[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 135 (Tuesday, July 15, 1997)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Page 37860]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-18472]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 679
[I.D. 070797C]
RIN 0648-AJ45
Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Groundfish
of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Area; Prohibited Species Catch
Limit for Chionoecetes opilio Crab
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of availability of an amendment to a fishery management
plan; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) has
submitted Amendment 40 to the Fishery Management Plan for the
Groundfish Fishery of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Area (FMP)
for Secretarial review. Amendment 40 would establish a prohibited
species catch (PSC) limit for Chionoecetes opilio crab in a newly
established C. opilio Bycatch Limitation Zone (COBLZ) of the Bering
Sea. Upon attainment of the C. opilio PSC limit, directed fishing for
groundfish by vessels using trawl gear, except for pollock by vessels
using nonpelagic trawl gear, would be prohibited within the COBLZ. This
measure is necessary to protect the C. opilio stock in the Bering Sea,
which has declined to a level that presents a conservation problem. The
intended effect of the proposed action is to further limit crab bycatch
in the Bering Sea groundfish fisheries.
DATES: Comments on Amendment 40 must be submitted on or before
September 15, 1997.
ADDRESSES: Comments on the proposed FMP amendment must be submitted to
Ronald J. Berg, Chief, Fisheries Management Division, Alaska Region,
NMFS, P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, AK 99802-1668, Attn: Lori Gravel, or
delivered to the Federal Building, 709 West 9th Street, Juneau, AK.
Copies of proposed Amendment 40 and the Environmental Assessment/
Regulatory Impact Review/Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis are
available from the North Pacific Fishery Management Council, 605 West
Fourth Ave., Anchorage, AK 99501-2252; telephone 907-271-2809.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kim S. Rivera, 907-586-7228.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation
and Management Act (Magnuson-Steven Act) requires that each Regional
Fishery Management Council submit any fishery management plan or plan
amendment it prepares to NMFS for review and approval, disapproval, or
partial approval. The Magnuson-Stevens Act also requires that NMFS,
upon receiving a plan or amendment, immediately publish a document
announcing that the plan or amendment is available for public review
and comment.
Amendment 40 would authorize the annual specification of a PSC
limit for C. opilio crab for the new COBLZ of the Bering Sea based on
the total annual abundance estimate of C. opilio crab as indicated by
the NMFS bottom trawl survey. The PSC limits would be determined as
part of the annual BSAI groundfish specification process, after
consultation with the Council.
A proposed rule that would implement Amendment 40 may be published
in the Federal Register for public comment, following NMFS' evaluation
of the proposed rule under the Magnuson-Stevens Act procedures. Public
comments on the proposed rule must be received by the end of the
comment period on the FMP amendment to be considered in the approval/
disapproval decision on Amendment 40. All comments received on or
before September 15, 1997, whether specifically directed to Amendment
40 or the proposed rule, will be considered in the approval/disapproval
decision. Comments received after that date will not be considered in
the approval/disapproval decision on Amendment 40.
Dated: July 9, 1997.
Bruce Morehead,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 97-18472 Filed 7-14-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F