[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 54 (Wednesday, March 19, 2008)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 14765-14766]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-5561]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 660

RIN 0648-AW08


A Vessel License Limitation Program for the Pacific Whiting 
Fishery; Amendment 15 to the Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery 
Management Plan

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

ACTION: Availability of an amendment to a fishery management plan; 
request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the Pacific Fishery Management Council 
(Council) has submitted Amendment 15 to the Pacific Coast Groundfish 
Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for review by the Secretary of Commerce 
(Secretary). Amendment 15 would modify the FMP to implement a limited 
entry program for the non-tribal Pacific whiting fishery. Amendment 15 
is intended to limit participation in the Pacific whiting fishery 
within the U.S. West Coast

[[Page 14766]]

Exclusive Economic Zone until the implementing of a trawl 
rationalization program in the Pacific whiting fishery.

DATES: Comments on Amendment 15 must be received on or before May 19, 
2008.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by RIN 0648-AW08 by any 
of the following methods:
     Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the FederaleRulemaking Portal http://www.regulations.gov.
     Fax: 206-526-6736, Attn: Becky Renko.
     Mail: D. Robert Lohn, Administrator, Northwest Region,
    NMFS, Attn: Becky Renko, 7600 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115-
0070.
    Instructions: All comments received are a part of the public record 
and will generally be posted to http://www.regulations.gov without 
change. All Personal Identifying Information (for example, name, 
address, etc.) voluntarily submitted by the commenter may be publicly 
accessible. Do not submit Confidential Business Information or 
otherwise sensitive or protected information.
    NMFS will accept anonymous comments. Attachments to electronic 
comments will be accepted in Microsoft Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or 
Adobe PDF file formats only.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Becky Renko (Northwest Region, NMFS), 
phone: 206-526-6129; fax: 206-526-6736; and e-mail: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Electronic Access

    Amendment 15 is available on the Pacific Fishery Management 
Council's (Council's or Pacific Council's) website at: http://www.pcouncil.org/groundfish/gffmp.html.
    The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 
(Magnuson-Stevens Act) requires that each regional fishery management 
council submit any FMP or plan amendment it prepares to NMFS for review 
and approval, disapproval, or partial approval. The Magnuson-Stevens 
Act also requires that NMFS, upon receiving an FMP or amendment, 
immediately publish a notice that the FMP or amendment is available for 
public review and comment. NMFS will consider the public comments 
received during the comment period described above in determining 
whether to approve Amendment 15 to the FMP.
    Amendment 15 would implement a limited entry program for the 
Pacific whiting fishery, which occurs within the U.S. Exclusive 
Economic Zone off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California. The 
whiting fishery is currently managed with separate allocations for the 
tribal and non-tribal whiting fisheries, and with sector-specific 
whiting allocations for the three non-tribal sectors: mothership, 
catcher/processor, and shore-based. Vessels that participate in the 
mothership sector include both the motherships themselves and the 
catcher vessels that deliver to the at-sea mothership processors. 
Vessels that participate in the catcher/processor sector are self-
contained at-sea processors that both catch and process fish. Vessels 
that participate in the shore-based sector are catcher vessels that 
deliver their catch to land-based processing plants. This action would 
limit participation in each of the three non-tribal sectors of the 
Pacific whiting fishery to those vessels, both catcher vessels and at-
sea processing vessels, with historic participation in those particular 
sectors.
    NMFS welcomes comments on the proposed FMP amendment through the 
end of the comment period. A proposed rule to implement Amendment 15 
has been submitted for Secretarial review and approval. NMFS expects to 
publish and request public review and comment on proposed regulations 
to implement Amendment 15 in the near future. Public comments on the 
proposed rule must be received by the end of the comment period on the 
amendment to be considered in the approval/disapproval decision on the 
amendment. All comments received by the end of the comment period for 
the amendment, whether specifically directed to the amendment or the 
proposed rule, will be considered in the approval/disapproval decision.

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

    Dated: March 13, 2008.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. E8-5561 Filed 3-18-08; 8:45 am]
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