[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 164 (Thursday, August 25, 2022)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 52351-52353]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-18390]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 300

[Docket No. 220325-0079; RTID 0648-XC261]


Pacific Halibut Fisheries; Catch Sharing Plan; Inseason Action

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

ACTION: Temporary rule; inseason adjustment; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: This notice document announces additional season dates and 
increases the daily bag limit for some Pacific halibut recreational 
fisheries in the International Pacific Halibut Commission's (IPHC) 
regulatory Area 2A off Washington, Oregon, and California. 
Specifically, this action adds season dates such that the Oregon 
Central Coast subarea will be open 7 days per week starting September 
1, and increases the daily bag limit from one to two fish starting 
September 1 in the Oregon Central and Southern Coast subareas. This 
action also provides notice of the closure of the California

[[Page 52352]]

subarea on August 7, 2022 that was announced by the IPHC on August 5, 
2022. This action is intended to conserve Pacific halibut and provide 
angler opportunity where available.

DATES: 
    Effective date: This action is effective August 23, 2022, through 
October 31, 2022.
    Comments due date: Submit comments on or before September 9, 2022.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by NOAA-NMFS-2022-0003, by 
either of the following methods:
     Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to https://www.regulations.gov and enter NOAA-NMFS-2022-0003 in the Search box. 
Click on the ``Comment'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter 
or attach your comments.
     Mail: Submit written comments to Scott M. Rumsey, c/o 
Kathryn Blair, West Coast Region, NMFS, 1201 NE Lloyd Blvd., Suite 
1100, Portland, OR 97232.
    Instructions: NMFS may not consider comments if they are sent by 
any other method, to any other address or individual, or received after 
the comment period ends. All comments received are a part of the public 
record and NMFS will post them for public viewing on 
www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying 
information (e.g., name, address, etc.), confidential business 
information, or otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily 
by the sender is publicly accessible. NMFS will accept anonymous 
comments (enter ``N/A'' in the required fields if you wish to remain 
anonymous).
    Docket: This rule is accessible via the internet at the Office of 
the Federal Register website at https://www.federalregister.gov/. 
Background information and documents are available at the NOAA 
Fisheries website at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/2022-pacific-halibut-catch-sharing-plan and at the Council's website at 
http://www.pcouncil.org. Other comments received may be accessed 
through www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joshua Lindsay, phone: 562-980-4034, 
fax: 562-980-4018, or email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On April 1, 2022, NMFS published a final 
rule approving changes to the Pacific halibut Area 2A Catch Sharing 
Plan and implementing recreational (sport) management measures for 2022 
(87 FR 19007), as authorized by the Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 
1982 (16 U.S.C. 773-773(k)). The 2022 Catch Sharing Plan provides a 
recommended framework for NMFS' annual management measures and subarea 
allocations based on the 2022 Area 2A Pacific halibut catch limit of 
1,490,000 pounds (lb) (675.9 metric tons (mt)) set by the International 
Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC). These Pacific halibut management 
measures include recreational fishery season dates and subarea 
allocations.
    Federal regulations at 50 CFR 300.63(c), ``Flexible Inseason 
Management Provisions for Sport Halibut Fisheries in Area 2A,'' allow 
the NMFS' Regional Administrator to modify annual regulations during 
the season. These inseason provisions allow the Regional Administrator 
to modify sport (recreational) fishing periods, bag limits, size 
limits, days per calendar week, and subarea quotas, if it is determined 
it is necessary to meet the allocation objectives and the action will 
not result in exceeding the catch limit.
    NMFS has determined that, due to continued lower than expected 
landings in portions of Oregon, inseason action to modify the 2022 
annual regulations for the recreational fishery is warranted at this 
time to provide additional opportunity for fishery participations to 
achieve the Area 2A allocations as published in the final rule (87 FR 
19007; April 1, 2022). As stated above, inseason modification of the 
fishing season is authorized by Federal regulations at 50 CFR 
300.63(c). After consulting with representatives of the IPHC, the 
Pacific Fishery Management Council, and the Oregon Department of Fish 
and Wildlife (ODFW), NMFS determined the following inseason action is 
necessary to meet the management objective of attaining the various 
state and subarea allocations, has little risk of the subarea or 
coastwide allocation being exceeded from this action, and is consistent 
with the inseason management provisions allowing for the modification 
of sport fishing periods and sport fishing days per calendar week. 
Notice of these additional dates and closure of the fisheries will also 
be announced on the NMFS hotline at 206-526-6667 or 800-662-9825.
    In addition, the recreational (sport) management measures for 2022 
(87 FR 19007; April 1, 2022) for the California Coast subarea state 
that the fishery is open May 1 through November 15, or until the 
subarea allocation is estimated to have been taken and the season is 
therefore closed, whichever is earlier. The California subarea 
allocation was estimated to have been taken on August 7, 2022, and 
therefore the fishery closed. Closure of the California subarea was 
announced by the IPHC on August 5, 2022.

Inseason Action

Oregon Central Coast Subarea

    Description of the action: This inseason action implements 
additional dates for summer all-depth fishing in the Oregon Central 
Coast subarea, and increases the daily bag limit from one to two fish 
for the Oregon Central and Southern Coast subareas during the 2022 
recreational fishery.
    Reason for the action: The purpose of this inseason action is to 
provide additional opportunity for anglers in the Oregon Central Coast 
subarea by setting open season dates 7 days per week beginning 
September 1 through October 31. The fishery is currently scheduled to 
be open every Thursday through Saturday starting August 4. This action 
also allows for additional opportunity for anglers to retain up to two 
Pacific halibut per person per day in the Oregon Central and Southern 
Coast subareas beginning September 1. NMFS has determined that these 
additional dates and increased bag limit are warranted due to lower 
than expected landings through August 2022, and the expectation that a 
substantial amount of subarea allocation will go unharvested without 
additional fishing dates. As of August 10, anglers in the Oregon 
Central Coast subarea have harvested 129,155 lb (58.58 mt) of the 
269,782 lb (122.37 mt) allocation (48 percent), leaving 140,627 lb 
(63.79 mt) remaining (52 percent of the subarea allocation). This is a 
result of poor weather and ocean conditions preventing anglers from 
safely participating in the recreational fishery off the coast of 
Oregon. After 163,231 lb (74.04 mt) of the subarea allocation went 
unharvested in 2021, NMFS included more season days in 2022 compared to 
2021. NMFS previously published an inseason action on August 5, 2022 
(87 FR 47944) to add additional fishing dates in this subarea. However, 
catch information to date shows that even with the increased fishing 
dates provided for in the final rule and inseason action, participants 
in the fishery are unlikely to harvest the full subarea allocation. 
Without the additional fishing days and increased bag limit in this 
action, there is likely to be substantial unharvested allocation in 
this subarea.
    Notice of these additional dates will also be announced on the NMFS 
hotline at 206-526-6667 or 800-662-9825.

[[Page 52353]]

California Subarea

    Description of the action: This inseason action provides notice of 
closure for the recreational fishery in the California subarea, 
effective Sunday, August 7 at 11:59 p.m..
    Reason for the action: On August 3, 2022, NMFS received catch 
information indicating that the catch amount for the recreational 
Pacific halibut fishery off of California was projected to be 35,553 lb 
(16.13 mt); out of an allocation of 38,740 lb (17.57 mt), with 3,187 lb 
(1.45 mt) remaining. Weekly catch amounts have averaged 4,013 lb (1.82 
mt) in 2022, which includes an outlying week of high catch. When this 
week is removed, the average catch per week is 3,247 lb (1.47 mt). 
Therefore, NMFS estimated that the subarea allocation would be attained 
by August 7, 2022, triggering the closure of the fishery. IPHC issued a 
media release on August 5, 2022, notifying the public of the closure on 
August 7. This inseason is providing notice that the recreational 
fishery off of the California coast is closed.
    Weekly catch monitoring reports for the recreational fisheries in 
Washington, Oregon, and California are available on their respective 
state Fish and Wildlife agency websites. NMFS and the IPHC will 
continue to monitor recreational catch obtained via state sampling 
procedures until NMFS has determined there is not sufficient allocation 
for another full day of fishing, and the area is closed by the IPHC, or 
the season closes for Oregon on October 31, whichever is earlier.

Classification

    NMFS issues this action pursuant to the Northern Pacific Halibut 
Act of 1982. This action is taken under the regulatory authority at 50 
CFR 300.63(c), and is exempt from review under Executive Order 12866.
    Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(3)(B), there is good cause to waive 
prior notice and an opportunity for public comment on this action, as 
notice and comment would be impracticable and contrary to the public 
interest. ODFW provided updated landings data to NMFS on August 4, 
2022, showing that the fishery participants in the recreational fishery 
off of the Oregon Central Coast had only caught 47 percent of the 
subarea allocation. NMFS uses fishing rates from previous years to 
determine the number of recreational fishing dates needed to attain 
subarea allocations. The level of attainment of the allocation for 2022 
is substantially lower than anticipated when the 2022 final rule 
setting the 2022 recreational fishery season dates was developed. This 
action should be implemented as soon as possible to allow fishery 
participants to take advantage of the additional fishing dates prior to 
the end of the season. As the fishery in Oregon closes on October 31, 
2022, implementing this action through proposed and final rulemaking 
would limit the benefit this action would provide to fishery 
participants. Without implementation of additional season dates, a 
significant portion of the Oregon subarea allocations are unlikely to 
be harvested, limiting economic benefits to the participants and not 
meeting the goals of the Catch Sharing Plan and the 2022 management 
measures. It is necessary that this rulemaking be implemented in a 
timely manner so that planning for these new fishing days can take 
place, and for business and personal decision making by the regulated 
public impacted by this action, which includes recreational charter 
fishing operations, associated port businesses, and private anglers who 
do not live near the coastal access points for this fishery, among 
others. To ensure the regulated public is fully aware of this action, 
notice of this regulatory action will also be provided to anglers 
through a telephone hotline, news release, and by the relevant state 
fish and wildlife agencies. NMFS will receive public comments for 15 
days after publication of this action, in accordance with 50 CFR 
300.63(c)(4)(ii). No aspect of this action is controversial, and 
changes of this nature were anticipated in the process described in 
regulations at 50 CFR 300.63(c).
    For the reasons discussed above, there is also good cause under 5 
U.S.C. 553(d)(3) to waive the 30-day delay in effective date and make 
this action effective immediately upon filing for public inspection, as 
a delay in effectiveness of this action would constrain fishing 
opportunity and be inconsistent with the goals of the Catch Sharing 
Plan and current management measures, as well as potentially limit the 
economic opportunity intended by this rule to the associated fishing 
communities. NMFS regulations allow the Regional Administrator to 
modify sport fishing periods, bag limits, size limits, days per 
calendar week, and subarea quotas, provided that the action allows 
allocation objectives to be met and will not result in exceeding the 
catch limit for the subarea. NMFS recently received information on the 
progress of landings in the recreational fisheries in the Oregon 
subarea, indicating additional dates and an increased bag limit should 
be added to the fishery to ensure optimal and sustainable harvest of 
the subarea allocation. As stated above, it is in the public interest 
that this action is not delayed, because a delay in the effectiveness 
of these new dates would not allow the allocation objectives of the 
recreational Pacific halibut fishery to be met.

    Dated: August 22, 2022.
Jennifer M. Wallace,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-18390 Filed 8-23-22; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P