[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 206 (Tuesday, October 26, 2010)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 65580]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-27076]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 900124-0127]
RIN 0648-XZ16
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Atlantic Surfclam
and Ocean Quahog Fisheries; Suspension of Minimum Atlantic Surfclam
Size Limit for Fishing Year 2011
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; suspension of the Atlantic surfclam minimum
size limit.
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SUMMARY: NMFS suspends the minimum size limit for Atlantic surfclams
for the 2011 fishing year. This action is taken under the authority of
the implementing regulations for this fishery, which allow for the
annual suspension of the minimum size limit based upon set criteria.
The intended effect is to relieve the industry from a regulatory burden
that is not necessary, as the majority of surfclams harvested are
larger than the minimum size limit.
DATES: Effective January 1, 2011, through December 31, 2011.
ADDRESSES: Written inquiries may be sent to: Regional Administrator,
National Marine Fisheries Service, Northeast Regional Office, 55 Great
Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930-2298.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anna Macan, Fishery Management
Specialist, (978) 281-9165; fax (978) 281-9135.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 648.72(c) of the regulations
implementing the Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for the Atlantic
Surfclam and Ocean Quahog Fisheries authorizes the Administrator,
Northeast Region, NMFS (Regional Administrator), to suspend annually,
by publication of a notification in the Federal Register, the minimum
size limit for Atlantic surfclams. This action may be taken unless
discard, catch, and biological sampling data indicate that 30 percent
of the Atlantic surfclam resource is smaller than 4.75 inches (120 mm)
and the overall reduced size is not attributable to harvest from beds
where growth of the individual clams has been reduced because of
density-dependent factors.
At its June 2010 meeting, the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management
Council voted to recommend that the Regional Administrator suspend the
minimum size limit for the 2011 fishing year. Commercial surfclam data
for 2010 were analyzed to determine the percentage of surfclams that
were smaller than the minimum size requirement. The analysis indicated
that 8.10 percent of the overall commercial landings were composed of
surfclams that were less than 4.75 inches (120 mm). Based on these
data, the Regional Administrator adopts the Council's recommendation
and suspends the minimum size limit for Atlantic surfclams from January
1 through December 31, 2011.
Classification
This action is authorized by 50 CFR part 648 and is exempt from
review under Executive Order 12866.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: October 21, 2010.
Carrie Selberg,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2010-27076 Filed 10-25-10; 8:45 am]
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