[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 21 (Thursday, January 31, 2008)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 5760-5761]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-1683]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[Docket No. 070907502-7668-03]
RIN 0648-XB01


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 this final rule to implement the annual harvest 
guideline (HG) for Pacific mackerel in the U.S. exclusive economic zone 
(EEZ) off the Pacific coast for the fishing season of July 1, 2007, 
through June 30, 2008. This HG has been calculated according to the 
regulations implementing the Coastal Pelagic Species (CPS) Fishery 
Management Plan (FMP) and establishes allowable harvest levels for 
Pacific mackerel off the Pacific coast. The HG for the 2007-2008 
fishing season is 40,000 metric tons (mt). If this total is reached, 
Pacific mackerel fishing will be closed to directed harvest and only 
incidental harvest will be allowed at a 45 percent by weight incidental 
catch rate when landed with other CPS, except that up to one mt of 
Pacific mackerel can be landed without landing any other CPS.

DATES: Effective March 3, 2008 through June 30, 2008.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the report Pacific Mackerel (Scomber japonicus) 
Stock Assessment for U.S. Management in the 2007-2008 Fishing Year may 
be obtained from the Southwest Regional Office by contacting Rodney R. 
McInnis, Regional Administrator, Southwest Region, NMFS, 501 West Ocean 
Blvd., Suite 4200, Long Beach, CA 90802-4213.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joshua Lindsay, Southwest Region, 
NMFS, (562) 980-4034.

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).
    During annual public meetings, the biomass for each actively 
managed species within the CPS FMP is presented to the Pacific Fishery 
Management Council's (Council) Coastal Pelagic Species Management Team 
(Team), the Council's Coastal Pelagic Species Advisory Subpanel 
(Subpanel) and the CPS Subcommitee of the Scientific and Statistical 
Committee (SSC). At that time, the biomass, the acceptable biological 
catch (ABC) and the status of the fisheries are reviewed and discussed. 
This information is then presented to the Council along with HG 
recommendations and comments from the Team and Subpanel. Following 
review by the Council and after hearing public comments, the Council 
makes its HG recommendation to NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service 
(NMFS). The Pacific mackerel season begins on July 1 and ends on June 
30 of each year.
    A full assessment for Pacific mackerel was conducted this year and 
reviewed by a Stock Assessment Review (STAR) Panel in La Jolla, CA, May 
1-4. Public meetings of the Team and Subpanel were then held May 8-10 
in Long Beach, CA. During these meetings the STAR Panel report and 
current stock assessment for Pacific mackerel, which included a 
preliminary biomass estimate and ABC, were presented and reviewed in 
accordance with the procedures of the FMP. Based on a total stock 
biomass estimate of 359,290 metric tons (mt), the ABC for U.S. 
fisheries for the 2007/2008 management season is 71,629 mt.
    In June, the Council held a public meeting in Foster City, CA, 
during which time they reviewed the current

[[Page 5761]]

stock assessment, biomass numbers and ABC and heard statements from the 
SSC, Team and Subpanel (72 FR 29130). The SSC endorsed the assessment 
as the best available science for use in management. Both the Team and 
Subpanel recommended setting the 2007/2008 HG below ABC and no higher 
than 40,000 mt. This HG recommendation is still roughly double the HG 
adopted by the Council for the 2006/2007 fishing year (19,845 mt) and 
much greater than the average U.S. harvest since the year 2000 (5,700 
mt). Setting the harvest guideline substantially below the ABC was 
recommended as a precautionary measure in response to uncertainty 
associated with changes to assessment modeling parameters and the 
reference in the FMP that the domestic fishery appears to be market 
limited to roughly 40,000 mt.
    Following the SSC, Team and Subpanel reports the Council adopted an 
HG of 40,000 mt for the 2007-2008 fishing year. The Council also 
adopted the Subpanel recommendation that in the event that the 40,000 
mt is attained by the fishery, that Pacific mackerel fishing be closed 
to directed harvest and only incidental harvest be allowed. This 
incidental fishery is constrained to a 45 percent by weight incidental 
catch rate when Pacific mackerel are landed with other CPS, except that 
up to one metric ton of Pacific mackerel could be landed without 
landing any other CPS.
    The Council may schedule an inseason review of the Pacific mackerel 
fishery for the March or April 2008 Council meeting, in order to 
consider either releasing a portion of the incidental allotment to the 
directed fishery or further constraining incidental landings to ensure 
total harvest remains below the ABC.
    Information on the fishery and the stock assessment are found in 
the report Pacific mackerel (Scomber japonicus) Stock Assessment for 
U.S. Management in the 2007-08 Fishing Season (see ADDRESSES).

Classification

    The Administrator, Southwest Region, NMFS, determined that this 
final rule is necessary for the conservation and management of the CPS 
fishery and that it is consistent with the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 
Conservation and Management Act and other applicable laws.
    This final rule is exempt from Office of Management and Budget 
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 (72 FR 35419) 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: January 24, 2008.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator For Regulatory Programs, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E8-1683 Filed 1-30-08; 8:45 am]
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