[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 91 (Thursday, May 9, 1996)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 21102-21104]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-11546]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 663
[Docket No. 951227306-5306-01; I.D. 043096A]
Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; Closure and Trip Limit
Reduction
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Closure; fishing restrictions; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: NMFS announces the closure of the open access fishery for
thornyheads taken and retained north of Point Conception, CA
(34 deg.27' N. lat.), and a further restriction to the open access
fishery for sablefish taken with nontrawl gear north of the Conception
subarea (36 deg.00' N. lat.). This action is authorized by the Pacific
Coast Groundfish Fishery Management Plan
[[Page 21103]]
(FMP), which governs the groundfish fishery off Washington, Oregon, and
California. The closure and trip limit are designed to keep landings as
close as possible to the 1996 open access allocations for these
species.
DATES: Effective from 0001 hours (local time) May 3, 1996, until the
effective date of the 1997 annual specifications and management
measures for the Pacific Coast groundfish fishery, which will be
published in the Federal Register. Comments will be accepted through
May 24, 1996.
ADDRESSES: Submit comments to William Stelle, Jr., Director, Northwest
Region (Regional Director), National Marine Fisheries Service, 7600
Sand Point Way NE., BIN-C15700, Seattle, WA 98115-0070; or Hilda Diaz-
Soltero, Regional Director, Southwest Region, National Marine Fisheries
Service, 501 West Ocean Blvd., Suite 4200, Long Beach, CA 90802-4213.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William L. Robinson at 206-526-6140;
or Rodney McInnis at 310-980-4040.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Management measures for the open access
fishery apply to any vessel that takes and retains groundfish and that
does not have a valid limited entry permit for the Pacific coast
groundfish fishery with an endorsement for the gear used to harvest the
groundfish. Open access gear includes longline, trap, pot, hook and
line (fixed or mobile), set net (south of 38 deg. N. lat. only), and
trawls used to target non-groundfish species (pink shrimp or prawns
and, south of Pt. Arena, CA (38 deg.57'30'' N. lat.), California
halibut or sea cucumbers). The following changes to routine management
measures in the open access fisheries for thornyheads and sablefish
were recommended by the Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) at
its April 8-12, 1996, meeting in San Francisco, CA.
Open Access Thornyhead Fishery. Thornyheads consist of two species
(shortspine and longspine thornyheads) that often are caught together.
Because of difficulties in identifying and monitoring the two species
separately in the open access fishery, this fishery has been managed
for both species combined. Through 1995, separate open access and
limited entry allocations had not been implemented for shortspine
thornyheads because landings were thought to be negligible in the open
access fishery. However, at its October 1995 meeting, the Council
concluded that the best available information indicated that about 24
metric tons (mt) had been taken north of Pt. Conception in 1995,
indicating expansion in the fishery since the 1984-88 window period
used to determine open access and limited entry allocations. The
Council responded by recommending that limited entry and open access
allocations be implemented for shortspine thornyheads for 1996. The
1996 open access allocation for shortspine thornyheads is only 4 mt,
and applies north of Pt. Conception (34 deg.27' N. lat.). To keep
landings close to the open access allocation, a coastwide daily trip
limit of 50 lb (23 kg) (round weight) was applied for both species of
thornyheads combined on January 1, 1996 (61 FR 279, January 4, 1996). A
daily trip limit is the maximum amount that may be taken and retained,
possessed, or landed per vessel in 24 consecutive hours, starting at
0001 hours local time, and only one landing of the trip-limit species
may be made in that 24-hour period. Daily trip limits may not be
accumulated.
The best available information at the April 1996 Council meeting
indicated that landings of thornyheads in the open access fishery had
reached 18.7 mt north of Pt. Conception by the end of March 1996. Of
this, about 11 mt was shortspine thornyheads taken in California,
exceeding the 1996 open access allocation for shortspine thornyheads
north of Pt. Conception. The Council recommended that the open access
fishery for thornyheads be closed north of Pt. Conception as soon as
practicable for the rest of the year. Closure means taking and
retaining, possessing, or landing thornyheads caught north of Pt.
Conception with any open access gear (including open access trawl gear)
is prohibited, and offloading must begin before the time the fishery
closes. The 50-lb (23-kg) daily trip limit on thornyheads remains in
effect south of Pt. Conception because the harvest guideline does not
apply in that area. This daily trip limit is believed to be too small
to encourage effort shifts into the area.
Open Access Sablefish Fishery. In 1995, the daily trip limits for
sablefish in the open access nontrawl fishery were 300 lb (136 kg) per
day north of the Conception subarea (36 deg.00' N. lat.) and 350 lb
(159 kg) per day in the Conception subarea (36 deg.00' N. lat. to the
U.S.-Mexican border). The best available information at the April 1996
Council meeting indicated that 119 mt of sablefish had been taken in
the open access fishery in California by the end of March and that the
rate of landings would need to be reduced by 40 percent to avoid
reaching the 463-mt open access allocation before the end of the year.
After hearing considerable testimony that a target fishery for less
than 300 lb (136 kg) of sablefish per day would result in substantial
discards, or would be too low to sustain a viable fishery, the Council
agreed to maintain the current daily trip limit. However, it
recommended further constraining landings by adding a cumulative trip
limit of 2,100 lb (952 kg) north of 36 deg. N. lat. per vessel per
month. A cumulative trip limit is the maximum amount that may be taken
and retained, possessed, or landed per vessel in a specified period of
time (in this case, 1 month). Landings made under the daily trip limits
count toward the cumulative limit. This cumulative monthly limit would
accommodate seven daily landings at 300 lb (136 kg). Any open access
landings of sablefish made in May 1996 (even if made before this
closure is filed with the Office of the Federal Register) will be
counted toward the 2,100-lb (952-kg) cumulative limit for the month.
This cumulative monthly limit does not apply to open access trawl
fisheries because they target on non-groundfish species (pink shrimp,
prawns, California halibut, and sea cucumbers) and are constrained by
other limits.
For the above reasons, NMFS concurs with the Council's
recommendations and modifies the annual management measures announced
at 61 FR 279 (January 4, 1996), as amended, as follows:
1. Paragraph IV.I(1)(c)(ii) is revised to read as follows:
``(ii) A daily trip limit of 50 lb (23 kg) of thornyheads taken and
retained south of Pt. Conception, CA.''
2. A new paragraph IV.I(1)(e) is added to read as follows:
``(e) Closure - thornyheads north of Pt. Conception. The open
access fishery for thornyheads (shortspine or longspine) north of Pt.
Conception, CA is closed. This closure applies to thornyheads taken and
retained with all open access gear. Open access gear is gear used to
take and retain groundfish that does not have a valid limited entry
permit for the Pacific coast groundfish fishery with an endorsement for
the gear used to harvest the groundfish, including longline, trap, pot,
hook-and-line (fixed or mobile), set net (south of 38 deg. N. lat.
only), and trawls used to target non-groundfish species (pink shrimp or
prawns, and, south of Pt. Arena, CA (38 deg.57'30'' N. lat.),
California halibut or sea cucumbers).''
3. Paragraph IV.I.(2)(a) is revised to read as follows:
``(a) North of 36 deg.00' N. lat. The cumulative trip limit for
sablefish taken and retained north of 36 deg.00' N. lat. is 2,100 lb
(952 kg) per month. The daily trip limit for sablefish taken and
retained north of 36 deg.00' N. lat., which
[[Page 21104]]
counts toward the cumulative limit, remains at 300 lb (136 kg).''
Classification
These actions are authorized by the FMP, which governs the harvest
of groundfish in the U.S. exclusive economic zone off the coasts of
Washington, Oregon, and California. The determination to take these
actions is based on the most recent data available. The aggregate data
upon which the determinations are based are available for public
inspection at the office of the Regional Director (see ADDRESSES)
during business hours. Because of the need for immediate action to
reduce the harvest of shortspine thornyheads, and because the public
had an opportunity to comment on the action at the April 1996 Council
meeting, NMFS has determined that good cause exists for this document
to be published without affording a prior opportunity for public
comment or a 30-day delayed effectiveness period. These actions are
taken under the authority of 50 CFR 663.23(c)(1)(i)(E), (G), and (L),
and are exempt from review under E.O. 12866.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: May 2, 1996.
Richard W. Surdi,
Acting Director, Office of Fisheries Conservation and Management,
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 96-11546 Filed 5-3-96; 4:47 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F
