82 FR 21295 - Annual Certification of Shrimp-Harvesting Nations

DEPARTMENT OF STATE

Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 86 (May 5, 2017)

On May 1, 2017, the Department of State certified that 13 shrimp-harvesting nations and four fisheries have a regulatory program comparable to that of the United States governing the incidental taking of the relevant species of sea turtles in the course of commercial shrimp harvesting and that the particular fishing environments of 26 shrimp-harvesting nations, one economy, and three fisheries do not pose a threat of the incidental taking of covered sea turtles in the course of such harvesting.

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 86 (Friday, May 5, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21295-21296]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2017-09164]


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DEPARTMENT OF STATE

[Public Notice: 9986]


Annual Certification of Shrimp-Harvesting Nations

AGENCY: Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific 
Affairs, Department of State.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: On May 1, 2017, the Department of State certified that 13 
shrimp-harvesting nations and four fisheries have a regulatory program 
comparable to that of the United States governing the incidental taking 
of the relevant species of sea turtles in the course of commercial 
shrimp harvesting and that the particular fishing environments of 26 
shrimp-harvesting nations, one economy, and three fisheries do not pose 
a threat of the incidental taking of covered sea turtles in the course 
of such harvesting.

DATES: This finding is effective on May 5, 2017.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Section 609 Program Manager, Office of 
Marine Conservation, Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental 
and Scientific Affairs, Department of State, 2201 C Street NW., 
Washington, DC 20520-2758; telephone: (202) 647-3263; email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 609 of Public Law 101-162 (``Sec. 
609'') prohibits imports of certain categories of shrimp unless the 
President certifies to the Congress by May 1, 1991, and annually 
thereafter, that either: (1) The harvesting nation has adopted a 
program governing the incidental taking of sea turtles in its 
commercial shrimp fishery comparable to the program in effect in the 
United States and has an incidental take rate comparable to that of the 
United States; or (2) the particular fishing environment of the 
harvesting nation does not pose a threat of the incidental taking of 
sea turtles. The President has delegated the authority to make this 
certification to the Department of State (``the Department''). The 
Department's Revised Guidelines for the Implementation of Section 609 
were published in the Federal Register on July 8, 1999, at 64 FR 36946.
    On May 1, 2017, the Department certified 13 nations on the basis 
that their sea turtle protection programs are comparable to that of the 
United States: Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Gabon, 
Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Panama, and 
Suriname. This year the Department was unable to certify Pakistan 
because it did not demonstrate that the sea turtle protection program 
is comparable in effectiveness to that of the United States. Therefore, 
no wild-caught shrimp or product of that shrimp harvested in Pakistan 
and exported after April 30, 2017, will be permitted entry into the 
United States. The Department also certified 26 shrimp-harvesting 
nations and one economy as having fishing environments that do not pose 
a danger to sea turtles. Sixteen nations have shrimping grounds only in 
cold waters where the risk of taking sea turtles is negligible: 
Argentina, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Iceland, 
Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Russia, Sweden, the 
United Kingdom, and Uruguay. Ten nations and one economy only harvest 
shrimp using

[[Page 21296]]

small boats with crews of less than five that use manual rather than 
mechanical means to retrieve nets or catch shrimp using other methods 
that do not threaten sea turtles. Use of such small-scale technology 
does not adversely affect sea turtles. The 10 nations and one economy 
are: The Bahamas, Belize, China, the Dominican Republic, Fiji, Hong 
Kong, Jamaica, Oman, Peru, Sri Lanka, and Venezuela.
    A completed DS-2031 Shrimp Exporter's/Importer's Declaration must 
accompany all shipments of shrimp or products from shrimp into the 
United States. Only shrimp or products from shrimp harvested in the 39 
certified nations and one economy listed above may be accompanied by a 
DS-2031 with Box 7(B) checked. All DS-2031 forms accompanying shrimp 
imports from uncertified nations must be originals with Box 7(A)(1), 
7(A)(2), or 7(A)(4) checked, consistent with the form's instructions 
with regard to the method of harvest of the product and based on any 
relevant prior determinations by the Department, and signed by a 
responsible government official of the harvesting nation's competent 
domestic fisheries authority. The Department has not determined that 
any uncertified nation qualifies to export shrimp or products from 
shrimp harvested in a manner as described in 7(A)(3).
    Shrimp and products of shrimp harvested with turtle excluder 
devices (``TEDs'') in an uncertified nation may, under specific 
circumstances, be eligible for importation into the United States under 
the DS-2031 Box 7(A)(2) provision for ``shrimp harvested by commercial 
shrimp trawl vessels using TEDs comparable in effectiveness to those 
required in the United States.'' Use of this provision requires that 
the Department determine in advance that the government of the 
harvesting nation has put in place adequate procedures to monitor the 
use of TEDs in the specific fishery in question and to ensure the 
accurate completion of the DS-2031 forms. At this time, the Department 
has determined that only shrimp and products from shrimp harvested in 
the Northern Prawn Fishery, the Queensland East Coast Trawl Fishery, 
and the Torres Strait Prawn Fishery in Australia and shrimp and 
products from shrimp harvested in the French Guiana domestic trawl 
fishery are eligible for entry under this provision. The Department was 
unable to make the same determination with respect to the Exmouth Gulf 
Prawn Fishery in Australia because the licensing conditions for the 
fishery do not meet the minimum technical standards of the U.S. 
National Marine Fisheries Service, so no wild-caught shrimp and 
products from that shrimp harvested in Exmouth Gulf and exported after 
April 30, 2017, will be permitted entry into the United States. The 
importation of TED-caught shrimp from any other uncertified nation will 
not be allowed. A responsible government official of Australia or 
France must sign in Block 8 of the DS-2031 form accompanying these 
imports into the United States.
    In addition, the Department has determined that shrimp and products 
from shrimp harvested in the Spencer Gulf region in Australia and with 
``mosquito'' nets in the Republic of Korea, and Mediterranean red 
shrimp (Aristeus antennatus) and products from that shrimp harvested in 
the Mediterranean Sea by Spain may be exported to the United States 
under the DS-2031 Box 7(A)(4) provision for ``shrimp harvested in a 
manner or under circumstances determined by the Department of State not 
to pose a threat of the incidental taking of sea turtles.'' A 
responsible government official of Australia, the Republic of Korea, or 
Spain must sign in Block 8 of the DS-2031 form accompanying these 
imports into the United States.
    The Department has communicated these certifications and 
determinations under Sec. 609 to the Office of International Trade of 
U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

David A. Balton,
Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and Fisheries, Bureau of 
Oceans and International and Scientific Affairs, Department of State.
[FR Doc. 2017-09164 Filed 5-4-17; 8:45 am]
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