[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 235 (Wednesday, December 8, 2010)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 76315-76316]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-30871]
[[Page 76315]]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 050613158-5262-03]
RIN 0648-AT48
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act
Provisions; Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Extension of
Emergency Fishery Closure Due to the Presence of the Toxin That Causes
Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; emergency action; extension of effective
period; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: This temporary rule extends a closure of Federal waters. The
FDA has determined that oceanographic conditions and alga sampling data
suggest that the northern section of the Temporary Paralytic Shellfish
Poison (PSP) Closure Area remain closed to the harvest of bivalve
molluscan shellfish, with the exception of sea scallop adductor muscles
harvested and shucked at sea, and that the southern area remain closed
to the harvest of whole or roe-on scallops. The regulations contained
in the temporary rule, emergency action, first published in 2005, and
have been subsequently extended several times at the request of the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). NMFS is publishing the
regulatory text associated with this closure in this temporary
emergency rule in order to ensure that current regulations accurately
reflect the codified text that has been modified and extended numerous
times, so that the public is aware of the regulations being extended.
DATES: The amendments to Sec. 648.14, in amendatory instruction 2, are
effective from January 1, 2011, through December 31, 2011. The
expiration date of the temporary emergency action published on November
13, 2009 (74 FR 58567), is extended through December 31, 2011. Comments
must be received by January 7, 2011.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the Small Entity Compliance Guide, the emergency
rule, the Environmental Assessment, and the Regulatory Impact Review
prepared for the October 18, 2005, reinstatement of the September 9,
2005, emergency action and subsequent extensions of the emergency
action, are available from Patricia A. Kurkul, Regional Administrator,
National Marine Fisheries Service, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester,
MA 01930. These documents are also available via the Internet at http://www.nero.noaa.gov/nero/hotnews/redtide/index.html.
You may submit comments, identified by RIN 0648-AT48, by any one of
the following methods:
Mail: Patricia A. Kurkul, Regional Administrator,
Northeast Region, NMFS, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930-
2298. Mark on the outside of the envelope, ``Comments on PSP Closure.''
Fax: (978) 281-9135.
Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public
comments via the Federal eRulemaking Portal http://www.regulations.gov.
Instructions: No comments will be posted for public viewing until
after the comment period has closed. 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.
NMFS will accept anonymous comments. Attachments to electronic
comments will be accepted in Microsoft Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or
Adobe PDF file formats only.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anna Macan, Fishery Management
Specialist, phone: (978) 281-9165, fax: (978) 281-9135.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On June 10, 2005, the FDA requested that NMFS close an area of
Federal waters off the coasts of New Hampshire and Massachusetts to
fishing for bivalve shellfish intended for human consumption after
samples of shellfish from the area tested positive for the presence of
toxins (saxotoxins) that cause PSP. These toxins are produced by the
alga Alexandrium fundyense, which can form blooms commonly referred to
as red tides. Red tide blooms, also known as harmful algal blooms
(HABs), can produce toxins that accumulate in filter-feeding shellfish.
Shellfish contaminated with the toxin, if eaten in large enough
quantity, can cause illness or death from PSP.
On June 16, 2005, NMFS published an emergency rule (70 FR 35047)
closing the area recommended by the FDA (i.e., the Temporary PSP
Closure Area). Since 2005, the closure has been extended several times
and the area has been expanded and divided into northern and southern
components. The Northern Temporary PSP Closure Area remained closed to
the harvest of all bivalve molluscan shellfish, while the Southern
Temporary PSP Closure Area was reopened to the harvest of Atlantic
surfclams, ocean quahogs, and sea scallop adductor muscles harvested
and shucked at sea. The current closure will expire on December 31,
2010, and this action extends this closure for one additional year,
through December 31, 2011.
The boundaries of the northern component of the Temporary PSP
Closure Area comprise Federal waters bounded by the following
coordinates specified in Table 1 below. Under this emergency rule, this
area remains closed to the harvest of Atlantic surfclams, ocean
quahogs, and whole or roe-on scallops.
Table 1--Coordinates for the Northern Temporary PSP Closure Area
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Point Latitude Longitude
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1................................. 43[deg]00' N 71[deg]00' W
2................................. 43[deg]00' N 69[deg]00' W
3................................. 41[deg]39' N 69[deg]00' W
4................................. 41[deg]39' N 71[deg]00' W
5................................. 43[deg]00' N 71[deg]00' W
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The boundaries of the southern component of the Temporary PSP
Closure Area comprise Federal waters bound by the following coordinates
specified in Table 2. Under this emergency rule, the Southern Temporary
PSP Closure Area remains closed only to the harvest of whole or roe-on
scallops.
Table 2--Coordinates for the Southern Temporary PSP Closure Area
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Point Latitude Longitude
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1................................. 41[deg]39' N 71[deg]00' W
2................................. 41[deg]39' N 69[deg]00' W
3................................. 40[deg]00' N 69[deg]00' W
4................................. 40[deg]00' N 71[deg]00' W
5................................. 41[deg]39' N 71[deg]00' W
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Classification
This action is issued pursuant to section 305(c) of the Magnuson-
Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act),
16 U.S.C. 1855(c). Pursuant to section 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) of the
Administrative Procedure Act, the Assistant
[[Page 76316]]
Administrator for Fisheries finds there is good cause to waive prior
notice and an opportunity for public comment on this action as notice
and comment would be impracticable and contrary to the public interest
due to a public health emergency, and public comment has been solicited
concurrently with each of the extensions of this action, as detailed
and responded to below. In addition, under section 553(d)(3) there is
good cause to waive the 30-day delay in effectiveness due to a public
health emergency. The original emergency closure was in response to a
public health emergency. Toxic algal blooms are responsible for the
marine toxin that causes PSP in persons consuming affected shellfish.
People have become seriously ill and some have died from consuming
affected shellfish under similar circumstances. Pursuant to section
305(c)(3)(C) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the closure to the harvest of
shellfish, as modified on September 9, 2005, and re-instated on October
18, 2005, may remain in effect until the circumstances that created the
emergency no longer exist, provided the public has had an opportunity
to comment after the regulation was published, and, in the case of a
public health emergency, the Secretary of Health and Human Services
concurs with the Commerce Secretary's action. During the initial
comment period, June 16, 2005, through August 1, 2005, no comments were
received. One comment was received after the re-opening of the southern
component of the Temporary PSP Closure Area on September 9, 2005. The
commenter expressed reluctance to re-opening a portion of the closure
area without seeing the results of the FDA tests. Data used to make
determinations regarding closing and opening of areas to certain types
of fishing activity are collected from Federal, State, and private
laboratories. NOAA maintains a Red Tide Information Center (http://oceanservice.noaa.gov/redtide/), which can be accessed directly or
through the Web site listed in the ADDRESSES section. Information on
test results, modeling of algal bloom movement, and general background
on red tide can be accessed through this information center. While NMFS
is the agency with the authority to promulgate the emergency
regulations, it modified the regulations on September 9, 2005, at the
request of the FDA, after the FDA determined that the results of its
tests warranted such action. If necessary, the regulations may be
terminated at an earlier date, pursuant to section 305(c)(3)(D) of the
Magnuson-Stevens Act, by publication in the Federal Register of a
notice of termination, or extended further to ensure the safety of
human health.
This emergency action is exempt from the procedures of the
Regulatory Flexibility Act because the rule is issued without
opportunity for prior notice and opportunity for public comment.
This rule is not significant for the purposes of Executive Order
12866.
List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 648
Fisheries, Fishing, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Dated: December 2, 2010.
Eric C. Schwaab,
Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries
Service.
0
For the reasons set out in the preamble, 50 CFR part 648 is amended to
read as follows:
PART 648--FISHERIES OF THE NORTHEASTERN UNITED STATES
0
1. The authority citation for part 648 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
0
2. In Sec. 648.14, paragraphs (a)(10)(iii) and (a)(10)(iv) are added
to read as follows:
Sec. 648.14 Prohibitions.
(a) * * *
(10) * * *
(iii) Fish for, harvest, catch, possess or attempt to fish for,
harvest, catch, or possess any bivalve shellfish, including Atlantic
surfclams, ocean quahogs, and mussels, with the exception of sea
scallops harvested only for adductor muscles and shucked at sea, unless
issued and possessing on board a Letter of Authorization (LOA) from the
Regional Administrator authorizing the collection of shellfish for
biological sampling and operating under the terms and conditions of
said LOA, in the area of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone bound by the
following coordinates in the order stated:
(A) 43[deg]00' N. lat., 71[deg]00' W. long.;
(B) 43[deg]00' N. lat., 69[deg]00' W. long.;
(C) 41[deg]39' N. lat., 69[deg]00' W. long;
(D) 41[deg]39' N. lat., 71[deg]00' W. long.; and then ending at the
first point.
(iv) Fish for, harvest, catch, possess, or attempt to fish for,
harvest, catch, or possess any sea scallops, except for sea scallops
harvested only for adductor muscles and shucked at sea, unless issued
and possessing on board a Letter of Authorization (LOA) from the
Regional Administrator authorizing collection of shellfish for
biological sampling and operating under the terms and conditions of
said LOA, in the area of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone bound by the
following coordinates in the order stated:
(A) 41[deg]39' N. lat., 71[deg]00' W. long.;
(B) 41[deg]39' N. lat., 69[deg]00' W. long.;
(C) 40[deg]00' N. lat., 69[deg]00' W. long.;
(D) 40[deg]00' N. lat., 71[deg]00' W. long.; and then ending at the
first point.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2010-30871 Filed 12-7-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P