[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 106 (Tuesday, June 3, 1997)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 30305-30310]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-14468]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[Docket No. 970520120-71-01; I.D. 040297A]
RIN 0648-AJ19


Fisheries off West Coast States and in the Western Pacific; 
Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; 1997 Management Measures for Nontrawl 
Sablefish

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

ACTION: Proposed rule; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS issues this proposed rule to implement management 
measures recommended by the Pacific Fishery Management Council 
(Council) for the 1997 limited entry, fixed gear sablefish fishery 
north of 36 deg. N. lat. These measures are a ``regular'' limited 
entry, fixed gear sablefish season of no longer than 10 days, with an 
equal cumulative landing limit for all permit holders with sablefish 
endorsements, with starting date, ending date, and a landing limit 
announced by NMFS; closure of both the limited entry and open access 
fixed gear fisheries for sablefish for 48 hours both immediately before 
and after the regular fishery; and a cumulative limit mop-up fishery 
following the regular fishery, to allow any of the harvest guideline 
that remains after the regular fishery has closed. The proposed rule 
would also implement several long-term changes recommended by the 
Council including: A framework to start the regular fishery from August 
1 through September 30 and an at-sea closure with a prohibition on 
setting or pulling fixed gear during the 48 hours after the regular 
fishery closes. The preamble also discusses the Council's 
recommendations for a year-round, daily trip limit for limited entry, 
fixed gear vessels harvesting or landing sablefish south of 36 deg. N. 
lat. to be implemented as a routine management measure. These actions 
are intended to reduce the risk to human life and safety inherent in 
the current ``derby'' fishery.

DATES: Comments must be submitted in writing by July 3, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to William Stelle, Jr., 
Administrator, Northwest Region, NMFS, 7600 Sand Point Way NE, BIN 
C15700, Seattle, WA 98115-0070; or to William Hogarth, Acting 
Administrator, Southwest Region, NMFS, 501 W. Ocean Blvd., Suite 4200, 
Long Beach, CA 90802-4213. Information about this proposed rule is 
available for public review during business hours at the Office of the 
Administrator, Northwest Region, NMFS, and at the Office of the 
Administrator, Southwest Region, NMFS. Copies of the Environmental 
Assessment/Regulatory Impact Review/Initial Regulatory Flexibility 
Analysis (EA/RIR/IRFA) may be obtained from the Pacific Fishery 
Management Council, 2130 SW Fifth Avenue, Suite 224, Portland, OR 
97201.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William L. Robinson at 206-526-6140, 
or Rodney R. McInnis at 310-980-4030.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS is proposing this rule based on 
recommendations of the Council, under the authority of the Pacific 
Coast Groundfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP) and the Magnuson-Stevens 
Act. This proposed rule would suspend certain parts of the regulations 
currently in place and temporarily replace them with the new management 
measures recommended by the Council through December 31, 1997. The 
background and rationale for the Council's recommendations are 
summarized below. More detail appears in the EA/RIR/IRFA prepared by 
the Council for this action (see ADDRESSES).

Background

    Sablefish (Anoplopoma fimbria) is one of the most valuable species 
in the groundfish fishery off Washington,

[[Page 30306]]

Oregon, and California (WOC). Since 1987, the annual sablefish non-
tribal harvest guideline has been divided between trawl gear and fixed 
gear fisheries. Historically, the sablefish trawl fishery has been 
managed with trip or period landings limits, which means with a limit 
on the amount of fish that may be harvested during a fishing trip or 
during a set time period. Trip or period landings limits mainly have 
been imposed to extend a fishery throughout most of the year. By 
contrast, the fixed gear sablefish fishery has historically taken most 
of its allocation in an intense, open competition called the 
``regular'' or ``derby'' season, which has had no trip limits except on 
small sablefish less than 22 inches (56 cm) in length. In recent years, 
the fixed gear fleet has operated under daily trip limits (250-500 lb 
(113-227 kg) per day) outside of the ``primary season'' (i.e., the 
``regular'' season combined with the ``mop-up'' season). The limited 
entry fixed gear fishery for sablefish involves two operationally 
distinct gear types, pot (or trap) and longline, that compete for the 
nontrawl (fixed gear) harvest allocation.
    The Council's first concern regarding the current management of the 
limited entry, fixed gear sablefish fishery is that, if this fishery 
were allowed to continue as a derby, the season would become even 
shorter and the danger of fishing in the derby would rise. Before 1990, 
the fixed gear sablefish fishery began on January 1 and usually lasted 
for the greater part of the year. However, fishing effort increased and 
quotas were reduced during the late 1980s and early 1990s, resulting in 
the recent short ``derby'' seasons. In 1995 and 1996, the seasons were 
7 and 5 days derbies, respectively. Seasons shorten from year to year 
because each vessel owner has an incentive to invest in new and better 
gear each year, hoping to increase the amount of fish that he/she can 
catch per hour or per day, and because the relatively high price of 
sablefish provides strong incentives for new entrants to join the 
fishery annually. With seasons measured in numbers of days, the derby 
is not just hazardous because it gives fishers strong incentives to 
stay out during bad weather but also because they work at sea with 
heavy machinery and with little or no sleep throughout the derby. The 
1996 reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Act included new National 
Standard 10, which requires, to the extent practicable, the promotion 
of the safety of human life at sea in conservation and management 
measures.
    Beyond the Council's safety concerns with the derby fishery, the 
Council has also cited economic and conservation detractions of the 
derby fishery. Just as fishers cannot choose to fish during the best 
weather, they also cannot choose to fish during periods of highest 
sablefish market value. Fish caught under derby conditions often cannot 
be handled or processed into the highest value sablefish products. In a 
derby for high-value fish like sablefish, lower-value bycatch may be 
thrown overboard, dead and unused. Magnuson-Stevens Act National 
Standard 9 supports efforts to minimize bycatch and bycatch mortality. 
With shortening derby seasons, fishers may also be more likely to 
abandon their gear at sea, leaving that gear to continue to ``ghost 
fish'' after the derby has ended. Finally, as the length of the derby 
decreases, it becomes more difficult for managers to accurately choose 
a closing date to prevent the harvest from exceeding the allowable 
catch.
    The Council has been exploring an individual fishing quota (IFQ) 
system for the fixed gear sablefish fishery since 1991, in order to 
equitably put an end to the derby fishery. However, the Magnuson-
Stevens Act was recently amended to prohibit implementation of new IFQ 
programs until October 1, 2000. Therefore, the Council has turned to 
other management measures to resolve the problems inherent in the 
derby. At its August 1996 meeting, the Council continued its efforts to 
address safety and overcapacity in the limited entry, fixed gear 
sablefish fishery, by recommending Amendment 9 to the FMP, which would 
require a sablefish endorsement for vessels taking part in the primary 
sablefish season, north of 36 deg. N. lat. Under Amendment 9, sablefish 
endorsement qualifications are a single year of permit catch history in 
which Council-managed sablefish caught with longline or fishpot gear 
exceeded 16,000 pounds (7,257 kg) (round weight), during the 1984-1994 
qualifying period. Given these qualifications, it is likely that 
approximately 167 of the current 237 longline and pot permits would 
qualify for sablefish endorsements. NMFS approved Amendment 9 on May 8, 
1997, and the endorsement is expected to be in place for the 1997 
season.
    Council recommendations from the October 1996 and March 1997 
meetings strengthened the separation of sablefish fishing effort north 
and south of 36 deg. N. lat. New management schemes that would put an 
end to the derby have been recommended for each area.

North of 36 deg. N. lat.

Cumulative Limit Fishery

    At the October 1996 and March 1997 Council meetings, industry 
members continued the long-standing debate about the future of limited 
entry, fixed gear sablefish management. Most fishers recognized that 
the trend in annually decreasing derby duration was likely to continue 
if there were a derby in 1997. Fear of a future sablefish season that 
would be measured in hours and frustration with the difficult fishing 
conditions of the derby brought forth much public testimony against a 
1997 derby.
    During the industry debates and on the Council floor, it became 
clear that traditionally low producers and traditionally high producers 
could not agree on a new management scheme. The traditionally low 
producers, who make up the majority of the fishery participants, but a 
minority of the total catch, favored an end to the derby and a system 
of equal cumulative limits for all participants. While the 
traditionally high producers did not necessarily wish to continue the 
derby, many were dissatisfied with the available management options, 
and saw the derby as the best way to maintain past trends in income 
distribution between fishery participants.
    Members of the Council were forced to weigh the long-voiced anger 
over the continuing danger of the derby against the severe 
redistributive results of a management option to set equal cumulative 
limits for all of the vessels endorsed for the limited entry, fixed 
gear sablefish fishery. The Magnuson-Stevens Act national standards 
recognize the importance of both these issues. National Standard 10 
places an emphasis on the safety of human life at sea, yet National 
Standard 4 requires that if allocation of fishing privileges between 
U.S. fishermen is necessary, then that allocation must be fair and 
equitable.
    The Council's October recommendation was a three-week cumulative 
limit season, with equal limits for all participants. Although the 
Council considered the equal cumulative limit fishery to be undesirable 
for the long term, due to its redistribution of catch and income among 
fishery participants, it was the only acceptable alternative to the 
derby amongst the options available to the Council.
    Following the October meeting, Council and NMFS staff analyzed the 
Council's proposal with newly available data from the 1996 fishery. 
This analysis showed that under a three week equal

[[Page 30307]]

cumulative limit fishery, almost all of the fishery participants likely 
would take their full cumulative limit. If this happened, the 
implementation of the three week equal cumulative limit fishery would 
be the implementation of an IFQ program. Since implementation of new 
IFQ programs is prohibited by the Magnuson-Stevens Act until October 1, 
2000, NMFS, on February 28, 1997, rejected the Council's recommendation 
and requested that the Council either revise the equal limit proposal 
or adopt a different regime.
    In order not to violate the prohibition on implementing any new IFQ 
programs, the fishery would have to be managed as a true cumulative 
limit fishery, where the limit is only the upper limit on what can be 
taken, rather than a fishery where the total allowable catch is divided 
up such that each participant has an exclusive right to a set amount. 
Therefore, management of the fishery had to be structured so that it 
could be expected that a substantial number of vessels would be 
unlikely to take the cumulative limit. The Council met these conditions 
by revising its season structure recommendations at the March 1997 
meeting by (1) shortening the recommended length for the fishery to not 
more than 10 days, and (2) recommending a larger, less conservative, 
but still risk averse, maximum potential harvest.
    For 1997 only, the Council recommended that the limited entry, 
fixed gear sablefish fishery north of 36 deg. N. lat. consist of a no 
more than 10-day regular season with a single cumulative limit, equal 
for all vessels. Prior to and following the regular fishery, the 
current small daily trip limit fishery of 300 pounds (136 kg) per day 
would continue. Based on the number of permits qualifying for the 
proposed sablefish endorsement and the amount of harvest taken in the 
daily trip limit fishery, the cumulative limit amount, and the length 
in days of the fishery, would be established by the NMFS Regional 
Administrator, in consultation with the Council, and announced in the 
Federal Register.
    Following the cumulative limit regular fishery, there would be a 
cumulative limit mop-up fishery to allow any of the harvest guideline 
that remains after the cumulative limit regular fishery and which is in 
excess of the amount needed for the daily trip limit fishery following 
the cumulative limit fishery to be taken. The recommendation on the 
size of the mop-up cumulative limit would be made by the Council's 
Groundfish Management Team, following a calculation of the actual 
landed catch from the initial cumulative limit fishery and the daily 
trip limit fishery. The regular and mop-up seasons are designed to take 
the entire fixed gear allocation, except for approximately 385 mt for 
the daily trip limit fishery. The 385 mt for the daily trip limit 
fishery is slightly higher than the amount taken in the 1996 daily trip 
limit fishery.

Season Start Date

    Before 1995, the start of the regular season off Washington, 
Oregon, and California was linked to the fixed gear sablefish season 
opening in the Gulf of Alaska, to reduce effort in the fishery by 
forcing fishers to choose between participating in the fishery off 
Alaska or the West Coast fishery. When the individual quota program was 
introduced for halibut and sablefish fisheries in exclusive economic 
zone (EEZ) waters off Alaska in 1995, the Council no longer had a 
reason to set start dates to match the Alaska fisheries. In 1995 and 
1996, the Council set start dates of August 6 (60 FR 34472, July 3, 
1995) and September 1 (61 FR 16402, April 15, 1996), respectively, 
because wind and sea conditions are generally safer along the coast at 
that time of year and to avoid overlapping with other West Coast 
fisheries and fishing opportunities.
    At the October 1996 meeting, the Council decided to improve on 1995 
and 1996 management efforts with a framework for future limited entry, 
fixed gear sablefish season start dates that would allow the start date 
to occur on any day from August 1 through September 30. The NMFS 
Regional Administrator would establish the season start date after 
consulting with the Council, at the June meeting if possible, and 
taking into account tidal conditions, Council meeting dates, conflicts 
with alternative fisheries, and industry comments. For 1997 only, 
establishment of the season start date would be affected by the status 
of the implementation of the sablefish endorsement program under 
Amendment 9 and the implementation date of this rule.

48-Hour Pre-Season Enforcement Closure

    To facilitate enforcement at the start the 1997 regular cumulative 
limit fishery, there would be a 48-hour closure before the 10-day 
cumulative limit fishery, during which time no fixed gear vessel 
(limited entry and open access) may deploy gear used to take and retain 
groundfish, or take or retain sablefish north of 36 deg. N. lat. All 
fixed gear used to take groundfish must be out of the water during this 
period.

No Pre-Set Gear

    In the past, there has been some conflict between longline and pot 
gear users over whether pot vessels should be allowed to set their gear 
in advance of the derby. Pots are extremely cumbersome and most pot 
fishers cannot store and transport all of their gear on board at once 
without increasing safety risks. Setting pot gear for the limited entry 
sablefish season may require more than one trip from shore to sea. In 
the 1995 and 1996 derbies, pot fishers were allowed to set baited gear 
24 hours prior to the start of the derby. Longliners were opposed to 
this practice because it gave pot fishers the chance to choose and then 
monopolize premium fishing ground positions before the start of the 
derby. Because of these concerns and because the 1997 10-day fishery 
period is expected to provide all pot gear participants with sufficient 
time to set and tend their gear, there would be no opportunities for 
pot fishers to set their gear before the 1997 regular season start 
time.
    Longliners have recently made requests to pre-set their gear for 
the derby, hoping to improve their competitive standing against the 
pre-set allowance for pot fishers. However, with no derby in 1997, and 
no pot gear pre-set provision, the perceived competitive disadvantage 
to the longliners is eliminated. Longliners would also not have the 
opportunity to set their gear before the start of the cumulative limit 
season.

At-sea closure

    The Council decided that safety concerns associated with at-dock 
closures outweighed the enforcement benefits of at-dock closures. 
Therefore the Council recommended that at the end of the regular 
season; fishers must stop fishing, they must stop pulling gear but they 
need not be at the dock at the end of the regular season. The Council's 
Enforcement Consultants assured Council members that it would be 
possible to enforce an at-sea closure under a 10-day cumulative limit 
system or derby fishery, particularly with a 48-hour post-season 
closure. A portion of the fleet would have caught the cumulative limit 
before the end of the season, which means that fewer vessels would be 
fishing up until the season closure.

48-Hour Post-Season Enforcement Closure

    To facilitate enforcement at the end of the regular season, there 
would be a 48-hour post-season closure, during which time no sablefish 
taken with fixed gear

[[Page 30308]]

(limited entry or open access) may be taken and retained for the 48 
hours immediately after the end of the regular season. However, 
sablefish taken and retained during the regular season may be possessed 
and landed during that 48-hour period. Gear may remain in the water 
during the 48-hour post-season closure; however, gear used to take and 
retain groundfish may not be set or retrieved during this period.

Daily Trip Limit Fishery

    Outside of the initial cumulative limit fishery, the mop-up 
fishery, and the associated 48-hour closures, there would continue to 
be a daily trip limit fishery. Under Amendment 9's sablefish 
endorsement program, in order to land limited entry fixed gear 
sablefish during either the initial cumulative limit fishery or the 
mop-up fishery, a fisher would be required to have a limited entry 
permit with a sablefish endorsement. During these fisheries, there 
would be no daily trip limit sablefish fishing opportunities for 
limited entry fixed gear vessels without permits with sablefish 
endorsements. During the time between the end of the 48-hour closure 
following the cumulative limit period and the beginning of the mop-up 
fishery, the daily trip limit fishery would be open.

South of 36 deg. N. lat.

    Catch taken south of 36 deg. N. lat. counts against the southern 
area acceptable biological catch (ABC). The available harvest has not 
been fully exploited in past years, and many southern area vessels have 
harvested sablefish only in recent years. Therefore, many southern area 
fishers would not qualify for sablefish endorsements. For these 
reasons, the Council recommended exempting vessels fishing for 
sablefish in this area from the sablefish endorsement requirement. In 
order to prevent all of the unendorsed vessels from northern areas 
moving to the south, the Council also recommended eliminating the 
``primary season'' for waters south of 36 deg. N. lat. Historically, 
most of the fishing in this area has been low volume, year-round 
fishing; the Council's recommendations for the southern area preserve 
that traditional structure. Southern area fishers would have a year-
round trip limit fishery, and those without sablefish endorsements 
would not be permitted to move north to take part in the primary 
northern season without obtaining permits with sablefish endorsements.
    The Council and southern area industry goal for this area was a 
management regime that would allow traditional sablefish fishing 
practices, yet discourage an influx of northern vessels into the 
southern area. Fishers from the southern area wish to continue 
operating a low-level, year-round harvest, and recognize that this will 
only happen if the total harvest for that area remains below the 
southern area ABC. An influx of new effort into the southern area could 
raise harvest levels above the ABC, leading to more complex management 
schemes for that area.
    At the October 1996 Council meeting, the Council recommended the 
elimination of the primary season for the southern area, resulting in a 
year-round daily trip limit fishery south of 36 deg. N. lat. The 1997 
daily trip limit began the year at 350 pounds (159 kg) round weight per 
day (62 FR 700, January 6, 1997), and may be adjusted up or down at a 
1997 Council meeting, to ensure that the ABC can be harvested without 
being exceeded. Southern area fixed gear sablefish fishing would 
henceforth be managed under routine management measures imposed under 
50 CFR 660.323(b). This proposed rule does not amend Sec. 660.323(b) 
but appropriately references it. Limits would be established in the 
annual specifications.

Biological Impacts

    Biological impacts of the proposed action would be expected to be 
fairly minimal. However, there may be some negative biological impacts 
from moving to a non-derby management regime, such as highgrading, trip 
limit induced discards, and under-reporting of catch.
    For vessels able to fully take the cumulative limit in the time 
available, highgrading provides an opportunity to increase revenues by 
discarding smaller sablefish in favor of the higher-priced large 
sablefish. Unrecorded discards can lead to a higher than intended 
fishing mortality level, although the amount would have to be 
substantial to measurably alter the sablefish ABC. Because highgrading 
and catch discard do not necessarily lead to mortality of the catch, 
the mortality rate associated with highgrading may be below the 
highgrading rate. Under the 10-day cumulative limit fishery, it is 
expected that 65 percent of the catch would be taken by vessels able to 
slow their usual rate of harvest and highgrade.
    Trip limit induced discards happen when vessels fishing up to some 
limit exceed that limit and must discard catch to bring landings down 
to the limit. The more trip limit periods there are in a fishery, the 
more frequent the possibilities of trip limit induced discards. Under 
the proposed management scheme, vessels would have two chances to 
generate trip limit induced discards, in the initial cumulative limit 
period and in the mop-up period.
    Under a derby fishery, there is no incentive to under-report the 
amount of fish landed. With cumulative limit management, incentives to 
under-report are much higher, and under-reporting may occur in the 
proposed management scheme. Potential under-reporting can be mitigated 
by strong enforcement presence at the docks and processing plants, but 
it is not yet known what level of enforcement would be needed to ensure 
that the new management rules are followed.
    All three of these possibilities, highgrading, trip limit induced 
discards, and under-reporting of landings, could have long-term 
negative impacts on the sablefish stock. If the true impact of the 
fishery on the stock cannot be measured, there may be a decrease in 
sablefish stock abundance that is scientifically ``invisible'' for the 
short term. If this fishery were introduced as a long-term measure, the 
West Coast sablefish ABC and associated harvest guideline could decline 
over time as a result of the unmeasured impacts that this type of 
fishery may have on the fish stocks. If the level of discards were 
known, one solution to unintended stock reduction might be to adjust 
stock assessments to account for unreported discards. Observer data 
would improve the accuracy of the adjustments.
    No significant new biological impacts are expected to result from 
the change in management structure for the southern area, limited 
entry, fixed gear sablefish fishery. Only a few vessels in the area 
have participated in past derbies, and their catches have been 
comparable to medium and low level harvesters from the rest of the 
coast.

Socio-Economic Impacts

    The major positive sociological impact of ending the derby regime 
is the improved safety of operation for fishery participants. A trip 
limit system would be expected to increase safety for those vessels 
able to easily take the cumulative limit during the allotted time. 
Under cumulative limits, such a vessel would not lose sablefish 
harvesting opportunity if it stays in port during bad weather, stops 
fishing to make repairs, or harvests at slightly slower and safer rate. 
A 10-day cumulative limit period would still leave a number of vessels 
unable to take the available limits in the allotted time, thereby 
giving those fishers an incentive to fish as they would have under 
derby management. However, even for vessels unable to take the 
cumulative limit in

[[Page 30309]]

the allotted time, there may be a safety benefit to the 10-day fishery 
because there would be less financial pressure to fish at the frenetic 
speed of the derby.
    Replacing the derby with a 10-day cumulative limit fishery could 
have significant short and long term economic impacts on the fishery 
participants. There would likely be a 29 percent redistribution of the 
harvest from traditionally high producers to traditionally low 
producers, a redistribution of ex-vessel revenue of about $2.5 to $3.0 
million. It is expected that under the single cumulative limit scheme, 
38 fishing operations would experience a greater than 5 percent loss in 
their total gross fishing revenues, a level of loss considered 
significant for purposes of the Regulatory Flexibility Act. Fishers in 
the top third of the fleet in terms of production levels would face 
severe reductions in their sablefish incomes, which would be funneled 
into distributed gains for the lower producing two-thirds of the fleet. 
For many of the fleet's top producers, income from past sablefish 
derbies has represented a significant portion of their total annual 
incomes.
    No substantial reallocative effect is expected from not providing a 
derby or some other primary sablefish opportunity in the southern area. 
By maintaining the daily trip limit regime, the Council is discouraging 
the influx of new effort into the southern area. Without new effort 
increases, southern area harvests should stay below the ABC, and if the 
ABC is not exceeded, southern area management would likely remain 
relatively free of regulatory complexity and reallocative socio-
economic impacts on the fishing community.

Classification

    This proposed rule has been determined to be not significant for 
the purposes of E.O. 12866.
    The Council prepared an initial regulatory flexibility analysis 
that describes the impact that this proposed rule, if adopted, would 
have on small entities. A copy of this analysis is available from the 
Council (see ADDRESSES). The SBA defines a small business in commercial 
fishing as a firm with receipts up to $2 million annually, which 
includes all of the vessels that would be affected by this proposed 
rule.
    In general, NMFS has determined that a ``substantial number'' of 
small entities would be more than 20 percent of those small entities 
engaged in the fishery. Economic impacts on small business entities are 
considered ``significant'' if the proposed action would result in any 
of the following: (a) reduction in annual gross revenues by more than 5 
percent; (b) increase in total costs of production by more than 5 
percent as a result of compliance costs; (c) compliance costs as a 
percent of sales for small entities are at least 10 percent higher than 
compliance costs as a percent of sales for large entities; (d) capital 
costs of compliance represent a significant portion of capital 
available to small entities, considering internal cash flow and 
external financing capabilities; or (e) as a rule of thumb, 2 percent 
of small business entities being forced to cease operations.
    As indicated above and in the EA/RIR/IRFA for this action, 38 of 
the expected endorsed participants (23 percent of 164 expected endorsed 
permits north of 36 deg. N. lat.) in the limited entry, fixed gear 
sablefish fishery would suffer a greater than 5 percent loss in total 
gross fishing income. The Council views these losses as a necessary 
burden that comes with the reduction of the greater threat to the 
general well-being of the fishery posed by the unsafe derby conditions. 
Additionally, when looking at the nation as a whole, the impact on 
traditionally high sablefish producers would be mitigated by the 
benefits of this action to traditionally low sablefish producers, also 
small businesses.
    It is expected that small business entities would not face further 
compliance or capital costs in order to comply with the proposed 
regulations. It is also not expected that any small business entities 
would be forced to cease operations because of the proposed 
regulations, although several would be forced into severe cutbacks in 
production and employment. An initial regulatory flexibility analysis 
(RFA) was prepared with the EA/RIR for this issue.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 660

    Administrative practice and procedure, American Samoa, Fisheries, 
Fishing, Guam, Hawaiian Natives, Indians, Northern Mariana Islands, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Dated: May 29, 1997.
Rolland A. Schmitten,
Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries 
Services.
    For the reasons set out in the preamble, 50 CFR part 660 is 
proposed to be amended as follows:

PART 660--FISHERIES OFF WEST COAST STATES AND IN THE WESTERN 
PACIFIC

    1. The authority citation for part 660 continues to read as 
follows:

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

Subpart G--West Coast Groundfish Fisheries

    2. Section 660.323 is amended by revising paragraph (a)(2) to read 
as follows:


Sec. 660.323  Catch restrictions.

    (a) * * *
    (2) Nontrawl sablefish. This paragraph (a)(2) applies to the 
regular and mop-up seasons for the nontrawl limited entry sablefish 
fishery north of 36 deg. N. lat., except for paragraphs (a)(2)(ii) and 
(iii) of this section, which also apply to the open access fishery 
north of 36 deg. N. lat. Limited entry and open access fixed gear 
sablefish fishing south of 36 deg. N. lat. is governed by routine 
management measures imposed under paragraph (b) of this section.
    (i) Sablefish endorsement. In order to lawfully participate in the 
regular season or mop-up season for the nontrawl limited entry fishery, 
the owner of a vessel must hold (by ownership or otherwise) a limited 
entry permit for that vessel, affixed with both a gear endorsement for 
longline or trap (or pot) gear, and a sablefish endorsement.
    (ii) Pre-season closure--open access and limited entry fisheries. 
(A) From August 1, 1997, through December 31, 1997, sablefish taken 
with fixed gear in the limited entry or open access fishery in the EEZ 
may not be retained or landed during the 48 hours immediately before 
the start of the regular season for the nontrawl limited entry 
sablefish fishery. Beginning January 1, 1998, sablefish taken with 
fixed gear in the limited entry or open access fishery in the EEZ may 
not be retained or landed during the 72 hours immediately before the 
start of the regular season for the nontrawl limited entry sablefish 
fishery.
    (B) From August 1, 1997, through December 31, 1997, all fixed gear 
used to take and retain groundfish must be out of EEZ waters during the 
48 hours immediately before the opening of the regular season for the 
nontrawl limited entry sablefish fishery. Beginning January 1, 1998, 
all fixed gear used to take and retain groundfish must be out of EEZ 
waters during the 72 hours immediately before the opening of the 
regular season for the nontrawl limited entry sablefish fishery, except 
that pot gear used to take and retain groundfish may be deployed and 
baited in the EEZ up to 24 hours immediately before the start of the 
regular season.
    (iii) Regular season--nontrawl limited entry sablefish fishery; 
starting in 1998. The NMFS Regional Administrator will announce a 
season to start on any day from August 1 through September 30,

[[Page 30310]]

based on consultations with the Council, taking into account tidal 
conditions, Council meeting dates, conflicts with alternative 
fisheries, and industry comments. During the regular season, the 
limited entry nontrawl sablefish fishery may be subject to trip limits 
to protect juvenile sablefish. The regular season will end when 70 
percent of the limited entry nontrawl allocation has been or is 
projected to be taken. The end of the regular season may be announced 
in the Federal Register either before or during the regular season.
    (iv) Post-season closure--limited entry and open access. No 
sablefish taken with fixed gear may be taken and retained during the 48 
hours immediately after the end of the regular season for the nontrawl 
limited entry sablefish fishery. Sablefish taken and retained during 
the regular season may be possessed and landed during that 48-hour 
period. Gear may remain in water during the 48-hour post-season 
closure. Fishers may not set or pull from the water fixed gear used to 
take and retain groundfish during the 48-hour post-season closure. At 
the end of the post season closure, the daily trip limit regime will 
resume.
    (v) Mop-up season--limited entry fishery. A mop-up season to take 
the remainder of the limited entry nontrawl allocation will begin about 
3 weeks after the end of the regular season, or as soon as practicable 
thereafter. During the mop-up fishery, a cumulative trip limit will be 
imposed. The length of the mop-up season and the amount of the 
cumulative trip limit, including the time period to which it applies, 
will be determined by the Regional Administrator in consultation with 
the Council or its designees, and will be based primarily on the amount 
of fish remaining in the allocation, the amount of sablefish needed for 
the remainder of the daily trip limit fishery, and the number of mop-up 
participants anticipated. The regular and mop-up seasons are designed 
to take the entire nontrawl allocation, except for approximately 385 mt 
for the daily trip limit fishery. The Regional Administrator may 
determine that too little of the nontrawl allocation remains to conduct 
an orderly or manageable fishery, in which case there will not be a 
mop-up season. There will be no daily trip limit fishery during the 
mop-up season. At the end of the mop-up season, the daily trip limit 
fishery will resume.
    (vi) Other announcements; starting in 1998. The dates and times 
that the regular season ends (and trip limits on sablefish of all sizes 
are resumed), the dates and times for the 48-hour post-season closure, 
the dates and times that the mop-up season begins and ends, and the 
size of the trip limit for the mop-up fishery, will be announced in the 
Federal Register, and may be modified. Unless otherwise announced, 
these seasons will begin and end at 12 noon on the specified date.
     (vii) Regular season; from August 1, 1997, through December 31, 
1997--limited entry fishery. (A) The regular season for the nontrawl 
limited entry sablefish fishery will be a cumulative limit fishery of 
up to 10 days, with the same cumulative limit for each vessel with a 
sablefish endorsement. During the regular season, the limited entry 
nontrawl sablefish fishery may be subject to trip limits to protect 
juvenile sablefish. There will be no daily trip limit fishery during 
the regular season.
    (B) The NMFS Regional Administrator will announce a season to start 
on any day from August 1 through September 30, based on consultations 
with the Council, taking into account tidal conditions, Council meeting 
dates, conflicts with alternative fisheries, and industry comments.
    (C) The Regional Administrator will announce the size of the 
cumulative limit and the number of days in the fishery based on Council 
recommendations, taking into account the exact number of vessels 
qualifying for the sablefish endorsement and the amount of sablefish 
that has been harvested by the daily trip limit fishery prior to the 
start of the regular season.
     (viii) Other announcements; from August 1, 1997, through December 
31, 1997. The number of days in the regular and mop-up seasons, dates 
and times that the regular and mop-up seasons start and end (and trip 
limits on sablefish of all sizes are resumed), dates of the pre- and 
post-season closures, and the sizes of the trip limits for the regular 
and mop-up seasons, will be announced in the Federal Register, and may 
be modified. Unless otherwise announced, these seasons will begin and 
end at 12 noon on the specified date.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 97-14468 Filed 6-2-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F