Rule Establishes Limits for Commercial Grouper

Sea Technology, Mar 2005

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has published in the Federal Register (70 FR 8037) an emergency rule establishing trip limits for the commercial shallow-water grouper (black grouper, gag, red grouper, yellowfm grouper, scamp, yellowmouth grouper, rock hind and red hind) and deep-water grouper (misty grouper, snowy grouper, yellowedge grouper, Warsaw grouper and speckled hind) fisheries in the exclusive economic zone of the Gulf of Mexico.

This emergency rule establishes the following trip limits: beginning at 12:01 a.m., eastern standard time, March 3, 2005, a 10,000-pound trip limit for deep-water grouper and shallow-water grouper combined is in effect; if on or before August 1, 2005, more than 50 percent of either the shallow-water grouper quota (8.8 million pounds) or red grouper quota (5.31 million pounds) is reached, the trip limit will be 7,500 pounds; and if on or before October 1, 2005, more than 75 percent of either the shallow-water grouper quota or red grouper quota is reached, the trip limit will be 5,500 pounds.

According to NOAA, the intended effect of this emergency rule is to moderate the rate of harvest of the available quotas, reduce the adverse social and economic effects of derby fishing, enable more effective quota monitoring and reduce the probability of overfishing.

NMFS issued this emergency rule, effective for no more than 180 days, as authorized by section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. The emergency rule may be extended for an additional 180 days, provided the public has had an opportunity to comment on the emergency rule and provided the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council is actively preparing proposed regulations to address the emergency on a permanent basis. NOAA officials added that public comments on this emergency rule are invited and will be considered in determining whether to extend this rule.

The council is preparing a regulatory amendment under the fishery management plan framework procedure to address, on a permanent basis, trip limits for the commercial grouper fishery in the Gulf of Mexico that are the subject of this rule. Comments on this rule can be received at www.regulations.gov no later than 5 p.m., eastern time, on March 21, 2005.