[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 108 (Thursday, June 5, 2003)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 33670-33671]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-14177]



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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[I.D. 052803C]


Fisheries off the West Coast States and in the Western Pacific; 
Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; Intent to Prepare an Environmental 
Impact Statement for Fishing Conducted Under the Pacific Coast 
Groundfish Fishery Management Plan

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

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement 
(EIS); announcement of public scoping period; request for written 
comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS, in cooperation with the Pacific Fishery Management 
Council (Council), announces its intention to prepare an EIS in 
accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) to assess 
the impacts of the 2004 Pacific Coast groundfish fishery specifications 
and management measures on the human environment.

DATES: Written comments must be received no later than 5 p.m, local 
time (l.t.), on July 7, 2003. Two public scoping meetings are scheduled 
as part of the Council's June 16-20, 2003, meeting in Foster City, CA 
(see SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION).

ADDRESSES: Written comments on suggested alternatives and potential 
impacts should be sent to Donald McIsaac, Executive Director, Pacific 
Fishery Management Council, 7700 NE Ambassador Place, Suite 200, 
Portland, OR 97220-1384. Comments may also be sent via facsimile (fax) 
to 503-820-2299 or via e-mail ([email protected] and write ``2004 
groundfish specifications EIS'' in subject line).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John DeVore, Groundfish Fishery 
Management Coordinator; phone: 503-820-2280 and e-mail: 
[email protected] or Matthew Harrington, NMFS Northwest Region NEPA 
Coordinator; phone: 206-526-4742 and email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background and Need For Agency Action

    There are more than 80 species managed under the Pacific Coast 
Groundfish Fishery Management Plan (Groundfish FMP), nine of which have 
been declared overfished. The groundfish stocks support an array of 
commercial, recreational, and Indian tribal fishing interests in state 
and Federal waters off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and 
California. In addition, groundfish are also harvested incidentally in 
nongroundfish fisheries, most notably the trawl fisheries for pink 
shrimp, spot/ridgeback prawns, California halibut, and sea cucumber.
    The proposed action is needed to establish commercial and 
recreational harvests levels in 2004 that will ensure groundfish stocks 
are maintained at, or restored to, sizes and structures that will 
produce the highest net benefit to the nation, while balancing 
environmental and social values.

The Proposed Action

    The proposed action is to implement management measures consistent 
with the requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) that constrain total fishing 
mortality during 2004 within limits that maintain fish stocks at, or 
rebuild them to, a level capable of producing maximum sustained yield 
(MSY), or to a stock size less than this if such stock size results in 
long-term net benefit to the nation.
    These fishing mortality limits are harvest specifications that 
include acceptable biological catches (ABCs) and optimum yields (OYs) 
for groundfish species or species groups in need of particular 
protection; OYs may be represented by harvest guidelines or quotas for 
species that need individual management. The allocation of commercial 
OYs between the open access and limited entry segments of the fishery 
is also part of the proposed action. The FMP requires that the 
groundfish specifications be annually evaluated and revised as 
necessary, 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 
Groundfish FMP also require that NMFS implement actions to prevent 
overfishing and to rebuild overfished stocks. These specifications 
include fish caught in state ocean waters (0-3 nautical miles (nm) 
offshore) as well as fish caught in the U.S. exclusive economic zone 
(3-200 nm offshore).

Alternatives

    NEPA requires that agencies evaluate reasonable alternatives to the 
proposed action in an EIS. The purpose and need for agency action 
determines the range of reasonable alternatives. A preliminary set of 
alternatives will be developed during the June 16-20, 2003, Council 
meeting. Alternatives will be structured around a range of ABCs/OYs for 
assessed groundfish species. This range of ABCs/OYs is based on stock 
assessments, including seven new assessments completed since 2003 
harvest specification were established, rebuilding analyses for 
overfished species based on these assessments, and a stock assessment 
of cabezon due to be completed before the end of 2003. This last 
assessment, although it will not be completed and peer-reviewed early 
in the decision process, will be used to identify different management 
measures for nearshore fisheries. For some species ABC/OY ranges that 
would be used to develop alternatives may be based on consultations by 
the Council with state and Federal agencies, Indian tribes, and the 
affected public on the allocation of harvest opportunity between 
sectors. Allocation decisions can affect OYs because different sectors 
may catch fish of different ages, allowing different sustainable 
harvest levels.
    For each set of ABCs/OYs used in a given alternative, a set of 
management measures will be identified that will constrain total 
harvest mortality (across all fisheries intercepting groundfish). 
Restrictive management measures intended to rebuild overfished species 
have been adopted and implemented over the past several years for most 
commercial and recreational fishing sectors. Management measures 
intended to control the rate at which different groundfish species or 
species groups are taken in the fisheries include trip limits, bag 
limits, size limits, time/area closures, and gear restrictions. Large 
area closures, intended to reduce bycatch of overfished species and 
referred to as Rockfish Conservation Areas were first implemented in 
late 2002. These closed areas will continue to be a key feature of 
alternatives considered in the EIS to manage groundfish fisheries in 
2004.

Preliminary Identification of Environmental Issues

    A principal objective of the scoping and public input process is to 
identify potentially significant impacts to the human environment that 
should be analyzed in depth in the EIS. The EIS evaluates a range of 
feasible alternatives (described above) to determine their likely 
impacts on the human environment and identify significant impacts. 
Council and NMFS staff conducted initial screening to identify the 
potentially significant impacts of the range of alternatives that will 
be

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developed. They identified the following potentially significant 
impacts: (1) effects of fishing operations on essential fish habitat; 
(2) effects of fishing operations on protected species listed under the 
Endangered Species Act and Marine Mammal Protection Act and their 
critical habitat; and (3) effects on the sustainability of target and 
non-target fish stocks, and especially overfished groundfish stocks. 
Socioeconomic impacts are also considered in terms of the effect 
changes in projected harvests will have on the following groups of 
individuals: (1) Those who participate in harvesting the fishery 
resources and other living marine resources; (2) those who process and 
market fish and fish products; (3) those who are involved in allied 
support industries; (4) those who consume fish products; (5) those who 
rely on living marine resources in the management area, either for 
subsistence needs or for recreational benefits; (6) those who benefit 
from non-consumptive uses of living marine resources; (7) those 
involved in managing and monitoring fisheries; and (8) fishing 
communities.

Public Scoping Process

    Two public scoping meetings will occur at the June 16-20, 2003, 
Council meeting as part of the Council's regular agenda. The meeting 
will take place at the Crown Plaza Hotel, 1221 Chess Drive, Foster 
City, CA. The first public scoping meeting will be held on Tuesday, 
June 17, 2003, as part of agendum B.4, Preliminary Range of Harvest 
Levels for 2004. The second scoping meeting will be held on Friday, 
June 20, 2003, as part of agendum B.14, Adoption of Proposed Range of 
Alternatives for 2004 Groundfish Management Measures. A public comment 
period is scheduled for each agendum and comments on the scope of the 
DEIS are encouraged during these comment periods. Because these scoping 
opportunities will occur as part of the regular agenda, the time at 
which they will begin depends on the agenda as a whole. Council 
business begins at 8 a.m. each day and usually ends not later than 5 
p.m. A scoping document identifying the management issues, and an 
outline of the proposed analysis will be made available at the June 16-
20, 2003 Council meeting and on the Council's Web site 
(www.pcouncil.org). A full agenda and other information about this 
meeting is also available on this website or by request from Council 
offices (see ADDRESSES above).
    NMFS invites comments and suggestions on the scope of the analysis 
to be included in the DEIS. The scope includes the range of 
alternatives to be considered and potentially significant impacts to 
the human environment that should be evaluated in the DEIS. In 
addition, NMFS is notifying the public that, in conjunction with the 
Council, it is beginning a full environmental analysis and decision-
making process for this proposal so that interested or affected people 
may know how they can participate in the environmental analysis and 
contribute to the final decision.
    A DEIS will be prepared for comment later on in the process. The 
comment period on the DEIS environmental impact statement will be 45 
days from the date the Environmental Protection Agency's notice of 
availability appears in the Federal Register. It is very important that 
those interested in this proposed action participate at that time. To 
be the most helpful, comments on the DEIS should be as specific as 
possible and may address the adequacy of the statement or merits of the 
alternatives discussed. It is also helpful if comments refer to 
specific pages or chapters of the DEIS. Comments may also address the 
adequacy of the DEIS or the merits of the alternatives formulated and 
discussed in the DEIS. (Reviewers may wish to refer to the Council on 
Environmental Quality Regulations for implementing the procedural 
provisions of NEPA CFR 1503.3 in addressing these points.) Comments 
received, including the names and addresses of those who comment, will 
be considered part of the public record on this proposal and will be 
available for public inspection.

Special Accommodations

    These meetings are accessible to people with physical disabilities. 
Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids 
should be directed to Carolyn Porter 503-820-2280 (voice) or 503-820-
2299 (fax), at least 5 days prior to the scheduled meeting date.

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.

    Dated: May 30, 2003.
Richard W. Surdi,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 03-14177 Filed 6-4-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S