[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 239 (Wednesday, December 14, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-30726]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: December 14, 1994]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Parts 611, 675, and 676
[Docket No. 941241-4341; I.D. 112394B]
Foreign Fishing; Groundfish Fishery of the Bering Sea and
Aleutian Islands; Limited Access Management of Federal Fisheries In and
Off of Alaska
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Interim 1995 specifications of groundfish, associated
management measures, and closures.
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SUMMARY: NMFS issues interim 1995 initial total allowable catches
(ITACs) for each category of groundfish and specifications for
prohibited species bycatch allowances for the groundfish fishery of the
Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area (BSAI). NMFS is also
closing specified fisheries consistent with the interim 1995 groundfish
specifications. The intended effect is to conserve and manage the
groundfish resources in the BSAI.
EFFECTIVE DATE: January 1, 1995, until the effective date of the final
1995 initial specifications.
ADDRESSES: The preliminary 1995 Stock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation
(SAFE) Report may be requested from the North Pacific Fishery
Management Council, P.O. Box 103136, Anchorage, AK 99510, 907-271-2809.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ellen R. Varosi, NMFS, 907-586-7228.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Groundfish fisheries in the BSAI are
governed by Federal regulations (50 CFR 611.93 and parts 675 and 676)
that implement the Fishery Management Plan for the Groundfish Fishery
of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Area (FMP). The FMP was prepared
by the North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) and approved
by NMFS under the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Management Act.
The FMP and implementing regulations require NMFS, after
consultation with the Council, to specify for each calendar year the
total allowable catch (TAC) for each target species and the ``other
species'' category (Sec. 675.20(a)(2)). Regulations under
Sec. 675.20(a)(7)(i) further require NMFS to publish and solicit public
comment on amounts of proposed annual TACs and ITACs for each target
species, apportionments of each TAC, prohibited species catch (PSC)
allowances under Sec. 675.21(b), and seasonal allowances of pollock
TAC. The Council, at its September 1994 meeting, based on the
recommendations of its Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) and
other information, approved preliminary initial specifications for
1995, as detailed below. NMFS is publishing these specifications in
today's proposed rule section of the Federal Register.
Preliminary TAC Specifications
The Council developed its TAC recommendations (Table 1) based on
the preliminary acceptable biological catches (ABCs) as adjusted for
other biological and socioeconomic considerations, including
maintaining the total TAC in the required optimum yield range of 1.4-
2.0 million metric tons (mt). Each of the Council's recommended TACs
for 1995 is equal to or less than the final 1995 ABC for each species
category. Therefore, NMFS finds that the recommended TACs are
consistent with the biological condition of groundfish stocks. The
preliminary ABCs, TACs, ITACs, overfishing levels, and initial
apportionments of groundfish in the BSAI area for 1995 are given in
Table 1 of this action. The apportionment of TACs among fisheries and
seasons is discussed below.
Apportionment of TAC
As required by Sec. 675.20(a)(3) and (a)(7)(i), each species' TAC
initially is reduced by 15 percent, except the hook-and-line and pot
gear allocation for sablefish. The sum of these 15 percent amounts is
the reserve. The reserve is not designated by species or species group,
and any amount of the reserve may be reapportioned to a target species
or the ``other species'' category during the year, providing that such
reapportionments do not result in overfishing.
Interim ITAC Specifications
Regulations at Sec. 675.20(a)(7)(i) require that one-fourth of each
proposed ITAC and apportionment thereof, one-fourth of each PSC
allowance established under Sec. 675.21(b), and the first seasonal
allowance of pollock be in effect on January 1, on an interim basis,
and remain in effect until superseded by publication of the final
initial specifications in the Federal Register. Therefore, effective
January 1, 1995, the interim 1995 specifications of groundfish are as
follows: (1) Twenty-five percent of the proposed ITAC and
apportionments thereof, as contained in Table 1 of this action; (2) the
first seasonal allowance of pollock as contained in Table 2 of this
action; and (3) twenty-five percent of the annual PSC bycatch
allowances as contained in Table 3 of this action. These interim
specifications will remain in effect until superseded by publication of
the final 1995 initial specifications in the Federal Register or until
harvested.
Table 1.--Proposed 1995 Acceptable Biological Catch (ABC), Total Allowable Catch (TAC), Initial TAC (ITAC), and
Overfishing Levels of Groundfish in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Area.1,2
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Overfishing
Species ABC TAC ITAC\3\ level
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pollock:
BS.......................................... 1,330,000 1,330,000 1,130,500 1,590,000
AI.......................................... 56,600 56,600 48,110 60,400
Bogoslof District........................... 20,000 1,000 850 147,000
Pacific cod..................................... 191,000 191,000 162,350 228,000
Sablefish:
BS.......................................... 540 540 446
AI.......................................... 2,800 2,800 2,275
Total................................... 3,340 3,340 2,721 4,160
Atka mackerel:
Western AI.................................. 71,810 10,000 8,500
Central AI.................................. 73,440 44,525 37,846
Eastern AI, BS.............................. 17,950 13,475 11,454
Total................................... 163,200 68,000 57,800 484,000
Yellowfin sole.................................. 230,000 150,325 127,776 269,000
Rock sole....................................... 313,000 75,000 63,750 363,000
Greenland turbot:
BS.......................................... 4,690 3,986
AI.......................................... 2,310 1,964
Total................................... 7,000 7,000 5,950 24,800
Arrowtooth flounder............................. 93,400 10,000 8,500 130,000
Flathead sole................................... 119,000 29,618 25,175 145,000
Other flatfish\4\............................... 106,000 26,382 22,425 125,000
Pacific ocean perch:
BS.......................................... 1,910 1,910 1,623 2,920
AI.......................................... 10,900 10,900 9,265 16,600
Western AI................................ 6,104 6,104 5,188
Central AI................................ 3,052 3,052 2,594
Eastern AI................................ 1,744 1,744 1,483
Other red rockfish:\5\
BS.......................................... 1,400 1,400 1,190 1,400
Sharpchin/Northern:
AI.......................................... 5,670 5,670 4,820 5,670
Shortraker/Rougheye:
AI.......................................... 1,220 1,220 1,037 1,220
Other rockfish:\6\
BS.......................................... 365 365 310 365
AI.......................................... 770 770 655 770
Squid\7\........................................ 3,110 3,110 2,643
Other Species\8\................................ 27,500 26,390 22,432 141,000
Totals.................................. 2,685,385 2,000,000 1,699,882
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\Amounts are in metric tons. These amounts apply to the entire Bering Sea (BS) and Aleutian Islands (AI) area
unless otherwise specified. With the exception of pollock, and for the purpose of these specifications, the BS
includes the Bogoslof District.
\2\Zero amounts of groundfish are specified for Joint Venture Processing and Total Allowable Level of Foreign
Fishing.
\3\Except for the portion of the sablefish TAC allocated to hook-and-line and pot gear, 0.15 of each TAC is put
into a reserve. For the portion of the sablefish TAC allocated to vessels using hook-and-line or pot gear,
0.20 of the allocated TAC is reserved for use by CDQ participants. The ITAC for each species is the remainder
of the TAC after the subtraction of these reserves.
\4\``Other flatfish'' includes all flatfish species except for Pacific halibut (a prohibited species), flathead
sole, Greenland turbot, rock sole, and yellowfin sole.
\5\``Other red rockfish'' includes shortraker, rougheye, sharpchin, and northern.
\6\``Other rockfish'' includes all Sebastes and Sebastolobus species except for Pacific ocean perch, sharpchin,
northern, shortraker, and rougheye.
\7\Squid may be combined with ``other species'' category in the final initial specifications of TAC. The Council
will consider combining squid with the ``other species'' category at its December 1994 meeting.
\8\``Other species'' includes sculpins, sharks, skates, eulachon, smelts, capelin, and octopus. (The ``other
species'' category may include squid in the final 1995 initial specifications of TAC.)
Seasonal Allowances of Pollock TAC
Under Sec. 675.20(a)(2)(ii), the TAC of pollock for each subarea or
district of the BSAI area is divided, after subtraction of reserves
(Sec. 675.20(a)(3)), into two allowances. The first allowance will be
available for directed fishing from January 1 to April 15 (roe season).
The second allowance will be available from August 15 through the end
of the fishing year (non-roe season). On September 26, 1994, a proposed
rule was published in the Federal Register (59 FR 49051) that would
delay the opening of the pollock roe season for the offshore component
fishery to January 26th. If approved by NMFS, this season delay would
be effective for the 1995 fishing year.
In 1994, the seasonal allowance for the roe season was 45 percent
and the non-roe season 55 percent for the BS pollock fisheries. The
pollock TACs specified for the AI subarea and the Bogoslof District
were not seasonally apportioned. For 1995, the Council is considering
an alternative to the 1994 seasonal allowance that reduces the
allowance for pollock fisheries in the BS during the roe season to 40
percent and increases the pollock non-roe allowance to 60 percent
(Table 2). The Council declined to choose an alternative until its
December 1994 meeting. Regulations at Sec. 675.20(a)(7)(i) require that
the first seasonal allowance of pollock be in effect on January 1 on an
interim basis, and remain in effect until superseded by publication of
the final initial specifications in the Federal Register or until
harvested. Therefore, NMFS establishes a seasonal allowance of 45
percent of the pollock ITAC specified for each management subarea or
district during the roe season and 55 percent during the non-roe season
(Table 2), noting that these allowances are subject to change as a
result of public comment and consultation with the Council at its
December 1994 meeting.
Apportionment of the Pollock TAC to the Inshore and Offshore
Components
Regulations at Sec. 675.20(a)(2)(iii) require that the 1995 pollock
ITAC specified for the BSAI be allocated 35 percent to vessels catching
pollock for processing by the inshore component and 65 percent to
vessels catching pollock for processing by the offshore component
(Table 2). Definitions of these components are found at Sec. 675.2.
Table 2.--Proposed Seasonal Allowances of the Inshore and Offshore Component Allocations of Pollock TACs.1,2
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Roe season4 Non-roe season5
Subarea TAC ITAC3 -----------------------------------------------------------------
45% 40% 55% 60%
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Bering Sea:
Inshore........................................... 395,675 178,054 158,270 217,621 237,405
Offshore.......................................... 734,825 330,671 293,930 404,154 440,895
Total......................................... 1,330,000 1,130,500 508,725 452,200 621,775 678,300
Aleutian Islands:
Inshore........................................... 16,838 .............. 16,838 .............. remainder.
Offshore.......................................... 31,272 .............. 31,272 .............. remainder.
Total......................................... 56,600 48,110 .............. 48,110 .............. remainder.
Bogoslof:
Inshore........................................... 298 .............. 298 .............. remainder.
Offshore.......................................... 552 .............. 552 .............. remainder.
Total......................................... 1,000 850 .............. 850 .............. remainder.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1TAC = total allowable catch.
2Based on an offshore component allocation of 0.65 (TAC) and an inshore component allocation of 0.35 (TAC).
3ITAC = initial TAC = 0.85 of TAC.
4January 1 through April 15--based on a 45/55 or 40/60 split (roe = 45 percent or 40 percent).
5August 15 through December 31--based on a 45/55 or 40/60 split (non-roe = 55 percent or 60 percent).
Allocation of PSC Limits for Crab, Halibut, and Herring
PSC limits of red king crab and C. bairdi Tanner crab in Bycatch
Limitation Zones (50 CFR 675.2) of the BS subarea, and for Pacific
halibut throughout the BSAI area are specified under Sec. 675.21(a).
The current PSC limits are:
1. Zone 1 trawl fisheries, 200,000 red king crabs;
2. Zone 1 trawl fisheries, 1 million C. bairdi Tanner crabs;
3. Zone 2 trawl fisheries, 3 million C. bairdi Tanner crabs;
4. BSAI trawl fisheries, 3,775 mt mortality of Pacific halibut;
5. BSAI nontrawl fisheries, 900 mt mortality of Pacific halibut,
pending the implementation of the IFQ program; and
6. BSAI trawl fisheries, 1,962 mt Pacific herring.
The PSC limit of Pacific herring caught while conducting any trawl
operation for groundfish in the BSAI is 1 percent of the annual eastern
BS herring biomass. At this time, the best estimate of 1995 herring
biomass is 196,200 mt. This amount was derived using 1993 survey data
and an age-structured biomass projection model developed by the Alaska
Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G). Therefore, the interim herring PSC
limit is 1,962 mt. This value is subject to change, pending an updated
forecast analysis of 1994 herring survey data that will be presented to
the Council by the ADF&G during the Council's December 1994 meeting.
Regulations under Sec. 675.21(b) authorize the apportionment of
each PSC limit into PSC allowances for specified fishery categories.
Regulations at Sec. 675.21(b)(1)(iii) specify seven fishery categories
(midwater pollock, Greenland turbot/arrowtooth flounder/sablefish, rock
sole/other flatfish, yellowfin sole, rockfish, Pacific cod, and bottom
pollock/Atka mackerel/``other species''). Regulations at
Sec. 675.21(b)(2) authorize the apportionment of the nontrawl halibut
PSC limit among three fishery categories (Pacific cod hook-and-line
fishery, groundfish pot gear fishery, and other nontrawl fisheries).
The preliminary PSC allowances are listed in Table 3. In general, the
fishery bycatch allowances listed in Table 3 reflect the
recommendations made to the Council by its Advisory Panel. These
recommendations are unchanged from 1994 and were based on 1993 and 1994
bycatch amounts, anticipated 1995 harvest of groundfish by trawl gear
and fixed gear, and assumed halibut mortality rates in the different
groundfish fisheries based on analyses of 1991-93 observer data. As in
1994, the Council proposed to exempt the 1995 pot gear fisheries from
halibut bycatch restrictions.
Regulations at Sec. 675.20(a)(7)(i) require that one-fourth of each
proposed PSC allowance be made available on an interim basis for
harvest at the beginning of the fishing year, until superseded by the
final initial specifications or until harvested. These interim PSC
bycatch allowances are 25 percent of the annual allowances listed in
Table 3.
Table 3. Preliminary 1995 Prohibited Species Bycatch Allowances for the
BSAI Trawl and Nontrawl Fisheries
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Zone 1\1\ Zone 2\1\ wide BASI-wide
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trawl Fisheries
Red king crab, number of
animals:
yellowfin sole.......... 40,000
rcksol/otherflat\2\..... 110,000
rockfish................ 0
turb/arrow/sab\3\/rockfi
sh..................... 0
Pacific cod............. 10,000
plck/Atka/othr\4\....... 40,000
-----------------
Total............... 200,000
=================
C. bairdi Tanner crab,
number of animals:
yellowfin sole.......... 175,000 1,275,000
rcksol/oth.flat......... 475,000 260,000
turb/arrow/sabl......... 0 5,000
rockfish................ 0 10,000
Pacific cod............. 175,000 200,000
plck/Atka/othr.......... 175,000 1,250,000
---------------------------------
Total............... 1,000,000 3,000,000
=================================
Pacific halibut,
mortality (mt):
yellowfin sole.......... .............. .............. 592
rcksol/oth.flat......... .............. .............. 688
turb/arrow/sabl......... .............. .............. 137
rockfish................ .............. .............. 201
Pacific cod............. .............. .............. 1,200
plck/Atka/othr.......... .............. .............. 957
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Total............... .............. .............. 3,775
===============================================
Pacific herring, mt:
midwater pollock........ .............. .............. 1,419
yellowfin sole.......... .............. .............. 332
rcksol/oth.flat......... .............. .............. 0
turb/arrow/sabl......... .............. .............. 0
rockfish................ .............. .............. 8
Pacific cod............. .............. .............. 25
plck/Atka/othr\5\....... .............. .............. 178
-----------------------------------------------
Total............... .............. .............. 1,962
===============================================
Nontrawl Fisheries BSAI-
Wide
Pacific halibut,
mortality (mt):
Pacific cod Hook-and-
line................... .............. .............. 725
Other nontrawl.......... .............. .............. 175
Groundfish pot gear..... .............. .............. (\6\)
-----------------------------------------------
Total............... .............. .............. 900
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\Refer to Sec. 675.2 for definitions of areas.
\2\Rock sole and other flatfish fishery category. A technical amendment
to add flathead sole to this fishery category will be prepared by NMFS
if the Council makes a final recommendation at its December 1994
meeting to break out flathead sole from the ``other flatfish'' species
group (see Table 1).
\3\Greenland turbot, arrowtooth flounder, and sablefish fishery
category.
\4\Pollock, Atka mackerel, and ``other species'' fishery category.
\5\Pollock other than midwater pollock, Atka mackerel, and ``other
species'' fishery category.
\6\Exempt.
Closures to Directed Fishing
If the Director, Alaska Region, NMFS (Regional Director),
establishes a directed fishing allowance, and that allowance is or will
be reached before the end of the fishing year, or, with respect to
pollock, before the end of the fishing season, NMFS will prohibit
directed fishing for that species or species group in the specified
subarea or district under Sec. 675.20(a)(8). The Regional Director has
determined that the interim TAC amounts of groundfish for species or
species groups identified below will be necessary as incidental catch
to support other anticipated groundfish fisheries prior to the time
that final specifications of groundfish are in effect for the 1995
fishing year. Therefore, NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for those
target species, gears, and components, to prevent exceeding the interim
amounts of groundfish TACs specified. These closures will be
implemented for the period that the interim specifications of
groundfish TACs are effective (from January 1 until the effective date
of the final 1995 initial groundfish specifications or until
harvested). After consideration of public comments on the proposed 1995
initial specifications and additional scientific information presented
at its December 1994 meeting, the Council may recommend other actions
at the time the final 1995 initial specifications of groundfish TACs
are implemented or during the 1995 fishing year, as necessary for
effective management.
Table 4.--Closures to Directed Fishing Under 1995 Interim TACs.\1\
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fishery (all gear) Closed area\2\
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pollock in Bogoslof District....... Statistical Area 518.
Pacific ocean perch................ Bering Sea.
Eastern AI.\3\
Central AI.
Western AI.
Shortraker/rougheye rockfish....... AI.
Other rockfish\4\.................. BSAI.
Other red rockfish\5\.............. Bering Sea.
Rockfish, Greenland turbot/ Zone 1.
arrowtooth/sablefish.
Arrowtooth......................... BSAI.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\These closures to directed fishing are in addition to closures and
prohibitions found in regulations at 50 CFR part 675.
\2\Refer to Sec. 675.2 for definitions of areas.
\3\``AI'' means Aleutian Islands area.
\4\In the BSAI, ``Other rockfish'' includes Sebastes and Sebastolobus
species except for Pacific ocean perch and the ``other red rockfish''
species.
\5\``Other red rockfish'' includes shortraker, rougheye, sharpchin, and
northern.
Classification
This action is authorized under 50 CFR 611.93(b), 675.20, and part
676; and is exempt from review under E.O. 12866.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: December 9, 1994.
Charles Karnella,
Acting Program Management Officer, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 94-30726 Filed 12-19-94; 4:22 pm]
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