[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 8 (Thursday, January 11, 2001)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 2338-2372]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-560]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Parts 600 and 660

[Docket No.; I.D. 121500E]
RIN 0648-AN82


Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; Fisheries off West Coast States 
and in the Western Pacific; Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; Annual 
Specifications and Management Measures

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

ACTION: 2001 groundfish fishery specifications and management measures; 
announcement of the overfished status of darkblotched and widow 
rockfish; announcement of exempted fishing permits; request for 
comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces the 2001 fishery specifications and management

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measures for groundfish taken in the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) 
and state waters off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California. 
The specifications include the levels of the acceptable biological 
catch (ABC) and optimum yields (OYs). The commercial OYs (the OYs 
reduced by expected discard and by amounts expected to be taken in 
tribal, recreational, and compensation fisheries) are allocated between 
the limited entry and open access fisheries. The management measures 
for 2001 are designed to keep landings within the OYs for those species 
for which there are OYs and to achieve the goals and objectives of the 
Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP) and associated 
rebuilding plans for overfished stocks, consistent with the 
requirements of the Magnuson Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) and the guidelines based on the 
National Standards in the Magnuson-Stevens Act published in the Federal 
Register on May 1, 1998. These management measures are intended to 
prevent overfishing and to rebuild Pacific Coast groundfish stocks. 
These measures are also intended to achieve as much harvest of 
healthier stocks as possible given the conservation requirements of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act.

DATES: Effective 0001 hours local time (l.t.) January 5, 2001, until 
the 2002 annual specifications and management measures are effective, 
unless modified, superseded, or rescinded. The 2002 annual 
specifications and management measures will be published in the Federal 
Register. Comments must be received no later than 5:00 p.m, l.t., on 
February 12, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on these actions must be mailed to Donna 
Darm, Acting Administrator, Northwest Region (Regional Administrator), 
NMFS, 7600 Sand Point Way N.E., BIN C15700, Bldg. 1, Seattle, WA 98115-
0070, or faxed to 206-526-6736; or Rebecca Lent, Administrator, 
Southwest Region, NMFS, 501 West Ocean Blvd., Suite 4200, Long Beach, 
CA 90802-4213, or faxed to 562-980-4047. Comments will not be accepted 
if submitted via e-mail or Internet. Information relevant to these 
specifications and management measures, which includes an environmental 
assessment/regulatory impact review (EA/RIR) and the stock assessment 
and fishery evaluation (SAFE) report, is available for public review 
during business hours at the offices of the NMFS Northwest Regional 
Administrator and the NMFS Southwest Regional Administrator, or may be 
obtained from the Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council), at 2130 
SW Fifth Avenue, Suite 224, Portland, OR 97201, phone: 503-326-6352. 
Additional reports referred to in this document may also be obtained 
from the Council.
    Send comments regarding the reporting burden estimate or any other 
aspect of the collection-of-information requirements in this final 
rule, including suggestions for reducing the burden, to one of the NMFS 
addresses and to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Washington, 
D.C. 20503 (ATTN: NOAA Desk Officer). Send comments regarding any 
ambiguity or unnecessary complexity arising from the language used in 
this rule to Donna Darm or Rebecca Lent.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Yvonne deReynier or Becky Renko 
(Northwest Region, NMFS), phone: 206-526-6140; fax: 206-526-6736 and; 
e-mail: [email protected], [email protected]or Svein Fougner 
(Southwest Region, NMFS) phone: 562-980-4000; fax: 562-980-4047 and; e-
mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Electronic Access

    This Federal Register rule also is accessible via the Internet at 
the Office of the Federal Register's website at http://www.access.gpo.gov/su--docs/aces/aces140.html. Background information 
and documents are available at the NMFS Northwest Region website at 
http://www.nwr.noaa.gov/1sustfsh/gdfsh01.htmand at the Council's 
website at http://www.pcouncil.org.

Background

    The FMP requires that fishery specifications for groundfish be 
evaluated and revised, as necessary, each calendar year, that OYs be 
specified for species or species groups in need of additional 
protection, and that management measures designed to achieve the OYs be 
published in the Federal Register and made effective by January 1, the 
beginning of the fishing year. The Magnuson-Stevens Act and the FMP 
require that NMFS implement actions to prevent overfishing and to 
rebuild overfished stocks. This action announces and makes effective 
the final 2001 fishery specifications and the management measures that 
are designed to rebuild overfished stocks through constraining direct 
and incidental mortality, to prevent overfishing, and to achieve as 
much of the OYs as practicable for healthier groundfish stocks managed 
under the FMP. These final specifications and management measures were 
considered by the Council at two meetings and were recommended to NMFS 
by the Council at its November 2000 meeting in Vancouver, WA.

I. Final Specifications

    The fishery specifications include ABCs, the designation of OYs, 
which may be represented by harvest guidelines (HGs) or quotas for 
species that need individual management, and the allocation of the 
commercial OYs between the open access and limited entry segments of 
the fishery. These specifications include fish caught in state ocean 
waters (0-3 nautical miles (nm) offshore) as well as fish caught in the 
EEZ (3-200 nm offshore). The OYs and ABCs recommended by the Council 
and announced in this document are consistent with the Magnuson-Stevens 
Act, the groundfish FMP, the rebuilding plans initially approved by 
NMFS in 2000 (lingcod, bocaccio, and Pacific ocean perch (POP)), and 
the rebuilding plans (canary rockfish and cowcod) adopted by the 
Council at its November 2000 meeting. In a separate Federal Register 
document, NMFS will announce the availability of canary rockfish and 
cowcod rebuilding plans for public review.
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S

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BILLING CODE 3510-22-C

ABC Policy and Overfishing

    The Magnuson-Stevens Act requires the FMP to prevent overfishing. 
Overfishing is defined in the guidelines based on the Magnuson-Stevens 
Act National Standards for implementing the Magnuson-Stevens Act (63 FR 
24212, May 1, 1998) as exceeding the fishing mortality rate (also known 
as the ``exploitation rate'') needed to produce the maximum sustainable 
yield (Fmsy). In 2001 as in 2000, the Council continued its use of 
default exploitation rates as a proxy for Fmsy. Thus, the 2001 ABCs are 
set at the maximum sustainable yield (MSY) proxy. The OYs are set at 
levels that are expected to prevent overfishing, i.e., levels equal to 
or less than the ABCs, according to the Council's default OY policy 
(described later in this document).
    In spring 2000, the Council's Scientific and Statistical Committee 
(SSC) sponsored a workshop to review the Council's groundfish 
exploitation rate policy. The workshop explored the historic use of 
different fishing mortality (F) rates, and found that the Council's 
past practices have generally changed in correlation with new 
information from and perceptions within the scientific community. An F 
rate that is sustainable over time would provide a relatively constant 
annual rate of harvest, yet would allow the stock to maintain itself, 
accounting for reproduction and natural mortality. Starting in the 
early 1990s, the Council used a standard harvest rate of F35%, which is 
the F rate that reduces spawning potential per recruit to 35 percent of 
the unfished stock's spawning potential per recruit. (Usually the size 
of a stock's biomass is discussed in terms of spawning potential.) 
Reducing the spawning potential per recruit is not the same thing as 
reducing the overall population size to 35 percent of the unfished 
population size.
    A fishing rate of F35% can mean very different things for different 
stocks because it is a relationship dependent on the productivity of a 
particular stock. Highly productive stocks have individuals that reach 
maturity quickly and produce many young that then survive to an age 
when they are large enough to be caught in the fishery (recruitment). 
These stocks may be fished at F35% and have a higher percent of the 
total adult population harvested each year than a less productive stock 
fished at F35%. Harvest rate policies must account for several 
complicating factors, including the age and size at which individuals 
in a stock reach maturity, the relative fecundity of mature individuals 
over time, and the optimal stock size for the highest level of 
productivity within that stock.
    The SSC's workshop participants reported that new scientific 
studies in 1998 and 1999 had shown that the F35% and F40% rates used by 
the Council had been too aggressive for Pacific coast groundfish 
stocks, such that some groundfish stocks could not maintain a viable 
population over time. A 1999 study, ``The Meta-Analysis of the Maximum 
Reproductive Rate for Fish Populations to Estimate Harvest Policy; a 
Review'' (Myers, et al.) showed that Pacific coast groundfish stocks, 
particularly rockfish, have very low productivity compared to other, 
similar species worldwide. One prominent theory about the reason for 
this low productivity is the large-scale, North Pacific climate shifts 
that are thought to cycle Pacific coast waters through warm and cool 
phases of 20-30 years duration. Pacific coast waters shifted to a warm 
phase around 1977-78, with ocean conditions less favorable for Pacific 
coast groundfish and other fish stocks.
    After an intensive review of historic harvest rates, and current 
scientific literature on harvest rates and stock productivity, the SSC 
workshop concluded that F40% is too aggressive for many Pacific coast 
groundfish stocks, particularly for rockfish. For 2001 and beyond, the 
Council adopted the SSC's new recommendations for harvest policies of: 
F40% for flatfish and whiting, F50% for rockfish (including 
thornyheads) and F45% for other groundfish such as sablefish and 
lingcod. The Council also adopted a more precautionary OY policy for 
stocks with less rigorous stock assessments. In previous years, Council 
policy had been to assume that fishing mortality on these stocks was 75 
percent of total mortality (fishing mortality + natural mortality). 
Based on SSC recommendations, the Council reaffirmed this policy, but 
added another precautionary adjustment, requiring that OYs for these 
stocks be set at 75 percent of ABCs. These changes toward more 
conservative harvest rates have resulted in lower ABCs and OYs for many 
stocks in 2001 than in 2000 (see footnotes for Table 1).
    The 2001 ABCs, which are based on the best available scientific 
information, available include both landed catch and estimated 
discards, to represent total fishing mortality. ABCs apply only to U.S. 
waters where the assessments included Canadian waters. Stock assessment 
information considered in determining the ABCs is available from the 
Council and was made available to the public before the Council's 
November 2000 meeting, in stock assessment documents and reports, which 
are compiled into the Council's SAFE document (see ADDRESSES). 
Additional information is found in the EA prepared by the Council for 
this action, in the SAFE document for the 2001 specifications, and in 
documents available at the September and November 2000 Council 
meetings.

Default OY Policy

    In 1999, the Council adopted a ``40-10 precautionary policy'' for 
setting OY that is intended to prevent species from becoming 
overfished. A stock that is at 40 percent of its unfished biomass is 
said to be at B40%. Bmsy is the stock biomass level required to achieve 
MSY. The Council uses B40% as as a default proxy for Bmsy for stocks 
with an unknown Bmsy.
    According to the Council's OY policy, if the stock biomass is 
larger than Bmsy, the OY may be set equal to or less than ABC. A stock 
with a current biomass between 25 percent of the unfished level and 
Bmsy (the precautionary threshold)

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is said to be in the ``precautionary zone.'' The Council's default OY 
harvest policy reduces the fishing mortality rate when a stock is at or 
below its precautionary threshold. The further the stock is below the 
precautionary threshold, the greater the reduction in OY will be 
relative to the ABC, until, at B10%, the OY would be set at zero. This 
is, in effect, a default rebuilding policy that will foster quicker 
return to the Bmsy level than would fishing at the ABC level. However, 
the Council may recommend setting the OY higher than the default OY 
harvest policy specifies, if justified, and as long as the OY does not 
exceed the ABC (Fmsy) harvest rate and is consistent with the 
requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Act and complies with the National 
Standard Guidelines. Additional precaution may be added on a case-by-
case basis at any level of current biomass that may be warranted by 
uncertainty in the data or by higher risks of being overfished.
    If a stock falls below 25 percent of its unfished biomass (B25%), 
it is considered overfished, and the Magnuson-Stevens Act requires the 
Council to develop a rebuilding plan within 1 year. Rebuilding plans 
for overfished species have stock-specific allowable harvest rates, 
although those rates may still be consistent with this ``40-10 default 
OY'' policy.

2001 ABCs and OYs

    The species that had ABCs and OYs in 2000 continue to have ABCs and 
OYs in 2001. New assessments were completed and ABCs and OYs were 
developed for darkblotched rockfish, widow rockfish, yellowtail 
rockfish, POP in the Vancouver and Columbia areas, and for lingcod, for 
which separate ABCs were calculated for the northern (Vancouver-
Columbia) and southern (Eureka-Monterey-Conception) areas based on a 
coastwide assessment.
    Five groundfish stocks have been designated as ``overfished'': POP, 
bocaccio (S. paucispinis), lingcod, canary rockfish (S. pinniger), and 
cowcod (S. levis). The OYs for overfished species have been set to be 
consistent with the rebuilding plans for those species. In 2001, two 
additional species, darkblotched and widow rockfish, will be designated 
as overfished. The OYs for darkblotched and widow rockfish are set at 
extremely low levels in anticipation of the rebuilding plans that will 
be required in 2002. In order to reduce associated harvest of bocaccio, 
the chilipepper OY is reduced by almost 25 percent.
    Minor rockfish OYs are subdivided into nearshore (shallowest), 
shelf, and slope (deepest) categories, according to the approximate 
depths where those species are caught. This separation results in six 
distinct OYs for minor rockfish, north and south of 40 deg.10' N. lat. 
For species that have rudimentary or no assessments, precautionary 
adjustments to the OYs continue to be made as in 2000. The 40-10 
harvest policy continues to be used for assessed stocks where the 
biomass is estimated to be between 25 and 40 percent of the unfished 
biomass. Minor rockfish OYs and allocations are incorporated in Table 
1a by category. Rockfish species in the nearshore, shelf, and slope 
categories are listed in paragraph IV.A.(21) and minor rockfish species 
are listed in Table 2.
    As a result of the constraining management measures imposed to 
protect and rebuild overfished species, a number of the OYs may not be 
achieved in 2001, particularly for those shelf rockfish species that 
are not overfished but that are caught with species that are 
overfished. It is difficult to forecast what the actual catch of these 
relatively healthy species will be, but to lower the OYs for these 
species could unnecessarily constrain the fishery.
    Several changes were made during 2000 that affect the ABCs and OYs 
for 2001: (1) Adoption of new default harvest rates with the default 
Fmsy proxy of F50% for rockfish and F40% for Pacific whiting and 
flatfish, and F45% for other groundfish species, resulting in lower 
harvest recommendations for many species; (2) the use of Experimental 
Data Collection Program (EDCP) data to derive new discard rates for 
shortspine (20 percent) and longspine thornyhead (17 percent), and new 
sector specific discard rates for sablefish north of 36 deg. N. lat. 
that affect the landed catch OY; (3) completion of a new assessment for 
darkblotched rockfish, which raised uncertainty about historical catch 
during the 1960s and 1970s, resulting in an ABC range with the lower 
ABC based on the assumption that 10 percent of the historical red 
rockfish catch in foreign fisheries was darkblotched rockfish and the 
upper ABC based on the assumption that 0 percent was darkblotched; and 
(4) Adoption by the Council of rebuilding plans for canary rockfish and 
cowcod.
    In 2001, as in 2000, unless otherwise specified, OYs and 
allocations represent total catch, and, where possible, the expected 
landed catch equivalent is calculated. This approach provides greater 
management flexibility if new information becomes available inseason 
because managers will then be able to modify discard estimates and 
management measures inseason. Derivations of the ABCs and OYs for the 
individual groundfish species are explained in detail in Council 
documents from their September 2000 and November 2000 meetings, and in 
the Council's SAFE document (which includes the most recent stock 
assessments) and are summarized in this document in Table 1a. 
Derivations of commercial HGs, limited entry and open access 
allocations, and landed catch equivalents appear in the footnotes to 
Table 1a, listed at the end of Table 1b.
    Management measures designed to rebuild overfished species, or to 
prevent overfishing or to prevent a species from becoming overfished 
may restrict the harvest of relatively healthy stocks that are 
harvested with the overfished species. Consequently, fishers may not be 
allowed to harvest the entire OYs of these associated healthy stocks.

Determinations of Overfished Stock Status and Rebuilding Plans

    The status of the resource is evaluated against the requirements of 
the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the guidelines based on the National 
Standards, and the FMP. A species is overfished if its current biomass 
is less than 25 percent of the unfished biomass level. The Magnuson-
Stevens Act requires that a rebuilding plan be prepared within one year 
after the Council is notified that the species is overfished.
    Requirements for developing overfished species rebuilding plans are 
addressed in Amendment 12 to the FMP, which NMFS approved on December 
7, 2000. Before Amendment 12 was submitted for public review (September 
8, 2000, 65 FR 54475), NMFS had approved the Council's first three 
rebuilding plans for lingcod, bocaccio, and POP (September 5, 2000, 65 
FR 53646). During NMFS review of Amendment 12, the agency considered 
whether these three rebuilding plans met the requirements of Amendment 
12 and concluded that they did not. The revocation of NMFS' prior 
approval of the three rebuilding plans was described in the final rule 
to implement Amendment 12 (65 FR 82947 December 29, 2000). NMFS 
determined that while the three rebuilding plans specify adequately 
protective harvest limits for these three species, the rebuilding plans 
did not meet all of the rebuilding plan content requirements described 
in Amendment 12. The groundfish fisheries will continue to operate 
under measures implementing the rebuilding plans for lingcod, bocaccio, 
and POP in 2001. However, NMFS has instructed the Council to re-submit 
rebuilding plans for these three species by January 1, 2002. NMFS has 
also notified the

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Council via this Federal Register document that two additional species 
(dark blotched rockfish and widow rockfish) are overfished and that the 
Council must submit rebuilding plans for these two species within a 
year of this notification.
    For 2001, the bocaccio OY is set at 100 mt, consistent with its 
initial rebuilding plan. The initial POP rebuilding plan indicated that 
the stock was at 13 percent of its unfished biomass, and that with an 
initial annual harvest of about 300 mt, the stock could be rebuilt to 
Bmsy within 47 years. A new POP stock assessment in 2000 estimated that 
the POP stock may be more abundant than suggested by the stock's 1998 
assessment, which had led to the designation of POP as overfished. The 
2000 assessment indicates that the POP stock is no longer below the 
overfished threshold, and that it may be possible to rebuild POP to 
Bmsy within 10 years. Although the new stock assessment supports a 
higher annual harvest than specified in the rebuilding plan, the SSC 
recommended that the Council continue to set the OY consistent with the 
current rebuilding plan in 2001, and re-evaluate the rebuilding 
scenario for 2002. The Council concurred with the SSC, and recommended 
an OY of 303 mt for 2001, in keeping with the initial POP rebuilding 
plan.
    Lingcod also underwent a new, coastwide assessment in 2000. 
Previously, separate lingcod assessments had been done for waters north 
and south of Cape Blanco, with most efforts concentrated in the north. 
The lingcod rebuilding plan and last year's harvest management were 
based on a 1997 northern area assessment and an initial southern area 
assessment in 1999. Because of the strong history of northern area 
assessments and the newness of the southern area assessment, the 
lingcod rebuilding plan applied precautionary exploitation rates from 
the northern stock to the southern area biomass to set a southern ABC. 
For 2000, the lingcod ABCs were 450 mt in the north and 250 mt in the 
south, and the combined coastwide OY was 378 mt. An OY of 378 mt was 
set by using a constant exploitation rate that was estimated to provide 
a 60 percent likelihood that lingcod stocks would rebuild to Bmsy 
within 10 years. The initial rebuilding plan recognized that a new 
assessment of the entire coastwide stock was scheduled for 2000, and 
the Council would use the results to make any necessary adjustments for 
the 2001 fishing year.
    While the lingcod rebuilding plan formally began in 2000, the 
Council had set fairly low lingcod OYs in several years prior to 2000. 
The 2000 lingcod stock assessment determined that lingcod stocks have 
responded favorably to earlier rebuilding efforts. Current assessment 
results show a higher spawning biomass than seen in the 1997 
assessment, which is partially responsible for the higher northern 
lingcod ABC in 2001. The 2000 lingcod assessment finalized and updated 
information from the southern area to show that although southern area 
stocks are below the overfished threshold, they are not as depleted as 
the northern area stocks. Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife 
(WDFW) has extensive involvement in lingcod assessments, and for the 
2000 assessment, that agency conducted an exhaustive analysis of its 
historic lingcod aging methods. WDFW improved and updated its aging 
methods, and found that the new methods showed a younger and more 
productive stock than portrayed in earlier assessments for the northern 
area. For 2001, the northern ABC is 610 mt and the southern ABC is 509 
mt. The combined coastwide lingcod OY is 611 mt, which is the harvest 
level derived from a constant exploitation rate that is expected to 
have a 60-percent likelihood of rebuilding the stock to Bmsy within 9 
years. Thus, although the lingcod OY was increased in 2001, the harvest 
parameters are in keeping with the initial lingcod rebuilding plan.
    In the 2000 annual specifications and management measures document, 
NMFS announced its determination that two additional species were 
considered overfished: canary rockfish and cowcod (January 4, 2000, 65 
FR 221). The Council prepared rebuilding plans for these two species 
and will submit those rebuilding plans for NMFS review in January 2001. 
After receipt of these plans, NMFS will publish a Notice of 
Availability in the Federal Register with a 30-day public comment 
period before making a decision to either approve or disapprove the 
rebuilding plans. Rebuilding measures for all five overfished species, 
plus preliminary rebuilding measures for darkblotched and widow 
rockfish, are included in the 2001 management measures.
    The Council approved a canary rockfish rebuilding plan and 2001 OY 
that will limit total coastwide harvest of the canary rockfish stock to 
93 mt annually for the next 2 years. This plan envisions a 57-year 
rebuilding period, although the actual length of time to rebuild the 
stock depends on its future reproductive successes and annual catch 
levels. The adopted rebuilding period and 2001 OY are based on a 
constant annual catch and a precautionary assumption about the stock's 
relative reproductive success. At the September meeting, the Council 
considered a more pessimistic recruitment forecast that would have 
resulted in an annual OY of 60 mt. An analysis in September-October of 
the regulations that would be needed to achieve this lower OY revealed 
that virtually all commercial fishing for groundfish and much 
commercial fishing for non-groundfish species on the continental shelf 
would have to be eliminated. Complete closure of these commercial 
fisheries would have had dramatic adverse economic effects on fishing 
industries and communities. Moreover, such a closure would have created 
a significant allocation problem between the recreational and 
commercial sectors that would have been difficult to address in such a 
short period of time.
    After consulting with the canary rockfish stock assessment 
scientist at its November meeting, the Council adopted a slightly less 
pessimistic forecast for recent recruitment, which yielded an annual OY 
of 93 mt. However, the Council took a precautionary stance and adopted 
the OY for only the next 2 years. During that time, NMFS will conduct 
another survey of the groundfish resources. This survey is expected to 
produce information directly relevant to the uncertainty regarding 
recent recruitment. The new information will be incorporated into an 
updated stock assessment in 2002, and the canary rockfish OY will be 
subsequently adjusted to meet rebuilding targets. The rebuilding plan 
calls for annual review of the various fisheries that take canary 
rockfish, and includes a mandatory review of the entire plan after two 
years. Moreover, the plan requires the Council to consider all sources 
of canary rockfish fishing mortality in order to reduce the effect of 
the fisheries on the stock, including bycatch in the Pacific whiting, 
fishery, salmon troll, and pink shrimp fishery.
    In order to achieve the OY called for by canary rockfish 
rebuilding, the Council is controlling incidental catch of canary 
rockfish, rather than allocating directed harvest of canary rockfish. 
Adhering strictly to the open access/limited entry allocation of canary 
rockfish that was established under the limited entry program 
(Amendment 6 to the FMP) does not allow this flexibility. However, 
Amendments 12 and 13 to the groundfish plan, which were approved in 
December 2000, recognize that adhering to these allocations may not be 
appropriate or possible for fisheries being rebuilt, and authorize 
deviation

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from these allocations during the rebuilding period. In order to meet 
canary rockfish rebuilding goals while equitably distributing the 
adverse effects of rebuilding among the fleets, the Council has 
recommended suspending the open access/limited entry allocation for 
canary rockfish. The Council has not set a specific open access/limited 
entry canary rockfish allocation, but instead has crafted the most 
reasonable set of management measures to achieve rebuilding. Taking 
these steps to begin rebuilding is particularly appropriate for canary 
rockfish, which is taken incidentally in several state-managed, open 
access fisheries, such as the pink shrimp trawl fishery and the salmon 
troll fishery. The Council does not directly control the amount of 
canary rockfish taken (although it does control the amount landed) in 
the state-managed fisheries.
    The Council's rebuilding measures for canary rockfish and cowcod 
and the ABCs, OYs, and management actions recommended for 2001 are 
consistent with the FMP and the canary rock and cowcod rebuilding 
plans. The draft rebuilding plans endorsed by the Council are 
summarized as follows:

Canary Rockfish

    Areas: coastwide
    Status of stock: 8 to 22 percent of unfished biomass.
    Maximum allowable years to rebuild to MSY: 58 years
    Probability of rebuilding to MSY biomass in 57 years: 52 percent
    Expected time to rebuild: 57 years.
    Fmsy proxy: F50%
    ABC in 2001: 228 mt
    OY in 2001: 93 mt
    Management measures for 2001: Canary rockfish are primarily a shelf 
rockfish species, but may also move into deeper waters as they age, 
commonly ranging from 25 fathoms (60.96 m) to 250 fathoms (609.6 m). 
Historic fisheries for canary rockfish have been concentrated in waters 
of 50-150 fathoms depth. Their range is from the northern Baja 
California waters to the western Gulf of Alaska, and they may be caught 
either in large pelagic schools or dispersed along the rocky bottom. 
The large range and varied habits of canary rockfish make selecting 
rebuilding measures particularly difficult. Canary rockfish are caught 
either directly or incidentally in most West Coast groundfish 
fisheries. Of the 93 mt OY, 5 mt are reserved for harvest associated 
with scientific research, 44 mt are expected to be taken in the 
recreational fisheries, and 44 mt are expected to be taken as 
incidental catch in the commercial fisheries.
    In California and Oregon recreational fisheries, the rockfish bag 
limit is 10 fish, no more than 1 of which may be canary rockfish; off 
Washington the bag limit is 10 fish, no more than 2 of which may be 
either canary rockfish or yelloweye rockfish. California recreational 
fisheries will also close for 2 months (January-February) south of 
Point Conception (and possibly 2 months at the end of the year), and 
for 4 months (January-April) between Point Conception and Cape 
Mendocino, with some fishing allowed shoreward of the 20-fathom depth 
contour. Historically, the bulk of the recreational canary rockfish 
landings have been made in California. Commercial fisheries for 
groundfish and for non-groundfish species that co-occur with canary 
rockfish have been restricted to minimize the incidental catch of 
canary rockfish. California hook-and-line commercial fisheries are 
closed during the same periods and in the same areas as the 
recreational fisheries. Moreover, new landings limits are introduced 
for the summer flatfish and mid-water yellowtail rockfish fisheries to 
reduce opportunities for incidental canary rockfish interception, and 
opportunities for fishing with large footrope bottom trawl gear are 
severely restricted. In the first few months of 2001, the states will 
be working with their shrimp trawl industry on using fish excluder 
devices to reduce incidental canary harvest in that fishery.

Cowcod

    Areas: Point Conception to the U.S.-Mexico boundary.
    Status of stock: 4-11 percent of unfished biomass.
    Maximum allowable years to rebuild to MSY: 98.
    Probability of rebuilding to MSY biomass in 98 years: 55 percent
    Expected time to rebuild: 95
    Fmsy proxy: F50%
    ABC in 2001: 5 mt.
    OY in 2001: 2.4 mt.
    Management measures: Cowcod is a sedentary shelf rockfish species 
that ranges from waters off Washington state southward to Mexico, with 
several concentrated areas of abundance in waters around some of the 
islands and offshore banks of the Southern California Bight. Cowcod is 
one of the largest West Coast rockfishes, growing to 37 inches (95 cm), 
making it a prized recreational fisheries target. In commercial 
fisheries, cowcod is usually caught incidentally to other species, as 
it occurs too infrequently to target efficiently. All directed cowcod 
fishing opportunities have been eliminated in 2001. Retention of cowcod 
is prohibited for all commercial and recreational fisheries. To protect 
cowcod from incidental harvest, the Council has recommended two Cowcod 
Conservation Areas (CCAs) (the Eastern CCA and the Western CCA) in the 
Southern California Bight, delineated to encompass key cowcod habitat 
areas and known areas of high catches. Fishing for groundfish is 
prohibited within the CCAs, except that minor nearshore rockfish, 
cabezon, and greenling may be taken from waters where the bottom depth 
is less than 20 fathoms (36.9 m). A transportation corridor is provided 
through the Western CCA to allow commercial vessels fishing for slope 
rockfish and other groundfish west of the Western CCA to transport that 
groundfish through the Western CCA. The Western CCA is an area south of 
Point Conception that is bound by straight lines connecting the 
following points in the order listed:
    33 deg.50' N. lat., 119 deg.30' W. long.;
    33 deg.50' N. lat., 118 deg.50' W. long.;
    32 deg.20' N. lat., 118 deg.50' W. long.;
    32 deg.20' N. lat., 119 deg.30' W. long.;
    33 deg.00' N. lat., 119 deg.30' W. long.;
    33 deg.00' N. lat., 119 deg.50' W. long.;
    33 deg.30' N. lat., 119 deg.50' W. long.;
    33 deg.50' N. lat., 119 deg.30' W. long.
    The transit corridor through the Western CCA is bounded on the 
north by the latitude line at 33 deg.00'30'' N. lat., and on the south 
by the latitude line at 32 deg.59'30'' N. lat.
    The Eastern CCA is a smaller area west of San Diego that is bound 
by straight lines connecting the following points in the order listed:
    32 deg.40' N. lat., 118 deg.00' W. long.;
    32 deg.40' N. lat., 117 deg.50' W. long.;
    32 deg.30' N. lat., 117 deg.50' W. long.;
    32 deg.40' N. lat., 118 deg.00' W. long.

Overfishing

    None of the 2001 ABCs are knowingly set higher than Fmsy or its 
proxy, none of the OYs are set higher than the corresponding ABCs, and 
the management measures herein are designed to keep harvest levels 
within specified OYs.
    After the 1999 fishing season, NMFS determined that overfishing had 
occurred on three species of rockfish in that year: darkblotched 
rockfish, silvergrey rockfish, and yelloweye rockfish. Changes to the 
rockfish management structure in 2000 that divided minor rockfish into 
three species groups (nearshore, shelf, slope) were partially intended 
to ensure that those species would not be subject to overfishing 
harvest rates in 2000. The Council also adopted a policy for the 2000 
specifications that had reduced

[[Page 2352]]

ABCs by 25 percent to determine OYs for those species with less 
rigorous stock assessments, and by 50 percent to determine OYs for 
those species with no stock assessment. These policies are continued in 
2001.
    Overfishing is difficult to detect inseason for many rockfish, 
particularly these minor rockfish species, because most are not 
individually identified on landing. Species compositions, based on 
proportions encountered in samples of landings, are applied during the 
year. However, final results are not available until after the end of 
the year.

Bycatch and Discards

    The Magnuson-Stevens Act defines bycatch as ``fish which are 
harvested in a fishery, which are not sold or kept for personal use, 
and include economic discards and regulatory discards.'' In the Pacific 
Coast groundfish fishery and in many other fisheries, the term bycatch 
is commonly used to describe nontargeted species that are landed and 
sold or used. The term ``discard'' is used to describe those fish 
harvested that are neither landed nor used.
    Groundfish management measures include provisions to reduce trip 
limit-induced discards and to account for those discards when setting 
ABCs and monitoring harvest levels. Discard rates are used to calculate 
an amount of assumed discard that is subtracted from the annual total 
catch OY to yield a landed catch equivalent. Although there is no exact 
measure of discard amounts in most fisheries, the assumed amounts are 
taken into account to prevent total harvest from exceeding the ABC. 
Certain species are also managed within mixed-stock groups, like the 
``DTS complex'' of Dover sole, thornyheads, and sablefish. For 
groundfish multispecies management, trip limits are set to match the 
known species catch proportions, which may mean reducing trip limits on 
some of the more abundant species to reduce discards of less abundant 
species, or setting trip limits at levels that vary throughout the year 
according to when particular stocks are most aggregated.
    Stock assessments and inseason catch monitoring are designed to 
account for all fishing mortality, including that resulting from fish 
discarded at sea. Discards in the fishery for whiting are well 
monitored and are accounted for inseason as they occur. In the other 
fisheries, discards caused by trip limits have not been monitored 
consistently, so discard estimates have been developed to account for 
this extra catch. A discard level of 16 percent of the total catch, 
previously measured for widow rockfish in a scientific study, is 
assumed for the commercial fisheries for widow rockfish, yellowtail 
rockfish, canary rockfish, and POP.
    For 2001 fisheries, NMFS analyzed the results of the 1995 through 
1998 EDCP, in which trawl vessels voluntarily fished for groundfish and 
either carried observers or completed detailed catch and discard 
logbooks. NMFS determined that EDCP data could provide a useful update 
for discard estimates applied to the ``DTS complex.'' Dover sole 
discard had been estimated at 5 percent of its total catch OY in 2000 
and prior years, and data from the EDCP confirmed that estimate. 
Thornyhead discard estimates changed, however, from 9 percent to 17 
percent of total catch OY for longspine thornyhead, and from 30 percent 
to 20 percent of total catch OY for shortspine thornyhead.
    Sablefish is the fourth species in the DTS complex, and the only 
species in the complex with sector-specific allocations. In 2000 and 
prior years, an estimate of 10-percent discard had been taken off the 
top of the sablefish total catch OY before allocating the remaining 
catch between sectors. For 2001, the Council recommended first 
allocating the total catch OY between fishery sectors, and then 
applying sector-appropriate discard rates to each sector. Tribal 
sablefish longline fisheries were allocated 10 percent of the total 
catch OY (690 mt,), and then were discounted 3 percent of that 
allocation for discards, for a landed catch allocation of 669 mt. The 
remaining 90 percent (6,205 mt) of the total catch OY was discounted 24 
mt for research, then divided between the open access (9.4 percent of 
the non-tribal OY, or 581 mt) and limited entry fisheries (90.6 percent 
of the non-tribal OY, or 5,600 mt). Open access sablefish fisheries are 
primarily hook-and-line daily trip limit fisheries, with an estimated 
discard rate of 8 percent, making the open access landed catch 
allocation 535 mt. The limited entry allocation is divided between the 
trawl sector (58 percent, or 3,248 mt) and the fixed gear sector (42 
percent or 2,352 mt). EDCP data provided a trawl sector discard 
estimate of 22 percent, reducing the trawl landed catch allocation to 
2,533 mt. The limited entry, fixed gear fishery lands most of its 
sablefish in a brief derby with few discard opportunities, similar to 
the tribal sablefish fisheries. Thus, the limited entry, fixed gear 
sablefish discard estimate is also 3 percent, reducing the allocation 
for that sector to 2,281 mt.
    On December 21, 2000, NMFS approved Amendment 13 to the FMP. The 
amendment was intended to respond to Magnuson-Stevens Act bycatch 
provisions. NMFS published a proposed rule to implement Amendment 13 on 
November 21, 2000 (65 FR 69898), which included a full retention 
program for the at-sea whiting fisheries and changes to the annual 
management measures framework to allow better protection of overfished 
species from incidental catch. NMFS will soon publish a final rule that 
will create a regulatory framework for an observer program in the 
shore-based groundfish fisheries. In early 2001, the agency will be 
working with the three West Coast states and the interested public to 
develop an observer coverage plan for the purpose of gathering total 
catch information. NMFS hopes to place observers on groundfish vessels 
in summer/fall 2001. All of these efforts are expected to improve and 
update discard information, data on mixed-stock complex compositions, 
and background data for stock assessments.

II. Limited Entry and Open Access Fisheries

    The FMP established a limited entry program that, on January 1, 
1994, divided the commercial groundfish fishery into the limited entry 
and open access sectors, each with its own allocations and management 
measures. Limited entry and open access allocations are calculated 
according to a formula specified in the FMP, which takes into account 
the relative amounts of a species taken by each component of the 
fishery during the 1984-1988 limited entry window period.
    Groundfish species that had limited entry and open access 
allocations in 2000 continue to be allocated between the two sectors in 
2001. As explained earlier in the section on rebuilding plans, the 
limited entry/open access allocation for canary rockfish is being 
suspended during the rebuilding period as necessary in order to allow 
the Council the flexibility to develop management measures to allow 
access to healthy stocks while protecting canary rockfish. All OYs, and 
all limited entry and open access allocations are expressed in terms of 
total catch. In 2001, as in 2000, estimates of trip-limit induced 
discards that previously were taken ``off the top'' before setting the 
limited entry and open access allocations, will instead be deducted 
only from the limited entry allocations for purposes of estimating the 
landed catch equivalents. Estimates of discards will be applied 
separately inseason to the limited entry and open access allocations as 
data become available. Landed catch equivalents are the harvest goals 
used when adjusting trip

[[Page 2353]]

limits and other management measures during the season. Estimated 
bycatch of yellowtail rockfish and widow rockfish in the offshore 
whiting fishery is also deducted from the limited entry allocations to 
determine the landed catch equivalents for the target fisheries for 
widow and yellowtail rockfish. Although this revised process 
complicates the calculation of the landed catch equivalents for the 
limited entry allocations, it is intended to more appropriately apply 
the discard estimates to the fleet responsible for the discards. 
Discards in most open access fisheries are believed to be small, and no 
discard estimates are applied to the open access fishery at this time. 
However, they may be applied during the season as information becomes 
available.

Open Access Allocations

    The open access fishery is composed of vessels that operate under 
the OYs, quotas, and other management measures governing the open 
access fishery, using (1) exempt gear or (2) longline or pot (trap) 
gear fished from vessels that do not have limited entry permits 
endorsed for use of that gear. Exempt gear includes all types of legal 
groundfish fishing gear except groundfish trawl, longline, and pots. 
(Exempt gear includes trawls used to harvest pink shrimp, spot, or 
ridgeback prawns (shrimp trawls) and, halibut or sea cucumbers south of 
Pt. Arena, CA (38 deg.57'30 N. lat.).
    Open access allocations are derived by applying the open access 
allocation percentages to the commercial OY. The commercial OY is the 
annual OY after subtracting any set-asides for recreational or tribal 
fishing or compensation for conducting resource surveys. For those 
species in which the open access share would have been less than 1 
percent, no open access allocation is specified unless significant open 
access effort is expected.

Limited Entry Allocations

    The limited entry fishery is the fishery composed of vessels using 
limited entry gear fished pursuant to the OYs, quotas, and other 
management measures governing the limited entry fishery. Limited entry 
gear includes longline, pot, or groundfish trawl gear used under the 
authority of a valid limited entry permit issued under the FMP, affixed 
with an endorsement for that gear. (Groundfish trawl gear excludes 
shrimp trawls used to harvest pink shrimp, spot prawns, or ridgeback 
prawns, and other trawls used to fish for California halibut or sea 
cucumbers south of Pt. Arena, CA.) A sablefish endorsement is also 
required to operate in the limited entry non-trawl regular or mop-up 
seasons for sablefish.
    The limited entry allocation (in total catch) is the OY reduced by 
(1) set-asides, if any, for treaty Indian fisheries, recreational 
fisheries, or compensation fishing for participation in resource 
surveys (which results in the commercial OY or quota); and (2) the open 
access allocation. (Allocations for Washington coastal tribal fisheries 
are discussed in section V and, for whiting, at paragraph IV.B.(3).)
    Following these procedures, the Regional Administrator calculated 
the amounts of the allocations that are presented in Table 1a to this 
document. Unless otherwise specified, the limited entry and open access 
allocations are treated as OYs in 2001. There may be slight 
discrepancies from the Council's recommendations due to rounding.

III. 2001 Management Measures

    Before 2000, the major goals of groundfish management were to 
prevent overfishing while achieving the OYs and to provide year-round 
fisheries for the major species or species groups. Over time, however, 
it became apparent that a number of species could not continue to be 
harvested year-round at a constant harvest rate. New legislative 
mandates under the Magnuson-Stevens Act (as amended by the Sustainable 
Fisheries Act in 1996) gave highest priority to preventing overfishing 
and rebuilding overfished stocks to their MSY levels. The National 
Standard Guidelines at 50 CFR 600.310 interpreted this as ``weak stock 
management,'' which means that harvest of healthier stocks may need to 
be curtailed to prevent overfishing or to rebuild overfished stocks. 
Amendment 13 to the FMP, which was approved in December 2000, 
authorizes additional types of management measures to be adopted 
routinely with the annual management measures in order to achieve 
rebuilding.
    Five FMP species have been declared overfished as of January 2000 
(lingcod, bocaccio, POP, canary rockfish, and cowcod), and two more 
species are being declared overfished concurrent with publication of 
this document (darkblotched and widow rockfish). Of these species, 
canary rockfish is the most constraining, as its OY was reduced from 
1,045 mt in 1999 to 200 mt in 2000, and to 93 mt in 2001. Canary 
rockfish is found coastwide on the continental shelf and is caught 
directly or incidentally in most West Coast fisheries (groundfish and 
non-groundfish. In order to rebuild these overfished species, the 
Council chose management measures to divert effort off the sea floor of 
the continental shelf, where lingcod, bocaccio, canary rockfish, 
cowcod, widow rockfish, and, to a lesser extent, POP and darkblotched 
rockfish occur. Management measures for 2001 are designed to orient 
these fisheries away from the shelf, while providing fishing 
opportunities on some, but not all, groundfish species throughout the 
year.
    Management priorities for 2001 were guided by the following goals: 
(1) Prevent overfishing; (2) manage consistent with rebuilding plans 
for overfished species; (3) maximize harvest opportunities for non-
depleted stocks while minimizing, to the extent practicable; the 
discard mortality of other species; (4) provide equitable harvest 
opportunity for both recreational and commercial sectors; (5) within 
the commercial fisheries, achieve limited entry and open access 
allocations, to the extent practicable and (6) maintain year-round 
commercial groundfish fishing opportunities to the extent possible.
    A number of assumptions and considerations were involved in 
developing the management recommendations for 2001. As discussed 
earlier, the chief constraint for 2001 fisheries was the need to 
prevent directed and incidental canary rockfish harvest. Directed 
canary rockfish harvest can be eliminated by reducing trip limits to 
levels that make targeting canary rockfish unprofitable. However, 
reducing incidental interception of canary rockfish to minimal levels 
is much more difficult. For example, widow rockfish directed fishing 
opportunities in 2001 have been reduced because of its newly designated 
status as an overfished species, and reducing widow rockfish target 
levels is expected to also reduce incidental canary rockfish 
interception. Moreover, yellowtail rockfish, which is also often caught 
with canary rockfish, has lower trip limits this year then otherwise 
would have been required to take the yellowtail OY to minimize canary 
rockfish interception. In general, there are few yellowtail rockfish 
targeting opportunities for trawlers in 2001, and most yellowtail 
rockfish landings are allowed only when yellowtail is caught 
incidentally to flatfish landings or in directed midwater yellowtail 
fisheries. Furthermore, flatfish fisheries have been constrained by new 
trip limits, particularly in the summer months when canary rockfish is 
likely to be incidentally taken.
    The Council has also continued its management strategy from 2000 
that prohibited landings of many species by

[[Page 2354]]

vessels using large footrope trawl gear (footropes greater than 8 
inches (20.5 cm) diameter). It is not possible to maintain a year-round 
fishery with bottom trawl gear for all groundfish species without an 
unacceptable level of incidental catch, and it is not possible to 
maintain a year-round commercial fishery if all (or even most) limited 
entry vessels participate all year.
    Recreational fisheries effort has also been reduced to protect 
canary rockfish. A significant portion, 26 mt, of the 93 mt canary 
rockfish OY is expected to be taken in the California recreational 
fisheries. To constrain their recreational fisheries to even this catch 
level, California fishery managers recommended continuing the 2000 2-
month fishery closure south of Point Conception, except for fishing for 
minor nearshore rockfish shoreward of the 20-fathom (36.9 m) depth 
contour (with the potential for an additional closure in the last 2 
months of the year if needed). Between Point Conception and 40 deg.10' 
N. lat., the fishery will be closed in March and April, and expanding 
to a partial closure in May-June, although fishing for minor nearshore 
rockfish shoreward of the 20-fathom (36.9 m) depth contour will be 
allowed. Additional changes to bag limits, hook limits, and size limits 
were also needed to reduce recreational canary rockfish harvest.
    Cowcod protection measures described earlier in the section on 
cowcod rebuilding apply to all fisheries. Cowcod retention is 
prohibited for all fisheries and all gear types. Commercial and 
recreational groundfish fisheries are closed within the CCAs, except 
that fishing for nearshore rockfish is allowed inside 20 fathoms (36.9 
m). The Council is also asking the state of California to further 
protect cowcod by restricting or prohibiting non-groundfish fisheries 
inside the CCAs.
    Recreational fishing restrictions proposed for California are 
intended to ensure that fishing mortality will not exceed limits 
associated with rebuilding plans for bocaccio, canary rockfish, cowcod, 
and lingcod, while not restricting the fisheries so fully that charter 
vessels and associated firms are forced out of business. The 2-month 
closure off southern California is intended to reduce bocaccio catch 
but will provide some protection for all species. The 4-month closure 
off central California will provide additional protection needed for 
canary rockfish as well as reducing the catch of bocaccio and lingcod 
in that area. Reductions in bag limits and hook limits are also 
intended to reduce opportunities for fishers to intercept protected 
species. Closed CCAs will have incidental benefits in protecting 
bocaccio and other rockfish. Cowcod inhabit special types of habitat, 
and fishers (and charter operators) know well how to identify and avoid 
such habitat. Taken together with the proposed restrictions on 
commercial fisheries, the recreational fishery limits are expected to 
keep total fishing mortality under the established OYs.
    Some commercial fishers have commented that they are being unfairly 
constrained relative to recreational fisheries, while some recreational 
fishers have commented that the commercial fisheries are being favored. 
In developing 2001 management measures, the Council sought a fair and 
equitable balance for the two sectors, and also sought to achieve 
needed reductions in total fishing mortality. The Council was concerned 
that further restrictions on recreational fishing (e.g., longer 
closures or lower bag limits) would prevent charter vessels operators 
from running charter fishing trips for a long enough period that they 
would go out of business. Under further restrictions, passengers may 
refuse to pay the price to fish or may not make enough trips in open 
seasons to allow operators to cover their costs. Not only would charter 
vessel operators be affected by changes to recreational fishery 
management, but related businesses would also likely suffer. The closed 
seasons generally cover the months that have historically accounted for 
the largest seasonal catches of bocaccio and other rockfishes.
    Allowable commercial catches of many groundfish are even lower than 
in 2000, but the Council has tried to restructure the timing of 
differential trip limits to provide commercial fisheries with greater 
flexibility in their fishing patterns while not increasing the overall 
catches. Again, this restructuring is intended to limit the extent to 
which fishers would be driven out of business and related firms would 
suffer. Many commercial groundfish fishers have other fishing 
opportunities during the year, and these opportunities were taken into 
account. For example, the small-scale commercial fishers (and 
recreational fishers) in southern California would (under state 
regulations) still be able to fish for certain species in nearshore 
waters while the shelf is closed to protect overfished species.
    Management measures for the limited entry fishery are found in 
section IV. Most cumulative trip limits, size limits, and seasons for 
the limited entry fishery are set out in Tables 3 and 4 of section IV. 
However, the limited entry nontrawl sablefish fishery, the midwater 
trawl fishery for whiting, and the hook-and-line fishery for black 
rockfish off Washington are managed separately from the majority of the 
groundfish species and are not fully addressed in the tables. Their 
framework management structure has not changed since 2000, except for 
the level of trip limits for sablefish and whiting, and is described in 
paragraphs IV.B.(2)-(4) of section IV. Other provisions for the 2000 
fisheries not explicitly addressed above remain in effect for 2001 and 
are repeated in section IV of this document.
    The following management measures, adopted this year as part of the 
annual management measures, are established as routine management 
measures: (1) Commercial trip limits that differ by gear type; (2) 
recreational size limits and hook limits; recreational fileting and 
dressing requirements for rockfish, cabezon, greenling, and lingcod; 
and (3) closed seasons/areas for all fisheries for all groundfish, 
rockfish, lingcod, and cowcod.
    After hearing proposals and advice from its advisory entities and 
public testimony at its November 2000 meeting, the Council recommended 
the following actions for management in 2001.

Limited Entry Trawl

    For the limited entry trawl fishery, the Council recommended a 
suite of gear and cumulative trip limits designed to encourage fishing 
with gear in times and areas where incidental catch of overfished or 
depleted species will be minimized. For 2001, the Council recommended 
continuing the use of differential trip limits for limited entry 
trawlers operating with different trawl gear configurations: bottom 
trawl with footropes greater than 8 inches (20.5 cm) in diameter; 
bottom trawl with footropes smaller than 8 inches (20.5 cm) in 
diameter; and midwater or pelagic trawl. Trawling with footropes that 
have roller gear or other large gear designed to bounce over tough 
rockpiles tends to allow those vessels greater access to areas where 
several of the overfished species congregate. Therefore, landings of 
shelf rockfish are prohibited if large footrope trawls (roller gear) 
are used (or on board the vessel); small amounts of shelf rockfish 
bycatch may be landed if small footrope trawls are used; and, targeting 
healthy shelf rockfish stocks is encouraged only if midwater trawls are 
used. This strategy of differential trip limits for different trawl 
gear types was used in 2000, and initial Oregon Department of Fish and 
Wildlife logbook data show a significant decrease in trawl activity in 
rocky areas of the

[[Page 2355]]

continental shelf. Cowcod prohibitions and closures apply to limited 
entry trawl vessels, although there are few limited entry trawl vessels 
operating south of Point Conception in CCA waters.
    Chafing gear will continue to be prohibited on the body of small 
footrope trawls. Chafing gear protects the net from excess wear when it 
drags against rock piles or the sea floor. The prohibition against 
chafing gear makes the net more vulnerable to damage, and so encourages 
fishers to operate in less rocky areas.
    Trawl vessels using large footrope gear (with footropes greater 
than 8 inches (20 cm) in diameter) are prohibited from landing 
nearshore and shelf rockfish and most flatfish species because their 
ability to fish in rocky areas would result in high incidental catch of 
species that cannot withstand additional fishing effort. Although 
vessels are not prohibited from using large footropes in nearshore and 
continental shelf areas, they are not allowed to retain and sell most 
of the species they would catch from those areas, which was a 
significant disincentive to operate there in 2000. Large footrope 
trawls may still be used on deepwater species of the continental shelf 
and slope, primarily Dover and rex soles, thornyheads, sablefish, and 
deepwater rockfish, fewer of the species needing protection in these 
areas would be encountered. During part of the year, predominantly 
winter months, large footrope trawls may also be used to harvest 
arrowtooth flounder and petrale sole. However, small footrope trawls 
are required for the rest of the year when these species are more 
likely to aggregate with overfished species (See Table 3).
    Trip limits are imposed for arrowtooth flounder from January-April 
and from November-December to discourage targeting on POP, and on all 
flatfish species in the north in May-October to minimize canary 
rockfish bycatch. The lingcod trawl fishery is closed during January-
April and November-December, with only an incidental catch level trip 
limit (400 lb (181 kg) per month) available from May-October. Lingcod 
closures in the winter will reduce the overall harvest and will protect 
spawning fish and males guarding their nests.
    Another way the Council devised to allow harvest of relatively 
abundant stocks is through the use of midwater trawl gear. This gear is 
effective at harvesting certain species above the ocean floor with 
little or no bycatch of bottom-dwelling species such as canary 
rockfish. In fact, the Council believes that using midwater gear may be 
the best way to harvest chilipepper and yellowtail rockfish without 
catching canary rockfish. Consequently, larger 2-month cumulative trip 
limits are provided for vessels using midwater trawl gear to harvest 
yellowtail and chilipepper rockfish. If a fisher chooses to carry more 
than one type of trawl gear on board, any landing will be attributed to 
the gear on board with the most restrictive landing limit. To land the 
maximum amounts of yellowtail and chilipepper rockfish, vessels will be 
required to have only midwater trawl gear on board.
    However, NMFS cannot guarantee that these higher midwater trawl 
limits will be available throughout the year, or in future years. NMFS 
cautions fishers to consider, before purchasing new gear, whether 
investing in new midwater trawl gear is cost effective. For the 
foreseeable future, the Council will be operating under the provisions 
of overfished species rebuilding plans, which will make it difficult 
for the Council to provide consistency in the fishery management 
measures it recommends from year to year.

Limited Entry Fixed Gear

    Limited entry fixed-gear fisheries start the year with the same 
limits as the limited entry trawl fishery when there is no distinction 
based on type of trawl gear. It has the same limits as the small 
footrope trawl fishery when there is a trawl gear distinction, except 
for limits for sablefish, widow rockfish, yellowtail rockfish, 
chilipepper, and nearshore rockfish. Fixed gear cumulative trip limits 
for minor shelf rockfish, canary rockfish, bocaccio, and lingcod are 
the same as the cumulative trip limits for the small footrope trawl 
fishery except for the closed periods for the fixed gear fishery south 
of 40 deg.10' N. lat. Cowcod prohibitions and closures apply to limited 
entry, fixed gear vessels.
    Higher midwater trawl limits are not appropriate for fixed gear. 
Midwater trawls can be used to selectively harvest relatively large 
quantities of yellowtail and chilipepper rockfishes above the sea floor 
with minimal incidental catch of overfished species and at levels far 
exceeding recent landings by most fixed gear. There are no comparable 
and enforceable ways to modify fixed gear to keep it off the bottom and 
away from overfished species on the continental shelf.
    The fixed gear fishery for widow rockfish is provided with a 
cumulative trip limit of 3,000 lb (1,361-kg) per month in 2001, between 
the 20,000-lb (9,072-kg) 2-month midwater trawl limit and the 1,000-lb 
(454 kg) per month small footrope trawl cumulative limit. However, the 
limit for the fixed gear fishery is higher than actual amounts landed 
by most fixed gear vessels in the past.
    The fixed gear limit for yellowtail rockfish in 2001 is kept at the 
same level as for small footrope trawl gear, 1,500 lb (680 kg) per 
month. This limit will accommodate incidental catch rather than a 
target fishery. This limit will restrict the fixed gear fleet somewhat, 
but is intended and expected to minimize incidental canary rockfish 
catch.
    The 2001 chilipepper limit of 2,500 lb (1,134 kg) per month is 
maintained at a lower level than trawl gear, consistent with recent 
landings, because bocaccio are caught in fixed gear fisheries for 
chilipepper.
    Minor nearshore rockfish north of 40 deg.10' N. lat. are managed to 
encourage fishing for black and blue rockfish, which are generally more 
abundant than other nearshore rockfish species. Thus, the limited entry 
fixed gear fishery for nearshore rockfish north of 40 deg.10' N. lat. 
is 10,000 lb (4,536 kg) per 2 months, of which no more than 4,000 lb 
(1,814 kg) may be species other than black or blue rockfish.
    The fixed gear sablefish fishery is managed under regulations at 50 
CFR 660.323(a)(2) that provide for 2 seasons (the regular and mop-up 
seasons) during which cumulative trip limits apply. The rest of the 
year is designated for the ``daily trip limit'' (DTL) fishery, which is 
restricted by the pounds of sablefish that may be landed in each day, 
(300 lb (136 kg) north of 36 deg. N. lat. and 350 lb (159 kg) south of 
36 deg. N. lat.). DTLs may not be accumulated or combined into a larger 
landing. North of 36 deg. N. lat., DTL landings are also counted toward 
a 2-month cumulative limit of 2,700 lb (1,225 kg). South of 36 deg. N. 
lat., a fisher may opt to make one landing per week above 350 lb (159 
kg), but no more than 1,050 lb (476 kg).
    For commercial fisheries, direct targeting and opportunities to 
take overfished species as bycatch are severely curtailed. Fixed gear 
generally has greater access than trawl gear to rockfish living on and 
around high relief rockpiles. To prevent commercial fixed gear vessels 
from fishing for nearshore rockfish, shelf rockfish, and lingcod during 
periods when the recreational fisheries for those species are closed, 
the Council recommended also closing commercial fixed gear fishing for 
those species during the same areas and periods. All limited entry 
fixed gear (pot and longline) vessels south of 40 deg.10' N. lat. are 
prohibited from fishing for nearshore rockfish, shelf rockfish, and

[[Page 2356]]

lingcod, with allowances for vessels fishing inside of the 20-fathom 
(36.9 m) depth contour. (In January and February south of 34 deg.27' N. 
lat., closed except for minor nearshore rockfish inside 20 fathoms 
(36.9 m); in March and April between 40 deg.10' N. lat. to 34 deg.27' 
N. lat., closed; in May and June between 40 deg.10' N. lat. to 
34 deg.27' N. lat., closed except for minor nearshore rockfish inside 
20 fathoms (36.9 m)). Concurrent commercial and recreational closures 
are expected to achieve conservation goals while reducing the conflict 
that sometimes occurs when one gear type is allowed to fish while the 
other gear type is not. The Council expects that these commercial 
closures will also reduce the chance that a commercial vessel could 
take advantage of the recreational closure to target known rockfish 
hotspots available only to nontrawl gear.

Open Access (Hook-and-Line, Troll, Pot, Setnet, Trammel Net)

    The open access nontrawl fishery is managed separately from the 
limited entry fixed-gear fishery. As in the past, open access 
cumulative trip limits continue to be applied mostly to 1-month 
periods, and thornyheads may not be taken and retained north of 36 deg. 
N. lat. Time and area closures are used south of 40 deg.10' N. lat., 
similar to the limited entry fixed gear fisheries and for the same 
reasons. Vessels participating in the open access fisheries with 
nontrawl gear (hook-and-line, troll, pot, setnet and trammel net) south 
of 40 deg.10' N. lat. are prohibited from fishing for nearshore 
rockfish, shelf rockfish, and lingcod, with allowances for vessels 
fishing inside of the 20-fathom (36.9m) depth contour. (In January and 
February south of 34 deg.27' N. lat., closed except for minor nearshore 
rockfish inside 20 fathoms (36.9 m); in March and April between 
40 deg.10' N. lat. to 34 deg.27' N. lat., closed; in May and June 
between 40 deg.10' N. lat. to 34 deg.27' N. lat., closed except for 
minor nearshore rockfish inside 20 fathoms (36.9 m)). The lingcod 
fishery for all open access nontrawl gears is also subject to the same 
closure, size limits, and cumulative trip limits as limited entry fixed 
gear fisheries. As in 2000, the Council wanted to provide a continued 
opportunity to nearshore fishers to selectively harvest black and blue 
rockfish north of 40 deg.10' N. lat., while discouraging excessive 
harvest of other nearshore species. Consequently, the cumulative trip 
limit provides for landings of 3,000 lb (1,361 kg) per 2 months of 
nearshore rockfish, of which no more than 900 lb (408 kg) may be 
species other than black or blue rockfish. Cowcod prohibitions and 
closures apply to all open access vessels.
    In 1998 and prior years, most open access limits were linked to 
(and could not exceed) limited entry limits, so that the open access 
monthly cumulative limits for most species were 50 percent of the 
limited entry 2-month cumulative limits for those species. Since 1999, 
open access cumulative limits have not been linked to limited entry 
cumulative limits. Open access cumulative limits may exceed those for 
limited entry. If a vessel with a limited entry permit uses open access 
gear (including exempted trawl gear) and the open access cumulative 
limit is larger, the vessel will be constrained by the smaller, limited 
entry cumulative limit for the entire cumulative period.

Open Access Exempted Trawl Gear

    Open access exempted trawl gear (used to harvest spot and ridgeback 
prawns, California halibut, sea cucumbers, or pink shrimp) is managed 
with both ``per trip'' limits and cumulative trip limits. These trip 
limits are similar to those in 2000, and the species-specific open 
access limits apply but may not exceed the overall groundfish limits. 
The limits are 500 lb (227 kg) of groundfish per day, not to exceed 
1,500 lb (680 kg) per trip in the pink shrimp fishery. For other 
exempted trawl gears, there is a 300-lb (136-kg) per trip limit. The 
pink shrimp fishery is subject to species-specific limits that are 
different from other open access limits for lingcod, canary rockfish, 
and sablefish. Cowcod prohibitions and closures apply to all open 
access vessels.

Recreational Fishery

    Recreational fisheries are also restricted for conservation 
reasons, particularly for lingcod, canary rockfish, and bocaccio, which 
have significant recreational catches. Washington, Oregon, and 
California each proposed, and the Council recommended, different 
combinations of seasons, bag limits and size limits to best fit the 
needs of their recreational fisheries, while meeting the conservation 
goals.
    For lingcod, Washington closed the recreational fishery for 5 
months (January 1-March 15, October 15-December 31) and raised the bag 
limit from 1 to 2 fish, while maintaining the 24-inch (61 cm) minimum 
size limit. Oregon lowered its bag limit from 2 to 1 lingcod and 
maintained its 24-inch (61-cm) size limit, but removed its 34-inch (86-
cm) maximum size limit. California maintained its 2 lingcod bag limit, 
and a minimum size limit of 26 inches (66 cm), and closed the lingcod 
season January-February south of 34 deg.27' N. lat. and March-June from 
40 deg.10' N. lat. to 34 deg.27' N. lat. As recently as 1998, all three 
states had 3-fish lingcod bag limits and year-round seasons for this 
species. Recreational fisheries measures are more liberal off 
Washington State and somewhat revised in Oregon because of the slightly 
higher lingcod OY in 2001. California fisheries in 2000 achieved the 
bulk of the recreational lingcod allocation and had to be curtailed 
late in the year to prevent the fishery from exceeding the recreational 
lingcod allocation in 2001.
    To prevent overfishing and rebuild overfished rockfish, the states 
took a number of additional actions. Washington maintained its 10 
rockfish bag limit, but added that no more than 2 rockfish could be 
either canary rockfish or yelloweye rockfish, a species on which 
overfishing occurred in 1999. (Yelloweye are not common in trawl 
catches.) Oregon maintained its 10 rockfish bag limit, of which no more 
than 1 may be canary rockfish, a reduction from 3 canary rockfish in 
2000. California maintained its 10 rockfish bag limit, reduced its 
canary rockfish sublimit from 3 fish to 1 fish, and also reduced its 
bocaccio sublimit from 3 fish to 2 fish, and kept its 10-inch (25-cm) 
minimum size limit for bocaccio. California also reduced its hook-per-
pole limit from 3 hooks to 2 hooks. For bocaccio, the 10-inch (25-cm) 
minimum size off California was adopted to discourage the targeting of 
young fish off piers and jetties. Bocaccio smaller than 10 inches (25 
cm) are common in shallow water during their first year of life, before 
they have an opportunity to mature and spawn. Fish caught off piers and 
jetties do not suffer from decompression and are expected to have high 
survive if returned quickly to sea.
    To assist in species identification off California, the entire skin 
must remain on rockfish filets. This requirement provides a more 
effective means of enforcing reductions in bag limits for rockfish, in 
general, and for bocaccio, cowcod, and canary rockfish, in particular, 
because it is difficult to accurately distinguish among rockfish 
species unless the entire skin is attached.
    Size limits are imposed on the following three species to protect 
young fish in nearshore waters off California: cabezon, 15-inch (38-cm) 
size limit; kelp greenling, 12-inch (30-cm) size limit; and California 
scorpionfish (also called sculpin), 10- inch (25-
cm) size limit. These recreational size limits apply to species with a 
conservation need that are of commercial and recreational

[[Page 2357]]

importance. Furthermore, these species are harvested in waters that are 
shallow enough to ensure a high likelihood of survival following 
capture and release. For cabezon, greenling, and California 
scorpionfish, the minimum size limits are intended to provide at least 
50 percent of adult females of each species with an opportunity to 
spawn at least once. California state law subjects commercial fisheries 
off California to the same size limits for these three species.
    Different season closures were chosen north and south of Point 
Conception in order to maximize benefits to bocaccio and canary 
rebuilding, while limiting disruption to the overall recreational 
fishery to 2-month or 4-month periods. Season closures were chosen to 
correspond with the periods of greatest benefit statewide for bocaccio 
and canary rockfish. Historically, over 40 percent of annual 
recreational landings of bocaccio in southern California have occurred 
during January and February, so prohibiting most rockfish landings 
during those months has the highest potential benefit for bocaccio. 
Nearly all canary rockfish catches in California have occurred north of 
Point Conception, where about 39 percent of the catch occurs during 
March-June, which is the greatest proportion of the total annual catch 
taken in any four consecutive months. March-June also accounts for a 
comparatively high proportion of the bocaccio catch north of Point 
Conception.
    Season closures allow for modestly higher trip and bag limits than 
otherwise would be possible under year-round fishing. Season closures 
are also expected to result in fewer discards than otherwise would 
occur. Concurrent seasons for recreational and commercial nontrawl 
fisheries are more cost effective to enforce than staggered seasons and 
minimize conflicts between commercial nontrawl and recreational fishers 
who fish for nearshore and shelf rockfish.
    Additional reductions in bocaccio and canary rockfish landings will 
be realized from lowering the daily bag limits for those species in the 
recreational fishery. Changing the daily bag limit for bocaccio from 
three fish to two fish may reduce recreational bocaccio landings 
between 12 and 23 percent. Likewise, lowering the daily bag limit for 
canary rockfish from three fish to one fish is expected to reduce 
recreational landings of canary rockfish by about 36 percent.
    The most dramatic change to recreational fisheries management for 
groundfish is the introduction of the CCAs and the prohibition on 
cowcod retention. Cowcod has been an attractive target fish for 
recreational anglers because of its rare occurrence and because it is 
one of the largest rockfishes (up to 37 inches (95 cm) in length). 
Council recommendations for cowcod harvest are intended to emphasize 
that cowcod are rare because they have been overfished, and that 
anglers need to avoid cowcod rather than pursue them. Recreational 
fisheries are subject to the same cowcod prohibitions and closures as 
commercial fisheries.

Fishing Communities and Impacts

    The Magnuson-Stevens Act requires that actions taken to implement 
FMPs be consistent with the 10 national standards, one of which 
requires that conservation and management measures ``take into account 
the importance of fishery resources to fishing communities in order to 
(A) provide for the sustained participation of such communities and 
(B), to the extent practicable, minimize adverse economic impacts on 
such communities.'' Commercial and recreational fisheries for Pacific 
coast groundfish contribute to the economies and shape the cultures of 
numerous fishing communities in Washington, Oregon, and California. 
Meeting the needs of fishing communities has become increasingly 
difficult because the Council manages a fishery that is overcapitalized 
and contains stocks that are overfished. In setting this year's 
specifications and management measures, the Council took several steps 
to accommodate the needs of those communities within the constraints of 
Magnuson-Stevens Act requirements to rebuild overfished stocks and to 
prevent overfishing. In general, the Council allows the largest harvest 
possible, consistent with conservation needs of the fish stocks.
    For three of the five overfished species (lingcod, bocaccio, and 
canary rockfish), the Council could have prohibited all landings of 
these species, despite knowing that these three species are caught in 
mixed-stock fisheries. Interception and incidental mortality for these 
stocks are inevitable whether a retention prohibition is in place or 
not. Instead, the Council looked for some minimum level of retention in 
both commercial and recreational fisheries that would allow fishery 
participants to land some of their incidental catch of those species. 
The Council's goal was to set retention at some minimal level that 
would discourage targeting, while allowing fishers to land already-
dead, incidentally caught fish. The retention levels allowed for each 
of these species are below the overfishing level and allow rebuilding, 
but also account for some unintentional catch.
    In addition to measures that cushion the socio-economic effects of 
rebuilding, the Council continued the year-round fishery opportunity 
that is important to the fishing and processing sectors for maintaining 
a continuity of employment. The Council modified the cumulative trip 
limit system that has been used in recent years to extend the fishing 
season throughout the year by providing opportunities for at least some 
groundfish species and by maintaining trawl gear restrictions initially 
adopted for 2000. These gear restrictions use operational and economic 
incentives to prevent bottom trawl fishing with roller gear for some 
species and encourage use of midwater trawl and small footrope trawls 
on the continental shelf where most overfished species occur. These 
strategies were first developed for the 2000 fishery by a group of 
industry participants who met with the Groundfish Management Team (GMT) 
about achieving conservation goals while minimizing effects on the 
industry and coastal communities. Offering higher limits to gear with 
lower bycatch rates reduces bycatch and enhances economic opportunities 
by providing access to healthy stocks.
    Nonetheless, the effects of these 2001 management measures on some 
fishers and communities will be severe, particularly for those without 
other opportunities. For the 2001 fishery, the Council proposed 
stringent harvest levels intended to protect and rebuild overfished and 
depleted stocks. In addition to reducing OYs for overfished stocks, the 
Council also severely constrained harvest on healthy stocks associated 
with those overfished stocks. These measures were needed to ensure that 
rebuilding of overfished and depleted stocks could occur. However, they 
will cause serious socio-economic repercussions as a result of these 
lower harvest levels and the consequent lower landings limits.
    On January 19, 2000, Commerce Secretary William Daley announced 
that the West Coast groundfish fishery qualified as a ``fishery 
failure'' under the Magnuson-Stevens Act. NMFS had determined that this 
``fishery failure'' was the result of several factors, primarily a long 
period of low ocean productivity combined with incorrect assumptions 
about the productivity of groundfish stocks. As discussed earlier in 
the section on the Council's new and more conservative harvest policy, 
recent scientific studies have shown that West Coast groundfish stocks 
have relatively low productivity when compared to other, similar stocks 
throughout the world. Thus, the Council had to conservatively adjusted 
its current

[[Page 2358]]

harvest policies to account for this new information about lower 
groundfish productivity, and set lower harvest limits to rebuild stocks 
that had been inadvertently fished at overly aggressive rates in the 
past.
    In addressing the economic side of the fishery failure, NMFS 
estimated that implementing 2000 OYs and landings limits would result 
in about a 25 percent loss ($9-11 million) in revenue for the industry, 
as compared to 1999 OYs and landings levels. Groundfish harvest is even 
more constrained for 2001 with the implementation of the canary 
rockfish rebuilding plan. Participation in the groundfish fishery, 
particularly for open access fishers, has declined over the past 
several years. In 1994, approximately 1,900 vessels landed groundfish 
in the open access fishery coastwide. In 1999, approximately 1,500 open 
access vessels landed groundfish in 1999. Out of the 400 vessels 
leaving the fishery, approximately 300 had participated in the fishery 
south of Cape Mendocino, CA. Participation in the open access fishery 
is more flexible than participation in the limited entry fishery; open 
access vessels are more likely to move between fisheries from year to 
year, or to try a new economic venture altogether. Thus, open access 
fleet size may be used as a gauge of the overall economic viability of 
the fishery.
    Distribution of the economic effect of the 2001 management measures 
will depend on how well the fishers can adapt to the restrictions. Some 
user groups, particularly those able to use midwater trawl gear, will 
have a greater opportunity to harvest than they would have had without 
gear restrictions, because the Council recommended restrictions that 
encourage fishers to use gear that reduces incidental catch of the 
depleted rockfish. Other fishers will not be able to maintain a viable 
operation at the reduced harvest levels. The Council prepared an EA/RIR 
for this action, which includes a discussion of the economic and social 
effects of these management measures on coastal communities (see 
ADDRESSES).

Summary of Management Changes in 2001

    Section IV below incorporates the regulatory text that applies to 
fishers operating in the Pacific coast groundfish fishery in 2001. Many 
provisions are the same as in 2000, but a number of revisions and 
format changes have been made. New cumulative trip limit periods are 
announced at IV.A.(1)(c) that apply to both limited entry and open 
access fisheries. Explanations of size limit measurements and weight 
conversions are found at paragraph IV.A.(6), including a new filet 
length description for recreational fisheries. The sablefish size limit 
for trawlers and the limited entry, fixed-gear regular and mop-up 
sablefish fisheries have been eliminated. Paragraph IV.A. (11) 
clarifies how cumulative trip limits are applied for a limited entry 
vessel operating in the open access fishery if the open access limit is 
larger than the limited entry limit. Paragraph IV.A.(12) on 
``crossover'' provisions includes new discussions of how crossover 
provisions apply to minor rockfish species and how they apply to the 
DTS complex for limited entry trawlers. Paragraph IV.A.(13) includes a 
list of species that must be sorted. Gear restrictions for the limited 
entry fishery appear in paragraph IV.A.(14); cumulative trip limits 
differ for many species depending on the type of trawl gear used. The 
first days of the major cumulative limit periods, which establish when 
limited entry permit transfers must be completed, are announced in 
paragraph IV.A.(15). Platooning dates for the year 2000 are listed in 
paragraph IV.A.(16). A new paragraph IV.A.(20) is inserted to define 
the CCAs. Classifications of nearshore, shelf, and slope rockfish are 
found at paragraph IV.A.(21), and minor rockfish species are listed in 
Table 2.
    Cumulative trip limits are set into tables, with explanations in 
Section IV. However, the industry is cautioned not to rely on the 
tables alone. The text in Section IV provides cumulative trip limit 
definitions and periods, size limit definitions and conversions, and 
other information that cannot be readily included in a table but must 
be understood in order to correctly use the tables. The sablefish 
allocations and nontrawl sablefish management, Pacific whiting 
allocations and seasons, and ``per trip'' limits for black rockfish off 
Washington State are still presented in text in paragraphs IV.B. 
Discussions of trip limits for exempted trawl gear in the open access 
fishery (paragraph IV.C.), recreational management measures (paragraph 
IV.D.), and tribal allocations and management measures (paragraph V.) 
still remain in the text.

How to Use the Trip Limit Tables

    Cumulative trip limits are applied during the time periods and in 
the areas indicated in Tables 3-5 of Section IV. The cumulative trip 
limit may be taken at any time within the applicable cumulative trip 
limit period. All cumulative trip limit periods start at 0001 hours, 
local time, on the specified beginning date, except for 
B platoon trawl vessels whose limits start on the 
16th of the month (see paragraph IV.A.(16).
    Example 1: Line 2 of Table 3 for the limited entry trawl fishery 
means: North of 40 deg.10' N. lat., the cumulative trip limit for minor 
slope rockfish is 1,500 lb (680 kg) per 2-month period; the 2-month 
periods are January 1-February 28 and March 1-April 30.
    Example 2: The trip limits for bocaccio on Table 4 for limited 
entry fixed gear mean: From January 1 through February 28, the trip 
limit for bocaccio between 40 deg.10' N. lat. and 34 deg.27' N. lat. is 
300 lb (136 kg) each month. However, the fishery for bocaccio is closed 
from March 1 to April 30, which means bocaccio may not be taken, 
retained, possessed or landed between 40 deg.10' N. lat. and 34 deg.27' 
N. lat. during that time period. The cumulative trip limit increases to 
500 lb (227 kg) per month on May 1, but a fisher may not fish ahead on 
that amount (see paragraph IV.A.(2)). Bocaccio taken and retained north 
of 40 deg.10' N. lat. are not explicitly mentioned in the table, which 
means they are included in the trip limit for ``minor shelf rockfish-
north'' (see footnote 5 of Table 4).

IV. NMFS Actions

    For the reasons stated above, the Assistant Administrator for 
Fisheries, NOAA (Assistant Administrator), concurs with the Council's 
recommendations and announces the following management actions for 
2001, including both measures that are unchanged from 2000 and new 
measures.

A. General Definitions and Provisions

    The following definitions and provisions apply to the 2001 
management measures, unless otherwise specified in a subsequent Federal 
Register document:
    (1) Trip limits. Trip limits are used in the commercial fishery to 
specify the amount of fish that may legally be taken and retained, 
possessed, or landed, per vessel, per fishing trip, or cumulatively per 
unit of time, or the number of landings that may be made from a vessel 
in a given period of time, as follows:
    (a) A ``per trip'' limit is the total allowable amount of a 
groundfish species or species group, by weight, or by percentage of 
weight of legal fish on board, that may be taken and retained, 
possessed, or landed per vessel from a single fishing trip.
    (b) 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 l.t. Only one landing of groundfish may be made 
in that 24-hour

[[Page 2359]]

period. Daily trip limits may not be accumulated during multiple day 
trips.
    (c) A cumulative trip limit is the maximum amount that may be taken 
and retained, possessed, or landed per vessel in a specified period of 
time without a limit on the number of landings or trips, unless 
otherwise specified. The cumulative trip limit periods for limited 
entry and open access fisheries, which start at 0001 hours l.t. and end 
at 2400 hours l.t., are as follows, unless otherwise specified:
    (i) The 2-month periods are: January 1-February 28, March 1-April 
30, May 1-June 30, July 1-August 31, September 1-October 31, and, 
November 1-December 31.
    (ii) One month means the first day through the last day of the 
calendar month.
    (iii) One week means 7 consecutive days, Sunday through Saturday.
    (2) Fishing ahead. Unless the fishery is closed, a vessel that has 
landed its cumulative or daily limit may continue to fish on the limit 
for the next legal period, so long as no fish (including, but not 
limited to, groundfish with no trip limits, shrimp, prawns, or other 
nongroundfish species or shellfish) are landed (offloaded) until the 
next legal period. As stated at 50 CFR 660.302 (in the definition of 
``landing''), once the offloading of any species begins, all fish 
aboard the vessel are counted as part of the landing. Fishing ahead is 
not allowed during or before a closed period (see paragraph IV.A.(7)). 
See paragraph IV.A.(9) for information on inseason changes to limits.
    (3) Weights. All weights are round weights or round-weight 
equivalents unless otherwise specified.
    (4) Percentages. Percentages are based on round weights, and, 
unless otherwise specified, apply only to legal fish on board.
    (5) Legal fish. ``Legal fish'' means fish legally taken and 
retained, possessed, or landed in accordance with the provisions of 50 
CFR part 660, the Magnuson-Stevens Act, any document issued under part 
660, and any other regulation promulgated or permit issued under the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act.
    (6) Size limits and length measurement. Unless otherwise specified, 
size limits in the commercial and recreational groundfish fisheries 
apply to the ``total length'': the longest measurement of the fish 
without mutilation of the fish or the use of force to extend the length 
of the fish. No fish with a size limit may be retained if it is in such 
condition that its length has been extended or cannot be determined by 
these methods. For conversions not listed here, contact the state where 
the fish will be landed.
    (a) Whole fish. For a whole fish, total length is measured from the 
tip of the snout (mouth closed) to the tip of the tail in a natural, 
relaxed position.
    (b) ``Headed'' fish. For a fish with the head removed (``headed''), 
the length is measured from the origin of the first dorsal fin (where 
the front dorsal fin meets the dorsal surface of the body closest to 
the head) to the tip of the upper lobe of the tail; the dorsal fin and 
tail must be left intact.
    (c) Filets. A filet is the flesh from one side of a fish extending 
from the head to the tail, which has been removed from the body (head, 
tail, and backbone) in a single continuous piece. Filet lengths may be 
subject to size limits for some groundfish taken in the recreational 
fishery off California (see paragraph IV. D.(1)). A filet is measured 
along the length of the longest part of the filet in a relaxed 
position; stretching or otherwise manipulating the filet to increase 
its length is not permitted.
    (d) Sablefish weight limit conversions. The following conversions 
apply to both the limited entry and open access fisheries when trip 
limits are effective for those fisheries. For headed and gutted 
(eviscerated) sablefish, the conversion factor established by the state 
where the fish is or will be landed will be used to convert the 
processed weight to round weight for purposes of applying the trip 
limit. (The conversion factor currently is 1.6 in Washington, Oregon, 
and California. However, the state conversion factors may differ; 
fishers should contact fishery enforcement officials in the state where 
the fish will be landed to determine that state's official conversion 
factor.)
    (e) Lingcod size and weight conversions. The following conversions 
apply in both limited entry and open access fisheries.
    (i) Size conversion. For lingcod with the head removed, the minimum 
size limit is 19.5 inches (49.5 cm), which corresponds to 24 inches (61 
cm) total length for whole fish.
    (ii) Weight conversion. The conversion factor established by the 
state where the fish is or will be landed will be used to convert the 
processed weight to round weight for purposes of applying the trip 
limit. (The states' conversion factors may differ, and fishers should 
contact fishery enforcement officials in the state where the fish will 
be landed to determine that state's official conversion factor.) If a 
state does not have a conversion factor for headed and gutted lingcod, 
or lingcod that is only gutted; the following conversion factors will 
be used. To determin (A) Headed and gutted. The conversion factor for 
headed and gutted lingcod is 1.5. e the round weight, multiply the 
processed weight times the conversion factor.
    (B) Gutted, with the head on. The conversion factor for lingcod 
that has only been gutted is 1.1.
    (7) Closure. ``Closure,'' when referring to closure of a fishery, 
means that taking and retaining, possessing, or landing the particular 
species or species group is prohibited.(See 50 CFR 660.302.) Unless 
otherwise announced in the Federal Register, offloading must begin 
before the time the fishery closes. [Note: Special provisions are made 
for an at-sea closure at the end of the regular season for the 
sablefish limited entry fishery. See 50 CFR 660.323(a)(2).] The 
provisions at paragraph IV.A.(2) for fishing ahead do not apply during 
a closed period. It is unlawful to transit through a closed area with 
the prohibited species on board, no matter where that species was 
caught, except as provided for in the CCA at IV. A.(20).
    (8) Fishery management area. The fishery management area for these 
species is the EEZ off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California 
between 3 and 200 nm offshore, bounded on the north by the Provisional 
International Boundary between the United States and Canada, and 
bounded on the south by the International Boundary between the United 
States and Mexico. All groundfish possessed between 0-200 nm offshore 
or landed in Washington, Oregon, or California are presumed to have 
been taken and retained from the EEZ, unless otherwise demonstrated by 
the person in possession of those fish.
    (9) Routine management measures. Most trip, bag, and size limits in 
the groundfish fishery have been designated ``routine '', which means 
they may be changed rapidly after a single Council meeting. (See 50 CFR 
660.323(b).) Council meetings in 2001 will be held in the months of 
March, April, June, September, and November. Inseason changes to 
routine management measures are announced in the Federal Register. 
Information concerning changes to routine management measures is 
available from the NMFS Northwest and Southwest Regional Offices (see 
ADDRESSES). Changes to trip limits are effective at the times stated in 
the Federal Register. Once a change is effective, it is illegal to take 
and retain, possess, or land more fish than allowed under the new trip 
limit. This means that, unless otherwise announced in the Federal 
Register, offloading must begin before the time a fishery closes or a 
more restrictive trip limit takes effect.

[[Page 2360]]

    (10) Limited entry limits. It is unlawful for any person to take 
and retain, possess, or land groundfish in excess of the landing limit 
for the open access fishery without having a valid limited entry permit 
for the vessel affixed with a gear endorsement for the gear used to 
catch the fish (50 CFR 660.306(p)).
    (11) Operating in both limited entry and open access fisheries. The 
open access trip limit applies to any fishing conducted with open 
access gear, even if the vessel has a valid limited entry permit with 
an endorsement for another type of gear. A vessel that operates in both 
the open access and limited entry fisheries is not entitled to two 
separate trip limits for the same species. If a vessel has a limited 
entry permit and uses open access gear, but the open access limit is 
smaller than the limited entry limit, the open access limit cannot be 
exceeded and counts toward the limited entry limit. If a vessel has a 
limited entry permit and uses open access gear, but the open access 
limit is larger than the limited entry limit, the smaller limited entry 
limit applies, even if taken entirely with open access gear.
    (12) Operating in areas with different trip limits. Trip limits for 
a species or a species group may differ in different geographic areas 
along the coast. The following ``crossover'' provisions apply to 
vessels operating in different geographical areas that have different 
cumulative or ``per trip'' trip limits for the same species or species 
group. Such crossover provisions do not apply to species that are 
subject only to daily trip limits, or to the trip limits for black 
rockfish off Washington (see 50 CFR 660.323(a)(1)). In 2001, the 
cumulative trip limit periods for the limited entry and open access 
fisheries are specified in paragraph IV.A(1)(c), but may be changed 
during the year if announced in the Federal Register.
    (a) Going from a more restrictive to a more liberal area. If a 
vessel takes and retains any groundfish species or species group of 
groundfish in an area where a more restrictive trip limit applies 
before fishing in an area where a more liberal trip limit (or no trip 
limit) applies, then that vessel is subject to the more restrictive 
trip limit for the entire period to which that trip limit applies, no 
matter where the fish are taken and retained, possessed, or landed.
    (b) Going from a more liberal to a more restrictive area. If a 
vessel takes and retains a groundfish species or species group in an 
area where a higher trip limit or no trip limit applies, and takes and 
retains, possesses or lands the same species or species group in an 
area where a more restrictive trip limit applies, that vessel is 
subject to the more restrictive trip limit for the entire period to 
which that trip limit applies, no matter where the fish are taken and 
retained, possessed, or landed.
    (c) Minor rockfish. Several rockfish species are designated with 
species-specific limits on one side of the 40 deg.10 N. lat. management 
line, and are included as part of a minor rockfish complex on the other 
side of the line.
    (i) If a vessel takes and retains minor slope rockfish north of 
40 deg.10' N. lat., that vessel is also permitted to take and retain, 
possess or land splitnose rockfish up to its cumulative limit south of 
of 40 deg.10' N. lat., even if splitnose rockfish were a part of the 
landings from minor slope rockfish taken and retained north of 
40 deg.10 N. lat. [Note: A vessel that takes and retains minor slope 
rockfish on both sides of the management line in a single cumulative 
limit period is subject to the more restrictive cumulative limit for 
minor slope rockfish during that period.]
    (ii) If a vessel takes and retains minor shelf rockfish north of 
40 deg.10' N. lat., that vessel is also permitted to take and retain, 
possess, or land chilipepper rockfish and bocaccio up to their 
respective cumulative limits south of 40 deg.10' N. lat., even if 
either species is part of the landings from minor shelf rockfish taken 
and retained north of 40 deg.10' N. lat. [Note: A vessel that takes and 
retains minor shelf rockfish on both sides of the management line in a 
single cumulative limit period is subject to the more restrictive 
cumulative limit for minor shelf rockfish during that period.]
    (iii) If a vessel takes and retains minor shelf rockfish south of 
40 deg.10' N. lat., that vessel is also permitted to take and retain, 
possess, or land yellowtail rockfish and POP up to their respective 
cumulative limits north of 40 deg.10' N. lat., even if either species 
is part of the landings from minor shelf rockfish taken and retained 
south of 40 deg.10' N. lat. [Note: A vessel that takes and retains 
minor shelf rockfish on both sides of the management line in a single 
cumulative limit period is subject to the more restrictive cumulative 
limit for minor shelf rockfish during that period.]
    (d) ``DTS complex.'' For 2001, differential trip limits are 
introduced for the ``DTS complex'' (Dover sole, shortspine thornyhead, 
longspine thornyhead, sablefish) north and south of the management line 
at 40 deg.10' N. lat. Vessels operating in the limited entry trawl 
fishery are subject to the crossover provisions in this paragraph 
IV.A.(12) when making landings that include any one of the four species 
in the ``DTS complex.'' [Example: The January-February cumulative limit 
for Dover sole north of 40 deg.10' N. lat. is 65,000 lb (29,484 kg) and 
the cumulative limit for sablefish in that same period and area is 
5,000 lb (2,268 kg), while the cumulative limits south of 40 deg.10' N. 
lat. are 35,000 lb (15,876 kg) for Dover sole and 8,000 lb (3,629 kg) 
for sablefish. Under the crossover provisions, a vessel may not take 
and retain Dover sole north of 40 deg.10' N. lat. and then travel south 
of 40 deg.10' N. lat. in that same 2-month period to take and retain 
the higher sablefish limit in the south.]
    (13) Sorting. It is unlawful for any person to ``fail to sort, 
prior to the first weighing after offloading, those groundfish species 
or species groups for which there is a trip limit, size limit, quota, 
or commercial OY, if the vessel fished or landed in an area during a 
time when such trip limit, size limit, commercial optimum yield, or 
quota applied.'' This provision applies to both the limited entry and 
open access fisheries. (See 50 CFR 660.306(h).) The following species 
must be sorted in 2001:
    (a) For vessels with a limited entry permit:
    (i) Coastwide--widow rockfish, canary rockfish, darkblotched 
rockfish, minor nearshore rockfish, minor shelf rockfish, minor slope 
rockfish, shortspine and longspine thornyheads, Dover sole, arrowtooth 
flounder, rex sole, petrale sole, other flatfish, lingcod, sablefish, 
and Pacific whiting;
    (ii) North of 40 deg.10' N. lat.--Pacific ocean perch, yellowtail 
rockfish, and, for fixed gear, black rockfish and blue rockfish;
    (iii) South of 40 deg.10' N. lat.--chilipepper rockfish, bocaccio 
rockfish, splitnose rockfish.
    (b) For open access vessels (vessels without a limited entry 
permit):
    (i) Coastwide--widow rockfish, canary rockfish, darkblotched 
rockfish, minor nearshore rockfish, minor shelf rockfish, minor slope 
rockfish, arrowtooth flounder, other flatfish, lingcod, sablefish, and 
Pacific whiting;
    (ii) North of 40 deg.10' N. lat.--black rockfish, blue rockfish, 
Pacific ocean perch, yellowtail rockfish;
    (iii) South of 40 deg.10' N. lat.--chilipepper rockfish, bocaccio 
rockfish, splitnose rockfish;
    (iv) South of Point Conception--thornyheads.
    (14) Limited Entry Trawl Gear Restrictions. Limited entry trip 
limits may vary depending on the type of trawl gear that is on board a 
vessel during a fishing trip: large footrope, small footrope, or 
midwater trawl gear.
    (a) Types of trawl gear--(i) Large footrope trawl gear is bottom 
trawl gear, as specified at 50 CFR 660.302 and

[[Page 2361]]

 660.322(b), with a footrope diameter larger than 8 inches (20 cm) 
(including rollers, bobbins or other material encircling or tied along 
the length of the footrope).
    (ii) Small footrope trawl gear is bottom trawl gear, as specified 
at 50 CFR 660.302 and 660.322(b), with a footrope diameter 8 inches (20 
cm) or smaller (including rollers, bobbins or other material encircling 
or tied along the length of the footrope), except chafing gear may be 
used only on the last 50 meshes of a small footrope trawl, measured 
from the terminal (closed) end of the codend. Other lines or ropes that 
run parallel to the footrope may not be augmented or modified to 
violate footrope size restrictions.
    (iii) Midwater trawl gear is pelagic trawl gear, as specified at 50 
CFR 660.302 and 660.322(b)(2). The footrope of midwater trawl gear may 
not be enlarged by encircling it with chains or by any other means. 
Ropes or lines running parallel to the footrope of midwater trawl gear 
must be bare and may not be suspended with chains or other materials.
    (b) Cumulative trip limits and prohibitions--(i) Large footrope 
trawl. It is unlawful to take and retain, possess or land any species 
of shelf or nearshore rockfish (defined at IV.A.(21) and Table 2 to 
Section IV) from a fishing trip if large footrope gear is onboard; this 
restriction applies coastwide from January 1 to December 31. North of 
40 deg.10' N. lat., it is unlawful to take and retain, possess or land 
petrale sole from a fishing trip if large footrope gear is onboard and 
the trip is conducted at least in part between May 1 and October 31; 
cumulative limits for ``all other flatfish'' (all flatfish except those 
with cumulative trip limits in Table 3 to Section IV) are lower for 
vessels with large footrope gear on board if the trip is conducted at 
least in part between May 1 and October 31. South of 40 deg.10' N. 
lat., it is unlawful to take and retain, possess, or land petrale sole 
from a fishing trip if large footrope gear is on board and the trip is 
conducted at least in part during May 1-October 31; cumulative limits 
for arrowtooth flounder and ``all other flatfish'' are lower for 
vessels with large footrope gear on board if the trip is conducted at 
least in part between May 1 and October 31. (See Table 3). The presence 
of rollers or bobbins larger than 8 inches (20 cm) in diameter on board 
the vessel, even if not attached to a trawl, will be considered to mean 
a large footrope trawl is on board. Dates are adjusted for the ``B'' 
platoon (See IV.A.(16)).
    (ii) Small footrope or midwater trawl gear. Cumulative trip limits 
for canary rockfish, widow rockfish, yellowtail rockfish, bocaccio, 
chilipepper, minor shelf rockfish, minor nearshore rockfish, and 
lingcod, as indicated in Table 3 to Section IV, are allowed only if 
small footrope gear or midwater trawl gear is used, and if that gear 
meets the specifications in paragraphs IV.A.(14).
     (iii) Midwater trawl gear. Higher cumulative trip limits are 
available for limited entry vessels using midwater trawl gear to 
harvest widow, yellowtail, or chilipepper rockfish. Each landing that 
contains widow, yellowtail, or chilipepper rockfish is attributed to 
the gear on board with the most restrictive trip limit for those 
species. Landings attributed to small footrope trawl must not exceed 
the small footrope limit, and landings attributed to midwater trawl 
must not exceed the midwater trawl limit. If a vessel has landings 
attributed to both types of trawls during a cumulative trip limit 
period, landings attributed to small footrope gear are counted toward 
the cumulative limit for midwater trawl gear. [Example: The cumulative 
trip limit in January-February for widow rockfish is 20,000 lb (9,072 
kg) per 2 month period, of which no more than 1,000 lb (454 kg) per 
month may be attributed to landings by small footrope trawl gear.]
    (iv) More than one type of trawl gear on board. The cumulative trip 
limits in Table 3 of Section IV must not be exceeded. It is legal to 
have more than one type of limited entry trawl gear on board, but the 
most restrictive trip limit associated with the gear on board applies 
for that trip and will count toward the cumulative trip limit for that 
gear. [Example: If a vessel has large footrope gear on board, it cannot 
land chilipepper, even if the chilipepper is caught with a small 
footrope trawl. If a vessel has both small footrope trawl and midwater 
trawl gear onboard, the landing is attributed to the more restrictive 
small footrope trawl limit, even if midwater trawl gear was used.]
    (c) Measurement. The footrope will be measured in a straight line 
from the outside edge to the opposite outside edge at the widest part 
on any individual part, including any individual disk, roller, bobbin, 
or any other device.
    (d) State landing receipts. Washington, Oregon, and California will 
require the type of trawl gear on board with the most restrictive limit 
to be recorded on the State landing receipt(s) for each trip or an 
attachment to the State landing receipt.
    (e) Gear inspection. All trawl gear and trawl gear components, 
including unattached rollers or bobbins, must be readily accessible and 
made available for inspection at the request of an authorized officer. 
No trawl gear may be removed from the vessel prior to offloading. All 
footropes shall be uncovered and clearly visible except when in use for 
fishing.
    (15) Permit transfers. Limited entry permit transfers are to take 
effect only on the first day of a major cumulative limit period (50 CFR 
660.333(c)(1)); those days in 2001 are January 1, March 1, May 1, July 
1, September 1, and November 1, and are delayed by 15 days (starting on 
the 16th of a month) for the ``B'' platoon.
    (16) Platooning--limited entry trawl vessels. Limited entry trawl 
vessels are automatically in the A platoon, 
unless the B platoon is indicated on the limited 
entry permit. If a vessel is in the ``A'' platoon, its cumulative trip 
limit periods begin and end on the beginning and end of a calendar 
month as in the past. If a limited entry trawl permit is authorized for 
the ``B'' platoon, then cumulative trip limit periods will begin on the 
16th of the month (generally 2 weeks later than for the ``A'' platoon), 
unless otherwise specified.
    (a) For a vessel in the ``B'' platoon, cumulative trip limit 
periods begin on the 16th of the month at 0001 hours, l.t., and end on 
the 15th of the month. Therefore, the management measures announced 
herein that are effective on January 1, 2001, for the ``A'' platoon 
will be effective on January 16, 2001, for the ``B'' platoon. The 
effective date of any inseason changes to the cumulative trip limits 
also will be delayed for 2 weeks for the ``B'' platoon, unless 
otherwise specified.
    (b) A vessel authorized to operate in the ``B'' platoon may take 
and retain, but may not land, groundfish from January 1, 2001, through 
January 15, 2001.
    (c) A vessel authorized to operate in the ``B'' platoon will have 
the same cumulative trip limits for the November 16, 2001, through 
December 31, 2001, period as a vessel operating in the ``A'' platoon 
has for the November 1, 2001, through December 31, 2001 period.
    (17) Exempted fisheries. U.S. vessels operating under an exempted 
fishing permit issued under 50 CFR part 600 also are subject to these 
restrictions, unless otherwise provided in the permit.
    (18) Paragraphs IV.B. and IV.C. pertain to the commercial 
groundfish fishery, but not to Washington coastal tribal fisheries, 
which are described in Section V. The provisions in paragraphs IV.B. 
and IV.C. that are not covered under the headings ``limited entry'' or 
``open access'' apply to all vessels in the commercial fishery that 
take and retain groundfish, unless otherwise stated.

[[Page 2362]]

 Paragraph IV.D. pertains to the recreational fishery.
    (19) Commonly used geographic coordinates.
    (a) Cape Falcon, OR--45 deg.46' N. lat.
    (b) Cape Lookout, OR--45 deg.20'15'' N. lat.
    (c) Cape Blanco, OR--42 deg.50' N. lat.
    (d) Cape Mendocino, CA--40 deg.30' N. lat.
    (e) North/South management line--40 deg.10' N. lat.
    (f) Point Arena, CA--38 deg.57'30'' N. lat.
    (g) Point Conception, CA--34 deg.27' N. lat.
    (h) International North Pacific Fisheries Commission (INPFC) 
subareas (for more precise coordinates for the Canadian and Mexican 
boundaries, see 50 CFR 660.304):
    (i) Vancouver--U.S.-Canada border to 47 deg.30' N. lat.
    (ii) Columbia--47 deg.30' to 43 deg.00' N. lat.
    (iii) Eureka--43 deg.00' to 40 deg.30' N. lat.
    (iv) Monterey--40 deg.30' to 36 deg.00' N. lat.
     (v) Conception--36 deg.00' N. lat. to the U.S.-Mexico border.
    (20) Cowcod Conservation Areas. Recreational and commercial fishing 
for groundfish is prohibited within the Cowcod Conservation Areas 
(CCAs), except that recreational and commercial fishing for minor 
nearshore rockfish is permitted in waters inside 20 fathoms ( 36.9 m). 
It is unlawful to take and retain, possess, or land groundfish inside 
the CCAs, except for nearshore rockfish taken in waters inside the 20-
fathom (36.9 m)depth contour. Commercial fishing vessels may transit 
through the Western CCA with their gear stowed and groundfish on board 
only in a corridor through the Western CCA bounded on the north by the 
latitude line at 33 deg.00'30 N. lat., and bounded on the 
south by the latitude line at 32 deg.59'30''.
    (i) The Western CCA is an area south of Point Conception that is 
bound by straight lines connecting all of the following points in the 
order listed:
    33 deg.50' N. lat., 119 deg.30' W. long.;
    33 deg.50' N. lat., 118 deg.50' W. long.;
    32 deg.20' N. lat., 118 deg.50' W. long.;
    32 deg.20' N. lat., 119 deg.30' W. long.;
    33 deg.00' N. lat., 119 deg.30' W. long.;
    33 deg.00' N. lat., 119 deg.50' W. long.;
    33 deg.30' N. lat., 119 deg.50' W. long.;
    33 deg.50' N. lat., 119 deg.30' W. long.
    (ii) The Eastern CCA is a smaller area west of San Diego that is 
bound by straight lines connecting all of the following points in the 
order listed:
    32 deg.40' N. lat., 118 deg.00' W. long.;
    32 deg.40' N. lat., 117 deg.50' W. long.;
    32 deg.30' N. lat., 117 deg.50' W. long.;
    32 deg.40' N. lat., 118 deg.00' W. long.
    32 deg.40' N. lat., 118 deg.00' W. long.;
    (21) Rockfish categories. Rockfish (except thornyheads) are divided 
into categories north and south of 40 deg.10' N. lat., depending on the 
depth where they most often are caught: nearshore, shelf, or slope. 
(The term `` Sebastes complex'' no longer is used. Scientific names 
appear in Table 2.) New trip limits have been established for ``minor 
rockfish'' species according to these categories (see Tables 2-5).
    (a) Nearshore rockfish consists entirely of the minor rockfish 
species listed in Table 2.
    (b) Shelf rockfish consists of canary rockfish, shortbelly 
rockfish, widow rockfish ( Sebastes entomelas), yellowtail rockfish, 
bocaccio, chilipepper, cowcod, and the minor shelf rockfish species 
listed in Table 2.
    (c) Slope rockfish consists of Pacific ocean perch, splitnose 
rockfish, darkblotched rockfish, and the minor slope rockfish species 
listed in Table 2.
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Limited Entry Fishery

    (1) General. Most species taken in limited entry fisheries will be 
managed with cumulative trip limits (see paragraph IV.A.(1)(c), size 
limits (see paragraph IV.A.(6)), and seasons (see paragraph IV.A. (7)). 
The trawl fishery has gear requirements and trip limits that differ by 
the type of trawl gear on board (see paragraph IV.A.(14)). For the 
first time in 2001, cowcod retention is prohibited in all fisheries and 
groundfish vessels operating south of Point Conception must adhere to 
CCA

[[Page 2364]]

 restrictions (see paragraph IV.A. (20)). Most of the management 
measures for the limited entry fishery are listed above and in Tables 3 
and 4, and may be changed during the year by announcement in the 
Federal Register. However, the management regimes for several fisheries 
(nontrawl sablefish, Pacific whiting, and black rockfish) do not neatly 
fit into these tables and are addressed immediately following Tables 3 
and 4.
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[[Page 2366]]


[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TR11JA01.014

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[[Page 2367]]

    (2) Sablefish. The limited entry sablefish allocation is further 
allocated 58 percent to trawl gear and 42 percent to nontrawl gear. See 
footnote e/ of Table 1a.
    (a) Trawl trip and size limits. Management measures for the limited 
entry trawl fishery for sablefish are listed in Table 3.
    (b) Nontrawl trip and size limits. To take, retain, possess, or 
land sablefish during the regular or mop-up season for the nontrawl 
limited entry sablefish fishery, the owner of a vessel must hold a 
limited entry permit for that vessel, affixed with both a gear 
endorsement for longline or trap (or pot) gear, and a sablefish 
endorsement. (See 50 CFR 663.23(a)(2)(i).) A sablefish endorsement is 
not required to participate in the limited entry daily trip limit 
fishery.
    (i) Regular and mop-up seasons. Starting and ending dates for the 
regular and mop-up seasons, and the size of the cumulative trip limits 
for the regular and mop-up seasons (see 50 CFR 660.323(a)(2)) will be 
announced later in the year.
    (ii) Daily trip limit. The daily trip limit, which is listed in 
Table 4 and which applies to sablefish of any size, is in effect north 
of 36 deg. N. lat. until the closed periods before or after the regular 
season as specified at 50 CFR 660.323(a)(2), between the end of the 
regular season and the beginning of the mop-up season, and after the 
mop-up season. The daily trip limit for sablefish taken and retained 
with nontrawl gear south of 36 deg. N. lat. also is listed in Table 4, 
and continues throughout the year unless otherwise announced in the 
Federal Register because the regular and mop-up seasons do not apply 
south of 36 deg. N. lat.
    (3) Whiting. Additional regulations that apply to the whiting 
fishery are found at 50 CFR 660.306 and at 50 CFR 660.323(a)(3) and 
(a)(4).
    (a) Allocations. The nontribal allocations are HGs, based on 
percentages that are applied to the commercial OY of 162,900 mt in 2001 
(see 50 CFR 660.323(a)(4)), as follows:
    (i) Catcher/processor sector--55,386 mt (34 percent);
    (ii) Mothership sector--39,096 mt (24 percent);
    (iii) Shore-based sector--68,418 mt (42 percent). No more than 5 
percent (3,421 mt) of the shore-based whiting allocation may be taken 
before the shore-based fishery begins north of 42 deg. N. lat.
    (iv) Tribal allocation--See paragraph V.
    (b) Seasons. The 2001 primary seasons for the whiting fishery start 
on the same dates as in 2000, as follows (see 50 CFR 660.323(a)(3)):
    (i) Catcher/processor sector--May 15;
    (ii) Mothership sector--May 15;
    (iii) Shore-based sector--June 15 north of 42 deg. N. lat.; April 1 
between 42 deg.-40 deg.30' N. lat.; April 15 south of 40 deg.30' N. 
lat.
    (c) Trip limits. (i) Before and after the regular season. The ``per 
trip'' limit for whiting before and after the regular season for the 
shore-based sector is announced in Table 3, as authorized at 50 CFR 
660.323(a)(3) and (a)(4). This trip limit includes any whiting caught 
shoreward of 100 fathoms (183 m) in the Eureka area.
    (ii) Inside the Eureka 100-fm (183 m) contour. No more than 10,000 
lb (4,536 kg) of whiting may be taken and retained, possessed, or 
landed by a vessel that, at any time during a fishing trip, fished in 
the fishery management area shoreward of the 100-fathom (183-m) contour 
(as shown on NOAA Charts 18580, 18600, and 18620) in the Eureka area.
    (4) Black rockfish. The regulations at 50 CFR 660.323(a)(1) state: 
The trip limit for black rockfish (Sebastes melanops) for commercial 
fishing vessels using hook-and-line gear between the U.S.-Canada border 
and Cape Alava (48 deg.09'30'' N. lat.) and between Destruction Island 
(47 deg.40'00'' N. lat.) and Leadbetter Point (46 deg.38'10'' N. lat.), 
is 100 lb (45 kg) or 30 percent, by weight of all fish on board, 
whichever is greater, per vessel per fishing trip. These 
per trip limits apply to limited entry and open 
access fisheries, in conjunction with the cumulative trip limits and 
other management measures listed in Tables 4 and 5 of Section IV. The 
crossover provisions at paragraphs IV.A. (12) do not apply to the black 
rockfish per-trip limits.

C. Trip Limits in the Open Access Fishery

    Open access gear is gear used to take and retain groundfish from a 
vessel that does not have a valid permit for the Pacific coast 
groundfish fishery with an endorsement for the gear used to harvest the 
groundfish. This includes longline, trap, pot, hook-and-line (fixed or 
mobile), set net and trammel net (south of 38 deg. N. lat. only), and 
exempted trawl gear (trawls used to target non-groundfish species: pink 
shrimp or prawns, and, south of Pt. Arena, CA (38 deg.57'30 
N. lat.), California halibut or sea cucumbers). Unless otherwise 
specified, a vessel operating in the open access fishery is subject to, 
and must not exceed any trip limit, frequency limit, and/or size limit 
for the open access fishery. The crossover provisions at paragraph 
IV.A.(12) that apply to the limited entry fishery apply to the open 
access fishery as well.
    (1) All open access gear except exempt trawl gear. The trip limits, 
size limits, seasons, and other management measures for open access 
groundfish gear, except exempted trawl gear, are listed in Table 5. The 
trip limit at 50 CFR 660.323(a)(i) for black rockfish caught with hook-
and-line gear also applies. (The black rockfish limit is repeated at 
paragraph IV.B.4.)
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BILLING CODE 3510-22-C

[[Page 2369]]

    (2) Groundfish taken with exempted trawl gear by vessels engaged in 
fishing for spot and ridgeback prawns, California halibut, or sea 
cucumbers. (a) Trip limits. The trip limit is 300 lb (136 kg) of 
groundfish per fishing trip. Limits and closures in Table 5 also apply 
and are counted toward the 300 lb (136 kg) groundfish limit. In any 
landing by a vessel engaged in fishing for spot and ridgeback prawns, 
California halibut, or sea cucumbers with exempted trawl gear, the 
amount of groundfish landed may not exceed the amount of the target 
species landed, except that the amount of spiny dogfish (Squalas 
acanthias) landed may exceed the amount of target species landed. Spiny 
dogfish are limited by the 300 lb (136 kg) per trip overall groundfish 
limit. The daily trip limits for sablefish coastwide and thornyheads 
south of Pt. Conception and the overall groundfish ``per trip'' limit 
may not be multiplied by the number of days of the fishing trip.
    (b) State law. These trip limits are not intended to supersede any 
more restrictive state law relating to the retention of groundfish 
taken in shrimp or prawn pots or traps.
    (c) Participation in the California halibut fishery. A trawl vessel 
will be considered participating in the California halibut fishery if:
    (i) It is not fishing under a valid limited entry permit issued 
under 50 CFR 660.333 for trawl gear;
    (ii) All fishing on the trip takes place south of Pt. Arena; and
    (iii) The landing includes California halibut of a size required by 
California Fish and Game Code section 8392(a), which states: ``No 
California halibut may be taken, possessed or sold which measures less 
than 22 inches (56 cm) in total length, unless it weighs 4 lbs (1.8144 
kg) or more in the round, 3 and one-half lbs (1.587 kg) or more dressed 
with the head on, or 3 lbs (1.3608 kg) or more dressed with the head 
off. Total length means ``the shortest distance between the tip of the 
jaw or snout, whichever extends farthest while the mouth is closed, and 
the tip of the longest lobe of the tail, measured while the halibut is 
lying flat in natural repose, without resort to any force other than 
the swinging or fanning of the tail.''
    (d) Participation in the sea cucumber fishery. A trawl vessel will 
be considered to be participating in the sea cucumber fishery if:
    (i) It is not fishing under a valid limited entry permit issued 
under 50 CFR 660.333 for trawl gear;
    (ii) All fishing on the trip takes place south of Pt. Arena; and
    (iii) The landing includes sea cucumbers taken in accordance with 
California Fish and Game Code, section 8396, which requires a permit 
issued by the State of California.
    (3) Groundfish taken with exempted trawl gear by vessels engaged in 
fishing for pink shrimp . (a) The trip limit is 500 lb (227 kg) of 
groundfish per day, multiplied by the number of days of the fishing 
trip, but not to exceed 1,500 lb (680 kg) of groundfish per trip. The 
following sublimits also apply and are counted toward the overall 500 
lb (227 kg) per day and 1,500 lb (680 kg) per trip groundfish limits:
    (i) Canary rockfish:
    (A) April 1 through 30, 2001: 50 lb (23 kg) per month
    (B) Starting May 1, 2001: 200 lb (91 kg) per month
    (ii) Lingcod:
    (A) April 1 through 30, 2001: closed
    (B) Starting May 1, 2001: 400 lb (181 kg) per month, with a minimum 
size limit (total length) of 24 inches (61 cm) north of 40 deg.10' N. 
lat. and 26 inches (66 cm) south of 40 deg.10' N. lat.
    (C) November 1 through December 31: closed.
    (iii) Sablefish: Starting April 1, 2001: 2,000 lb (907 kg) per 
month.
    (iv) Thornyheads: Closed north of Pt. Conception (34 deg.27' N. 
lat.)
    (b) For all other groundfish species, the trip limits in Table 5 
apply to groundfish taken with exempted trawl gear by vessels engaged 
in fishing for pink shrimp and count toward the overall 500 lb (227 kg) 
per day and 1,500 lb (680 kg) per trip groundfish limits.
    (c) In any trip in which pink shrimp trawl gear is used, the amount 
of groundfish landed may not exceed the amount of pink shrimp landed.
     (d) Operating in pink shrimp and other fisheries during the same 
cumulative trip limit period. Notwithstanding section IV.A.(11), a 
vessel that takes and retains pink shrimp and also takes and retains 
groundfish in either the limited entry or another open access fishery 
during the same applicable cumulative limit period that it takes and 
retains pink shrimp (which may be 1 month or 2 months, depending on the 
fishery and the time of year), the vessel may retain the larger of the 
two limits, but only if the limit(s) for each gear or fishery are not 
exceeded when operating in that fishery or with that gear. The limits 
are not additive; the vessel may not retain a separate trip limit for 
each fishery.
    (4) Landings in Pacific City, OR. For purposes of this paragraph, 
Pacific City, OR, is the area between 45 deg.03'50'' N. lat. and 
45 deg.20'15'' N. lat.
    (a) January 1 to March 31, 2001; October 1 to December 31, 2001: No 
more than 200 lb (91 kg) of minor nearshore rockfish may be landed per 
month in Pacific City, OR.
    (b) April 1 to September 30, 2001: No more than 2,200 lb (998 kg) 
of minor nearshore rockfish may be landed per month in Pacific City, 
OR. Within the 2,200 lb (998 kg) monthly limit, no more than 700 lb 
(318 kg) may be species other than black or blue rockfish.

D. Recreational Fishery

    (1)  California. [Note: California law provides that, in times and 
areas when the recreational fishery is open, there is 20-fish bag limit 
for all species of finfish, within which no more than 10 fish of any 
one species may be taken or possessed by any one person.] For each 
person engaged in recreational fishing seaward of California, the 
following seasons and bag limits apply:
    (a) Rockfish. (i) Cowcod Conservation Areas. Recreational fishing 
for groundfish is prohibited within the Cowcod Conservation Areas, as 
described above at IV.A.(20), except that fishing for minor nearshore 
rockfish is permissible in waters inside of the 20-fathom (36.9 m) 
depth contour.
    (ii) Seasons. North of 40 deg.10' N. lat., recreational fishing for 
rockfish is open from January 1 through December 31. South of 
40 deg.10' N. lat. and north of Point Conception (34 deg.27' N. lat.), 
recreational fishing for rockfish is closed from March 1 through April 
30. This area is also closed to recreational rockfish fishing from May 
1 through June 30, except that fishing for minor nearshore rockfish is 
permitted inside the 20-fathom (36.9 m) depth contour. South of Point 
Conception (34 deg.27' N. lat.), recreational fishing for rockfish is 
closed from January 1 through February 28, except that fishing for 
minor nearshore rockfish is permitted inside the 20-fathom (36.9 m) 
depth contour. Recreational fishing for cowcod is prohibited all year 
in all areas.
    (iii) Bag limits, boat limits, hook limits. In times and areas when 
the recreational season for rockfish is open, there is a 2-hook limit 
per fishing line, and the bag limit is 10 rockfish per day, of which no 
more than 2 may be bocaccio (Sebastes paucispinis) and no more than 1 
may be canary rockfish. Cowcod may not be retained. Bocaccio and canary 
rockfish are not minor nearshore rockfish and thus, may not be retained 
in the area between 40 deg.10' N. lat. and Point Conception (34 deg.27' 
N. lat.) from May 1 through June 30. [Note: California scorpionfish, 
Scorpaena guttata, are subject to California's 10-fish bag limit per 
species, but are not

[[Page 2370]]

 counted toward the 10-rockfish bag limit.] Multi-day limits are 
authorized by a valid permit issued by California and must not exceed 
the daily limit multiplied by the number of days in the fishing trip.
    (iv) Size limits. The following rockfish size limits apply: 
bocaccio may be no smaller than 10 inches (25 cm), and California 
scorpionfish may be no smaller than 10 inches (25 cm).
    (v)Dressing/Fileting . Rockfish skin may not be removed when 
fileting or otherwise dressing rockfish taken in the recreational 
fishery. The following rockfish filet size limits apply: bocaccio 
filets may be no smaller than 5 inches (12.8 cm); California 
scorpionfish filets may be no smaller than 5 inches (12.8 cm); and 
brown-skinned rockfish filets may be no smaller than 6.5 inches (16.6 
cm). ``Brown-skinned'' rockfish include the following species: brown 
(S. auriculatus), calico (S. dalli), copper (S. caurinus), gopher (S. 
carnatus), kelp (S. atrovirens), olive (S. serranoides), speckled (S. 
ovalis), squarespot (S. hopinski), and yellowtail (S. flavidus).
    (b) Roundfish (Lingcod, cabezon, kelp greenling--(i) Seasons. South 
of 40 deg.10' N. lat. and north of Point Conception (34 deg.27' N. 
lat.), recreational fishing for lingcod is closed from March 1 through 
June 30. South of Point Conception (34 deg.27' N. lat.), recreational 
fishing for lingcod is closed from January 1 through February 28.
    (iii) Bag limits, boat limits, hook limits. In times and areas when 
the recreational season for lingcod is open, there is a 2-hook limit 
per fishing line, and the bag limit is 2 lingcod per day. Multi-day 
limits are authorized by a valid permit issued by California and must 
not exceed the daily limit multiplied by the number of days in the 
fishing trip.
    (iv) Size limits. The following roundfish size limits apply: 
lingcod may be no smaller than 26 inches (66 cm) total length, cabezon 
(Scorpaenichthys marmoratus) may be no smaller than 15 inches (38 cm); 
and kelp greenling (Hexagrammos decagrammus) may be no smaller than 12 
inches (30 cm).
    (v) Dressing/Fileting. Cabezon and kelp greenling taken in the 
recreational fishery may not be fileted at sea. Lingcod filets may be 
no smaller than 18 inches (46.1 cm).
    (2) Oregon. The bag limits for each person engaged in recreational 
fishing seaward of Oregon are: 1 lingcod per day, which may be no 
smaller than 24 inches (61 cm) total length; and 10 rockfish per day, 
of which no more than 1 may be canary rockfish.
    (3) Washington. For each person engaged in recreational fishing 
seaward of Washington, the following seasons and bag limits apply:
    (a) Rockfish. There is a rockfish bag limit of no more than 10 
rockfish per day, of which no more than 2 may be canary or yelloweye 
rockfish (S. ruberrimus).
    (b) Lingcod. Recreational fishing for lingcod is closed between 
January 1, 2001, and March 15, 2001, and between October 15, 2001, and 
December 31, 2001. When the recreational season for lingcod is open, 
there is a bag limit of 2 lingcod per day, which may be no smaller than 
24 inches (61 cm) total length.

V. Washington Coastal Tribal Fisheries

    In 1994, the U.S. government formally recognized that the four 
Washington Coastal Tribes (Makah, Quileute, Hoh, and Quinault) have 
treaty rights to fish for groundfish, and concluded that, in general 
terms, the quantification of those rights is 50 percent of the 
harvestable surplus of groundfish available in the tribes' usual and 
accustomed (U and A) fishing areas (described at 50 CFR 660.324).
    A tribal allocation is subtracted from the species OY before 
limited entry and open access allocations are derived. The treaty 
tribal fisheries for sablefish, black rockfish, and whiting are 
separate fisheries, not governed by the limited entry or open access 
regulations or allocations. The tribes regulate these fisheries so as 
not to exceed their allocations.
    The tribal allocation for black rockfish is the same in 2001 as in 
2000. As with non-tribal sablefish allocations, the tribal allocation 
for sablefish in 2001 is revised from prior years. In the past, 10 
percent of the total catch OY was deducted for discard in all 
fisheries. Then, the tribal sablefish allocation was set at 10 percent 
of that landed catch OY, with the remaining 90 percent divided between 
various non-tribal fisheries. For 2001 and beyond, the Council 
recommended dividing the total catch OY according to the customary 
allocations for all sectors, including 10 percent for the tribes, and 
then reducing the allocations for each fishing sector by sector-
specific discard mortality rates. Tribal sablefish fisheries are 
primarily longline fisheries and are estimated to have a 3-percent 
discard mortality rate. Thus, the tribal sablefish allocation is 10 
percent of the total catch OY, 689.5 mt, less 3 percent discard 
mortality (20.7 mt), or approximately 669 mt.
    For 2001, the tribes proposed a Pacific whiting allocation of 
27,500 mt, and the Council voted to adopt this proposal. The 2001 
allocation is based on a ``sliding scale'' proposal presented by the 
Makah Tribe in 1998 that determines the tribal allocation based on the 
level of the overall U.S. OY. The ``sliding scale'' proposal was 
previously used in both 1999 and 2000 to determine the tribal 
allocation. As discussed earlier, the U.S. whiting OY is reduced in 
2001, based on lower estimated stock abundance, to 190,400 mt. Under 
the 1998 Makah ``sliding scale'' proposal, a 190,400 mt U.S. OY results 
in a 27,500 mt Makah whiting allocation. No other tribes proposed to 
harvest whiting in 2001.
    The right of the Washington coastal treaty tribes to harvest 
Pacific whiting in accordance with the legal principles established in 
the ongoing case of U.S. v. Washington, No. 9213, Phase I (W.D. Wash), 
was sustained in Subproceeding 96-2, Order Granting Makah's Motion for 
Summary Judgment (Nov. 5, 1996), and in the separate, consolidated 
cases of Midwater Trawlers Cooperative v. U.S. Department of Commerce, 
Civ. Nos. 96-808R, C96-671R, C99-415R, and C99-500R (W.D. Wash.), Order 
Granting Defendants' Motions for Summary Judgment (July 26, 2000). In 
the latter cases, the court held that the tribes have a treaty right to 
harvest Pacific whiting; that the Federal defendants did not act 
arbitrarily and capriciously in recognizing the tribes' right; that the 
Secretary of Commerce did not act arbitrarily and capriciously in 
extending the tribes' usual and accustomed fishing areas into the 
United States' exclusive economic zone; that the Secretary 
appropriately recognized the tribes as co-managers of the shared 
resources in the final rule providing for tribal groundfish allocations 
(see 50 CFR 660.324(d)); and that the 1999 tribal allocation, which 
represented a compromise of different views of the treaty entitlement, 
was not arbitrary and capricious. This decision has been appealed to 
the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals by non-treaty fishers and by the 
State of Oregon, and briefs will be submitted in the near future.
    Quantification of the treaty right remains an issue. Under the 
applicable treaty rights law, Washington coast treaty tribes have 
treaty rights to harvest half the harvestable surplus of whiting found 
in their usual and accustomed fishing areas, determined according to 
the conservation necessity principle. The conservation necessity 
principle means that the determination of the amount of fish available 
for harvest must be based solely on resource conservation needs. This 
determination is difficult because, with the exception of cases 
involving Pacific halibut (Makah v. Brown Civil No. C-85- 1606R (W.D. 
Wash.) and U.S. v. Washington,

[[Page 2371]]

 Subproceeding No. 92-1 (W.D. Wash.)), the legal and technical 
precedents are based on the biology, harvest, and conservation 
requirements for Pacific salmon and shellfish, which are very different 
than Pacific whiting. Quantifying the tribal right to Pacific whiting 
is further complicated by data limitations, and by scientific 
uncertainties surrounding Pacific whiting biology and conservation 
needs.
    In 1996, the Makah initiated a subproceeding in U.S. v. Washington, 
Civil No. 9213-Phase I, Subproceeding No. 96-2, regarding their treaty 
right to whiting, including the issue of the appropriate quantification 
of that right. This subproceeding is ongoing, with briefing scheduled 
on the quantification issue in early 2001. However, taking into account 
the existing case law in U.S. v. Washington, the Makah Tribe's 1998 
``sliding scale'' proposal and its supporting materials, the Council's 
recommendation for the 2001 tribal allocation, and the continuing 
uncertainties surrounding a precise quantification of the tribal right, 
NMFS will allocate 27,500 mt of Pacific whiting in 2001 to the Makah 
Tribe.
    For some species on which the tribes have a modest harvest, no 
specific allocation has been determined. Rather than try to reserve 
specific allocations for the tribes, which may not be needed by the 
tribes, NMFS is establishing trip limits recommended by the tribes and 
the Council to accommodate modest tribal fisheries. For lingcod, all 
tribal fisheries are restricted to 300 lb (126 kg) per trip. Tribal 
fisheries are not expected to take more than 3 mt of lingcod in 2001. 
For the Sebastes complex and other rockfish species, the 2001 tribal 
longline and trawl fisheries will operate under trip and cumulative 
limits. Tribal fisheries will operate under 300 lb (136 kg) per trip 
limits each for canary rockfish and for thornyheads, and under the same 
trip limits as the limited entry fisheries for all other rockfish. A 
300-lb (136-kg) canary rockfish trip limit is expected to result in 
landings of 1,000-2,000 lb (0.5-1 mt). A 300-lb (136-kg) thornyhead 
limit is expected to result in landings of 8,000-9,000 lb (3-4 mt). 
Because of the small expected tribal groundfish catch, it is not 
anticipated that tribal trip limits will be reduced during the year 
unless OY's are achieved or unless inseason catch statistics 
demonstrate that the tribes have taken half of the available harvest in 
the tribal U and A fishing areas.
    The Assistant Administrator (AA) announces the following tribal 
allocations for 2001, including those that are the same as in 2000. 
Trip limits for certain species were recommended by the tribes and the 
Council and are specified here with the tribal allocations:

A. Sablefish

    The tribal allocation is 669 mt, 10 percent of the total catch OY, 
less 3 percent estimated discard mortality.

B. Rockfish

    (1) For the commercial harvest of black rockfish off Washington 
State, a HG of: 20,000 lb (9,072 kg) north of Cape Alava 
(48 deg.09'30'' N. lat.) and 10,000 lb (4,536 kg) between Destruction 
Island (47 deg.40'00'' N. lat.) and Leadbetter Point (46 deg.38'10'' N. 
lat.).
    (2) Thornyheads are subject to a 300-lb (136-kg) trip limit.
    (3) Canary rockfish are subject to a 300-lb (136-kg) trip
    (4) Other rockfish are subject to the same trip limits as the 
limited entry fishery, as published in this document. The tribal limit 
will not change unless the tribal limits are revised separately from 
the limited entry limits.

C. Lingcod

    Lingcod are subject to a 300-lb (136-kg) trip limit.

D. Pacific whiting

    The tribal allocation is 27,500 mt.

VI. Issuance of Exempted Fishing Permits (EFPs)

    At the November 2000, Council meeting, NMFS received an application 
from the States of Washington, Oregon, and California for renewal of 
the EFPs for the shore-based whiting fishery for 2001. An opportunity 
for public comment was provided during the Council meeting. The Council 
recommended that NMFS issue the EFPs, as requested by the States. 
Renewal of these EFPs, to about 40 vessels, would continue an ongoing 
program to collect information on the incidental catch of salmon and 
non-whiting groundfish in whiting harvests delivered to shore-based 
processing facilities.
    Because whiting deteriorates rapidly, it must be handled quickly 
and immediately chilled to maintain the quality. As a result, many 
vessels dump catch directly or near directly into the hold and are 
unable to effectively sort their catch. The issuance of EFPs will allow 
vessels to delay sorting of prohibited species and groundfish caught in 
excess of cumulative trip limits until offloading. Delaying sorting 
until the vessel offloads will allow state biologists to collect 
incidental catch data for total catch estimates while maintaining 
whiting quality. Without an EFP, groundfish regulations at 50 CFR 
660.306(b) require vessels to sort out prohibited species and return 
them to sea as soon as practicable with minimum injury. To allow state 
biologists to sample unsorted whiting, it is also necessary to include 
provisions for potential overages of groundfish trip limits which would 
be otherwise prohibited by regulations at 50 CFR 660.306(h). NMFS 
approves the request to renew the EFP for the shore-based whiting 
fishery in 2001.

Classification

    The final specifications and management measures for 2001 are 
issued under the authority of, and are in accordance with, the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act, the FMP, and 50 CFR parts 600 and 660 subpart G 
(the regulations implementing the FMP).
    This package of specifications and management measures is a 
delicate balance designed to allow as much harvest of healthy stocks as 
possible, while protecting overfished and other depressed stocks. Delay 
in implementation of the measures could upset that balance and cause 
harm to some stocks and it could require unnecessarily restrictive 
measures later in the year to make up for the late implementation. Much 
of the data necessary for these specifications and management measures 
came from the current fishing year. The Assistant Administrator for 
Fisheries, NOAA (AA) has determined that there is good cause under 5 
U.S.C. 553(b)(B) to waive prior notice and opportunity for public 
comment for the specifications and management measures. Because of the 
timing of the receipt, development, review, and analysis of the fishery 
information necessary for setting the initial specifications and 
management measures, and the need to have these specifications and 
management measures in effect at the beginning of the 2001 fishing 
year, Amendment 4 to the FMP, implemented on January 1, 1991, 
recognized these timeliness considerations and set up a system by which 
the interested public is notified, through Federal Register publication 
and Council mailings, of Council meetings and of the development of 
these measures and is provided the opportunity to comment during the 
Council process. The public participated in GMT, Groundfish Advisory 
Subpanel, SSC, and Council meetings in September and November 2000 
where these recommendations were formulated. Additional public comments 
on the specifications and management measures will be accepted

[[Page 2372]]

 for 30 days after publication of this document in the Federal 
Register.
    There is no burden for the public to come into compliance with the 
harvest specifications and management measures designed to achieve 
those specifications that are announced by this rule. As described 
above, the interested public has participated in the Council process to 
formulate these regulations. The Council has provided information to 
the industry on the above management measures and specifications 
through the newsletters that it sends to fishery participants. 
Moreover, NMFS has provided notice through the U.S. Coast Guard Notice 
to Mariners, and the states of Washington, Oregon, and California also 
disseminate information. Therefore, the AA finds, for good cause under 
5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3), that it is unnecessary to delay for 30 days the 
effective date of the specifications and management measures. Because 
of the need to have these specifications and management measures in 
effect as close to the beginning of the 2001 fishing year as possible, 
the AA also finds, for good cause under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3), that it is 
contrary to the public interest to delay for 30 days the effective date 
of the specifications and management measures.
    This action has been determined to be not significant for purposes 
of Executive Order 12866.
    Because prior notice and opportunity for public comment are not 
required for the annual specifications and management measures by 5 
U.S.C. 553, or any other law, the analytical requirements of the 
Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601 et seq., are not applicable.
    This action refers to a collection-of-information requirements 
subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). Permit requirements have 
been approved by OMB under control number 0648-203 for Federal 
fisheries permits. The public reporting burden for applications for 
exempted fishery permits is estimated at 1 hour per response; the 
burden for reporting by exempted fishing permittees is estimated at 30 
minutes per response. These estimates include the time for reviewing 
instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and 
maintaining the data needed, and completing and revising the collection 
of information. Send comments regarding these burden estimates or any 
other aspect of the data requirements, including suggestions for 
reducing the burden to NMFS and to OMB (see ADDRESSES).
    Notwithstanding any other provisions of the law, no person is 
required to respond to, nor shall a person be subject to a penalty for 
failure to comply with, a collection of information subject to the 
requirements of the PRA, unless that collection of information displays 
a currently valid OMB control number.
    The President has directed Federal agencies to use plain language 
in their communications with the public, including regulations. To 
comply with this directive, we seek public comment on any ambiguity or 
unnecessary complexity arising from the language used in this rule (see 
ADDRESSES).
    NMFS issued Biological Opinions (BOs) under the Endangered Species 
Act on August 10, 1990, November 26, 1991, August 28, 1992, September 
27, 1993, May 14, 1996, and December 15, 1999 pertaining to the effects 
of the groundfish fishery on chinook salmon (Puget Sound, Snake River 
spring/summer, Snake River fall, upper Columbia River spring, lower 
Columbia River, upper Willamette River, Sacramento River winter, 
Central Valley, California coastal), coho salmon (Central California 
coastal, southern Oregon/northern California coastal, Oregon coastal), 
chum salmon (Hood Canal, Columbia River), sockeye salmon (Snake River, 
Ozette Lake), steelhead (upper, middle and lower Columbia River, Snake 
River Basin, upper Willamette River, central California coast, 
California Central Valley, south-central California, southern 
California), and cutthroat trout (Umpqua River, southwest Washington/
Columbia River). NMFS has concluded that implementation of the FMP for 
the Pacific Coast groundfish fishery is not expected to jeopardize the 
continued existence of any endangered or threatened species under the 
jurisdiction of NMFS, or result in the destruction or adverse 
modification of critical habitat. This action is within the scope of 
these consultations. NMFS has re-initiated consultation on the Pacific 
whiting fishery associated with the BO issued on December 15, 1999. 
During the 2000 whiting season, the whiting fisheries exceeded the 
chinook bycatch amount specified in the Biological Opinion's incidental 
take statement's incidental take estimates, 11,000 fish, by 
approximately 500 fish. The re-initiation will focus primarily on 
additional actions that the whiting fisheries would take to reduce 
chinook interception, such as time/area management. NMFS expects that 
the re-initiated BO will be complete by May 2001. During the 
reinitiation, fishing under the FMP is within the scope of the December 
15, 1999 BO, so long as the annual incidental take of chinook stays 
under the 11,000 fish bycatch limit. Because the majority of the catch 
will occur in late spring and summer. It is highly unlikely that the 
11,000 fish bycatch limit will be exceeded.
    The Council prepared an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for 
the FMP in 1982 and prepared Supplemental EISs for Amendments 4(1990) 
and 6 (1992) in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act 
(NEPA). In addition, the Council prepared an environmental assessment 
for this action.
    This action would set 2001 fishery specification and management 
measures that are designed to rebuild overfished stocks through 
constraining direct and incidental mortality, to prevent overfishing, 
and to achieve as much of the OYs as practicable for healthier 
groundfish stocks managed under the FMP. Five species managed under the 
FMP have been determined to be overfished: lingcod, bocaccio, POP, 
canary rockfish, and cowcod. NMFS is declaring two additional species 
(widow and darkblotched rockfish) overfished. Under the Magnuson-
Stevens Act requirements for protecting overfished species, the 2001 
management measures have been designed to keep directed and incidental 
catch of overfished species at levels that will allow those species to 
rebuild their populations. For 2001, commercial landings limits and 
recreational bag limits have been reduced, and time area closures have 
been expanded to protect overfished species. These fisheries have been 
operating under protective measures for several years.
    Based on the biological, physical and socio-economic impacts of the 
alternatives that have been assessed in the EA, it was determined that 
implementation of the 2001 specifications and management measures would 
not significantly affect the quality of the human environment. 
Therefore, the preparation of an EIS for this action is not required by 
Section 102(2)(C) of NEPA or its implementing regulations.

    Dated: January 4, 2001.
William T. Hogarth,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
[FR Doc. 01-560 Filed 1-5-01; 4:17 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S