[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 162 (Monday, August 23, 2010)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 51683-51684]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-20866]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 0907301206-0032-02]
RIN 0648-XX82
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Atlantic Mackerel,
Squid, and Butterfish Fisheries; Closure of the Directed Butterfish
Fishery
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; closure.
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SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the directed fishery for butterfish in
the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) will be closed effective 0001 hours,
August 24, 2010. Vessels issued a Federal permit to harvest butterfish
may not retain or land more than 250 lb (0.11-mt) of butterfish per
trip for the remainder of the year (through December 31, 2010). This
action is necessary to prevent the fishery from exceeding its domestic
annual harvest (DAH) of 485 mt, and to allow for effective management
of this stock.
DATES: Effective 0001 hours, August 24, 2010, through 2400 hours,
December 31, 2010.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lindsey Feldman, Fishery Management
Specialist, 978 675-2179, Fax 978-281-9135.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Regulations governing the butterfish fishery
are found at 50 CFR part 648. The regulations require specifications
for maximum sustainable yield, initial optimum yield, allowable
biological catch, domestic annual harvest (DAH), domestic annual
processing, joint venture processing, and total allowable levels of
foreign fishing for the species managed under the Atlantic Mackerel,
Squid, and Butterfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP). The procedures for
setting the annual initial specifications are described in Sec.
648.21.
The 2010 specification of DAH for butterfish was set at 485 mt (75
FR 5537, February 3, 2010).
Section 648.22 requires NMFS to close the directed butterfish
fishery in the EEZ when 80 percent of the total annual DAH has been
harvested. If 80 percent of the butterfish DAH is projected to be
landed prior to October 1, a 250-lb (0.11-mt) incidental butterfish
possession limit is put in effect for the remainder of the year, and if
80 percent of the butterfish DAH is projected to be landed on or after
October 1, a 600-lb (0.27-mt) incidental butterfish possession limit is
put in effect for the remainder of the year. NMFS is further required
to notify, in advance of the closure, the Executive Directors of the
Mid-Atlantic, New England, and South Atlantic Fishery Management
Councils; mail notification of the closure to all holders of butterfish
permits at least 72 hr before the effective date of the closure;
provide adequate notice of the closure to recreational participants in
the fishery; and publish notification of the closure in the Federal
Register.
The Administrator, Northeast Region, NMFS, based on dealer reports
and other available information, has determined that 80 percent of the
DAH for butterfish in 2010 fishing year will be harvested. Therefore,
effective 0001 hours, August 24, 2010, the directed fishery for the
butterfish fishery is closed and vessels issued Federal permits for
butterfish may not retain or land more than 250 lb (0.11 mt) of
butterfish per trip or calendar day. The directed fishery will reopen
effective 0001 hours, January 1, 2011, when the 2011 DAH becomes
available.
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 (AA), finds good
cause pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) to waive prior notice and the
opportunity for public comment because it would be contrary to the
public interest. This action closes the butterfish fishery until
January 1, 2011, under current regulations. The regulations at Sec.
648.21 require such action to ensure that butterfish vessels do not
exceed the 2010 TAC. Data indicating the butterfish fleet will have
landed at least 80 percent of the 2010 TAC have only recently become
available. If implementation of this closure if delayed to solicit
prior public comment, the quota for this year will be exceeded, thereby
undermining the conservation objectives of the FMP. The AA further
finds, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3), good cause to waive the 30-day
delayed effectiveness period for the reasons stated above.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
[[Page 51684]]
Dated: August 17, 2010.
Carrie Selberg,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2010-20866 Filed 8-18-10; 4:15 pm]
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