Safe Handling and Release Practices for Sharks on Longline Vessels and Revision to Vessel Monitoring System Requirements in the Eastern Pacific Ocean

NOAA Fisheries is proposing regulations under the Tuna Conventions Act of 1950, as amended, to implement Resolutions C-23-07 (Conservation Measures for the Protection and Sustainable Management of Sharks) and C-23-11 (On the Establishment of a Vessel Monitoring System) adopted by the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) at its meeting in August 2023 in Victoria, Canada.

This proposed rule would implement provisions of these Resolutions and would require U.S. longline vessels fishing for tuna or tuna-like species in the eastern Pacific Ocean (EPO) that have incidental shark catch to release sharks by leaving them in the water and cutting the branchline so that less than 1 meter remains on each animal. The proposed rule would also require large vessels fishing for tuna or tuna-like species in the EPO to make manual reports every six hours in the event of a malfunctioning vessel monitoring system (VMS) unit. This action is necessary for the United States to satisfy its obligations as a member of the IATTC.

The public comment period for this proposed rule is 30 days. Comments may be submitted via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal.