[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 125 (Friday, June 30, 2017)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 29776-29778]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-13685]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[Docket No. 170320292-7580-02]
RIN 0648-XF311


Fisheries Off West Coast States; Coastal Pelagic Species 
Fisheries; Annual Specifications

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

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: NMFS issues this rule to implement annual management measures 
and harvest specifications to establish the allowable catch levels 
(i.e., annual catch limit (ACL)/harvest guideline (HG)) for the 
northern subpopulation of Pacific sardine (hereafter, Pacific sardine), 
in the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off the Pacific coast for the 
fishing season of July 1, 2017, through June 30, 2018. These 
specifications were determined according to the Coastal Pelagic Species 
(CPS) Fishery Management Plan (FMP). This action includes a prohibition 
on directed non-tribal Pacific sardine commercial fishing off the 
coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California, which is required because 
the estimated 2017 biomass of Pacific sardine has dropped below the 
biomass threshold specified in the HG control rule. Under this action, 
Pacific sardine may still be harvested as part of either the live bait 
or tribal fishery, or as incidental catch in other fisheries; the 
incidental harvest of Pacific sardine would initially be limited to 40-
percent by weight of all fish per trip when caught with other CPS or up 
to 2 metric tons (mt) when caught with non-CPS. The ACL for the 2017-
2018 Pacific sardine fishing year is 8,000 mt. This action is intended 
to conserve and manage the Pacific sardine stock off the U.S. West 
Coast.

DATES: Effective July 1, 2017 through June 30, 2018.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joshua Lindsay, West Coast Region, 
NMFS, (562) 980-4034, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS manages the Pacific sardine fishery in 
the U.S. EEZ off the Pacific coast (California, Oregon, and Washington) 
in accordance with the CPS FMP. Annual specifications published in the 
Federal Register establish the allowable harvest levels (i.e., 
overfishing limit (OFL)/ACL/HG) for each Pacific sardine fishing year. 
The purpose of this final rule is to implement these annual catch 
reference points for the 2017-2018 fishing year. This final rule 
adopts, without changes, the catch levels and restrictions that NMFS 
proposed in the rule published on May 30, 2017 (82 FR 24656), including 
the OFL and an acceptable biological catch (ABC) that takes into 
consideration uncertainty surrounding the current estimate of biomass 
for Pacific sardine in the U.S. EEZ off the Pacific coast.
    The FMP and its implementing regulations require NMFS to set these 
annual catch levels for the Pacific sardine fishery based on the annual 
specification framework and control

[[Page 29777]]

rules in the FMP. These control rules include the HG control rule, 
which, in conjunction with the OFL and ABC rules in the FMP, are used 
to manage harvest levels for Pacific sardine, in accordance with the 
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, 16 U.S.C. 
1801 et seq. According to the FMP, the quota for the principal 
commercial fishery is determined using the FMP-specified HG formula. 
The HG formula in the CPS FMP is HG = [(Biomass - CUTOFF) * FRACTION * 
DISTRIBUTION] with the parameters described as follows:
    1. Biomass. The estimated stock biomass of Pacific sardine age one 
and above. For the 2017-2018 management season, this is 86,586 mt.
    2. CUTOFF. This is the biomass level below which no HG is set. The 
FMP established this level at 150,000 mt.
    3. DISTRIBUTION. The average portion of the Pacific sardine biomass 
estimated in the EEZ off the Pacific coast is 87 percent.
    4. FRACTION. The temperature-varying harvest fraction is the 
percentage of the biomass above 150,000 mt that may be harvested.
    As described above, the Pacific sardine HG control rule, the 
primary mechanism for setting the annual directed commercial fishery 
quota, includes a CUTOFF parameter, which has been set as a biomass 
level of 150,000 mt. This amount is subtracted from the annual biomass 
estimate before calculating the applicable HG for the fishing year. 
Since this year's biomass estimate is below that value, the formula 
results in an HG of zero, and no Pacific sardine are available for the 
primary commercial directed fishery during the 2017-2018 fishing 
season.
    At the April 2017 Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) 
meeting, the Council's Science and Statistical Committee (SSC) 
approved, and the Council adopted, the ``Assessment of the Pacific 
Sardine Resource in 2017 for U.S. Management in 2017-2018,'' which was 
prepared by NMFS Southwest Fisheries Science Center. The resulting 
Pacific sardine biomass estimate of 86,586 mt is the best available 
science for setting harvest specifications. Based on recommendations 
from its SSC and other advisory bodies, the Council recommended, and 
NMFS is implementing, an OFL of 16,957 mt, an ABC of 15,497 mt, and a 
prohibition on Pacific sardine catch, unless it is harvested as part of 
either the live bait or tribal fishery or incidental to other fisheries 
for the 2017-2018 Pacific sardine fishing year. As additional 
management measures, the Council also recommended, and NMFS is 
implementing through this action, an ACL of 8,000 mt and that the 
incidental catch of Pacific sardine in other CPS fisheries be managed 
with the following automatic inseason actions to reduce the potential 
for both targeting and discard of Pacific sardine:
     An incidental per landing by weight allowance of 40 
percent Pacific sardine in non-treaty CPS fisheries until a total of 
2,000 mt of Pacific sardine are landed.
     When 2,000 mt are landed, the incidental per landing 
allowance will be reduced to 20 percent until a total of 5,000 mt of 
Pacific sardine have been landed.
     When 5,000 mt have been landed, the incidental per landing 
allowance will be reduced to 10 percent for the remainder of the 2017-
2018 fishing year.
    Pacific sardine is known to comingle with other CPS stocks; thus, 
these incidental allowances are established to allow for the continued 
prosecution of these other important CPS fisheries and reduce the 
potential discard of sardine. Additionally, an incidental per landing 
allowance is allowed in non-CPS fisheries: Up to 2 mt may be landed per 
trip.
    The NMFS West Coast Regional Administrator will publish a notice in 
the Federal Register announcing the date of attainment of any of the 
incidental catch levels described above and subsequent changes to 
allowable incidental catch percentages. Additionally, to ensure that 
the regulated community is informed of any closure, NMFS will also make 
announcements through other means available, including fax, email, and 
mail to fishermen, processors, and state fishery management agencies.
    As explained in the proposed rule, the Quinault Indian Nation 
requested a set-aside for tribal harvest of 800 mt (the same amount 
that was requested and approved for 2016-2017). NMFS considered this 
request and, per this action, 800 mt of the 2017-2018 ACL are being set 
aside for tribal harvest.
    Detailed information on the fishery and the stock assessment are 
found in the report ``Assessment of the Pacific Sardine Resource in 
2017 for U.S. Management in 2017-2018'' (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT).

Comment and Response

    On May 30, 2017, NMFS published a proposed rule for this action and 
solicited public comments (82 FR 24656), with a public comment period 
that ended on June 14, 2017. NMFS received one comment letter--
explained below--during the comment period. After consideration of the 
public comment, no changes were made from the proposed rule. For 
further background information on this action please refer to the 
preamble of the proposed rule. NMFS summarizes and responds below to 
the comment letter below.
    Comment: The commenter expressed support for the prohibition on 
directed commercial sardine fishing, but opposition to the proposed ACL 
level, and requested that NMFS instead set an ACL of no more than 2,000 
mt to be divided among the live bait and tribal sectors, and to 
accommodate limited bycatch. The commenter expressed an opinion that 
the proposed ACL of 8,000 mt is contrary to the purpose of the CUTOFF 
and that only minimal incidental catch (i.e., 2,000 mt) should be 
allowed to prevent further depletion and support sardine recovery.
    In addition to commenting on the proposed rule, the bulk of the 
comment described various scientific papers and requested 
reconsideration of various aspects of sardine management including the 
Minimum Stock Size Threshold value as well as aspects of the harvest 
guideline control rule, including but not limited to the existing 
CUTOFF parameter and the DISTRIBUTION parameter. (These parameters, as 
well as other changes to the sardine harvest control rule and 
management are set in the CPS Plan and are beyond the scope of this 
rulemaking; therefore, they will not be addressed below.)
    Response: NMFS disagrees that the ACL implemented in this rule is 
not in line with the FMP or that it fails to prevent overfishing or 
``is excessive and risks further depletion and delayed recovery''. The 
ACL should be viewed in the context of the OFL for the northern 
subpopulation of Pacific Sardine of 16,957 mt and an ABC of 15,497 mt 
that takes into account scientific uncertainty surrounding the OFL. 
These harvest reference limits were recommended by the Council based on 
the control rules in the FMP and were endorsed by the Council's SSC. 
The commenter does not question that the OFL and ABC levels reflect the 
best available science. By definition, harvest up to the level of OFL 
or ABC would not constitute overfishing, and would not drive the stock 
towards an overfished state. This rule takes a conservative approach by 
limiting harvest levels by all sources to an ACL of 8,000 mt, which is 
well below both the OFL and ABC. All incidental catch, live bait 
harvest and tribal harvest of sardine will be managed to stay at or 
below the ACL, employing multiple

[[Page 29778]]

safeguards to ensure the ACL will not be exceeded. In short, the 
management measures implemented by this rule are more than adequate to 
prevent exceeding the OFL. Additionally, even in the absence of any 
fishing mortality, unfavorable environmental conditions could keep the 
sardine population at a low level. Small pelagic species, such as 
sardine, undergo wide natural fluctuations in abundance, even in the 
absence of fishing, from environmental conditions external to fishing; 
therefore, it is highly unlikely that reducing the ACL from 8,000 mt to 
2,000 mt would measurably affect long-term fluctuations in Pacific 
sardine abundance. Based on the recent stock assessments and NMFS 
research, low recent recruitments (i.e., the number of young fish 
maturing into the spawning population) is the primary cause of the 
current downward trend in overall population size. Recruitment is 
believed to be strongly related to environmental conditions, 
particularly, large-scale oceanographic phenomena.

Classification

    Pursuant to section 304(b)(1)(A) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 
Conservation and Management Act, the NMFS West Coast Regional 
Administrator, with the concurrence of the Assistant Administrator, has 
determined that this final rule is consistent with the CPS FMP, other 
provisions of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management 
Act, and other applicable laws.
    NMFS finds good cause under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3) to waive the 30-day 
delay in effectiveness for the establishment of these final harvest 
specifications for the 2017-2018 Pacific sardine fishing season. In 
accordance with the FMP, this rule was recommended by the Council at 
its meeting in April 2017, the contents of which were based on the best 
available new scientific information on the population status of 
Pacific sardine that became available at that time. Making these final 
specifications effective on July 1, 2017, is necessary for the 
conservation and management of the Pacific sardine resource. The FMP 
requires a prohibition on directed fishing for Pacific sardine for the 
2017-2018 fishing year because the sardine biomass is below the CUTOFF. 
The purpose of the CUTOFF in the FMP--and prohibiting directed fishing 
when the biomass drops below this level--is to protect the stock when 
biomass is low and provide a buffer of spawning stock that is protected 
from fishing and available for use in rebuilding the stock. A delay in 
the effectiveness of this rule for a full 30 days would not allow the 
implementation of this prohibition prior to the expiration of the 
closure of the directed fishery on July 1, 2017, which was imposed 
under the 2016-2017 annual specifications.
    Delaying the effective date of this rule beyond July 1 would be 
contrary to the public interest because reducing Pacific sardine 
biomass beyond the limits set out in this action could decrease the 
sustainability of the Pacific sardine, as well as cause future harvest 
limits to be even lower under the harvest control rule, thereby 
reducing future profits of the fishery.
    These final specifications are exempt from review under Executive 
Order 12866.
    The Chief Counsel for Regulation of the Department of Commerce 
certified to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business 
Administration during the proposed rule stage that this action would 
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities. The factual basis for the certification was published in the 
proposed rule and is not repeated here. No comments were received 
regarding this certification. As a result, a regulatory flexibility 
analysis was not required and none was prepared.
    This action does not contain a collection-of-information 
requirement for purposes of the Paper Reduction Act.

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

    Dated: June 26, 2017.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2017-13685 Filed 6-29-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P