[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 226 (Wednesday, November 24, 1999)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 66158-66159]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-30657]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[Docket No. 991118308-9308-01; I.D. 101899C]
RIN 0648-AN33


Fisheries off West Coast States and in the Western Pacific; 
Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; Control Date

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

ACTION: Advance notice of proposed rulemaking; notice of control date 
for the Pacific Coast groundfish fishery; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: This document announces a control date of September 16, 1999, 
after which vessels eligible for benefits under the American Fisheries 
Act (AFA) may be subject to restrictions on participation in the 
Pacific Coast groundfish fisheries. The intended effect of announcing 
this control date is to discourage speculative entry into the Pacific 
coast groundfish fisheries by AFA-qualified vessels while the Pacific 
Fishery Management Council (Council) develops recommendations to 
protect the Pacific Coast groundfish fisheries from adverse impacts 
caused by the AFA.

DATES: Comments may be submitted in writing by December 27, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to Jerry Mallet, Chairman, Pacific 
Fishery Management Council, 2130 SW Fifth Avenue, Suite 224, Portland, 
OR 97201.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The Pacific Fishery Management Council 
at 503-326-6352; or Bill Robinson at 206-526-6140; or Svein Fougner at 
562-980-4000.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Pacific Fishery Management Council 
(Council) established under section 302(a)(1)(F) of the Magnuson-
Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 
1852(a)(1)(F)) is considering recommendations for approval by NMFS of 
conservation and management measures to protect fisheries under its 
jurisdiction and the participants in those fisheries from adverse 
impacts caused by the AFA (Pub.L. 105-277, Div. C, Title II, October 
21, 1998, 112 Stat. 2681-616; 16 U.S.C. 1851 note; 46 U.S.C. 101 note, 
12102, 31322; 46 App. 1274 note), or by any

[[Page 66159]]

fishery cooperatives in the Alaska pollock fishery, as required by 
section 211(c)(3)(A) of the AFA. Pursuant to the AFA, the Council's 
recommendations are due to NMFS not later than July 1, 2000. The AFA at 
section 211(b)(5) also provides that catcher/processors and motherships 
eligible under the AFA are prohibited from harvesting or processing 
fish in any U.S. fishery outside Alaska, except the Pacific whiting 
fishery, unless harvesting or processing by those catcher-processor 
motherships is specifically authorized under a fishery management plan. 
Pacific whiting is a major component of the species aggregate in the 
Pacific Coast groundfish fisheries.
    Conservation and management measures under consideration by the 
Council to offset adverse impacts of the AFA include possible 
restrictions on participation in the Pacific coast groundfish fisheries 
by vessels eligible for benefits under the AFA (AFA-qualified vessels). 
During its September 13-17, 1999, meeting in Portland, Oregon, the 
Council adopted September 16, 1999, as a control date to be used in 
placing restrictions on participation in the Pacific Coast groundfish 
fisheries by AFA-qualified vessels. In making this announcement, NMFS 
and the Council intend to prevent speculative entry into the fisheries 
after the control date by AFA-qualified vessels, while the Council 
develops and analyzes its recommendations. The control date applies to 
catcher vessels in the mothership and shore-based sectors of the 
Pacific whiting fishery, and to all other non-whiting groundfish 
fisheries in which catch is landed shoreside. The control date provides 
notice to AFA-qualified vessels that might seek to participate in the 
Pacific Coast groundfish fisheries that current requirements for 
accessing these fisheries may change. Vessels entering the fisheries 
after the control date may be subject to new restrictions that do not 
currently exist, and they may not receive credit for fishing after the 
control date.
    The Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP) was 
approved on January 4, 1982 (47 FR 43964, October 5, 1982), and has 
been amended 10 times. Implementing regulations for the FMP and its 
amendments are codified at 50 CFR part 660, Subpart G.
    The AFA, enacted in 1998, reduced the harvest capacity in the 
Alaska pollock fishery by retiring nine Bering Sea catcher/processors. 
It also redistributed pollock allocations between the inshore and 
offshore sectors, and defined conditions for creating fishery 
cooperatives in the pollock fleet. Vessels that participate in such 
cooperatives are likely to have increased flexibility in arranging 
their fishing schedules and could consider entering additional 
fisheries.
    At its September 13-17, 1999, meeting, the Council and its 
Groundfish Advisory Panel heard proposals from West Coast fishers and 
processors concerned that some AFA-qualified vessels with no previous 
or low levels of participation in the Pacific groundfish fishery will 
increase their fishing effort in the Pacific Coast groundfish fishery. 
A particular problem is posed if AFA-qualified vessels participating in 
pollock fishing cooperatives rearrange their pollock fishing schedules 
to allow them time to fish in non-pollock fisheries such as the Pacific 
Coast groundfish fishery. To participate in most limited entry 
groundfish fisheries vessels only need to purchase a general limited 
entry permit. No permit is required to participate in the open access 
fisheries. Because new permit holders and entrants into the open access 
fishery currently have access rights that are equal to those who have 
historically participated in the fishery, speculative entry may be 
encouraged. Additional effort could exacerbate existing management 
problems and erode the effectiveness of future measures recommended by 
the Council.
    The Council unanimously voted to establish a control date of 
September 16, 1999, and to initiate the development of recommendations 
to restrict AFA-qualified vessels from participating in the Pacific 
Coast groundfish fishery if, during a qualifying period between January 
1, 1994, and September 16, 1999, the vessel: (1) did not harvest at 
least 50 metric tons (mt) of Pacific whiting in the mothership sector; 
(2) did not land at least 50 mt of Pacific whiting in the shore-based 
sector; or (3) did not land groundfish shoreside in the Pacific Coast 
groundfish fishery (not including fish landed in the Pacific whiting 
fishery).
    Implementation of any management measures for the fishery will 
require amendment of the regulations implementing the FMP and may also 
require amendment of the FMP itself. Any action will require Council 
development of a regulatory proposal with public input and a supporting 
analysis, NMFS approval, and publication of implementing regulations in 
the Federal Register. If catch history is used as basis for 
participation, it is likely that AFA-qualified vessel participation in 
the fishery after the control date will receive little or no credit. 
Fishers are not guaranteed future participation in the groundfish 
fishery, regardless of their date of entry or level of participation in 
the fishery.
    This advance notice of proposed rulemaking has been determined to 
be not significant for purposes of Executive Order 12866.

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.; Pub. L. 105-277, Div. C, 
Title II, October 21, 1988.

    Dated: November 18, 1999.
William Fox,
Acting Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
[FR Doc. 99-30657 Filed 11-23-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F