[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 64 (Monday, April 5, 1999)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 16362-16363]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-8289]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 679
[Docket No. 990304063-9062-01; I.D. 033099B]
Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska, Pacific Cod
in the Gulf of Alaska
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Apportionment of reserve.
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SUMMARY: NMFS is apportioning the initial reserve of Pacific cod in the
Gulf of Alaska (GOA). This action is necessary to allow incidental
catch of Pacific cod to be retained in other directed fisheries and to
account for previous harvest of the total allowable catch (TAC) in the
GOA.
DATES: Effective 1200 hrs, Alaska local time (A.l.t.), April 5, 1999,
until 2400, A.l.t., December 31, 1999. Comments must be received by
April 20, 1999.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be sent to Sue Salveson, Assistant
Administrator for Fisheries, Sustainable Fisheries Division, Alaska
Region, NMFS, 709 West 9th Street, Room 453, Juneau, AK
[[Page 16363]]
99801 or P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, AK 99802-1668, Attn: Lori Gravel.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Thomas Pearson, 907-481-1780 or
tom.pearson@noaa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS manages the groundfish fishery in the
GOA exclusive economic zone according to the Fishery Management Plan
for Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska (FMP) prepared by the North
Pacific Fishery Management Council under authority of the Magnuson-
Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. Regulations governing
fishing by U.S. vessels in accordance with the FMP appear at subpart H
of 50 CFR part 600 and 50 CFR part 679.
The Final 1999 Harvest Specifications for Groundfish of the GOA (64
FR 12094, March 11, 1999) established the initial TAC of Pacific cod in
the Western, Central, and Eastern Regulatory Areas of the GOA as 18,904
metric tons (mt), 34,348 mt, and 1,016 mt in the Western, Central, and
Eastern Regulatory Areas respectively. Directed fishing for Pacific cod
for processing by the inshore component in the Western Regulatory Area
of the GOA was closed on March 8, 1999, and in the Central Regulatory
Area on March 14, 1999, under Sec. 679.20(d)(1)(iii), in order to
prevent exceeding the allocation for processing by the inshore
component in these areas (64 FR 12768, March 15, 1999 and 64 FR 13122,
March 17, 1999).
The Final 1999 Harvest Specifications for Groundfish of the GOA (64
FR 12094, March 11, 1999) created reserves of Pacific cod in the GOA as
a management buffer to prevent exceeding the TACs and to provide
greater assurance that incidental catch of Pacific cod could be
retained throughout the fishing year in other fisheries.
The Administrator, Alaska Region, NMFS, (Regional Administrator),
has determined that the initial TAC for Pacific cod in the GOA needs to
be supplemented from the Pacific cod reserve for the GOA in order to
allow incidental catch of Pacific cod to be retained in other fisheries
and to account for prior harvest. Therefore, in accordance with
Sec. 679.20(b)(3)(i)(A), NMFS is apportioning 13,567 mt of Pacific cod
from the reserve to the TAC in the GOA: 4,726 mt in the Western, 8,587
mt in the Central, and 254 mt in the Eastern Regulatory Areas.
Pursuant to Sec. 679.20(a)(6)(iii), the apportionment of the
Pacific cod reserve in the GOA is allocated to vessels catching Pacific
cod for processing by the inshore and offshore components as 90 percent
and 10 percent of the TAC, respectively. This action increases the
total allocation of the 1999 Pacific cod TACs for vessels catching
Pacific cod for processing by the inshore component to 21,267 mt,
38,642 mt, and 1,143 mt in the Western, Central, and Eastern Regulatory
Areas, respectively, and for the offshore component to 2,363 mt, 4,293
mt and 127 mt in the Western, Central, and Eastern Regulatory Areas,
respectively. Maximum retainable bycatch amounts may be found in the
regulations at Sec. 679.20(e) and (f).
Classification
In accordance with Sec. 679.20(b)(3)(iii)(A), NMFS finds that there
is good cause for not providing the public with a prior opportunity to
comment. As of March 18, 1999, NMFS estimates the initial TACs of
17,014 mt and 30,913 mt allocated to the inshore component in the
Western and the Central Regulatory Areas of the GOA have been reached.
This action is necessary to allow retention of amounts of Pacific cod
that are caught incidentally while conducting directed fishing for
other species in these areas.
This action responds to the initial TAC limitations for Pacific cod
established in the Final 1999 Harvest Specifications for Groundfish in
the GOA. This action will allow incidental catch of Pacific cod to be
retained in other directed fisheries. The alternative is to prohibit
retention of Pacific cod which is contrary to the FMP goals of
providing the opportunity to more fully utilizing the available TACs
and reducing discards. A delay in the effective date is impracticable
and contrary to the public interest as it relieves a potential
restriction. NMFS finds for good cause that the implementation of this
action should not be delayed for 30 days. Accordingly, under U.S.C
553(d), a delay in the effective date is hereby waived.
This action is required by 50 CFR 679.20 and is exempt from review
under E.O. 12866.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: March 30, 1999.
Bruce Morehead,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 99-8289 Filed 4-2-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F
