635.23—Retention limits for BFT.

The retention limits in this section are subject to the quotas and closure provisions in §§ 635.27 and 635.28.

(a) General category. (1) No person aboard a vessel that has a General category Atlantic Tunas permit may possess, retain, land, or sell a BFT in the school, large school, or small medium size class.

(2) On an RFD, no person aboard a vessel that has been issued a General category Atlantic Tunas permit may fish for, possess, retain, land, or sell a BFT of any size class, and catch-and-release or tag-and-release fishing for BFT under § 635.26 is not authorized from such vessel. On days other than RFDs, and when the General category is open, one large medium or giant BFT may be caught and landed from such vessel per day. NMFS will annually publish a schedule of RFDs in the Federal Register.

(3) Regardless of the length of a trip, no more than a single day's retention limit of large medium or giant BFT may be possessed or retained aboard a vessel that has a General category Atlantic Tunas permit. On days other than RFDs, when the General category is open, no person aboard such vessel may continue to fish, and the vessel must immediately proceed to port once the applicable limit for large medium or giant BFT is retained.

(4) To provide for maximum utilization of the quota for BFT, NMFS may increase or decrease the daily retention limit of large medium and giant BFT over a range from zero (on RFDs) to a maximum of three per vessel. Such increase or decrease will be based on the criteria provided under § 635.27(a)(8). NMFS will adjust the daily retention limit specified in paragraph (a)(2) of this section by filing an adjustment with the Office of the Federal Register for publication. In no case shall such adjustment be effective less than 3 calendar days after the date of filing with the Office of the Federal Register, except that previously designated RFDs may be waived effective upon closure of the General category fishery so that persons aboard vessels permitted in the General category may conduct tag-and-release fishing for BFT under § 635.26.

(b) Angling category. BFT may be retained and landed under the daily limits and quotas applicable to the Angling category by persons aboard vessels issued an HMS Angling permit as follows:

(1) Large medium and giant BFT. (i) No large medium or giant BFT may be retained, possessed, landed, or sold in the Gulf of Mexico, except one per vessel per year may be landed if caught incidentally to fishing for other species.

(ii) One per vessel per year may be retained, possessed, and landed outside the Gulf of Mexico.

(iii) When a large medium or giant BFT has been caught and retained under this paragraph (b)(1), no person aboard the vessel may continue to fish, the vessel must immediately proceed to port, and no such BFT may be sold or transferred to any person for a commercial purpose.

(2) School, large school, or small medium BFT. (i) No school, large school, or small medium BFT may be retained, possessed, landed, or sold in the Gulf of Mexico.

(ii) One school, large school, or small medium BFT per vessel per day may be retained, possessed, or landed outside the Gulf of Mexico. Regardless of the length of a trip, no more than a single day's allowable catch of school, large school, or small medium BFT may be possessed or retained.

(3) Changes to retention limits. To provide for maximum utilization of the quota for BFT over the longest period of time, NMFS may increase or decrease the retention limit for any size class of BFT, or change a vessel trip limit to an angler trip limit and vice versa. Such increase or decrease in retention limit will be based on the criteria provided under § 635.27 (a)(8). The retention limits may be adjusted separately for persons aboard a specific vessel type, such as private vessels, headboats, or charter boats. NMFS will adjust the daily retention limit specified in paragraph (b)(2) of this section by filing an adjustment with the Office of the Federal Register for publication. In no case shall such adjustment be effective less than 3 calendar days after the date of filing with the Office of the Federal Register.

(c) HMS Charter/Headboat. Persons aboard a vessel issued an HMS Charter/Headboat permit may retain and land BFT under the daily limits and quotas applicable to the Angling category or the General category as follows:

(1) When fishing in the Gulf of Mexico, the restrictions applicable to the Angling category specified in paragraph (b)(1) of this section apply.

(2) When fishing other than in the Gulf of Mexico when the fishery for the General category is closed, the restrictions applicable to the Angling category specified in paragraphs (b)(1) through (b)(3) of this section apply.

(3) When fishing other than in the Gulf of Mexico and when the fishery under the General category has not been closed under § 635.28, a person aboard a vessel that has been issued an HMS Charter/Headboat permit may fish under either the retention limits applicable to the General category specified in paragraphs (a)(2) and (a)(3) of this section or the retention limits applicable to the Angling category specified in paragraphs (b)(2) and (b)(3) of this section. The size category of the first BFT retained will determine the fishing category applicable to the vessel that day.

(d) Harpoon category. Persons aboard a vessel permitted in the Atlantic Tunas Harpoon category may retain, possess, or land an unlimited number of giant BFT per day. An incidental catch of only two large medium BFT per vessel per day may be retained, possessed, or landed.

(e) Purse Seine category. Persons aboard a vessel permitted in the Atlantic Tunas Purse Seine category,

(1) May retain, possess, land, or sell large medium BFT in amounts not exceeding 15 percent, by weight, of the total amount of giant BFT landed during that fishing year.

(2) May retain, possess or land BFT smaller than the large medium size class that are taken incidentally when fishing for skipjack tuna or yellowfin tuna in an amount not exceeding 1 percent, by weight, of the skipjack tuna and yellowfin tuna landed on that trip. Landings of BFT smaller than the large medium size class may not be sold and are counted against the Purse Seine category BFT quota allocated to that vessel.

(f) Longline category. Persons aboard a vessel permitted in the Atlantic Tunas Longline category may retain, possess, land, and sell large medium and giant BFT taken incidentally when fishing for other species. For vessels fishing North or South of 31°00′ N. lat., limits on retention, possession, landing and sale are as follows:

(1) One large medium or giant BFT per vessel per trip may be landed, provided that at least 2,000 lb (907 kg) of species other than BFT are legally caught, retained, and offloaded from the same trip and are recorded on the dealer weighout slip as sold. Two large medium or giant BFT per vessel per trip may be landed, provided that at least 6,000 lb (2,727 kg) of species other than BFT are legally caught, retained, and offloaded from the same trip and are recorded on the dealer weighout slip as sold. Three large medium or giant BFT per vessel per trip may be landed, provided that at least 30,000 lb (13,620 kg) of species other than BFT are legally caught, retained, and offloaded from the same trip and are recorded on the dealer weighout slip as sold.

(2) NMFS may increase or decrease the Longline category retention limit of large medium and giant BFT over a range from zero to a maximum of three per trip, or, for a given BFT retention limit, increase or decrease the target catch requirement by 25 percent from the level specified in paragraph (f)(1) of this section. Such increase or decrease in the BFT retention limit or target catch requirement will be based on a review of dealer reports, observer reports, vessel logbooks, landing trends, availability of the species on the fishing grounds, and any other relevant factors, and will consider the likelihood of increasing dead discards of BFT and/or exceeding the incidental landings quota established for the pelagic longline fishery. Such adjustments may be made separately for vessels fishing North or South of 31°00′ N. lat. NMFS will adjust the retention limits and target catch requirements specified in paragraph (f)(1) of this section by filing the adjustment with the Office of the Federal Register for publication. In no case shall such adjustment be effective less than 21 calendar days after the adjustment is filed with the Office of the Federal Register for publication.

(3) Pelagic longline vessels fishing in the Northeast Distant gear restricted area, under the exemption specified at § 635.21(c)(2)(v), may retain all BFT taken incidental to fishing for other species while in that area up to the available quota as specified in § 635.27(a), notwithstanding the retention limits and target catch requirements specified in paragraph (f)(1) of this section. Once the available quota as specified in § 635.27(a) has been attained, the target catch requirements specified in paragraph (f)(1) of this section apply.

(g) Trap category. Persons aboard a vessel permitted in the Atlantic Tunas Trap category may retain, possess, land, and sell each fishing year only one large medium or giant BFT that is taken incidentally while fishing for other species with a pound net or fish weir. No other Atlantic tunas caught in a pound net or fish weir may be retained.

[64 FR 29135, May 28, 1999, as amended at 65 FR 42887, July 12, 2000; 67 FR 77438, Dec. 18, 2002; 68 FR 32417, May 30, 2003; 68 FR 56788, Oct. 2, 2003; 68 FR 74511, Dec. 24, 2003; 69 FR 40758, July 6, 2004; 70 FR 10900, Mar. 7, 2005; 71 FR 58169, Oct. 2, 2006]

CFR

635.23—Retention limits for BFT.