Notice of the Continuing Effect of the List of Fisheries

AGENCY:

National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION:

Notice of the list of fisheries for 2002.

SUMMARY:

The National Marine Fisheries Service is providing notification that the 2001 List of Fisheries (LOF) remains in effect for 2002. Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS must place a commercial fishery on the LOF under one of three categories, based upon the level of serious injury and mortality of marine mammals that occur incidental to that fishery. The categorization of a fishery in the LOF determines whether participants in that fishery are subject to certain provisions of the MMPA, such as registration, observer coverage, and take reduction plan requirements.

ADDRESSES:

Registration information, materials, and marine mammal reporting forms may be obtained from the following regional offices:

NMFS, Northeast Region, One Blackburn Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930-2298, Attn: Sandra Arvilla.

NMFS, Southeast Region, 9721 Executive Center Drive North, St. Petersburg, FL 33702, Attn: Teletha Griffin.

NMFS, Southwest Region, Protected Species Management Division, 501 W. Ocean Blvd., Suite 4200, Long Beach, CA 90802-4213, Attn: Don Peterson.

NMFS, Northwest Region, 7600 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115, Attn: Permits Office.

NMFS, Alaska Region, Protected Resources, P.O. Box 22668, 709 West 9th Street, Juneau, AK 99802.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Emily Menashes, Office of Protected Resources, 301-713-2322 ext. 101; Kim Thounhurst, Northeast Region, 978-281-9138; Katie Moore, Southeast Region, 727-570-5312; Tim Price, Southwest Region, 562-980-4029; Brent Norberg, Northwest Region, 206-526-6733; Amy Van Atten, Alaska Region, 907-586-7642. Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf may call the Federal Information Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339 between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Eastern time, Monday through Friday, excluding Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Electronic Access

The 2001 List of Fisheries is accessible by the Internet at http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/prot_res/PR2/Fisheries_Interactions/list_of_fisheries.html.

Background

This notice provides that the 2001 LOF published in August 15, 2001 (66 FR 42788) remains in effect for 2002 with no changes. NMFS intends to propose changes to the LOF for 2003, which is scheduled to publish as a proposed rule and be available for public comment in the summer of 2002.

What Is the List of Fisheries?

Under section 118 of the MMPA, NMFS must publish, at least annually, a LOF that places all U.S. commercial fisheries into one of three categories based on the level of incidental serious injury and mortality of marine mammals that occurs in each fishery. The categorization of a fishery in the LOF determines whether participants in that fishery may be required to comply with certain provisions of the MMPA, such as registration, observer coverage, and take reduction plan requirements.

How Does NMFS Determine In Which Category a Fishery is Placed?

The definitions for the fishery classification criteria can be found in the implementing regulations for section 118 of the MMPA (50 CFR part 229). In addition, these definitions are summarized in the preambles to the final rule implementing section 118 (60 FR 45086, August 30, 1995), the final LOF for 1996 (60 FR 67063, December 28, 1995), and the proposed LOF for 2001 (66 FR 6545, January 22, 2001).

How Do I Find Out if a Specific Fishery is in Category I, II, or III?

This document includes two tables that list all U.S. commercial fisheries by LOF Category. Table 1 lists all of the fisheries in the Pacific Ocean (including Alaska). Table 2 lists all of the fisheries in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean.

Am I Required to Register Under the MMPA?

Owners of vessels or gear engaging in a Category I or II fishery are required under 50 CFR 229.4 to register with NMFS and obtain a marine mammal authorization from NMFS in order to lawfully incidentally take a marine mammal in a commercial fishery. Owners of vessels or gear engaged in a Category III fishery are not required to register with NMFS or obtain a marine mammal authorization.

How Do I Register?

You must register through NMFS’ Regional Offices (see ADDRESSES) unless you participate in a fishery that has an integrated registration program. Upon receipt of a completed registration, NMFS will issue vessel or gear owners a decal or other physical evidence of a current and valid registration that must be displayed or that must be in the possession of the master of each vessel while fishing (MMPA Section 118(c)(3)(A)).

For some fisheries, NMFS has integrated the MMPA registration process with existing state and Federal fishery license, registration, or permit systems and related programs. Participants in these fisheries are automatically registered under the MMPA and are not required to pay the $25 registration fee.

Which Fisheries Have Integrated Registration Programs?

The following fisheries have integrated registration programs under the MMPA: all Alaska Category II fisheries; all Washington and Oregon Category II fisheries; the Gulf of Maine/U.S. Mid-Atlantic lobster trap/pot fishery; the Federal portion of the Northeast sink gillnet fishery; and, the Federal portion of the Atlantic squid, mackerel, butterfish trawl fishery. Special procedures and instructions for registration in these integrated fisheries are described in the preamble to the final LOF for 1998 (63 FR 5748, February 4, 1998).

How Do I Renew My Registration Under the MMPA?

The Regional Offices annually send renewal packets to participants in Category I or II fisheries that have previously registered; however, it is your responsibility to ensure that registration or renewal forms are submitted to NMFS at least 30 days in advance of fishing. If you have not received a renewal packet by January 1 or are registering for the first time, request a registration form from the appropriate Regional Office (see ADDRESSES).

Am I Required to Submit Reports When I Injure or Kill a Marine Mammal During the Course of Commercial Fishing Operations?

Any vessel owner or operator, or fisher (in the case of non-vessel fisheries), participating in a Category I, II, or III fishery must comply with 50 CFR 229.6 and report all incidental injuries or mortalities of marine mammals that occur during commercial fishing operations to NMFS. “Injury” is defined in 50 CFR 229.2 as a wound or other physical harm. In addition, any animal that ingests fishing gear or any animal that is released with fishing gear entangling, trailing, or perforating any part of the body is considered injured and must be reported. Instructions on how to submit reports can be found in 50 CFR 229.6.

Am I Required to Take an Observer Aboard My Vessel?

Fishers participating in a Category I or II fishery are required to accommodate an observer aboard your vessel(s) upon request. Observer requirements can be found in 50 CFR 229.7.

Am I Required to Comply With Any Take Reduction Plan Regulations?

Fishers participating in a Category I or II fishery are required to comply with any applicable take reduction plans. NMFS may develop and implement take reduction plans for any Category I or II fishery that interacts with a strategic stock. 50 CFR part 229, subpart C provides take reduction plan regulations.

List of Fisheries

The following two tables list U.S. commercial fisheries according to their assigned categories under section 118 of the MMPA. The estimated number of vessels/participants is expressed in terms of the number of active participants in the fishery, when possible. If this information is not available, the estimated number of vessels or persons licensed for a particular fishery is provided. If no recent information is available on the number of participants in a fishery, the number from the 1996 LOF is used.

The tables also list the marine mammal species and stocks that are incidentally killed or injured in each fishery based on observer data, logbook data, stranding reports, and fishers’ reports. This list includes all species or stocks known to incur injury or mortality in a given fishery. However, not all species or stocks identified are necessarily independently responsible for a fishery’s categorization. There are a few fisheries that are in Category II that have no recently documented interactions with marine mammals. Justifications for placement of these fisheries are by analogy to other gear types that are known to injure or kill marine mammals, as discussed in the final LOF for 1996.

Commercial fisheries in the Pacific Ocean (including Alaska) are included in Table 1; commercial fisheries in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean are included in Table 2. An asterisk (*) indicates that the stock is a strategic stock; a plus (+) indicates that the stock is listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act.