[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 213 (Monday, November 4, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 67150-67151]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-28009]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[I.D. 072202A]
Receipt of an Application for an Incidental Take Permit (1398)
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, Commerce
ACTION: Issuance of Permit 1398.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given of that NMFS issued on August 30, 2002,
an incidental take permit (Permit 1398) to the North Carolina Division
of Marine Fisheries (NCDMF) pursuant to the Endangered Species Act of
1973 (ESA), as amended. As required by the ESA, NCDMF's Permit 1398
includes a conservation plan designed to minimize and mitigate any such
take of endangered or threatened species. Permit 1398 is for the
incidental take of ESA-listed adult and juvenile sea turtles associated
with otherwise lawful commercial fall gill net fisheries for flounder
operating in Pamlico Sound, NC. The duration of Permit 1398 is for 3
years.
ADDRESSES: The application and related documents are available for
review in the following office by appointment:
Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected Resources, NMFS,
1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910 or Protected Resources
Division, S/SER, 9721 Executive Center Dr. N., St. Petersburg, FL 33702
(ph: 727-570-5312, fax: 727-570-5517).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dennis Klemm (ph. 727-570-5312, fax
727-570-5517, e-mail [email protected]) or Therese Conant (ph. 301-
713-1401, fax 301-713-0376, e-mail [email protected]). Comments
received will also be available for public inspection, by appointment,
during normal business hours by calling 301-713-1401.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Issuance of permits and permit
modifications, as required by the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1531-1543), is based
on a finding that such permits/modifications: (1) are applied for in
good faith; (2) would not operate to the disadvantage of the listed
species which are the subject of the permits; and (3) are consistent
with the purposes and policies set forth in section 2 of the ESA.
Incidental take permits are issued under Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the
ESA. Authority to take listed species is subject to conditions set
forth in the permits. NMFS regulations governing permits for threatened
and endangered species are promulgated at 50 CFR 222.307.
Permit 1398
The following species are included in Permit 1398 conservation
plan: Loggerhead (Caretta caretta), green (Chelonia mydas), leatherback
(Dermochelys coriacea), hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata), and Kemp's
ridley (Lepidochelys kempii) sea turtles. The conservation plan
includes managing the shallow water large and small mesh gill net
fishery operating from September through mid-December in areas adjacent
to the Outer Banks and mainland in Pamlico Sound. Permit 1398 includes
measures to limit the commercial fall gill net fishery for flounder
such that the incidental impacts on ESA-listed sea turtles will be
minimized. NCDMF would use a variety of adaptive fishery management
measures and restrictions through their state proclamation authority to
reduce sea turtle mortality. Specific measures to be implemented each
year include: (1) require tending for gillnets less than 5-inch (12.7-
cm) stretched mesh from September 1 through October 31; (2) prohibit
gillnets 5-inch ( 12.7-cm) stretched mesh in
areas adjacent to Ocracoke, Hatteras, and Oregon Inlets from September
1 through December 15: (3) restrict the maximum net per fishing
operation to 2,000 yards (1,828 m); (4) require NCDMF-issued permits
for individual fishing operations employing large mesh gillnets in
restricted areas between September 1 and December 15; (5) monitor gear
interactions through a mandatory observer program for large and small
mesh gillnets as well as through reports from fishermen and NCDMF
Marine Patrol.
Comments
NMFS published a notice of availability on July 29, 2002 (67 FR
49009), and requested comments on the NCDMF. Two comment letters were
submitted with the following comments.
Comment 1: The 3-year duration for the permit may not allow for
adjustments to management measures such as adding the small mesh
fishery under the permit in subsequent years. In addition, the annual
evaluation of the permit may not be as rigorous given the permit is
already in hand.
Response. Annual renewal of this permit is not automatic. Yearly
evaluation of this permit by NMFS will include re-analyses of all data
and a re-assessment of the take levels prior to 2nd and 3rd year re-
authorization. The permit requires weekly, monthly, and yearly
reporting. This requirement is unchanged from the previous 1-year
permits issued to NCDMF. NCDMF has agreed to modify the conservation
plan to cover the small mesh fishery and to achieve 10 percent observer
coverage for this component of the shallow water fishery.
Comment 2: Given a 12.5 percent mortality rate, the estimated
lethal take should be 61 not 71 as identified in the application. The
take levels should also be reviewed on a yearly basis with the goal to
reduce both actual and authorized take.
Response. NMFS felt that the take levels authorized in the 2001
permit should not be used in Permit 1398 for 2002-2004. The spatial and
temporal
[[Page 67151]]
scope of the management program was sufficiently different from the
2001 permit. Although NCDMF applied for a September 1 begin date and a
December 1 end date for the management measures, they agreed to adjust
the end date to December 15 to be consistent with NMFS regulations
which close Pamlico Sound to large mesh fishing from September 1
through December 15. The management area also was expanded to include
the shallow water areas of Hyde and Pamlico Counties along the
mainland. Thus, the take levels were revised based on the observer data
collected for the shallow water fishery in 2000 and 2001 and expanded
to account for the additional 2-week period in September and the
increase in fishing effort from the mainland area. Green turtles are
the only species documented in the shallow water fishery. The upper
limit of the live and lethal take was estimated to be 160 and 50
respectively. Although Kemp's ridleys and loggerheads have not been
documented in the shallow water fishery, interactions are likely. Thus,
NMFS determined that the live and lethal take for the Kemp's ridley and
loggerhead would be 80 and 25 for each species. NMFS and NCDMF will
review these take estimates on an annual basis and modify them as
necessary.
Comment 3: The North Carolina Trip Ticket program does not
subdivide Pamlico Sound geographically. In order to constructively
apply the information collected through the observer program, a simple
latitude and longitude subdivision of Pamlico Sound should be
considered.
Response. The North Carolina Trip Ticket Program data are used to
validate the effort data obtained through the mandatory fishermen
reports. These reports require fishermen to identify the restricted
area fished. There are 8 restricted areas consisting of only shallow
waters adjacent to the Outer Banks and mainland. The majority of the
Pamlico Sound waters are closed to fishing with large mesh gillnets and
small mesh gillnets appear to not interact with sea turtles. Thus, NMFS
and NCDMF believe that the identification of 8 separate restricted
areas within an overall limited geographic area is sufficient to
determine fishing effort distribution to apply towards the estimates of
sea turtle interactions collected through the observer program.
Comment 4: The applicant considered, but rejected, to not apply for
a permit and to close the area to gillnet fisheries. Georgia and
Florida have banned gill nets in their state waters and this should be
considered the preferred alternative for gill nets in Pamlico Sound,
NC.
Response. The closure of the deep water large mesh fishery
concurrent with the management of the shallow water fishery in 2001
resulted in a 67-percent reduction in strandings and an 88- percent
reduction in the estimated take level when compared to 2000. The
reduction in sea turtle interactions in the gillnet fishery clearly
demonstrates the effectiveness of the management measures. NMFS does
not believe that the prohibition of all gill nets is necessary at this
time.
Upon a review of the application, relevant documents, public
comments, and further discussions with NCDMF, NMFS found that the
application met the criteria for issuance of 50 CFR 222.307(c). Permit
1398 was issued on August 30, 2002, and expires on December 15, 2004.
Dated: October 29, 2002.
Phil Williams,
Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected Resources,
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 02-28009 Filed 11-01-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S