41020 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 144 / Friday, July 30, 2021 / Notices 

Workshop is a data report that compiles 

and evaluates potential datasets and 

recommends which datasets are 

appropriate for assessment analyses. 

The product of the Assessment Process 

is a stock assessment report that 

describes the fisheries, evaluates the 

status of the stock, estimates biological 

benchmarks, projects future population 

conditions, and recommends research 

and monitoring needs. The assessment 

is independently peer reviewed at the 

Review Workshop. The product of the 

Review Workshop is a Summary 

documenting panel opinions regarding 

the strengths and weaknesses of the 

stock assessment and input data. 

Participants for SEDAR Workshops are 

appointed by the Gulf of Mexico, South 

Atlantic, and Caribbean Fishery 

Management Councils and NOAA 

Fisheries Southeast Regional Office, 

HMS Management Division, and 

Southeast Fisheries Science Center. 

Participants include data collectors and 

database managers; stock assessment 

scientists, biologists, and researchers; 

constituency representatives including 

fishermen, environmentalists, and 

NGO’s; International experts; and staff 

of Councils, Commissions, and state and 

federal agencies. 

The items of discussion in the 

webinar are as follows: 

• Participants will discuss and make 

recommendations regarding what 

indices data may be included in the 

assessment of U.S. Caribbean Queen 

Triggerfish. 

Although non-emergency issues not 

contained in this agenda may come 

before this group for discussion, those 

issues may not be the subject of formal 

action during this meeting. Action will 

be restricted to those issues specifically 

identified in this notice and any issues 

arising after publication of this notice 

that require emergency action under 

section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Fishery Conservation and Management 

Act, provided the public has been 

notified of the intent to take final action 

to address the emergency. 

Special Accommodations 

The meeting is physically accessible 

to people with disabilities. Requests for 

sign language interpretation or other 

auxiliary aids should be directed to the 

Council office (see ADDRESSES) at least 5 

business days prior to each workshop. 

Note: The times and sequence specified in 

this agenda are subject to change. 

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

Dated: July 27, 2021. 

Tracey L. Thompson, 

Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2021–16267 Filed 7–29–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XB277] 

Marine Mammals; File No. 25739 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; receipt of application. 

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that 

New England Aquarium, Central Wharf, 

Boston, MA 02110 (Responsible Party: 

Vikki Spruill), has applied in due form 

for a permit to conduct research on 

North Atlantic right whales (Eubalaena 

glacialis). 

DATES: Written, telefaxed, or email 

comments must be received on or before 

August 30, 2021. 

ADDRESSES: The application and related 

documents are available for review by 

selecting ‘‘Records Open for Public 

Comment’’ from the ‘‘Features’’ box on 

the Applications and Permits for 

Protected Species (APPS) home page, 

https://apps.nmfs.noaa.gov, and then 

selecting File No. 25739 from the list of 

available applications. These documents 

are also available upon written request 

via email to NMFS.Pr1Comments@

noaa.gov. 

Written comments on this application 

should be submitted via email to 

NMFS.Pr1Comments@noaa.gov. Please 

include File No. 25739 in the subject 

line of the email comment. 

Those individuals requesting a public 

hearing should submit a written request 

via email to NMFS.Pr1Comments@

noaa.gov. The request should set forth 

the specific reasons why a hearing on 

this application would be appropriate. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Shasta McClenahan, Ph.D. or Amy 

Hapeman, (301) 427–8401. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

subject permit is requested under the 

authority of the Marine Mammal 

Protection Act of 1972, as amended 

(MMPA; 16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), the 

regulations governing the taking and 

importing of marine mammals (50 CFR 

part 216), the Endangered Species Act of 

1973, as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 

et seq.), and the regulations governing 

the taking, importing, and exporting of 

endangered and threatened species (50 

CFR parts 222–226). 

The applicant proposes to conduct 

research on North Atlantic right whales 

in U.S. and international waters of the 

North Atlantic Ocean. The objectives of 

the research are to assess, quantify, and 

track trends in the demographic 

characteristics of North Atlantic right 

whales, as well as identifying, 

quantifying and monitoring the long 

term trends in anthropogenic impacts 

on the species. North Atlantic right 

whales may be taken during vessel and 

aerial surveys, including an unmanned 

aircraft system, for counts, photoidentification, photography, 

videography, photogrammetry, thermal 

imaging, behavioral observations, 

passive acoustic recordings, and 

biological sampling (exhaled air, feces, 

sloughed skin, and skin and blubber 

biopsies). Samples may be imported and 

exported for analysis. Fin whales 

(Balaenoptera physalus), humpback 

whales (Megaptera novaeangliae), 

Atlantic white-sided dolphins 

(Lagenorhynchus acutus), and harbor 

porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) may be 

unintentionally harassed during right 

whale research. See the application for 

complete numbers of animals requested 

by species, life stage, and procedure. 

The permit is requested for 5 years. 

In compliance with the National 

Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), an initial 

determination has been made that the 

activity proposed is categorically 

excluded from the requirement to 

Concurrent with the publication of 

this notice in the Federal Register, 

NMFS is forwarding copies of the 

application to the Marine Mammal 

Commission and its Committee of 

Scientific Advisors. 

Dated: July 26, 2021. 

Julia Marie Harrison, 

Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, 

Office of Protected Resources, National 

Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2021–16300 Filed 7–29–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XB262] 

Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; 

General Provisions for Domestic 

Fisheries; Application for Exempted 

Fishing Permits 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 


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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 144 / Friday, July 30, 2021 / Notices 41021 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: The Assistant Regional 

Administrator for Sustainable Fisheries, 

Greater Atlantic Region, NMFS, has 

made a preliminary determination that 

an Exempted Fishing Permit application 

from the Commercial Fisheries Research 

Foundation contains all of the required 

information and warrants further 

consideration. Regulations under the 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

require publication of this notification 

to provide interested parties the 

opportunity to comment on applications 

for proposed Exempted Fishing Permits. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before August 16, 2021. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit written 

comments by the following method: 

• Email: nmfs.gar.efp@noaa.gov. 

Include in the subject line ‘‘Commercial 

Fisheries Research Foundation N-Viro 

Dredge EFP.’’ 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Shannah Jaburek, Fishery Management 

Specialist, shannah.jaburek@noaa.gov, 

(978) 281–9135. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Commercial Fisheries Research 

Foundation (CFRF) submitted a 

complete application for an Exempted 

Fishing Permit (EFP) to conduct 

commercial fishing activities that the 

Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery 

Management Plan regulations would 

otherwise restrict. This EFP would 

exempt the participating vessels from: 

Observer program requirements at 50 

CFR 648.11; days-at-sea (DAS) 

requirements at § 648.53; crew size 

restrictions at § 648.51(c); scallop 

fishing restrictions in Closed Area II— 

East at § 648.59(b)(2) and (g)(1); scallop 

trawl and dredge gear restrictions at 

§ 648.51; and minimum size and 

possession restrictions for onboard 

sampling and scallop transplanting in 

§ 648 subparts B and D through O. 

The project was funded as part of the 

2021 Atlantic Sea Scallop Research SetAside (RSA) Program, and is the second 

phase of a project funded by the 2019 

Scallop RSA Program. This project 

would compare scallop catch rates, 

bycatch rates, and fuel savings from new 

designs of the N-Viro dredge to the 

standard New Bedford style dredge, as 

well as the version of the N-Viro dredge 

used in the 2019 study. 

Experimental fishing will take place 

on four limited access general category 

(LAGC) vessels and one limited access 

(LA) scallop vessel. The LAGC vessels 

will target a total of 90 60-minute tows 

using the N-Viro dredge in Statistical 

Areas 537, 539, and 611 over 

approximately 12 days of fishing. The 

LA vessel will conduct one, 6-day trip 

in Closed Area II—East. This area has a 

large population of small scallops and 

would allow for testing the effects of the 

N-Viro dredge on small scallop bycatch. 

The LA vessel will conduct 90 paired 

tows using the N-Viro dredge and a 

standard New Bedford dredge. Fortyfive tows will be at the optimal speed 

for the N-Viro dredge, and 45 tows at 

the optimal speed for the New Bedford 

dredge. 

The N-Viro dredge design will vary 

slightly between the LAGC and LA 

vessels participating in the project. For 

the LAGC vessels, the dredge will 

consist of a tow bar with four small 

dredges attached, while the LA vessel 

will use six small dredges attached to a 

tow bar. CFRF may test several 

modifications to the small dredge on the 

LAGC, including: (1) Increasing the 

number of tines on each frame from 9 

to 12; (2) adding a pressure plate to the 

frame opening; (3) substituting a cutting 

bar in place of the adjustable tine bar on 

the dredge frames; (4) changing the 

twine top hang ration and attachment 

points; (5) moving a set of float cans to 

the front of the bag; (6) removing chain 

links between tow bar and individual 

frames to change frame tow angles; and 

(7) adding rubber chafing gear. Two of 

the small dredges will be standard. 

Results from the LAGC portion of the 

research will inform the design of the 

dredge used on the LA vessel. 

Researchers from CFRF would 

accompany each trip taken under the 

EFP and direct all sampling activities. 

On all vessels, catch will be sorted into 

baskets after each tow. On LAGC 

vessels, catch from the standard and 

modified N-Viro dredges will be kept 

separate. On the LA vessel, catch from 

the N-Viro dredge and New Bedford 

dredge will be kept separate. The total 

number and weight of scallops and 

rocks will be recorded. Sub-legal 

scallops will then be separated from 

legal scallops, and both categories will 

be counted and weighed. A random 

subsample of each will be measured. All 

incidental catch will identified to the 

species level, and will be counted, 

weighed, and measured. 

On the LAGC trips, scallop catch 

would be kept for sale in accordance 

with current regulations. On the LA 

trips, catch would not be landed for sale 

unless the vessel has used 2021 Scallop 

RSA quota. 

If approved, the applicant may 

request minor modifications and 

extensions to the EFP throughout the 

year. EFP modifications and extensions 

may be granted without further notice if 

they are deemed essential to facilitate 

completion of the proposed research 

and have minimal impacts that do not 

change the scope or impact of the 

initially approved EFP request. Any 

fishing activity conducted outside the 

scope of the exempted fishing activity 

would be prohibited. 

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

Dated: July 27, 2021. 

Jennifer M. Wallace, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2021–16292 Filed 7–29–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

Agency Information Collection 

Activities; Submission to the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) for 

Review and Approval; Comment 

Request; Tornado Watch/Warning 

Post-Event Evaluation 

The Department of Commerce will 

submit the following information 

collection request to the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) for 

review and clearance in accordance 

with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 

1995, on or after the date of publication 

of this notice. We invite the general 

public and other Federal agencies to 

comment on proposed, and continuing 

information collections, which helps us 

assess the impact of our information 

collection requirements and minimize 

the public’s reporting burden. Public 

comments were previously requested 

via the Federal Register on January 15, 

2021, (86 FR 3998) during a 60-day 

comment period. This notice allows for 

an additional 30 days for public 

comments. 

Agency: National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

Title: Tornado Watch/Warning Post 

Event Evaluation. 

OMB Control Number: 0648–XXXX. 

Form Number(s): None. 

Type of Request: Regular (New 

information collection). 

Number of Respondents: 1,500. 

Average Hours per Response: 0.1hrs. 

Total Annual Burden Hours: 150. 

Needs and Uses: This is a request for 

a new collection of information. 

Each year over 1000 tornadoes affect 

communities across the United States, 

yet very little is known about how 

individuals receive, interpret, and 

respond to information from NOAA 


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