Sea
Turtle Conservation Regulation History
1970
— Hawksbill, Kemp's ridley, and leatherback sea
turtles are listed by FWS as endangered species under the
Endangered Species Conservation Act of 1969.
December
28, 1973 — Enactment of the Endangered Species Act
of 1973 (ESA).
May
20, 1975 — NOAA Fisheries and FWS publish a proposal
to list green, loggerhead, and olive (Pacific) ridley sea
turtles as threatened species under the ESA (40 FR 21982,
40 FR 21974). The proposal includes an exception to the ESA
takings prohibitions for incidental catch of threatened sea
turtles in fishing gear if (a) the fishing is not in an area
of substantial sea turtle breeding or feeding and (b) the
turtles are immediately returned to the water.
July
28, 1978 — NOAA Fisheries and FWS publish final
regulations (43 FR 32800) listing loggerhead, green, and olive
ridley sea turtles as threatened species, except for Florida
green turtle breeding colony populations and Pacific coast
of Mexico olive ridley and green turtle breeding colony populations,
which were listed as endangered. Many commenters on the proposal
had objected to the "areas of substantial breeding and
feeding" language, fearing that a strict interpretation
could put many shrimpers out of business. In the final rule,
incidental capture of threatened turtles with fishing gear
is exempted from the ESA takings prohibitions in all areas,
if turtles are returned to the water following resuscitation
attempts for unconscious animals.
The rule
states that NOAA Fisheries has developed and is testing a
turtle excluder panel installed across the mouth of a shrimp
trawl to prevent or substantially reduce the capture of sea
turtles, with the objective of completing the development
and testing of the panel by the end of the 1978 shrimp season.
NOAA Fisheries states its "goal is to promulgate regulations
requiring the use of the panel to prevent, or substantially
reduce, incidental catch of sea turtles without significantly
reducing shrimp production."
1978
— Further testing of the turtle excluder panels yields
poor results for turtle exclusion (only 75% exclusion) and
shrimp retention (15 to 30% loss). Work on the excluder panels
is abandoned (NMFS 1987).
1978-1981
— NOAA Fisheries' attention is turned toward testing
and development of a rigid Turtle Excluder Device (TED) that
can be inserted farther back in the net. Turtle exclusion
and shrimp retention results for the TED are positive. By
1981, the NMFS TED – a large, cage-like device with
a metal-framed trap door – has been developed and found
to release 97 percent of the turtles caught in shrimp trawls
with no loss of shrimp (52 FR 24244, June 29, 1987).
1981-1983
— NOAA Fisheries encourages voluntary use of TEDs
in the shrimp fishery.
1983-1986
— NOAA Fisheries operates a formal program which
builds and delivers TEDs to shrimp fishermen who agree to
use them voluntarily in commercial shrimping operations. The
program proves ineffective. By 1985, less than 1% of the shrimp
fleet is using TEDs (NMFS 1992).
October
- December 1986 — NOAA Fisheries sponsors mediated
sessions involving environmental and shrimp industry groups.
The negotiations attempt to develop a mutually acceptable
implementation of TED requirements and avert threatened litigation
from environmental groups. One party to the mediation sessions,
the Concerned Shrimpers of Louisiana, refuses to sign the
developed agreement and negotiations break down.
1987
— A report analyzing observer data from the southeast
U.S. shrimp fishery from 1973-1984 conservatively estimates
that the shrimp fishery in offshore waters kills 9,874 loggerhead,
767 Kemp's ridley, and 229 green turtles annually (Henwood
and Stuntz 1987).
March
2, 1987 — NOAA Fisheries develops and publishes
proposed regulations to require the use of TEDs in most offshore
shrimp trawlers (52 FR 6179).
June
29, 1987 — NOAA Fisheries publishes final regulations
implementing TED requirements (52 FR 24244). The regulations
are codified at 50 CFR parts 217, 222, and 217. Many of the
provisions of the rule phase in over a 20-month period. Ultimately,
TEDs are required seasonally aboard all shrimp trawlers over
25 feet in length in offshore waters of the Gulf and South
Atlantic, except for southwest Florida and the Canaveral area,
where they are required year-round. Shrimp trawlers less than
25 feet in length and all trawlers in inshore waters are required
to limit their tow-times to a maximum of 90 minutes seasonally,
except in southwest Florida and the Canaveral area, where
tow-times are required year-round.
Exemptions
to the TED requirement are included for trawlers fishing for
royal red shrimp and rock shrimp. Try nets up to 20 feet in
headrope length are also exempted.
Four
specific designs of hard TEDs – the NMFS TED, the Cameron
TED, the Matagorda TED, and the Georgia TED – are included
in the regulations as qualified TEDs. The minimum size of
the TED escape openings is specified as 32 inches in the Gulf
and 35 inches in the Atlantic, but how this opening is measured
is not specified.
The regulations
make provisions for testing and approving additional TED designs
that may be developed by NOAA Fisheries or the shrimping industry.
An appendix published with the regulations specifies a scientific
protocol for evaluating new TEDs in the Cape Canaveral shipping
channel. Candidate TEDs must demonstrate a reduction in the
catch of wild turtles, compared to a net with no TED, of greater
than 96%.
September
30, 1987 — NOAA Fisheries completes a biological
opinion on the implementation of the 1987 regulations. The
1987 opinion addresses the potential adverse effects to listed
species of implementation of the rule, and concludes that
the regulations would have a positive impact on sea turtles
by substantially reducing mortalities. At that time, NOAA
Fisheries' policy on ESA section 7 consultation is to address
the potential impacts to listed species of management actions
and not to address potential adverse effects of the fishery
itself. The policy is ultimately changed on October 18, 1990,
when the Assistant Administrator for Fisheries advises all
NOAA Fisheries Regional Directors that future ESA consultations
on fishery management actions would address both the fishery
and the proposed management action.
October
5, 1987 — NOAA Fisheries issues a final rule/technical
amendment (52 FR 37152) to authorize an additional type of
TED, the Morrison TED which is the first soft TED. It uses
an upward-sloping panel of flexible webbing instead of the
rigid grid used in hard TEDs.
October
1987 - May 1990 — A chaotic array of lawsuits, injunctions,
suspensions of law enforcement, legislative actions by several
states, legislation by Congress, and temporary rules issued
by NOAA Fisheries and the Department of Commerce follows the
initial effective date of the 1987 regulations. The result
is a patchwork of times and areas where TEDs are and are not
required/enforced. Except in limited times in states that
separately required TEDs (South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida),
TED use is probably very low throughout the region. (See NMFS
(1992) for a detailed summary.)
October
7, 1988 — President Reagan signs a bill that requires
a study by the National Academy of Sciences to review the
question of sea turtle conservation status and the significance
of mortality from commercial trawling.
September
1, 1988 — NOAA Fisheries issues a final rule/technical
amendment (53 FR 33820) to authorize an additional soft TED,
the Parrish TED. It uses a downward-sloping webbing panel
leading to a rigid frame.
November
21, 1989 — President G. Bush signs Public Law 101-162.
Section 609 requires the State Department, in consultation
with the Department of Commerce, to initiate negotiations
with foreign countries to develop agreements for sea turtle
conservation, with emphasis on countries that have commercial
fishing fleets that adversely affect sea turtles. It further
requires the United States to ban the importation of commercially
harvested shrimp unless the exporting country has been certified
by the State Department as having a regulatory program for
sea turtle incidental capture in shrimp trawls that is comparable
to the United States' requirements. The certification is due
on May 1, 1991, and annually thereafter.
May
1990 — The National Academy of Science report, "Decline
of the Sea Turtles: Causes and Prevention," is released
(Magnuson et al. 1990). The report concludes that:
- Combined
annual counts of nests and nesting females indicate that
nesting sea turtles continue to experience population declines
in most of the United States. Declines of Kemp's ridleys
on the nesting beach in Mexico and of loggerheads on South
Carolina and Georgia nesting beaches are especially clear;
- Natural
mortality factors – such as predation, parasitism,
diseases and environmental changes – are largely unquantified,
so their respective impacts on sea turtle populations remain
unclear;
- Sea
turtles can be killed by several human activities, including
the effects of beach manipulations on eggs and hatchlings
and several phenomena that affect juveniles and adults at
sea : collisions with boats, entrapment in fishing nets
and other gear, dredging, oil-rig removal, power plant entrainment,
ingestion of plastics and toxic substances, and incidental
capture in shrimp trawls;
- Shrimp
trawling kills more sea turtles than all other human activities
combined, and the annual mortality estimate from Henwood
and Stuntz (1987) may be low by as much as a factor of 4;
- Shrimp
trawling can be compatible with the conservation of sea
turtles if adequate controls are placed on trawling activities,
especially the mandatory use of TEDs in most places at most
times of the year; and
- The
increased use of conservation measures on a worldwide basis
would help to conserve sea turtles.
October
9, 1990 — NOAA Fisheries issues a final rule/technical
amendment (55 FR 41088) to authorize an additional soft TED,
the Andrews TED. It uses a net-within-the-net design.
October
9, 1990 — NOAA Fisheries publishes an alternative
scientific protocol (55 FR 41092) to the Canaveral test for
approving new TED designs. In 1989, there were not enough
turtles in the Canaveral Channel to conduct TED testing, necessitating
the development of a new protocol. The new, small turtle test
protocol overcomes some of the other concerns over the Canaveral
test. In particular, it uses turtles that are similar in size
to wild Kemp's ridleys, the species of greatest conservation
concern at the time, and it allows divers to videotape every
turtle's encounter with the candidate TED, greatly increasing
the understanding of the factors in a TED's design that affect
sea turtle exclusion. The small turtle test's limitation,
however, is that, since captive animals are used under experimental
conditions, the metric used for decisions is a candidate TED's
performance relative to a control TED, rather than its straight
reduction in sea turtle captures.
April
1992 —The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council
(SAFMC) requests consultation on the Shrimp Fishery Management
Plan for the South Atlantic, and the Gulf of Mexico Fishery
Management Council (GMFMC) requests consultation on Amendment
6 to the Gulf of Mexico Shrimp Fishery Management Plan.
April
30, 1992 — NOAA Fisheries proposes to amend the
sea turtle conservation regulations to strengthen their effectiveness
and enforceability (57 FR 18446). The proposal would require
essentially all shrimp trawlers in the southeast U.S. to use
TEDs year-round, even in inshore waters, with only limited
exemptions.
August
19, 1992 — NOAA Fisheries completes section 7 consultation
and issues a biological opinion that considers the two Council's
FMPs, the shrimp fishery itself in the Gulf and South Atlantic,
and the implementation of the 1992 revised sea turtle conservation
regulations. The opinion concludes that shrimp trawling, as
managed by the Councils and in compliance with the proposed
sea turtle conservation regulations, is not likely to jeopardize
the continued existence of listed species under NOAA Fisheries
jurisdiction. With respect to leatherback turtles, however,
the opinion states, "Leatherback mortalities remain a
problem that must be addressed to avoid jeopardizing the recovery
of this species."
The opinion's
incidental take statement includes 6 reasonable and prudent
measures (RPMs). Three have to do with items that are implemented
through the regulations (required use of TEDs, limitations
on the use of tow-times, and resuscitation of comatose turtles).
A fourth is the requirement to implement an observer program
to monitor turtle take whenever tow-times are authorized as
an alternative to TEDs. NOAA Fisheries never implements such
an observer program. Instead, on the future occasions when
NOAA Fisheries does subsequently issue tow-time authorizations
because of hurricane debris or algae blooms, NOAA Fisheries
consults with the state fisheries directors who agree to provide
elevated enforcement to ensure compliance with tow-times.
A fifth reasonable and prudent measure states that NOAA Fisheries
should develop a program so that all turtle mortalities are
reported to the NOAA Fisheries, Southeast Regional Office,
in person, by phone, or by letter, within 10 days of return
from the fishing trip during which the incidental take occurred.
This reporting program is never implemented. The final requirement
is to develop and implement a contingency plan to eliminate
the episodic take of leatherback turtles by shrimp trawlers.
A contingency plan addressing some months along the Atlantic
coast is ultimately developed.
September
8, 1992 —NOAA Fisheries publishes an interim final
rule implementing some of the provisions of the April 1992
proposed rule.
December
4, 1992 — NOAA Fisheries publishes a final rule
(57 FR 57348) implementing the April proposal. The rule includes
a phase-in period for inshore vessels with small nets until
December 1, 1994. The rule requires all shrimp trawlers in
inshore and offshore waters from North Carolina to Texas to
have TEDs installed in all nets that are rigged for fishing.
Exempted
from the TED requirements are (1) royal red shrimp trawlers
(but not rock shrimp fishermen), (2) beam and roller trawls
if vertical bars on 4-inch spacings are attached across the
mouth of the trawl, and (3) a single try net, up to 20 feet
in headrope length, per boat.
Exempted
from the TED requirements, if fishermen follow tow-time limits
of 55 minutes from April-October and 75 minutes from November-March,
are (1) trawls that are entirely hand-hauled, (2) bait shrimpers
if all shrimp are kept in a live-well with no more than 32
pounds of dead shrimp aboard, (3) pusher-head trawls (chopsticks
rigs), skimmer trawls, and wing nets (butterfly nets), (4)
in an area and at a time where the Assistant Administrator
determines that special environmental conditions make TED
use impracticable, and (5) if the Assistant Administrator
determines that TEDs are ineffective.
Resuscitation
measures that fishermen must follow for incidentally caught
turtles that come aboard in a comatose condition are modified,
and fishermen are allowed to hold turtles on board under certain
conditions, while they are being resuscitated.
The technical
specifications for hard TEDs are rewritten to create more
explicit and more flexible descriptions of the required construction
characteristics of hard TEDs, rather than require shrimpers
to use one of the 4 named styles of hard TEDs from the 1987
regulation. The specifications for the TED opening dimensions
are clarified for single-grid hard TEDs: 35 inches horizontal
and, simultaneously, 12 inches vertical in the Atlantic, and
32 inches horizontal and, simultaneously, 10 inches vertical
in the Gulf of Mexico. Descriptions of accelerator funnels
and webbing flaps Ð optional modifications to increase
shrimp retention Ð are added.
A framework
and procedures are established whereby the Assistant Administrator
may impose additional restrictions on shrimping, or any other
fishing activity, if the incidental taking of sea turtles
in the fishery would violate an incidental take statement,
biological opinion, or incidental take permit or may be likely
to jeopardize the continued existence of a listed species.
May
17, 1993 — NOAA Fisheries issues a final rule/technical
amendment (58 FR 28795) to authorize an additional soft TED,
the Taylor TED. It is similar to the Morrison TED, but uses
a smaller panel of smaller-mesh webbing and a flap over the
escape opening. A modification of the Morrison TED to use
a larger escape opening covered with a flap is also approved.
The Taylor TED and modified Morrison TED have escape openings
that are large enough to release leatherback turtles.
October
20, 1993 —NOAA Fisheries issues a final rule/technical
amendment (58 FR 54066) to create a new category of hard TEDs
Ð special hard TEDs Ð and to authorize a new special
hard TED for the shrimp fishery, the Jones TED. The Jones
TED features bars that are set diagonally, rather than vertically,
in the face of the grid, and whose bar ends are not attached
to other bars or to the TED frame.
May
18, 1994 —NOAA Fisheries issues a final rule/technical
amendment (59 FR 25827) to specify a modification that can
be made to the escape opening of single grid hard TEDs that
will allow the TEDs to exclude leatherback turtles.
June
29, 1994 — NOAA Fisheries issues an interim final
rule (59 FR 33447) to require bottom-opening hard TEDs to
be modified by attaching floats to the TEDs to keep them from
riding hard on the sea floor. Major increases in sea turtle
strandings were observed that spring in Texas, and the absence
of floats on bottom-opening TEDs was one contributing factor.
November
14, 1994 — NOAA Fisheries completes section 7 consultation
and issues a biological opinion on the impacts of shrimp trawling
in the southeastern United States (NMFS 1994). Consultation
on the shrimp fishery had been reinitiated as the result of
extraordinarily high strandings of sea turtles, particularly
the critically endangered Kemp's ridley turtle, in Texas and
Louisiana corresponding to periods of heavy nearshore shrimping
effort. The opinion concludes that "continued long-term
operation of the shrimp fishery in the southeastern U.S.,
resulting in mortalities of Kemp's ridley turtles at levels
observed in the Gulf of Mexico in 1994, is likely to jeopardize
the continued existence of the Kemp's ridley population."
The jeopardy
opinion included a reasonable and prudent alternative (RPA)
that would allow the shrimp fishery to continue and avoid
the likelihood of jeopardizing Kemp's ridley sea turtles.
The RPA specified measures that NOAA Fisheries must take to
improve TED regulation compliance: (1) Develop an emergency
response plan (ERP) to address increases in sea turtle strandings
or TEDs noncompliance; (2) Deploy a specially trained law
enforcement team to respond to high strandings, TEDs noncompliance,
or intensive shrimping effort in areas of expected sea turtle
abundance; (3) Develop and implement a TED enforcement training
program for U.S. Coast Guard boarding parties; (4) Amplify
domestic TED technology programs; (5) Develop a permitting
or registration system for offshore shrimpers that would allow
sanctioning the permit for TED violations and failing to pay
assessed fines. NOAA Fisheries must also re-examine the effectiveness
of bottom-shooting hard TEDs and soft TEDs and mitigate the
impacts of intensive nearshore shrimping effort through the
identification of areas requiring special turtle management.
NOAA Fisheries ultimately implements all the elements of the
RPA, with the exception of the shrimper permitting/registration
system.
The opinion's
incidental take statement, in addition to establishing incidental
take levels based on observer coverage, sets indicated take
levels, based on historical stranding levels. The ITS incorporates
all of the RPMs from the 1992 opinion and also adds a number
of new RPMs. NOAA Fisheries must improve the overall observer
coverage in the shrimp fishery and improve stranding network
coverage in poorly covered states. NOAA Fisheries must use
this observer and stranding information to implement the actions
of the ERP. NOAA Fisheries must also convene a team of population
biologists, sea turtle scientists, and life history specialists
to compile and examine information on the status of sea turtle
species. The team should attempt to determine the maximum
number of individual sea turtles of each species that can
be taken incidentally to commercial fishing activities without
jeopardizing the continued existence of the species and what
the corresponding level of strandings would be. Lastly, NOAA
Fisheries is required to evaluate other human-caused sources
of sea turtle mortality and identify measure to reduce those
sources of mortality.
March
14, 1995 — NOAA Fisheries issues the details of
the ERP, required under the RPA of the 1994 opinion. The ERP
is issued to identify monitoring, reporting and enforcement
actions, as well as associated management measures that NOAA
Fisheries would consider implementing by emergency rulemaking
if strandings become elevated. Briefly, the ERP identifies
interim sea turtle management areas (ISMAs) within which enforcement
would be elevated from April through November. Two ISMAs were
identified: Atlantic Interim Special Management Area, including
shrimp fishery statistical Zones 30 and 31 (northeast Florida
and Georgia) and the Northern Gulf Interim Special Management
Area, including statistical Zones 13 through 20 (Louisiana
and Texas from the Mississippi River to North Padre Island).
NOAA Fisheries would implement gear restrictions on shrimp
trawling through existing rulemaking authority (codified at
50 CFR 227.72(e)(6)) in response to 2 weeks of elevated strandings
at levels approaching (within 75% of) the indicated take levels
or higher in the ISMAs when no other likely causes of mortality
were evident. Outside of the ISMA, implementation of similar
restrictions would be considered after 4 weeks of elevated
strandings. Areas monitored were delineated as the NOAA Fisheries
shrimp fishery statistical areas, and restrictions would be
implemented within zones of elevated strandings out to 10
nautical miles (nm) offshore.
March
24, 1995 — NOAA Fisheries issues a final rule/technical
amendments (60 FR 15512) to finalize the float requirement
and implement a variety of other minor changes to TED technical
specifications. One of these specifies that the width of the
cut for a hard TED's escape opening must extend at least from
the outermost bar of the grid to the opposite outermost bar
of the grid.
May
- August 1995 — NOAA Fisheries implements gear restrictions
based on the ERP through temporary rulemaking four times during
1995: twice in the Gulf of Mexico and twice in the Atlantic
(60 FR 21741, May 3, 1995; 60 FR 26691, May 18, 1995; 60 FR
31696, June 16, 1995; 60 FR 32121, June 20, 1995; 60 FR 42809,
August 17, 1995; 60 FR 43106, August 18, 1995; 60 FR 44780,
August 29, 1995).
May
12, 1995 — NOAA Fisheries issues an interim rule
(60 FR 25620) to establish all inshore and offshore waters
from Cape Canaveral, FL (28°24.6' N. lat.) to the North
Carolina-Virginia border (36°30.5'N.
lat.) as the leatherback conservation zone and to provide
for short-term closures of areas in that zone when high abundance
levels of leatherback turtles are documented ("the leatherback
contingency plan"). Upon such documentation, NOAA Fisheries
would prohibit, in the closed areas, fishing by any shrimp
trawler required to have a TED installed in each net that
is rigged for fishing, unless the TED installed is specified
in the regulations as having an escape opening large enough
to exclude leatherback turtles. NOAA Fisheries also proposes
(60 FR 25663) to adopt as final this interim rule establishing
the leatherback conservation zone.
June
2, 1995 — NOAA Fisheries temporarily amends the
regulations (60 FR 28741) protecting sea turtles to allow
compliance with tow-time limits as an alternative to the use
of TEDs in a 30-square mile (48.3-square km) area off the
coast of North Carolina to allow shrimp fishermen to fish
under conditions of high concentrations of red and brown algae
(that make trawling with TEDs impracticable) while maintaining
adequate protection for sea turtles in this area.
September
14, 1995 — NOAA Fisheries issues a final rule (60
FR 47713) establishing the leatherback conservation zone and
leatherback contingency plan in the Atlantic.
April
24, 1996 — NOAA Fisheries proposes (61 FR 18102)
prohibiting the use of all previously approved soft TEDs;
requiring the use of approved hard TEDs in try nets with a
headrope length greater than 12 ft (3.6 m) or a footrope length
greater than 15 ft (4.6 m); establishing Shrimp Fishery Sea
Turtle Conservation Areas (SFSTCAs) in the northwestern Gulf
of Mexico, and in the Atlantic along the coasts of Georgia
and South Carolina; and, within the SFSTCAs, prohibiting soft
TEDs, imposing the new try net restrictions, and prohibiting
the use of bottom-opening hard TEDs.
June
11, 1996 — NOAA Fisheries completes section 7 consultation
and issues a biological opinion on the impacts of shrimp trawling
in the southeastern United States (NMFS 1996). Consultation
on the shrimp fishery had been reinitiated to evaluate the
effects of the April 24 proposed rule and of a plan to implement
a shrimp vessel registration system and to consider the effects
of strandings-based incidental take levels that had been exceeded.
The opinion concludes that continued operation of the shrimp
fishery is not likely to jeopardize listed sea turtles, with
implementation of the proposed TED rule changes and of a shrimp
vessel registration system, which the opinion requires to
be proposed formally by the end of 1996. The opinion also
eliminates the strandings-based incidental take levels that
had been in place since the introduction of the ERP in March
1995. The ERP is replaced instead with a more flexible requirement
for NOAA Fisheries to consult with state stranding coordinators
to identify significantly local stranding event and to implement
30-day restrictions on shrimping in response, as appropriate.
June
27, 1996 — NOAA Fisheries issues temporary additional
restrictions (61 FR 33377) on shrimp trawlers fishing in the
Atlantic Area in inshore waters and offshore waters out to
10 nautical miles (nm)(18.5 km) from the COLREGS line, between
the Georgia-Florida border and the Georgia-South Carolina
border. The restrictions include prohibitions on the use of
soft TEDs and try nets with a headrope length greater than
12 ft (3.6 m) or a footrope length greater than 15 ft (4.5
m), unless the try nets are equipped with approved TEDs other
than soft TEDs. The restrictions are in response to elevated
sea turtle mortality.
November
13, 1996 — NOAA Fisheries completes section 7 consultation
and issues a biological opinion on the impacts of shrimp trawling
in the southeastern United States (NMFS 1996a). Consultation
on the shrimp fishery had been reinitiated to evaluate the
effects of the final rule implementing the April 24 proposed
rule and of elevated loggerhead strandings that occurred during
1996. The opinion concludes that continued operation of the
shrimp fishery is not likely to jeopardize listed sea turtles,
with the publication of the final rule, which implements the
RPA component of the 1994 opinion requiring NOAA Fisheries
to address mortalities resulting from incorrect installation
of TEDs and the certification of TEDs which do not effectively
exclude sea turtles. The opinion extends the deadline for
finalizing the shrimp vessel registration requirement through
February 1997.
December
19, 1996 — NOAA Fisheries issues a final rule (61
FR 66933) requiring that TEDs be installed in try nets with
a headrope length greater than 12 ft (3.6 m) and a footrope
length greater than 15 ft (4.6 m); removing the approval of
the Morrison, Parrish, Andrews, and Taylor soft TEDs; establishing
Shrimp Fishery Sea Turtle Conservation Areas (SFSTCAs); and
within the SFSTCAs, imposing the new TED requirement for try
nets, removing the approval of soft TEDs, and modifying the
requirements for bottom-opening hard TEDs.
March
24, 1998 — NOAA Fisheries completes section 7 consultation
and issues a biological opinion on the impacts of shrimp trawling
in the southeastern United States (NMFS 1998). Consultation
on the shrimp fishery had been reinitiated to evaluate the
effects of approving the use of a new soft TED, to discuss
the decision not to implement a mandatory shrimp vessel registration
system (part of the 1994 biological opinion's RPA), and to
evaluate recent data on sea turtle populations and strandings.
The opinion concludes that continued operation of the shrimp
fishery is not likely to jeopardize listed sea turtles, with
continued improved enforcement of the sea turtle conservation
regulations and expanded education and outreach programs.
April
13, 1998 — NOAA Fisheries issues an interim final
rule (63 FR 17948) authorizing the use of a new soft TED Ð
the Parker TED Ð in certain trawl net styles for an 18
month trial period, during which its performance will be evaluated
to ensure that it remains effective at excluding sea turtles
during extended commercial use.
October 14, 1998 — NOAA Fisheries issues a rule
(63 FR 55053) effective through November 6, 1998 to allow
the temporary use of limited tow times by shrimp trawlers
in Alabama inshore waters as an alternative to the requirement
to use TEDs in order to address difficulty with TED performance
due to large amounts of debris in Alabama's bays in the aftermath
of a hurricane.
May-June
1999 — NOAA Fisheries issues four temporary rules
(64 FR 25460, May 12, 1999; 64 FR 27206, May 19, 1999; 64
FR 28761, May 27, 1999; 64 FR 29805, June 3, 1999) to protect
leatherback sea turtles within the leatherback conservation
zone.
October
13, 1999 — NOAA Fisheries issues an interim final
rule (64 FR 55434) extending the authorized use of the Parker
TED for an additional 12 months, as the results of the Parker
TED's evaluation have been inconclusive.
December
13, 1999 — NOAA Fisheries issues a 30-day rule (64
FR 69416) imposing an additional restriction on shrimp trawlers
required to have a TED installed in each net that is rigged
for fishing, operating in Atlantic offshore waters out to
10 nm from the coast of Florida between 28% N. latitude and
the Georgia-Florida border. Shrimp vessels operating in this
area must use the leatherback modification for hard TEDs or
the leatherback modification for the Parker soft TED. The
restrictions are in response to greatly elevated leatherback
sea turtle strandings in the area. The strandings occur during
a time when the leatherback contingency plan does not apply,
necessitating the use of the 30-day rule.
October
25, 1999 — NOAA Fisheries issues a temporary rule
(64 FR 57397) to allow the use of limited tow times by shrimp
trawlers as an alternative to the use of TEDs in the Matagorda
Bay area of Texas. This action is required due to extraordinarily
high concentrations of a bryozoan lodging in TEDs, rendering
them ineffective in expelling sea turtles as well as negatively
impacting fishermen's catches.
April
5, 2000 — NOAA Fisheries issues an advance notice
of proposed rulemaking to announce that it is considering
technical changes to the requirements for TEDs. NOAA Fisheries
proposes to modify the size of the TED escape opening, modify
or decertify hooped hard TEDs and weedless TEDs, and change
the requirements for the types of flotation devices allowed.
NOAA Fisheries also proposes to consider modifications to
the leatherback conservation zone regulations to provide better
protection to leatherback turtles.
April
25, 2000 — NOAA Fisheries issues a 30-day rule (65
FR 24132) imposing an additional restriction on shrimp trawlers
required to have a TED installed in each net that is rigged
for fishing, operating in Gulf of Mexico offshore waters out
to 10 nm between Port Mansfield Channel and Aransas Pass,
Texas. Shrimp vessels operating in this area must use the
leatherback modification for hard TEDs or the leatherback
modification for the Parker soft TED. The restrictions are
in response to leatherback sea turtle strandings in the area.
The strandings occur in an area where the leatherback contingency
plan does not apply, necessitating the use of the 30-day rule.
May
2000 — NOAA Fisheries issues two temporary rules
(65 FR 25670, May 3, 2000; 65 FR 33779, May 25, 2000) to protect
leatherback sea turtles within the leatherback conservation
zone.
August
29, 2000 — NOAA Fisheries issues a temporary rule
(65 FR 52348) to allow the use of limited tow times by shrimp
trawlers as an alternative to the use of TEDs in inshore waters
of Galveston Bay, Texas. Dense concentrations of marine organisms
documented in this area were clogging TEDs, rendering them
ineffective in expelling sea turtles from shrimp nests as
well as negatively impacting fishermen's catches.
January
9, 2001 — NOAA Fisheries issues a final rule (66
FR 1601) permanently approving the use of the Parker soft
TED. Although industry use of the Parker TED is extremely
low, NOAA Fisheries' evaluation of its effectiveness does
not find significant problems with compliance with the TED's
specifications or with sea turtle captures.
May
14, 2001 — NOAA Fisheries issues an interim final
rule (66 FR 24287) approving the use of an additional style
of single-grid hard TED Ð the double cover flap TED.
October
2, 2001 — NOAA Fisheries issues a proposed rule
(66 FR 50148) to amend the sea turtle conservation regulations
to enhance their effectiveness in reducing sea turtle mortality
resulting from shrimp trawling in the Atlantic and Gulf Areas
of the southeastern United States. NOAA Fisheries determines
that modifications to the design of TEDs need to be made to
exclude leatherbacks and large loggerhead and green turtles;
several approved TED designs are structurally weak and do
not function properly under normal fishing conditions; and
modifications to the trynet and bait shrimp exemptions to
the TED requirements are necessary to decrease lethal takes
of sea turtles.
December
20, 2001 — NOAA Fisheries issues a 30-day rule (66
FR 65658) imposing an additional restriction on shrimp trawlers
required to have a TED installed in each net that is rigged
for fishing, operating in Atlantic offshore waters out to
10 nm from the coast of Florida between 28% N. latitude and
the Georgia-Florida border. Shrimp vessels operating in this
area must use the leatherback modification for hard TEDs or
the leatherback modification for the Parker soft TED. The
restrictions are in response to greatly elevated leatherback
sea turtle strandings in the area. The strandings occur during
a time when the leatherback contingency plan does not apply,
necessitating the use of the 30-day rule.
December
31, 2001 — NOAA Fisheries issues a final rule (66
FR 67495) amending the sea turtle handling and resuscitation
regulation.
April-May
2002 — NOAA Fisheries issues three temporary rules
(67 FR 20054, April 24, 2002; 67 FR 21585, May 1, 2002; 67
FR 34622, May 15, 2002) to protect leatherback sea turtles
within the leatherback conservation zone.
May
30, 2002 — NOAA Fisheries issues a 30-day rule (67
FR 37723) imposing additional restrictions on shrimp trawlers
in offshore Atlantic waters west of approximately Cape Fear,
N.C. and north of approximately St. Augustine, Florida. Shrimp
fishermen operating in this area are required to use TEDs
with escape openings modified to exclude leatherback turtles
and are prohibited from fishing at night between 1 hour after
sunset and 1 hour before sunrise. These restrictions are implemented
in response to greatly elevated strandings of loggerhead turtles
and an apparent change in effort and behavior of the local
fishery.
