satisfy 

its obligations under the Convention, to 

which it is a Contracting Party. 

DATES: Comments must be submitted in 

writing by April 16, 2012. 

ADDRESSES: Comments on this proposed 

rule, identified by NOAA–NMFS–2011– 

0281, the environmental assessment 

(EA), the regulatory impact review (RIR) 

prepared for the proposed rule, the 

Pacific Transshipment Declaration 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS