§ 679.63 - Catch weighing requirements for vessels and processors.

§ 679.63 Catch weighing requirements for vessels and processors.

Cross Reference

Link to an amendment published at 88 FR 77231, Nov. 9, 2023.

(a) What are the requirements for listed AFA catcher/processors and AFA motherships? —

(1) Catch weighing. All groundfish landed by listed AFA catcher/processors or received by AFA motherships must be weighed on a NMFS-certified scale and made available for sampling by a NMFS certified observer. The owner and operator of a listed AFA catcher/processor or an AFA mothership must ensure that the vessel is in compliance with the scale requirements described at § 679.28(b), that each groundfish haul is weighed separately, and that no sorting of catch, except halibut sorted on deck by vessels participating in the halibut deck sorting described at § 679.120102, takes place prior to weighing.

(2) Observer sampling station. The owner and operator of a listed AFA catcher/processor or AFA mothership must provide an observer sampling station as described at § 679.28(d) and must ensure that the vessel operator complies with the observer sampling station requirements described at § 679.28(d) at all times that the vessel harvests groundfish or receives deliveries of groundfish harvested in the BSAI or GOA.

(b) What are the requirements for unlisted AFA catcher/processors? The owner or operator of an unlisted AFA catcher/processor must comply with the catch weighing and observer sampling station requirements set out in paragraph (a) of this section at all times the vessel is engaged in directed fishing for pollock in the BSAI.

(c) What are the requirements for AFA replacement vessels? The owner and operator of an AFA replacement vessel are subject to the catch weighing requirements and the observer sampling station requirements in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section that applied to the owner and operator of the replaced vessel.

(d) What are the requirements for AFA inshore processors? —

(1) Catch weighing. All groundfish landed by AFA catcher vessels engaged in directed fishing for pollock in the BSAI must be sorted and weighed on a scale approved by the State of Alaska as described in § 679.28(c), and be made available for sampling by a NMFS certified observer. The observer must be allowed to test any scale used to weigh groundfish in order to determine its accuracy.

(2) The plant manager or plant liaison must notify the observer of the offloading schedule for each delivery of BSAI pollock by an AFA catcher vessel at least 1 hour prior to offloading. An observer must monitor each delivery of BSAI pollock from an AFA catcher vessel and be on site the entire time the delivery is being weighed or sorted.

[67 FR 79734, Dec. 30, 2002, as amended at 79 FR 54602, Sept. 12, 2014; 84 FR 55053, Oct. 15, 2019; 88 FR 77231, Nov. 9, 2023]