[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 54 (Tuesday, March 20, 2001)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 15656-15661]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-6748]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 679

[Docket No. 010112013-1013-01; I.D. 011101B]
RIN 0648-A082


Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Steller Sea 
Lion Protection Measures for the Groundfish Fisheries Off Alaska; Final 
2001 Harvest Specifications and Associated Management Measures for the 
Groundfish Fisheries Off Alaska; Correction

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

ACTION:  Emergency interim rule; correction.

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SUMMARY:  This document corrects the emergency interim rule 
implementing Steller sea lion protection measures and announcing final 
2001 harvest specifications and associated management measures for the 
groundfish fisheries of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI) 
management area and the Gulf of Alaska (GOA). The emergency interim 
rule was published in the Federal Register January 22, 2001.

DATES:  Effective from January 18, 2001, through July 17, 2001, except 
for 50 CFR 679.22(a)(11)(v), (a)(12)(v), and (b)(3)(iv), which will be 
effective from 1200 hours (Noon) A.l.t., June 10, 2001, through July 
17, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Melanie Brown, Sustainable Fisheries 
Division, Alaska Region, 907-586-7459 or email at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This document corrects text and tables in 
the preamble and regulatory text to 50 CFR part 679 of the emergency 
interim rule implementing Steller sea lion protection measures and 
announcing final 2001 harvest specifications for the groundfish 
fisheries of the BSAI and GOA that was published in the Federal 
Register on January 22, 2001 (66 FR 7276). Also, in the regulatory text 
of the emergency interim rule, Table 21 is reprinted in its entirety 
because it was sent incorrectly for publication.

Corrections

    In the emergency interim rule implementing Steller sea lion 
protection measures and announcing final 2001 harvest specifications 
for the groundfish fisheries of the BSAI and GOA, published on January 
22, 2001 (66 FR 7276), FR Doc. 01-1744, corrections are made as 
follows:
    1. On page 7283, column 1, correct the first complete paragraph to 
read as follows: ``In the GOA, three of the haulout sites that qualify 
for closure to 10 nm under criteria in the 1998-1 BiOp, Point 
Elrington, The Needles, and Glacier Island, lie entirely within Alaska 
State waters. The State of Alaska has developed temporal and spatial 
Steller sea lion protection measures for pollock harvests. Because 
these sites are located in waters under State jurisdiction and the 
State has implemented Steller sea lion protection measures, these sites 
are not established as pollock trawl exclusion zones under this 
emergency rule.''
    2. On page 7287, column 1, in the first paragraph after Table 5 to 
the preamble, line 17, the reference to ``Sec. 679.22(a)(8)'' is 
corrected to read ``Sec. 679.22(a)(12)''.
    3. On page 7287, column 2, line 11 of the incomplete paragraph, the 
reference to ``(Sec. 679.22(a)(8)(iii)(B))'' is corrected to read 
``(Sec. 679.22(a)(12)(iii)(B))''.
    4. On page 7292, Table 11 to the preamble is reprinted to read as 
follows:

   TABLE 11--BERING SEA SUBAREA POLLOCK ALLOCATIONS TO THE COOPERATIVE AND OPEN ACCESS SECTORS OF THE INSHORE
                              POLLOCK FISHERY. AMOUNTS ARE EXPRESSED IN METRIC TONS
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                   A season                               C season
                                     A/B season     inside      B season    C/D season     inside      D season
                                        TAC         SCA\1\     inside SCA      TAC         SCA\1\     inside SCA
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cooperative sector
 Vessels > 99 ft                            n/a       65,036          n/a          n/a          n/a       49,031
Vessels  99 ft                   n/a       16,447          n/a          n/a          n/a       16,447
 Total                                  240,976       81,483       27,161      361,465       39,286       65,478
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Open access sector                          944         3192          106        1,415          154      \2\ 256
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total inshore                           241,920       81,802       27,267      362,880       39,440       65,734
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\Steller sea lion conservation area established at Sec.  679.22(a)(11)(iv).

[[Page 15657]]

 
\2\ SCA limitations for vessels less than or equal to 99 ft LOA that are not participating in a cooperative will
  be established on an inseason basis in accordance with Sec.  679.22(a)(11)(iv)(D)( 2) which specifies that
  ``The Regional Administrator will prohibit directed fishing for pollock by vessels greater than 99 ft (30.2 m)
  LOA, catching pollock for processing by the inshore component before reaching the inshore SCA harvest limit
  during the A and D seasons to accommodate fishing by vessels less than or equal to 99 ft (30.2 m) inside the
  SCA for the duration of the inshore seasonal opening.''

    5. On page 7300, footnote 2 to Table 19 to the preamble is 
corrected to read as follows:
    ``\2\Pollock is apportioned in the Western/Central Regulatory areas 
to the Shelikof Strait conservation area (defined at 
Sec. 679.22(b)(3)(iii)(B)) in the A and B seasons only 
(Sec. 679.22(b)(3)(iii)(A)) in accordance with 
Sec. 679.22(b)(3)(iii)(C) and the remainder to the three statistical 
areas in the combined Western/Central Regulatory Area outside the 
Shelikof Strait based on the relative distribution of pollock biomass 
at 56 percent, 4 percent, and 40 percent in Regulatory areas 610, 620, 
and 630 respectively. During the C and D seasons, pollock is 
apportioned based on the relative distribution of pollock biomass at 42 
percent, 25 percent, and 33 percent in Regulatory Areas 610, 620, and 
630 respectively. These seasonal apportionments are shown in Tables 21 
and 22. In the West Yakutat and Southeast Outside Districts of the 
Eastern Regulatory Area, pollock is not divided into seasonal 
allowances.''
    6. On page 7301, in column 1, paragraph 1 after Table 20 to the 
preamble, line 12, the reference ``Sec. 679.23(d)(2)'' is corrected to 
read ``Sec. 679.23(d)(3)'' and in paragraph 2, line 4, the reference 
``Sec. 679.22(b)(2)(iii)(B)'' is corrected to read 
``Sec. 679.22(b)(3)(iii)(B)''.
    7. On page 7301, in column 2, in the last line of the incomplete 
paragraph after Table 20 to the preamble, the reference 
``(Sec. 679.22(b)(2)(iii)(C))'' is corrected to read 
``(Sec. 679.22(b)(3)(iii)(C))''.
    8. On page 7302, in footnote 1 to Table 22 to the preamble, the 
expiration date for pollock is corrected from ``June 10, 2001'' to read 
``July 17, 2001 ''.
    9. On page 7303, in Table 23 to the preamble, under the TAC column 
for Central B Season (40%), correct ``12,250 '' to read ``12,100 '';

Sec. 679.22 [Corrected]

    9a. On page 7316, column 3, amendatory instruction 8 is corrected 
to read as follows:
    ``8. In Sec. 679.22, paragraphs (a)(7), (a)(8), and (b)(2) are 
suspended until July 17, 2001, and paragraphs (a)(11), (a)(12), 
(a)(13), (b)(3), and (b)(6) are added to read as follows:''
    10. Under Sec. 679.22:
    a. On page 7317, columns 1-3, the table under paragraph 
(a)(11)(iv)(D)(1) is correctly revised to read as follows:
    (a) * * *
    (11) * * *
    (iv) * * *
    (D) * * *
    (1) * * *

                          Seasonal DFA Apportionment and Harvest Limits Within the SCA
                                                (in metric tons)
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                                                               A/B (40% of annual DFA)   C/D (60% of annual DFA)
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                       Industry Sector                        A-SCA limit  B-SCA limit  C-SCA limit  D-SCA limit
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Inshore                                                            81,802       27,267       39,440       65,734
 Inshore Open Access                                                  319          106          154          256
C/P                                                                38,564       12,854            0            0
Mothership                                                         14,607        4,869            0            0
CDQ                                                                28,247        9,339        9,567       15,718
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    b. On page 7317, column 1, paragraph (a)(11)(iv)(D)(2) is corrected 
to read as follows:
    (a) * * *
    (11) * * *
    (iv) * * *
    (D) * * *
    (2) Inshore catcher vessels greater than 99 ft (30.2 m) LOA. The 
Regional Administrator will prohibit directed fishing for pollock by 
vessels greater than 99 ft (30.2 m) LOA, catching pollock for 
processing by the inshore component before reaching the inshore SCA 
harvest limit during the A and D seasons to accommodate fishing by 
vessels less than or equal to 99 ft (30.2 m) inside the SCA for the 
duration of the inshore seasonal opening. The Regional Administrator 
will estimate how much of the inshore seasonal allowance is likely to 
be harvested by catcher vessels less than or equal to 99 ft (30.2 m) 
LOA and reserve a sufficient amount of the inshore SCA allowance to 
accommodate fishing by such vessels after the closure of the SCA to 
inshore vessels greater than 99 ft (30.2 m) LOA. The Regional 
Administrator will prohibit directed fishing for all inshore catcher 
vessels within the SCA when the inshore limit specified in paragraph 
(a)(11)(iv)(D)(1) of this section has been met.
    c. On page 7317, column 2, paragraphs (a)(11)(v)(A)(2), 
(a)(11)(v)(A)(3) and (a)(11)(v)(C) are corrected to read as follows:
    (a) * * *
    (11) * * *
    (v) * * *
    (A) * * *
    (2) Area 8. All waters within the SCA, as defined in 50 CFR 
679.22(a)(11)(iv)(B), east to a line connecting the point 55 deg. 30' N 
lat./166 deg. W long. with the point 54 deg. 51' N lat./164 deg. 33' 
33" W long., and west to the eastern boundary of area 518, as described 
in figure 1 of this part, and including 20 nm seaward of selected 
sites. These sites are listed in Table 21 to this part and are 
identifiable by ``Bering Sea'' in column 2 and ``8 '' in column 16.
    (3) Area 9. All waters within the SCA, as defined in 50 CFR 
679.22(a)(11)(iv)(B), east to the eastern boundary of area 518, as 
described in figure 1 of this part, west to the western boundary of 
area 518, as described in figure 1 of this part, and north to 55 deg. N 
lat., and including 20 nm seaward of selected sites. These sites are 
listed in Table 21 to this part and are identifiable by ``Bering Sea'' 
in column 2 and ``9'' in column 16.
* * * * *
    (C) Directed fishing for groundfish by all federally permitted 
vessels is prohibited within 3 nm of selected sites in Steller sea lion 
management areas 7, 8, and 9. These sites are listed in Table 21 to 
this part and are identifiable by a

[[Page 15658]]

``Y'' in column 14 and ``7'', ``8'', or ``9'' in column 16.
    d. On page 7317, column 3, paragraph (a)(12)(iii)(A) is corrected 
to read as follows:
    (a) * * *
    (12) * * *
    (iii) Western and Central Aleutian Islands closures--(A) General. 
Trawling is prohibited within 20 nm of selected rookery and haulout 
sites in the Aleutian islands subarea when the Regional Administrator 
announces by notification in the Federal Register that the criteria for 
a trawl closure in a district set out in paragraph (a)(12)(iii)(B) of 
this section have been met. These sites are listed in Table 21 to this 
part and are identifiable by a designation of ``Aleutian Islands'' in 
column 2, ``R'' or ``H'' in column 7, ``Y'' or ``N'' in column 14, and 
``C'' in column 15.
* * * * *
    e. On page 7318, column 1, paragraph (a)(12)(iv) is corrected to 
read as follows:
    (a) * * *
    (12) * * *
    (iv) Pollock closure. Until 1200 hours, A.l.t., June 10, 2001, 
directed fishing for pollock is prohibited at all times within the 
Aleutian Islands subarea. After 1200 hours, A.l.t., June 10, 2001, 
refer to paragraph (a)(12)(v) of this section for fishing prohibitions.
    f. On page 7318, column 1, paragraph (a)(12)(v)(C) is corrected to 
read as follows:
    (a) * * *
    (12) * * *
    (v) * * *
    (C) Directed fishing for groundfish by all federally permitted 
vessels is prohibited within 3 nm of selected sites in Steller sea lion 
management areas 12 and 13. These sites are listed in Table 21 to this 
part and are identifiable by a ``Y'' in column 14 and ``12'' or ``13'' 
in column 16.
    g. On page 7319, column 1, paragraph (b)(3)(iv)(C) is corrected to 
read as follows:
    (b) * * *
    (3) * * *
    (iv) * * *
    (C) Directed fishing for groundfish by all federally permitted 
vessels is prohibited within 3 nm of selected sites in Steller sea lion 
management areas 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, and 11. These sites are listed 
in Table 21 to this part and are identifiable by an ``Y'' in column 14 
and ``1'', ``2'', ``3'', ``4'', ``5'', ``6'', ``10'' or ``11'' in 
column 16.
    h. On page 7319, column 1, paragraph (b)(5) is corrected by 
redesignating it as paragraph (b)(6).

Sec. 679.60 [Corrected]

    11. On page 7321, column 1, after Sec. 679.60(d)(1)(iv), add 
paragraph ``(2) [Reserved]''.
    12. On page 7323, column 3, instruction 12 is corrected to read 
``In 50 CFR part 679, Tables 4, 5, and 6 to part 679 are suspended, and 
Table 21 to part 679 is added to read as follows:''

Table 21 to Part 679 [Corrected]

    13. On page 7324, Table 21 to part 679 is reprinted to read as 
follows:

BILLING CODE 3510-22-S

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    Dated: March 12, 2001.
Rolland A. Schmitten,
Acting Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
[FR Doc. 01-6748 Filed 3-20-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-C