1700 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 8 / Wednesday, January 12, 2022 / Rules and Regulations 

stowed and not available for immediate 

use as defined in § 648.2. 

(b) * * * 

(4) Area fished. While on a Scallop 

Access Area trip, a vessel may not fish 

for, possess, or land scallops in or from 

areas outside the Scallop Access Area in 

which the vessel operator has declared 

the vessel will fish during that trip, and 

may not enter or exit the specific 

declared Scallop Access Area more than 

once per trip unless there is a 

compelling safety reason. A vessel on a 

Scallop Access Area trip may not enter 

or be in another Scallop Access Area on 

the same trip except such vessel may 

transit another Scallop Access Area as 

provided for under paragraph (a)(3) of 

this section. 

* * * * * 

(g) * * * 

(3) * * * 

(i) An LAGC scallop vessel authorized 

to fish in the Scallop Rotational Areas 

specified in § 648.60 or in paragraph 

(g)(3)(iv) of this section may land 

scallops, subject to the possession limit 

specified in § 648.52(a)(2), unless the 

Regional Administrator has issued a 

notice that the number of LAGC IFQ 

access area trips have been or are 

projected to be taken. All LAGC IFQ 

access area trips must be taken in the 

fishing year that they are allocated (i.e., 

there are no carryover trips). The total 

number of LAGC IFQ trips in an Access 

Area is specified in the specifications or 

framework adjustment processes 

defined in § 648.55. 

* * * * * 

(4) * * * 

(ii) Other species. Unless issued an 

LAGC IFQ scallop permit and fishing 

under an approved NE multispecies 

SAP under NE multispecies DAS, an 

LAGC IFQ vessel fishing in the Closed 

Area I, Closed Area II, Closed Area II 

Extension, and Nantucket Lightship 

Rotational Areas specified in § 648.60, 

and the Nantucket Lightship North 

Scallop Access Area specified in 

paragraph (g)(3)(iv) of this section is 

prohibited from possessing any species 

of fish other than scallops and 

monkfish, as specified in 

§ 648.94(c)(8)(i). Such a vessel may fish 

in an approved SAP under § 648.85 and 

under multispecies DAS in the scallop 

access area, provided that it has not 

declared into the Scallop Access Area 

Program. Such a vessel is prohibited 

from fishing for, possessing, or landing 

scallops. 

[FR Doc. 2022–00367 Filed 1–11–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 648 

[Docket No. 220105–0003] 

RIN 0648–BL05 

Fisheries of the Northeastern United 

States; Atlantic Mackerel; 2022 Interim 

Action 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; interim 

measures; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: This temporary rule 

implements interim specifications for 

the 2022 fishing year to address new 

assessment information regarding the 

status of the Atlantic mackerel stock. 

This action is intended to reduce 

potential Atlantic mackerel overfishing 

based on new 2021 assessment findings 

while a rebuilding plan is being 

developed. 

DATES: Effective January 7, 2022, 

through July 11, 2022. Comments must 

be received by February 11, 2022. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

on this document, identified by NOAA– 

NMFS–2021–0137 by either of the 

following methods: 

Electronic Submission: Submit all 

electronic public comments via the 

Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to 

https://www.regulations.gov and enter 

NOAA–NMFS–2021–0137 in the Search 

box. Click on the ‘‘Comment’’ icon, 

complete the required fields, and enter 

or attach your comments. 

Instructions: Comments sent by any 

other method, to any other address or 

individual, or received after the end of 

the comment period, may not be 

considered by NMFS. All comments 

received are a part of the public record 

and will generally be posted for public 

viewing on www.regulations.gov 

without change. All personal identifying 

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

confidential business information, or 

otherwise sensitive information 

submitted voluntarily by the sender will 

be publicly accessible. NMFS will 

accept anonymous comments (enter 

‘‘N/A’’ in the required fields if you wish 

to remain anonymous). 

The supporting documents for the 

action are available upon request from 

Dr. Christopher M. Moore, Executive 

Director, Mid-Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council, Suite 201, 800 N 

State Street, Dover, DE 19901. These 

documents are also accessible via the 

internet at https://www.mafmc.org. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Aly 

Pitts, Fishery Management Specialist, 

(978) 281–9352. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council (Council) manages 

the Atlantic mackerel fishery under the 

Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish (MSB) 

Fishery Management Plan (FMP). 

Section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act allows the Secretary to implement 

interim measures to reduce or address 

overfishing. In situations such as this, in 

which the Mid-Atlantic Council has 

begun the development of a rebuilding 

plan, section 304(e)(6) allows the 

Council to request the Secretary to 

implement interim measures to reduce 

overfishing, even if such measures are 

not sufficient themselves to stop 

overfishing, until such measures can be 

replaced by the rebuilding plan. As 

further described below, NMFS 

implements this action to adjust the 

domestic annual harvest (DAH, or 

commercial quota) from the previously 

implemented amount of 17,312 metric 

tons (mt) to 4,963 mt in order to 

minimize overfishing while the Council 

responds to the most recent stock 

assessment information and completes 

work on a revised rebuilding plan. This 

revised DAH takes into account new 

information on Canadian harvest and 

U.S. recreational landings. 

The 2017 stock assessment indicated 

that Atlantic mackerel was overfished 

and subject to overfishing. To end 

overfishing and rebuild the species, the 

Council adopted a rebuilding plan 

under Framework Adjustment 13 to the 

Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish FMP 

(84 FR 58053; October 30, 2019). The 

rebuilding plan became effective in 

November 2019 and set Atlantic 

mackerel catch levels to prevent 

overfishing and rebuild the stock by 

2023 based on the strength of a larger 

than average year class from 2015. 

However, shortly after the rebuilding 

program was implemented, updated 

information, including a Canadian stock 

assessment, suggested that more recent 

recruitment was lower than expected 

when specifications were set in the 

original rebuilding plan. In response, 

the Council maintained, and we 

implemented, the overall 2019 

acceptable biological catch (ABC) 

(29,184 mt) and DAH (17,312 mt) 

through 2023 instead of increasing catch 

levels based on expected rebuilding 

progress as a precautionary measure to 

help the species continue to rebuild as 


lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with RULES1
Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 8 / Wednesday, January 12, 2022 / Rules and Regulations 1701 

planned. On July 22, 2021, we 

published a final rule in the Federal 

Register (86 FR 38586), implementing 

the previously approved 2021–2022 

Atlantic mackerel specifications to 

maintain the 2020 specifications. 

At its July 2021 meeting, the Council’s 

Scientific and Statistical Committee 

(SSC) reviewed the 2021 management 

track assessment results from the 

Northeast Fisheries Science Center, 

which concluded that Atlantic mackerel 

remains overfished, overfishing is 

occurring, and the 2015 recruitment has 

not been as productive as expected. 

Based on this information, the SSC 

recommended that measures be 

implemented to eliminate or minimize 

additional catch for the rest of 2021 and 

2022. At its August 2021 meeting, the 

Council requested that NMFS take 

action to reduce potential mackerel 

overfishing while it develops a 

rebuilding plan for this species during 

the 2022 fishing year. In response to the 

Council’s request and to address 

concerns over 2021 catch, we recently 

published an in-season action reducing 

the mackerel possession limit to 5,000 

lb (2,268 kg) for the remainder of 2021 

(86 FR 57376; October 15, 2021) to 

minimize landings and overfishing 

based on the latest scientific 

information. We have also projected that 

the U.S. commercial fishery is expected 

to land over 5,400 mt of Atlantic 

mackerel during 2021. Therefore, taking 

into account new estimates of Canadian 

landings and U.S. recreational harvest, 

this rule will adjust the commercial 

2022 DAH to 4,963 mt so that total catch 

in 2022 is similar to 2021. 

Interim Atlantic Mackerel 

Specifications for 2022 

Based on the recommendations of the 

SSC, the MSB Monitoring Committee, 

and the Council, this action sets the 

2022 Atlantic mackerel specifications, 

specifically the DAH to 4,963 mt. These 

specifications also maintain the 129-mt 

river herring and shad catch cap. There 

is an Atlantic mackerel stock assessment 

update scheduled for 2022 that will 

inform future ABC specifications. 

This temporary rule has an effective 

period limited by the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act to 180 days, with a potential 

extension of an additional 186 days. The 

Council has begun development of a 

revised rebuilding plan which it intends 

to be implemented by January 1, 2023. 

However, if the expected rulemaking 

implementing the rebuilding plan is not 

in place before the expiration of this 

rule (180 days following publication), 

an extension of the interim measures for 

186 days will be considered. 

Justification for Interim Measures 

Section 305(c) of the MagnusonStevens Act (16 U.S.C. 1855(c)) 

authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to 

implement interim measures to address 

overfishing. This action meets the 305(c) 

requirements for interim measures 

because it is necessary to minimize 

overfishing on the Atlantic mackerel 

stock that remains overfished while the 

Council develops a new rebuilding 

program for the stock. 

While some changes resulting from 

the 2021 stock assessment were 

expected, the magnitude of the shift in 

the perception of stock status 

necessitating changes to the catch limits 

was not, and could not have been, 

foreseen. The assessment results only 

recently became available, after the 

Council took final action on, and we 

implemented, the 2022 specifications. 

Based on this new information, and 

only two years after the implementation 

of the original rebuilding program for 

mackerel, the Council must develop a 

new rebuilding plan to incorporate the 

most recent scientific information. 

However, given that the new 

information only recently became 

available, the Council could not 

complete an action to develop a new 

rebuilding plan and adjust 

specifications in time for the fishing 

year. Because of unforeseen 

specification adjustments necessary to 

address the recent stock assessment, the 

Council requested that NMFS take 

action to reduce potential additional 

Atlantic mackerel harvest in 2022 via a 

reduction in the commercial quota 

while the Council modifies Atlantic 

mackerel rebuilding for 2023. Delayed 

implementation of these measures 

increases the risk and magnitude of 

overfishing for 2022 by allowing the 

current 17,312 mt commercial catch 

rather than 4,963 mt, implemented by 

this rule. 

These interim measures are intended 

to minimize overfishing in the Atlantic 

mackerel fishery and additional 

negative impacts to the already 

overfished fishery resource. Therefore, 

avoiding the serious conservation and 

management problem of subjecting the 

overfished Atlantic mackerel stock to 

continued overfishing conditions due to 

reasonably unforeseen circumstances 

justifies these interim measures, and 

outweighs the benefit of advance notice 

and comment. 

Renewal of Interim Regulations 

The Magnuson-Stevens Act limits 

NMFS’ authority to implement interim 

measures for an initial period of 180 

days, with a potential extension up to 

an additional 186 days, if warranted. 

The public has an opportunity to 

comment on the specification measures 

in this temporary rule (see ADDRESSES). 

After considering public comments on 

this rule, NMFS may extend the interim 

measures for one additional period of 

not more than 186 days to maintain the 

interim measures until permanent 

rulemaking can be implemented. 

Classification 

NMFS issues this action pursuant to 

section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act. This action is required by 50 CFR 

part 648, which was issued pursuant to 

section 304(b). 

The Assistant Administrator for 

Fisheries, NOAA, finds that it would be 

unnecessary and contrary to the public 

interest to provide for prior notice and 

an opportunity for public comment, 

pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B). This 

action reduces the allowable Atlantic 

mackerel catch based on new 

assessment information that recently 

became available. This adjustment is 

allowed pursuant to section 305(c) of 

the Magnuson-Stevens Act in order to 

minimize overfishing while the Council 

responds to the new, updated 

information. A delay would be contrary 

to the public interest for the Atlantic 

mackerel fishery. Implementing a 

reduced DAH was anticipated and 

discussed during development and 

implementation of the original 

specifications action (86 FR 38586, June 

22, 2021), as well as at the August and 

October 2021 Council meetings. Fishery 

stakeholders are anticipating action to 

reduce mackerel harvest in 2022, and 

they will have the opportunity to 

comment on this action in response to 

the current public notice. 

Where the public has had an 

opportunity to review the development 

of the Council motion to reduce Atlantic 

mackerel catch for 2022 based on the 

best available science (the purpose of 

this action), the value of a delay in its 

effectiveness would be outweighed by 

the need to implement this adjustment 

as quickly as possible. Failure to 

implement this action as quickly as 

possible for the 2022 fishing year could 

result in 2022 catch that could have 

potential negative biological impacts, as 

well as the potential to result in lower 

catch limits in the future than would 

otherwise be required by the new 

rebuilding plan. The Atlantic mackerel 

fishery is active in November-February. 

Given the high-volume nature of the 

fishery and the reduced DAH, it is likely 

that the fishery will exceed the DAH. A 

delay would be contrary to the public 

interest while we take action to reduce 

potential mackerel overfishing while the 


lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with RULES1
1702 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 8 / Wednesday, January 12, 2022 / Rules and Regulations 

Council responds to recent scientific 

information and develops a rebuilding 

plan and new specifications for this 

species. For the same reasons, the 

Assistant Administrator finds good 

cause under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3) to waive 

the 30-day delay of effectiveness period 

for this. This rule should be effective as 

close to January 1, 2022, as possible, to 

fully realize the intended benefits to this 

high-volume fishery that is most active 

during the November-February months. 

This action is being taken pursuant to 

the 305(c) emergency action and interim 

measures provision of the MagnusonStevens Act and is exempt from OMB 

review. 

This temporary rule is has been 

determined to be not significant for 

purposes of Executive Order 12866. 

This rule does not duplicate, conflict, 

or overlap with any existing Federal 

rules. 

This action would not establish any 

new reporting or record-keeping 

requirements. 

This interim rule contains no 

information collection requirements 

under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 

1995 

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

Dated: January 6, 2022. 

Samuel D. Rauch, III, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2022–00402 Filed 1–7–22; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 


lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with RULES1