[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 48 (Monday, March 13, 1995)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 13377-13380]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-6044]



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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 663

[Docket No. 950301063-5063-01; I.D. 032194D]
RIN 0648-AF38


Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; Gear Modification

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: This final rule revises the groundfish trawl regulations and 
simplifies the marking requirements for commercial vertical hook-and-
line gear that is closely tended in the Pacific Coast Groundfish 
fishery. This rule promotes the objectives of the Pacific Coast 
Groundfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP) by enhancing the effectiveness 
of minimum mesh size used in trawl gear, making trawl gear 
[[Page 13378]] requirements consistent for all bottom trawl gear and 
less likely to be circumvented, updating the regulations to be more 
consistent with changes in gear technology, and removing unnecessary 
burdens on the industry.

EFFECTIVE DATES: September 8, 1995, except Sec. 663.22(c) is effective 
on March 13, 1995.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William L. Robinson at 206-526-6140; 
or Rodney McInnis at 310-980-4040.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS issues this final rule, based on a 
recommendation of the Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council), 
under the authority of the FMP and the Magnuson Fishery Conservation 
and Management Act (Magnuson Act). The FMP provides a socioeconomic 
framework procedure under which gear regulations may be changed without 
amending the FMP. A proposed rule was published at 59 FR 40511 (August 
9, 1994) requesting comments through September 6, 1994, on changes to 
the regulations for trawl gear and commercial vertical hook-and-line 
gear (also called Portuguese longline). Two comments were received and 
are addressed below.
    Comment 1: One comment was received from the American Factory 
Trawler Association, which represents at-sea processing vessels and the 
catcher vessels that deliver to them. They were concerned that 
prohibiting chafing gear from encircling the net would also prohibit 
the use of protective gear which is needed under choker, transfer, and 
lifting straps on the codends of pelagic trawls. The straps are used to 
transfer and lift a full codend onboard a vessel and to empty it. 
Protective gear is needed to cover the entire circumference of the net 
under the straps, because the straps will damage any unprotected 
portion of the net they contact.
    Response: NMFS agrees that this type of protective gear, which has 
been in use for some time, was not meant to be prohibited. The proposed 
rule for pelagic trawls has been revised to allow a band of mesh no 
wider than 16 meshes to encircle the net under chokers, lifting straps 
or transfer cables, but over riblines and restraining straps that are 
attached to the net.
    Comment 2: A fisherman using Scottish seine gear to catch sanddabs 
off California was concerned that the 4.5-inch (11.5-cm) minimum mesh 
size throughout the net would enable his target species to escape. Most 
of the mesh in his gear would satisfy the 4.5-inch (11.5-cm) minimum 
mesh size--he uses 4.5-inch (11.5-cm) mesh in the last 70 meshes of the 
net, and over 5-inch (12.8-cm) mesh in the wings and behind the 
footrope and headrope. However, he needs smaller mesh in the 
intermediate portion of the net. In his initial letter he stated that 
he uses 3.5-inch (9.0-cm) mesh in the intermediate portion of the net. 
In a second letter, he explained that he modified his gear and found 
that 4.0-inch (10.3-cm) mesh in the intermediate portion of the net 
could be used, but that 4.5-inch (11.5-cm) mesh still allowed sanddabs 
to escape.
    Response: The requirement to apply the minimum mesh size throughout 
the net was proposed to enhance escapement of juvenile fish, reduce 
bycatch, make it impossible to reduce mesh size by cinching off the 
codend, and facilitate enforcement by using consistent regulations for 
all bottom trawls. The information provided by the commenter does not 
justify changes to the proposed rule. However, the commenter may wish 
to supply additional information to the Council in support of his 
position and seek modification of this final rule. He also may submit 
an application for an experimental fishing permit (EFP), which enables 
fisheries to be conducted that otherwise would be prohibited. If the 
issue is found to warrant further consideration, an EFP may be issued 
for the purpose of gathering information to determine if and how the 
regulation should be changed. The Council then could reconsider the 
appropriateness of the minimum mesh size for Scottish seine gear.

Changes or Clarifications to the Proposed Rule

    The only substantive change to the rule is made as a result of 
comment #1, described above. Several additional clarifications and 
editorial changes also have been made, which are consistent with the 
rule as proposed. (1) The corners of the terminal end of chafing gear 
may be attached to the net (Sec. 663.22(b)(3)). (2) The minimum mesh 
size requirements in existing rules for chafing gear no longer apply. 
Escapement is provided for by limiting chafing gear to only one-half 
the circumference of the net. (3) Section 663.22(b)(5) is edited 
slightly to clarify that the first 20 ft (6.15 m) of pelagic trawls 
must be bare rope or net with a minimum mesh size of 16-inches (40.6-
cms), or any combination of bare rope and 16-inch (40.6-cm) mesh. (4) 
The type of identification needed to mark fixed gear is clarified. (5) 
The description of authorized fishing gear at Sec. 663.22(a) is 
clarified to explain that ``set net'' includes anchored gillnet or 
trammel net.

Summary of the Final Rule

    The text of the final rule is summarized below, incorporating the 
above changes. Additional background and rationale are found in the 
proposed rule and Environmental Assessment (EA) prepared for this 
action.
    1. Apply the trawl minimum mesh size throughout the net. Currently, 
the minimum mesh size applies to the last 50 meshes of the trawl net. 
This final rule applies the minimum mesh size requirements throughout 
the net. This is intended to eliminate the practice of tying off the 
net in front of the last 50 meshes above which smaller mesh could be 
used legally.
    2. Remove the legal distinction between bottom and roller trawls 
and the requirement for continuous riblines. Once the minimum mesh size 
became identical for bottom and roller trawls in May 1992 (57 FR 12212, 
April 9, 1992), there was no longer a need to distinguish between the 
two in the regulations. This rule also eliminates the requirement for 
continuous riblines to be sewn to bottom and roller trawls, if the 
vessel has onboard a net with less than 4.5-inch (11.43-cm) mesh.
    3. Clarify the distinction between bottom and pelagic (midwater) 
trawls. Current pelagic-trawl requirements state that the footrope at 
the trawl mouth must be unprotected and that sweeplines, including the 
bottom of the bridle, must be bare.
    This rule adds two requirements to discourage dragging small-mesh 
pelagic trawls on the sea floor by making the nets more fragile. First, 
rollers, bobbins, tires, discs, or any other similar device used to 
protect the net from the sea floor may not be used anywhere in the net. 
Second, for at least 20 ft (6.15 m) immediately behind the footrope or 
headrope of the net, bare ropes or 16-inch (40.6-cm) minimum mesh must 
encircle the net.
    4. Modify chafing gear requirements. Chafing gear is webbing or 
other material attached to a trawl net to protect the net from wear, 
particularly the codend as it scrapes the sea floor or slides onto the 
vessel. If attached in certain ways, chafing gear could reduce the 
effective mesh size by compressing or covering the webbing. The current 
regulations require that: Chafing gear not be connected directly to the 
terminal end of the net; in bottom trawls, chafing gear have a minimum 
mesh size of 15 inches (38.1 cm) unless only the bottom half of the 
codend is covered; and in roller trawls in the Vancouver, Columbia, and 
Eureka subareas, and in pelagic trawls in all subareas, chafing gear 
covering the [[Page 13379]] upper one-half of the codend must have a 
minimum mesh size of 6 inches (15.24 cm). These provisions are changed 
to provide the necessary gear protection without unduly impeding 
escapement of fish through the webbing, and to be consistent with 
changes in the technology and requirements for bottom and roller 
trawls. This rule provides that: (a) Chafing gear may cover no more 
than 50 percent of the circumference of the net, except for 16-mesh 
``skirts'' (designed to protect the underlying gear) under the lifting 
or splitting straps (chokers), or the transfer cables on pelagic 
trawls; (b) no section of chafing gear may be longer than 50 meshes of 
the net to which it is attached; (c) except at its corners, the 
terminal end of each section of chafing gear must not be connected to 
the net; (d) chafing gear must be attached outside any riblines or 
restraining straps; and (e) there is no limit on the number of sections 
of chafing gear that may be used. This rule removes the minimum mesh 
size requirements applicable to chafing gear.
    5. Modify marking requirements for commercial vertical hook-and-
line gear. Current marking requirements required for fixed gear (pole, 
flag, light, radar reflector, and buoy) were found to be a burden for 
vessels closely tending their commercial vertical hook-and-line gear. 
Although the gear is anchored, it is lightweight and can be dragged by 
prevailing winds and currents. Also, the cost of the radar reflector, 
lights, and buoys is substantial in comparison to the cost of the gear 
itself. Since most vessels using this gear stay in the immediate 
vicinity of the gear, tending the lines frequently, there appears to be 
less need for such extensive marking requirements. This rule relaxes 
the marking requirement for commercial vertical hook-and-line gear that 
is closely tended by requiring only a single buoy clearly identifying 
the vessel's owner or operator.
    6. Correct a mesh definition. Reference to double-ply mesh at 50 
CFR 663.2 is changed to ``double-bar mesh''. Ply refers to the number 
of strands twisted together to make twine. The regulation was intended 
to mean two lengths of twine tied together in one knot, or ``double-
bar'' mesh.
    For the reasons stated above and in the proposed rule at 59 FR 
40511 (August 9, 1994), NMFS concurs with the Council's recommendations 
and herein announces the final rule.

Classification

    This final rule is published under authority of the Magnuson Act, 
16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. The Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA, 
(Assistant Administrator), has determined that it is necessary for 
management of the Pacific Coast groundfish fishery and that it is 
consistent with the Magnuson Act and other applicable law.
    The Council prepared an EA for this rule (contained in the EA/
Regulatory Impact Review) and the Assistant Administrator concluded 
that there would be no significant impact on the environment.
    This rule has been determined to be not significant for purposes of 
E.O. 12866.
    Under section 553(d)(1) of the Administrative Procedure Act, the 
change to the fixed gear-marking requirements at 50 CFR 663.22(c) is 
made effective upon publication in the Federal Register because it 
relieves a restriction on commercial vertical hook-and-line fishermen 
who closely tend their gear. In contrast, changes to the definitions 
and trawl gear requirements at 50 CFR 663.2 and 663.22(a) and (b) are 
effective 6 months after filing with the Office of the Federal Register 
to allow time for fishermen to modify gear to comply with these new 
requirements. The Council recommended, and the Assistant Administrator 
agrees, that this 6-month delay in effectiveness reduces the economic 
burden on the industry by enabling it to replace at least some of its 
gear after it is worn out rather than requiring an immediate and abrupt 
change to all trawl nets.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 663

    Fisheries, Fishing, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Dated: March 7, 1995.
Gary Matlock,
Program Management Officer, National Marine Fisheries Service.

    For the reasons set out in the preamble, 50 CFR part 663 is amended 
as follows:

PART 663--PACIFIC COAST GROUNDFISH FISHERY

    1. The authority citation for part 663 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.

    2. Section 663.2 is amending the definition for ``Commercial 
fishing'' by redesignating paragraphs (a) and (b) as paragraphs (1) and 
(2) respectively, and amending the definition for ``Fishing gear'' by 
redesignating paragraphs (a) through (w) as paragraphs (1) through 
(23), respectively and by revising newly redesignated paragraphs (1) 
through (3), (6), (14), (16), and (18) to read as follows:


Sec. 663.2  Definitions.

* * * * *
    Fishing gear:
    (1) Bobbin trawl means the same as a roller trawl, and is a type of 
bottom trawl.
    (2) Bottom trawl means a trawl in which the otter boards or the 
footrope of the net are in contact with the seabed. It includes roller 
(or bobbin) trawls and Danish and Scottish seine gear. It also includes 
pair trawls fished on the bottom. Any trawl not meeting the 
requirements for pelagic trawls at Sec. 663.22(b)(6) is a bottom trawl.
    (3) Chafing gear means webbing or other material attached to the 
codend of a trawl net to protect the codend from wear.
* * * * *
    (6) Double-bar mesh means two lengths of twine tied into a single 
knot.
* * * * *
    (14) Pelagic (midwater or off-bottom) trawl means a trawl in which 
the otter boards may be in contact with the seabed but the footrope of 
the net remains above the seabed. It includes pair trawls if fished in 
midwater. A pelagic trawl has no rollers or bobbins on the net.
* * * * *
    (16) Roller trawl (bobbin trawl) means a trawl with footropes 
equipped with rollers or bobbins made of wood, steel, rubber, plastic, 
or other hard material that keep the footrope above the seabed, thereby 
protecting the net. A roller trawl is a type of bottom trawl.
* * * * *
    (18) Single-walled codend means a codend constructed of a single 
wall of webbing knitted with single or double-bar mesh.
* * * * *
    3. In Sec. 663.22, paragraphs (a), (b)(2) through (b)(4), and (c) 
are revised; paragraph (b)(5) is removed; and paragraph (b)(6) is 
redesignated as paragraph (b)(5) and revised to read as follows:


Sec. 663.22  Gear restrictions.

    (a) General. The following types of fishing gear are authorized, 
with the restrictions set forth in this section: trawl (bottom and 
pelagic), hook-and-line, longline, pot or trap, set net (anchored 
gillnet or trammel net), and spear.
    (b) * * *
    (2) Mesh size. Trawl nets may be used if they meet the minimum mesh 
sizes set forth below. The minimum sizes apply throughout the net. 
Minimum trawl mesh size requirements are met if a 20-gauge stainless 
steel wedge, 3.0 or 4.5 inches (7.6 or 11.4 cm) (depending 
[[Page 13380]] on the gear being measured) less one thickness of the 
metal wedge, can be passed with only thumb pressure through at least 16 
of 20 sets of two meshes each of wet mesh.

                                             Minimum Trawl-Mesh Size                                            
                                                 [In Inches]\1\                                                 
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                                                     Subarea                                                    
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                   Trawl Type                     Vancouver     Columbia      Eureka      Monterey    Conception
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Bottom.........................................          4.5          4.5          4.5          4.5          4.5
Pelagic........................................          3.0          3.0          3.0          3.0         3.0 
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\1\Metric conversion: 3.0 inches = 7.6 centimeters; 4.5 inches = 11.4 centimeters.                              

    (3) Chafing gear. Chafing gear may encircle no more than 50 percent 
of the net's circumference, except as provided in paragraph (b)(5) of 
this section. No section of chafing gear may be longer than 50 meshes 
of the net to which it is attached. Except at the corners, the terminal 
end of each section of chafing gear must not be connected to the net. 
(The terminal end is the end farthest from the mouth of the net.) 
Chafing gear must be attached outside any riblines and restraining 
straps. There is no limit on the number of sections of chafing gear on 
a net.
    (4) Codends. Only single-walled codends may be used in any trawl. 
Double-walled codends are prohibited.
    (5) Pelagic trawls. Pelagic trawl nets must have unprotected 
footropes at the trawl mouth, and must not have rollers, bobbins, 
tires, wheels, rubber discs, or any similar device anywhere in the net. 
Sweeplines, including the bottom leg of the bridle, must be bare. For 
at least 20 ft (6.15 m) immediately behind the footrope or headrope, 
bare ropes or mesh of 16-inch (40.6-cm) minimum mesh size must 
completely encircle the net. A band of mesh (a ``skirt'') may encircle 
the net under transfer cables, lifting or splitting straps (chokers), 
but must be: over riblines and restraining straps; the same mesh size 
and coincide knot-to-knot with the net to which it is attached; and no 
wider than 16 meshes.
    (c) Fixed gear. (1) Fixed gear (longline, trap or pot, set net, and 
stationary hook-and-line gear, including commercial vertical hook-and-
line gear) must be:
    (i) Marked at the surface, at each terminal end, with a pole, flag, 
light, radar reflector, and a buoy except as provided in paragraph 
(c)(2) of this section; and
    (ii) Attended at least once every 7 days.
    (2) Commercial vertical hook-and-line gear that is closely tended 
may be marked only with a single buoy of sufficient size to float the 
gear. ``Closely tended'' means that a vessel is within visual sighting 
distance or within \1/4\ nautical mile (463 m) as determined by 
electronic navigational equipment, of its commercial vertical hook-and-
line gear.
    (3) A buoy used to mark fixed gear under paragraph (c)(1)(i) or 
paragraph (c)(2) of this section must be marked with a number clearly 
identifying the owner or operator of the vessel. The number may be 
either:
    (i) If required by applicable state law, the vessel's number, the 
commercial fishing license number, or buoy brand number; or
    (ii) The vessel documentation number issued by the U.S. Coast 
Guard, or, for an undocumented vessel, the vessel registration number 
issued by the state.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 95-6044 Filed 3-8-95; 9:30 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P