# Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council and New England Fishery Management Council; Public Hearings > Briefs, arguments, decisions, and more. URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/fr%3A98-27582 ## Record - **Collection:** Federal Register - **Document type:** Proposed Rule - **Published:** October 15, 1998 - **Citation:** 63 FR 55355 ## Text DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 50 CFR Part 648 [I.D. 100598D] Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council and New England Fishery Management Council; Public Hearings AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce. ACTION: Public hearings, request for comments. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: The Mid-Atlantic and the New England Fishery Management Councils (Councils) will hold public hearings to allow for input on development of the Spiny Dogfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP). DATES: Written comments on the FMP will be accepted until November 23, 1998. The public hearings are scheduled to be held from October 26 to November 4, 1998. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for specific dates and times. ADDRESSES: Send comments to Christopher M. Moore, Ph.D., Acting Executive Director, Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, Room 2115 Federal Building, 300 South New Street, Dover, DE 19904 or Paul Howard, Executive Director, New England Fishery Management Council, 5 Broadway, Saugus, MA 01906-1036. The hearings will be held in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for locations of the hearings. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Christopher M. Moore, Ph.D., Acting Executive Director, Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, 302-674- 2331, or Paul Howard, Executive Director, New England Fishery Management Council, 781-231-0422. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Background The purpose of the proposed action is to initiate management of spiny dogfish (Squalus acanthias), pursuant to the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) of 1976 as amended by the Sustainable Fisheries Act (SFA). For most of the first two decades of extended jurisdiction under the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the spiny dogfish was considered to be an [[Page 55356]] ``underutilized'' species of relatively minor value to the domestic fisheries of the U.S. East Coast. With the decline of more traditional groundfish resources in recent years, an increase in directed fishing for spiny dogfish has resulted in a nearly sixfold increase in landings in the last 7 years. Recent rapid expansion of the fishery has resulted in a dramatic increase in fishing mortality. Particularly troublesome is the fact that the fishery targets mature females because of their large size. The recent fishery expansion, in combination with the removal of a large portion of the adult female stock, has resulted in the species being designated as overfished by NMFS. The SFA requires remedial action by the Councils for stocks designated as overfished and requires that a management program be developed within 1 year of the date of notification that a species is overfished. The lack of any regulations pertaining to the harvest of spiny dogfish in the exclusive economic zone, combined with the recent rapid expansion of the domestic fishery, led the Councils to jointly develop a management plan for the species. The management unit for this FMP is defined as the entire spiny dogfish population along the Atlantic coast of the United States. The overall goal of this FMP is to conserve spiny dogfish in order to achieve optimum yield from this resource in the western Atlantic Ocean. To meet the overall goal, the following objectives have been adopted: 1. Reduce fishing mortality to ensure that overfishing does not occur; 2. Promote compatible management regulations between state and Council jurisdictions and the United States and Canada; 3. Promote uniform and effective enforcement of regulations; 4. Minimize regulations while achieving the management objectives stated above; and 5. Manage the spiny dogfish fishery so as to minimize the impact of the regulations on the prosecution of other fisheries, to the extent practicable. The fishing year for spiny dogfish is the 12-month period beginning May 1. Management Strategy The SFA, which reauthorized and amended the Magnuson-Stevens Act, made a number of changes to the existing national standards. With respect to national standard 1, the SFA imposed new requirements concerning definitions of overfishing in fishery management plans. To comply with national standard 1, the SFA requires that each Council FMP define overfishing as a rate or level of fishing mortality that jeopardizes a fishery's capacity to produce maximum sustainable yield (MSY) on a continuing basis. Each FMP must specify objective and measurable status determination criteria for identifying when stocks or stock complexes covered by the FMP are overfished. To fulfill the requirements of the SFA, status determination criteria for spiny dogfish comprise two components: (1) A maximum fishing mortality threshold and (2) a minimum stock size threshold. The maximum F threshold for spiny dogfish is specified as FMSY. The minimum biomass threshold is specified as one-half BMSY. For spiny dogfish, the stock size that would maximize average recruitment is known as the SSBmax and is recommended as a proxy value for BMSY. This target value is currently estimated to be 440 million lb (200,000 mt). An additional requirement of the SFA is that stocks that are identified as overfished (i.e., stock biomass is less than minimum biomass threshold) must be rebuilt to the level that will produce maximum sustainable yield (BMSY). The SFA guidelines advise that, in most cases, the stock rebuilding period may not exceed 10 years. The most recent stock assessment data indicate that total adult spiny dogfish stock biomass is currently about 280 million lb (127,000 mt), which is well below the stock biomass target of 440 million lb (200,000 mt). As a result, the Councils propose to rebuild the spiny dogfish stock to the BMSY level (as represented by the proxy of SSBmax) over a 10-year rebuilding period through the implementation of this FMP. The preferred alternative will eliminate overfishing and rebuild the spiny dogfish stock through a two-step reduction in the fishing mortality rate. The first step allows for a 1-year exit fishery of 22 million lb (10,000 mt) to allow a phaseout of the directed fishery. This approach was chosen to minimize the impact of the rebuilding program on both the harvest and processing sectors of the industry. For the first year of the rebuilding plan (1999-2000), F will be reduced to 0.2 and then will be reduced to F = 0.03 in the remaining 9 years of the rebuilding plan (2000-2009). This schedule allows for stock rebuilding to the level that will support harvests at or near the SSBmax level in the year 2009. The Councils are seeking public comment on the following management program adopted by the Councils for public hearings: Preferred Management Measures The Councils are proposing a number of preferred management measures to meet the objectives of the FMP. These preferred alternatives are as follows: 1. Permit and reporting requirements for commercial vessels, operators, and dealers. 2. The establishment of a Spiny Dogfish FMP Monitoring Committee. 3. The implementation of a framework adjustment process. 4. A 10-year stock rebuilding schedule. 5. A commercial quota. 6. Seasonal (semi-annual) allocation of the quota. 7. A prohibition on finning. 8. A limit of 80 nets (50 fathoms each) in the spiny dogfish gillnet fishery. Alternatives to the Preferred Management Actions A number of alternatives to the proposed management measures have been identified by the Councils for consideration by the public. These non-preferred alternatives include: 1. A no-action at this time. 2. Alternative rebuilding schedules. 3. A commercial quota with trip limits. 4. A commercial quota with alternative seasonal allocations. 5. A commercial quota with alternative size limits including a slot size limit. 6. A limited entry program for the spiny dogfish commercial fishery. 7. A target commercial quota. Public Hearings The hearings will begin at 7 p.m., with the exception of the New York hearing, which begins at 7:30 p.m. The dates and locations are as follows: 1. October 26, 1998--Seaport Inn and Marina, 110 Middle Street, Fairhaven, MA; 2. October 27, 1998--Four Points Sheraton Hyannis, Route 132, Hyannis, MA; 3. October 27, 1998--Hampton Inn, 402 Halstead Boulevard, Elizabeth City, NC; 4. October 28, 1998--Ramada East End, 1830 Route 25, Riverhead, NY; 5. October 28, 1998--Virginia Marine Resources Commission, 2600 Washington Avenue, Newport News, VA; 6. November 2, 1998--Cape May County Extension Office, Dennisville Road, Route 657, Cape May Courthouse, NJ; 7. November 3, 1998--Dunes Manor, 2800 Baltimore Avenue, Ocean City, MD; 8. November 3, 1998--Holiday Inn by the Bay, 88 Spring Street, Portland, ME; and [[Page 55357]] 9. November 4, 1998--Sheraton, 250 Market Street, Portsmouth, NH. The hearings will be tape recorded with the tapes filed as the official transcript of the hearings. Special Accommodations These hearings are physically accessible to people with disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids should be directed to Joanna Davis at the Mid-Atlantic Council office at least 5 days prior to the hearing date. Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. Dated: October 7, 1998. Gary C. Matlock, Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. [FR Doc. 98-27582 Filed 10-14-98; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 3510-22-F --- Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/fr%3A98-27582. Public record. Not legal advice.