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Code of Federal Regulations Title 50. Wildlife and Fisheries § 50.648.371 Dedicated Habitat Research Areas

Current as of January 02, 2025 | Updated by Findlaw Staff

(a) Dedicated Habitat Research Area (DHRA) topics. The areas defined in this section are intended to facilitate coordinated research on gear impacts, habitat recovery, natural disturbance, and productivity.

(b) Stellwagen Dedicated Habitat Research Area.

(1) The Stellwagen DHRA is defined by the straight lines connecting the following points in the order stated:

Stellwagen DHRA

Point

N latitude

W longitude

SDHRA1

42°15.0' N

70°00.0' W

SDHRA2

42°15.0' N

70°15.0' W

SDHRA3

42°45.2' N

70°15.0' W

SDHRA4

42°46.0' N

70°13.0' W

SDHRA5

42°46.0' N

70°00.0' W

SDHRA1

42°15.0' N

70°00.0' W

(2) Vessels fishing with bottom-tending mobile gear, sink gillnet gear, or demersal longline gear are prohibited from fishing in the Stellwagen DHRA, unless otherwise exempted.

(c) Georges Bank Dedicated Habitat Research Area.

(1) The Georges Bank DHRA is defined by straight lines connecting the following points in the order stated:

Georges Bank DHRA

Point

Latitude

Longitude

GBDHRA1

40°54.95' N

68°53.37' W

GBDHRA2

40°58' N

68°30' W

GBDHRA3

40°45' N

68°30' W

GBDHRA4

40°45' N

68°45' W

(2) Vessels fishing with bottom-tending mobile gear are prohibited from fishing in the Georges Bank DHRA, unless otherwise exempted.

(d) Transiting. Unless otherwise restricted or specified in this paragraph (d), a vessel may transit the Dedicated Habitat Research Areas of this section provided that its prohibited gear is stowed and not available for immediate use as defined in § 648.2.

(e) Dedicated Habitat Research Areas review.

(1) The Regional Administrator shall initiate a review of the DHRAs defined in this section three years after implementation.

(2) After initiation of the review and consultation with the New England Fishery Management Council, the Regional Administrator may remove a DHRA. The following criteria will be used to determine if DHRA should be maintained:

(i) Documentation of active and ongoing research in the DHRA area, in the form of data records, cruise reports or inventory samples with analytical objectives focused on the DHRA topics, described in paragraph (a) of this section;  and

(ii) Documentation of pending or approved proposals or funding requests (including ship time requests), with objectives specific to the DHRA topics, described in paragraph (a) of this section.

(3) The Regional Administrator will make any such determination in accordance with the APA through notification in the Federal Register.

(f) Jordan Basin Dedicated Habitat Research Area.

(1) The Jordan Basin DHRA is defined by the following coordinates, connected in the order listed by straight lines:

Table 3 to Paragraph (f)(1)

Point

Longitude

Latitude

DHRA1

-67°51.38'

43°27.47'

DHRA2

-67°47.38'

43°27.46'

DHRA3

-67°47.18'

43°16.92'

DHRA4

-67°51.05'

43°17.05'

DHRA1

-67°51.38'

43°27.47'

(2) Fishing vessels, regardless of gear type, may fish within the Jordan Basin DHRA.

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Cite this article: FindLaw.com - Code of Federal Regulations Title 50. Wildlife and Fisheries § 50.648.371 Dedicated Habitat Research Areas - last updated January 02, 2025 | https://codes.findlaw.com/cfr/title-50-wildlife-and-fisheries/cfr-sect-50-648-371/

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