Permits; Foreign Fishing

AGENCY:

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

ACTION:

Notice of application for permit; request for comments.

SUMMARY:

NMFS publishes for public review and comment information regarding a permit application for transshipment of Atlantic herring by Canadian vessels, submitted under provisions of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act). This action is necessary for NMFS to make a determination that the permit application can be approved.

DATES:

Written comments must be received by August 6, 2018.

ADDRESSES:

Written comments on this action, identified by RIN 0648-XG351, should be sent to Kent Laborde in the NMFS Office for International Affairs and Seafood Inspection at 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910 or by email at kent.laborde@noaa.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Kent Laborde at (301) 427-8364 or by email at kent.laborde@noaa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Section 204(d) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act (16 U.S.C. 1824(d)) authorizes the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) to issue a transshipment permit authorizing a vessel other than a vessel of the United States to engage in fishing consisting solely of transporting fish or fish products at sea from a point within the United States Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) or, with the concurrence of a state, within the boundaries of that state, to a point outside the United States. In addition, Public Law 104-297, section 105(e), directs the Secretary to issue section 204(d) permits to up to 14 Canadian transport vessels that are not equipped for fish harvesting or processing, for the transshipment of Atlantic herring harvested by United States fishermen and to be used solely in sardine processing. Transshipment must occur from within the boundaries of the State of Maine or within the portion of the EEZ east of the line 69 degrees 30 minutes west and within 12 nautical miles from Maine's seaward boundary.

Section 204(d)(3)(D) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act provides that an application may not be approved until the Secretary determines that no owner or operator of a vessel of the United States which has adequate capacity to perform the transportation for which the application is submitted has indicated an interest in performing the transportation at fair and reasonable rates. NMFS is publishing this notice as part of its effort to make such a determination with respect to the application described below.

Summary of Application

NMFS received an application requesting authorization for four Canadian transport vessels to receive transfers of herring from United States purse seine vessels, stop seines, and weirs for the purpose of transporting the herring to Canada for sardine processing. The transshipment operations will occur within the boundaries of the State of Maine or within the portion of the EEZ east of the line 69° 30′ W longitude and within 12 nautical miles from Maine's seaward boundary.