Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Commercial Dolphin/Wahoo Fishery off the Southern Atlantic States; Control Date

Résumé

NMFS announces that it is considering, and is seeking public comment on proposed rulemaking to control future access to the commercial dolphin/wahoo fishery operating in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ)of the South Atlantic. If changes to the management regime are developed and implemented under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act), a control date could be used to limit the number of participants in the fishery. This announcement is intended, in part, to promote awareness of the potential eligibility criteria for future access so as to discourage speculative entry into the fishery while the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) and NMFS consider whether and how access to the dolphin/wahoo commercial fishery should be controlled.