NMFS Issues ANPR on Import Standards for Marine Mammal Bycatch
The National Marine Fisheries Service has issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking and seeks comments on developing procedures for evaluating imports of fish and fish products with respect to marine mammal bycatch to implement provisions of the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA).
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Comments are due by June 29, 2010.
(The MMPA of 1972 states that the Treasury Secretary shall ban the importation of commercial fish or products from fish which have been caught with commercial fishing technology which results in the incidental kill or incidental serious injury of ocean mammals in excess of U.S. standards.
The MMPA also states that the Commerce Secretary shall insist on reasonable proof from the government of any nation from which fish or fish products will be exported to the U.S. of the effects on ocean mammals of the commercial fishing technology in use for such fish or fish products exported from such nation to the U.S.)
NMFS Process Would Require Impact Proof, Prohibit Imports Without Proof
Among other things, NMFS is considering developing a process for evaluating bycatch in foreign fisheries that supply fish and fish product imports to the U.S. that would include:
Request proof of impact -- requesting that nations whose fisheries supply imports to the U.S. provide reasonable proof of the impact of those fisheries on marine mammals;
Consultations for non-proof -- initiating consultation with nations who fail to provide such reasonable proof or whose import-supplying fisheries are known or likely to not meet U.S. marine mammal bycatch standards;
Allow time to meet standards -- allowing some time for nations undergoing consultation to meet U.S. marine mammal bycatch standards by providing acceptable reasonable proof of the impacts of their import-supplying fisheries on marine mammals, by improving their assessment capabilities in order to provide such proof, or by implementing effective bycatch mitigation measures; and
Prohibit non-compliant countries -- recommending that the import of certain fish and fish products from a nation or fishery into the U.S. be prohibited if that nation or fishery fails to meet U.S. marine mammal bycatch standards after consultation.
NMFS Requests Comments on Procedures, Consultations, Intermediary Nations
NMFS is requesting comments on the procedures under consideration for ensuring that foreign fisheries imports meet U.S. marine mammal bycatch standards, including whether to apply one or more of the possible standards when evaluating import-supplying fisheries to make decisions regarding initiating consultation or banning imports, which standards to apply, and whether to apply different standards for making the decision to initiate consultation than are used to make the decision to ban imports.
Further, NMFS is requesting comments on what issues and conditions should be considered during consultation and whether and what kind of alternative procedures should be established for implementing import prohibitions on a shipment-by-shipment or shipper-by-shipper basis.
Finally, NMFS is requesting comments regarding if and how intermediary nations should be addressed by the procedures under consideration.
(See NMFS notice for comments on the petition for rulemaking.)
NMFS contact -- Michael Simpkins (301) 713-9090
NMFS ANPR (D/N 09073012019-1203-01, FR Pub 04/30/10) available at http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2010/pdf/2010-10158.pdf