[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 126 (Tuesday, July 1, 2014)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 37486-37533]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-14972]



[[Page 37485]]

Vol. 79

Tuesday,

No. 126

July 1, 2014

Part V





 Department of Commerce





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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration





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50 CFR Part 679





Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Steller Sea Lion 
Protection Measures for the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Groundfish 
Fisheries Off Alaska; Proposed Rules

  Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 126 / Tuesday, July 1, 2014 / 
Proposed Rules  

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 679

[Docket No. 140304195-4195-01]
RIN 0648-BE06


Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Steller Sea 
Lion Protection Measures for the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands 
Groundfish Fisheries Off Alaska

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

ACTION: Proposed rule; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS proposes to implement Steller sea lion protection 
measures to insure that groundfish fisheries in the Bering Sea and 
Aleutian Islands Management Area (BSAI) off Alaska are not likely to 
jeopardize the continued existence of the western distinct population 
segment (WDPS) of Steller sea lions or destroy or adversely modify its 
designated critical habitat. These management measures would disperse 
fishing effort temporally and spatially to provide protection from 
potential competition for important Steller sea lion prey species in 
the BSAI. The intent of this proposed action is to protect the 
endangered WDPS of Steller sea lions, as required by the Endangered 
Species Act, and to minimize, to the extent practicable, the economic 
impact of fishery management measures, as required by the Magnuson-
Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act.

DATES: Submit comments on or before August 15, 2014.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on this document, identified by FDMS 
Docket Number NOAA-NMFS-2012-0013, by either of the following methods:
     Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to 
www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-2012-0013, click the 
``Comment Now!'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter or 
attach your comments.
     Mail: Submit written comments to Glenn Merrill, Assistant 
Regional Administrator, Sustainable Fisheries Division, Alaska Region 
NMFS, Attn: Ellen Sebastian. Mail comments to P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, 
AK 99802-1668.
    Instructions: Comments sent by any other method, to any other 
address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period, 
may not be considered by NMFS. All comments received are a part of the 
public record and will generally be posted for public viewing on 
www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying 
information (e.g., name, address), confidential business information, 
or otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily by the sender 
will be publicly accessible. NMFS will accept anonymous comments (enter 
``N/A'' in the required fields if you wish to remain anonymous). 
Attachments to electronic comments will be accepted in Microsoft Word, 
Excel, or Adobe PDF file formats only.
    Electronic copies of:
     The Steller Sea Lion Protection Measures for Groundfish 
Fisheries in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area 
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and the Regulatory Impact Review/
Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (RIR/IRFA) prepared for this 
action are available from http://www.regulations.gov or from the NMFS 
Alaska Region Web site at http://alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/sustainablefisheries/sslpm/eis/default.htm.
     The 2001 Biological Opinion for the Authorization of the 
Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands and Gulf of Alaska groundfish fisheries 
(2001 BiOp), the 2010 Biological Opinion on the Authorization of 
Groundfish Fisheries under the Fishery Management Plans (FMP BiOp), and 
the 2014 Biological Opinion for the Authorization of Alaska groundfish 
fisheries under the Proposed Revised Steller Sea Lion Protection 
Measures (2014 BiOp) are available at http://alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/protectedresources/stellers/section7.htm.
     The 2008 Revised Steller Sea Lion Recovery Plan is 
available from the NMFS Alaska Region Web site at http://alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/protectedresources/stellers/recovery.htm.
     The Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering 
Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area is available from the North 
Pacific Fishery Management Council Web site at http://www.npfmc.org/wp-content/PDFdocuments/fmp/BSAI/BSAIfmp.pdf.
    Written comments regarding the burden-hour estimates or other 
aspects of the collection-of-information requirements contained in this 
proposed action may be submitted to NMFS at the above address and by 
email to [email protected]">OIRA_[email protected] or fax to 202-395-5806.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gretchen Harrington, 907-586-7228.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS manages groundfish fisheries in the 
exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off Alaska under the Fishery Management 
Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management 
Area (FMP). The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) 
prepared the FMP under the authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 
Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act), 16 U.S.C. 1801, 
et seq. Regulations governing U.S. fisheries and implementing the FMP 
appear at 50 CFR parts 600 and 679.
    NMFS has management responsibility for certain threatened and 
endangered species, including Steller sea lions, under the Endangered 
Species Act (ESA) of 1973, 16 U.S.C. 1531, et seq. NMFS has the 
authority to promulgate regulations to enforce provisions of the ESA to 
protect such species. As the action agency, NMFS is responsible for 
conducting a section 7 consultation to insure that the Federal action 
of authorizing the Alaska groundfish fisheries is not likely to 
jeopardize the continued existence of an ESA-listed species or result 
in the destruction or adverse modification of its designated critical 
habitat. Under the provisions of section 7 of the ESA, NMFS Alaska 
Region Sustainable Fisheries Division (SFD) is the action agency and 
consults with the NMFS Alaska Region Protected Resources Division (PRD) 
on the impacts of groundfish fisheries for most ESA-listed species of 
marine mammals, including Steller sea lions.
    NMFS listed the WDPS of Steller sea lions as endangered under the 
ESA in 1997 (62 FR 24345, May 5, 1997). Throughout this preamble, the 
term ``Steller sea lions'' means the WDPS of Steller sea lions unless 
otherwise specified. NMFS has designated critical habitat for Steller 
sea lions and identified haulouts, rookeries, and foraging locations 
throughout Alaska waters ranging throughout the Gulf of Alaska (GOA), 
the Bering Sea, and the Aleutian Islands (58 FR 45269, August 27, 
1993). Since publication of critical habitat definitions in 1993 (see 
50 CFR 226.202), NMFS has identified 19 additional haulouts in the BSAI 
and the GOA as important areas for Steller sea lions needing additional 
protection from the potential effects of groundfish fishing. More 
information and justification for including these haulouts are 
contained in the 2001 BiOp (see ADDRESSES).

[[Page 37487]]

    Since listing Steller sea lions, NMFS has implemented a number of 
management measures, commonly known as Steller sea lion protection 
measures, to protect Steller sea lions from the potential effects of 
groundfish fishing. Steller sea lion protection measures disperse catch 
of groundfish prey species in time (temporal dispersion) and space 
(spatial dispersion) through a variety of harvest limitations and 
closure areas. Many of these Steller sea lion protection measures apply 
specifically to Atka mackerel, Pacific cod, and pollock, which are 
particularly important prey species for Steller sea lions (Chapter 5 of 
EIS).
    The most recent Steller sea lion protection measures were 
implemented in 2011 by the 2010 Interim Final Rule (75 FR 77535, 
December 13, 2010; corrected 75 FR 81921, December 29, 2010). Steller 
sea lion protection measures implemented in the 2010 Interim Final Rule 
limit harvest of Atka mackerel and Pacific cod in the BSAI. This 
proposed action would revise some of the Steller sea lion protection 
measures for Atka mackerel, Pacific cod, and pollock in the BSAI, but 
primarily in the Aleutian Islands.
    NMFS conducted a consultation as required under section 7 of the 
ESA to determine whether this proposed action to revise Steller sea 
lion protection measures is likely to jeopardize the continued 
existence of Steller sea lions or destroy or adversely modify their 
critical habitat. NMFS issued a biological opinion on April 2, 2014, 
that determined this proposed action is not likely to jeopardize the 
continued existence of Steller sea lions or destroy or adversely modify 
their designated critical habitat (2014 BiOp, see ADDRESSES). Detailed 
analysis of the Aleutian Islands environmental baseline, Steller sea 
lions population trends, foraging behavior, and biology, and effects of 
the groundfish fisheries on Steller sea lions is presented in the 2014 
BiOp and the EIS (see ADDRESSES).

Background

    The following sections of the preamble describe: (1) General 
management of groundfish fisheries in the BSAI; (2) the areas and 
vessels affected by this proposed action; (3) management of the Atka 
mackerel, Pacific cod and pollock fisheries; (4) Steller sea lion 
protection measures; (5) the EIS and preferred alternative; (6) the 
2014 BiOp; (7) description of the provisions of this proposed action; 
and (8) specific regulatory amendments.

General Management of Groundfish Fisheries in the BSAI

    The FMP and its implementing regulations at Sec.  679.20(c) require 
that the Council recommend and NMFS specify an overfishing level (OFL), 
an acceptable biological catch (ABC), and a total allowable catch (TAC) 
for each stock or stock complex (i.e., each species or species group) 
of groundfish on an annual basis. The OFL is the level above which 
overfishing is occurring for a species or species group. The ABC is the 
level of a species or species group's annual catch that accounts for 
the scientific uncertainty in the estimate of OFL and any other 
scientific uncertainty. The ABC is set below the OFL. The TAC is the 
annual catch target for a species or species group, derived from the 
ABC by considering social and economic factors and management 
uncertainty. The TAC must be set lower than or equal to the ABC.
    The OFLs, ABCs, and TACs for BSAI groundfish are specified through 
the annual harvest specification process. The Council's Scientific and 
Statistical Committee (SSC) recommends and NMFS establishes the OFL and 
ABC for each species or species group. The Council recommends and NMFS 
establishes a TAC for each species or species group after considering 
public input and other management considerations. The TAC for some 
species and species groups in the BSAI are subject to further 
allocation among specific regulatory areas (e.g., separate TACs for the 
Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands), on a seasonal basis, and among 
vessels using specific fishing gear (e.g., pot or trawl gear), 
operation type (i.e., catcher vessels or catcher/processors), or 
sectors (e.g., pot catcher/processors). A detailed description of the 
allocation of BSAI groundfish OFLs, ABCs, and TACs by species or 
species group is provided in the final 2014 and 2015 harvest 
specifications for the BSAI groundfish fisheries (79 FR 12108, March 4, 
2014).
    To ensure that OFLs, ABCs, and TACs are not exceeded, NMFS requires 
that vessel operators participating in groundfish fisheries in the BSAI 
comply with a range of monitoring requirements and restrictions. NMFS 
uses area, seasonal, gear, operation type, and sector specific fishery 
closures to maintain catch within specified OFLs, ABCs, TACs and 
associated allocations. NMFS prohibits vessels from specifically 
targeting a species or species group, known as directed fishing, when a 
TAC is reached. Directed fishing is defined in the regulation at Sec.  
679.2. NMFS restricts fishing in other fisheries that may incidentally 
take a species or species group as its OFL is approached. Regulations 
at Sec. Sec.  679.20(d)(1), (d)(2), and (d)(3) describe the range of 
management measures that NMFS uses to maintain total catch at or below 
the OFL, ABC, and TAC for a species or species group.

Areas and Vessels Affected by This Proposed Action

    This proposed action would apply to the EEZ of the BSAI and the 
adjacent State of Alaska (State) waters, as shown in Figure 1 to 50 CFR 
part 679. The EEZ includes Federal waters that generally occur from 3 
nautical miles (nm) to 200 nm from shore. State waters generally occur 
from shore to 3 nm from shore. The specific boundaries between State 
and Federal waters are provided on the NMFS Alaska Region Web site at 
http://alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/maps/reporting_areas/index.pdf. This 
proposed action applies primarily in the Aleutian Islands reporting 
area, defined at Sec.  679.2 and shown in Figure 1 to 50 CFR part 679. 
The Aleutian Islands reporting area consists of the Statistical Areas 
541, 542, and 543 in the EEZ and adjacent State waters. Area 541 and 
adjacent State waters correspond to the eastern Aleutian Islands; Area 
542 and adjacent State waters correspond to the central Aleutian 
Islands; and Area 543 and adjacent State waters correspond to the 
western Aleutian Islands.
    This proposed action would apply to vessels that catch groundfish 
that is required to be deducted from a TAC under Sec.  679.20 and that 
are required to be named on a Federal Fisheries Permit issued under 
Sec.  679.4(b) in the BSAI reporting area. This proposed rule would 
apply to harvests in State waters that are managed under the State's 
parallel groundfish fisheries. Parallel groundfish fisheries are 
fisheries that occur in State waters where the catch of groundfish is 
debited from a TAC. Parallel groundfish fisheries are opened and closed 
by the State concurrently with adjacent Federal fisheries. Parallel 
fisheries are managed by the State under regulations similar to those 
that apply in the Federal fisheries. The parallel fisheries that would 
be affected by this proposed action include the State parallel 
fisheries for groundfish species that occur in State waters adjacent to 
the BSAI. Additional detail on State parallel fisheries is provided in 
Chapters 3 and 8 of the EIS (see ADDRESSES).
    This proposed action would not apply to vessels fishing in State-
managed guideline harvest level (GHL) groundfish fisheries in the BSAI 
reporting area. Specifically, Federally

[[Page 37488]]

permitted vessels that participate in the Aleutian Islands District 
Pacific Cod Management Plan (AI State-managed Pacific cod fishery) 
authorized by Sec.  28.647 of title 5 of the Alaska Administrative Code 
(AAC) would not be required to comply with the proposed Steller sea 
lion protection measures while participating in that fishery. The AI 
State-managed Pacific cod fishery is established by the State for 
harvest of a Pacific cod GHL exclusively within State waters. Any 
groundfish catch occurring in the AI State-managed Pacific cod fishery 
is not deducted from the TAC, and therefore would not be subject to the 
provisions of this proposed action. Additional detail on State GHL 
fishery management generally, and the AI State-managed Pacific cod 
fishery specifically is provided in Chapters 3 and 8 of the EIS (see 
ADDRESSES). NMFS notes that the State has adopted the same Steller sea 
lion protection measures for the AI State-managed Pacific cod fishery 
as NMFS implemented for the Federal groundfish fisheries in 2003 (68 FR 
204, January 2, 2003).

Management of Atka Mackerel, Pacific Cod, and Pollock Fisheries in the 
BSAI

    The groundfish fisheries in the BSAI target a wide diversity of 
species. Major fisheries include pollock, Pacific cod, halibut, 
sablefish, Atka mackerel, and numerous rockfish and flatfish species. 
In the Aleutian Islands subarea of the BSAI, there are eight major 
targeted Federally managed fisheries--Atka mackerel, Pacific cod, 
Pacific ocean perch, Individual Fishing Quota halibut and sablefish, 
Greenland turbot, and since 2008, arrowtooth flounder and Kamchatka 
flounder. Additional detail on the species and amounts harvested in the 
groundfish fisheries in the BSAI are provided in Chapters 3, 4, and 8 
of the EIS (see ADDRESSES) and in the final 2014 and 2015 harvest 
specifications for the BSAI groundfish fisheries (79 FR 12108, March 4, 
2014).
    This proposed action would apply primarily to the Atka mackerel, 
Pacific cod, and pollock fisheries in the Aleutian Islands. The Atka 
mackerel, Pacific cod, and pollock fisheries are subject to 
allocations, seasonal apportionment, and a range of other management 
measures that affect the harvest of these species in the Aleutian 
Islands. The net effect of these allocations, seasonal apportionments, 
and management measures is that currently vessels target, or directed 
fish, for Atka mackerel and Pacific cod in the Aleutian Islands, but 
they are not able to target pollock in the Aleutian Islands.
    To aid the reader in understanding current management and the 
effects of this proposed action, the following sections briefly 
describe relevant management measures for Atka mackerel, Pacific cod, 
and pollock in the BSAI.

TACs and Seasons

    There is a single BSAI OFL for Atka mackerel, but three separate 
Atka mackerel ABCs and TACs established for Area 541/Bering Sea, Area 
542, and Area 543. There are separate Pacific cod OFLs, ABCs, and TACs 
established for the Bering Sea subarea and Aleutian Islands subarea 
(Areas 541, 542, and 543 combined). There are separate pollock OFLs, 
ABCs, and TACs for the Bering Sea subarea and Aleutian Islands subarea 
(79 FR 12108, March 4, 2014).
    NMFS also establishes seasonal allocations of Atka mackerel, 
Pacific cod, and pollock TACs to temporally disperse catch. The Atka 
mackerel and pollock fishery TACs are apportioned between two seasonal 
allocations: an A season from January 1 to June 10, and a B season from 
June 10 to November 1. Fifty percent of the Atka mackerel TAC is 
assigned to each season (see Sec.  679.20(a)(8)(ii)(A)). Forty percent 
of the pollock TAC is assigned to the A season, and 60 percent is 
assigned to the B season (see Sec. Sec.  679.20(a)(5)(i)(B) and 
(a)(5)(iii)(B)(3)).
    The Pacific cod TACs in the BSAI is allocated among various sectors 
as described in the ``BSAI Pacific Cod Management'' section of the 
preamble. The TAC allocated to each sector is further apportioned by 
seasons that vary among the various sectors. There are three seasons--
an A, B, and C season--that correspond to the early, middle, and late 
part of the year. The specific dates established for each season for 
each sector are defined in regulation (see Sec.  679.23(e)(5)). For the 
Western Alaska Community Development Quota Program (CDQ Program), 
Pacific cod TACs are apportioned among seasons that are specific to 
trawl, hook-and-line, jig, and all other non-trawl gear (e.g., pot 
gear) (see Sec.  679.20(a)(7)(i)(B)). Different seasonal apportionments 
apply to the TAC assigned to all other non-CDQ Program participants 
(see Sec.  679.20(a)(7)(iv)(A)).
    NMFS can reallocate a limited portion of unharvested catch of Atka 
mackerel, Pacific cod, and pollock from one season to the next season 
within a calendar year (see Sec. Sec.  679.20(a)(8)(ii)(B), 
(a)(7)(iv)(B), and (a)(5)(i)(B)(2)). The amount of unharvested catch 
that can be reallocated from one season to the following season is 
limited to ensure temporal dispersion of catch. Additional detail on 
allocations and seasonal apportionments are provided in the final 2014 
and 2015 harvest specifications for the BSAI groundfish fisheries (79 
FR 12108, March 4, 2014).

CDQ Program

    The CDQ Program was implemented by NMFS in 1992 (57 FR 46133, 
October 7, 1992). The CDQ Program was created to improve conditions in 
coastal western Alaska communities by making it possible for them to 
participate in the BSAI fisheries. Regulations implementing the CDQ 
Program provide a portion of the groundfish, crab, and halibut annual 
catch limits for use by non-profit entities representing specific 
eligible western Alaska communities.
    The Magnuson-Stevens Act includes provisions applicable to the CDQ 
Program and authorizes 65 communities to participate in the CDQ 
Program. These communities participate in the CDQ Program through six 
nonprofit corporations called CDQ groups. The CDQ groups receive 
exclusive harvest privileges of groundfish, known as CDQ allocations. 
These exclusive harvest privileges allow the CDQ groups to tailor their 
fishing operations to maximize the catch of their CDQ allocations. This 
allows CDQ groups to avoid an inefficient ``race for fish'' among other 
fishery participants competing to maximize their catch before the 
overall TAC is reached. Each CDQ group is prohibited from exceeding its 
CDQ allocation, and NMFS has established specific monitoring and 
enforcement provisions to accurately track the harvest of CDQ 
allocations.
    NMFS first allocates the TAC to the CDQ Program, and then 
apportions the remaining TAC among other fishery participants. The 
process for allocating the TACs to the CDQ Program generally and to CDQ 
groups specifically is described in a final rule defining the 
regulation of the CDQ Program (71 FR 51804, August 31, 2006). The 
species and species groups currently allocated to the CDQ Program are 
specified in the final 2014 and 2015 harvest specifications for the 
BSAI groundfish fisheries (79 FR 12108, March 4, 2014). Relevant to 
this proposed action, the CDQ Program is allocated 10.7 percent of the 
Area 541/Bering Sea, Area 542, and Area 543 Atka mackerel TACs; 10.7 of 
the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Pacific cod TACs; and 10 percent of 
the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands pollock TACs.

Amendment 80 Program

    Amendment 80 to the FMP identified participants using trawl 
catcher/processors in the BSAI active in

[[Page 37489]]

groundfish fisheries other than Bering Sea pollock (i.e., the head-and-
gut fleet or Amendment 80 vessels) and established a framework, known 
as the Amendment 80 Program, to regulate fishing by this fleet (72 FR 
52667, September 14, 2007). The Amendment 80 Program allocated the TACs 
of six species: BSAI Atka mackerel, Pacific cod, flathead sole, rock 
sole, yellowfin sole, and Aleutian Islands Pacific ocean perch among 
all trawl fishery participants. The Amendment 80 Program created 
Amendment 80 quota share based on the historic catch of quota share 
species by Amendment 80 vessels, facilitated the development of 
cooperative arrangements (Amendment 80 cooperatives) among quota share 
holders, and assigned an exclusive harvest privilege for a portion of 
the TAC of quota share species for participants in Amendment 80 
cooperatives. The Amendment 80 Program added sideboard limits to 
protect other fisheries from the potential adverse effects arising from 
the exclusive harvest privileges provided under the Amendment 80 
Program.
    As noted in the previous section on the CDQ Program and in the 
American Fisheries Act section that follows, by assigning an exclusive 
harvest privilege to Amendment 80 cooperatives, these cooperatives can 
avoid a race for fish and maximize catch within the limits of their 
cooperative allocations. Each Amendment 80 cooperative is prohibited 
from exceeding its allocation, and NMFS has established specific 
monitoring and enforcement provisions to accurately track the harvest 
of these allocations.
    Relevant to this proposed action, Amendment 80 cooperatives receive 
exclusive harvest privileges for a portion of the Area 541/Bering Sea, 
Area 542, and Area 543 Atka mackerel TACs. Amendment 80 cooperatives 
also receive exclusive harvest privileges for Pacific cod that may be 
harvested in the Bering Sea or Aleutian Islands subareas. Amendment 80 
vessels also incidentally harvest a small portion of the Aleutian 
Islands pollock TAC, but do not receive an exclusive harvest 
allocation. For more information on the Amendment 80 Program, see the 
final rule implementing the Amendment 80 Program (72 FR 52667, 
September 14, 2007). Additional detail on the Amendment 80 Program 
allocations is provided in the final 2014 and 2015 harvest 
specifications for the BSAI groundfish fisheries (79 FR 12108, March 4, 
2014).

BSAI Pacific Cod Management

    BSAI Pacific cod is harvested by trawl and non-trawl gears, and by 
vessels operating as catcher/processors and catcher vessels. The non-
trawl gears are jig, pot, and hook-and-line. Regulations allocate a 
portion of the BSAI TAC first to CDQ groups, and then to specific non-
CDQ fishery sectors defined by a combination of gear, operation type 
(i.e., catcher vessel or catcher/processor), and vessel size categories 
(Sec.  679.20(a)(7)). Regulations define nine Pacific cod non-CDQ 
fishery sectors in the BSAI (Sec.  679.20(a)(7)(ii)(A)), referred to as 
sectors in this preamble. Sector allocations are established on a BSAI-
level and are not established separately for the Bering Sea or Aleutian 
Islands subareas. As noted earlier in this preamble, the proportion of 
the Pacific cod TAC assigned to the CDQ Program and to the sectors is 
further apportioned by season. NMFS establishes the BSAI Pacific cod 
TAC allocations and seasonal apportionments in the annual harvest 
specifications. The current allocations and seasonal apportionments of 
BSAI Pacific cod are shown in Table 5 of the 2014 and 2015 final 
harvest specifications for the BSAI groundfish fisheries (79 FR 12108, 
March 4, 2014).
    Prior to 2014, NMFS established a single BSAI Pacific cod OFL, ABC, 
and TAC for the combined Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands subareas. At 
the December 2012 Council meeting, the SSC stated that it would 
recommend separate Pacific cod OFLs and ABCs for the Bering Sea and 
Aleutian Islands subareas for the 2014 and 2015 harvest specifications 
based on the best available scientific information. Separate Bering Sea 
and Aleutian Islands OFLs and ABCs require separate Bering Sea and 
Aleutian Islands TACs. The Council recommended and NMFS implemented 
separate Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands OFLs, ABCs, and TACs beginning 
in 2014 under the 2014 and 2015 final harvest specifications for the 
BSAI groundfish fisheries (79 FR 12108, March 4, 2014).
    Establishing a separate Pacific cod OFL, ABC, and TAC for the 
Aleutian Islands resulted in a substantial reduction in the amount of 
Pacific cod available for harvest in the Aleutian Islands subarea 
compared to previous years when Pacific cod was managed with a combined 
BSAI Pacific cod OFL, ABC, and TAC. The 2014 Aleutian Islands Pacific 
cod TAC is 6,997 metric tons (mt) compared to the 2013 BSAI TAC of 
260,000 mt--an amount that could have been harvested in its entirety in 
either the Bering Sea or Aleutian Island subareas (78 FR 13813, March 
1, 2013). Separate management of Pacific cod TAC in the Aleutian 
Islands greatly reduces the potential impacts of the Pacific cod 
fisheries on Steller sea lion Pacific cod prey resources. Additional 
detail on the impact of establishing separate management for Pacific 
cod in the Aleutian Islands and Bering Sea is provided in Chapters 3 
and 8 of the EIS (See ADDRESSES).

American Fisheries Act--Bering Sea Pollock Management

    The American Fisheries Act (AFA) was signed into law in October 
1998 (Pub. L. 105-227, Title II of Division C). The purpose of the AFA 
was to clarify U.S. ownership standards for U.S. fishing vessels and to 
provide the Bering Sea pollock fleet the opportunity to conduct their 
fishery in a more rational manner while protecting non-AFA participants 
in the other fisheries. The AFA eliminated the race for Bering Sea 
pollock through the establishment of cooperatives that were eligible to 
receive exclusive harvest allocations. The AFA established: specific 
allocations of Bering Sea pollock; requirements for participation by 
catcher/processors, catcher vessels, motherships, and processors; 
excessive share limits; monitoring and enforcement provisions; and 
annual reporting requirements.
    In response to a directive in the AFA, the Council recommended and 
NMFS established sideboard limits to protect other fisheries from the 
potential adverse effects arising from the exclusive allocation of 
Bering Sea pollock under the AFA. Cooperative fishing began under the 
AFA program in 1999. The effects of AFA on the Bering Sea pollock 
industry were tremendous: capacity was reduced, efficiency was 
increased, regulatory bycatch was reduced, a higher portion of the fish 
was utilized, and higher valued products were produced. More 
information regarding the AFA program is available from the final rule 
implementing the AFA (67 FR 79692, December 30, 2002).

Aleutian Islands Pollock Management

    In 1999, NMFS closed the Aleutian Islands subarea to directed 
pollock fishing due to concerns about the potential impact of the 
pollock fishery on Steller sea lions (64 FR 3437, January 22, 1999). In 
2003, NMFS prohibited directed fishing for pollock inside Steller sea 
lion critical habitat in the Aleutian Islands subarea as a Steller sea 
lion protection measure (68 FR 204, January 2, 2003).
    NMFS allocates a portion of the Aleutian Islands pollock to the 
Aleut

[[Page 37490]]

Corporation, pursuant to the requirements of the Consolidated 
Appropriations Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-199). NMFS implemented this 
allocation with Amendment 82 to the FMP in November 2004 (69 FR 67107, 
November 16, 2004). Regulations implementing Amendment 82 define the 
amount of pollock TAC that may be allocated in the Aleutian Islands, 
and how the Aleut Corporation may harvest its portion of this 
allocation.
    When the Aleutian Islands pollock ABC is less than 19,000 mt, the 
annual TAC is not greater than the ABC; when the ABC is greater than 
19,000 mt, the TAC is equal to 19,000 mt (see Sec.  679.20(a)(5)(iii)). 
Once the TAC is determined, the Aleutian Islands pollock TAC is 
allocated to the Aleut Corporation as a directed fishery allowance 
after subtracting the CDQ Program allocation of 10 percent of the TAC, 
and after subtracting an incidental catch allowance to accommodate the 
catch of pollock in non-pollock directed fisheries (e.g., the 
incidental catch of pollock in the directed fishery for Pacific cod). 
The directed fishery allowance provided to the Aleut Corporation is 
subject to seasonal apportionment.
    Regulations require that 50 percent of the Aleut Corporation's 
pollock allocation must be harvested by vessels less than 60 feet in 
length overall (see Sec.  679.20(a)(5)(iii)(B)(5)). The Aleut 
Corporation may harvest the remaining 50 percent of the pollock 
allocation with vessels greater than 60 feet length overall. Any vessel 
greater than 60 feet in length overall that is used to harvest the 
pollock allocation must be permitted as an AFA vessel (see Sec.  
679.4(m)(3)(i)(C)).
    Pollock occurs primarily inside Steller sea lion critical habitat 
in the Aleutian Islands. The existing closure of critical habitat in 
the Aleutian Islands to directed fishing has effectively precluded 
directed fishing in the Aleutian Islands. Therefore, the Aleutian 
Islands pollock allocation has not been fully harvested by the Aleut 
Corporation and is reallocated each year to the Bering Sea pollock 
fishery when the Bering Sea pollock TAC is set sufficiently below the 
ABC. Additional detail on pollock harvests in the Aleutian Islands and 
the reallocation to the Bering Sea is provided in Chapters 3 and 8 of 
the EIS.

Amendment 78 Habitat Protection Measures

    Amendment 78 to the FMP established Aleutian Islands habitat 
protection measures and closed a large portion of the Aleutian Islands 
subarea to nonpelagic trawling. These closures were implemented in 2006 
(71 FR 36694, June 28, 2006) and revised in 2008 (73 FR 9035, February 
19, 2008). Nonpelagic trawl gear is used for harvesting Atka mackerel 
and Pacific cod. The Amendment 78 closures to nonpelagic trawling 
include the Aleutian Islands Habitat Conservation Area (AIHCA), the 
Aleutian Islands Coral Habitat Protection Areas, and the Bowers Ridge 
Habitat Conservation Zone. The AIHCA closed most of the Aleutian 
Islands subarea to nonpelagic trawling (a 279,114 nm\2\ closure), but 
left open some areas where nonpelagic trawling historically occurred. 
The Aleutian Islands Coral Habitat Protection Areas are relatively 
small, discrete areas closed to all bottom contact gear, including 
nonpelagic trawl gear. The Bowers Ridge Habitat Conservation Zone, 
located in the northern portion of Areas 542 and 543, is closed to 
mobile bottom contact gear, including nonpelagic trawl gear (two areas 
totaling a 5,329 nm\2\ closure). These closures, in combination with 
the Steller sea lion protection measures, substantially limit the 
locations available for nonpelagic trawling in the Aleutian Islands 
subarea (see Figures 2-27 and 2-28 in the EIS).

Steller Sea Lion Protection Measures

    Section 3.5.3 of the FMP, approved by the Secretary of Commerce 
under the Magnuson-Stevens Act, authorizes regulations for fishery 
management measures to protect marine mammals, without requiring 
amendment of the FMP itself (see ADDRESSES). Steller sea lion 
protection measures for the Alaska groundfish fisheries have been 
implemented under this FMP authority since 1998. Since 1998, Steller 
sea lion protection measures have been revised several times. NMFS has 
conducted several ESA consultations to assess the impact of the 
groundfish fisheries on Steller sea lions. Previous actions to 
implement Steller sea lion protection measures and their accompanying 
ESA consultations have been subject to litigation. A detailed history 
of previous Steller sea lion protection measures, ESA section 7 
consultations (i.e., biological opinions), and litigation is provided 
in Chapter 1 of the EIS (see ADDRESSES). The following sections of the 
preamble summarize recent ESA section 7 consultations, rulemaking, and 
litigation.

FMP BiOp

    In April 2006, NMFS SFD reinitiated ESA section 7 consultation with 
NMFS PRD on the potential effects of the Alaska groundfish fisheries on 
ESA-listed species and their designated critical habitat. Consultation 
was reinitiated in consideration of new scientific information and 
changes to fisheries management since the 2003 supplement to the 2001 
BiOp on the groundfish fisheries (see ADDRESSES). After reviewing all 
ESA-listed species within NMFS' jurisdiction that may be affected by 
the Alaska groundfish fisheries, NMFS SFD determined that the Alaska 
groundfish fisheries were likely to adversely affect Steller sea lions 
and their designated critical habitat; therefore, a formal consultation 
was required.
    In November 2010, NMFS PRD completed the FMP BiOp on the effects of 
the authorization of the Alaska groundfish fisheries on Steller sea 
lions. The FMP BiOp determined that NMFS SFD could not insure that the 
Alaska groundfish fisheries were not likely to jeopardize the continued 
existence of Steller sea lions or result in the destruction or adverse 
modification of their designated critical habitat (collectively 
referred to as ``jeopardy''). The Alaska groundfish fisheries of 
concern were located in the Central and Western sub-regions of the 
Aleutian Islands, based on the population trends of the Steller sea 
lions and the harvest of principal prey species by the groundfish 
fisheries in these sub-regions. These sub-regions are identified in the 
2008 Revised Steller Sea Lion Recovery Plan (see ADDRESSES). As 
described in the Recovery Plan, the Central sub-region comprises Areas 
541 and 542 and the Western sub-region is Area 543.
    The FMP BiOp determined that Atka mackerel and Pacific cod 
fisheries in the Western Aleutian Islands sub-region and portions of 
the Central Aleutian Islands sub-region may reduce the availability of 
prey to the extent that a Steller sea lion's condition, growth, 
reproduction, or survival is diminished. This presumed competition 
between Steller sea lions and the groundfish fisheries led NMFS PRD to 
determine that NMFS SFD could not insure that its action was not likely 
to jeopardize Steller sea lions. The FMP BiOp determined that changes 
to the Pacific cod and Atka mackerel fisheries in the Aleutian Islands 
were necessary to avoid jeopardy for Steller sea lions. The FMP BiOp 
included a reasonable and prudent alternative (RPA) to mitigate the 
effects of the Alaska groundfish fisheries on Steller sea lions and 
their critical habitat. The RPA focused on the Atka mackerel and 
Pacific cod fisheries in the BSAI, and included performance standards 
to provide more restrictive measures on the harvest of Steller sea

[[Page 37491]]

lion prey species in areas where declines in Steller sea lion 
populations were most evident. Those performance standards helped to 
guide the initial development of the measures that would be implemented 
by the proposed rule.
    The FMP BiOp, the supporting science, and its findings are 
controversial. This controversy reflects differences in opinion on the 
interpretation of scientific information and on the application of law 
in fisheries management. NMFS sponsored a review of the FMP BiOp by the 
Center for Independent Experts. The States of Alaska and Washington 
also sponsored an external review of the FMP BiOp. Information on these 
reviews is available in the 2014 BiOp (see ADDRESSES) and from the NMFS 
Alaska Region Web site at http://alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/protectedresources/stellers/esa/biop/final/cie/review.htm.

2010 Interim Final Rule

    In December 2010, NMFS published an interim final rule that 
implemented the RPA in the FMP BiOp (75 FR 77535, December 13, 2010, 
corrected 75 FR 81921, December 29, 2010). The 2010 Interim Final Rule 
became effective January 1, 2011. Fishery restrictions were focused 
primarily on the Atka mackerel and Pacific cod fisheries in the 
Aleutian Islands subarea, with only a minor change made to the Atka 
mackerel fishery in the Bering Sea subarea to provide for management of 
the combined Area 541/Bering Sea TAC.

Litigation

    The State of Alaska, the Alaska Seafood Cooperative, and the 
Freezer Longline Coalition filed suit against NMFS in the U.S. District 
Court for the District of Alaska in December 2010 on the FMP BiOp and 
the 2010 Interim Final Rule implemented by NMFS. The Court found that 
NMFS properly applied the ESA, the Magnuson-Stevens Act, and the 
Administrative Procedure Act in the development of the FMP BiOp and in 
the implementation of the 2010 Interim Final Rule. The Court found that 
the agency's NEPA process for preparing the environmental assessment 
(EA) for the 2010 Interim Final Rule did not provide the public with 
sufficient opportunity for review and comment and that the conclusions 
of the EA were highly controversial and uncertain. Based on these 
findings, the court ordered NMFS to prepare an environmental impact 
statement (EIS). The court ordered the EIS to be completed by August 
15, 2014 (Case 3:10-cv-00271-TMB Document 193, filed February 20, 
2014).

EIS and Preferred Alternative

    NMFS published a notice of intent to prepare the EIS in the Federal 
Register on April 17, 2012 (77 FR 22750). The scoping period for the 
EIS was approximately 6 months with the period ending October 15, 2012. 
NMFS also held a public scoping meeting in coordination with a Council 
meeting on October 2, 2012 (77 FR 52674, August 30, 2012).
    The Council and NMFS developed the purpose and need for the 
proposed action in the EIS (see Section 1.3 of the EIS). The proposed 
action is needed to comply with the ESA requirement that a Federal 
agency insure that the agency's actions are not likely to jeopardize 
the continued existence of endangered species or destroy or adversely 
modify its critical habitat. The purpose of this action is to implement 
Steller sea lion protection measures for the Aleutian Islands 
groundfish fisheries, and supporting research, in a manner that 
mitigates the Aleutian Islands groundfish fisheries' potential impacts 
on Steller sea lions and minimizes, to the extent practicable, economic 
impacts to the groundfish fisheries.
    The action area considered in the EIS is the Aleutian Islands 
reporting areas, with an adjustment to the Atka mackerel fishery 
management in the Bering Sea. The EIS focused on the fisheries that may 
affect Steller sea lions or their critical habitat in the Aleutian 
Islands because that is where Steller sea lions are experiencing the 
greatest population declines.
    In April 2013, the Council recommended a preliminary preferred 
alternative (PPA, Alternative 5) for the public's consideration during 
the review and comment period on the draft EIS. The Council considered 
recommendations from its Steller Sea Lion Mitigation Committee, SSC, 
Advisory Panel, and public testimony in developing their recommended 
PPA for the draft EIS. NMFS identified the PPA in the draft EIS and 
released the draft EIS for public review on May 17, 2013 (78 FR 29131). 
The comment period for the draft EIS ended July 16, 2013. NMFS 
summarized and responded to all relevant public comments received 
during the comment period in the Comment Analysis Report, Chapter 13 of 
the final EIS. NMFS published the final EIS on May 23, 2014 (see 
ADDRESSES).
    The final EIS describes in detail the six alternatives for the 
proposed action. These alternatives were developed through a 
collaborative process with the Council and its Steller Sea Lion 
Mitigation Committee, and in consideration of public comments received 
during the scoping process for the EIS and during the public review of 
the draft EIS. All of the alternatives were developed with the 
understanding that a preferred alternative could only be selected as 
the proposed action, and implemented through rule making, if NMFS could 
insure that the action was not likely to jeopardize the continued 
existence of the Steller sea lions or result in destruction or adverse 
modification of their designated critical habitat. The Council and NMFS 
understood that a preferred alternative and any resulting rule must 
meet the requirements of the ESA before factors that minimize, to the 
extent practicable, the economic impacts on fishery participants could 
be considered.
    NMFS analyzed two broad categories of potential measures under all 
of the alternatives. First, under each alternative NMFS analyzed a 
range of Steller sea lion protection measures in the BSAI that varied 
among the alternatives. Second, under each alternative, NMFS analyzed 
the effects of potential fishery research that could be conducted in 
the BSAI that may affect Steller sea lions. The same potential fishery 
research provisions were considered under each of the alternatives.
    The decision analyzed in the EIS was whether to maintain the 
existing suite of Steller sea lion protection measures (Alternative 1, 
the 2010 Interim Final Rule) or to implement a new suite of Steller sea 
lion protection measures (Alternatives 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6). To provide a 
comprehensive analysis of the effects of the alternatives, the EIS 
compares the six alternatives relative to each other and relative to a 
baseline period used to assess the environmental conditions affecting 
Steller sea lions (generally from 2004 through 2010).
    The alternatives ranged from Alternative 6, an alternative that 
would restrict fishing more than the status quo alternative 
(Alternative 1), to Alternative 4, the alternative that would allow the 
most fishing opportunities. Alternative 4 would reinstate the Steller 
sea lion protection measures that were in place prior to the 2010 
Interim Final Rule, with a few exceptions. Alternatives 2, 3, and 5 
provided more fishing opportunities and fewer protection measures than 
Alternative 6, but included more protection measures than Alternative 
4. NMFS added Alternative 6 to the final EIS in response to public 
comments that requested an alternative that restricted fishing more

[[Page 37492]]

than Alternative 1. Additional description of the alternatives is 
available in the EIS and not addressed further here (see ADDRESSES).
    In October 2013, after consideration of public comments received on 
the draft EIS, advice from its Steller Sea Lion Mitigation Committee, 
input from the Council's Advisory Panel and SSC, and public comment, 
the Council recommended Alternative 5 as the preferred alternative for 
the final EIS. Alternative 5 is a suite of management measures for the 
Atka mackerel, Pacific cod, and pollock fisheries that include fishery 
closures and limitations on catch in specific areas to mitigate the 
potential adverse effects of fishing on Steller sea lion prey 
resources. Alternative 5 would allow more fishing than under 
Alternative 1, but retains and modifies important Steller sea lion 
protection measures already in place. Alternative 5 would include 
authorization for specific fishery research in the BSAI.
    The Council recommended Alternative 5 as the preferred alternative 
based on the analysis in the draft EIS, public comments, and the best 
available scientific information including the findings of the external 
scientific reviews conducted by the Center for Independent Experts on 
behalf of NMFS and the panel convened by the States of Alaska and 
Washington. In recommending Alternative 5 as its preferred alternative, 
the Council determined that Alternative 5 would implement management 
measures that protect Steller sea lions as required by the ESA. The 
Council determined that Alternative 5 would protect specific areas that 
are important to Steller sea lions, and include specific harvest limits 
on the amount of fishing within Steller sea lion critical habitat in 
order to protect Steller sea lion prey availability. Alternative 5 
maintains a careful approach to fishing for Steller sea lion prey 
species in critical habitat by spatially and temporally dispersing 
catch to prevent localized depletion of these important prey resources.
    The Council determined that Alternative 5 is necessary to minimize 
economic impacts on fishery participants. The EIS found that direct, 
indirect, and cumulative effects of Alternative 5 on the human 
environment, including Steller sea lions, were similar to those effects 
under status quo with the exception that Alternative 5 would enhance 
fishing opportunities and minimize potential economic impacts. The EIS 
indicates that additional restrictions on fisheries beyond those 
considered under Alternative 5 (e.g., Alternatives 1 and 6) may result 
in additional economic harm to participants in the regulated fisheries, 
and would not meet the secondary objective of the proposed action.

2014 BiOp

    On May 10, 2013, NMFS reinitiated ESA section 7 consultation on the 
effect of the proposed action (Alternative 5) to revise Steller sea 
lion protection measures. NMFS reinitiated consultation because the 
proposed action would change the current management of fisheries in the 
BSAI. Therefore, the proposed action may result in effects not 
previously analyzed in the FMP BiOp. Additionally, the research 
provisions of the proposed action were not considered in the FMP BiOp.
    Because the proposed action would modify Steller sea lion 
protection measures primarily in the Aleutian Islands Atka mackerel, 
Pacific cod, and pollock fisheries, NMFS did a project-level, focused 
consultation. The 2014 BiOp is the result of that consultation. The 
2014 BiOp did not entirely replace the previous FMP BiOp. The analysis 
contained in the FMP BiOp remains valid and meets NMFS' requirement to 
consult at the FMP level.
    New information in the external reviews of the FMP BiOp and the new 
analyses that NMFS conducted in response to those external reviews were 
incorporated into the 2014 BiOp to further understand the effects of 
the groundfish fisheries on Steller sea lions. The 2014 BiOp considered 
whether NMFS has insured that the proposed Aleutian Islands Atka 
mackerel, Pacific cod, and pollock fisheries and their supporting 
research are not likely to cause jeopardy for Steller sea lions. On 
April 2, 2014, NMFS issued the 2014 BiOp.
    The 2014 BiOp found that the implementation of the proposed action 
described in the EIS (i.e., Alternative 5) was not likely to jeopardize 
the continued existence of Steller sea lions and was not likely to 
destroy or adversely modify designated Steller sea lion critical 
habitat. The conclusions in the 2014 BiOp were reached after 
considering the best scientific and commercial information available, 
including Steller sea lion behavior and fisheries data. The 2014 BiOp 
concludes that the proposed action would establish Steller sea lion 
protection measures for the Atka mackerel, Pacific cod, and pollock 
fisheries in the Aleutian Islands subarea that spatially, temporally, 
and globally disperse fishing to mitigate potential competition for 
prey resources between Steller sea lions and these fisheries. Spatial 
and temporal fishery dispersion is accomplished through closure areas, 
harvest limits, seasonal apportionment of harvest limits, and limits on 
participation in a fishery. The proposed action would retain or modify 
existing closure areas, harvest limits, seasonal apportionment of 
harvest limits, and limits on participation in ways that are designed 
to limit competition for prey with Steller sea lions.
    The best available scientific information suggests that the effects 
of the groundfish fisheries on Steller sea lions may be greatest around 
rookeries and haulouts due to the overlap of foraging Steller sea lions 
and harvest of their prey species in the fisheries (see Chapter 5 of 
the EIS and Section 5.4 of the 2014 BiOp). This proposed action limits 
fishing to the greatest extent from 0 nm to 3 nm from rookeries and 
haulouts, which corresponds with the highest observed at-sea use by as 
adult female, young-of-the-year, and juvenile Steller sea lions as 
shown in the Steller sea lion telemetry data described in the 2014 
BiOp.
    The 2014 BiOP identified the importance of maintaining global, or 
broad scale, limits on the harvest of Atka mackerel, Pacific cod, and 
pollock. Global limits are currently in place for these three species. 
Regulations prohibit directed fishing in the BSAI or GOA if the 
projected spawning biomass of the fish stock falls below 20 percent of 
the unfished spawning biomass (see regulations at Sec.  679.20(d)(4)). 
Atka mackerel, Pacific cod, and pollock fisheries have not experienced 
this type of directed fishing closure since global limits became 
effective in 2003 (68 FR 204, January 2, 2003).

Proposed Regulatory Provisions

    This proposed action would implement Alternative 5, the Council's 
preferred alternative for Steller sea lion protection measures. Many of 
the provisions in this proposed action are the same as provisions 
implemented in the 2010 Interim Final Rule (75 FR 77535, December 13, 
2010; corrected 75 FR 81921, December 29, 2010). This section of the 
preamble explains each provision and notes when the provision is the 
same as the 2010 Interim Final Rule, a modification of the 2010 Interim 
Final Rule, or a new provision. All these provisions should be 
considered together as the proposed action, and NMFS has determined 
that the public should be provided another opportunity to comment on 
the 2010 Interim Final Rule regulatory amendments based on the new 
information.
    The following sections describe the general provisions of this 
proposed action: (1) Removal of the retention

[[Page 37493]]

prohibition for Atka mackerel and Pacific cod fisheries in Area 543; 
(2) harvest limits and closures for the Atka mackerel, Pacific cod, and 
pollock fisheries in Areas 543, 542, and 541; and (3) general 
management measures for groundfish fisheries in the BSAI.

Removal of Atka Mackerel and Pacific Cod Retention Prohibitions in Area 
543

    This proposed action would allow the retention of Pacific cod and 
Atka mackerel in Area 543 subject to harvest limits addressed in the 
next section of the preamble. This proposed action would remove the 
prohibition on the retention of Pacific cod and Atka mackerel in Area 
543 at Sec.  679.7(a)(19). This prohibition was implemented under the 
2010 Interim Final Rule. Currently, Atka mackerel and Pacific cod 
cannot be retained in a directed fishery or when incidentally caught in 
other groundfish fisheries in Area 543. The Council recommended and 
NMFS proposes to remove the retention prohibition throughout all of 
Area 543 (i.e., inside and outside of critical habitat) and instead 
limit Atka mackerel and Pacific cod harvest in Area 543.
    By removing the retention prohibition, directed fisheries for Atka 
mackerel and Pacific cod could occur in Area 543. In addition, Atka 
mackerel and Pacific cod could be retained if they are incidentally 
harvested in other non-directed fisheries throughout all of Area 543 
(e.g., incidental harvest of Atka mackerel could be retained in a 
Pacific ocean perch fishery). Incidental harvest of Atka mackerel and 
Pacific cod would still be limited by Maximum Retainable Amounts 
(MRAs). MRAs limit the amount of species that a vessel operator can 
retain if a species is not open for directed fishing. Regulations at 
Sec.  679.20(e) and (f), and Tables 10 and 11 to 50 CFR part 679, 
establish MRA percentages for groundfish species and species groups. 
Chapter 8 of the EIS provides additional detail on the management of 
MRA limits.
    The 2014 BiOp considered a range of information to assess the 
potential effects of allowing retention of Atka mackerel and Pacific 
cod in Area 543. Satellite telemetry tags have been deployed on adult 
female and juvenile Steller sea lions in Areas 541, 542, and 543 to 
understand sea lion movements and at-sea distribution. The at-sea 
location data collected from these telemetry tags have been grouped 
into summer (April through September) and winter (October through 
March) time periods. Based on telemetry analyses completed for the 2014 
BiOp, over 90 percent of the winter and summer juvenile locations and 
the summer adult female locations were within 20 nm from listed 
rookeries or haulouts, and 80.6 percent of the winter adult female 
locations were within 20 nm from listed rookeries or haulouts. Based on 
these data, the 2014 BiOp concluded that there is less concern about 
potential interactions between fisheries and Steller sea lions farther 
than 20 nm from listed rookeries or haulouts. This conclusion is 
consistent with BiOp NMFS conducted in 2001 (see ADDRESSES).
    Allowing retention for Pacific cod and Atka mackerel outside of 
critical habitat (i.e., further than 20 nm from listed rookeries or 
haulouts) in Area 543 is consistent with the need to protect Steller 
sea lion prey resources in areas most important to foraging Steller sea 
lions while providing the opportunity for fishery harvests in areas 
where there is less potential for competition between fisheries and 
foraging Steller sea lions. Allowing retention within critical habitat 
in Area 543 would be consistent with the need to protect Steller sea 
lions, provided that the total amount of TAC taken in Area 543 is 
limited and directed fishing, the source of greatest retention, is 
further limited near Steller sea lion rookeries and haulouts. These 
harvest limitations are described in greater detail in the following 
section of the preamble.

Atka Mackerel Harvest Limits in Areas 543 and 542

    This proposed action would establish two harvest limits for Atka 
mackerel in Area 543. The first limit would set the annual TAC at an 
amount no greater than 65 percent of the ABC in Area 543. Prior to the 
implementation of the 2010 Interim Final Rule in 2011, Atka mackerel 
harvest in Area 543 inside critical habitat was limited to 60 percent 
of the TAC, but the full amount of the TAC could be taken in Area 543 
as a whole during a year. The proposed area-wide TAC limit of 65 
percent of the ABC in Area 543 would provide limited fishing 
opportunity inside and outside critical habitat at a level similar to 
the previous limit that applied only inside critical habitat. The 
Council and NMFS recommended this measure to ensure the overall harvest 
in Area 543 would not be likely to impact the area-wide availability of 
Atka mackerel prey resources for Steller sea lions while allowing some 
harvesting of Atka mackerel in Area 543.
    This second limit would allow no more than 60 percent of the annual 
TAC, evenly apportioned between the A and B seasons, to be harvested in 
critical habitat west of 178[deg] W longitude. This area includes all 
of Area 543 and the western portion of Area 542. The 2010 Interim Final 
Rule implemented equally apportioned Atka mackerel harvest in critical 
habitat between two seasons. The Council and NMFS recommend retaining 
this measure, but modifying it to apply to Area 543 and the western 
portion of 542 to spatially and temporally disperse catch in Steller 
sea lion critical habitat to protect potential prey resources. This 
limit would apply to waters near Steller sea lion rookery or haulout 
sites where pup and nonpup counts have been declining. It would provide 
additional potential protection to prey resources inside critical 
habitat where the Steller sea lion population has been observed to be 
declining. This limit in critical habitat harvest would balance the 
need to protect Steller sea lion prey resources, consistent with the 
FMP BiOp performance standards (see Section 8.2.2 of the FMP BiOP), 
with the opportunity to harvest Atka mackerel in a few locations 
available to fishing within critical habitat. Atka mackerel fishing is 
effectively prohibited in most critical habitat in the Aleutian Islands 
due to the nonpelagic trawl closures in the AIHCA (see Figure 2-27 in 
EIS and Section 5.3.4 in 2014 BiOp for additional detail).

Atka Mackerel Fisheries Closures in Area 543

    This proposed action would prohibit directed fishing with trawl 
gear for Atka mackerel in waters from 0 nm to 3 nm from haulouts and 
from 0 nm to 10 nm from rookeries in Area 543. The Council recommended 
and NMFS proposes this prohibition to protect Steller sea lion critical 
habitat, providing more protection to areas around rookeries where 
adult females and juveniles are more dependent on nearshore prey 
resources. The existing AIHCA closures in Area 543 in addition to the 
proposed closures under this action would result in a spatial closure 
of 76 percent of critical habitat in Area 543 to Atka mackerel directed 
fishing (see Figure 2-27 in EIS and Section 5.2 in 2014 BiOp).

Pacific Cod Harvest Limit in Area 543

    This proposed action would establish a harvest limit for Pacific 
cod based on abundance in Area 543 as determined by the annual stock 
assessment process. The Council recommends and NMFS proposes this 
measure to limit catch in the portion of the Aleutian Islands where 
Steller sea lions have experienced the greatest decline. This limit 
would vary from year-to-year depending on stock abundance but would 
ensure that limits are retained on total harvest. For example, under 
this proposed limit the Pacific cod catch

[[Page 37494]]

limit would have been 3,359 mt for trawl vessels and 1,082 mt for non-
trawl vessels in 2014. This limit would balance protection of area-wide 
Pacific cod prey resources for Steller sea lions using the best 
available scientific information on biomass distribution while 
providing some opportunity for Pacific cod harvests.

Pacific Cod Hook-and-Line and Pot Gear Fisheries Closures in Area 543

    The proposed action would prohibit directed fishing for Pacific cod 
in waters from 0 nm to 3 nm from rookeries and from 0 nm to 10 nm from 
Buldir Island for hook-and-line and pot gear vessels. Hook-and-line and 
pot gear is typically deployed in locations closer to shore in the 
Aleutian Islands compared to trawl gear. This is due to the steep 
bathymetry in the Aleutian Islands and the limited benthic surface 
available to hook-and-line and pot gear farther from shore. The Council 
recommended and NMFS proposes these limited closures in Area 543 to 
Pacific cod hook-and-line and pot gear because harvests occur in much 
smaller quantities and at slower rates for these gears than trawl gear. 
This makes it less likely that hook-and-line and pot gear harvests 
would result in localized depletion of Steller sea lion prey resources 
(Section 3.3 in EIS). Allowing harvests of Pacific cod by hook-and-line 
and pot gear in Steller sea lion critical habitat is less likely to 
cause localized depletion of Steller sea lion prey resources compared 
to trawl gear fishing.

Pacific Cod Trawl Fisheries Closures in Area 543

    This proposed action would prohibit directed fishing with trawl 
gear for Pacific cod in waters from 0 nm to 3 nm from haulouts and from 
0 nm to 10 nm from rookeries in Area 543. The Council and NMFS 
recommended this action to protect Steller sea lion prey resources in 
areas important to adult females, young of the year, and juveniles from 
the potential effects of trawl fisheries. These closures balance the 
protection of prey resources within critical habitat with the 
opportunity to harvest Pacific cod by trawl gear in the limited 
locations available to trawl gear. Establishing this proposed area 
closure would result in a spatial closure of 76 percent of critical 
habitat in Area 543 for Pacific cod trawl gear when considered in the 
context of the existing AIHCA closures (Figure 2-28 in EIS and Section 
5.3.4 in 2014 BiOp). However, NMFS expects that Area 543 Pacific cod 
harvest amounts under these proposed closures to be not much more than 
harvest amounts in Area 543 under current regulations established by 
the 2010 Interim Final Rule because of the change to the Pacific cod 
TAC explained above under the ``BSAI Pacific Cod Management'' and 
anticipated participation in the fishery in that area. Therefore, based 
on that expectation, the Area 543 Pacific cod fishery is not likely to 
result in localized depletion of Steller sea lion Pacific cod prey 
resources (Section 5.4.7 in 2014 BiOp).

Pollock Harvest Limit in Area 543

    This proposed action would limit the harvest of pollock to no more 
than 5 percent of the Aleutian Islands pollock ABC during the A season 
in Area 543. This limit would apply to all harvests; this includes 
harvests by the Aleut Corporation, CDQ groups, and the incidental catch 
of pollock in all other groundfish fisheries. The Council recommended 
and NMFS proposes setting this pollock harvest limit in Area 543, 
consistent with the goal of providing more protection to Steller sea 
lions where more decline in their population is evident (see 
performance standards described in Section 8.2.2 in FMP BiOp). Area 543 
is the location with the apparent greatest decline in Steller sea lion 
abundance compared to Areas 542 and 541. Therefore, this proposed 
action would establish more restrictive harvest limits in Area 543 than 
Areas 542 and 541. The 5-percent harvest limit balances the need for 
additional protection to prey resources during a time of the year when 
Steller sea lions are more dependent on pollock while providing 
opportunity for the development of a limited pollock fishery (Section 
5.3.3 in 2014 BiOp).

Pollock Fisheries Closures in Area 543

    This proposed action would prohibit directed fishing for pollock in 
most critical habitat in Area 543. This proposed action would prohibit 
directed fishing for pollock from 0 nm to 3 nm from Shemya, Alaid, and 
Chirikof haulouts and from 0 nm to 20 nm at the Agattu rookeries in 
Area 543, as described in Table 4 to 50 CFR part 679 and shown in 
Figure 1. This proposed action would prohibit directed fishing for 
pollock from 0 nm to 20 nm in the two remaining rookeries in Area 543. 
The Council recommended and NMFS proposes these prohibitions to protect 
important Steller sea lion prey while providing the opportunity for 
limited pollock fishing in an area where pollock fishing had 
historically occurred in Area 543 (Figure 3-18 in EIS). The 2014 BiOp 
found that very little spatial overlap between Steller sea lions and 
the pollock fishery would be likely because under this proposed 
management measure, 95 percent of critical habitat in Area 543 would be 
closed to pollock fishing (Section 5.3.3 in 2014 BiOp). The 2014 BiOp 
found that there would be a limited degree of overlap between the depth 
at which the pollock fishery occurs and Steller sea lion dive patterns 
in Area 543. Therefore, this proposed action would provide a very 
limited opportunity for pollock harvests to occur in critical habitat 
within Area 543 while providing protections to Steller sea lion prey 
resources. To provide the reader with a better understanding of the 
specific areas open and closed under this proposed provision, see 
Figure 1 below.

BILLING CODE 3510-22-P

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Atka Mackerel Critical Habitat Harvest Restrictions in Area 542

    This proposed action would make several modifications to Atka 
mackerel harvest restrictions in Area 542. First, this proposed action 
would remove the prohibition on fishing inside of critical habitat 
around Gramp Rock and Tag Island unless the vessel was assigned to an 
Amendment 80 cooperative or the CDQ Program, as implemented by the 2010 
Interim Final Rule under Sec.  679.7(a)(25). This proposed action would 
remove this prohibition because limiting vessels in this area would not 
be necessary to control the rate of fishing within this portion of 
critical habitat in Area 542. This proposed action would provide 
additional locations in Steller sea lion critical habitat for Atka 
mackerel fishing. NMFS expects greater spatial dispersion of Atka 
mackerel harvests inside critical habitat by providing this additional 
fishing area.
    Second, as noted earlier, this proposed action would limit the 
amount and seasonal apportionment of the Atka mackerel TAC in critical 
habitat in the western portion of Area 542. No more than 60 percent of 
the annual TAC, evenly apportioned between the A and B seasons, could 
be harvested in critical habitat west of 178[deg] W longitude. The 
Council recommended and NMFS proposes this limit to ensure that the 
amount of Atka mackerel harvest is constrained within critical habitat 
in Area 542 west of 178[deg] W longitude similar to historical harvests 
levels (see Chapter 3 and 11 in EIS, and Section 5.3.4 in the 2014 
BiOp).
    Third, this proposed action would remove the Amendment 80 and CDQ 
harvest restrictions and Area 542 TAC limit for Atka mackerel 
implemented by the 2010 Interim Final Rule at Sec.  679.20(a)(8)(ii)(C) 
because these harvest restrictions and TAC limit are not necessary 
under the proposed Steller sea lion protection measures. As determined 
by the 2014 BiOp, the Area 542 Atka mackerel harvest anticipated under 
this proposed action is not likely to cause jeopardy to Steller sea 
lions, and therefore maintaining these additional restrictions would 
result in potential economic burden on the fishing industry that is not 
needed to protect Steller sea lion prey species.

Atka Mackerel Fisheries Closures in Area 542

    This proposed action would prohibit directed fishing for Atka 
mackerel in waters from 0 nm to 3 nm of Steller sea lion haulouts and 
from 0 nm to 10 nm of Steller sea lion rookeries in Area 542. This 
proposed action also would prohibit directed fishing for Atka mackerel 
in waters from 0 nm to 20 nm from Steller sea lion rookeries and 
haulouts in Area 542 located between 178[deg] E longitude and 180[deg] 
longitude and east of 178[deg] W longitude. This proposed action would 
revise the 2010 Interim Final Rule prohibition of directed fishing for 
Atka mackerel in waters from 0 nm to 20 nm from Steller sea lion 
rookeries and haulouts in Area 542 located between 177[deg] E longitude 
and

[[Page 37496]]

179[deg] W longitude and between 178[deg] W longitude and 177[deg] W 
longitude. These proposed changes in the Atka mackerel closure areas 
would be implemented by revisions to Table 6 to 50 CFR part 679.
    Establishing this proposed area closure would result in a spatial 
closure of 93 percent of critical habitat in Area 542 for Atka mackerel 
fishing when considered in the context of the existing AIHCA closures 
(see Figure 2-27 in EIS and Section 5.3.1 in 2014 BiOp). Further, 
telemetry data do not indicate a spatial overlap between Steller sea 
lions and the Atka mackerel fishery outside of 10 nm from Steller sea 
lion rookeries or outside of 3 nm from haulouts in Area 542 (Section 
5.3 in 2014 BiOp).
    The Council and NMFS recommended these prohibitions based on the 
best available information from the Alaska Fisheries Science Center 
Fisheries Interaction Team studies (Chapter 11 in EIS). These studies 
have shown that Atka mackerel move from inside critical habitat to 
outside critical habitat near Amchitka, and the abundance of Atka 
mackerel is relatively low in this area compared to other fishing 
locations in Area 542. This movement and low abundance of Atka mackerel 
at Amchitka may make Steller sea lion prey resources inside critical 
habitat in these areas more susceptible to fishing effects. The 
proposed closures in Area 542 would provide protection to Steller sea 
lion Atka mackerel prey resources inside critical habitat where Atka 
mackerel may be more susceptible to localized depletion. This proposed 
closure would provide a limited opportunity to harvest Atka mackerel in 
those areas of critical habitat not otherwise precluded due to the 
existing AIHCA closures (Section 5.3.4 in 2014 BiOp).

Pacific Cod Non-Trawl Fisheries Closures in Area 542

    This proposed action would include three revisions to Area 542 
protection measures for the Pacific cod non-trawl fisheries. The first 
revision would change the current 0 nm to 6 nm closures at Steller sea 
lion haulouts and rookeries to 0 nm to 3 nm from Steller sea lion 
rookeries in Area 542 to hook-and-line and pot gear vessels directed 
fishing for Pacific cod year round. The second revision would remove 
the prohibition on directed fishing for Pacific cod with jig gear from 
0 nm to 6 nm of Steller sea lion haulouts and rookeries as implemented 
under the 2010 Interim Final Rule in Sec.  679.22(a)(8)(iv) and Table 5 
to 50 CFR part 679. The Council recommended and NMFS proposes revising 
the non-trawl gear Pacific cod closures to allow additional fishing 
opportunity for these gear types in locations that are less likely to 
affect prey resources for adult females, young of the year, and 
juvenile Steller sea lions.
    Pot and hook-and-line gear must be deployed in relatively shallow 
water, and those areas are limited in the Aleutian Islands subarea due 
to the steep bathymetry. Therefore, vessels using pot and hook-and-line 
gear generally fish for Pacific cod within 10 nm of Steller sea lion 
haulouts and rookeries in the Aleutian Islands (Section 3.3 in EIS). 
This proposed rule would close waters from 0 nm to 3 nm from rookeries 
to directed fishing for Pacific cod by all non-trawl gears to protect 
prey resources for females that may be limited in their ability to 
travel longer distances from a nursing pup and for young Steller sea 
lions with limited foraging capability (Section 5.2 in 2014 BiOp).
    Most of the Pacific cod non-trawl fishing in the Aleutian Islands 
is with pot and hook-and-line gear, which harvest a smaller portion of 
the TAC and at a slower rate with more temporal dispersion than trawl 
gear (Section 3.3 in EIS). Very little Pacific cod is harvested with 
jig gear in the Aleutian Islands and the rate of harvest by this gear 
type is low compared to all other fishing gear. Based on the low amount 
of catch and rate of harvest, critical habitat closures for jig gear 
would not be required to protect Steller sea lion Pacific cod prey 
(Section 2.1.1.3 in EIS). Therefore, this proposed action would remove 
most of the existing limitations on the use of jig gear within critical 
habitat.
    The third revision in Area 542 would remove the prohibition on 
vessels 60 feet (18.3 m) or greater in length overall using non-trawl 
gear from directed fishing for Pacific cod in waters from 6 nm to 20 nm 
from Steller sea lion rookeries and haulouts in Area 542 from January 
1, 0001 hours, to March 1, 1200 hours, A.l.t. This prohibition was 
implemented by the 2010 Interim Final Rule as a footnote to Table 5 to 
50 CFR part 679. The Council recommended and NMFS proposes to remove 
this prohibition on Pacific cod non-trawl vessels fishing in the first 
quarter of the year (from January 1 to March 1) to further temporally 
disperse the harvest and to align fishing effort by these vessels with 
the seasons established in regulation at Sec.  679.23. Generally, non-
trawl vessels are able to commence fishing January 1.

Pacific Cod Trawl Fisheries Closures in Area 542

    This proposed action would revise protection measures for the 
Pacific cod trawl fisheries in Area 542. This proposed action would 
close waters from 0 nm to 10 nm from Steller sea lion rookeries and 
from 0 nm to 3 nm from Steller sea lion haulouts in Area 542. This 
proposed action would remove seasonal closures from 0 nm to 20 nm from 
all Steller sea lion haulouts and rookeries to directed fishing for 
Pacific cod with trawl gear implemented by the 2010 Interim Final Rule 
at Sec.  679.22(a)(8)(iv) and in Table 5 to 50 CFR part 679. Closing 
waters from 0 nm to 10 nm from rookeries and from 0 nm to 3 nm from 
haulouts would ensure the trawl fisheries are not likely to reduce the 
availability of prey species for juvenile, young of the year, and adult 
female Steller sea lions in these waters. The Council recommended and 
NMFS proposes this measure to maintain protections around Steller sea 
lion rookeries and haulouts in Area 542 and to provide some opportunity 
for harvesting Pacific cod with trawl gear.
    Steller sea lion telemetry, Platform of Opportunity, and fisheries 
location data, show very little spatial overlap occurs between Steller 
sea lions and the Pacific cod trawl fisheries in Area 542 inside 
critical habitat (Section 5.3.4 in 2014 BiOp). Providing additional 
opportunity for Pacific cod trawl harvests under this proposed action 
would not be likely to reduce the available Pacific cod prey resources 
for Steller sea lions inside critical habitat. Given the large 
reduction in the Aleutian Islands Pacific cod harvest due to the 
specification of a separate Aleutian Islands TAC and the small amount 
of Pacific cod taken historically in Area 542, the 2014 BiOp concluded 
that under the proposed action the Pacific cod trawl fisheries would 
not be likely to locally deplete Pacific cod stocks in Area 542.

Pollock Harvest Limit in Area 542

    This proposed action would limit harvest of pollock to no more than 
15 percent of the Aleutian Islands ABC during the A season in Area 542. 
This limit would apply to all harvest of pollock. The 15 percent 
pollock harvest limit for Area 542 would be more restrictive than the 
harvest limit in Area 541, but less restrictive than the harvest limit 
in Area 543. The Council recommended and NMFS proposes this action to 
establish limits on pollock harvest consistent with the FMP BiOp 
performance standards to provide more protection to Steller sea lions 
where more decline is evident (Section 8.2.2).

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The 15 percent pollock harvest limit in Area 542 would balance the 
protection of Steller sea lion pollock prey resources in the winter 
when pollock is most important in the Steller sea lion diet (Section 
5.3.3. in 2014 BiOp) with an opportunity for limited pollock harvest in 
Area 542.

Pollock Fisheries Closures in Area 542

    This proposed action would prohibit directed fishing for pollock in 
waters from 0 nm to 20 nm from rookeries and haulouts west of 178[deg] 
W longitude as described in Table 4 to part 679 with one exception. 
This proposed rule would create an open area surrounded by closed 
critical habitat in the Rat Islands Area. The open area would be 
established by prohibiting directed fishing for pollock in waters from 
0 nm to 3 nm from Hawadax Island/Krysi Point, Tanadak, and Segula 
haulouts, and from 0 nm to 10 nm from Little Sitkin haulout and 
Ayugudak rookery as described in Table 4 to 50 CFR part 679 and shown 
in Figure 1. There would be no pollock fishing within critical habitat 
(from 0 nm to 20 nm) near the remaining Steller sea lion sites in Area 
542.
    This proposed action would prohibit directed fishing for pollock in 
waters from 0 nm to 10 nm from rookeries and from 0 nm to 3 nm from 
haulouts east of 178[deg] W longitude as described in Table 4 to 50 CFR 
part 679 with an exception at Kanaga Island/Ship Rock. This proposed 
action would prohibit directed fishing for pollock in waters from 0 nm 
to 3 nm from rookeries and haulouts in a portion of Kanaga Sound east 
of 178[deg] W longitude as described in Table 4 to 50 CFR part 679 and 
shown in Figure 1. Even though Kanaga Island/Ship Rock is a rookery, 
reducing the closure at this area from 10 nm to 3 nm would not be 
expected to result in limitations for Steller sea lion prey resources 
in this portion of critical habitat due to the overall pollock harvest 
limit applied to Area 542 and the fact that fishing would occur in 
winter when Steller sea lions are less likely to be using a rookery.
    Overall, the critical habitat closures in Area 542 are more 
restrictive in the western portion of Area 542 where Steller sea lion 
abundance has experienced more decline, and less restrictive in the 
eastern portion of Area 542 where Steller sea lion abundance has 
experienced less decline. These closures are consistent with the 
performance standards in the FMP BiOp (Section 8.2.2). The Council 
recommended and NMFS proposes these closures to protect Steller sea 
lion pollock prey resources while providing a limited area for pollock 
fishing where pollock harvests have historically occurred in Area 542 
(Section 3.4.3 in EIS and Section 5.3.4 in 2014 BiOp).

Atka Mackerel Fisheries Closures in Area 541

    This proposed action would prohibit directed fishing with trawl 
gear inside critical habitat in Area 541 as implemented by the 2010 
Interim Final Rule in Table 6 to 50 CFR part 679, except for a portion 
of critical habitat around Seguam Island. Maintaining most of the 
critical habitat Atka mackerel closures in Area 541 is similar with 
past closures applied to the Atka mackerel fishery in this area, but 
would allow continued harvest of Atka mackerel in Area 541 in a manner 
similar to past harvest patterns (Section 3.2 in EIS).
    This proposed action would open a portion of critical habitat from 
12 nm to 20 nm from Seguam Island as shown in Figure 2. The Atka 
mackerel fishery in Area 541 is currently concentrated outside of 
critical habitat near Seguam Island. The Council recommended and NMFS 
proposes this opening because research shows that there is very little 
exchange of Atka mackerel biomass between Atka mackerel inside critical 
habitat areas proximate to the islands around Seguam Pass (inside 12 
nm) and Atka mackerel beyond 12 nm (Chapter 11 in EIS). This new 
information suggests that Atka mackerel outside of 12 nm in critical 
habitat follow bathymetric contours extending from outside critical 
habitat to inside critical habitat approximately 12 nm from the Steller 
sea lion sites at Agligadak, Amlia, and Seguam Islands. This proposed 
action would open the area shown in Figure 2 to Atka mackerel fishing 
to disperse fishing effort, thereby preventing localized depletion 
where Atka mackerel is currently harvested outside critical habitat 
(Section 3.2 in EIS).

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Pacific Cod Non-Trawl Fisheries Closures in Area 541

    This proposed action would close portions of critical habitat to 
hook-and-line and pot gear directed fishing for Pacific cod in Area 
541. This proposed action would prohibit directed fishing for Pacific 
cod with hook-and-line and pot gear in waters from 0 nm to 3 nm around 
rookeries west of 172.59[deg] W longitude and in critical habitat from 
0 nm to 20 nm east of 172.59[deg] W longitude, as described in Table 5 
to 50 CFR part 679. Closing all critical habitat east of 172.59[deg] W 
longitude in Area 541 to directed fishing for Pacific cod with hook-
and-line and pot gear would prevent expansion of the use of hook-and-
line and pot gear into a portion of Steller sea lion critical habitat 
that has not been fished historically (Section 3.3 in EIS).
    This proposed action would remove all jig gear closures outside of 
3 nm from rookeries in Area 541, except the closure of the Seguam 
Foraging Area, as implemented by the 2010 Interim Final Rule in Table 5 
to 50 CFR part 679, footnote 16. Jig vessels harvest a very small 
portion of the Pacific cod TAC in Area 541 and at a slow rate. Jig 
vessels are not likely to cause localized depletion of Steller sea lion 
Pacific cod prey resources in critical habitat (Section 2.1.1.3 in 
EIS). This proposed action would also remove the January 1 to March 1 
closures for non-trawl gear as implemented by the 2010 Interim Final 
Rule in footnote 16 to Table 5 to 50 CFR part 679. Removing this 
restriction for fishing in critical habitat in the winter would allow 
for further temporal dispersion of fishing effort by non-trawl vessels 
(Section 2.1.2.3 in EIS).
    The Council recommended and NMFS proposes these non-trawl gear 
closures in Area 541 because they would provide vessels using non-trawl 
gear access to the limited area within Area 541 that can be effectively 
fished. These closures would prevent fishing in critical habitat that 
is used more frequently by foraging Steller sea lions, based on 
telemetry data (Section 5.3.4 in 2014 BiOp). Prohibiting the use of 
hook-and-line and pot gear in these closed areas allows for consistent 
management of hook-and-line and pot gear and avoids incentives to use 
alternative fishing gear to avoid Steller sea lion protection measures 
(Section 3.3.3 in EIS).

Pacific Cod Trawl Fisheries Closures in Area 541

    This proposed action would close portions of critical habitat in 
Area 541

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to directed fishing by Federally permitted vessels for Pacific cod with 
trawl gear. This proposed action would prohibit directed fishing for 
Pacific cod with trawl gear in waters from 0 nm to 3 nm from haulouts 
and from 0 nm to 10 nm from rookeries in Area 541, except this proposed 
action would prohibit directed fishing for Pacific cod with trawl gear 
in waters from 0 nm to 20 nm from Agligadak Island, as described in 
Table 5 to 50 CFR part 679. The additional critical habitat closure at 
Agligadak Island would prevent expansion of the Pacific cod trawl 
fishery into critical habitat near this rookery, where little fishing 
for Pacific cod with trawl gear has occurred historically (Section 3.3 
in EIS).
    This proposed action would remove the trawl closures as implemented 
by the 2010 Interim Final Rule in Table 5 to 50 CFR part 679, footnote 
14 that prohibited directed fishing for Pacific cod with trawl gear in 
waters from 0 nm to 10 nm from Steller sea lion sites in Area 541 year 
round and prohibited directed fishing for Pacific cod with trawl gear 
within 10 nm to 20 nm from Steller sea lion haulouts and rookeries in 
Area 541 from June 10 to November 1. The Council recommended and NMFS 
proposes removing these closures because Steller sea lion population 
trends are better in Area 541 than in Areas 542 and 543. Imposing fewer 
fishery restrictions in an area of improving Steller sea lion abundance 
is consistent with the performance standards of the FMP BiOp (Section 
8.2.2). NMFS expects the majority of the Pacific cod TAC to be taken by 
trawl gear in Area 541 in a similar manner as observed from 2004 
through 2010. The Pacific cod harvest in Area 541 is expected to be 
taken in a spatially and temporally compressed fashion in February and 
March. Overall Pacific cod harvests in Area 541 are expected to be 
substantially constrained relative to harvests prior to 2010 due to the 
limited amount of TAC available with the implementation of the Aleutian 
Islands Pacific cod TAC beginning in 2014 (Section 5.4.7 in 2014 BiOp). 
Steller sea lion telemetry and Platform of Opportunity location data 
also show very little spatial overlap between Steller sea lions and the 
Pacific cod trawl fishery in Area 541 (Section 5.3.4 in 2014 BiOp).

Pollock Harvest Limit in Area 541

    This proposed action would limit harvest of pollock to no more than 
30 percent of the Aleutian Islands ABC during the A season in Area 541. 
This limit would apply to all harvest of pollock. The harvest limit 
would ensure the harvest of pollock is constrained in the winter when 
pollock harvests are most likely to occur and when pollock appears to 
be an important part of the Steller sea lion diet (Section 5.3.3 in 
2014 BiOp). The harvest limit in Area 541 is higher than in Area 542. 
This is consistent with the FMP BiOp standards to provide more 
protection to Steller sea lions where more decline is evident (Section 
8.2.2). The Council recommended and NMFS proposes this pollock harvest 
limit to balance the protection of Steller sea lion prey resources with 
providing the opportunity for a pollock fishery in Area 541.

Pollock Fisheries Closures in Area 541

    This proposed action would prohibit directed fishing for pollock in 
critical habitat from 0 nm to 10 nm from rookeries and from 0 nm to 3 
nm from haulouts in Area 541 as described in Table 4 to 50 CFR part 
679. Area 541 pollock closures are the least limiting relative to Areas 
542 and 543. This is consistent with the performance standards in the 
FMP BiOp to provide more protection to Steller sea lion prey where more 
decline is evident (Section 8.2.2 in FMP BiOp). The Council recommended 
and NMFS proposes these closures to protect prey availability around 
important Steller sea lion sites while providing the opportunity to 
directed fish for pollock in Area 541 in locations where pollock 
fisheries occurred historically (Section 3.4 in EIS). The impact of the 
proposed pollock and Pacific cod fisheries combined in Area 541 are 
expected to be similar to the impact of the Pacific cod fishery alone 
in Area 541 prior to 2014. Steller sea lion pup and non-pups increased 
at a non-significant rate from 2004 through 2010 in Area 541 despite 
temporally compressed Pacific cod and minimal pollock fishing. Thus, 
NMFS does not expect the proposed Area 541 pollock fishery in 
combination with the limited harvests in the Pacific cod fishery to 
reduce the survival or recovery of the central Aleutian Islands sub-
population of Steller sea lions (Section 7.3.1 of the 2014 BiOp).

Revisions to the Calculation of Maximum Retainable Amount of Atka 
Mackerel for Amendment 80 and CDQ Vessels in the Bering Sea Subarea

    This proposed action includes a revision to the method for 
calculating the maximum retainable amount (MRA) of Atka mackerel for 
Amendment 80 and CDQ Program vessels in the Bering Sea subarea. The 
Council recommended and NMFS proposes to calculate the MRA based on a 
proportion of total catch at offload rather than as a calculation based 
on the proportion of total catch onboard a vessel at a specific time. 
Modifying MRA regulations in the Bering Sea portion of the combined 
Area 541/Bering Sea areas for Atka mackerel would be expected to allow 
greater retention of the incidental harvest of Atka mackerel in the 
Bering Sea where directed fishing is closed. This would allow more Atka 
mackerel TAC to be harvested in the Bering Sea subarea rather than the 
Aleutian Islands. This would further disperse the harvest of Atka 
mackerel spatially relative to existing management measures. This 
proposed action is intended to reduce regulatory discards of Atka 
mackerel harvested in the Bering Sea subarea.

Removal of the Atka Mackerel Harvest Limit Area (HLA) Fishery

    As implemented by the 2010 Interim Final Rule, this proposed action 
would maintain the removal of the Atka mackerel HLA fishery. The 2010 
Interim Final Rule eliminated the HLA fishery by removing regulations 
at Sec. Sec.  679.2, 679.4(b)(5), 679.20(a)(8)(iii), 
679.22(a)(8)(iv)(A), and 679.50(c)(1)(x); and by revising Tables 5 and 
6 to 50 CFR part 679, and regulations at Sec. Sec.  679.7(a)(19), 
679.20(a)(8)(ii)(C), and 679.20(c)(6). These removals and revisions 
would be maintained under this proposed action, except Sec. Sec.  
679.7(a)(19) and 679.20(a)(8)(ii)(C), which would be further revised, 
as explained in the ``Specific Regulatory Amendments'' section of the 
preamble. Under the 2003 Steller sea lion protection measures, the 
harvest of Atka mackerel inside Steller sea lion critical habitat in 
Area 543 and the western portion of Area 542 was dispersed by 
controlling the harvest of Atka mackerel inside the HLA. The HLA 
included designated critical habitat and waters from 0 nm to 20 nm 
around other locations identified as important to Steller sea lions. A 
lottery system assigned vessels to platoons that were allowed to fish 
inside the HLA in specific locations and at specific times. The details 
of the HLA fishery are described in the 2003 final rule for Steller sea 
lion protection measures (68 FR 204, January 2, 2003).
    The Council and NMFS recommended retaining the elimination of the 
HLA fishery because it does not disperse fishing temporally and 
spatially as well as fishing practices observed under the Amendment 80 
Program. Since the implementation of the Amendment 80 Program in 2007 
(72 FR 52668, September 14, 2007), the Amendment 80 fleet has modified 
their fishing patterns for Atka mackerel

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resulting in a broader distribution of fishing and reduced catch rates 
relative to the HLA fishery. This change in fishing patterns is due to 
the fact that Atka mackerel is now harvested by Amendment 80 
cooperatives. The cooperative management system under the Amendment 80 
Program removes the incentive for a race for fish and provides the 
Amendment 80 fleet greater opportunity to spread the harvest over time 
and area than the HLA fishery. Because the Amendment 80 Program is 
allocated almost all of the available Atka mackerel TACs in the 
Aleutian Islands, the fishing patterns of Amendment 80 cooperatives are 
applicable to Atka mackerel fishing generally.
    Regulations implementing the HLA fishery required Atka mackerel to 
be harvested during discrete periods, resulting in a greater 
concentration of Atka mackerel harvest than has been observed with 
cooperative management under the Amendment 80 Program. The HLA fishery 
is not necessary to limit vessel participation as that occurs through 
the provisions of the Amendment 80 Program cooperative. This proposed 
action would retain the elimination of the HLA fishery.

Modified Atka Mackerel Trawl Gear Season Dates and CDQ Seasonal 
Apportions

    This proposed action would largely maintain the modified season 
dates for the Aleutian Islands Atka mackerel trawl fishery and Atka 
mackerel CDQ seasonal apportions as implemented by the 2010 Interim 
Final Rule. The 2010 Interim Final Rule revised Sec. Sec.  
679.20(a)(8)(ii)(A), 679.23(e)(3), and (e)(4)(iii) for the Atka 
mackerel season dates and apportionments. Except for Sec.  
679.23(e)(3)(ii), this proposed action would not change the revisions 
established by the 2010 Interim Final Rule. This proposed action would 
maintain the protection measures in Sec.  679.20(a)(8)(ii)(A) 
implemented under the 2010 Interim Final Rule that evenly divide the 
harvest of TAC between the A and B seasons and applied this seasonal 
apportionment of Atka mackerel harvests in Area 543, Area 542, and the 
combined Area 541/Bering Sea. The 2010 Interim Final Rule extended the 
Atka mackerel seasons by changing the Atka mackerel trawl A season end 
date and B season start date to June 10 under Sec.  679.23(e)(3)(i); 
this was recommended by the Council and NMFS to align the Atka mackerel 
seasons with the Aleutian Islands pollock and Pacific cod trawl 
fisheries and to temporally disperse catch.
    This proposed action would revise Sec.  679.23(e)(3)(ii) to extend 
the Atka mackerel B season in Areas 543, 542, and Area 541/Bering Sea 
relative to the 2010 Interim Final Rule. This proposed action would 
extend the B season until December 31, 1200 hours, A.l.t., relative to 
the November 1 season end date established by the 2010 Interim Final 
Rule. This season revision would apply to the Aleutian Islands and 
Bering Sea subareas. The Council recommended and NMFS proposes these 
proposed changes to the Area 543, Area 542, and Area 541/Bering Sea 
Atka mackerel seasons to provide additional temporal dispersion of Atka 
mackerel harvest by trawl gear. This temporal dispersion would reduce 
the potential effects on Steller sea lion prey availability and provide 
additional time for Atka mackerel fishing. This revision is consistent 
with the performance standard to temporally disperse harvest of Steller 
sea lion prey species (Section 8.2.2 in FMP BiOp).
    The 2010 Interim Final Rule added a provision at Sec.  679.7(d)(10) 
prohibiting CDQ groups from exceeding the CDQ Atka mackerel seasonal 
allocations. This paragraph was redesignated as Sec.  679.7(d)(7) by a 
final rule for the CDQ program on March 2, 2012 (77 FR 6492, February 
8, 2012). This proposed action would retain this prohibition, which is 
consistent with seasonal harvest limitations applied to non-CDQ Atka 
mackerel fisheries.

Prohibit the Harvest of Atka Mackerel Seasonal Rollover Inside Critical 
Habitat

    This proposed action would prohibit the reallocation, commonly 
known as a rollover, of Atka mackerel TAC that is unused in one season 
to the following season during a calendar year if that rollover would 
allow additional harvests inside Steller sea lion critical habitat in 
Area 541/Bering Sea, Area 542, and Area 543. The Council recommended 
and NMFS proposes this provision to limit the amount of harvest that 
could occur in critical habitat to further protect Atka mackerel prey 
resources for Steller sea lions inside critical habitat.

Pacific Cod Trawl Seasons

    This proposed action would extend the Pacific cod trawl C season to 
December 31, 1200 hours, A.l.t., for Amendment 80 and CDQ trawl 
vessels. The Council recommended and NMFS proposes extending the season 
to December 31 for Amendment 80 and CDQ Program trawl vessels to avoid 
regulatory discard of Pacific cod harvested by trawl gear in November 
and December. Amendment 80 cooperative and CDQ Program trawl vessels 
conduct their fishing under catch share programs that temporally 
disperse harvest. It is expected that Amendment 80 cooperatives and CDQ 
Program trawl vessels will continue to operate in a way that temporally 
disperses harvest; therefore, the season is extended to December 31 to 
allow additional temporal dispersion of harvests. This proposed change 
is consistent with performance standards that seek to temporally 
disperse harvest of Steller sea lion prey species (Section 8.2.2 in FMP 
BiOp).
    Pacific cod harvests by other trawl fishery sectors (i.e., non-
Amendment 80 Program and non-CDQ Program participants) are not 
uniformly managed under a catch share program; therefore, these sectors 
may not temporally disperse their harvests. Therefore, no additional C 
season extension is proposed for these other trawl fishery sectors. 
This proposed season change for Amendment 80 and CDQ Program trawl 
vessels would balance the recognition that these sectors can spread out 
their harvests temporally, while considering the importance of 
providing Pacific cod prey resources to Steller sea lions in winter. 
This proposed action would provide greater overall temporal dispersion 
of Pacific cod harvests and would not be expected to impact Steller sea 
lion prey resource availability.

Pacific Cod Non-Trawl Seasons

    This proposed action would remove the prohibition on directed 
fishing for Pacific cod with non-trawl gear (jig, pot, and hook-and-
line) from November 1 to December 31, which was implemented by the 2010 
Interim Final Rule under Sec.  679.7(a)(23). Removing this prohibition 
would provide additional temporal dispersion of Pacific cod fishing by 
vessels using non-trawl gear. Vessels using non-trawl gear are less 
likely to harvest amounts of Pacific cod, or harvest at rates in 
November or December, that could result in localized depletion of 
Steller sea lion prey resources relative to trawl gear (Section 3.3 in 
EIS).

Kanaga Island/Ship Rock Groundfish Closure

    This proposed action would maintain the protection measures 
implemented under the 2010 Interim Final Rule that close directed 
fishing for groundfish by Federally permitted vessels in waters from 0 
nm to 3 nm from the Kanaga Island/Ship Rock rookery. This closure was 
implemented by revising Table 12 to 50 CFR part 679. This site is 
listed as a haulout under critical habitat

[[Page 37501]]

regulations (50 CFR 226.202); however, recent information indicates 
that it now functions as a rookery. The rookeries listed in Table 12 to 
50 CFR part 679 are surrounded by groundfish fishery closures that 
extend from 0 nm to 3 nm from the site.
    The Council recommended and NMFS proposes maintaining this closure 
to protect animals using this location as a rookery from potential 
disturbance by fishing vessels and to protect near shore Steller sea 
lion prey resources. Very little groundfish catch has historically 
occurred in waters from 0 nm to 3 nm from this site. According to the 
FMP BiOp, this site is important to Steller sea lions because it is one 
of the few locations in the Aleutian Islands where Steller sea lion 
reproduction is occurring. Maintaining the closure at this rookery 
would ensure it is treated consistently with other Steller sea lion 
rookery sites listed in Table 12 to 50 CFR part 679.

Bering Sea Subarea Atka Mackerel Directed Fishing Closure

    This proposed action would maintain the closure of the Bering Sea 
subarea and adjacent State waters to directed fishing for Atka mackerel 
as implemented under the 2010 Interim Final Rule. The 2010 Interim 
Final Rule added Sec.  679.7(a)(24), revised Sec.  679.22(a)(7)(vi), 
and removed Atka mackerel site specific closures for the Bering Sea 
subarea from Table 6 to 50 CFR part 679 to establish the Atka mackerel 
directed fishery closure in the entire Bering Sea subarea and adjacent 
State waters. This proposed action would maintain the prohibition under 
Sec.  679.7(a)(24) but redesignate this prohibition as paragraph 
(a)(19) to consolidate the regulations. The closure under Sec.  
679.22(a)(7)(vi) would be revised to clarify that State waters are 
included in the Bering Sea Atka mackerel directed fishery closure. This 
closure would apply to vessels that catch groundfish that is required 
to be deducted from a TAC under Sec.  679.20 and that are required to 
be named on a Federal Fisheries Permit issued under Sec.  679.4(b). The 
revisions to Table 6 to 50 CFR part 679 would be maintained by this 
proposed action.
    This proposed action would maintain the closure to directed fishing 
for Atka mackerel in the Bering Sea subarea and adjacent State waters. 
This closure would still allow for limited retention of Atka mackerel 
consistent with MRAs established for Atka mackerel (Table 11 to 50 CFR 
part 679). Historically, Atka mackerel has been caught and retained up 
to the amount permitted under regulations for MRAs (see Table 11 to 
part 679) in some portions of Steller sea lion critical habitat in the 
Bering Sea. However, directed fishing for Atka mackerel has not 
typically occurred historically in the Bering Sea. The Council 
recommended and NMFS proposes maintaining a directed fishery closure 
for Atka mackerel in the Bering Sea subarea and adjacent State waters 
to directed fishing for Atka mackerel to limit the potential for 
increased harvests in the Bering sea relative to historic harvest 
patterns. This proposed action would allow some retention of Atka 
mackerel subject to MRA provisions. Maintaining regulations that 
continue the current patterns of harvest of Bering Sea Atka mackerel is 
not likely to result in population level effects on Steller sea lions 
(Section 5.1.1 in EIS and Section 8.3.2.3 in FMP BiOp).

Including State Waters in Steller Sea Lion Protection Measures Closure 
Areas

    This proposed action would clarify regulations at Sec.  679.22 that 
Steller sea lion protection measures apply to vessels that catch 
groundfish that is required to be deducted from a TAC under Sec.  
679.20 and are required to be named on a Federal Fisheries Permit 
issued under Sec.  679.4(b). This would include vessels fishing in 
adjacent State waters in parallel groundfish fisheries. This revision 
would ensure closures from the 2003 Final Rule to implement Steller sea 
lion protection are implemented as intended and would be maintained by 
this proposed action (68 FR 204, January 2, 2003).

Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) Transmission

    This proposed action would require that vessel operators with an 
FFP using trawl gear that harvest groundfish deducted from the Federal 
TAC set their VMS to transmit the vessel location at least 10 times per 
hour. The Council recommended and NMFS proposes this requirement 
because of the extent and complexity of the proposed trawl closure 
areas in the Aleutian Islands reporting area. Monitoring is further 
complicated by the overlap of these proposed trawl closures with the 
existing AIHCA closures. This requirement would apply to vessels with 
an FFP that harvest groundfish deducted from the Federal TAC to ensure 
the VMS requirement applies to trawl vessels participating in Federal 
and State parallel groundfish fisheries.
    The current transmission rate, commonly known as the polling rate, 
of 2 times per hour could allow vessels to fish in significant portions 
of these closed areas without detection (Section 8.17.2 in EIS). The 
increased polling rate would limit the ability of a vessel to operate 
inside or through a closed area undetected. As described in Section 2.1 
of the EIS, vessels using trawl gear have the capability of fishing 
through a closed area without detection if the polling rate of the 
transmission is less than 10 times per hour. The proposed increased 
polling rate would apply only to vessels that harvest groundfish with 
trawl gear because this proposed action does not establish the same 
suite of complex closures for non-trawl gear.
    Under this proposed action the operator of the vessel would be 
required to set their VMS unit to transmit at least 10 times per hour. 
NMFS notes that some existing VMS units may not meet the necessary 
operating standards to provide reliable transmissions to NMFS at least 
10 times per hour. NMFS notes that the vessel operator may need to 
obtain a VMS unit with the capabilities necessary to ensure compliance 
with the proposed requirements.

Specific Regulatory Amendments

    This proposed action would implement the following specific 
regulatory amendments. Table 1 lists the regulatory amendments from the 
2010 Interim Final Rule that this proposed action would retain and 
those that would be removed or revised. The public is invited to submit 
comments on these regulations for NMFS' consideration.

Table 1--Comparison of Regulatory Amendments From the 2010 Interim Final
                      Rule and the Proposed Action
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                          Regulatory amendments from the
  Regulatory amendments from the 2010      2010 Interim Final Rule that
    Interim Final Rule that would be      would be removed or revised by
    retained in the proposed action            the proposed action
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sec.   679.2. Remove two definitions     Sec.   679.7. Remove paragraphs
 for the Harvest Limit Area (HLA) Atka    (a)(19), (a)(23), and (a)(25).
 mackerel fisheries.                      Redesignate paragraph (a)(24)
                                          as paragraph (a)(19) and
                                          revise to include reporting
                                          areas.

[[Page 37502]]

 
Sec.   679.4(b)(5). Revise to remove     Sec.   679.20. Revise paragraph
 references to the HLA Atka mackerel      (a)(8)(ii)(C) harvest limits.
 fishery.
Sec.   679.7. Add paragraph (d)(10) for  Sec.   679.22. Revise
 CDQ seasonal allowance for Atka          paragraphs (a)(7)(vi) and
 mackerel.                                (a)(8)(iv).
Sec.   679.20 Revise paragraphs          Sec.   679.23. Revise paragraph
 (a)(8)(ii)(A) and (c)(6). Remove and     (e)(3)(ii) for Atka mackerel B
 reserve (a)(8)(iii).                     season.
Sec.   679.22 Remove paragraph           Tables 5 and 6 to 50 CFR part
 (a)(8)(iv)(A). Remove and reserve        679. Revise for new closures.
 paragraph (b)(6) due to expired
 regulations.
Sec.   679.23 Revise paragraphs
 (e)(3)(i) and (e)(4)(iii). Remove
 paragraphs (e)(4)(iv) and (e)(4)(v)
 due to expired regulations.
Sec.   679.50. Remove paragraph
 (c)(1)(x) observer coverage for HLA
 fishery.
Table 12 to 50 CFR part 679. Revise to
 add Kanaga Island/Ship Rock.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Removal of Expired Regulations

    The 2010 Interim Final Rule removed Sec. Sec.  679.22(b)(6), 
679.23(e)(4)(iv), and 679.23(e)(4)(v) because these regulations had 
expired. Section 679.22(b)(6) closed the Chiniak Gully Research Area 
during research on the effects of the pollock fishery on local pollock 
prey abundance. This research has ended and the closure is no longer 
needed to support research (71 FR 31105, June 1, 2006). Section 
679.23(e)(4)(iv) and (e)(4)(v) applied to CDQ program season provisions 
that had expired in December 2002. This proposed action would maintain 
the removal of these paragraphs implemented under the 2010 Interim 
Final Rule.

Prohibitions

    This proposed action would remove Sec. Sec.  679.7 (a)(19), 
(a)(23), and (a)(25) and redesignate Sec.  679.7(a)(24) as paragraph 
(a)(19).
    This proposed action would remove Sec.  679.7(a)(19) to remove the 
retention prohibition for Atka mackerel and Pacific cod in Area 543 
under the 2010 Interim Final Rule.
    This proposed action would remove Sec.  679.7(a)(23) because this 
action removes the prohibition under the 2010 Interim Final Rule for 
directed fishing for Pacific cod with hook-and-line, pot, and jig gear 
in Areas 542 and 541 from November 1, 1200 hours, A.l.t., through 
December 31, 2400 hours, A.l.t.
    This proposed action would remove Sec.  679.7(a)(25) because this 
action removes the prohibition under the 2010 Interim Final Rule for 
directed fishing for Atka mackerel inside of critical habitat of Gramp 
Rock and Tag Island unless the participant is fishing under an 
Amendment 80 cooperative quota permit or under authority of a CDQ 
allocation.
    The prohibition on Atka mackerel directed fishing in the Bering Sea 
subarea and adjacent State waters under the 2010 Interim Final Rule in 
Sec.  679.7(a)(24) would be retained by this proposed action and 
redesignated as paragraph Sec.  679.7(a)(19) to consolidate the 
regulations. The introductory text to the new Sec.  679.7(a)(19) would 
be revised to include the Bering Sea reporting areas to prevent 
confusion over the inclusion of State waters.

General Limitations

    This proposed action would revise Sec.  679.20 to add harvest 
limitations for pollock, Pacific cod, and Atka mackerel fisheries in 
Areas 541, 542, and 543.
    This proposed action would add pollock harvest limitations during 
the A season in Areas 541, 542, and 543. This proposed action would add 
Sec.  679.20(a)(5)(iii)(B)(6) to specify these pollock harvest 
limitations. Section 679.20(a)(5)(iii)(B)(6)(i), (ii), and (iii) would 
specify limits to pollock harvest during the A season in Areas 543, 
542, and 541.
    This proposed rule would add subparagraphs (a)(7)(v) and (a)(7)(vi) 
to correct an error that removed these regulations. Regulations 
implementing the Amendment 80 Program inserted regulatory text to 
implement the allocation and seasonal apportionments of Pacific cod to 
the Amendment 80 sector in Sec.  679.20(a)(7)(v), and inserted 
regulatory text in Sec.  679.20(a)(7)(vi) addressing the reallocation 
of unharvested Pacific cod to Amendment 80 cooperatives (see the final 
rule implementing Amendment 80 for additional detail (72 FR 52668, 
September 14, 2007)). These provisions were removed in error by 
incorrect amendatory language in Amendment 85 to the FMP (72 FR 50788, 
September 4, 2007) that became effective on January 1, 2008. This 
proposed rule would add these subparagraphs to correct the regulations.
    This proposed action would add Sec.  679.20(a)(7)(vii) to specify 
that the Pacific cod harvest limit in Area 543 would be based on 
Pacific cod abundance, as determined by the annual stock assessment 
process.
    This proposed action would revise Sec.  679.20(a)(8)(ii)(C) to 
remove the Area 542 critical habitat and Area 542 Amendment 80 and CDQ 
harvest limits that were implemented by the 2010 Interim Final Rule. 
These would be replaced with regulatory text that describes the harvest 
limitations for Atka mackerel in Areas 543 and 542. This proposed 
action would revise Atka mackerel harvest limits inside critical 
habitat to allow no more than 60 percent of the annual TACs to be 
harvested west of 178[deg] W longitude in Areas 542 and 543. The 
seasonal apportionment of the critical habitat harvest in Areas 542 and 
543 would be equally divided between the seasons. This proposed action 
also would revise Sec.  679.20(a)(8)(ii)(C) to set the annual TAC in 
Area 543 at no more than 65 percent of the ABC in Area 543.
    This proposed action would add a subparagraph (D) to Sec.  
679.20(a)(8)(ii) to prohibit the harvest of Atka mackerel seasonal 
allowance that was rolled over from the A season to the B season inside 
critical habitat.
    This proposed action would add Sec.  679.20(e)(3)(v) to modify MRA 
regulations for Amendment 80 vessels and CDQ sectors operating in the 
Bering Sea subarea to calculate MRAs for Atka mackerel as an incidental 
species on an offload-to-offload basis.

Closures

    This proposed action would revise Sec.  679.22 to implement the 
Pacific cod, Atka mackerel, and pollock closures in the BSAI reporting 
areas proposed by this action. Sections 679.22(a)(7) and (a)(8) titles 
and area references would be revised from ``subarea'' to ``reporting

[[Page 37503]]

areas'' to clarify that the closures are applicable to Federally 
permitted vessels required to deduct their catch from a TAC operating 
from 0 nm to 3 nm of Steller sea lions sites listed on Table 4, 5, 6, 
and 12 to 50 CFR part 679 and in the Bering Sea reporting areas for the 
Atka mackerel directed fishery closure in Sec.  679.22(a)(7)(vi). 
Section (a)(8)(iv) would be revised to remove the jig gear closures.

Seasons

    This proposed action would extend the Atka mackerel B season and 
the Pacific cod trawl C season for the Amendment 80 and CDQ sectors. 
Section 679.23(e)(3)(ii) would be revised to extend the Atka mackerel B 
season end date to December 31. This proposed action would add two 
subparagraphs to Sec.  679.23(e)(5)(ii)(C) to identify the C season 
dates for catcher vessels and AFA catcher/processors and for Amendment 
80 and CDQ vessels.

Equipment and Operational Requirements

    This proposed action would add Sec.  679.28(f)(7) to require 10 VMS 
transmissions of location per hour by Federally permitted vessels in 
the Aleutian Islands reporting area using trawl gear to harvest 
groundfish that is deducted from a Federal TAC.

Tables

    This proposed action would revise Tables 4, 5, and 6 to 50 CFR part 
679. All references to subareas in these tables would be changed to 
areas. This change would ensure closures would apply to State and 
Federal waters as appropriate and would be implemented as stated in the 
2003 Final Rule for Steller Sea Lion Protection Measures off Alaska (68 
FR 204, January 2, 2003).
    The designation of ``Rat Island/Krysi Pt.'' on Tables 4, 5, and 6 
would be changed to ``Hawadax Island/Krysi Pt.'' based on the new name 
given to this island in 2012 after the removal of rats by the Island 
Conservation, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and The Nature 
Conservancy.
    Because this proposed action would allow retention of Atka mackerel 
and Pacific cod in Area 543 and would establish critical habitat 
closures to these fisheries in Area 543, the Steller sea lion sites 
located in Area 543 would be added to Tables 5 and 6. These sites were 
removed from Tables 5 and 6 by the 2010 Interim Final Rule because it 
prohibited retention of Atka mackerel and Pacific cod in Area 543. This 
revision is needed to identify the closure areas around Steller sea 
lions haulouts and rookeries in the Area 543 reporting area.
    In Table 4 to 50 CFR part 679, column 7 and the footnotes would be 
revised to reflect the closures for the pollock directed fishery in the 
Aleutian Islands reporting area. Corrections would be made to Table 4 
to ensure that all closures are listed in column 7. Footnotes 3, 4, 5, 
7, and 9 to Table 4 would be revised to use language consistent with 
other footnotes for prohibitions on fishing. A technical edit would be 
made to footnote 10 to capitalize Federal. A technical edit would be 
made to footnote 11 to specify ``gear types'' instead of ``gears 
types.'' Footnotes 13, 14, and 15 to Table 4 would be added to describe 
the open areas inside critical habitat at Shemya, Rat Islands, and 
Kanaga where directed fishing for pollock may occur.
    In Table 5 to 50 CFR part 679, columns 7, 8, and 9 and the 
footnotes would be revised to reflect the closures for the directed 
Pacific cod fishery by gear type in the Aleutian Islands reporting 
area. A technical edit would be made to footnote 4 to specify ``gear 
type'' instead of ``gear types.'' A technical edit would be made to 
footnote 5 to add a comma after ``BA''. A technical edit would be made 
to footnote 6 to read ``hook-and-line.'' Footnotes 7 and 8 to Table 5 
would be revised to use language consistent with other footnotes for 
prohibitions on fishing. Footnote 13 to Table 5 would be revised to 
describe the closure that directed fishing for Pacific cod with hook-
and-line and pot gear is prohibited in waters from 0 nm to 3 nm from 
rookeries west of 172.59[deg] W longitude and in waters located between 
0 nm and 20 nm east of 172.59[deg] W longitude. Footnote 14 to Table 5 
would be revised to specify directed fishing for Pacific cod with hook-
and-line and pot gears would be prohibited only in waters located 
between 0 nm and 20 nm of these sites west of 170[deg] W long. Footnote 
15 would be revised to specify directed fishing for Pacific cod with 
hook-and-line is prohibited in waters located between 0 nm and 10 nm on 
the east side of 170[deg] W long. and is prohibited in waters located 
between 0 nm and 20 nm on the west side of 170[deg] W long. Footnote 16 
to Table 5 would be deleted to remove the jig gear fishery closures and 
remove vessel size and seasonal specific hook-and-line and pot critical 
habitat closures that were implemented under the 2010 Interim Final 
Rule. Footnote 17 to Table 5 would be removed to eliminate reference to 
the retention prohibition for Pacific cod in Area 543 implemented under 
the 2010 Interim Final Rule. The coordinates in columns 3, 4, and 5 for 
Great Sitkin would be corrected to match the coordinates for this site 
in Tables 4 and 6, which are the correct coordinates.
    In Table 6 to 50 CFR part 679, column 7 and the footnotes would be 
revised to reflect the closures for the directed Atka mackerel fishery 
in the Aleutian Islands reporting area. Column 7 of Table 6 would be 
revised to show the closures in Area 542. Footnotes 4 and 6 to Table 6 
would be revised to implement the proposed closures in critical habitat 
in Areas 543, 542, and 541 for directed fishing for Atka mackerel under 
this proposed action. A technical edit would be made to footnote 5 to 
specify ``gear type'' instead of ``gears types.'' Footnote 7 to Table 6 
would be revised to describe the open area inside critical habitat to 
the southeast of Seguam Pass in Area 541 where directed fishing for 
pollock may occur.

Classification

    Pursuant to sections 304(b) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the NMFS 
Assistant Administrator has determined that this proposed action is 
consistent with the FMP, other provisions of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, 
and other applicable law, subject to further considerations received 
during the public comment period.
    This proposed action has been determined to be not significant for 
the purposes of Executive Order (E.O.) 12866.
    Formal consultation under section 7 of the ESA was completed for 
this proposed action. On April 2, 2014, NMFS issued a biological 
opinion (2014 BiOp) on the preferred alternative in the EIS 
(Alternative 5, proposed action). The 2014 BiOp found that the 
implementation of the proposed action and supporting research described 
in Chapter 11 of the EIS were not likely to jeopardize the continued 
existence of Steller sea lions or result in the destruction or adverse 
modification of its critical habitat.
    NMFS prepared a final environmental impact statement for this 
proposed action; a notice of availability was published on May 23, 2014 
(79 FR 29759). The EIS is described above under ``EIS and Preferred 
Alternative.''
    Pursuant to Executive Order 13175, NMFS mailed letters to 
approximately 660 Alaska tribal governments, Alaska Native Claims 
Settlement Act (ANCSA) corporations, and related organizations 
providing information about the EIS and soliciting consultation and 
coordination with interested tribal governments and ANCSA corporations. 
NMFS received no comments from tribal government

[[Page 37504]]

and ANCSA corporation representatives. Section 1.7 of the EIS provides 
more detail on NMFS' outreach with Alaska tribal governments and ANCSA 
corporations (see ADDRESSES).
    An Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (IRFA) was prepared for 
this action, as required by section 603 of the Regulatory Flexibility 
Act (RFA). An IRFA is required to include (a) a description of the 
reasons why action by the agency is being considered; (b) s succinct 
statement of the objectives of, and legal basis for, the proposed rule; 
(c) a description of and, where feasible, an estimate of the number of 
small entities to which the proposed rule will apply; (d) a description 
of the projected reporting, recordkeeping and other compliance 
requirements of the proposed rule; (e) an identification, to the extent 
practicable, of all relevant Federal rules which may duplicate, overlap 
or conflict with the proposed rule; (f) a description of any 
significant alternatives to the proposed rule which accomplish the 
stated objectives of applicable statutes and which minimize any 
significant economic impact of the proposed rule on small entities. A 
description of the action, why it is being considered and the legal 
basis for this action are contained at the beginning of this section in 
the preamble and in the SUMMARY section of the preamble. A summary of 
the remainder of the IRFA follows. A copy of the IRFA is available from 
NMFS (see ADDRESSES).
    The entities directly regulated by this action include: (1) 
Business firms operating trawl catcher/processors and catcher vessels, 
and non-trawl catcher/processors and catcher vessels, fishing for Atka 
mackerel and Pacific cod, in the three Aleutian Island management areas 
(Areas 541, 542, and 543); (2) CDQ groups that receive allocations of 
Atka mackerel, Pacific cod, and pollock in these three Aleutian Island 
management areas; (3) the Aleut Corporation, which receives an 
allocation of pollock in the Aleutian Islands; and (4) vessels taking 
Atka mackerel or Pacific cod as incidental catches in Area 543. The 
Aleut Corporation is directly regulated by the pollock measures under 
this proposed action because it receives the pollock allocation and has 
discretion over its disposition. The fishing operations contracted to 
the Aleut Corporation are not considered directly regulated. The Small 
Business Administration defines a small commercial finfish fishing 
entity as one that has annual gross sales of less than $19 million; a 
shellfish fishing small entity is one with less than $5 million annual 
gross revenue, and other marine fishing operations are small if they 
have less than $7 million in gross revenue (78 FR 37398, July 22, 
2013).
    Of the 51 vessels identified as having been active in directed Atka 
mackerel or Pacific cod fisheries in 2010, 12 were believed to 
constitute small entities. One of these vessels was a pot catcher/
processor, and the remaining operations were trawl catcher vessels. The 
estimated average gross revenue for these firms, in 2012, was about 
$1.4 million. Note that firm revenues may have been larger, if these 
firms had revenues from sources other than the identified vessels.
    Through the CDQ Program, NMFS allocates a portion of the BSAI 
groundfish TACs, and apportions prohibited species catch limits for 
Pacific halibut, Pacific salmon, and several crab species, to 65 
eligible Western Alaska communities. These communities work through six 
non-profit CDQ groups, and are required to use the net proceeds from 
the CDQ allocations to start or support activities that will result in 
ongoing, regionally-based, commercial fishery or related businesses. 
The CDQ groups receive allocations through the specifications process 
and are directly regulated by this action, but the 65 communities are 
not directly regulated. Because the six CDQ groups are explicitly 
defined as small nonprofit entities within the RFA, they are small 
entities for purposes of this analysis.
    As previously noted, the Aleut Corporation receives all of the 
pollock directed fishing allocation in Areas 541, 542, and 543. The 
Aleut Corporation is an Alaska Native Corporation, and is a holding 
company evaluated according to the Small Business Administration 
criteria at 13 CFR 121.201, using a $7 million gross annual receipts 
threshold for ``Offices of Other Holding Companies'' (NAICS code 
551112). Aleut Corporation revenues exceed this threshold (gross 
revenues were approximately $159 million in 2010), and the Aleut 
Corporation is considered to be a large entity for purposes of this 
analysis (Table 8-39 in EIS).
    Some vessels with incidental catch of Atka mackerel and Pacific cod 
may be directly regulated by this action in Area 543. Alternative 1, 
the status quo alternative, prohibits retention of Atka mackerel or 
Pacific cod in Aleutian Islands management area 543. The preferred 
alternative (i.e., proposed action) does not prohibit retention. A 
prohibition on retention directly regulates vessels that would have 
otherwise retained these species in this management area. Six separate 
fixed gear catcher/processors or trawl catcher vessels were identified 
with incidental catches of Atka mackerel or Pacific cod during this 
period. None of these is believed to be a small entity. Fourteen fixed 
gear catcher vessels had incidental catches during the period. All of 
these are considered to be small entities. Average revenues from 
directly regulated incidental catches per vessel-year, during the seven 
baseline years (2004 to 2010), are estimated to be about $2,200.
    An IRFA requires a description of any significant alternatives to 
the proposed action(s) that accomplish the stated objectives, are 
consistent with applicable statutes, and that would minimize any 
significant economic impact of the proposed action on small entities. 
Chapter 9 of the EIS compares the proposed action (Alternative 5) to 
the other alternatives. A main difference among Alternatives 1 and 6 
and Alternatives 2, 3, 4, and 5 is that the retention prohibitions 
under Alternatives 1 and 6 are not included in Alternatives 2, 3, 4, 
and 5. In contrast to Alternatives 1 and 6, where no retention is 
allowed in portions or all of the Aleutian Islands for some or all of 
the important Steller sea lion prey species, under Alternatives 2 
through 5, fishermen would be able to retain Steller sea lion prey 
species up to the maximum retainable amounts (MRAs) specified in Table 
11 to 50 CFR part 679.
    The alternatives for pollock ranged from Alternative 6, an 
alternative that would restrict fishing more than the status quo 
alternative (Alternative 1), to Alternatives 2, 3, 4, and 5 that allow 
for more pollock fishing outside and inside critical habitat than the 
other alternatives. Additional description of the alternatives is 
available in the EIS and not addressed further here (see ADDRESSES). 
For pollock, Alternatives 1, 2, and 6 would have greater adverse 
economic impacts on directly regulated small entities relative to 
Alternative 5. The protection measures under Alternative 5 are similar 
to those under Alternatives 3 and 4, which are identical, and would be 
less restrictive on small entities than other alternatives (Section 8.7 
in RIR). Alternative 5 only differs from Alternatives 3 and 4 in that 
it includes management area specific A-season harvest limits, and 
increases critical habitat closures in Area 542. The A-season harvest 
limits are 5 percent of the ABC in Area 543, 15 percent of the ABC in 
Area 542, and 30 percent of the ABC in Area 543.
    As discussed in Section 7 of the RIR (see ADDRESSES), NMFS is 
unable to estimate the potential production, or the location of 
production, under the

[[Page 37505]]

different alternatives, and so is unable to determine whether or not 
the area constraints for pollock fishing would be binding. However, 
these area constraints are not present in Alternatives 3 and 4. Those 
alternatives may be somewhat less burdensome for small entities than 
Alternative 5. Management area limits were introduced to provide 
control over potential harvests in a new pollock fishery of unknown 
potential, providing more protection for Steller sea lion prey. The 
restrictions are more stringent in the western areas, where Steller sea 
lion abundance is declining (consistent with the FMP BiOp performance 
standards in Section 8.2.2). The extension of the 542 closure areas for 
Steller sea lion haulouts and rookeries located west of 178[ordm] W 
longitude to 20 nm (Table 2-22 in EIS) under Alternative 5, may also 
contribute to making this alternative more restrictive than 
Alternatives 3 and 4. The extension also was included in Alternative 5 
to provide more protection to the Steller sea lion rookeries and 
haulouts that have experienced relatively greater declines in Steller 
sea lion abundance compared to sites located farther east.
    The alternatives for Atka mackerel ranged from Alternative 6, an 
alternative that would restrict fishing more than the status quo 
alternative (Alternative 1), to Alternative 4, the alternative that 
would allow the most fishing opportunities. Alternatives 2, 3, and 5 
provided more fishing opportunities and fewer protection measures than 
Alternative 6, but included more protection measures than Alternative 
4. Additional description of the alternatives is available in the EIS 
and not addressed further here (see ADDRESSES). For Atka mackerel, 
Alternatives 1, 2, and 6 would have greater adverse economic impact on 
directly regulated small entities relative to Alternative 5. 
Alternative 5 is most comparable to Alternative 3 and the effects on 
small entities in the limited access trawl fishery, and CDQ groups 
receiving Atka mackerel allocations may be similar to those under 
Alternative 3. Alternatives 3 and 5 are the same in Areas 541 and 542. 
They differ in Area 543 in that Alternative 3 closes additional waters 
around Buldir Island compared to Alternative 5. However, Alternative 5 
sets a TAC limit in Area 543 equal to 65 percent of ABC that is not 
included in Alternative 3. Alternative 5 may be somewhat more 
restrictive in Area 543 than Alternative 3. However, the Alternative 5 
TAC limit is included to prevent excessive harvest of Atka mackerel and 
potential adverse impacts on Steller sea lion prey resources.
    As discussed in Section 8 of the RIR, Alternative 4 is a less 
restrictive alternative to directly regulated small entities 
participating in Aleutian Islands Atka mackerel fisheries than 
Alternative 5. However, the Steller Sea Lion Mitigation Committee and 
the Council did not recommend Alternative 4 as its preferred 
alternative. Alternative 4 is nearly identical to the proposed action 
that was found to result in jeopardy for Steller sea lions in the FMP 
BiOp. Alternative 5 may provide somewhat more protection for Steller 
sea lion prey in Area 543, where Steller sea lion population declines 
have been larger than elsewhere.
    The alternatives for Pacific cod ranged from Alternative 6, an 
alternative that would restrict fishing more than the status quo 
alternative (Alternative 1), to Alternative 4, the alternative that 
would allow the most fishing opportunities. Alternatives 2, 3, and 5 
provided more fishing opportunities and fewer protection measures than 
Alternative 6, but included more protection measures than Alternative 
4. Additional description of the alternatives is available in the EIS 
and not addressed further here (see ADDRESSES). For Pacific cod, 
Alternatives 1, 2, 3, and 6 would have greater adverse economic impact 
on directly regulated small entities relative to Alternative 5. 
Alternative 5 is most closely comparable with Alternative 4. However, 
Alternative 4 may be less restrictive to small entities because 
Alternative 5 (Table 2-18 in EIS) adds a harvest limit for Pacific cod 
in Area 543 in proportion to the annual stock assessment. Alternative 4 
was not selected as the preferred alternative because it may provide 
less protection for Steller sea lion prey than Alternative 5, 
increasing the potential of adverse effects on Steller sea lion prey 
resources in Area 543.
    An IRFA should include ``a description of the projected reporting, 
recordkeeping, and other compliance requirements of the proposed 
action, including an estimate of the classes of small entities that 
will be subject to the requirement and the type of professional skills 
necessary for preparation of the report or record.''
    NMFS proposes a regulatory amendment requiring an increase in VMS 
polling rates. Polling rates would be increased from 2 per hour to 10 
per hour for all trawl vessels holding a Federal Fisheries Permit and 
fishing for groundfish that is required to be deducted from a Federal 
groundfish TAC in the Aleutian Islands. A detailed discussion of the 
need for this increased VMS requirement, and its implications, is 
included in Section 8.18.2 (``Enforcement'') of the RIR (see 
ADDRESSES). NMFS estimates that the increase in the polling rate will 
increase VMS costs by about $400 per year for trawl catcher vessels and 
catcher/processors operating in the Aleutian Islands, except for trawl 
catcher/processors targeting Atka mackerel. Trawl catcher/processors 
targeting Atka mackerel are expected to incur costs of about $1,200 per 
year; however, these are all large entities. Although all vessels are 
required to have a Federal fisheries permit (FFP), and all vessels 
fishing in the Aleutian Islands are required to have and operate VMS, 
some of the impacted vessels may have to replace existing VMS units to 
meet the polling rate and reliability requirements. While NMFS is 
unable to estimate the number of entities which may be required to 
replace VMS units to provide the required unit reliability, the 
estimated cost for an additional unit is about $3,500 (including 
installation).
    No duplication, overlap, or conflict between this proposed action 
and existing Federal rules has been identified.

Collection-of-Information Requirements

    This rule contains a collection-of-information requirement for the 
Alaska Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) Program which is subject to the 
Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) and which has been submitted to the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under control number 0648-0445. 
This rule would increase the number of transmissions or VMS polling 
rate, from 2 per hour to 10 per hour when a vessel is trawl fishing in 
the Aleutian Islands; however, VMS transmissions are not counted as 
burden, because they are automatic. Some vessels may incur additional 
operating costs due to the increase in the VMS polling rate, or they 
may have to replace existing VMS units to meet the polling rate and 
reliability requirements. As discussed above, NMFS estimates that the 
increase in the polling rate will increase VMS costs by about $400 per 
year for trawl catcher vessels and catcher/processors operating in the 
Aleutian Islands, except for trawl catcher/processors targeting Atka 
mackerel. Trawl catcher/processors targeting Atka mackerel are expected 
to incur costs of about $1,200 per year; however, these are all large 
entities. Although all vessels are required to have a Federal fisheries 
permit (FFP), and all vessels fishing in the Aleutian Islands are 
required to have and operate VMS, some of the impacted vessels may have 
to replace existing VMS units to meet the polling rate and reliability 
requirements. While NMFS is unable to

[[Page 37506]]

estimate the number of entities which may be required to replace VMS 
units to provide the required unit reliability, the estimated cost for 
an additional unit is about $3,500 (including installation).
    Estimates of burden include the time for reviewing instructions, 
searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data 
needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. 
Send comments on these or any other aspects of the collection of 
information to NMFS at the ADDRESSES above, and email to OIRA 
[email protected], or fax to 202-395-5806.
    Public comment is sought regarding: whether this proposed 
collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of 
the functions of the agency, including whether the information shall 
have practical utility; the accuracy of the burden estimate; ways to 
enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be 
collected; and ways to minimize the burden of the collection of 
information, including through the use of automated collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology. Send comments on 
these or any other aspects of the collection of information to NMFS at 
the ADDRESSES above, and email to [email protected]">OIRA_[email protected], or fax 
to (202) 395-5806.
    Notwithstanding any other provision of the law, no person is 
required to respond to, nor shall any person be subject to a penalty 
for failure to comply with, a collection of information subject to the 
requirements of the PRA, unless that collection of information displays 
a currently valid OMB control number. All currently approved NOAA 
collections of information may be viewed at: http://www.cio.noaa.gov/services_programs/prasubs.html.

Comment Period for the Proposed Action

    NMFS normally provides 30 days for public review and comments on 
proposed actions. Due to the scope and controversy of this proposed 
action, NMFS is providing a 45-day comment period. NMFS anticipates 
that a 45-day comment period should provide adequate opportunity for 
public review and comment while providing NMFS sufficient time to 
complete rulemaking for the revised Steller sea lion protection 
measures to meet the court-ordered deadline of January 1, 2015.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 679

    Alaska, Fisheries, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Dated: June 19, 2014.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.

    For reasons set out in the preamble, 50 CFR part 679 is proposed to 
be amended as follows:

PART 679--FISHERIES OF THE EXCLUSIVE ECONOMIC ZONE OFF ALASKA

0
1. The authority citation for part 679 continues to read as follows:

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

0
2. In Sec.  679.7,
0
a. Remove paragraphs (a)(19), (a)(23), and (a)(25);
0
b. Redesignate paragraph (a)(24) as paragraph (a)(19); and
0
c. Revise the newly redesignated paragraph (a)(19).
    The revisions read as follows:


Sec.  679.7  Prohibitions.

    (a) * * *
    (19) Atka mackerel directed fishing in the Bering Sea reporting 
areas. Conduct directed fishing for Atka mackerel in the Bering Sea 
subarea and adjacent State waters with a vessel required to be 
Federally permitted.
* * * * *
0
3. In Sec.  679.20,
0
a. Add paragraphs (a)(5)(iii)(B)(6), (a)(7)(v), (a)(7)(vi), 
(a)(7)(vii);
0
b. Revise paragraph (a)(8)(ii)(C); and
0
c. Add paragraphs (a)(8)(ii)(D), and (e)(3)(v).
    The additions and revisions read as follows:


Sec.  679.20  General limitations.

    (a) * * *
    (5) * * *
    (iii) * * *
    (B) * * *
    (6) Pollock harvest limitations. Pollock harvests during the A 
season as defined at Sec.  679.23(e)(2) are limited to:
    (i) No more than 5 percent of the Aleutian Islands pollock ABC in 
Area 543.
    (ii) No more than 15 percent of the Aleutian Islands pollock ABC in 
Area 542.
    (iii) No more than 30 percent of the Aleutian Islands pollock ABC 
in Area 541.
* * * * *
    (7) * * *
    (v) ITAC allocation to the Amendment 80 sector. A percentage of the 
Pacific cod TAC, after subtraction of the CDQ reserve, will be 
allocated as ITAC to the Amendment 80 sector as described in Table 33 
to this part. Separate allocations for each Amendment 80 cooperative 
and the Amendment 80 limited access fishery are described under Sec.  
679.91. The allocation of Pacific cod to the Amendment 80 sector will 
be further divided into seasonal apportionments as described under 
paragraph (a)(7)(iv)(A)(1)(ii) of this section.
    (A) Use of seasonal apportionments by Amendment 80 cooperatives. 
(1) The amount of Pacific cod listed on a CQ permit that is assigned 
for use in the A season may be used in the B or C season.
    (2) The amount of Pacific cod that is listed on a CQ permit that is 
assigned for use in the B season may not be used in the A season.
    (3) The amount of Pacific cod listed on a CQ permit that is 
assigned for use in the C season may not be used in the A or B seasons.
    (B) Harvest of seasonal apportionments in the Amendment 80 limited 
access fishery. (1) Pacific cod ITAC assigned for harvest by the 
Amendment 80 limited access fishery in the A season may be harvested in 
the B seasons.
    (2) Pacific cod ITAC assigned for harvest by the Amendment 80 
limited access fishery in the B season may not be harvested in the A 
season.
    (3) Pacific cod ITAC assigned for harvest by the Amendment 80 
limited access fishery in the C season may not be harvested in the A or 
B seasons.
    (vi) ITAC rollover to Amendment 80 cooperatives. If during a 
fishing year, the Regional Administrator determines that a portion of 
the Pacific cod TAC is unlikely to be harvested and is made available 
for reallocation to the Amendment 80 sector according to the provisions 
under paragraph (a)(7)(iii) of this section, the Regional Administrator 
may issue inseason notification in the Federal Register that 
reallocates that remaining amount of Pacific cod to Amendment 80 
cooperatives, according to the procedures established under Sec.  
679.91(f).
    (vii) Pacific cod harvest limitations. During the annual harvest 
specifications process, the Regional Administrator will establish an 
Area 543 Pacific cod harvest limit based on Pacific cod abundance in 
Area 543 as determined by the annual stock assessment process. After 
subtraction of the State GHL Pacific cod amount from the AI Pacific cod 
ABC, the harvest limit in Area 543 will be determined by multiplying 
the percentage of Pacific cod estimated in Area 543 by the adjusted ABC 
for AI Pacific cod.
    (8) * * *

[[Page 37507]]

    (ii) * * *
    (C) Atka mackerel harvest limitations. (1) Atka mackerel catch 
within waters 0 nm to 20 nm of Steller sea lion sites listed in Table 6 
to this part and located west of 178[deg] W longitude is:
    (i) Limited to no more than 60 percent of the annual TACs in Areas 
542 and 543; and
    (ii) Equally divided between the A and B seasons as defined at 
Sec.  679.23(e)(3).
    (2) The annual TAC in Area 543 will be no more than 65 percent of 
the ABC in Area 543.
    (D) Any unharvested Atka mackerel A season allowance that is added 
to the B season is prohibited from being harvested within waters 0 nm 
to 20 nm of Steller sea lion sites listed in Table 6 to this part and 
located in Areas 541, 542, and 543.
* * * * *
    (e) * * *
    (3) * * *
    (v) For all vessels not listed in subpart F of this section, the 
maximum retainable amount for Atka mackerel harvested in the Bering Sea 
subarea is calculated at the end of each offload and is based on the 
basis species harvested since the previous offload. For purposes of 
this paragraph, offload means the removal of any fish or fish product 
from the vessel that harvested the fish or fish product to any other 
vessel or to shore.
* * * * *
0
4. In Sec.  679.22, revise paragraphs (a)(7) heading, (a)(7)(vi), 
(a)(8) heading, and (a)(8)(iv) to read as follows:


Sec.  679.22  Closures.

    (a) * * *
    (7) Steller sea lion protection areas, Bering Sea reporting areas.
* * * * *
    (vi) Atka mackerel closures. Directed fishing for Atka mackerel by 
vessels named on a Federal Fisheries Permit under Sec.  679.4(b) and 
using trawl gear is prohibited within the Bering Sea reporting areas.
* * * * *
    (8) Steller sea lion protection areas, Aleutian Islands reporting 
areas.
* * * * *
    (iv) Pacific cod closures. Directed fishing for Pacific cod 
required to be deducted from the Federal TAC specified at Sec.  679.20 
by vessels named on a Federal Fisheries Permit under Sec.  679.4(b) 
using trawl, hook-and-line, or pot gear is prohibited within Pacific 
cod no-fishing zones around selected sites. These sites and gear types 
are described in Table 5 of this part and its footnotes and are 
identified by ``AI'' in column 2.
* * * * *
0
5. In Sec.  679.23, revise paragraphs (e)(3)(ii) and (e)(5)(ii)(C) to 
read as follows:


Sec.  679.23  Seasons.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *
    (3) * * *
    (ii) B season. From 1200 hours, A.l.t., June 10 through 1200 hours, 
A.l.t., December 31.
* * * * *
    (5) * * *
    (ii) * * *
    (C) C season-- (1) Catcher vessels and AFA catcher/processors. From 
1200 hours, A.l.t., June 10 through 1200 hours, A.l.t., November 1.
    (2) Amendment 80 and CDQ. From 1200 hours, A.l.t., June 10 through 
1200 hours, A.l.t., December 31.
* * * * *
0
6. In Sec.  679.28, revise paragraph (f)(3)(i) and add paragraph (f)(7) 
to read as follows:


Sec.  679.28  Equipment and operational requirements.

* * * * *
    (f) * * *
    (3) * * *
    (i) Obtain a NMFS-approved VMS transmitter with transmission 
capabilities required for the areas of vessel operation and have it 
installed onboard your vessel in accordance with the instructions 
provided by NMFS. You may get a copy of the VMS installation and 
operation instructions from the Regional Administrator upon request.
* * * * *
    (7) What additional requirements does an operator have if trawling 
in the Aleutian Islands reporting areas? Operators of vessels named on 
a Federal Fisheries Permit under Sec.  679.4(b), and that are using 
trawl gear in the Aleutian Islands reporting areas to harvest 
groundfish that is required to be deducted from a Federal TAC specified 
at Sec.  679.20, must set their VMS to transmit the vessel location at 
least 10 times per hour.
* * * * *
0
7. Revise Table 4 to Part 679 to read as follows:

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8. Revise Table 5 to Part 679 to read as follows:

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9. Revise Table 6 to Part 679 to read as follows:

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[FR Doc. 2014-14972 Filed 6-30-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-C