[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 112 (Wednesday, June 11, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33526-33528]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-13599]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RIN 0648-XD299


Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Prohibited 
Species Donation Program

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

ACTION: Notice; selection of an authorized distributor.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces the renewal of permits to SeaShare, authorizing 
this organization to distribute Pacific salmon and Pacific halibut to 
economically disadvantaged individuals under the prohibited species 
donation (PSD) program. Salmon and halibut are caught incidentally 
during directed fishing for groundfish with trawl gear off Alaska. This 
action is necessary to comply with provisions of the PSD program and is 
intended to promote the goals and objectives of the North Pacific 
Fishery Management Council.

DATES: The permits are effective from June 11, 2014 through June 12, 
2017.

ADDRESSES: Electronic copies of the PSD permits for salmon and halibut 
prepared for this action may be obtained from the Alaska Region Web 
site at http://www.alaskafisheries.noaa.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sarah Ellgen, 907-586-7228.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Fishing for groundfish by U.S. vessels in the exclusive economic 
zone of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area (BSAI) and 
Gulf of Alaska (GOA) is managed by NMFS in accordance with the Fishery 
Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands 
Management Area (BSAI FMP) and the Fishery Management Plan for 
Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska (GOA FMP). These fishery management 
plans (FMPs) were prepared by the North Pacific Fishery Management 
Council under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management 
Act, 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. Regulations governing the Alaska groundfish 
fisheries and implementing the FMPs appear at 50 CFR parts 600 and 679. 
Fishing for halibut in waters in and off Alaska is governed by the 
Convention between the United States and Canada for the Preservation of 
the Halibut Fishery of the North Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea 
(Convention). The International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC) 
promulgates regulations pursuant to the Convention. The IPHC's 
regulations are subject to approval by the Secretary of State with 
concurrence from the Secretary of Commerce. After approval by the 
Secretary of State and the Secretary of Commerce, the IPHC regulations 
are published in the Federal Register as annual management measures 
pursuant to 50 CFR 300.62.
    Amendments 26 and 29 to the BSAI and GOA FMPs, respectively, 
authorize a salmon donation program and were approved by NMFS on July 
10, 1996; a final rule implementing this program was published in the 
Federal Register on July 24, 1996 (61 FR 38358). The salmon donation 
program was expanded to include halibut as part of the PSD program 
under Amendments 50 and 50 to the FMPs that were approved by NMFS on 
May 6, 1998. A final rule implementing Amendments 50 and 50 was 
published in the Federal Register on June 12, 1998 (63 FR 32144). 
Although that final rule contained a sunset provision for the halibut 
PSD program of December 31, 2000, the halibut PSD program was 
permanently extended under a final rule published in the Federal 
Register on December 14, 2000 (65 FR 78119). A full description of, and 
background information on, the PSD program may be found in the 
preambles to the proposed rules for Amendments 26 and 29, and 
Amendments 50 and 50 (61 FR 24750, May 16, 1996, and 63 FR 10583, March 
4, 1998, respectively).
    Regulations at Sec.  679.26 authorize the voluntary distribution of 
salmon and halibut taken incidentally in the groundfish trawl fisheries 
off Alaska to economically disadvantaged individuals by tax-exempt 
organizations through an authorized distributor. The Administrator, 
Alaska Region, NMFS (Regional Administrator), may select one or more 
tax-exempt organizations to be authorized distributors, as defined by 
Sec.  679.2, based on the information submitted by applicants under 
Sec.  679.26. After review of qualified applicants, NMFS must announce 
the selection of each authorized distributor in the Federal Register 
and issue one or more

[[Page 33527]]

PSD permits to each selected distributor.

Renewal of Permits to SeaShare

    Currently, SeaShare, a tax-exempt organization, is the sole 
authorized distributor of salmon and halibut taken incidentally in the 
groundfish trawl fisheries off Alaska. SeaShare's current salmon and 
halibut PSD permits became effective July 8, 2011, and authorize 
SeaShare to participate in the PSD program through July 8, 2014 (76 FR 
40336, July 8, 2011).
    On May 19, 2014, the Regional Administrator received two 
applications from SeaShare to renew its salmon and halibut PSD permits. 
The Regional Administrator reviewed the applications and determined 
that they are complete and that SeaShare continues to meet the 
requirements for an authorized distributor under the PSD program. As 
required by Sec.  679.26(b)(2), the Regional Administrator based his 
selection on the following criteria:
    1. The number and qualifications of applicants for PSD permits. 
Seashare is the only applicant for PSD permits at this time. NMFS has 
previously approved applications submitted by SeaShare. As of the date 
of this notice, no other applications have been approved by NMFS. 
SeaShare has been coordinating the distribution of salmon taken 
incidentally in trawl fisheries since 1993, and of halibut taken 
incidentally in trawl fisheries since 1998, under exempted fishing 
permits from 1993 to 1996 and under the PSD program since 1996. 
SeaShare employs independent seafood quality control experts to ensure 
product quality is maintained by cold storage facilities and common 
carriers servicing the areas where salmon and halibut donations would 
take place.
    2. The number of harvesters and the quantity of fish that 
applicants can effectively administer. Current participants in the 
salmon donation program administered by SeaShare include: 15 shoreside 
processors and 137 catcher vessels delivering to shoreside processors; 
30 catcher/processors; and 3 motherships and 15 catcher vessels 
delivering to motherships, with 12 vessels delivering to both shoreside 
and motherships. Fifteen shoreside processors and 137 catcher vessels 
participate in the halibut donation program administered by SeaShare. 
Two reprocessing plants that generate steaked salmon and halibut 
participate in the PSD program. SeaShare has the capacity to receive 
and distribute salmon and halibut from up to 60 processors and the 
associated catcher vessels. Therefore, it is anticipated that SeaShare 
has more than adequate capacity for any foreseeable expansion of 
donations.
    In 2011, participation in the PSD program expanded beyond the BSAI 
to include GOA processors and vessels. Table 1 shows the total pounds 
of headed-and-gutted and steaked salmon and halibut donated to food 
bank organizations from 2011 to 2013. NMFS does not have information to 
convert accurately the net weights of salmon and halibut to numbers of 
salmon and numbers of halibut.

       Table 1--Headed-and-Gutted (H&G) and Steaked Salmon and Halibut Donated to Food Bank Organizations
                                                    [pounds]
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                                                                       2011            2012            2013
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Salmon H&G......................................................               0          30,582             534
Salmon steaked..................................................         252,427          83,845         349,235
Halibut H&G.....................................................               0           3,663          30,824
Halibut steaked.................................................          17,715           5,414          15,002
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    3. The anticipated level of salmon and halibut incidental catch 
based on salmon and halibut incidental catch from previous years. The 
incidental catch of salmon and incidental catch mortality of halibut in 
the GOA and BSAI trawl fisheries are shown in Table 2.

     Table 2--Incidental Catch of Salmon and Incidental Catch Mortality of Halibut in the GOA and BSAI Trawl
                                                    Fisheries
                                       [in number of fish or metric tons]
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          Area fishery                      2011                       2012                       2013
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BSAI Trawl Chinook Salmon        25,499 fish..............  11,352 fish..............  13,036 fish.
 Incidental Catch.
BSAI Trawl Other Salmon          192,904 fish.............  24,318 fish..............  126,980 fish.
 Incidental Catch.
GOA Trawl Chinook Salmon         21,712 fish..............  22,581 fish..............  23,892 fish.
 Incidental Catch.
GOA Trawl Other Salmon           2,647 fish...............  1,006 fish...............  5,475 fish.
 Incidental Catch.
BSAI Trawl Halibut Mortality...  2,447 mt.................  2,905 mt.................  2,876 mt.
GOA Trawl Halibut Mortality....  1,856 mt.................  1,713 mt.................  1,226 mt.
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mt = metric tons.

    Halibut incidental catch amounts are constrained by an annual 
prohibited species catch (PSC) limit in the BSAI and GOA. Future 
halibut incidental catch levels likely will be similar to those 
experienced from 2011 to 2013. Chinook salmon PSC limits are 
established for the Bering Sea and central and western GOA pollock 
fisheries that, when attained, result in the closure of pollock 
fishing. The Chinook salmon PSC limits for the Bering Sea pollock 
fisheries were established by Amendment 91 to the BSAI FMP (75 FR 
53026, August 30, 2010) and established for the central and western GOA 
pollock fisheries by Amendment 93 to the GOA FMP (77 FR 42629, July 20, 
2012). In June and December 2013, the North Pacific Fishery Management 
Council recommended a suite of measures that would establish annual 
Chinook salmon PSC limits for the non-pollock trawl fisheries in the 
central and western GOA. Consequently, less salmon bycatch is expected 
in the GOA in the future. While salmon incidental catch amounts tend to 
vary between years, making it difficult to accurately predict

[[Page 33528]]

future incidental take amounts, the total, or maximum, amount of annual 
Chinook salmon incidental catch in the Bering Sea and GOA pollock 
fisheries is constrained by the PSC limits.
    4. Number of vessels and processors participating in the PSD 
program. For the 2014 permit renewal, shoreside processors will remain 
at 15, and vessels delivering to shoreside processors will decrease 
from 137 to 132. Catcher/processors participating in the PSD program 
for salmon will increase slightly from 30 to 31 under the 2014 permit 
renewal. Catcher vessels delivering to motherships will remain at 15 
vessels.
    NMFS issues PSD permits to SeaShare for a 3-year period unless the 
permits are suspended or revoked under Sec.  679.26. The permits may 
not be transferred; however, they may be renewed following the 
application procedures in Sec.  679.26.
    If the authorized distributor modifies the list of participants in 
the PSD program or delivery locations, the authorized distributor must 
submit a modified list of participants or a modified list of delivery 
locations to the Regional Administrator.
    These permits may be suspended, modified, or revoked under 15 CFR 
part 904 for violation of Sec.  679.26 or other regulations in 50 CFR 
part 679.

Classification

    This action is taken under Sec.  679.26.

     Authority: 16 U.S.C. 773 et seq.; 1801 et seq.; 3631 et seq.; 
Pub. L. 108-447.

    Dated: June 6, 2014.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2014-13599 Filed 6-10-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P