[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 203 (Thursday, October 21, 2004)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 61768-61769]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-23595]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[Docket No. 04076201-4279-02; I.D. 060204F]
RIN 0648-AR97


Fisheries off West Coast States and in the Western Pacific; 
Coastal Pelagic Species Fisheries; Annual Specifications

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

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: NMFS issues a final rule to implement the annual harvest 
guideline for Pacific mackerel in the U.S. exclusive economic zone 
(EEZ) off the Pacific coast. The Coastal Pelagic Species (CPS) Fishery 
Management Plan (FMP) and its implementing regulations require NMFS to 
set an annual harvest guideline for Pacific mackerel based on the 
formula in the FMP. This action adopts allowable harvest levels for 
Pacific mackerel off the U.S. Pacific coast.

DATES: This action becomes effective November 22, 2004.

ADDRESSES: The report Stock Assessment of Pacific Mackerel with 
Recommendations for the 2004-2005 Management Season may be obtained 
from Rodney R. McInnis, Acting Administrator, Southwest Region, NMFS, 
501 West Ocean Boulevard, Suite 4200, Long Beach, CA 90802. An 
regulatory impact review/regulatory analysis may be obtained at this 
same address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tonya L. Wick, Southwest Region, NMFS, 
(562) 980-4036.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The CPS FMP, which was implemented by a 
final rule published in the Federal Register on December 15, 1999 (64 
FR 69888), divides management unit species into the categories of 
actively managed and monitored. Harvest guidelines of actively managed 
species (Pacific sardine and Pacific mackerel) are based on formulas 
applied to current biomass estimates. Biomass estimates are not 
calculated for species that are only monitored (jack mackerel, northern 
anchovy, and market squid).
    At a public meeting each year, the biomass for each actively 
managed species is reviewed by the Pacific Fishery Management Council's 
(Council) CPS Management Team (Team). The biomass, harvest guideline, 
and status of the fisheries are then reviewed at a public meeting of 
the Council's CPS Advisory Subpanel (Subpanel). This information is 
also reviewed by the Council's Scientific and Statistical Committee 
(SSC). The Council reviews reports from the Team, Subpanel, and SSC, 
then, after providing time for public comment, makes its recommendation 
to NMFS. The annual harvest guideline and season structure is published 
by NMFS in the Federal Register as soon as practicable before the 
beginning of the appropriate fishing season. The Pacific mackerel 
season begins on July 1 of each year and ends on June 30 the following 
year.
    The Team and Subpanel meetings took place at the Long Beach, CA, 
office of the NMFS, Southwest Region, on May 18 and 19, 2004 (69 FR 
23730, April 20, 2004, and 69 FR 24585, May 4, 2004). The SSC meeting 
took place in

[[Page 61769]]

conjunction with the June 13-18, 2004, Council meeting in Foster City, 
CA.
    A modified virtual population analysis stock assessment model is 
used by stock assessment scientists to estimate the biomass of Pacific 
mackerel. The model employs both fishery dependent and fishery 
independent indices to estimate abundance. The biomass was calculated 
through the end of 2003, then estimated for the fishing season that 
began July 1, 2004, based on: (1) the number of Pacific mackerel 
estimated to comprise each year class at the beginning of 2004, (2) 
modeled estimates of fishing mortality during 2003, (3) assumptions for 
natural and fishing mortality through the first half of 2004, and (4) 
estimates of age-specific growth. Based on this approach the biomass 
for July 1, 2004, would be 81,383 metric tons (mt). Applying the 
formula in the FMP to this biomass estimate results in a harvest 
guideline of 13,268 mt, which is higher than last year but similar to 
low harvest guidelines of recent years.
    The formula in the FMP uses the following factors to determine the 
harvest guideline:
    1. The biomass of Pacific mackerel. For 2004, this estimate is 
81,383 mt.
    2. The cutoff. This is the biomass level below which no commercial 
fishery is allowed. The FMP established the cutoff level at 18,200 mt. 
The cutoff is subtracted from the biomass, leaving 63,183 mt.
    3. The portion the Pacific mackerel biomass in the U. S. exclusive 
economic zone (EEZ) off the Pacific coast. This estimate is 70 percent, 
based on the historical average of larval distribution obtained from 
scientific cruises and the distribution of the resource obtained from 
logbooks of aerial fish-spotters. Therefore, the harvestable biomass in 
U.S. EEZ waters is 70 percent of 63,183 mt, that is, 44,228 mt.
    4. The harvest fraction. This is the percentage of the biomass 
above 18,200 mt that may be harvested. The FMP established the harvest 
fraction at 30 percent. The harvest fraction is multiplied by the 
harvestable biomass in U.S. waters (44,228 mt), which results in 13,268 
mt.
    Information on the fishery and the stock assessment are found in 
the report Stock Assessment of Pacific Mackerel with Recommendations 
for the 2004-2005 Management Season, which may be obtained by mail from 
Rodney R. McInnis, Regional Administrator (see ADDRESSES).
    Following recommendations of the fishing industry and Subpanel for 
the 2003-2004 fishing season, a directed fishery for Pacific mackerel 
of 7,500 mt was set beginning July 1, 2003, followed by an incidental 
allowance of 40 percent of Pacific mackerel in landings of any CPS, if 
the 7,500 mt was harvested. A 1 mt landing of Pacific mackerel per trip 
would have been allowed if no other species were landed during a trip. 
NMFS implemented a directed and incidental fishery last season in 
response to concerns about how a low harvest guideline for mackerel 
might interfere with the sardine fishery. Pacific mackerel is often 
caught with sardine; therefore, mackerel might have to be discarded, 
which would increase bycatch. As of June 30, 2004, the end of the 
season, approximately 5,961 mt of Pacific mackerel had been landed; 
therefore, an incidental fishery was not necessary.
    At its meeting on May 19, 2004, the Subpanel recommended for the 
2004-2005 fishing season that a directed fishery of 9,100 mt and an 
incidental fishery of 4,168 mt be implemented. An incidental allowance 
of 40 percent of Pacific mackerel in landings of any CPS would become 
effective when 9,100 mt of Pacific mackerel is estimated to be 
harvested. The Subpanel also recommended to allow 1 mt of mackerel to 
be landed per trip during the incidental fishery without landing any 
other CPS. The Subpanel recommended that an inseason review of the 
mackerel season be completed for the March 2005 Council meeting, with 
the possibility of reopening the directed fishery as an automatic 
action if sufficient amount of the harvest guideline reserved for the 
incidental fishery remains unharvested. At its June 2004 meeting, the 
Council made these recommendations to NMFS. A proposed rule containing 
the Council's recommendations was published July 20, 2004 (69 FR 
43383). The public comment period ended on August 4, 2004.
    One public comment was received.
    Comment: One commenter generally criticized commercial fishing 
rules and recommended that the quota should be cut by 10 percent per 
year until the fishery is closed.
    Response: The commenter provided no information to support such a 
change. Further, the comment seemed to be a generic one and not 
directed to the mackerel fishery, but to all commercial fisheries in 
general. Information provided by the stock assessment and recommended 
by the Council indicates that the harvest guidelines proposed are 
appropriate, therefore, NMFS has not changed the harvest guidelines 
from those proposed.
    After a review of the information available and the one public 
comment, NMFS approved the Council's recommendation and hereby 
implements the following measures for the July 1, 2004, through June 
30, 2005, fishing season:
    Based on the estimated biomass of 81,383 mt and the formula in the 
FMP, a harvest guideline of 13,268 mt will be in effect for the fishery 
beginning on July 1, 2004. This harvest guideline applies to Pacific 
mackerel harvested in the U.S. EEZ off the Pacific coast beginning at 
12:01 a.m. on July 1, 2004, and remains in effect through June 30, 
2005, unless the harvest guideline is attained and the fishery is 
closed before June 30, 2005. All landings made after July 1, 2004, will 
be counted toward the 2004-2005 harvest guideline of 13,268 mt. There 
shall be a directed fishery, followed by an incidental fishery of 4,168 
mt. An incidental allowance of 40 percent of Pacific mackerel in 
landings of any CPS will become effective after the date when 9,100 mt 
of Pacific mackerel is estimated to have been harvested. A landing of 1 
mt of Pacific mackerel per trip will be permitted during the incidental 
fishery for trips in which no other CPS is landed.

Classification

    This final rule has been determined to be not significant for 
purposes of Executive Order 12866.
    The Chief Counsel for Regulation of the Department of Commerce 
certified to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business 
Administration that the proposed rule for this action would not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. 
The factual basis for the certification was published in the proposed 
rule. No comments were received regarding the economic impacts of this 
action. As a result, a regulatory flexibility analysis was not 
prepared.

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

    Dated: October 15, 2004.
Rebecca Lent,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 04-23595 Filed 10-20-04; 8:45 am]
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