11518 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 51 / Wednesday, March 18, 2009 / Proposed Rules 

catch histories. This date was 

announced at the Council’s January 

2009 meeting, and was chosen because 

it coincides with the end of the 

immediately preceding fishing year in 

which landings would be documented. 

Publication of the control date in the 

Federal Register informs participants of 

the Council’s considerations, and gives 

notice to anyone entering the fishery 

after the control date they would not be 

assured of future access should a 

management regime be implemented 

using the control date as a means to 

restrict participation. Implementation of 

any such program would require 

preparation of an amendment to the 

FMP and subsequent rulemaking with 

appropriate public comment periods. 

Consideration of a control date does 

not commit the Council or NMFS to any 

particular management regime or 

criteria for eligibility in the commercial 

sector of the Gulf reef fish fishery. The 

Council may or may not make use of 

this control date as part of the qualifying 

criteria for participation in that sector of 

the fishery. Fishermen are not 

guaranteed future participation in a 

fishery regardless of their entry date or 

intensity of participation in the fishery 

before or after the control date under 

consideration. The Council 

subsequently may choose a different 

control date or a management regime 

that does not make use of a control date. 

The Council also may choose to take no 

further action to control entry or access 

to the fishery, in which case the control 

date may be rescinded. 

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

Dated: March 12, 2009. 

James W. Balsiger, 

Acting Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E9–5864 Filed 3–17–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 665 

RIN 0648–AW49 

Fisheries in the Western Pacific; 

Pelagic Fisheries; Hawaii-based 

Shallow-set Longline Fishery 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of availability of fishery 

management plan amendment; request 

for comments. 

SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the 

Western Pacific Fishery Management 

Council (Council) proposes to amend 

the Fishery Management Plan for 

Pelagic Fisheries of the Western Pacific 

Region (FMP). If approved by the 

Secretary of Commerce (Secretary), 

Amendment 18 would remove the 

annual limit on the number of fishing 

gear deployments (sets) for the Hawaiibased pelagic longline fishery. The 

amendment would also revise the 

current maximum limit on the number 

of physical interactions that occur 

annually between loggerhead sea turtles 

and vessels registered for use under 

Hawaii longline limited access permits 

while shallow-setting. Other measures 

currently applicable to the fishery 

would remain unchanged. Amendment 

18 is intended to increase opportunities 

for the shallow-set fishery to sustainably 

harvest swordfish and other fish 

species, without jeopardizing the 

continued existence of sea turtles and 

other protected resources. 

DATES: Comments on Amendment 18 

must be received by May 18, 2009. 

ADDRESSES: You may send comments on 

Amendment 18, identified by 0648– 

AW49, to either of the following 

addresses: 

• Electronic Submission: Submit all 

electronic public comments via the 

Federal e-Rulemaking Portal 

www.regulations.gov; or 

• Mail: Mail written comments to 

William L. Robinson, Regional 

Administrator, NMFS, Pacific Islands 

Region (PIR), 1601 Kapiolani Blvd., 

Suite 1110, Honolulu, HI 96814–4700. 

Instructions: All comments received 

are a part of the public record and will 

generally be posted to 

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 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. 

Copies of Amendment 18 (which 

includes a final supplemental 

environmental impact statement) are 

available from www.regulations.gov, and 

the Council, 1164 Bishop St., Suite 

1400, Honolulu, HI 96813, tel 808–522– 

8220, fax 808–522–8226, 

www.wpcouncil.org. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Adam Bailey, Sustainable Fisheries 

Division, NMFS PIR, 808–944–2248. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Electronic Access 

This proposed rule is also accessible 

at www.gpoaccess.gov/fr. 

Background 

The Hawaii-based shallow-set pelagic 

longline fishery primarily targets 

swordfish in the western Pacific north 

of the Hawaiian Archipelago. The 

fishery is carefully regulated through a 

management program intended, among 

other goals, to reduce the number and 

severity of unintended bycatch 

interactions, particularly between 

longline fishing gear and sea turtles. 

Management measures include the 

mandatory use of large (18/0) offset 

circle hooks and mackerel-type bait, and 

100 percent observer coverage. The 

required use of circle hooks and 

mackerel-type bait has reduced the sea 

turtle interaction rate by approximately 

90 percent for loggerheads, and 83 

percent for leatherbacks, compared to 

the period 1994–2002 when the fishery 

was operating without such 

requirements. 

Because the use of circle hooks and 

mackerel-type bait have proven effective 

in reducing sea turtle interaction rates, 

the Council has recommended in 

Amendment 18 changes to the 

management program that would enable 

the shallow-set fishery to increase and 

sustainably harvest swordfish and other 

fish, without jeopardizing the continued 

existence and recovery of threatened 

and endangered sea turtles and other 

protected resources. 

Amendment 18 would remove the 

annual limit on the number of longline 

shallow sets. The shallow-set certificate 

program, which is used to monitor and 

control the number of sets, with the 

elimination of set limits. Amendment 18 

would also increase the number of 

allowable incidental interactions 

between longline fishing gear to 46 for 

loggerhead sea turtles (from the current 

limit of 17). The allowable interaction 

limit for leatherback sea turtles would 

remain unchanged at 16. 

All other measures currently 

applicable to the fishery would remain 

unchanged, including, but not limited 

to, limited access permits, vessel and 

gear marking requirements, vessel 

length restrictions, Federal catch and 

effort logbooks, 100 percent observer 

coverage, large longline restricted areas 

around the Hawaiian Archipelago, 

vessel monitoring system (VMS), annual 

protected species workshops, and the 

use of sea turtle, seabird, and marine 


tjames on PRODPC61 with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 51 / Wednesday, March 18, 2009 / Proposed Rules 11519 

mammal handling and mitigation gear 

and techniques. 

The proposed management changes 

are intended to further the intent of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act by 

fostering optimum yield from the 

shallow-set longline fishery, while 

minimizing bycatch and associated 

bycatch mortality. 

Public comments on proposed 

Amendment 18 must be received by 

May 18, 2009 to be considered by NMFS 

in the decision to approve, partially 

approve, or disapprove the amendment. 

A proposed rule to implement the 

measures recommended in Amendment 

18 has been prepared for Secretarial 

review and approval, and NMFS expects 

to publish and request public comment 

on the proposed rule in the near future. 

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

Dated: March 13, 2009. 

Emily H. Menashes, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E9–5888 Filed 3–17–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 


tjames on PRODPC61 with PROPOSALS