46002 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 190 / Tuesday, October 3, 2017 / Rules and Regulations 

NMFS reminds General category 

participants that when the fishery 

reopens October 1, 2017, the BFT 

General category daily retention limit 

will be one large medium or giant BFT 

(measuring 73′′ or greater) per vessel per 

day/trip. 

Classification 

The Assistant Administrator for 

NMFS (AA) finds that it is impracticable 

and contrary to the public interest to 

provide prior notice of, and an 

opportunity for public comment on, this 

action for the following reasons: 

The regulations implementing the 

2006 Consolidated HMS FMP and 

amendments provide for inseason 

retention limit adjustments to respond 

to the unpredictable nature of BFT 

availability on the fishing grounds, the 

migratory nature of this species, and the 

regional variations in the BFT fishery. 

Affording prior notice and opportunity 

for public comment to implement the 

quota transfer for the remainder of 2017 

is impracticable and contrary to the 

public interest as such a delay would 

result in continued closure of the 

General category fishery (because the 

available quota has been met) and the 

need to re-open the fishery later in the 

October through November time period, 

rather than the fishery automatically reopening on October 1. The delay would 

preclude the fishery from harvesting 

BFT that are available on the fishing 

grounds and that might otherwise 

become unavailable during a delay. 

Therefore, the AA finds good cause 

under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) to waive prior 

notice and the opportunity for public 

comment. For these reasons, there also 

is good cause under 5 U.S.C. 553(d) to 

waive the 30-day delay in effectiveness. 

This action is being taken under 

§ 635.27(a)(9) (Inseason adjustments) 

and is exempt from review under 

Executive Order 12866. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 971 et seq. and 1801 

et seq. 

Dated: September 28, 2017. 

Emily Menashes, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2017–21209 Filed 9–28–17; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 648 

[Docket No. 151211999–6343–02] 

RIN 0648–XF713 

Fisheries of the Northeastern United 

States; Northeast Multispecies 

Fishery; Georges Bank Cod 

Possession and Trip Limit Adjustment 

for the Common Pool Fishery 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; inseason 

adjustment. 

SUMMARY: This action decreases the 

possession and trip limits for Georges 

Bank cod for Northeast multispecies 

common pool vessels for the remainder 

of the 2017 fishing year, through April 

30, 2018. Recent catch data reported 

through September 19, 2017, indicates 

that the common pool fishery has 

already caught 2.4 metric tons, or 65.7 

percent, of the Trimester 2 Georges Bank 

cod Total Allowable Catch since the 

second trimester began on September 1, 

2017. We project that, at its current 

trajectory, the common pool will catch 

its Trimester 2 TAC well before the end 

of the second trimester, and is also at 

risk of exceeding its annual 2017 quota. 

This possession and trip limit decrease 

is intended to prevent the common pool 

fishery from exceeding its allocation for 

this stock prior to the end of the fishing 

year. 

DATES: This possession and trip limit 

decrease is effective September 28, 

2017, through April 30, 2018. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Claire Fitz-Gerald, Fishery Management 

Specialist, (978) 281–9255. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

regulations at § 648.86(o) authorize the 

Regional Administrator to adjust the 

possession and trip limits for common 

pool vessels in order to help prevent the 

overharvest or underharvest of the 

common pool quotas. 

Recent catch data reported through 

September 19, 2017, indicates that the 

common pool fishery has already caught 

2.4 metric tons, or 65.7 percent, of the 

Trimester 2 Georges Bank (GB) cod 

Total Allowable Catch (TAC) since the 

second trimester began on September 1, 

2017. The current GB cod possession 

and trip limit for GB cod is 250 pounds 

per DAS, and up to 500 pounds per trip. 

Under these possession limits, the 

common pool fishery caught its 

Trimester 1 TAC and triggered an area 

closure for GB cod on July 27, 2017. We 

project that, at its current trajectory, the 

common pool will catch its Trimester 2 

TAC well before the end of the second 

trimester, and is also at risk of 

exceeding its annual 2017 quota. In the 

event that the common pool exceeds its 

2017 quota, regulations require that the 

overage must be deducted from the 

following year’s quota, which would 

have a negative economic impact on 

common pool vessels. Therefore, a 

decrease to the possession and trip 

limits is being implemented to help 

prevent the common pool fishery from 

exceeding its quota for the 2017 fishing 

year. 

Effective September 28, 2017, the GB 

cod possession and trip limits are 

decreased to 25 lb (11.3 kg) per day and 

50 lb (22.7 kg) per trip, as summarized 

in the table below. Common pool 

groundfish vessels that have declared 

their trip through the vessel monitoring 

system (VMS) or interactive voice 

response system, and crossed the VMS 

demarcation line prior to September 28, 

2017, are not subject to the new 

possession and trip limits for that trip. 

TABLE 1—NEW POSSESSION AND TRIP LIMITS FOR GB COD

Permit type Current possession/trip limits New possession/trip limits 

Days-At-Sea (A DAS) .......................... 250 lb (113.4 kg) per DAS, up to 500 lb (226.8 kg) 

per trip.

25 lb (11.3 kg) per DAS, up to 50 lb (22.6 kg) per 

trip. 

Handgear A .......................................... 250 lb (113.4 kg) per trip ........................................ 25 lb (11.3 kg) per trip. 

Handgear B .......................................... 25 lb (11.3 kg) per trip ............................................ Unchanged. 

Small Vessel Category ......................... 25 lb (11.3 kg) per trip, within combined 300 lb 

(136.1 kg) trip limit for cod, haddock, and 

yellowtail flounder.

Unchanged. 


jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 190 / Tuesday, October 3, 2017 / Rules and Regulations 46003 

Weekly quota monitoring reports for 

the common pool fishery are on our 

Web site at: http://

www.greateratlantic.fisheries.noaa.gov/ 

ro/fso/MultiMonReports.htm. We will 

continue to monitor common pool catch 

through vessel trip reports, dealerreported landings, VMS catch reports, 

and other available information and, if 

necessary, we will make additional 

adjustments to common pool 

management measures. 

Classification 

This action is required by 50 CFR part 

648 and is exempt from review under 

Executive Order 12866. 

The Assistant Administrator for 

Fisheries, NOAA, finds good cause 

pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) and 5 

U.S.C. 553(d)(3) to waive prior notice 

and the opportunity for public comment 

and the 30-day delayed effectiveness 

period because it would be 

impracticable and contrary to the public 

interest. 

The regulations at § 648.86(o) 

authorize the Regional Administrator to 

adjust the Northeast multispecies 

possession and trip limits for common 

pool vessels in order to help prevent the 

overharvest or underharvest of the 

pertinent common pool quotas. The 

catch data used as the basis for this 

action only recently became available. 

The available analysis indicates that the 

common pool fishery has already 

achieved 65.7 percent of its second 

trimester GB cod TAC within the first 

three weeks of the trimester and if the 

GB cod possession and trip limits are 

not reduced immediately, the common 

pool fishery may exceed its quota for 

this stock. This action reduces the 

probability of the common pool fishery 

exceeding its quota for GB cod. Any 

overages of the common pool quota for 

this stock would undermine 

conservation objectives and trigger the 

implementation of accountability 

measures that would have negative 

economic impacts on the common pool 

vessels. The time necessary to provide 

for prior notice and comment, and a 30- 

day delay in effectiveness, would 

prevent NMFS from implementing the 

necessary possession and trip limit 

adjustment in a timely manner, which 

could undermine conservation 

objectives of the Northeast Multispecies 

Fishery Management Plan, and cause 

negative economic impacts to the 

common pool fishery. 

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

Dated: September 28, 2017. 

Alan D. Risenhoover, 

Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2017–21234 Filed 9–28–17; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 


jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with RULES