[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 123 (Thursday, June 26, 2003)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 37995-37998]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-16084]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[Docket No. 030612150-3150-01; I.D. 051503B]
RIN 0648-AQ94


Fisheries off West Coast States and in the Western Pacific; 
Coastal Pelagic Species Fishery; Regulatory Amendment

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 a regulatory amendment to the Coastal Pelagic 
Species (CPS) Fishery Management Plan (FMP). This amendment was 
submitted

[[Page 37996]]

by the Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) for review and 
approval by the Secretary of Commerce. The proposed amendment would 
change the management subareas and the allocation process for Pacific 
sardine. The purpose of this proposed amendment is to establish a more 
effective and efficient allocation process for Pacific sardine and 
increase the possibility of achieving optimum yield (OY).

DATES: Comments must be received by July 28, 2003.

ADDRESSES: Send comments on the proposed rule to Rodney R. McInnis, 
Acting Administrator, Southwest Region, NMFS, 501 West Ocean Boulevard, 
Suite 4200, Long Beach, CA 90802.
    Copies of the environmental assessment/regulatory impact review/
initial regulatory flexibility analysis (EA/RIR/IRFA) may be obtained 
from Donald O. McIssac, Executive Director, Pacific Fishery Management 
Council, 7700 NE Ambassador Place, Suite 200, Portland, OR 97220.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: James Morgan, Sustainable Fisheries 
Division, NMFS, at 562-980-4036.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pacific sardines are managed pursuant to the 
CPS FMP, which was implemented by regulations published at 64 FR 69893, 
December 15, 1999. The annual harvest guideline for Pacific sardine is 
allocated two-thirds south of Pt. Piedras Blancas, CA (35[deg]40' N. 
lat.) (a point south of Monterey, California, which includes the 
fishery in Southern California) and one-third north (includes fisheries 
in Monterey, CA, Oregon, and Washington), beginning annually on January 
1. On October 1, the harvest guideline remaining in each sub-area is 
added together, then divided equally between the two areas.
    In 2002, the northern allocation was reached before October 1, 
which required closure of the fishery while significant amounts of 
sardine remained unharvested in the south (67 FR 58733, September 18, 
2002). Rough ocean conditions in the Pacific Northwest beginning in 
October make fishing with purse seine gear difficult or impossible. 
Because the fisheries off Oregon and Washington would be virtually over 
by October, the Council requested an emergency rule to make the 
required allocation in 2002 earlier than October 1, to avoid losses in 
jobs and revenue. An emergency rule was implemented on September 26, 
2002 (67 FR 60601), that reallocated the harvest guideline and reopened 
the fishery.
    The FMP established a limited entry fishery south of Pt. Arena, CA 
(39[deg] N. lat.), which is a point north of San Francisco, CA. An open 
access fishery exists north of Pt. Arena, CA made up of fisheries off 
Northern California, Oregon, and Washington.
    There was no sardine fishery in Oregon and Washington when the CPS 
FMP was implemented. The allocation procedure included in the CPS FMP 
was adopted from California rules and was designed to protect the 
Monterey, CA fishery (in the northern subarea or Subarea A) from the 
possibility of the fishery in Southern California (in the southern 
subarea or Subarea B) catching the entire harvest guideline before 
sardine became available in Monterey. The fishing pattern that has 
developed is that, generally, sardine become available to the Southern 
California fishery at the beginning of the year, the Pacific Northwest 
in the summer, and Monterey in the fall. As a result, there are three 
areas affected by the existing allocation system rather than two, and 
the possibility exists that the fishery in the Pacific Northwest might 
preempt the Monterey fishery. If Pacific sardine remain unharvested in 
either area following the reallocation on October 1, there currently is 
no procedure to make further reallocations to increase the likelihood 
of achieving optimum yield (OY).
    The Council recognized that a process with more flexibility for 
making allocation decisions was needed. Therefore, the Council 
considered a regulatory amendment pursuant to the framework process 
identified in 50 CFR 660.517 of the regulations implementing the CPS 
FMP. At its November 2002 meeting in Foster City, CA, the Council 
adopted a set of management alternatives to address the allocation 
issue and directed its Coastal Pelagic Species Management Team 
(Management Team) to analyze these alternatives and others it believed 
appropriate. The primary goal was to avoid closing any segment of the 
fishery while a portion of the harvest guideline remain unharvested. 
The Management Team provided a draft environmental assessment for the 
Council's March 2003 meeting in Sacramento, CA, which included a range 
of options that showed the projected harvest in the three areas and how 
much of the harvest guideline would remain at the end of the fishing 
season. After receiving reports from its Coastal Pelagic Species 
Advisory Subpanel (Subpanel) and its Management Team, and after hearing 
public comments, the Council adopted a range of alternatives for public 
review. A revised environmental assessment was provided to the public 
during the week of March 24, 2003.
    At its meeting in Vancouver, WA on April 10, 2003, the Council 
received reports from its Subpanel and its Management Team, and heard 
public comments. The Council then adopted an option that: (1) changes 
the definition of subarea A and subarea B by moving the geographic 
boundary between the two areas from Pt. Piedras Blancas at 35[deg] 40' 
00'' N. lat. to Pt. Arena at 39[deg] 00' 00'' N. lat., (2) moves the 
date when Pacific sardine that remain unharvested are reallocated to 
Subarea A and Subarea B from October 1 to September 1, (3) changes the 
percentage of the unharvested sardine that is reallocated to Subarea A 
and Subarea B from 50 percent to both subareas to 20 percent to Subarea 
A and 80 percent to Subarea B, and (4) reallocates all unharvested 
sardine that remain on December 1 coast wide. This procedure is 
proposed to be in effect for 2003 and 2004, and for 2005 if the 2005 
harvest guideline is at least 90 percent of the 2003 harvest guideline.
    An interim approach was taken because the sardine resource has 
recovered after decades of absence and there is insufficient 
information available on stock structure and migration patterns to 
assess the impacts of a more detailed allocation process on the fishing 
communities along the Pacific coast. The proposed change would most 
likely avoid the need for an emergency rule to reallocate unharvested 
portions of the OY and would have a greater possibility of achieving OY 
than the current allocation process. Information from resource surveys 
scheduled for the Pacific Northwest in 2003 and 2004 plus accumulated 
data on size and age of sardine from all areas of the fishery will 
improve the assessment model and provide better data for measuring the 
impacts of various allocation options for the longer-term.
    While the proposed action is being taken as a regulatory amendment 
under a framework, implementing the proposed action permanently will 
eventually require a change in Section 5.2 of the FMP, which describes 
the north-south allocation. The only regulatory change that would be 
required is to redefine Subarea A and Subarea B at 50 CFR 660.503. If 
the regulatory amendment is approved, the fishery in Monterey, CA would 
become a part of the Subarea B fishery rather than Subarea A, and 
Pacific sardine landed in Monterey in 2003 would become part of the 
Subarea B landings.

[[Page 37997]]

Classification

    This proposed rule has been determined to be not significant for 
the purposes of Executive Order 12866.
    The Council prepared an IRFA that describes the economic impact 
this proposed rule, if adopted, would have on small entities. The IRFA 
is available from the Council (see ADDRESSES). A summary of the IRFA 
follows:
    A description of the action, why it is being considered, and the 
legal basis for this action are contained in the SUMMARY and in the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION sections of this proposed rule. This proposed 
rule does not duplicate, overlap, or conflict with other Federal rules. 
There are no reporting, record-keeping, or other compliance 
requirements of the proposed rule.
    Approximately 140 vessels are permitted in the sardine fisheries 
off the U.S. West Coast; 65 vessels are permitted in the Federal 
coastal pelagic species (CPS) limited entry fishery off California, 
while approximately 55 vessels are permitted in State of Oregon and 
Washington sardine fisheries. An additional 18 live bait vessels are 
permitted in Southern California and 2 live bait vessels are permitted 
in Oregon and Washington. All of these vessels would be considered 
small businesses under the Small Business Administration standards. 
Therefore, there would be no disproportionate economic impacts 
resulting between small and large vessels under the proposed action. 
Because cost data are lacking for the harvesting operations of CPS 
finfish vessels, it was not possible to evaluate the economic impacts 
from estimated changes in sardine landings in terms of vessel 
profitability. Instead, economic impacts were evaluated based only on 
changes in sardine ex-vessel revenues compared to sardine landings 
under the status quo. Therefore, the difference between vessel revenues 
generated by 2003 proposed quotas and those generated by 2003 projected 
landings were used as a proxy for vessel profitability among the three 
regions evaluated. All projections utilized 2001 data and changes in 
ex-vessel revenues are described in 2001 dollars. CPS finfish vessels 
typically harvest a number of other species, including anchovy, 
mackerel, squid, and tuna. However, since data on individual vessel 
operations were not readily available, it was not possible to evaluate 
potential changes in fishing strategies by these vessels in response to 
different opportunities to harvest sardines under each of the 
allocation alternatives and what this would mean in terms of total ex-
vessel revenues from all species.
    Under the proposed action, sardine landings for CPS vessels for the 
entire West Coast are estimated to increase 9,846 metric tons (mt) from 
the status quo, with a corresponding increase in ex-vessel value of 
$1,077,540. All of the coastwide harvest guideline OY would be caught 
by the end of the season under the proposed action. Sardine landings by 
vessels participating in the Oregon/Washington fishery were estimated 
to be 7,622 mt greater than the status quo, with ex-vessel revenues 
increasing by $873,526. Landings by CPS vessels that historically would 
have participated in the Northern California sardine fishery would 
increase 2,449 mt above the status quo with a corresponding rise in ex-
vessel revenues of $228,035. Under the proposed action, a loss of 225 
mt in landings was estimated for vessels that historically fished out 
of Southern California ports, which equates to foregone ex-vessel 
revenues amounting to $24,021, or approximately $370 per vessel, in 
lost ex-vessel revenue relative to the status quo. Twenty live bait 
vessels landed approximately 2,000 mt per year of mixed species from 
1993 through 1997. Those landings were comprised mostly of Pacific 
sardine and northern anchovy. The estimated live bait 18 vessels 
fishing in Southern California are expected to be only minimally 
impacted by this action similar to results for the CPS limited entry 
vessels fishing in that area. The two live bait vessels fishing in 
Oregon and Washington are not expected to be impacted by this action.
    For the 65 CPS limited entry vessels that could participate in 
either the Southern California or Northern California sardine 
fisheries, the 225 mt loss represents a potential loss in ex-vessel 
revenues for the CPS vessels choosing to operate in Southern 
California, which is substantially less than 0.01 percent per vessel. 
If the 65 CPS limited entry vessels choose to fish in the traditional 
Northern California sardine fishery, the potential gain in ex-vessel 
revenue for that fishery is estimated to be approximately $3,508 per 
vessel per year. However, this amount could be underestimated since 
data from the 2001 SAFE report show that only 27 CPS vessels landed in 
Monterey/Santa Cruz and only 13 CPS vessels landed in San Francisco.
    Even though limited entry vessels based in Southern California are 
not restricted from participating in the Northern California or the 
open access Oregon/Washington sardine fisheries, it is unlikely that it 
would be profitable for all Southern California vessels to do so due to 
additional travel time and fuel costs. However, any loss in 
profitability by the CPS vessels choosing to fish in Southern 
California could be mitigated to a certain extent by moving northward 
to land larger, higher-priced sardines in Northern California ports.
    Vessels that participate in the Oregon/Washington sector of the 
fishery are estimated to increase ex-vessel revenues by $15,882 per 
vessel based on the estimated 55 State sardine permits issued. However, 
this figure may be underestimated since data show that, of the 35 
Washington permitted vessels, only 19 vessels participated in these 
fisheries in 2002 with the majority of the catch accomplished by only 
13 vessels.
    The Council considered 3 alternatives to the proposed action in 
addition to the no-action alternative. All alternatives resulted in ex-
vessel revenue gains of various magnitudes for the fishery as a whole. 
However, the proposed alternative yielded the greatest overall gain, 
with the least negative impacts to individual vessels from any one 
region while also providing the fishery with the possibility of 
achieving OY as required under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 
Conservation and Management Act.
    Alternative 1 (status quo) With a 10 percent increase in harvest 
from 2002, total landings would be 101,061 mt and total ex-vessel 
revenues would amount to $10,587,481. Southern California vessels would 
realize ex-vessel revenues of $5,749,562, Northern California vessels 
$1,039,424, and Oregon/Washington vessels $3,798,405.
    Alternative 2 (start year with 66-33 allocation, subarea line to 
39[deg] N lat., September [50-50] reallocation, and December 
[coastwide] reallocation). Relative to the status quo, Southern 
California vessels would lose 3,618 mt or $386,201 in ex-vessel 
revenues. Northern California vessels would gain 35 mt or $3,306, and 
Oregon/Washington would gain 10,108 mt or $1,158,314, for a net 
increase in coastwide ex-vessel revenues of $775,420.
    Alternative 4 (start year with 66-33 allocation, subarea line not 
changed, September [50-50] reallocation, and December [coastwide] 
reallocation). Compared to the status quo, Southern California vessels 
would realize no change in landings, Northern California vessels would 
gain 274 mt or $25,518 in ex-vessel revenues, and Oregon/Washington 
vessels would gain 8,091 mt or $927,167. This results in an overall net 
increase of $952,685 in ex-vessel revenues.
    Alternative 5 (start year with 66-33 allocation, subarea line to 
39[deg] N lat., September coastwide reallocation).

[[Page 37998]]

 Relative to the status quo, Southern California vessels would lose 
2,500 mt or $266,924 in ex-vessel revenues. Northern California vessels 
would gain 2,239 mt or $208,547, and Oregon/Washington vessels would 
gain 10,108 mt or $1,099,937, for a net increase in overall ex-vessel 
revenues of $1,099,937.

List of Subject in 50 CFR Part 660

    Administrative practice and procedure, American Samoa, Fisheries, 
Fishing, Guam, Hawaiian Natives, Indians, Northern Mariana Islands, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Dated: June 19, 2003.
John Oliver,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Operations, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
    For the reasons set out in the preamble, NMFS proposes to amend 50 
CFR part 660 as follows:

PART 660--FISHERIES OFF WEST COAST STATES AND IN THE WESTERN 
PACIFIC

    1. The authority citation for part 660 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
    2. In Sec.  660.503, paragraphs (b)(2) and (c)((1) are revised to 
read as follows:


Sec.  660.503  Management subareas.

* * * * *
    (b) * * *
    (2) Southern boundary - at 39[deg] 00' 00'' N. lat. (Pt. Arena).
    (c) * * *
    (1) Northern boundary - at 39[deg] 00' 00'' N. lat. (Pt. Arena); 
and
* * * * *
    3. Section 660.509 is revised to read as follows:


Sec.  660.509  Closure of directed fishery.

    (a) The date when Pacific sardine that remains unharvested will be 
reallocated to Subarea A and Subarea B has been changed from October 1 
to September 1 for 2003 and 2004, and for 2005 if the 2005 harvest 
guideline is at least 90 percent of the 2003 harvest guideline.
    (b) All unharvested sardine that remains on December 1 will be 
available for harvest coast wide.
    4. In Sec.  660.511, new paragraph (f) is added to read as follows:


Sec.  660.511  Catch restrictions.

* * * * *
    (f) The percentage of the unharvested sardine that is reallocated 
to Subarea A and Subarea B has been changed from 50 percent to both 
subareas to 20 percent to Subarea A and 80 percent to Subarea B.
[FR Doc. 03-16084 Filed 6-25-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S