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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 106 / Friday, June 4, 2021 / Proposed Rules by all speed and course restrictions in SMAs and DMAs. Prior to and during research surveys, NEFSC will maintain awareness if right whales have been detected in transit or fishing areas.
Handling Procedures Handling procedures are those taken to return a live animal to the sea or process a dead animal. The NEFSC will implement a number of handling protocols to minimize potential harm to marine mammals that are incidentally taken during the course of fisheries research activities. In general, protocols have already been prepared for use on commercial fishing vessels. Although commercial fisheries take larger quantities of marine mammals than fisheries research, the nature of such takes by entanglement or capture are similar. Therefore, the NEFSC would adopt commercial fishery disentanglement and release protocols summarized below, which should increase post-release survival. Handling or disentangling marine mammals carries inherent safety risks, and using best professional judgment and ensuring human safety is paramount.
Captured or entangled live or injured marine mammals are released from research gear and returned to the water as soon as possible with no gear or as little gear remaining on the animal as possible. Animals are released without removing them from the water if possible, and data collection is conducted in such a manner as not to delay release of the animals or endanger the crew. NEFSC is responsible for training NEFSC and partner affiliates on how to identify different species; handle and bring marine mammals aboard a vessel; assess the level of consciousness; remove fishing gear; and return marine mammals to water. Human safety is always the paramount concern.
Move-On Rule For all research surveys using gear that has the potential to hook or entangle a marine mammal, the NEFSC
must implement move-on rule mitigation protocol upon observation of any marine mammal other than dolphins and porpoises attracted to the vessel see specific gear types below for marine mammal monitoring details.
Specifically, if one or more marine mammals other than dolphins and porpoises are observed near the sampling area 15 minutes prior to setting gear and are considered at risk of interacting with the vessel or research gear, or appear to be approaching the vessel and are considered at risk of interaction, NEFSC must either remain
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onsite or move on to another sampling location. If remaining onsite, the set must be delayed until the animals depart or appear to no longer be at risk of interacting with the vessel or gear. If gear deployment or retrieval is suspended due to protected species presence, resume only after there are no sightings for 15 minutes within 1nm of sampling location. At such time, the NEFSC may deploy gear. The NEFSC
must use best professional judgment, in making decisions related to deploying gear.
Trawl Surveys Beam, Mid-Water, and Bottom Trawls The NEFSC deploys trawl nets in all layers of the water column. For all beam, mid-water, and bottom trawl, the NEFSC will initiate visual observation for protected species no less than 15
minutes prior to gear deployment.
NEFSC will scan the surrounding waters with the naked eye and rangefinding binoculars and will continue visual monitoring while gear is deployed.
During nighttime operations, NEFSC
will observe with the naked eye and any available vessel lighting. If protected species are sighted within 15 minutes before setting gear, the OOD may determine whether to implement the move-on rule and transit to a different section of the sampling area. Trawl gear will not be deployed if protected species are sighted near the ship unless there is no risk of interaction as determined by the OOD or CS. If, after moving on, protected species are still visible from the vessel and appear at risk, the OOD
may decide to move again, skip the station, or wait until the marine mammals leave the area and/or are considered no longer at risk. If gear deployment or retrieval is suspended due to protected species presence, fishing may commence after there are no sightings for 15 minutes within 1nm of sampling location. If deploying bongo plankton or other small net prior to trawl gear, NEFSC will continue visual observations until trawl gear is ready to be deployed.
NEFSC trawl surveys will follow the standard tow durations of no more than 30 minutes at target depth for distances less than 3 nautical miles nm. The exceptions to the 30-minute tow duration are the Atlantic Herring Acoustic Pelagic Trawl Survey and the Deepwater Biodiversity Survey where total time in the water deployment, fishing, and haul-back is 40 to 60
minutes and 180 minutes, respectively.
Trawl tow distances will be not more than 3 nmi to reduce the likelihood of incidentally taking marine mammals.
Typical tow distances are 12 nmi,
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depending on the survey and trawl speed. Bottom trawl tows will be made in either straight lines or following depth contours, whereas other tows targeting fish aggregations and deepwater biodiversity tows may be made along oceanographic or bathymetric features. In all cases, sharp course changes will be avoided in all surveys.
In many cases, trawl operations will be the first activity undertaken upon arrival at a new station, in order to reduce the opportunity to attract marine mammals to the vessel. However, in some cases it will be necessary to conduct plankton tows prior to deploying trawl gear in order to avoid trawling through extremely high densities of jellies and similar taxa that are numerous enough to severely damage trawl gear.
Once the trawl net is in the water, observations will continue around the vessel to maintain a lookout for the presence of marine mammals. If marine mammals are sighted before the gear is fully retrieved, resume only after there are no sightings for 15 minutes within 1 nmi of the sampling location. The OOD may also use the most appropriate response to avoid incidental take in consultation with the CS and other experienced crew as necessary. This judgment will be based on his/her past experience operating gears around marine mammals and NEFSC training sessions that will facilitate dissemination of Chief Scientist.
Captain expertise operating in these situations e.g., factors that contribute to marine mammal gear interactions and those that aid in successfully avoiding these events. These judgments take into consideration the species, numbers, and behavior of the animals, the status of the trawl net operation net opening, depth, and distance from the stern, the time it would take to retrieve the net, and safety considerations for changing speed or course. For instance, a whale transiting through the area off in the distance might only require a short move from the designated station while a pod of dolphins gathered around the vessel may require a longer move from the station or possibly cancellation if they follow the vessel. It may sometimes be safer to continue trawling until the marine mammals have lost interest or transited through the area before beginning haulback operations. In other situations, swift retrieval of the net may be the best course of action. If trawling is delayed because of protected species presence, trawl operations only resume when the animals have no longer been sighted or are no longer at risk. In any case, no gear will be deployed if marine mammals or other protected species
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