[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 12 (Thursday, January 19, 2012)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 2655-2656]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-1007]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[Docket No. 100804324-1265-02]
RIN 0648-XA927


Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; Fisheries Off West Coast States; 
Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; Pacific Whiting and Non-Whiting 
Allocations; Pacific Whiting Seasons

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

ACTION: Reapportionment of non-whiting catch allocations from 
mothership sector to catcher/processor sector; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: This notification announces the reapportionment of 4.3 metric 
tons (mt) of Darkblotched rockfish, 6.5 mt of Pacific Ocean Perch, 3.3 
mt of Canary rockfish, and 48.3 mt of Widow rockfish from the 
mothership sector to the catcher/processor sector.

DATES: The reapportionment of non-whiting is effective from 1600 local 
time, December 14, 2011, until December 31, 2011, unless modified, 
superseded or rescinded. Comments will be accepted through February 3, 
2012.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by NOAA-NMFS-2010-0194 
by any of the following methods:
     Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal eRulemaking Portal, at http://www.regulations.gov. To submit comments via the e-Rulemaking Portal, 
first click the ``submit a comment'' icon, then enter (NOAA-NMFS-2010-
0194) in the keyword search. Locate the document you wish to comment on 
from the resulting list and click on the ``Submit a Comment'' icon on 
the right of that line.
     Fax: (206) 526-6736, Attn: Kevin C. Duffy.
     Email comments directly to NMFS, Northwest Region at: 
[email protected].
     Mail: William W. Stelle, Jr., Regional Administrator, 
Northwest Region, NMFS, 7600 Sand Point Way NE., Seattle, WA 98115-
0070, Attn: Kevin C. Duffy.
    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 (if submitting comments via the 
Federal Rulemaking portal, enter ``N/A'' in the relevant required 
fields if you wish to remain anonymous). Attachments to electronic 
comments will be accepted in Microsoft Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or 
Adobe PDF file formats only.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kevin C. Duffy (Northwest Region, 
NMFS), phone: (206) 526-4743, fax: (206) 526-6736 and email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Electronic Access

    This notice is accessible via the Internet at the Office of the 
Federal Register's Web site at http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/search/home.action. Background information and documents are available at the 
Pacific Fishery Management Council's Web site at  http://www.pcouncil.org/.

Background

    This action is authorized by regulations implementing the Pacific 
Coast Groundfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP), which governs the 
groundfish fishery off Washington, Oregon, and California.
    Regulations at 50 CFR 660.150(c)(4)(ii) provide for the Regional 
Administrator to make available for harvest to the catcher/processor 
sector of the Pacific whiting fishery, the mothership sector's 
nonwhiting catch allocation remaining when the Pacific whiting 
allocation is reached or when participants in the mothership sector do 
not intend to harvest the remaining allocation. Consistent with these 
provisions, the Whiting Mothership Cooperative Manager notified NMFS in 
writing on December 13, 2011 that the Whiting Mothership Cooperative 
had concluded their harvest of mothership sector whiting for 2011.
    The best available information on December 14, 2011 indicated that 
approximately 4.3 metric tons mt of

[[Page 2656]]

Darkblotched rockfish, 6.5 mt of Pacific Ocean Perch, 3.3 mt of Canary 
rockfish, and 48.3 mt of Widow rockfish allocated to the mothership 
sector for the Pacific whiting fishery in 2011, would not be used by 
December 31, 2011.
    This notice announces the reapportionment of 4.3 mt of Darkblotched 
rockfish, 6.5 mt of Pacific Ocean Perch, 3.3 mt of Canary rockfish, and 
48.3 mt of Widow rockfish from the mothership sector to the catcher/
processor sector. The revised nonwhiting catch allocations between the 
catcher/processor and mothership sectors for these species are: 
Darkblotched rockfish, 12.8 mt, catcher/processor sector, 1.7 mt, 
mothership sector; Pacific Ocean Perch, 16.7 mt, catcher/processor 
sector, 0.66 mt, mothership sector; Canary rockfish, 8.1 mt, catcher/
processor sector, 0.08 mt, mothership sector; and Widow rockfish, 135 
mt, catcher/processor sector, 12.86 mt, mothership sector.
    Emails sent directly to fishing businesses and postings on the 
Northwest Region's Internet site were used to provide actual notice to 
the affected fishers.

Classification

    The Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA (AA), finds that 
good cause exists for this notification to be issued without affording 
prior notice and opportunity for public comment pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 
553(b)(B) because such notification would be impracticable and contrary 
to the public interest. As previously noted, actual notice of the 
reapportionment was provided to fishers. Prior notice and opportunity 
for public comment was impracticable because NMFS had insufficient time 
to provide prior notice and the opportunity for public comment between 
the time NMFS was notified that the mothership sector had concluded its 
harvest and the time the fishery modifications had to be implemented in 
order to ensure that fisheries are managed based on the best available 
scientific information. Reapportioning as quickly as possible was 
necessary to allow fishers access to the available fish. For the same 
reasons, the AA also finds good cause to waive the 30-day delay in 
effectiveness required under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3).
    These actions are authorized by 50 CFR 660.150(c)(4) and 
660.150(c)(5) and are exempt from review under Executive Order 12866.

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

    Dated: January 13, 2012.
Steven Thur,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2012-1007 Filed 1-18-12; 8:45 am]
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