Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 117 / Monday, June 18, 2001 / Notices 32791

SUMMARY: On February 16, 2001, the

Department of Commerce

(‘‘Department’’) published a notice of

initiation of an antidumping duty new

shipper review of structural steel beams

from Japan. The Department is

extending the time limit for the

preliminary results of the new shipper

review, which covers the period

February 11, 2000 through November

30, 2000.

EFFECTIVE DATE: June 18, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Juanita H. Chen or Robert Bolling,

Import Administration, International

Trade Administration, U.S. Department

of Commerce, 1401 Constitution

Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20230;

telephone 202–482–0409 and 202–482–

3434, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The Applicable Statute and Regulations

Unless otherwise indicated, all

citations to the Tariff Act of 1930, as

amended (‘‘Act’’), are references to the

provisions effective January 1, 1995, the

effective date of the amendments made

to the Act by the Uruguay Round

Agreements Act. In addition, unless

otherwise indicated, all citations to the

Department’s regulations are to the

regulations codified at 19 C.F.R. part

351 (2000).

Extension of Time

On January 31, 2001, pursuant to a

request from Yamato Kogyo Co., Ltd.,

the Department initiated this

antidumping duty new shipper review

of the antidumping duty order on

structural steel beams from Japan. See

Initiation of New Shipper Antidumping

Duty Review: Structural Steel Beams

from Japan, 66 FR 10668 (February 16,

2001). Under section 751(a)(2)(B)(iv) of

the Act, the Department may extend the

deadline for completion of the

preliminary results of a new shipper

review from 180 days after the date on

which the review is initiated to 300

days if it concludes that the case is

extraordinarily complicated. The

Department has concluded that this case

is extraordinarily complicated. See

Memorandum from Edward C. Yang to

Joseph A. Spetrini (June 5, 2001).

Therefore, in accordance with section

751(a)(2)(B)(iv) of the Act, the

Department is extending the time limit

for the preliminary results by 120 days

until November 27, 2001.

Dated: June 12, 2001.

Edward C. Yang,

Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary, AD/CVD

Enforcement Group III.

[FR Doc. 01–15323 Filed 6–15–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

[I.D. 061101H]

Availability of a Draft Environmental

Assessment/Finding of No Significant

Impact and Receipt of an Application

for an Incidental Take Permit.

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

SUMMARY: NMFS has received an

application for an incidental take permit

(ITP) from the North Carolina Division

of Marine Fisheries (NCDMF) pursuant

to the Endangered Species Act of 1973,

as amended (ESA). As required by the

ESA, NCDMF’s application includes a

conservation plan (Plan) designed to

minimize and mitigate any such take of

endangered or threatened species. The

Permit application is for the incidental

take of ESA-listed adult and juvenile sea

turtles associated with commercial

shrimp trawling without the use of a

turtle excluder device (TED) off the

coast of North Carolina from Browns

Inlet to Rich Inlet due to high

concentrations of algae which clog

shrimp trawls and TEDs. The duration

of the requested ITP is for 5 years.

NMFS also announces the availability of

a draft environmental assessment (EA)

for the permit application. NMFS is

furnishing this notice in order to allow

other agencies and the public an

opportunity to review and comment on

these documents. All comments

received will become part of the public

record and will be available for review

pursuant to the ESA.

DATES: Written comments from

interested parties on the Permit

application, Plan, and draft EA must be

received at the appropriate address or

fax number (see ADDRESSES) no later

than 5 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on

July 18, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on this

action should be addressed to the Chief,

Endangered Species Division, Office of

Protected Resources, NMFS, 1315 EastWest Highway, Silver Spring, MD

20910. Comments may also be sent via

fax to 301-713–0376. Comments will not

be accepted if submitted via e-mail or

the Internet.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Robert Hoffman (ph. 727–570–5312, fax

727–570–5517, e-mail

robert.hoffman@noaa.gov), or Barbara A.

Schroeder (ph. 301–713–1401, fax 301–

713–0376, e-mail

Barbara.Schroeder@noaa.gov).

Comments received will also be

available for public inspection, by

appointment, during normal business

hours by calling 301-713-1401.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 9

of the ESA and Federal regulations

prohibit the ‘‘taking’’ of a species listed

as endangered or threatened. The term

‘‘take’’ is defined under the ESA to

mean harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot,

wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or

to attempt to engage in any such

conduct. NMFS may issue permits,

under limited circumstances, to take

listed species incidental to, and not the

purpose of, otherwise lawful activities.

NMFS regulations governing permits for

threatened and endangered species are

promulgated at 50 CFR 222.307.

Species Covered in this Notice

The following species are included in

the Plan and ITP application:

Loggerhead (Caretta caretta), green

(Chelonia mydas), leatherback

(Dermochelys coriacea), hawksbill

(Eretmochelys imbricata), and Kemp’s

ridley (Lepidochelys kempii) sea turtles.

Background

On January 31, 2001, NCDMF

submitted an application to NMFS to

renew ESA section 10 (a)(1)(B) permit

1008 issued to the state of North

Carolina. The previous permit had

expired December 31, 2000 and had

been issued for the years 1996–2000 to

replace NMFS emergency rules which

were issued from 1992 through 1995.

That permit and those emergency rules

allowed limited tow times in lieu of the

use of TEDs in a 1-mile by

approximately 30-mile long area off the

North Carolina coast from Browns Inlet

to Rich Inlet because of high

concentrations of algae which clog

shrimp trawl nets and TEDs. The bottom

between Rich and Browns Inlets

consists of scattered rocks, sea grasses,

and concentrations of algae.

With the institution of Federal

regulations requiring the use of TEDs in

shrimp trawls, problems developed in

this area with algae frequently clogging

TEDs rendering them useless in

releasing turtles and filling the trawls

with algae from the TEDs forward. In

this particular area shrimpers must

harvest the algae in order to catch the

shrimp that inhabit it. TED use in these

circumstances is impractical because

they clog or exclude a large portion of

the algae. The season for shrimp

trawling activity in this area varies from

year to year depending on shrimp

abundance. During the 1996–1999

fishing seasons, permit 1008 allowed

32792 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 117 / Monday, June 18, 2001 / Notices

the use of tow times rather than TEDs.

In order to obtain this permit, the

NCDMF agreed to monitor fishing

activities in the described area to ensure

compliance with tow-time

requirements. The Fisheries Director of

North Carolina is empowered to issue

proclamations by which the Director is

able to implement restrictions on

fisheries activities. In compliance with

permit 1008, the Director issued a series

of such proclamations dealing with the

described area. These proclamations

required vessels to obtain a tow-time

permit from the NCDMF if they wished

to work without TEDs, and allowed a

maximum tow time of 55 minutes from

April 1 to October 31 and 75 minutes

from November 1 through November 30.

In the years 1992–1999, 43, 21, 28, 18,

38, 20, 20, and 14 vessels, respectively,

were issued permits for the exemption

from the use of TEDs. The TED

exemption was not implemented by

NCDMF in 2000 because algae

concentrations were low, allowing

fishermen to work effectively with their

TEDs installed. Observations by NCDMF

Marine Patrol personnel indicate a range

from zero to over 30 vessels may be

working in this area at any one time and

that effort is concentrated in the early

morning to early afternoon period.

A condition of the pervious permit

1008 was the required use of onboard

observers on 5 percent of the trips made

while tow times were allowed. This was

accomplished for all years except 1996

when slightly more than 3 percent of the

trips were covered by observers. There

were 204 tow time restricted tows in the

described area that were monitored by

onboard observers during the 1996–

1999 period. Nine loggerheads were

captured during these tows and all were

reported released in good condition.

Analysis of log book entries for this area

during this time period shows that 58

turtles were taken in 3591 tows. All

were identified by the fishermen as

loggerheads and were released in good

condition, although one turtle required

resuscitation.

The North Carolina restricted area is

contained within Onslow and Pender

Counties. It is believed that any sea

turtles potentially killed incidental to

shrimp trawling operations in the

described area would have a relatively

high chance of stranding along the

shoreline of the described area,

longshore currents notwithstanding,

because of the close proximity of

trawling activity to shore (usually

within 0.5 nm). NMFS’ review of the sea

turtle standings in the described area in

1992 indicated no observed or

confirmed sea turtle mortalities

associated with shrimp trawling. Ten

turtles were stranded in the described

area in 1994; half were stranded in April

and May. Twenty-six turtles were

stranded in the area in 1995. Again, 50

percent were found in April and May.

In both years, the majority of standings

took place prior to the seasonal

authorization to fish without TEDs.

Stranding data from the described area

for 1996–1999 shows that for the entire

four-year period, 78 turtles stranded

with 21 (27 percent) of those occurring

during tow time use and 59 (73 percent)

occurring when tow times were not in

effect. Of the 21 strandings occurring

during the use of tow times, 16 were

loggerheads, 3 were Kemp’s ridleys, and

1 each was a green and a leatherback sea

turtle.

Conservation Plan

The conservation plan prepared by

NCDMF describes measures designed to

monitor, minimize, and mitigate the

incidental takes of ESA-listed sea

turtles, as a result of shrimp trawling in

the above-described area without the

use of a TED.

As part of the new permit application,

the NCDMF proposes that the Director

would issue proclamations allowing the

use of tow times in lieu of TEDs for the

described area between April 1 and

November 30. Approximately 45

fishermen with extensive local

knowledge of this area may participate

in this fishery, and could be authorized

under this new permit. The NCDMF

proposes that tow times be 55 minutes

from the date of the proclamation to

October 31 and 75 minutes from

November 1 to November 30. Tow times

are measured from the time the trawl

doors enter the water until the time they

are removed from the water and

correspond to the tow times of 40

minutes bottom time in the summer

months and 60 minutes during colder

months as recommended by the

National Academy of Science (1990) in

‘‘Decline of the Sea Turtles: Causes and

Prevention.’’ The state will issue

individual permits to fishermen

allowing them to use tow time

restrictions instead of TEDs. The stateissued tow-time permits would be

required to identify each vessel working

without TEDs and to monitor activity in

the area. Individuals would have to

obtain this state permit from NCDMF

prior to beginning operations without

TEDs. This permit and the associated

proclamations would contain conditions

to protect sea turtles while using tow

times in lieu of TEDs. Enforcement

surveillance would be primarily

conducted from the beach as the activity

is visible from the shore and it is

difficult for the vessels to determine

when they are being observed. Other

enforcement observations would be

made from NCDMF’s aircraft and

vessels.

For the new permit the NCDMF

proposes to monitor mortalities of sea

turtles in the area through stranding

records collected by the NC Wildlife

Resources Commission stranding

network, rather than through onboard

observers, as required in permit 1008.

The NCDMF does not have funding for

onboard observers for this activity.

NMFS provided funding for observers

for the previous permit. Stranding

records during the period 1992–1995 for

the tow time area ranged between 10

and 26 loggerheads per year and one

green turtle for the entire period;

however, the majority of standings took

place prior to the issuance of tow-time

permits. The NCDMF proposes to

terminate or modify the tow-time

permits if standings in the described

area during times when tow times are in

use exceed ten turtles in aggregate of

Kemp’s ridley, hawksbill, green or

leatherback sea turtles or 40 loggerhead

turtles.

A permit with a duration of 5 years

is being requested. The activities that

fall under the permit will take place

each year from April 1 through

November 30 with tow times being

permitted by the issuance of a

proclamation from the Director. The

Director issues the proclamation after

consultation with staff and industry

representatives who observe algae

concentrations. The industry utilizes

tow times as a last resort because they

would rather use TEDs to avoid frequent

haul-back of their gear. Proclamations

would be issued and tow times initiated

only when algae concentrations prevent

the use of TEDs. There were years under

the previous permit, such as 2000, when

tow times were not instituted because

algae concentrations were low.

The NCDMF knows of no measures to

prevent takes of sea turtles in this area

during the use of tow times. Past

experience has indicated that

attempting to use TEDs during periods

of high algae concentration renders

TEDs inoperable leading to incidental

takes of turtles. An alternative action

considered by NCDMF was not to apply

for a permit; however, the experience of

fishermen in this area has shown that

when algal concentrations are heavy,

both the TEDs and the nets clog to the

extent that they no longer function. This

would not protect sea turtles nor would

it allow the shrimp fishery to continue

in this area. NCDMF is proposing to

limit the use of tow-time limitations

instead of TEDs from Browns Inlet to

Rich Inlet, North Carolina, such that the

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 117 / Monday, June 18, 2001 / Notices 32793

incidental impacts on ESA-listed sea

turtles will be minimized. NCDMF

would use a variety of adaptive fishery

management measures and restrictions

through their state proclamation

authority to reduce sea turtle mortality.

The EA package includes a draft EA

and a draft Finding of No Significant

Impact (FONSI) which concludes that

issuing the incidental take permit is not

a major Federal action significantly

affecting the quality of the human

environment, within the meaning of

section 102(2)(C) of the National

Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of

1969, as amended. Three Federal action

alternatives have been analyzed in the

EA, including: (1) the no action

alternative (deny the ITP); (2) issue the

ITP; and (3) close this area to shrimp

fishing.

This notice is provided pursuant to

section 10(c) of the ESA and the NEPA

regulations (40 CFR 1506.6). NMFS will

evaluate the application, associated

documents, and comments submitted

thereof to determine whether the

application meets the requirements of

the NEPA regulations and section 10 (a)

of the ESA. If it is determined that the

requirements are met, a permit will be

issued for incidental takes of ESA-listed

sea turtles under the jurisdiction of

NMFS. The final NEPA and permit

determinations will not be completed

until after the end of the 30–day

comment period and will fully consider

all public comments received during the

comment period. NMFS will publish a

record of its final action in the Federal

Register.

Dated: June 11, 2001.

Phil Williams,

Acting Chief, Endangered Species Division,

Office of Protected Resources, National

Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 01–15195 Filed 6–15–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

[I.D. 060601B]

Pacific Fishery Management Council;

Public Meeting

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

SUMMARY: The Pacific Fishery

Management Council’s (Council)

Groundfish Stock Assessment Review

(STAR) Panels will hold consecutive

work sessions to review assessment

information for shortspine thornyhead/

Dover sole, and for sablefish. These

meetings are open to the public.

DATES: The STAR Panel for shortspine

thornyhead and Dover sole will meet

beginning at 8 a.m., July 9, 2001 and

continue through July 12, 2001. The

STAR Panel for sablefish will meet

beginning at 8 a.m., July 13, 2001 and

continue through July 16, 2001. The

STAR Panels will meet each day from

8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

ADDRESSES: The STAR Panel meetings

will be held in the Marilyn Potts Guin

Library, at the Hatfield Marine Science

Center, Oregon State University, 2030

South Marine Science Drive, Newport,

OR 97365.

Council address: Pacific Fishery

Management Council, 7700 Ambassador

Place, Suite 200, Portland, OR 97220–

1384.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Chuck Tracy or Dan Waldeck, Staff

Officers; telephone: (503) 326–6352.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Two

meetings will be held consecutively, the

first from July 9-12, 2001; the second

from July 13-16, 2001. The purpose of

the first meeting is to review

assessments of shortspine thornyhead

and Dover sole. The purpose of the

second meeting is to review assessments

of sablefish. The STAR Panels will work

with stock assessment teams to make

necessary revisions to assessment

documents and produce STAR Panel

reports for use by the Council family

and other interested persons.

Although non-emergency issues not

contained in STAR Panel agendas may

come before the STAR Panel for

discussion, those issues may not be the

subject of formal Panel action during

this meeting. STAR Panel action will be

restricted to those issues specifically

listed 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 Panel’s 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 Ms.

Carolyn Porter at (503) 326–6352 at least

5 days prior to the meeting date.

Dated: June 12, 2001.

Richard W. Surdi,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 01–15192 Filed 6–15–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

[I.D. 060501D]

Marine Mammals; File No.775–1600–01

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Issuance of permit amendment.

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that

Permit No. 775–1600, issued to Dr.

Micheal P. Sissenwine, Northeast

Fisheries Science Center, NMFS,166

Water Street, Woods Hole,

Massachusetts 02543–1026, has been

amended to include takes of 28 species

of cetacean for purposes of scientific

research.

DATES: Written or telefaxed comments

must be received on or before July 18,

2001.

ADDRESSES: The amended permit and

related documents are available for

review upon written request or by

appointment in the following office(s):

Permits and Documentation Division,

Office of Protected Resources, NMFS,

1315 East-West Highway, Room 13130,

Silver Spring, MD 20910 (301/713–

2289); and Northeast Region, NMFS,

One Blackburn Drive, Gloucester, MA

01930–2298; phone (508)281–9250; fax

(508)281–9371.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Tammy Adams or Ruth Johnson, 301/

713–2289.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On

October 27, 2000, notice was published

in the Federal Register (65 FR 64432)

that a request for a scientific research

permit to take seven species of baleen

whale, 21 species of odontocetes, and

four species of pinnipeds had been

submitted by the above-named

organization.

The requested permit was issued for

the four species of pinniped only, under

the authority of the Marine Mammal

Protection Act of 1972, as amended (16

U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), and the Regulations

Governing the Taking and Importing of

Marine Mammals (50 CFR part 216),

pending completion of a consultation on

the proposed activities on the species of

cetacean listed as endangered, as