[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 128 (Wednesday, July 5, 2006)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 38111-38112]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-10465]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[Docket No. 60109004-6164-02; I.D. 010406E]
RIN 0648-AT76


Fisheries Off West Coast States; Coastal Pelagic Species 
Fisheries; Annual Specifications

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

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: NMFS issues a final rule to implement the annual harvest 
guideline for Pacific sardine in the U.S. exclusive economic zone off 
the Pacific coast for the fishing season of January 1, 2006, through 
December 31, 2006. This harvest guideline has been calculated according 
to the regulations implementing the Coastal Pelagic Species (CPS) 
Fishery Management Plan (FMP) and establishes allowable harvest levels 
for Pacific sardine off the Pacific coast.

DATES: Effective August 4, 2006.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the report Assessment of Pacific Sardine Stock for 
U.S. Management in 2006 and the Environmental Assessment/Regulatory 
Impact Review may be obtained from Rodney R. McInnis, Regional 
Administrator, Southwest Region, NMFS, 501 West Ocean Blvd., Suite 
4200, Long Beach, CA 90802-4213.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joshua B. Lindsay, Southwest Region, 
NMFS, 562-980-4034, e-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The CPS FMP, which was implemented by 
publication of the final rule in the Federal Register on December 15, 
1999 (64 FR 69888), divides management unit species into two 
categories: actively managed and monitored. Harvest guidelines for 
actively managed species (Pacific sardine and Pacific mackerel) are 
based on formulas applied to current biomass estimates. Biomass 
estimates are not calculated for species that are only monitored (jack 
mackerel, northern anchovy, and market squid).
    At a public meeting each year, the biomass for each actively 
managed species is reviewed by the Pacific Fishery Management Council's 
(Council) CPS Management Team (Team). The biomass, harvest guideline, 
and status of the fisheries are then reviewed at a public meeting of 
the Council's CPS Advisory Subpanel (Subpanel). This information is 
also reviewed by the Council's Scientific and Statistical Committee 
(SSC). The Council reviews the reports from the Team, Subpanel, and 
SSC, provides time for public comment, and then makes its 
recommendation to NMFS. The annual harvest guideline and season 
structure are published by NMFS in the Federal Register as soon as 
practicable before the beginning of the appropriate fishing season. The 
Pacific sardine season begins on January 1 and ends on December 31 of 
each year.
    Public meetings of the Team and Subpanel were held at NMFS 
Southwest Fisheries Science Center in La Jolla, CA on October 5 and 6, 
2005 (70 FR 55335, September 21, 2005). The Council reviewed the report 
at its November meeting in San Diego, CA, and listened to comments from 
its advisory bodies and the public. The Council then adopted the 2006 
harvest guideline for Pacific sardine. Based on a biomass estimate of 
1,061,391 metric tons (mt), the harvest guideline for Pacific sardine 
for January 1, 2006, through December 31, 2006, is 118,937 mt.
    The size of the sardine population was estimated using an 
integrated stock assessment model called Age-structured Assessment 
Program (ASAP). ASAP is a flexible forward-simulation that allows for 
the efficient and reliable estimation of a large number of parameters. 
ASAP uses fishery dependent and fishery independent data to obtain 
annual estimates of sardine abundance, year-class strength, and age-
specific fishing mortality. The ASAP model allows one

[[Page 38112]]

to account for the expansion of the Pacific sardine stock northward to 
include waters off the northwest Pacific coast and for the 
incorporation of data from the Mexican sardine fishery. Information on 
the fishery and the stock assessment are found in the report Assessment 
of Pacific Sardine Stock for U.S. Management in 2006 (see ADDRESSES).
    The formula in the FMP uses the following factors to
    determine the harvest guideline:
    1. The biomass of sardines age one and above. For 2006,
    this estimate is 1,061,391 mt.
    2. The cutoff. This is the biomass level below which no
    commercial fishery is allowed. The FMP established this level at 
150,000 mt.
    3. The portion of the sardine biomass that is in U.S. waters. For 
2006, this estimate is 87 percent. It is based on the average larval 
distribution obtained from scientific cruises and the distribution of 
the resource obtained from logbooks of aerial fish-spotters.
    4. The harvest fraction. This is the percentage of the biomass 
above 150,000 mt that may be harvested. The fraction varies from 5 to 
15 percent, depending on current ocean temperatures. The higher 
fraction is used for warmer ocean temperatures, which favor production 
of Pacific sardine, and the lower fraction is used for cooler 
temperatures. Based on the last three seasons of sea surface 
temperatures at Scripps Pier, California, a fraction of 15 percent was 
used for 2006.
    Based on the estimated biomass of 1,061,391 mt and the formula in 
the FMP, a harvest guideline of 118,937 mt was determined for the 
fishery beginning January 1, 2006.
    The recently established Amendment 11 to the CPS FMP changed the 
framework for the annual apportionment of the Pacific sardine harvest 
guideline along the U.S. Pacific coast and set up a new long-term 
allocation scheme. Based on this new long-term allocation scheme, 35 
percent of the harvest guideline is released coastwide on January 1; 40 
percent of the harvest guideline, plus any portion not harvested from 
the initial 35 percent is released coastwide on July 1; and on 
September 15 the remaining 25 percent, plus any portion not harvested 
from the earlier releases is then available for harvest.
    If the total harvest guideline or these apportionment levels for 
Pacific sardine are reached at any time, the Pacific sardine fishery 
shall be closed until either it re-opens per the allocation scheme or 
the beginning of the next fishing season. The Regional Administrator 
shall announce in the Federal Register the date of the closure of the 
directed fishery for Pacific sardine.
    Normally, an incidental landing allowance of sardine in landings of 
other CPS is set at the beginning of the fishing season. The incidental 
allowance would become effective if the harvest guideline is reached 
and the fishery closed. A landing allowance of sardine up to 45 percent 
by weight of any landing of CPS is authorized by the FMP. An incidental 
allowance prevents fishermen from being cited for a violation when 
sardine occur in schools of other CPS, and it minimizes bycatch of 
sardine if sardine are inadvertently caught while fishing for other 
CPS. Sardine landed with other species also requires sorting at the 
processing plant, which adds to processing costs. Mixed species in the 
same load may damage smaller fish.

Classification

    These specifications are issued under the authority of, and NMFS 
has preliminarily determined that it is in accordance with, the 
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, the FMP, and 
the regulations implementing the FMP.
    This final rule is exempt from review under 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 during the proposed rule stage that this action would 
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities. The factual basis for the certification was published in the 
proposed rule and is not repeated here. No comments were received 
regarding this certification. As a result, a regulatory flexibility 
analysis was not required and none was prepared.

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

    Dated: June 28, 2006.
John Oliver,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Operations, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E6-10465 Filed 7-3-06; 8:45 am]
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