33986 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 133 / Tuesday, July 14, 2009 / Proposed Rules 

modification (including withdrawal or 

suspension) to the Letter of 

Authorization by NMFS, issued 

pursuant to §§ 216.106 and 218.36 of 

this chapter and subject to the 

provisions of this subpart shall be made 

until after notification and an 

opportunity for public comment has 

been provided. For purposes of this 

paragraph, a renewal of a Letter of 

Authorization under § 218.37, without 

modification (except for the period of 

validity), is not considered a substantive 

modification. 

(b) If the Assistant Administrator 

determines that an emergency exists 

that poses a significant risk to the wellbeing of the species or stocks of marine 

mammals specified in § 218.30(b), a 

Letter of Authorization issued pursuant 

to §§ 216.106 and 218.36 of this chapter 

may be substantively modified without 

prior notification and an opportunity for 

public comment. Notification will be 

published in the Federal Register 

within 30 days subsequent to the action. 

[FR Doc. E9–16537 Filed 7–13–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 648 

RIN 0648–AY00 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

Provisions; Fisheries of the 

Northeastern United States; Atlantic 

Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish 

Fisheries; Amendment 10 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of availability of a fishery 

management plan amendment; request 

for comments. 

SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the 

Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management 

Council (Council) has submitted 

Amendment 10 to the Atlantic 

Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish (MSB) 

Fishery Management Plan (FMP) 

(Amendment 10), incorporating the 

public hearing document and the Initial 

Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (IRFA), 

for review by the Secretary of Commerce 

and is requesting comments from the 

public. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before September 14, 2009. 

ADDRESSES: A final supplemental 

environmental impact statement (FSEIS) 

was prepared for Amendment 10 that 

describes the proposed action and other 

considered alternatives and provides a 

thorough analysis of the impacts of the 

proposed measures and alternatives. 

Copies of Amendment 10, including the 

FSEIS, the Regulatory Impact Review 

(RIR), and the Initial Regulatory 

Flexibility Analysis (IRFA), are 

available from: Daniel Furlong, 

Executive Director, Mid-Atlantic 

Fishery Management Council, Room 

2115, Federal Building, 300 South New 

Street, Dover, DE 19904–6790. The 

FSEIS/RIR/IRFA is accessible via the 

Internet at http://www.nero.nmfs.gov. 

You may submit comments on this 

notice of availability, identified by 

‘‘0648–AY00’’, by any one of the 

following methods: 

• Electronic Submissions: Submit all 

electronic public comments via the 

Federal e-Rulemaking portal http:// 

www.regulations.gov; 

• Fax: (978) 281–9135, Attn: Carrie 

Nordeen; 

• Mail to Patricia A. Kurkul, Regional 

Administrator, NMFS, Northeast 

Regional Office, 55 Great Republic 

Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark the 

outside of the envelope ‘‘Comments on 

MSB Amendment 10.’’ 

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 

(e.g., name, address, etc.) voluntarily 

submitted by the commenter may be 

publicly accessible. Do not submit 

Confidential Business Information or 

otherwise sensitive or protected 

information. NMFS will accept 

anonymous comments. Attachments to 

electronic comments will be accepted in 

Microsoft Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or 

Adobe PDF formats only. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

In February 2005, NMFS notified the 

Council that the butterfish stock was 

overfished, which triggered MSA 

requirements to implement rebuilding 

measures for the stock. In response, 

Amendment 10 to the MSB FMP was 

initiated by the Council in October 

2005. Management measures for 

rebuilding butterfish are designed to 

reduce the fishing mortality on 

butterfish that occurs through 

discarding, which is the primary source 

of fishing mortality. Measures that 

reduce butterfish discards are expected 

to also reduce the bycatch of other 

finfish species in MSB fisheries. 

The purpose of Amendment 10 is to 

bring the MSB FMP into compliance 

with Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(MSA) requirements by: 1) Establishing 

a rebuilding program that allows the 

butterfish stock to rebuild and 

permanently protects the long-term 

health and stability of the stock; and 2) 

minimizing bycatch and the fishing 

mortality of unavoidable bycatch, to the 

extent practicable, in the MSB fisheries. 

Amendment 10 would increase the 

minimum codend mesh requirement for 

the Loligo squid (Loligo) fishery; 

establish a butterfish rebuilding 

program with a butterfish mortality cap 

program for the Loligo fishery; establish 

a 72–hr trip notification requirement for 

the Loligo fishery; and require an annual 

assessment of the butterfish rebuilding 

program by the Council’s Scientific and 

Statistical Committee (SSC). 

Initially, Amendment 9 to the MSB 

FMP (Amendment 9) was intended to 

bring the MSB FMP into compliance 

with MSA bycatch requirements, and 

contained several management 

measures intended to address 

deficiencies in the FMP that relate to 

discarding, especially as they affect 

butterfish. Specifically, those 

management measures would have 

attempted to reduce finfish discards by 

MSB small-mesh fisheries through mesh 

size increases in the directed Loligo 

fishery, removal of mesh size 

exemptions for the directed Illex squid 

fishery, and establishment of seasonal 

Gear Restricted Areas (GRAs). However, 

those specific management alternatives 

were developed in 2004, prior to the 

butterfish stock being declared 

overfished. On June 13, 2007, the 

Council recommended that all 

management measures developed as 

part of Amendment 9 to correct 

deficiencies in the FMP related to 

bycatch of finfish, especially butterfish, 

be considered in Amendment 10. 

Accordingly, no action was taken in 

Amendment 9 (73 FR 37382, July 1, 

2008) to address bycatch. 

The Council held three public 

meetings on Amendment 10 during June 

2008. Following the public comment 

period that ended on June 23, 2008, the 

Council adopted Amendment 10 on 

October 16, 2008. In Amendment 10, 

measures recommended by the Council 

would: 

• Establish a minimum mesh increase 

to 2–1/8 inches (54 mm) (from 1–7/8 

inches ( 48 mm)) for the Loligo fishery 

during Trimesters I (Jan–Apr) and III 

(Sep–Dec), starting in 2010; 

• Establish a butterfish mortality cap 

program for the Loligo fishery, starting 

in 2011; 


sroberts on DSKD5P82C1PROD with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 133 / Tuesday, July 14, 2009 / Proposed Rules 33987 

• Establish a 72–hr trip notification 

requirement for the Loligo fishery, to 

facilitate the placement of NMFS 

observers on Loligo trips, starting in 

2011; and 

• Require an annual assessment of the 

butterfish mortality cap program by the 

Council’s SSC and, if necessary, 

implementation of additional butterfish 

rebuilding measures through the annual 

specifications process. 

Public comments are solicited on 

Amendment 10 and its incorporated 

documents through the end of the 

comment period stated in this notice of 

availability (NOA). A proposed rule that 

would implement Amendment 10 may 

be published in the Federal Register for 

public comment, following NMFS’s 

evaluation of the proposed rule under 

the procedures of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act. Public comments must be received 

by the end of the comment period 

provided in this NOA of Amendment 10 

to be considered in the approval/ 

disapproval decision on the 

amendment. Comments received after 

that date will not be considered in the 

decision to approve or disapprove 

Amendment 10. To be considered, 

comments must be received by close of 

business on the last day of the comment 

period provided in this NOA. 

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

Dated: July 8, 2009 

Kristen C. Koch, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E9–16671 Filed 7–13–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 


sroberts on DSKD5P82C1PROD with PROPOSALS