[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 173 (Thursday, September 7, 1995)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 46538-46540]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-22188]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 663
[Docket No. 941265-4365; I.D. 083095B]
Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; Thornyhead Trip Limits and
Nontrawl Sablefish Mop-Up Fishery
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Inseason adjustments and nontrawl sablefish mop-up fishery;
request for comments.
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SUMMARY: NMFS announces adjustments to the management measures for the
Pacific coast groundfish fishery off Washington, Oregon, and
California. This action will reduce the limited entry trip limits for
thornyheads, establish beginning and ending dates and trip limits
applicable to the mop-up fishery for nontrawl limited entry sablefish,
and set trip limits for the nontrawl limited entry sablefish fishery
after the mop-up fishery. These actions are intended to extend the
thornyhead fishery as long as possible during the year, and to provide
for harvest of the remainder of the limited entry nontrawl allocation
for sablefish.
DATES: The thornyhead trip limits are effective from 0001 hours (local
time), September 1, 1995, until the effective date of the 1996 annual
specifications and management measures for the Pacific coast groundfish
fishery, which will be published in the Federal Register. The nontrawl
sablefish mop-up fishery will begin at 1201 hours (local time),
September 1, 1995, and will end at 1200 hours (local time), September
30, 1995, at which time the daily trip limits resume. The daily trip
limits for the nontrawl sablefish fishery will remain in effect until
the effective date of the 1996 annual specifications and management
measures for the Pacific coast groundfish fishery, which will be
published in the Federal Register. Comments will be accepted until
Septemnber 18, 1995.
ADDRESSES: Comments on these actions should be sent to Mr. William
Stelle, Jr., Director, Northwest Region, National Marine Fisheries
Service, 7600 Sand Point Way NE., BIN C15700, Bldg. 1, Seattle, WA
98115-0070; or Ms. Hilda Diaz-Soltero, Director, Southwest Region,
National Marine Fisheries Service, 501 West Ocean Blvd., Suite 4200,
Long Beach, CA 90802-4213. Information relevant to these actions has
been compiled in aggregate form and is available for public review
during business hours at the office of the Director, Northwest Region,
NMFS (Regional Director).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William L. Robinson at 206-526-6140;
or Rodney R. McInnis at 310-980-4040.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Thornyheads. The Annual Specifications and Management Measures for
the Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery (60 FR 2331-2344, January 9,
1995), as amended, established management measures for the 1995 limited
entry fishery for Dover sole, thornyheads, and trawl-caught sablefish
(the DTS complex). At its August 1995 meeting in San Francisco, CA, the
Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) considered the best
available scientific information, comments from its advisory
committees, and public testimony before recommending adjustments to the
management measures for the thornyhead fishery, as explained below.
The DTS complex is managed collectively because the four species
often are caught together in the trawl fishery. (Thornyheads include
both shortspine and longspine thornyheads.) In 1995, the 1,500 metric
ton (mt) harvest guideline for shortspine thornyheads was set higher
than the 1,000-mt acceptable biological catch (ABC), largely because of
uncertainty in the new stock assessment. The stock assessment indicates
that the shortspine thornyhead biomass is below the level consistent
with maximum sustainable yield (MSY). The harvest guideline for
shortspine thornyheads is near the MSY level, but below its overfishing
level of about 1,800 mt. In contrast, longspine thornyheads remain
above MSY and are being fished down to the level that would produce
MSY. However, the 6,000-mt harvest guideline for longspine thornyheads
in 1995 is set below its ABC of 7,000 mt, primarily to protect the
fully exploited shortspine thornyheads.
At the beginning of 1995, the cumulative trip limit for thornyheads
combined was set at 20,000 lb (9,072 kg) per vessel per month, of which
no more than 4,000 lb (1,814 kg) could be shortspine thornyheads (60 FR
2331, January 9, 1995). On April 1, 1995 (60 FR 16811, April 3, 1995),
the monthly cumulative trip limit for combined thornyheads was reduced
by 25 percent to 15,000 lb (6,804 kg), of which no more than 3,000 lb
(1,361 kg) could be shortspine thornyheads. Landings have not slowed
significantly.
The best available information at the August 1995 Council meeting
indicated that if landing rates are not slowed the harvest guidelines
for both thornyhead species, and the overfishing level for shortspine
thornyheads, will be exceeded by the end of the year. If landing rates
are not slowed, the harvest guideline for shortspine thornyheads will
be reached by September 20, 1995, and exceeded by 39 percent by the end
of the year. The overfishing level for shortspine thornyheads will be
exceeded by 16 percent by the end of the year. The harvest guideline
for longspine thornyheads will be reached by November 7, 1995, and
exceeded by 19 percent by the end of the year. To stay within the
harvest guidelines for both species, landings will need to be reduced
by 84 percent for shortspine thornyheads, and 46 percent for longspine
thornyheads.
The Council considered several alternatives, including immediate
prohibition of landings of shortspine thornyheads or the entire DTS
complex, and a reduction in trip limits. The Council recommended that
the cumulative monthly trip limits for thornyheads be cut almost in
half, from 15,000 lb (6,804 kg) to 8,000 lb (3,629 kg) for thornyheads
combined, and from 3,000 lb (1,361 kg) to 1,500 lb (680 kg) for
shortspine thornyheads. The level of discards that would result from
such a small trip limit on shortspine thornyheads is unknown. It is
intended that fishers move their operations to deeper water where
shortspine
[[Page 46539]]
thornyheads are not as abundant. That way, the catch of shortspine
thornyheads and discards in excess of the trip limit would be reduced.
Under this option, the shortspine thornyhead harvest guideline would be
exceeded by about 10 percent by the end of November, but the
overfishing level would not be reached. The Council will again consider
thornyhead and DTS management at its October 1995 meeting in Portland,
OR, and may recommend additional restrictions at that time, including
possible closure of the DTS fishery before the end of the year.
NMFS concurs with the Council's recommendation to avoid reaching
the overfishing level for shortspine thornyheads, while extending the
fishery as long as possible and providing for achievement of the
harvest guideline for longspine thornyheads. This action is intended to
minimize trip limit induced discards of shortspine thornyheads by
encouraging the use of different fishing strategies. No change is made
to the cumulative monthly trip limit for the DTS complex or trawl-
caught sablefish. As a result, the amount of Dover sole that may be
landed increases, compensating for the reduction in the cumulative
limits for thornyheads. A cumulative monthly trip limit is the maximum
amount that may be taken and retained, possessed, or landed per vessel
in a calendar month, without a limit on the number of landings or
trips.
Nontrawl Sablefish Mop-Up Fishery. The regulations at 50 CFR
663.23(b)(2) established a new season structure for the limited entry
nontrawl sablefish fishery in 1995. The beginning of the ``regular
season,'' a derby fishery during which the only trip limit is for
sablefish smaller than 22 inches (56 cm), was unlinked from the start
of the sablefish fishery in the Gulf of Alaska (which could have been
as early as late February in 1995) and changed to August 6. Because of
expected increases in effort and the difficulty in projecting catch
rates during a short, intense season (7 days in 1995), the regular
season was designed to harvest only 70 percent of the limited entry
nontrawl allocation. The remainder of the nontrawl allocation was set
aside as a buffer in case landings were much higher than projected. The
Regional Director is authorized to release the buffer, if sufficient
amounts remain, about 3 weeks after the end of the regular season, to
be taken in a mop-up fishery consisting of one cumulative trip limit
for each vessel.
Following the mop-up fishery, daily trip limits are reimposed until
the end of the year. A daily trip limit is the maximum amount that may
be taken and retained, possessed, or landed per vessel in 24
consecutive hours, starting at 0001 hours local time. Only one landing
of groundfish may be made in that 24-hour period. Daily trip limits may
not be accumulated. If a trip lasts more than one day, only one daily
trip limit is allowed.
The best available information on September 28, 1995, indicated
that approximately 2,274 mt of sablefish had been landed through August
19, 1995, and that about 78 percent of the limited entry nontrawl
allocation of 2,754 mt was taken during the regular season. (This
includes one week under daily trip limits after the end of the regular
season.) Therefore, 480 mt remains to be caught after August 19, 1995.
The Regional Director, after consulting with the Council's Groundfish
Management Team, has determined that the mop-up fishery will occur in
September 1995, and that a cumulative monthly trip limit of 5,500 lb
(2,495 kg) would provide for approximately 175 participating vessels,
leaving enough for small daily trip limits between August 19 and
September 1, 1995, and from 1200 hours September 30, 1995, until the
end of the year. The trip limit for sablefish smaller than 22 inches
(56 cm) total length (or 15.5 inches (39 cm) for sablefish that are
headed) that was in effect during the regular season continues during
the mop-up season, but not under the daily trip limits. This trip limit
is described in the paragraph preceding the Classification section.
Once a vessel has landed its 5,500-lb (2,495 kg) cumulative limit, it
may not land more sablefish until the daily trip limits resume on
September 30, 1995. A cumulative trip limit applies per limited entry
vessel. Therefore, acquiring additional limited entry permits does not
entitle a vessel to more than one cumulative limit. (See the definition
for a cumulative trip limit at the end of the discussion on
thornyheads.)
The daily trip limits for the limited entry fishery after the mop-
up season are the same as those in effect before the mop-up season.
Since the daily trip limits apply to a 24-hour day starting at 0001
hours, but the mop-up fishery begins and ends at 1200 hours, it will be
legal for a vessel in the limited entry fishery to land a daily trip
limit between 0001 hours and 1200 hours on September 1, 1995, just
before the start of the mop-up season, and between 1201 hours and 2400
hours on September 30, 1995 following the mop-up season.
As specified in the annual management measures (60 FR 2331, January
9, 1995) at paragraph IV.I., a vessel operating in the open access
fishery must not exceed any trip limit, frequency limit, and/or size
limit for the open access fishery or for the same gear and/or subarea
in the limited entry fishery.
NMFS Actions
NMFS announces: (1) The following changes to the management
measures for the limited entry fishery for thornyheads (60 FR 2331-
2344, January 9, 1995) as modified (60 FR 16811, April 3, 1995), and
(2) the dates of the nontrawl sablefish limited entry mop-up fishery
and the amounts of sablefish that may be taken with nontrawl gear
during and after the limited entry mop-up fishery in 1995 (60 FR 34472,
July 3, 1995). All other provisions remain in effect.
1. Thornyheads. In paragraphs IV.E.(3)(b)(ii)(A) and (B), the
cumulative monthly trip limits for thornyheads are revised as follows:
(A) North of Cape Mendocino. The cumulative trip limit for the DTS
complex taken and retained north of Cape Mendocino is 35,000 lb (15,876
kg) per vessel per month. Within this cumulative trip limit, no more
than 7,000 lb (3,175 kg) may be sablefish, and no more than 8,000 lb
(3,629 kg) may be thornyheads. No more than 1,500 lb (680 kg) of the
thornyheads may be shortspine thornyheads.
(B) South of Cape Mendocino. The cumulative trip limit for the DTS
complex taken and retained south of Cape Mendocino is 50,000 lb (22,680
kg) per vessel per month. Within this cumulative trip limit, no more
than 7,000 lb (3,175 kg) may be sablefish, and no more than 8,000 lb
(3,629 kg) may be thornyheads. No more than 1,500 lb (680 kg) of the
thornyheads may be shortspine thornyheads. (Note: Cape Mendocino, CA,
is at 40 deg.30' N. lat.)
2. Nontrawl sablefish mop-up season. In paragraph IV.E.(3)(c), the
trip limits for sablefish caught with nontrawl gear in the limited
entry fishery are revised as follows:
(i) Mop-Up Fishery. Effective 1201 hours September 1, 1995, until
12 noon September 30, 1995, the cumulative trip limit for sablefish
caught with nontrawl gear in the limited entry fishery is 5,500 lb
(2,495 kg) per vessel.
(Note: The States of Washington, Oregon, and California use a
conversion factor of 1.6 to convert dressed sablefish to its round-
weight equivalent. Therefore, 5,500 lb (2,495 kg) round weight
corresponds to 3,438 lb (1,559 kg) for dressed sablefish.)
(ii) Daily trip limits. Effective 1201 hours September 30, 1995,
daily trip
[[Page 46540]]
limits, which apply to sablefish of any size, are reimposed as follows:
(A) North of 36 deg. N. lat. The daily trip limit for sablefish
taken and retained with nontrawl gear north of 36 deg. N. lat. is 300
lb (136 kg).
(B) South of 36 deg. N. lat. The daily trip limit for sablefish
taken and retained with nontrawl gear south of 36 deg. N. lat. is 350
lb (159 kg).
(iii) During the regular and mop-up seasons the trip limit for
sablefish smaller than 22 inches (56 cm) total length is 1,500 lb (680
kg) or 3 percent of all legal sablefish on board, whichever is greater,
per vessel per fishing trip. (See paragraph IV.A.(6) of the annual
management measures at (60 FR 2331, January 9, 1995) regarding length
measurement.
Classification
These actions are authorized by the Pacific Coast Groundfish
Fishery Management Plan, which governs the harvest of groundfish in the
U.S. exclusive economic zone off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and
California. The determination to take these actions is based on the
most recent data available. The aggregate data upon which the
determinations are based are available for public inspection at the
office of the Regional Director (see ADDRESSES) during business hours.
Because of the need for immediate action to reduce the harvest of
shortspine thornyheads and to start the mop-up fishery for sablefish,
and because the public had an opportunity to comment on these actions
at the August 1995 Council meeting, NMFS has determined that good cause
exists for this notice to be published without affording a prior
opportunity for public comment or a 30-day delayed effectiveness
period. These actions are taken under the authority of 50 CFR
663.(b)(2) and (c)(1)(i)(G), and are exempt from review under E.O.
12866.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: August 31, 1995.
Richard H. Schaefer,
Director, Office of Fisheries Conservation and Management, National
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 95-22188 Filed 9-1-95; 3:44 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F