71406 Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 228 / Tuesday, November 29, 2005 / Rules and Regulations 

J. Executive Order 12898: Federal 

Actions To Address Environmental 

Justice in Minority Populations and 

Low-Income Populations 

This action does not entail special 

considerations of environmental justice 

related issues as delineated by 

Executive Order 12898, entitled Federal 

Actions to Address Environmental 

Justice in Minority Populations and 

Low-Income Populations (59 FR 7629, 

February 16, 1994). 

K. Executive Order 12988: Civil Justice 

Reform 

In issuing this rule, EPA has taken the 

necessary steps to eliminate drafting 

errors and ambiguity, minimize 

potential litigation, and provide a clear 

legal standard for affected conduct, as 

required by section 3 of Executive Order 

12988, entitled Civil Justice Reform (61 

FR 4729, February 7, 1996). 

X. Congressional Review Act 

The Congressional Review Act, 5 

U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the Small 

Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act of 1996, generally provides 

that before a rule may take effect, the 

Agency promulgating the rule must 

submit a rule report, which includes a 

copy of the rule, to each House of the 

Congress and the Comptroller General of 

the United States. EPA will submit a 

report containing this rule and other 

required information to the U.S. Senate, 

the U.S. House of Representatives, and 

the Comptroller General of the United 

States prior to publication of the rule in 

the Federal Register. This rule is not a 

‘‘major rule’’ as defined by 5 U.S.C. 

804(2). 

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 721 

Environmental protection, Chemicals, 

Hazardous substances, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements. 

Dated: November 17, 2005. 

Charles M. Auer, 

Director, Office of Pollution Prevention and 

Toxics. 

■ Therefore, 40 CFR part 721 is 

amended as follows: 

PART 721—[AMENDED] 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 721 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 15 U.S.C. 2604, 2607, and 

2625(c). 

■ 2. By adding new § 721.10001 to 

subpart E to read as follows: 

§ 721.10001 2-Ethoxyethanol, 2- 

ethoxyethanol acetate, 2-methoxyethanol, 

and 2-methoxyethanol acetate. 

(a) Chemical substances and 

significant new uses subject to reporting. 

(1) The chemical substances identified 

as 2-ethoxyethanol (CAS No. 110–80–5), 

2-ethoxyethanol acetate (CAS No. 111–

15–9), 2-methoxyethanol (CAS No. 109–

86–4), and 2-methoxyethanol acetate 

(CAS No. 110–49–6) are subject to 

reporting under this section for the 

significant new use described in 

paragraph (a)(2) of this section. 

(2) The significant new use is 

domestic use in a consumer product or 

the manufacture or import of 2- 

methoxyethanol acetate at levels greater 

than 10,000 pounds per year. 

(b) Specific requirements. The 

provisions of subpart A of this part 

apply to this section except as modified 

by this paragraph. 

(1) Recordkeeping. Recordkeeping 

requirements as specified in § 721.125 

(a), (b), and (c) apply to the significant 

new use specified in § 721.10001. In 

addition, records documenting 

compliance with the significant new use 

of domestic use in a consumer product 

or the manufacture or import of 2- 

methoxyethanol acetate at levels greater 

than 10,000 pounds per year must be 

maintained. 

(2) [Reserved] 

[FR Doc. 05–23421 Filed 11–28–05; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Parts 222 and 223 

[Docket No. 050922245–5307–03; I.D. 

092005A, 100505D] 

RIN 0648–AT89 

Sea Turtle Conservation; Shrimp 

Trawling Requirements 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule. 

SUMMARY: NMFS issues this 30–day 

temporary rule to allow shrimp 

fishermen to continue to use limited 

tow times as an alternative to Turtle 

Excluder Devices (TEDs) in inshore and 

offshore waters from the Florida/ 

Alabama border, westward to the 

boundary shared by Matagorda and 

Brazoria Counties, Texas, and extending 

offshore 20 nautical miles. The previous 

30–day variances of the TED 

requirements were from September 23 

through October 23, 2005; October 11 

through November 10, 2005; and from 

October 22 through November 23, 2005, 

for waters affected by Hurricanes 

Katrina and Rita. These variances were 

for 50 nautical miles offshore. After an 

investigation, NMFS has determined 

that excessive debris is still affecting 

fishermen’s ability to use TEDs 

effectively; however, the debris field has 

decreased to approximately 20 nautical 

miles offshore. This action is necessary 

because environmental conditions 

resulting from Hurricanes Katrina and 

Rita persist on the fishing grounds, 

preventing some fishermen from using 

TEDs effectively. 

DATES: Effective from November 23, 

2005, through 11:59 p.m, local time, 

December 23, 2005. 

ADDRESSES: Requests for copies of the 

Environmental Assessment on this 

action should be addressed to the Chief, 

Marine Mammal Division, Office of 

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

20910. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Michael Barnette, 727–551–5794. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

All sea turtles that occur in U.S. 

waters are listed as either endangered or 

threatened under the Endangered 

Species Act of 1973 (ESA). The Kemp’s 

ridley (Lepidochelys kempii), 

leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea), and 

hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata) 

turtles are listed as endangered. The 

loggerhead (Caretta caretta) and green 

(Chelonia mydas) turtles are listed as 

threatened, except for breeding 

populations of green turtles in Florida 

and on the Pacific coast of Mexico, 

which are listed as endangered. 

Sea turtles are incidentally taken, and 

some are killed, as a result of numerous 

activities, including fishery-related 

trawling activities in the Gulf of Mexico 

and along the Atlantic seaboard. Under 

the ESA and its implementing 

regulations, the taking of sea turtles is 

prohibited, with exceptions identified 

in 50 CFR 223.206(d), or according to 

the terms and conditions of a biological 

opinion issued under section 7 of the 

ESA, or according to an incidental take 

permit issued under section 10 of the 

ESA. The incidental taking of turtles 

during shrimp or summer flounder 

trawling is exempted from the taking 

prohibition of section 9 of the ESA if the 

conservation measures specified in the 

sea turtle conservation regulations (50 

CFR 223) are followed. The regulations 

Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 228 / Tuesday, November 29, 2005 / Rules and Regulations 71407 

require most shrimp trawlers and 

summer flounder trawlers operating in 

the southeastern United States (Atlantic 

area, Gulf area, and summer flounder 

sea turtle protection area, see 50 CFR 

223.206) to have a NMFS-approved TED 

installed in each net that is rigged for 

fishing to allow sea turtles to escape. 

TEDs currently approved by NMFS 

include single-grid hard TEDs and 

hooped hard TEDs conforming to a 

generic description, the flounder TED, 

and one type of soft TED B the Parker 

soft TED (see 50 CFR 223.207). 

TEDs incorporate an escape opening, 

usually covered by a webbing flap, 

which allows sea turtles to escape from 

trawl nets. To be approved by NMFS, a 

TED design must be shown to be 97 

percent effective in excluding sea turtles 

during testing based upon specific 

testing protocols (50 CFR 223.207(e)(1)). 

Most approved hard TEDs are described 

in the regulations (50 CFR 223.207(a)) 

according to generic criteria based upon 

certain parameters of TED design, 

configuration, and installation, 

including height and width dimensions 

of the TED opening through which the 

turtles escape. 

The regulations governing sea turtle 

take prohibitions and exemptions 

provide for the use of limited tow times 

as an alternative to the use of TEDs for 

vessels with certain specified 

characteristics or under certain special 

circumstances. The provisions of 50 

CFR 223.206(d)(3)(ii) specify that the 

NOAA Assistant Administrator for 

Fisheries (AA) may authorize 

compliance with tow time restrictions 

as an alternative to the TED requirement 

if the AA determines that the presence 

of algae, seaweed, debris, or other 

special environmental conditions in a 

particular area makes trawling with 

TED-equipped nets impracticable. The 

provisions of 50 CFR 223.206(d)(3)(i) 

specify the maximum tow times that 

may be used when tow time limits are 

authorized as an alternative to the use 

of TEDs. Each tow may be no more than 

55 minutes from April 1 through 

October 31 and no more than 75 

minutes from November 1 through 

March 31, as measured from the time 

that the trawl doors enter the water until 

they are removed from the water. These 

tow time limits are designed to 

minimize the level of mortality of sea 

turtles that are captured by trawl nets 

not equipped with TEDs. 

Recent Events 

On September 12, 2005, the NMFS 

Southeast Regional Administrator 

received requests from the Marine 

Fisheries Division of the Alabama 

Department of Conservation and Natural 

Resources (ALDCNR) and the Louisiana 

Department of Wildlife and Fisheries 

(LADWF) to allow the use of tow times 

as an alternative to TEDs in inshore and 

offshore waters because of excessive 

storm related debris on the fishing 

grounds as a result of Hurricane Katrina. 

NMFS received a similar request from 

the Mississippi Department of Marine 

Resources (MDMR) on September 13. 

On September 27, 2005, the NMFS 

Southeast Regional Administrator 

received requests from the LADWF and 

the Texas Parks and Wildlife 

Department (TPWD) to allow the use of 

tow times as an alternative to TEDs in 

inshore and offshore waters because of 

excessive storm related debris on the 

fishing grounds as a result of Hurricane 

Rita. Subsequent to these requests, 

NMFS issued 30–day exemptions to the 

TED requirements from September 23 

through October 23, 2005, and October 

11 through November 10, 2005, for 

waters affected by Hurricanes Katrina 

and Rita, respectively (70 FR 56593 and 

70 FR 60013, respectively). 

On October 11, 2005, the NMFS 

Southeast Regional Administrator 

received requests from the ALDCNR, 

MDMR, LADWF, and the TPWD for an 

additional 30–day period allowing the 

use of restricted tow times as an 

alternative to TEDs in inshore and 

offshore waters because of excessive 

storm-related debris that was still 

present on the fishing grounds as a 

result of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. 

Subsequent to these requests, NMFS 

issued a 30–day extension 

encompassing both previous 

exemptions to the TED requirements, 

from October 23, 2005, through 

November 23, 2005. 

On November 15, 2005, the NMFS 

Southeast Regional Administrator 

received requests from the Marine 

Fisheries Division of the ALDCNR, 

MDMR, LADWF, and TPWD for an 

additional 30–day period allowing the 

use of restricted tow times as an 

alternative to TEDs in state and federal 

waters because of excessive stormrelated debris on the fishing grounds as 

a result of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. 

The area cumulatively affected by the 

two hurricanes extends from the 

Florida/Alabama border, westward to 

the boundary shared by Matagorda and 

Brazoria Counties, Texas, and offshore 

20 nautical miles. When a TED is 

clogged with debris it can no longer 

catch shrimp effectively nor can it 

effectively exclude turtles. An 

investigation by NMFS, confirmed there 

are continuing problems with debris in 

inshore and offshore waters off 

Alabama, westward to the boundary 

shared by Matagorda and Brazoria 

Counties, Texas, and extending offshore 

20 nautical miles, which are likely to 

affect the effectiveness of TEDs. 

Special Environmental Conditions 

The AA finds that debris washed into 

inshore and offshore waters by 

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita off 

Alabama, westward to the boundary 

shared by Matagorda and Brazoria 

Counties, Texas, and extending offshore 

20 nautical miles, has created ongoing 

special environmental conditions that 

make trawling with TED-equipped nets 

impracticable. Therefore, the AA issues 

this notification to extend the current 

authorization for the use of restricted 

tow times as an alternative to the use of 

TEDs in inshore and offshore waters off 

Alabama, westward to the boundary 

shared by Matagorda and Brazoria 

Counties, Texas, and extending offshore 

20 nautical miles, through 11:59 p.m., 

local time, December 23, 2005. Tow 

times must be limited to no more than 

75 minutes measured from the time 

trawl doors enter the water until they 

are retrieved from the water. 

Continued Use of TEDs 

NMFS encourages shrimp trawlers in 

the affected areas to continue to use 

TEDs if possible, even though they are 

authorized under this action to use 

restricted tow times. 

NMFS’ gear experts have provided 

several general operational 

recommendations to fishermen to 

maximize the debris exclusion ability of 

TEDs that may allow some fishermen to 

continue using TEDs without resorting 

to restricted tow times. To exclude 

debris, NMFS recommends the use of 

hard TEDs made of either solid rod or 

of hollow pipe that incorporate a bent 

angle at the escape opening, in a 

bottom-opening configuration. In 

addition, the installation angle of a hard 

TED in the trawl extension is an 

important performance element in 

excluding debris from the trawl. High 

installation angles can trap debris either 

on or in front of the bars of the TED; 

NMFS recommends an installation 

angle of 45°, relative to the normal 

horizontal flow of water through the 

trawl, to optimize the TED’s ability to 

exclude turtles and debris. Furthermore, 

the use of accelerator funnels, which are 

allowable modifications to hard TEDs, is 

not recommended in areas with heavy 

amounts of debris or vegetation. Lastly, 

the webbing flap that is usually 

installed to cover the turtle escape 

opening may be modified to help 

exclude debris quickly: the webbing flap 

can either be cut horizontally to shorten 

it so that it does not overlap the frame 

of the TED or be slit in a fore-and-aft 

71408 Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 228 / Tuesday, November 29, 2005 / Rules and Regulations 

direction to facilitate the exclusion of 

debris. The use of the double cover flap 

TED will also aid in debris exclusion. 

All of these recommendations 

represent legal configurations of TEDs 

for shrimpers fishing in the affected 

areas. This action does not authorize 

any other departure from the TED 

requirements, including any illegal 

modifications to TEDs. In particular, if 

TEDs are installed in trawl nets, they 

may not be sewn shut. 

Alternative to Required Use of TEDs 

The authorization provided by this 

rule applies to all shrimp trawlers that 

would otherwise be required to use 

TEDs in accordance with the 

requirements of 50 CFR 223.206(d)(2) 

who are operating in inshore and 

offshore waters affected by Hurricanes 

Katrina and Rita off Alabama, westward 

to the boundary shared by Matagorda 

and Brazoria Counties, Texas, and 

extending offshore 50 nautical miles, 

through December 23, 2005. Through 

this temporary rule, shrimp trawlers 

may choose either restricted tow times 

or TEDs to comply with the sea turtle 

conservation regulations, as prescribed 

above. 

Alternative to Required Use of TEDs; 

Termination 

The AA, at any time, may withdraw 

or modify this temporary authorization 

to use tow time restrictions in lieu of 

TEDs through publication of a notice in 

the Federal Register, if necessary to 

ensure adequate protection of 

endangered and threatened sea turtles. 

Under this procedure, the AA may 

modify the affected area or impose any 

necessary additional or more stringent 

measures, including more restrictive 

tow times, synchronized tow times, or 

withdrawal of the authorization if the 

AA determines that the alternative 

authorized by this rule is not 

sufficiently protecting turtles or no 

longer needed. The AA may also 

terminate this authorization if 

information from enforcement, state 

authorities, or NMFS indicates 

compliance cannot be monitored 

effectively. This authorization will 

expire automatically at 11:59 p.m., local 

time, December 23, 2005, unless it is 

explicitly extended through another 

notification published in the Federal 

Register. 

Classification 

This action has been determined to be 

not significant for purposes of Executive 

Order 12866. 

The AA has determined that this 

action is necessary to respond to special 

environmental conditions to allow more 

efficient fishing for shrimp, while 

providing adequate protection for 

endangered and threatened sea turtles 

pursuant to the ESA and applicable 

regulations. 

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), the AA 

finds that there is good cause to waive 

prior notice and opportunity to 

comment on this rule. The AA finds that 

unusually high amounts of debris has 

created ongoing special environmental 

conditions that make trawling with 

TED-equipped nets impracticable. Prior 

notice and opportunity to comment are 

impracticable and contrary to the public 

interest in this instance because 

providing notice and comment would 

prevent the agency from providing the 

affected industry relief from the effects 

of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in a 

timely manner. 

The AA finds that there is good cause 

to waive the 30–day delay in effective 

date pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3) to 

provide alternatives to comply with the 

sea turtle regulations in a timely 

manner. Many fishermen may be unable 

to operate under the special 

environmental conditions created by 

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita without an 

alternative to using TEDs. Providing a 

30–day delay in effective date would 

prevent the agency from providing the 

affected industry relief from the effects 

of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in a 

timely manner. For the reasons stated 

above, the AA finds that this temporary 

rule should not be subject to a 30–day 

delay in effective date, pursuant to 5 

U.S.C. 553(d)(1). 

Since prior notice and an opportunity 

for public comment are not required to 

be provided for this action by 5 U.S.C. 

553, or by any other law, the analytical 

requirements of 5 U.S.C. 601 et seq. are 

inapplicable. 

The AA prepared an Environmental 

Assessment (EA) for this rule. Copies of 

the EA are available (see ADDRESSES). 

Dated: November 22, 2005. 

William T. Hogarth, 

Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 05–23442 Filed 11–23–05; 3:02 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S