[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 183 (Monday, September 22, 1997)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 49464-49467]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-25015]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 679

[Docket No. 970829212-7212-01; I.D. 080597F]
RIN 0648-AK14


Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Allocation 
of Atka Mackerel to Vessels Using Jig Gear

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 proposes regulations to implement Amendment 34 to the 
Fishery Management Plan for the Groundfish Fishery of the Bering Sea 
and Aleutian Islands Area (FMP). Amendment 34 would authorize an 
allocation of Atka mackerel to vessels using jig gear. Annually, up to 
2 percent of the total allowable catch (TAC) specified for this species 
in the eastern Aleutian Islands District (AI)/Bering Sea subarea (BS) 
could be allocated to the jig gear fleet fishing in this area. This 
action is necessary to provide an opportunity to a localized, small-
vessel jig gear fleet to fish for Atka mackerel in summer months. The 
large-scale trawl fisheries typically harvest the

[[Page 49465]]

available TAC for this species early in the fishing year, which does 
not allow jig gear fishermen an opportunity for a summer fishery. This 
action is intended to further the goals and objectives of the FMP.

DATES: Comments on the proposed rule must be received at the following 
address by November 6, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Comments must be sent to Chief, Fisheries Management 
Division, Alaska Region, NMFS, P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, AK 99802, Attn: 
Lori J. Gravel, or delivered to the Federal Building, 709 West 9th 
Street, Juneau, AK. Copies of the proposed FMP amendment and the 
Environmental Assessment/ Regulatory Impact Review/Initial Regulatory 
Flexibility Analysis (EA/RIR/IRFA) prepared for Amendment 34 are 
available from NMFS at the above address, or by calling the Alaska 
Region, NMFS at 907-586-7228.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Susan Salveson, 907-586-7228.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The domestic groundfish fisheries in the 
exclusive economic zone of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands 
management area (BSAI) are managed by NMFS under the FMP. The FMP was 
prepared by the Council under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 
and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act). Regulations governing the 
groundfish fisheries of the BSAI appear at 50 CFR parts 600 and 679.
    The Council has submitted Amendment 34 for Secretarial review and a 
Notice of Availability (NOA) of the FMP amendment was published on 
August 15, 1997 (62 FR 43689) with comments on the FMP amendment 
invited through October 14, 1997. Comments on this proposed rule are 
invited and must be received on or before November 6, 1997. All written 
comments received by October 14, 1997, whether specifically directed to 
the FMP amendment, the proposed rule, or both, will be considered in 
the approval/disapproval decision on the FMP amendment.

Management Background and Need for Action

    At its December 1996 meeting, the Council reviewed proposals 
received from management agencies, the fishing industry, conservation 
groups, and other interested members of the public for changes to the 
FMP or regulations implementing the FMP. One proposal received from the 
Unalaska Native Fishermen's Association requested that 2 percent of the 
TAC annually specified for Bering Sea Atka mackerel be allocated to 
vessels using jig gear. The purpose of this proposal was to provide 
more opportunity to a local small-vessel jig gear fleet to fish for 
Atka mackerel in late spring and summer months without direct 
competition from the large, high-capacity trawl fleet that typically 
harvests the Eastern AI/BS Atka mackerel TAC early in the fishing year.
    Under the existing FMP, a closure to directed fishing for Atka 
mackerel applies to all vessels. Thus, vessels using jig gear are 
prevented from directed fishing for Atka mackerel once an applicable 
directed fishing closure is effective, although bycatch amounts of Atka 
mackerel may be retained during a fishing trip equal to 20 percent of 
the retained amount of other species open to directed fishing. Atka 
mackerel may not be retained on board a vessel once Atka mackerel 
becomes a prohibited species upon attainment of the TAC or because of 
overfishing concerns for other species taken as bycatch in the Atka 
mackerel fishery.
    Jig gear harvests of Atka mackerel have been constrained to late 
spring and summer months in the BS near the port of Dutch Harbor, 
because of the physical limitations of the small boat fleet. In 1997, 
the directed fishery for Atka mackerel in the Eastern AI/BS was closed 
February 4. Atka mackerel became a prohibited species on February 28 
when the fast-paced trawl fisheries harvested the TAC. As a result, the 
jig gear fleet will not have an opportunity to fish for this species in 
1997.
    Based on Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) fish tickets, 
15 and 19 vessels using jig gear in the BS harvested 36 and 13 metric 
tons (mt) of Atka mackerel in 1994 and 1995, respectively. These 
amounts equate to 0.22 percent and 0.09 percent of the Atka mackerel 
harvest in the Eastern AI/BS during these 2 years. The ADF&G fish 
ticket database does not contain records of Atka mackerel harvests by 
vessels using jig gear in 1996, and jig gear fishermen assert that they 
did harvest Atka mackerel in 1996. Most Atka mackerel is harvested by 
the jig gear fleet for use as bait and the catch of fish for personal-
use bait is not required to be reported on ADF&G fish tickets. 
Furthermore, Atka mackerel was not a prohibited species in the Eastern 
AI/BS during 1996 until August 8, thus providing the jig gear fleet 
some opportunity for retaining Atka mackerel taken as bycatch in other 
fisheries. Vessels using jig gear have not fished in the Central or 
Western AI districts, which is not surprising considering that most 
vessels using this gear type are less than 60 ft (18.3 m) length 
overall and fish out of Dutch Harbor.
    Information from jig gear fishermen indicate that most of the Atka 
mackerel harvested by the jig gear fleet is used as bait in the jig 
gear fishery for Pacific cod, although jig gear fishermen testified to 
the Council that they would like to develop a fresh fish market for 
this species. Alternative sources of bait for the Pacific cod jig gear 
fleet exist, but they can be relatively expensive: for example, bait 
costs can approach $.50/lb for frozen herring shipped from the East 
Coast of the United States. Available catch data also indicate that the 
harvest of Atka mackerel by vessels using jig gear has been restricted 
to the southern BS in Federal reporting areas 519 and 518. Conversely, 
most of the trawl harvest in the Eastern AL/BS occurred in reporting 
area 541 (Eastern AI).
    Vessels using trawl gear harvest over 99 percent of the available 
Atka mackerel. Most of the retained catch is processed into a headed 
and gutted product, although surimi production has more than doubled 
between 1996 and 1997. As a result, the competition within the trawl 
fleet for access to the Atka mackerel resource is increasing, further 
aggravating the fast-paced nature of this fishery and the rate at which 
TAC is reached.
    The Council adopted Amendment 34 to the FMP at its June 1997 
meeting in response to concerns about the fast-paced nature of the Atka 
mackerel trawl fishery and the resulting preemption of the small-scale 
jig gear fishery. The Council's action would authorize an allocation of 
up to 2 percent of the Atka mackerel TAC specified for the Eastern AI/
BS to vessels using jig gear. The Council also voted to annually 
specify the jig gear allocation during the annual groundfish 
specifications process based on recent and anticipated harvest 
capacity. This action was taken in consideration of the small amount of 
Atka mackerel annually harvested in recent years and to respond to 
trawl industry concerns about allocating more Atka mackerel to the jig 
gear fleet than could be harvested. Pending the approval of Amendment 
34 by NMFS, the Council indicated its intent to propose a 1-percent 
allocation of Eastern AI/BS Atka mackerel TAC to vessels using jig gear 
in 1998.
    At this time, neither Federal nor Alaska State reporting systems 
require catcher vessel operators to report the amount of groundfish 
harvested for personal use bait. Existing regulations, however, do 
require that any Atka mackerel landed shoreside for commercial sale or 
barter be reported on

[[Page 49466]]

ADF&G fish tickets, as well as on NMFS weekly production reports 
submitted by groundfish processors. The current inability to accurately 
monitor the harvest amount of Atka mackerel used for bait does not pose 
a management concern at this time. The amount of Atka mackerel 
harvested for personal use bait in the Pacific cod jig gear fishery is 
assumed to be very small considering that the total 1996 jig gear 
harvest of Pacific cod was only about 270 mt. The personal use bait 
fishery for Atka mackerel, therefore, would easily be accommodated 
within the jig gear allocation intended by the Council for 1998, or 1 
percent of the Eastern AI/BS TAC. This amount equals 150 mt based on 
the current 1997 TAC amount. Management agencies will need to consider 
changes to existing reporting programs to more accurately account for 
the Atka mackerel bait fishery if the total jig gear harvest of this 
species begins to approach the allocated level due to the development 
of a fresh fish market and/or an increased harvest of Atka mackerel for 
personal use bait.

Classification

    At this time, NMFS has not determined that Amendment 34 is 
consistent with the national standards, other provisions of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act, and other applicable laws. NMFS, in making that 
determination, will take into account the data, views, and comments 
received during the comment period.
    An RIR was prepared for this proposed rule that describes the 
management background, the purpose and need for action, the management 
action alternatives, and the social impacts of the alternatives. The 
RIR also estimates the total number of small entities affected by this 
action and analyzes the economic impact on those small entities.
    An IRFA was prepared as part of the RIR, which describes the impact 
this proposed rule would have on small entities, if adopted. The 
analysis examined the economic effects of this proposed rule and made 
the following conclusions: Under the status quo alternative, annual 
closures of the Eastern AI/BS to directed fishing for Atka mackerel, 
the area most accessible to the small boat fleet currently using jig 
gear, likely will continue to occur by early to mid February. Thus any 
opportunity for the small boat jig fleet to fish for Atka mackerel when 
weather and sea conditions are more favorable is foregone, and 
opportunity is lost for these vessels to harvest Atka mackerel for bait 
or to develop a fresh fish market. Jig gear fishermen who rely on Atka 
mackerel for use as bait in the Pacific cod fishery would need to 
pursue other bait alternatives, including the current practice of 
purchasing bait at $.50/lb that is shipped from the East Coast of the 
United States.
    Under the proposed action, the potential total revenue to vessels 
using jig gear could range from $52,000 to $104,000 annually, depending 
on the percentage of TAC allocated to the jig gear fleet and assuming 
that all Atka mackerel caught are retained and delivered shoreside. 
These results are intended to show a relative potential for revenue. In 
reality, these results tend to overstate the potential gains to these 
vessel operators because of physical limitations in their ability to 
actually harvest the amount of Atka mackerel allocated to them and the 
assumption that all Atka mackerel harvested would be retained.
    Similarly, the potential loss to vessels using trawl gear in at-sea 
processing operations ($90,000-$180,000) is likely overstated to the 
extent that a portion of the Atka mackerel harvested is not retained or 
to the extent that Atka mackerel TACs or TAC allocations are not fully 
harvested during a year. Regulatory provisions that would allow 
incremental allocations to the jig gear fleet upon demonstrated harvest 
capacity may reduce potential losses to the trawl fleet that could 
result from an allocation of Atka mackerel to jig gear vessels. No 
change to the harvest of Atka mackerel by vessels using pot or hook-
and-line gear is assumed, because this species is harvested only as 
bycatch and typically is not retained.
    Significant positive impacts on the jig gear fleet could occur 
under the proposed action to the extent that the jig gear fleet 
realized potential gains through increased harvests of Atka mackerel. 
The potential economic benefit to the 19 catcher vessels using jig gear 
to harvest Atka mackerel in 1995 (small entities) could exceed 5 
percent of existing gross annual revenues currently experienced by this 
fleet. Although quantitative data are not available to assess whether a 
significant positive economic impact would occur, a 5-percent gain in 
total annual revenues is not unreasonable under the proposed action.
    The Regulatory Flexibility Act requires that the IRFA contain a 
description of any significant alternatives that would minimize any 
significant economic impact. Maintaining the status quo would have 
minimized the impact. However, since the impact is positive, the status 
quo alternative was not desirable.
    Any loss in gross annual revenues that would be incurred by trawl 
catcher vessels under the proposed action would likely not be 
significant (exceed 5 percent of a vessel's total annual revenue), 
because these vessel are larger (> 60 ft (18.29 m) in length) and 
participate in other lucrative groundfish fisheries, including the Atka 
mackerel fishery in the Central and Western Aleutians. Potential 
economic impacts to trawl vessels under the proposed action could be 
minimized to the extent that the authority to allocate Atka mackerel to 
vessels using jig gear includes a step-up provision tailored to 
anticipated jig gear harvest capacity. Impact on the trawl fleet would 
be minimized further given that such allocation is restricted to the 
Eastern AI/BS. A copy of the RIR/IRFA is available from NMFS (see 
ADDRESSES).
    This proposed rule has been determined to be not significant for 
the purposes of E.O. 12866.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 679

    Alaska, Fisheries, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Dated: September 15, 1997.
David L. Evans,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
    For the reasons set out in the preamble, 50 CFR part 679 is 
proposed to be amended as follows:

PART 679--FISHERIES OF THE EXCLUSIVE ECONOMIC ZONE OFF ALASKA

    1. The authority citation for 50 CFR part 679 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 773 et seq., 1801 et seq., and 3631 et seq.

    2. In Sec. 679.20, paragraph (a)(8) is redesignated as paragraph 
(a)(9) and new paragraphs (a)(8) and (c)(6) are added to read as 
follows:


Sec. 679.20  General limitations.

* * * * *
    (a) * * *
    (8) BSAI Atka mackerel.--(i) TAC by gear. Vessels using jig gear 
will be allocated up to 2 percent of the TAC of Atka mackerel specified 
for the Eastern Aleutian Islands District and Bering Sea subarea, after 
subtraction of reserves, based on the criteria specified at paragraph 
(a)(8)(ii) of this section. The remainder of the TAC, after subtraction 
of reserves, will be allocated to vessels using other authorized gear 
types.
    (ii) Annual specification. The percentage of the Atka mackerel TAC 
specified for the Eastern Aleutian

[[Page 49467]]

Islands District and Bering Sea subarea that is allocated annually to 
vessels using jig gear will be published in the Federal Register as 
part of the proposed and final annual specifications under paragraph 
(c) of this section. The jig gear allocation will be based on the 
following criteria:
    (A) The amount of Atka mackerel harvested by vessels using jig gear 
during recent fishing years;
    (B) The anticipated harvest of Atka mackerel by vessels using jig 
gear during the upcoming fishing year; and
    (C) The extent to which the jig gear allocation will support the 
development of a jig gear fishery for Atka mackerel while minimizing 
the amount of Atka mackerel TAC annually allocated to vessels using jig 
gear that remains unharvested at the end of the fishing year.
* * * * *
    (c) * * *
    (6) BSAI Atka mackerel allocations. The proposed, interim, and 
final specifications will specify the allocation of BSAI Atka mackerel 
among gear types as authorized under paragraph (a)(8) of this section.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 97-25015 Filed 9-19-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F