Injury determinations for humpback whales and other cetaceans reported to NOAA response networks in the Hawaiian Islands during 2017. Comment 14: AOLA expresses concern over the perceived lack of parity when assessing the impacts of fisheries on marine mammals. FLC provides evidence that from 2013 through 2017 the only marine mammal stock incidentally killed or injured in the BSAI Pacific cod longline fishery was the Western U.S. stock of Steller sea lions and these did not result in annual M/SI greater than 1 percent of the stock's PBR level. Boggs, K.A. If you have questions related to these permits and licenses or the associated forms, please contact the West Coast Fisheries Permit Contact at (206) 526-4353. The LOF includes a list of marine mammal species and/or stocks incidentally killed or injured in each commercial fishery. That Is the Question, Endangered Salmon Regain Access to Healthy West Coast Habitat through 20 Projects Funded by NOAA Fisheries, An Entangled Web: Research Collaboration Unravels Causes and Consequences of Sea Lion Entanglements, We help other federal agencies conserve habitat for protected species and for, to support commercial, tribal, and recreational fisheries. ^Only applicable to the portion of the fishery operating in the Atlantic Ocean. Table 1 lists commercial fisheries in the Pacific Ocean (including Alaska), Table 2 lists commercial fisheries in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean, Table 3 lists commercial fisheries on the high seas, and Table 4 lists fisheries affected by TRPs or TRTs. NOAA Fisheries and the Council carefully manage salmon bycatch through bycatch guidelines (limits on salmon bycatch by fishing sector). Helker, R.P. In addition, Maine's state and Federal waters lobstermen must declare a lobster zone and are required to fish the majority of gear in their home zone, limiting the spatial footprint of where individual lobstermen can set gear. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) publishes its final List of Fisheries (LOF) for 2021, as required by the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA). In the proposed rule, NMFS based the proposed change on reports of hooking spotted dolphins, and information on the prevalence of vessels from these fisheries targeting Pantropical spotted dolphin pods. The number of permits listed in Table 3 represents only the number of permits for the high seas component of the fishery; **These gear types are not authorized under the Pacific HMS FMP (2004), the Atlantic HMS FMP (2006), or without a South Pacific Tuna Treaty license (in the case of the South Pacific Tuna fisheries). None documented in most recent 5 years of data. Pacific Offshore Cetacean Take Reduction Plan (POCTRP), Atlantic Trawl Gear Take Reduction Team (ATGTRT). The Western North Atlantic stock of pantropical spotted dolphins' total annual estimated fishery-related M/SI is presumed to be zero, as there were no reports of mortalities or serious injuries (2019 SAR). Bottlenose dolphin, GMX bay, sound, estuarine (FL west coast portion). The following is a collection of organizations and programs involved in various aspects of West Coast groundfish science. U.S. Department. Open for Comment, Russian Harmful Foreign Activities Sanctions, Economic Sanctions & Foreign Assets Control, Fisheries of the Northeastern United States, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Further Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government. West Coast groundfish include more than 90 species of bottom-dwelling marine finfish, including all species of rockfishes, sole, sablefish, thornyheads, and lingcod. For West Coast groundfish, we employ catch shares and annual catch limits as a tool to rebuild fish stocks and promote healthy fishing communities. We work with partners to manage salmon and steelhead, groundfish, and coastal pelagic species in ocean and inland waters. Bottlenose dolphin, Northern GA/Southern SC estuarine. In addition, MLA alleges, there has been only one right whale entangled in Maine lobster gear in April 2002, and the entanglement was determined to be a non-serious injury. No comments were received on that certification, and no new information has been discovered to change that conclusion. Photo by Jeff Bash/NOAA Fisheries. [FR Doc. Currently, the state of Maine does not require gear marking in ALWTRP exempted areas. The Groundfish Trawl Catch Share Program freed fishermen from having to race each other to catch the most fish. documents in the last year, by the Executive Office of the President documents in the last year, 981 Gulf of Maine Atlantic herring purse seine. NMFS has designated those fisheries listed by analogy in Tables 1 and 2 by adding a 2 after the fishery's name. Response: NMFS agrees that the Agency has the flexibility to separate out individual fisheries where it is appropriate; however, the commenter has not presented adequate information to substantiate any difference in risk that Maine state and Federal lobster fisheries pose to North Atlantic right whales, or other large whale species, that would warrant a current change in classification for these fisheries. California sea lion, U.S. CA halibut/white seabass and other species set gillnet (>3.5 in mesh). State and regional abbreviations used in the following paragraphs include: AK (Alaska), CA (California), HI (Hawaii), OR (Oregon), WA (Washington), and WNA (Western North Atlantic). The LOF fishery fact sheet for the BSAI Pacific cod longline fishery Start Printed Page 3033has an incorrect description for the observer coverage in both the catcher processor and catcher vessel longline sectors. Of those, 0.2 were attributed to U.S. fisheries, 1.2 to Canadian fisheries, and the remaining 4.15 were undetermined. Refer to NMFS No: WCRO-2018-00288 . ESUs/DPSs of west coast anadromous salmonids was published in the Federal Register on February 6, 2015 (80 FR 6695). Accordingly, no regulatory flexibility analysis is required, and none has been prepared. Starting with the 2010 LOF, NMFS developed summary documents, or fishery fact sheets, for each Category I and II fishery on the LOF. documents in the last year, 20 1361 et seq. Bradford, J. Barlow, D.L. How does NMFS determine in which category a fishery is placed? Based on these mitigation efforts, MA DMF recommends NMFS reclassify the Massachusetts state waters lobster trap/pot fishery as its own non-Category I fishery. AOLA recommends NMFS take a more equitable approach when assessing entanglement risk across fisheries, countries, and non-fishery sources, and also notes this would assist in assuring fishermen are treated fairly. Table 4 provides a list of fisheries affected by TRPs and TRTs. They state that the M/SI should be distributed between stocks based on the relative proportion of the population of the two stocks combined. In 2017, a spotted dolphin from the 4-Islands stock was observed with a band of debris around its rostrum preventing it from opening its mouth (Bradford and Lyman, 2019). Committed to conserving and protecting our trust resources, the West Coast Region provides science-based conservation and management for sustainable fisheries and aquaculture, marine mammals, sea turtles, and endangered species, and their habitats. Fishing the Pacific lifts spirits, feeds families and supports the economies of California, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. However, there have been a number of entanglements for which interventions occurred because these entanglements were determined to be resulting in serious injuries (Henry et al., 2019). Credit: NOAA Fisheries / Cory Hom-Weaver. NMFS also determined However, a close look at these cases reveals that the entangling gear is no longer fished, efforts to trace registration numbers to U.S. fishery were unsuccessful, or a Maine fishery was explicitly ruled out. Salmon bycatch in the groundfish fishery most often occurs with trawl gear. As discussed in the proposed rule, NMFS clarifies its response to Comment #14 in the 2020 Final LOF (85 FR 21079; April 16, 2020). Based on the findings from the The NOAA Fisheries West Coast Region uses a variety of required methods to reduce the bycatch of seabirds in its fisheries. Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico stone crab trap/pot. With this request, the commenter is also not taking into consideration the high percentage of unidentified entanglements that are both first sighted in the U.S. and in Canada. Many vessels/participants holding HSFCA permits also fish within U.S. waters and are included in the number of vessels and participants operating within those fisheries in Tables 1 and 2. For fisheries with no observer coverage and for observed fisheries with evidence indicating that undocumented interactions may be occurring (e.g., fishery has low observer coverage and stranding network data include evidence of fisheries interactions that cannot be attributed to a specific Start Printed Page 3030fishery) species and stocks may be retained for longer than 5 years. Bottlenose dolphin, Northern GMX coastal. Generally, each listed entity has one layer. and Southern Oregon and Northern California Coastal Chinook Salmon as Threatened or Endangered under the Endangered Species Act (Draft) The commenter also states that no information has been presented to the False Killer Whale TRT or the Pacific Scientific Review Group suggesting any false killer whale interactions in the deep-set fishery can reliably be attributed to the Insular or NWHI stocks of false killer whales. Bottlenose dolphin, Central FL coastal. AOLA further states that the 2014 ALWTRP regulations as well as the American lobster fishery management plan regulations, reduced vertical lines and enhanced gear marking in the fishery. List of Abbreviations and Symbols Used in Table 2: DEDelaware; FLFlorida; GAGeorgia; GME/BFGulf of Maine/Bay of Fundy; GMXGulf of Mexico; MAMassachusetts; NCNorth Carolina; NYNew York; RIRhode Island; SCSouth Carolina; VAVirginia; WNAWestern North Atlantic; *Fishery has an associated high seas component listed in Table 3. NMFS is developing similar fishery fact sheets for each Category III fishery on the LOF. Select stocks to include in the report: Comment 12: AOLA expresses concern that data used in the LOF do not represent the current conditions of the Category I Northeast/mid-Atlantic American lobster trap/pot fishery nor marine mammal stocks. 02-204-01. of Commerce, NOAA Technical Memorandum NMFS-PIFSC-81, 18 p. Bradford A.L. The MMPA (16 U.S.C. Therefore, Maine lobster trap/pot fisheries cannot be ruled out as the potential origin for entanglements with undetermined origins. MMPA, 16 U.S.C. They also implement temporary and permanent area closures to protect salmon in the ocean and on their way back to their rivers to reproduce. Both the Northwest and Southwest Regional prioritizations began with a list of all 136 stocks managed by the PFMC under four Fishery Management Plans (FMPs): Coastal Pelagic Species (8 stocks) Pacific Coast Groundfish (50 stocks2) Pacific Coast Salmon (66 stocks3) U.S. West Coast Fisheries for Highly Migratory Species (12 stocks4) The management of West Coast groundfish fisheries relies on ongoing scientific efforts in federal, state, and academic programs. Bottlenose dolphin, unknown (Central FL, Northern FL, SC/GA coastal, or Southern migratory coastal). More information and documentation can be found in our TRP regulations are found at 50 CFR 229.30 through 229.37. Is Action We work to recover and conserve threatened and endangered marine and anadromous species, as well as manage and conserve marine mammals. Register (ACFR) issues a regulation granting it official legal status.