AGENCY:
National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION:
Notice; issuance of permit.

SUMMARY:
NMFS is issuing an experimental fishing permit (EFP) to the Hawaii Longline Association (HLA) to evaluate the risk of seabird interactions in the Hawaii shallow-set longline fishery when setting fishing gear one hour before and one hour after local sunset and using tori lines instead of required blue-dyed bait and strategic offal discharge as seabird mitigation measures. The intent of the EFP is to conduct a preliminary evaluation of potential alternative effective methods of discouraging seabird interactions while providing operational flexibility during setting in the shallow-set longline fishery.

DATES:
The EFP is authorized from March 24, 2022, through September 24, 2023.

ADDRESSES:
Copies of the EFP, HLA’s application, and supporting documents are available at
https://www.regulations.gov/​docket/​NOAA-NMFS-2021-0128

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Heather Cronin, Sustainable Fisheries, NMFS Pacific Islands Regional Office, tel (808) 725-5179.

Click here to see complete FR Notice.