[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 148 (Thursday, August 1, 2024)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 62667-62668]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-16906]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[Docket No. 031125294-4091-02; RTID 0648-XE041]


Fisheries off West Coast States; the Highly Migratory Species 
Fishery; El Nino Pacific Loggerhead Conservation Area Closure

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

ACTION: Temporary rule; reopening of closure.

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SUMMARY: NMFS is reopening the Pacific Loggerhead Conservation Area 
(LCA) closure that became effective on June 1, 2024, because the sea 
surface temperatures (SSTs) in the Southern California Bight (SCB) for 
the months of May and June 2024 indicate that SSTs have returned to 
normal or below normal and that El Ni[ntilde]o conditions are no longer 
present in the SCB. The LCA prohibits fishing with large-mesh drift 
gillnet (DGN) gear (>=14 inches mesh) off the coast of southern 
California east of the 120[deg] W meridian from June 1, 2024, through 
August 31, 2024. Based on recent observations of SSTs in the SCB along 
with the Climate Prediction Center (CPC) report related to changing El 
Ni[ntilde]o conditions, NMFS has determined that reopening the area is 
warranted.

DATES: Effective 12:01 a.m., Pacific Daylight Time, on August 1, 2024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Chris Fanning, West Coast Region 
(WCR), NMFS, (562) 980-4198, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The DGN fishery is managed under the Fishery 
Management Plan for U.S. West Coast Fisheries for Highly Migratory 
Species (50 CFR part 660, subpart K) and occurs off the coast of 
California. NMFS regulations state that ``no person may fish with, set, 
or haul back drift gillnet gear in U.S. waters of the Pacific Ocean 
east of the 120[deg] W meridian from June 1 through August 31 during a 
forecasted, or occurring, El Ni[ntilde]o event off the coast of 
southern California'' (50 CFR 660.713(c)(2)). This area, which overlaps 
with the SCB, is referred to in the regulations as the ``Pacific 
loggerhead conservation area'' or ``LCA.''
    Under 50 CFR 660.713(c)(2)(ii), the Assistant Administrator (AA) is 
to rely on information developed by NOAA offices (the CPC and the West 
Coast Office of the Coast Watch program) to make the determination that 
an El Ni[ntilde]o event is forecasted or occurring off southern 
California. The AA is to use monthly SST charts to determine whether 
there are warmer-than-normal SSTs off southern California ``during the 
months prior to the closure months for years in which an El Ni[ntilde]o 
event has been declared'' by the CPC. Specifically, the AA is to use 
SST data from the second and third months prior to the month of 
closure. Thus, to make a determination for a closure to begin in June, 
the AA used data from March and April.
    These regulations protect loggerhead sea turtles, specifically the 
North Pacific Loggerhead Distinct Population Segment, which are listed 
as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. The regulations 
initially were implemented to address a reasonable and prudent 
alternative

[[Page 62668]]

included in NMFS' 2000 biological opinion for this fishery. The current 
biological opinion (2023) analyzed maintaining the closed area as a 
management measure in the U.S. West Coast Fishery Management Plan for 
Highly Migratory Species.
    On May 9, 2024, the CPC issued an El Ni[ntilde]o Advisory. Under 
the CPC's El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) diagnostic system, an El 
Ni[ntilde]o Advisory is issued when El Ni[ntilde]o conditions are 
observed and expected to continue. NMFS staff reviewed the SST 
anomalies in the SCB during March and April of 2024, relying on SST 
maps available through NOAA's Coast Watch program (for details see 
https://coastwatch.pfeg.noaa.gov/erddap/index.html). These maps 
indicated that SSTs were above normal in the SCB. NMFS determined that 
El Ni[ntilde]o conditions were occurring off southern California based 
on SSTs that were warmer than normal during March and April 2024, 
consistent with regulations at 50 CFR 660.713(c)(2)(ii), and 
implemented the LCA on June 1, 2024 (89 FR 47106).
    Per regulations at 50 CFR 660.713(c)(2)(iii), if SSTs return to 
normal or below normal during a closure period, the AA may reopen the 
fishery after publishing a Federal Register notice announcing that El 
Ni[ntilde]o conditions are no longer present in the SCB.
    The CPC report on June 13, 2024, indicated a transition from El 
Ni[ntilde]o to ENSO-neutral/La Nina Watch conditions based on cooler 
SSTs observed and a forecasted continued cooling trend in the Pacific 
Ocean. The most recent CPC report on July 11, 2024, indicates ENSO-
neutral is expected to continue for the next several months, with La 
Ni[ntilde]a favored to emerge during August-October (70 percent chance) 
and persist into the Northern Hemisphere winter 2024-2025 (79 percent 
chance during November-January). Additionally, SST data summarized and 
available on the West Coast Office of the Coast Watch program website 
indicates cooler than normal temperatures in the SCB were reported in 
May, June, and July.
    Based on this information, NMFS has determined that El Ni[ntilde]o 
conditions are no longer present and that we may reopen the LCA under 
the regulations. NMFS has determined that re-opening the LCA is 
warranted to increase fishing opportunities and lessen regulatory 
burden on vessels' time-area access, while complying with legal and 
regulatory requirements to ensure the conservation of loggerhead sea 
turtles.
    The LCA closure prohibits DGN fishing in the LCA through August 31, 
2024. Fishing with DGN gear also is prohibited within 75 nautical miles 
of the mainland shore through August 14 under 50 CFR 660.713(d), which 
includes much of the LCA. Thus, this closure primarily affects the DGN 
fishery during the last two weeks in August, when fishing with DGN gear 
would otherwise be open in much of the LCA.
    Most DGN vessels typically commence fishing on or near August 15, 
depending on various factors including when swordfish are present on 
the fishing grounds in commercially viable quantities. Currently, one 
vessel is present in the area immediately outside the LCA. We 
anticipate that up to seven vessels may start fishing in August.

Classification

    This action is allowed by current regulations at 50 CFR 660.713 and 
is exempt from Office of Management and Budget review under Executive 
Order 12866.
    NMFS finds good cause to waive the requirement to provide prior 
notice and an opportunity for public comment for this action pursuant 
to the authority set forth at 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B). Notice and comment 
procedures for this action are impracticable and contrary to the public 
interest. Specifically, the regulations allow for lifting the DGN 
fishing restrictions in response to updated weather information. The 
most recent El Ni[ntilde]o status determination occurred on July 11, 
2024, and regulations provide that the AA may publish a Federal 
Register notice announcing that El Ni[ntilde]o conditions are no longer 
present off the coast of southern California and may terminate the 
closure prior to August 31. The closure period began on June 1 and 
restricts fishing for swordfish and sharks within a defined geographic 
area. Relieving this restriction will allow fishers access to the area 
while swordfish and other marketable highly migratory species are 
available on the fishing grounds. Delaying this action for 30 days 
would prevent active fishers from accessing some of the fishing grounds 
in the LCA. Given the change in conditions, we expect that loggerhead 
turtles leave the LCA with the cooler temperatures and that there is 
little likelihood of turtle entanglements or interactions in the area. 
Therefore, we find that there is good cause to waive the 30-day notice 
and opportunity for public comment requirements.
    The APA excepts from the 30-day delay in effective date a rule that 
``grants or recognizes an exception or relieves a restriction'' (5 
U.S.C. 553(d)(1)). This rule relieves a restriction on DGN fishing in 
the LCA, and the 30-day delay in effective date therefore is not 
required.

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

    Dated: July 26, 2024.
Lindsay Fullenkamp,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-16906 Filed 7-31-24; 8:45 am]
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