[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 145 (Monday, July 29, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49009-49010]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-19115]
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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: Notice of availability.
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SUMMARY: NMFS has received an application for an incidental take permit
(Permit) from the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries (NCDMF)
pursuant to the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA). As
required by the ESA, NCDMF's application includes a conservation plan
designed to minimize and mitigate any such take of endangered or
threatened species. The Permit application 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 the proposed Permit is for 3 years.
NMFS is furnishing this notice in order to allow other agencies and the
public an opportunity to review and comment on this document. All
comments received will become part of the public record and will be
available for review.
DATES: Written comments from interested parties on the Permit
application and Plan must be received at the appropriate address or fax
number (see ADDRESSES) no later than 5 p.m. Eastern daylight time on
August 28, 2002.
ADDRESSES: Written comments on this action should be addressed to the
Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected Resources,
NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910. Comments may
also be sent via fax to 301-713-0376. The application is available for
download and review at http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/prot_res /PR3 /
Permits / ESA Permit.html. Comments will not be accepted if submitted
via e-mail or the Internet.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David Bernhart (ph. 727- 570- 5312,
fax 727- 570- 5517, e-mail David.Bernhart @ noaa.gov). Comments
received will also be available for public inspection, by appointment,
during normal business hours by calling 301- 713-1401.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 9 of the ESA and Federal regulations
prohibit the ``taking'' of a species listed as endangered or
threatened. The term ``take'' is defined under the ESA to mean harass,
harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or
to attempt to engage in any such conduct. NMFS may issue permits, under
limited circumstances, to take listed species incidental to, and not
the purpose of, otherwise lawful activities. Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the
ESA provides for authorizing incidental take of listed species. NMFS
regulations governing permits for threatened and endangered species are
promulgated at 50 CFR 222.307.
Species Covered in this Notice
The following species are included in the conservation plan and
Permit application: Loggerhead (Caretta caretta), green (Chelonia
mydas), leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea), hawksbill (Eretmochelys
imbricata), and Kemp's ridley (Lepidochelys kempii) sea turtles.
Background
NMFS issued Permt 1259 to NCDMF (65 FR 65,840, November 2,
2000) and Permit 1348 (66 FR 51,023, October 5, 2001) for
managing the sea turtle interactions in certain factions of the 2000
and 2001 commercial fall gill net fisheries for flounder in the
southeastern portion of Pamlico Sound. On July 18, 2002, NCDMF
submitted an application to NMFS for a Permit (1398)
authorizing incidental take of ESA-listed sea turtles associated with
the shallow water fishery for the 2002, 2003, and 2004 fall fishing
seasons. This application includes endangered Kemp's ridley,
leatherback, and hawksbill sea turtles and the threatened green and
loggerhead sea turtles. This fishery targets flounder. The proposed
implementation of this fishery will allow for the continued commercial
harvest of this species. This fishery is estimated to have a value of
over one million dollars per year. This fishery supports fishermen and
the local economy.
Conservation Plan
The conservation plan prepared by NCDMF describes measures designed
to monitor, minimize, and mitigate the incidental takes of ESA-listed
sea turtles. The conservation plan includes managing the shallow water
large and small mesh gill net fishery which operates from April through
December in areas adjacent to the Outer Banks and mainland in Pamlico
Sound. Three gill net restricted areas (GNRAs) will be designated for
the eastern Pamlico Sound and two GNRAs in the western Pamlico Sound
along the mainland in Hyde and Pamlico Counties.
The three eastern GNRAs consist of waters extending out from the
barrier islands to a depth of less than 20 feet (6.1 m). The three
GNRAs from south to north are as follows: (1) the area from Wainwright
Island including Ocracoke Inlet bound by Core Banks; (2) the area north
of Ocracoke Inlet to and encompassing Hatteras Inlet; (3) the area
north of Hatteras Inlet to and encompassing Oregon Inlet. The shallow
water fishery operates from April through December in depths typically
less than 3 feet (1.0 m). Vessels are usually open skiffs ranging from
15 to 25 feet (4.6 to 7.6 m) in length. Each fisherman sets 500 to 2000
yards (457 to 1,828 m) of large mesh (5.5 to 7.0 inch (14.0 to 17.8
cm)) or small mesh (3.5 to 4.5 inch (8.90 to 11.4 cm)) gill net, which
are soaked overnight and retrieved by hand.
Monitoring during the 2000 fishing season consisted of 4.3 percent
coverage of this fishery with 37 trips observed. Four sea turtle
interactions were observed and all were green turtles, three were
released alive. During the 2001 fishing season, 131 large mesh trips
were observed which represented 9 percent coverage. Four green sea
turtles and one hawksbill were observed in the large mesh gill net
fishery. For the small mesh fishery, 47 trips were observed for the
``set'' net and 12 trips observed for the ``runaround'' accomplishing
20 and 8.4 percent coverage, respectively. No sea turtle interactions
were observed.
In addition to the Outer Banks fisheries, a mainland based flounder
gill net fishery occurs in the shallow water bays and along the
shoreline of Hyde and Pamlico Counties. The two GNRAs consist of all
mainland areas within 200 yards (183 m) of shore between 76 30'W and 76
50'W. The fishery operating in this area is similar to the Outer Banks
fishery with the effort from April through December. Fishing depths are
typically less than 3 feet (1.0 m), and each fisherman sets 500 to 2000
yards (457 to 1,828 m) of large mesh (5.5 to 7.0 inch (14.0 to 17.8
cm)), which are soaked overnight and retrieved by hand. This fishery
did not operate during the 2001 fishing season due to the 2001 closure
of Pamlico Sound (66 FR 50350, October 3, 2001). No observer trips have
been conducted within this fishery and therefore there have been no
[[Page 49010]]
documented sea turtle takes. However, NCDMF has been conducting an
independent gill net survey in this area since May 2001 and completed
approximately 1,800 unattended 30 yard (27.4 m) gill net sets composed
of large and small stretched mesh with no sea turtle interactions to
date.
The annual anticipated lethal and nonlethal incidental take of sea
turtles is anticipated to be 72 and 492, respectively. This level is
anticipated to consists of equal portions of Kemp's ridley, green, and
loggerhead turtles. NCDMF is proposing 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 in the fall
gill net fishery by 50 percent, compared to the mortality level
indicated by strandings in 1999. NCDMF considered and rejected one
other alternative, not applying for a permit and closing the fishery,
when developing their conservation plan.
This notice is provided pursuant to section 10(c) of the ESA and
the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations (40 CFR
1506.6). NMFS will evaluate the application, associated documents, and
comments submitted thereon to determine whether the application meets
the requirements of the NEPA regulations and section 10(a) of the ESA.
If it is determined that the requirements are met, a permit will be
issued for incidental takes of ESA-listed sea turtles under the
jurisdiction of NMFS. The final NEPA and permit determinations will not
be completed until after the end of the 30-day comment period and will
fully consider all public comments received during the comment period.
NMFS will publish a record of its final action in the Federal Register.
Dated: July 22, 2002.
Margaret Lorenz,
Acting Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office of Protected
Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 02-19115 Filed 7-26-02; 8:45 am]
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