[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 136 (Friday, July 16, 2010)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 41383-41388]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-17435]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[Docket No. 090428799-9802-01]
RIN 0648-BA05


Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; Fisheries off West Coast States; 
Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; Inseason Adjustments to Fishery 
Management Measures

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

ACTION:  Final rule; inseason adjustments to biennial groundfish 
management measures; request for comments.

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SUMMARY:  This final rule makes inseason adjustments to trawl fishery 
management measures for petrale sole taken with selective flatfish and 
multiple trawl gears in the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off the 
coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California, North of 40[deg] 10.00' 
N. lat. This action, which is authorized by the Pacific Coast 
Groundfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP), is intended to prevent 
exceeding the 2010 OY for petrale sole.

DATES: Effective at 0001 hours local time on July 16, 2010. Comments on 
this

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final rule must be received no later than 5 p.m., local time on August 
16, 2010.

ADDRESSES:  You may submit comments, identified by RIN 0648-BA05, by 
any one of the following methods:
     Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
     Fax:206-526-6736, Attn: Gretchen Hanshew
     Mail: William W. Stelle, Jr., Regional Administrator, 
Northwest Region, NMFS, 7600 Sand Point Way NE., Seattle, WA 98115-
0070, Attn: Gretchen Hanshew.
    Instructions: No comments will be posted for public viewing until 
after the comment period has closed. 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 (enter N/A in the required 
fields, if you wish to remain anonymous). You may submit attachments to 
electronic comments in Microsoft Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or Adobe PDF 
file formats only.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gretchen Hanshew (Northwest Region, 
NMFS), 206-526-6147, fax: 206-526-6736, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Electronic Access

    This final rule is accessible via the Internet at the Office of the 
Federal Register's Web site at http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html. 
Background information and documents are available at the Pacific 
Fishery Management Council's (the Council or PFMC) Web site at http://www.pcouncil.org/.

Background

    On December 31, 2008, NMFS published a proposed rule to implement 
the 2009-2010 specifications and management measures for the Pacific 
Coast groundfish fishery (73 FR 80516). The final rule to implement the 
2009-2010 specifications and management measures for the Pacific Coast 
Groundfish Fishery was published on March 6, 2009 (74 FR 9874). This 
final rule was subsequently amended by inseason actions on April 27, 
2009 (74 FR 19011), July 6, 2009 (74 FR 31874), October 28, 2009 (74 FR 
55468), February 26, 2010 (75 FR 8820), May 4, 2010 (75 FR 23620), July 
1, 2010 (75 FR 38030). Additional changes to the 2009-2010 
specifications and management measures for petrale sole were made in 
two final rules: on November 4, 2009 (74 FR 57117), and December 10, 
2009 (74 FR 65480). NMFS issued a final rule in response to a duly 
issued court order on July 8, 2010 (75 FR 39178). These specifications 
and management measures are at 50 CFR part 660, subpart G.

Limited Entry Non-whiting Trawl Fishery Management Measures

    Changes to the groundfish management measures implemented by this 
action were recommended by the Council, in consultation with Pacific 
Coast Treaty Indian Tribes and the States of Washington, Oregon, and 
California, at its June 11-17, 2010, meeting in Foster City, CA. Among 
other actions, the Council recommended reducing the bi-monthly 
cumulative limits for petrale sole in the limited entry non-whiting 
trawl commercial fisheries to respond to updated fishery information 
and other inseason management needs. On July 1, 2010, NMFS published a 
rule (75 FR 38030) that reduced the bi-monthly trip limits for petrale 
sole coastwide, effective July 1, 2010. The reductions to trip limits 
are intended to slow catch of petrale sole and stay below the 2010 
petrale sole OY, and are described in more detail in the preamble to 
the July 1, 2010 rule.
    The July 1, 2010, rule mistakenly omitted reductions to the bi-
monthly cumulative limits for petrale sole for vessels using selective 
flatfish trawl gears and multiple trawl gears North of 40 10.00' N. 
lat. This rule reduces the petrale sole bi-monthly trip limits for 
these gear types, as were recommended by the Council, to keep the 
projected catch of petrale sole below the 2010 petrale sole OY.
    These reductions to petrale sole trip limits must be implemented as 
quickly as possible. Even a short delay in implementation could allow 
vessels to take the entire two-month limit for period 4 (July-August). 
These changes are intended to reduce the catch of petrale sole in order 
to keep the total mortality of petrale sole within its 2010 OY. The 
reduction to trip limits also slightly reduces the projected impacts to 
co-occurring overfished species.
    Estimated mortality of overfished and target species are the result 
of management measures designed to meet the Pacific Coast Groundfish 
FMP objective of achieving, to the extent possible, but not exceeding, 
OYs of target species, while fostering the rebuilding of overfished 
stocks by remaining within their rebuilding OYs.
    Based on the considerations outlined above, the Council recommended 
and NMFS is implementing the following changes to cumulative limits in 
the limited entry non-whiting trawl fishery North of 40[deg] 10.00' N. 
lat.: reduce petrale sole cumulative limits caught with selective 
flatfish trawl gear and multiple trawl gears from ``9,500 lb (4,309 kg) 
per 2 months'' to ``6,300 lb (2,858 kg) per 2 months'' in July-
December.
    The lower bi-monthly cumulative limit for petrale sole taken with 
selective flatfish and multiple trawl gears is being implemented during 
a bi-monthly period (See the DATES section). Vessels fishing with 
selective flatfish or multiple trawl gears that have taken more than 
6,300 lb of petrale sole since July 1, 2010, must have begun their 
landing by the effective date of this rule. Land or landing means ``to 
begin transfer of fish, offloading fish, or to offload fish from any 
vessel. Once transfer of fish begins, all fish aboard the vessel are 
counted as part of the landing.'' Vessels fishing with selective 
flatfish or multiple trawl gears that have not already taken at least 
6,300 lb of petrale sole since July 1, 2010 may land no more than 6,300 
lb of petrale sole (including the amount that has been taken prior to 
the effective date of this rule) during this two-month period (July-
August).

Classification

    This rule makes routine inseason adjustments to groundfish fishery 
management measures based on the best available information and is 
taken pursuant to the regulations implementing the Pacific Coast 
Groundfish FMP.
    These actions are taken under the authority of 50 CFR 660.370(c) 
and are exempt from review under Executive Order 12866.
    These inseason adjustments are taken under the authority of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-
Stevens Act), and are in accordance with 50 CFR part 660, the 
regulations implementing the FMP. These actions are based on the most 
recent data available. The aggregate data upon which these actions are 
based are available for public inspection at the Office of the 
Administrator, Northwest Region, NMFS, (see ADDRESSES) during business 
hours.
    For the following reasons, NMFS finds good cause to waive prior 
public notice and comment on the revisions to groundfish management 
measures under

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5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) because notice and comment would be impracticable 
and contrary to the public interest. Also, for the same reasons, NMFS 
finds good cause to waive the 30-day delay in effectiveness pursuant to 
5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3), so that this final rule may become effective as 
quickly as possible.
    The recently available data upon which these recommendations were 
based was provided to the Council, and the Council made its 
recommendations, at its June 11-17, 2010, meeting in Foster City, CA. 
The Council recommended that these changes be implemented on or as 
close as possible to July 1, 2010. There was not sufficient time after 
that meeting to draft this document and undergo proposed and final 
rulemaking before these actions need to be in effect. For the actions 
to be implemented in this final rule, affording the time necessary for 
prior notice and opportunity for public comment would prevent the 
Agency from managing fisheries using the best available science to 
approach, without exceeding, the OYs for federally managed species in 
accordance with the FMP and applicable laws. The adjustments to 
management measures in this document affect commercial fisheries off 
Washington, Oregon, and California.
    These decreases to bi-monthly cumulative limits for petrale sole in 
the limited entry trawl fishery must be implemented in a timely manner 
to prevent exceeding the 2010 petrale sole OY, and prevent premature 
closure of fisheries that impact petrale sole. These measures are 
intended to reduce impacts to petrale sole, a species for which a 
severely reduced OY was implemented for 2010 (74 FR 65480). These 
changes must be implemented in a timely manner, as quickly as possible. 
Bi-monthly cumulative limits cover a two-month period, so if 
implementation is delayed, then fishermen could harvest the prior 
higher limit before the revised lower limit is effective. Decreases to 
cumulative limits for other flatfish and Dover sole in the limited 
entry trawl fishery have already been implemented.
    Delaying these changes would keep management measures in place that 
are not based on the best available data, which could lead to exceeding 
OYs or early closures of the fishery if harvest of groundfish exceeds 
levels projected for 2010. Such delay would impair achievement of the 
Pacific Coast Groundfish FMP objective of approaching, but not 
exceeding, OYs.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 660

    Fisheries, Fishing, Indian Fisheries.

    Dated: July 13, 2010.
Carrie Selberg,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.

0
For the reasons set out in the preamble, 50 CFR part 660 is amended as 
follows:

PART 660--FISHERIES OFF WEST COAST STATES

0
1. The authority citation for part 660 continues to read as follows:

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

0
2. Table 3 (North) to part 660, subpart G, is revised to read as 
follows:
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S

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[FR Doc. 2010-17435 Filed 7-15-10; 8:45 am]
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