26170 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 103 / Monday, June 1, 2009 / Proposed Rules 

§ 300.222 Prohibitions. 

* * * * * 

(v) Use a fishing vessel equipped with 

purse seine gear to fish in the ELAPS 

while the fishery is closed under 

§ 300.223(a). 

(w) Set a purse seine around, near or 

in association with a FAD or deploy or 

service a FAD in contravention of 

§ 300.223(b). 

(x) Use a fishing vessel equipped with 

purse seine gear to fish in an area closed 

under § 300.223(c). 

(y) Discard fish at sea in the ELAPS 

in contravention of § 300.223(d). 

(z) Fail to carry an observer as 

required in § 300.223(e). 

(aa) Fail to comply with the sea turtle 

mitigation gear and handling 

requirements of § 300.223(f). 

[FR Doc. E9–12646 Filed 5–29–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 622 

RIN 0648–AW19 

Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of 

Mexico, and South Atlantic; Shrimp 

Fishery off the Southern Atlantic 

States; Amendment 7 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of Availability of 

Amendment 7 to the Fishery 

Management Plan for the Shrimp 

Fishery of the South Atlantic Region; 

request for comments. 

SUMMARY: The South Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council (Council) has 

submitted Amendment 7 to the Fishery 

Management Plan for the Shrimp 

Fishery of the South Atlantic Region 

(FMP) for review, approval, and 

implementation by NMFS. Amendment 

7 proposes actions to rename the 

commercial vessel permit and the 

limited access endorsement; remove the 

requirement for a minimum level of 

landings for the renewal of a limited 

access endorsement; allow the reissue of 

a limited access endorsement that had 

been terminated because of failure to 

meet that minimum level; allow the 

reissue of an endorsement that had been 

terminated because of failure to renew 

it in a timely manner; and require the 

submission of economic data by 

participants in the fishery. The 

measures contained in the subject 

amendment are intended to maintain a 

viable rock shrimp fishery in the South 

Atlantic region. 

DATES: Comments must be received no 

later than 5 p.m., eastern time, on July 

31, 2009. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

on the proposed rule, identified by 

‘‘0648–AW19’’, by any one of the 

following methods: 

• Electronic Submissions: Submit all 

electronic public comments via the 

Federal eRulemaking Portal http:// 

www.regulations.gov. 

• Fax: 727–824–5308, Attn: Kate 

Michie. 

• Mail: Kate Michie, Southeast 

Regional Office, NMFS, 263 13th 

Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701. 

Instructions: All comments received 

are a part of the public record and will 

generally be posted to http:// 

www.regulations.gov without change. 

All Personal Identifying Information (for 

example, name, address, etc.) 

voluntarily submitted by the commenter 

may be publicly accessible. Do not 

submit Confidential Business 

Information or otherwise sensitive or 

protected information. 

To submit comments through the 

Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov, enter ‘‘NOAANMFS–2008–0319’’ in the keyword 

search, then check the box labeled 

‘‘Select to find documents accepting 

comments or submissions’’, then select 

‘‘Send a Comment or Submission.’’ 

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, Excel, WordPerfect, or Adobe 

PDF file formats only. 

Copies of Amendment 7 may be 

obtained from the South Atlantic 

Fishery Management Council, 4055 

Faber Place, Suite 201, North 

Charleston, SC 29405; phone: 843–571– 

4366 or 866–SAFMC–10 (toll free); fax: 

843–769–4520; e-mail: 

safmc@safmc.net. Amendment 7 

includes an Environmental Assessment, 

an Initial Regulatory Flexibility 

Analysis, a Regulatory Impact Review, 

and a Social Impact Assessment/Fishery 

Impact Statement. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kate 

Michie, telephone: 727–824–5305; fax: 

727–824–5308; e-mail: 

Kate.Michie@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The South 

Atlantic shrimp fishery is managed 

under the FMP. The FMP was prepared 

by the Council and implemented by 

NMFS under the authority of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(Magnuson-Stevens Act) by regulations 

at 50 CFR part 622. 

Background 

Amendment 5 to the FMP established 

a limited access program for the rock 

shrimp fishery in federal waters south of 

the South Carolina/Georgia state line. In 

2003, endorsements were issued to 

vessels with at least 15,000 pounds of 

rock shrimp landings in any one year 

during 1997–2000. A vessel must land 

at least 15,000 pounds of rock shrimp in 

at least one year during any four 

consecutive years or the endorsement 

cannot be renewed. The Rock Shrimp 

Advisory Panel (AP) suggested these 

landings requirements because they 

were concerned about the high number 

of latent permit holders and vessels that 

fished infrequently. The limited access 

program criteria were set so the core 

group of participants would remain in 

the fishery while overall effort was 

reduced. Of the 155 vessels issued 

limited access endorsements, 105 are 

currently active, 20 are renewable, and 

30 are non-renewable. Therefore, a 

maximum of 125 endorsements are or 

may become active in the rock shrimp 

fishery under the current permit 

requirements. 

The need for action through 

Amendment 7 to the FMP is based on 

the desire to maintain a viable rock 

shrimp fishery in the South Atlantic 

region. The AP suggested the fishery 

could support no more than 150 vessels. 

However, fewer vessels may not fully 

utilize the resource. The Council has 

determined that actions implemented 

through Amendment 5 have resulted in 

the desired reduction in capacity and 

may no longer be necessary in light of 

changes in the rock shrimp fishery over 

the past six years. 

The Council is primarily concerned 

about the 15,000–pound landing 

requirement because 43 vessels have not 

met the requirement after the first four 

years of the program. The AP suggested 

the Council consider whether this 

provision should be retained, revoked, 

revised, or possibly extended (i.e. allow 

vessels a longer time period to meet the 

requirement). In addition, the AP 

suggested reinstatement of 

endorsements lost as a result of not 

meeting the landings requirement. 

Another issue involves the 

requirement for vessel owners to renew 

their vessel’s endorsement within one 

year after the endorsement’s expiration 

date to retain their eligibility. The 

Council is concerned about confusion 

over the rock shrimp limited access 

endorsement as implemented in the 

final rule for Amendment 5 versus the 

Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 103 / Monday, June 1, 2009 / Proposed Rules 26171 

limited access permit as specified in 

Amendment 5. In this case, some 

fishermen did not realize they needed 

both the open access permit and the 

limited access endorsement. 

In total, 73 vessels will or have been 

eliminated from the rock shrimp fishery 

under current regulations due to not 

meeting the 15,000–pound requirement, 

the renewal period, or both. Thus 47 

percent of the 155 endorsements 

originally issued may be eliminated if 

no changes are made to the current 

requirements and even more could be 

eliminated in the future for the same 

reasons. 

In the Gulf of Mexico shrimp fishery, 

participants are selected each year to 

provide economic data to NMFS. 

Similar data for the South Atlantic 

shrimp fishery would allow NMFS to 

conduct analyses required by the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act and other 

applicable law. These data would also 

allow the Council to fully understand 

how proposed management measures 

would impact shrimp fishermen and 

dealers. 

Amendment 7 proposes to rename the 

commercial vessel permit and the 

limited access endorsement; remove the 

requirement for a minimum level of 

landings for the renewal of a limited 

access endorsement; allow the reissue of 

a limited access endorsement that had 

been terminated because of failure to 

meet that minimum level; allow the 

reissue of an endorsement that had been 

terminated because of failure to renew 

it in a timely manner; and require the 

submission of economic data by 

participants in the fishery if selected. 

The Council has submitted 

Amendment 7 for Secretarial review, 

approval, and implementation. NMFS’ 

decision to approve, partially approve, 

or disapprove Amendment 7 will be 

based, in part, on consideration of 

comments, recommendations, and 

information received during the 

comment period on this notice of 

availability. After consideration of these 

factors, and consistency with the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act and other 

applicable laws, NMFS will publish a 

notice of agency action in the Federal 

Register announcing the Agency’s 

decision to approve, partially approve, 

or disapprove Amendment 7, and the 

associated rationale. 

Consideration of Public Comments 

Public comments received by 5 p.m. 

eastern time, on July 31, 2009, will be 

considered by NMFS in the approval/ 

disapproval decision regarding 

Amendment 7. 

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

Dated: May 26, 2009 

Kristen C. Koch, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E9–12640 Filed 5–29–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 622 

RIN 0648–XN22 

Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of 

Mexico, and South Atlantic; Reef Fish 

Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico; Bottom 

Longline Petition 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Denial of a petition for 

emergency rulemaking. 

SUMMARY: NMFS announces its decision 

to deny a petition for emergency or 

interim rulemaking under the 

Administrative Procedure Act (APA) 

and Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(Magnuson-Stevens Act). Several nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) 

petitioned the U.S. Department of 

Commerce to immediately promulgate 

an emergency or interim rule under the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act to address 

loggerhead sea turtle interactions in the 

bottom longline component of the 

commercial reef fish fishery in the Gulf 

of Mexico (Gulf). NMFS finds the 

emergency rulemaking is not warranted 

because of an emergency rule 

promulgated independently at the 

request of Gulf of Mexico Fishery 

Management Council (Council), which 

satisfies the legal mandates of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act and Endangered 

Species Act (ESA) for protecting 

hardshell sea turtles. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Peter Hood, telephone 727–824–5305, 

fax 727–824–5308, e-mail 

Peter.Hood@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS 

published a notice of receipt of petition 

for rulemaking on February 25, 2009 (74 

FR 8494), and invited public comments 

for 30 days ending March 27, 2009. 

Summaries of and responses to 

comments are provided in the Response 

to Public Comments section below. 

The Petitions 

Oceana has petitioned the Council 

and NMFS to implement emergency 

regulations for the bottom longline 

component of the Gulf reef fish fishery 

to reduce the high levels of loggerhead 

sea turtle bycatch in the fishery and to 

implement appropriate long-term 

actions, through an amendment to the 

Fishery Management Plan for Reef Fish 

Resources of the Gulf of Mexico (FMP), 

to ensure adequate protection for the 

loggerhead sea turtle populations. The 

Oceana petition specifically requests 

NMFS prohibit the use of reef fish 

bottom longline gear in waters 

shallower than 55 fathoms (100m) in the 

Gulf to protect loggerhead sea turtles 

within the depths where all observed 

takes have occurred, and that NMFS 

prohibit the use of squid as bait when 

fishing with reef fish bottom longlines 

in waters deeper than 55 fathoms 

(100m) to further reduce the possibility 

of takes. 

Another petition from the Center for 

Biological Diversity, Defenders of 

Wildlife, Earthjustice, Caribbean 

Conservation Corporation, Gulf 

Restoration Network, and Turtle Island 

Restoration Network alleges NMFS has 

violated the ESA by allowing the bottom 

longline component of the reef fish 

fishery to continue to operate, given 

evidence it has exceeded its take based 

on the incidental take statement (ITS) 

from a 2005 biological opinion 

(opinion). This petition requests that 

NMFS close the bottom longline 

component of the Gulf reef fish fishery 

immediately until NMFS has put in 

place sufficient measures to protect 

loggerhead sea turtles consistent with 

the guidelines of the ESA. 

According to the petitions filed by the 

NGOs, the reasons sea turtle bycatch by 

reef fish bottom longlines requires 

emergency action are: (1) A NMFS 

report released in 2008 suggests 

hardshell sea turtle take has exceeded 

that allowed by the ITS from a 2005 

opinion. The opinion concluded 

continued authorization of the Gulf reef 

fish fishery managed under the FMP 

was not likely to jeopardize the 

continued existence of sea turtles and 

smalltooth sawfish. An ITS was issued 

with the opinion specifying anticipated 

sea turtle and smalltooth sawfish take 

on a 3-year basis. For hardshell sea 

turtles, the anticipated 3-year incidental 

take for the bottom longline component 

of the Gulf reef fish fishery was 113 

takes, of which 56 would be lethal. The 

2008 NMFS report using observer data 

estimated the level of take during an 18- 

month period was between 411 and 

1,983 hardshell sea turtles, primarily 

comprised of loggerhead sea turtles. 

This number has been revised in a 2009 

NMFS report using 2008 observer data 

to between 463 and 2,020 hardshell sea