[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 28 (Tuesday, February 11, 2003)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 6865-6867]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-3378]



[[Page 6865]]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 679

[Docket No. 030128023-3023-01; I.D. 011503D]
RIN 0648-AQ44


Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Increase in 
Roe Retention Limit for Pollock Harvested in the Bering Sea and 
Aleutian Islands

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

ACTION: Proposed rule; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS proposes to increase the percentage of pollock roe that 
may be retained by operators of catcher/processors and motherships 
processing pollock harvested in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands. 
The proposed increase is from 7 to 9 percent. This action is necessary 
because catcher/processors and motherships have been able to increase 
their pollock roe recovery rate since the passage of the American 
Fisheries Act (AFA) through cooperative fishing practices and more 
precise timing of fishing activity. When fishing conditions are ideal, 
the operators of catcher/processors and motherships have demonstrated 
that they can recover roe in excess of the current 7-percent roe 
retention limit that was implemented a decade ago to prevent roe 
stripping in the directed pollock fishery. This action is intended to 
be consistent with the environmental and socioeconomic objectives of 
the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Management and Conservation Act (Magnuson-
Stevens Act) and other applicable laws.

DATES: Comments on the proposed rule must be received on or before 
March 13, 2003.

ADDRESSES: Comments must be sent to Sue Salveson, Assistant Regional 
Administrator, Sustainable Fisheries Division, NMFS, Alaska Region, 
P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, AK 99802, Attn: Lori Durall, or delivered to 
the Federal Building, Fourth Floor, 709 West 9th Street, Juneau, AK, 
and marked Attn: Lori Durall. Comments also may be sent by fax to 907-
586-7557. Comments will not be accepted if submitted via email or the 
internet. Copies of the Categorical Exclusion and Regulatory Impact 
Review prepared for this action may be obtained from the same address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kent Lind, 907-586-7650, or 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS manages the groundfish fishery in the 
exclusive economic zone of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands 
Management Area (BSAI) under the Fishery Management Plan for the 
Groundfish Fishery of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Area (FMP). 
The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) prepared, and 
NMFS approved, the FMP under the authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Act 
(16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.). Regulations implementing the FMP appear at 50 
CFR part 679. General regulations governing U.S. fisheries also appear 
at 50 CFR part 600.

History of Roe Stripping Regulations

    In 1990, the Council identified pollock roe stripping as a 
management problem in the groundfish fishery of the BSAI and submitted 
Amendment 14 to the FMP to prohibit the practice of roe stripping. The 
final rule to implement Amendment 14 published on January 7, 1991 (56 
FR 492), established a 10-percent limit on the amount of pollock roe 
that could be retained on board a vessel relative to the round-weight 
equivalent of primary products retained on board the vessel during the 
same fishing trip.
    In 1994, after receiving information that vessels were continuing 
to practice roe stripping on a limited basis by ``topping off'' with 
roe to achieve the 10-percent limit, NMFS lowered the maximum 
retainable percentage to 7 percent in a final rule published March 25, 
1994 (59 FR 14121). In determining that 7 percent should be the 
applicable limit, NMFS reviewed 1993 roe recovery information from 
vessels that were operating during the roe pollock fishing season, 
which was conducted between January 20 and April 15. Data from 12 
participating vessels, which produced 1,422 mt of pollock roe from 
31,772 mt of retained pollock catch, show that the average roe recovery 
was 4.5 percent during the roe pollock fishing season. The highest roe 
recovery percentage achieved by any of the 12 vessels was 7.2 percent, 
and the lowest was 2.0 percent. Therefore, NMFS determined that a 
maximum allowable rate of 7 percent would minimize amounts of roe that 
might be discarded as a result of regulations, while still complying 
with the intent of Amendment 14 and the Magnuson-Stevens Act to 
prohibit roe stripping.
    Since 1994, the BSAI pollock fishery has continued to evolve. On 
December 3, 1997 (62 FR 63880), NMFS issued a final rule to implement 
an improved retention/improved utilization (IR/IU) program under 
Amendment 49 to the FMP. Amendment 49 imposed a 100-percent retention 
requirement for vessels harvesting pollock in the directed pollock 
fishery. Under Amendment 49, catcher/processors and motherships must 
retain a primary product from each pollock brought on board the vessel 
during the directed pollock fishery. While this regulation was intended 
to address pollock discards, it also had the effect of tightening the 
prohibition on roe stripping because pollock roe by definition cannot 
be used as a primary product to meet the 100-percent retention 
standard.

Evolution of the BSAI Pollock Fishery Under the AFA

    In 1998, Congress passed the AFA (Div. C, Title II, Pub. L. No. 
105-277, 112 Stat. 2681 (1998)), which restricted participation in the 
BSAI pollock fishery to certain eligible vessels and processors, and 
authorized the formation of fishery cooperatives. Under the AFA, 
vessels in the BSAI pollock fishery have formed voluntary cooperatives 
that have eliminated the open access race for fish that characterized 
the BSAI pollock fishery before the AFA. Under these AFA cooperatives, 
participating catcher/processors and motherships have been able to 
dramatically improve product recovery rates by slowing down their 
operations, using more refined production techniques, and fishing more 
selectively. This increase in productivity under the AFA was examined 
in detail in the final Environmental Impact Statement prepared for AFA-
related Amendments 61/61/13/8 to the FMPs for the groundfish, crab, and 
scallop fisheries off Alaska.
    In addition to these general gains in productivity, catcher/
processors and motherships have achieved higher roe recovery rates 
under the AFA through an increased ability to time their fishing 
activity to coincide with periods of peak roe recovery and through an 
increased ability to selectively target schools of large mature 
pollock. When circumstances are ideal, some catcher/processors and 
motherships have reached or exceeded the current 7-percent limit.
    In 1999, the Council examined roe recovery rates by catcher/
processors in the BSAI and concluded that sufficient rationale existed 
to raise the maximum retainable roe amount to 9 percent. After 
reviewing data on roe recovery rates,

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NMFS agreed with the Council's rationale.
    To determine the appropriate roe retention limit under the AFA, 
NMFS examined roe recovery information from the 2000, 2001, and 2002 
roe seasons, which were managed under AFA cooperatives. During this 
time period, AFA catcher/processors and motherships processed 26,286 mt 
of pollock roe and 826,913 mt round-weight equivalent of primary 
pollock products for an aggregate roe recovery rate of 3.2 percent for 
the 2000-2002 roe seasons. However, during each of the 3 years, certain 
vessels were able to achieve roe recovery rates that exceeded 7 percent 
during weeks of peak roe recovery. In 2000, one catcher/processor 
achieved roe recovery rates of 8.0 and 9.0 percent during two reporting 
weeks in March. In 2001, seven catcher/processors exceeded the 7-
percent limit during the week of March 24. During that week, these 
seven catcher/processors achieved an aggregate roe recovery rate of 8.4 
percent. In 2002, only one catcher/processor exceeded the 7-percent 
limit, with a roe recovery rate of 8.3 percent during the week of March 
17. During this 3-year time period, a 7-percent limit would have 
required that catcher/processors discard a total of 185.6 mt of roe 
product, or 61.9 mt annually.
    This action also would affect non-AFA catcher/processors that 
engage in directed fishing for other groundfish species in the BSAI and 
encounter incidental catch of pollock. The maximum retainable 
percentage of pollock is 20 percent for vessels engaged in directed 
fishing for other groundfish species. Existing 100-percent retention 
requirements at 50 CFR 679.27 require vessels engaged in directed 
fishing for groundfish other than pollock to retain their incidental 
catch of pollock up to the 20-percent limit, and such vessels are also 
allowed to recover roe from their incidental catch of pollock. The 
proposed 9-percent roe retention limit also would govern the amount of 
pollock roe these vessels could retain. In 2001, 58 non-AFA catcher/
processors retained and processed pollock in the BSAI. These 58 vessels 
processed a round-weight equivalent of 11,837 mt of primary pollock 
products and 199 mt of pollock roe. The roe retention rates of non-AFA 
catcher/processors ranged from zero to 5.5 percent with an average rate 
of 1.5 percent. From these data, NMFS concludes that non-AFA catcher/
processors are less able to maximize pollock roe recovery than AFA 
catcher/processors.
    Based on these data, NMFS has concluded that, when conditions for 
roe recovery are ideal in mid to late March, some catcher/processors 
are able to achieve recovery rates that exceed 7 percent and that 9 
percent is a standard that is sufficiently high to accommodate these 
peak periods of roe recovery without forcing vessels to discard excess 
roe. NMFS considered and rejected the alternative of eliminating the 
roe retention limit for several reasons. First, the AFA cooperatives 
that have produced a more rationalized fishery are not permanently 
established in regulation. AFA cooperatives, which are voluntary 
organizations, could dissolve at any point in the future if the members 
no longer believe that remaining in cooperatives is in their interest. 
The fishery then could potentially return to a race for fish. Second, 
non-AFA catcher/processors engaged in directed fisheries for other 
species are required to retain incidental catch of pollock up to the 
20-percent maximum retainable percentage. The 9-percent maximum 
retainable roe percentage is an additional measure to prevent such 
vessels from roe stripping, even though the practice is also prohibited 
by IR/IU regulations. Therefore, the Council and NMFS believe that 
maintaining a regulatory limit on roe retention is prudent to prevent 
the potential for a return to the practice of roe stripping in the 
event that the current AFA cooperatives choose to dissolve and to 
continue to limit the practice in non-AFA fisheries.

Elements of the Proposed Rule

    This proposed rule would amend 50 CFR 679.20(g) by raising the 
maximum allowable roe retention percentage from 7 to 9 percent. For 
pollock harvested in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA), the maximum retainable 
percentage would remain at 7 percent. This distinction is made because 
the AFA applies only to the BSAI and the conditions that have led to an 
increase in roe recovery rates in the BSAI do not exist in the GOA. No 
other regulatory changes are proposed.

Classification

    This proposed rule has been determined to be not significant for 
purposes of Executive Order 12866.
    The Chief Counsel for Regulation of the Department of Commerce 
certified to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business 
Administration that this proposed rule, if adopted, would not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities 
as follows: Two groups of vessels currently harvest pollock in the BSAI 
and retain roe product from the pollock harvested in the BSAI: (1) AFA 
catcher/processors and motherships that engage in directed fishing for 
pollock, and (2) non-AFA catcher/processors that encounter pollock as 
incidental catch in other fisheries.
    Under the AFA, 21 catcher/processors and 3 motherships are eligible 
to engage in directed fishing for pollock in the BSAI. NMFS reviewed 
the size of these entities in the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) 
prepared for AFA-related Amendments 61/61/13/8 to the fishery 
management plans for the groundfish, crab, and scallop fisheries off 
Alaska. The EIS concluded that all AFA-eligible catcher/processors are 
large entities under SBA size criteria because their annual receipts 
exceed $3.5 million. The 21 individual catcher/processors are owned by 
12 companies with annual receipts that are estimated to range from $5 
million for the smallest entity to several billion dollars for the 
largest entities. All three motherships engaged in the directed pollock 
fishery are also classified as large entities under SBA criteria 
because the companies that own these three motherships employ more than 
500 individuals in their worldwide operations.
    In 2001, 58 non-AFA catcher/processors harvested pollock 
incidentally while engaged in directed fishing for other species. Many 
of these vessels also retained pollock roe from their incidental catch 
of pollock. Although we do not have comprehensive knowledge of the 
ownership characteristics and gross receipts of the companies that own 
these 58 catcher/processors, we assume that many are small entities.
    AFA catcher/processors and mothership production data from 2000-
2001 indicate that roe recovery rates generally average between 3 and 5 
percent. Vessels only rarely exceed the current 7 percent standard. 
From 2000-2002 the total annual production of roe in excess of 7 
percent averaged 61.88 mt for the fleet, which represents 0.68 percent 
of the 9,166 mt average total annual roe production for those years. 
The effect of this action, therefore, is to allow catcher/processors 
and motherships to retain an additional 61.88 mt of pollock roe that 
existing regulations require to be discarded.
    This action also would potentially affect non-AFA catcher/
processors that engage in directed fishing for other groundfish species 
in the BSAI and encounter incidental catch of pollock. The maximum 
retainable percentage of pollock is 20 percent for vessels engaged in 
directed fishing for other groundfish species. Existing regulations at 
50 CFR 679.27 require vessels engaged in directed fishing for 
groundfish other than pollock to retain their incidental

[[Page 6867]]

catch of pollock up to the 20-percent limit. Such vessels also are 
allowed to recover roe from their incidental catch of pollock. The 
proposed 9- percent roe retention limit would govern the amount of 
pollock roe these vessels could retain as well. In 2001, 58 non-AFA 
catcher/processors retained and processed pollock in the BSAI. These 58 
vessels processed a round-weight equivalent of 11,837 mt of primary 
pollock products and 199 mt of pollock roe. The roe retention rates of 
non-AFA catcher/processors ranged from zero to 5.5 percent with an 
average rate of 1.5 percent. From these data, NMFS concludes that non-
AFA catcher/processors are less able to maximize pollock roe recovery 
than AFA catcher/processors and, therefore, would gain no benefit, nor 
incur any cost, from increasing the maximum retainable roe percentage 
from 7 percent to 9 percent.
    Certification of this action is appropriate because this proposed 
rule relieves a restriction and would result in no increased cost to 
any entity, small or large, and no adverse impacts on any entities. In 
addition, the only entities that are expected to benefit directly from 
this action are large entities. As a result, a regulatory flexibility 
analysis was not prepared.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 679

    Alaska, Fisheries, Recordkeeping and reporting requirements.

    Dated: February 6, 2003.
William T. Hogarth,
Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.

    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 50 CFR part 679 is 
proposed to be amended as follows:

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

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

    Authority: Authority: 16 U.S.C. 773 et seq., 1801 et seq., and 
3631 et seq.; Title II of Division C, Pub. L. 105-277; Sec. 3027, 
Pub. L. 106-31, 113 Stat. 57.

    2. In Sec.  679.20, paragraphs (g)(1)(i), (g)(4)(i)(B), and 
(g)(4)(ii)(B) are revised to read as follows:


Sec.  679.20  General limitations.

* * * * *
    (g) * * *
    (1) * * *
    (i) Pollock roe retained on board a vessel at any time during a 
fishing trip must not exceed the following percentages of the total 
round-weight equivalent of pollock, as calculated from the primary 
pollock product on board the vessel during the same fishing trip:
    (A) 7 percent in the Gulf of Alaska, and
    (B) 9 percent in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands.
* * * * *
    (4) * * *
    (i) * * *
    (B) To determine the maximum amount of pollock roe that can be 
retained on board a vessel during the same fishing trip, multiply the 
round-weight equivalent by 0.07 in the Gulf of Alaska or 0.09 in the 
Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands.
* * * * *
    (ii) * * *
    (B) To determine the maximum amount of pollock roe that can be 
retained on board a vessel during a fishing trip, add the round-weight 
equivalents together; then, multiply the sum by 0.07 in the Gulf of 
Alaska or 0.09 in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 03-3378 Filed 2-10-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S