[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 230 (Thursday, December 1, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-29639]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: December 1, 1994]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
50 CFR Part 677
[Docket No. 940839-4328; I.D. 081294A]
North Pacific Fisheries Research Plan
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Final specifications for 1995.
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SUMMARY: NMFS announces North Pacific Fisheries Research Plan (Research
Plan) final specifications for calendar year 1995. The specifications
will be used to calculate fees to be paid by participants in the Gulf
of Alaska (GOA) groundfish fishery, Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands
(BSAI) management area groundfish fishery, BSAI area king and Tanner
crab fisheries, and Pacific halibut fishery in convention waters off
Alaska (Research Plan fisheries) to fund an observer program to promote
management, conservation, and scientific understanding of groundfish,
halibut, and crab resources off Alaska.
EFFECTIVE DATE: January 1, 1995, through December 31, 1995.
ADDRESSES: The final report ``Establishing the Fee Percentage and
Standard Exvessel Prices for 1995'' is available from the National
Marine Fisheries Service, P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, AK 99802-1668.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kim S. Rivera, 907-586-7228.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Section 313 of the Magnuson Act, as amended by section 404 of the
High Seas Driftnet Fisheries Enforcement Act, Public Law 102-582,
authorizes the North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) to
prepare, in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce, a Research
Plan for all fisheries under the Council's jurisdiction, except salmon
fisheries. On September 6, 1994, NMFS published a final rule (59 FR
46126) to implement the Research Plan. That rule requires that
observers be stationed on certain fishing vessels and at U.S. fish
processors participating in Research Plan fisheries. The requirements
may be extended to the halibut fishery off Alaska. Observers will be
deployed for the purpose of collecting data necessary for the
conservation, management, and scientific understanding of fisheries
under the Council's authority. The Research Plan also establishes a
system of fees to pay for the costs of implementing the Research Plan,
beginning January 1, 1995. The fees are based on the exvessel value of
retained catch from Research Plan fisheries. NMFS published in the
Federal Register on September 12, 1994 (59 FR 46816) proposed
specifications establishing these values for 1995. The comment period
ended on October 12, 1994. No written comments were received on the
proposed specifications.
Changes From the Proposed Rule
1. Standard Exvessel Prices. Prior to the September 15, 1994,
meeting of the Council's Observer Oversight Committee (OOC), the draft
report, ``Establishing the Fee Percentage and Standard Exvessel Prices
for 1995,'' was revised based on recommendations made by the Council at
its June 1994 meeting and on new exvessel price and program cost data.
The OOC reviewed the revised draft and made its recommendations for the
final fee percentage and standard exvessel prices. The draft report was
revised for the September 1994 Council meeting. At that meeting, the
Council: (1) Reviewed the information in the draft report; (2) received
comments from the OOC, Advisory Panel (AP), Science and Statistical
Committee (SSC), and the public; (3) adopted the recommendation of the
OOC, AP, and SSC for a fee percentage of 2 percent; and (4) adopted the
AP's recommendations for the final standard exvessel prices for 1995.
The AP recommended reductions in 18 of the standard exvessel prices
proposed in the draft report and an increase in one price. For many of
the prices proposed in the draft report, the size of the sample of fish
ticket data with exvessel price information was large enough to provide
good lower bound estimates of the 1994 exvessel prices. The 1994 fish
ticket data tend to provide lower bound estimates for two reasons.
First, they typically have not been adjusted to reflect post-season
bonuses. Second, no adjustment has been made for the lower prices paid
for small fish that are used to produce meal and are considered to be
discards for the purposes of the fee collection program. Therefore, the
AP recommendations appeared to be very conservative.
To determine whether the AP recommendations were lower than the
exvessel prices expected for 1995, NMFS reexamined the groundfish fish
ticket price data and contacted several dominant processors to clarify
the expectations concerning exvessel prices for 1995. This review
suggested that the AP recommendations tended to understate the 1994
fish ticket prices and the price expectations for 1995 of the
processors that were contacted. Therefore, the standard exvessel prices
for groundfish established for 1995 by NMFS are based on 1994
groundfish fish ticket data, instead of the AP recommendations, when
the sample sizes are adequate. For BSAI pollock, 1994 fish ticket price
data in combination with information from several dominant pollock
processors were used to establish the standard exvessel prices. The
processors indicated that the prices established for BSAI pollock are
within their expected ranges for 1995. The standard exvessel prices
established for halibut and crab are based on price projections
provided by dominant processors for halibut and crab, respectively. The
large reductions in the guideline harvest levels for the three largest
crab fisheries have increased significantly the uncertainty concerning
what the actual exvessel prices for crab will be in 1995.
The final report ``Establishing the Fee Percentage and Standard
Exvessel Prices for 1995'' and the Council recommendations for 1995
standard exvessel prices indicate a net weight price for halibut. All
of the other species standard exvessel prices are expressed as round-
weight prices. Regulations at Sec. 677.6(b)(iv) require a round-weight
standard exvessel price be used to calculate the bimonthly fee
assessment. As a result, the Council's recommended halibut net-weight
price of $2.10/lb has been multiplied by the halibut product recovery
rate (0.75) to arrive at the round-weight standard exvessel price
($1.58/lb).
2. Species or Species Group Designations. Standard exvessel prices
are given for species or species groups in the Research Plan fisheries.
Several of these designations have been revised to reflect the species
or species group designations in the proposed 1995 annual BSAI and GOA
groundfish specifications or to provide clarification. ``Flatfish'' and
``other red rockfish'' have been removed; ``other species'', ``rex
sole'', ``sharpchin rockfish'', and ``northern rockfish'' have been
added. Chionocetes angulatus, C. tanneri, and Lithodes cousei have been
added to the crab species, because they inadvertently were not included
in the proposed rule.
1995 Final Research Plan Specifications
Section 677.11(b) of the Research Plan regulations requires NMFS to
consider comments received on the proposed specifications and,
following consultation with the Council, and with the State of Alaska
in the case of observer coverage levels in the crab fisheries, to
publish final specifications for the upcoming calendar year in the
Federal Register. These specifications include standard exvessel
prices, total exvessel value, fee percentage, levels of observer
coverage for Research Plan fisheries, and embarkment/disembarkment
ports for observers.
After considering comments received on the proposed specifications
and, following consultation with the Council, NMFS established the 1995
annual Research Plan specifications. The final report, ``Establishing
the Fee Percentage and Standard Exvessel Prices for 1995'' contains
details of the derivation of these final specifications, including
sources of information and assumptions that are not repeated here.
Copies of the revised report are available from NMFS (see ADDRESSES).
Final specifications for calendar year 1995 are as follows:
1. Standard exvessel prices. Standard exvessel prices are used to
determine the annual fee percentage for the calendar year and are the
basis for calculating bimonthly fee assessments. Standard exvessel
prices for species harvested in Research Plan fisheries are based on:
a. Exvessel price information by applicable season, area, gear, and
processing sector for the most recent 12-month period for which data
are available;
b. Factors that are expected to change exvessel prices in the
upcoming calendar year; and
c. Any other relevant information that may affect expected exvessel
prices during the calendar year.
For 1995, the standard exvessel prices of species from Research
Plan fisheries, based on best available information, are as follows:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Price per
Species pound, round
weight ($/lb)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Halibut................................................ 1.58
Tanner crab:
C. bairdi............................................ 3.00
C. opilio............................................ 2.00
C. angulatus......................................... 1.40
C. tanneri........................................... 1.40
King crab:
Bristol Bay red...................................... 5.00
Adak red............................................. 5.00
Pribilof red......................................... 6.80
Norton Sound red..................................... 2.20
St. Matthew blue..................................... 4.30
Dutch Harbor brown................................... 3.00
Adak brown........................................... 3.00
Lithodes cousei...................................... 2.00
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Groundfish, by Area and Gear
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bering Sea/ Gulf of Alaska Regulatory Areas
Aleutians -----------------------------------
------------------ Western/Central Eastern
Season\1\ Species -----------------------------------
Other Trawl Other Trawl Other Trawl
gear gear gear gear gear gear
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1............. Arrowtooth flounder....................... 0.020 0.020 0.020 0.020 0.020 0.020
1............. Atka mackerel............................. 0.090 0.090 0.090 0.090 ....... .......
1............. Deep-water flatfish\2\.................... ....... ....... 0.136 0.136 0.154 0.154
1............. Demersal shelf rockfish\3\................ ....... ....... 0.306 0.151 0.489 0.151
1............. Flathead sole............................. 0.122 0.122 0.122 0.122 0.122 0.122
1............. Greenland turbot.......................... 0.210 0.210 ....... ....... ....... .......
1............. Other flatfish\4\......................... 0.060 0.060 ....... ....... ....... .......
1............. Other species\5\.......................... 0.188 0.020 0.188 0.020 0.188 0.020
1............. Other rockfish\6\......................... 0.484 0.120 ....... ....... ....... .......
1............. Pacific ocean perch....................... 0.249 0.120 0.249 0.120 0.249 0.120
1............. Pacific cod............................... 0.180 0.128 0.188 0.142 0.279 0.153
1............. Pelagic shelf rockfish\7\................. ....... ....... 0.395 0.130 0.282 0.130
1............. Pollock................................... 0.072 0.085 0.078 0.080 0.058 0.085
2............. Pollock................................... 0.072 0.077 0.078 0.071 0.058 0.080
1............. Rex sole.................................. ....... ....... 0.196 0.196 0.217 0.217
1............. Rock sole................................. 0.300 0.300 ....... ....... ....... .......
2............. Rock sole................................. 0.060 0.060 ....... ....... ....... .......
1............. Sablefish................................. 1.128 0.761 1.199 0.925 1.245 1.039
1............. Shallow-water flatfish\8\................. ....... ....... 0.143 0.143 0.352 0.172
1............. Sharpchin rockfish........................ 0.104 0.104 ....... ....... ....... .......
1............. Northern rockfish......................... 0.104 0.104 0.104 0.104 0.104 0.104
1............. Shortraker/rougheye rockfish\9\........... 0.200 0.200 0.200 0.200 0.200 0.200
1............. Slope rockfish\10\........................ ....... ....... 0.350 0.104 0.252 0.104
1............. Thornyhead rockfish....................... ....... ....... 0.482 0.258 0.531 0.258
1............. Yellowfin sole............................ 0.060 0.060 ....... ....... ....... .......
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\For both pollock and rock sole, season 1 is January-March and season 2 is the rest of the year. For all
remaining species, season 1 is the entire year.
\2\Deep-water flatfish in the GOA means Dover sole and Greenland turbot.
\3\Demersal shelf rockfish in the GOA means Sebastes pinniger (canary), S. nebulosus (china), S. caurinus
(copper), S. maliger (quillback), S. helvomaculatus (rosethorn), S. nigrocinctus (tiger), and S. ruberrimus
(yelloweye).
\4\Other flatfish in the BSAI means flatfish not including Pacific halibut, flathead sole, Greenland turbot,
rock sole, and yellowfin sole.
\5\Other species in the BSAI and the GOA means sculpins, sharks, skates, eulachon, smelts, capelin, squid, and
octopus.
\6\Other rockfish in the BSAI means all Sebastes and Sebastolobus species except for Pacific ocean perch,
sharpchin rockfish, northern rockfish, shortraker rockfish, and rougheye rockfish.
\7\Pelagic shelf rockfish in the GOA means Sebastes melanops (black), S. mystinus (blue), S. ciliatus (dusky),
S. entomelas (widow), and S. flavidus (yellowtail).
\8\Shallow-water flatfish in the GOA means flatfish not including deep-water flatfish, flathead sole, rex sole,
or arrowtooth flounder.
\9\Shortraker/rougheye rockfish means Sebastes borealis (shortraker) and S. aleutianus (rougheye).
\10\Slope rockfish in the GOA means Sebastes aurora (aurora), S. melanostomus (blackgill), S. paucispinis
(bocaccio), S. goodei (chilipepper), S. crameri (darkblotch), S. elongatus (greenstriped), S. variegates
(harlequin), S. wilsoni (pygmy), S. proriger (redstripe), S. zacentrus (sharpchin), S. jordani (shortbelly),
S. brevispinis (silvergrey), S. diploproa (splitnose), S. saxicola (stripetail), S. miniatus (vermilion), S.
babcocki (redbanded), and S. reedi (yellowmouth).
Note: ``--'' for price indicates that for that area, that particular species or species group designation is not
applicable.
2. Total exvessel value. The total exvessel value of Research Plan
fisheries is calculated as the sum of the product of the standard
exvessel prices established for the calendar year and projected
retained catches, by species. For 1995, the estimate of the exvessel
value of groundfish excludes one half of the value of retained catch
delivered by catcher vessels 60 ft (18.3 m) length overall
($160.6 million/2 = $80.3 million) because this retained catch is only
subject to the processors' portion of the fee percentage.
For 1995, projected total exvessel values of species from Research
Plan fisheries, based on best available information, are as follows:
Projected 1995 Retained Catch (Round Weight), Price, and Exvessel Value by Species
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Retained
Species catch\1\ Price\2\ ($/ Exvessel value\3\
(x1,000 lbs) lb) (x$1,000)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Halibut...................................................... 58,667 1.58 92,400
Tanner crab:
C. bairdi................................................ 7,500 3.00 22,500
C. opilio................................................ 55,700 2.00 111,400
King crab:
Bristol Bay red.......................................... 0 5.00 0
Adak red................................................. 1,000 5.00 5,000
Pribilof red............................................. 2,000 6.80 13,600
Norton Sound red......................................... 300 2.20 660
St. Matthew blue......................................... 3,000 4.30 12,900
Dutch Harbor brown....................................... 1,200 3.00 3,600
Adak brown............................................... 4,100 3.00 12,300
Total crab............................................... 74,800 \3\181,960
Groundfish:
Arrowtooth flounder...................................... 3,475 0.02 70
Atka mackerel............................................ 120,226 0.09 10,820
Deep-water flatfish...................................... 3,210 0.14 437
Demersal shelf rockfish.................................. 1,620 0.40 645
Flathead sole............................................ 14,468 0.12 1,765
Greenland turbot......................................... 13,691 0.21 2,875
Other flatfish........................................... 7,930 0.06 476
Other species............................................ 3,386 0.15 491
Other rockfish........................................... 962 0.41 399
Pacific ocean perch...................................... 32,852 0.12 3,946
Pacific cod.............................................. 355,754 0.16 55,165
Pelagic shelf rockfish................................... 5,877 0.15 860
Pollock.................................................. 2,744,282 0.08 218,471
Rex sole................................................. 9,414 0.20 1,845
Rock sole................................................ 44,712 0.21 9,392
Sablefish................................................ 52,226 1.19 62,054
Shallow-water flatfish................................... 13,685 0.14 1,958
Sharpchin/northern....................................... 1,989 0.10 207
Shortraker/rougheye...................................... 4,677 0.20 935
Slope rockfish........................................... 12,917 0.11 1,358
Thornyhead rockfish...................................... 1,803 0.36 645
Yellowfin sole........................................... 146,685 0.06 8,801
Total\4\ groundfish..................................... 3,595,840 \3\383,616
Research plan fisheries total\4\......................... \5\$658,000,000
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\Retained catch for groundfish and crab species excludes catch from State waters.
\2\Exvessel prices for groundfish are weighted average prices across area, gear and season.
\3\The product of retained catch and price does not necessarily equal the exvessel value due to rounding of
retained catch and price.
\4\Totals do not necessarily equal sums of all species due to rounding of retained catch and price.
\5\In millions.
3. Research Plan fee percentage. The Research Plan fee percentage
for a calendar year must equal the lesser of 2 percent of the exvessel
value of retained catch in the Research Plan fisheries or the fee
percentage calculated using the following equation:
Fee percentage = [100 x (RRPC-FB-OF)/V]/(1-NPR),
where:
RRPC is the projection of recoverable Research Plan costs for the
coming year;
FB is the projected end of the year balance of funds collected
under the Research Plan;
OF is the projection of other funding for the coming year;
V is the projected exvessel value of retained catch in the Research
Plan fisheries for the coming year; and
NPR is the percent (expressed as a decimal) of fee assessments that
are expected to result in nonpayment.
For 1995, the best estimate of RRPC is $13.8 million. FB will be $0
for 1995, because no balance of funds exist at the end of 1994 to apply
against program costs in 1995. OF for 1995 is projected to be $2.6
million, consisting of $2.1 million from NMFS and $0.5 million from the
Alaska Department of Fish and Game. V for 1995 is estimated to be
$577.7 million, as described under item 2 above. NPR is estimated at 3
percent. Therefore, applying the formula above, the calculated fee
percentage would be:
[100 x ($13.8 million-$0-$2.6 million)/$577.7 million]/(1-.03) =
2.0 percent.
Because the calculated fee is equal to the maximum assessable fee,
the fee percentage for 1995 is 2.0 percent.
4. Observer coverage. For 1995, observer coverage levels in
Research Plan fisheries are unchanged from 1994 and are set out at
Sec. 677.10(a).
5. Embarkment/disembarkment ports. For 1995, observer contractors
and operators of vessels required to have observer coverage arrange for
observer embarkment and disembarkment. NMFS is not involved in this
arrangement. Therefore, specification of embarkment/disembarkment ports
for 1995 is not necessary.
During November 1994, NMFS distributed standard exvessel prices to
participants in the Research Plan fisheries, as well as other
information on the 1995 fee collection program, to facilitate industry
planning for the 1995 implementation of the Research Plan. Except for
halibut, the final standard exvessel prices specified in this action
are unchanged from those distributed to Research Plan fishery
participants. The halibut price has been revised to reflect a round-
weight price as described above.
Classification
This action is taken under the authority of 50 CFR 677.11, as
published at 59 FR 46126, September 6, 1994, and is exempt from review
under E.O. 12866.
Dated: November 28, 1994.
Gary Matlock,
Program Management Officer, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 94-29639 Filed 11-30-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P