Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 128 / Thursday, July 5, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 36617 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 660 

[Docket No. 060824226–6322–02] 

RIN 0648–AV69 

Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; 

Fisheries Off West Coast States; 

Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; 

Biennial Specifications and 

Management Measures; Inseason 

Adjustments 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Final rule; inseason adjustments 

to groundfish management measures; 

request for comments. 

SUMMARY: This final rule announces 

inseason changes to management 

measures in the commercial Pacific 

Coast groundfish fishery. These actions, 

which are authorized by the Pacific 

Coast Groundfish Fishery Management 

Plan (FMP), are intended to allow 

fisheries to access more abundant 

groundfish stocks while protecting 

overfished and depleted stocks. 

DATES: Effective 0001 hours (local time) 

August 1, 2007. Comments on this final 

rule must be received no later than 5 

p.m., local time on August 6, 2007. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, 

identified by RIN 0648–AV69 by any of 

the following methods: 

• E-mail: Inseason2.nwr@noaa.gov. 

Include RIN 0648–AV69 in the subject 

line of the message. 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Fax: 206–526–6736, Attn: Gretchen 

Arentzen 

• Mail: D. Robert Lohn, 

Administrator, Northwest Region, 

NMFS, 7600 Sand Point Way NE, 

Seattle, WA 98115–0070, Attn: Gretchen 

Arentzen. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Gretchen Arentzen (Northwest Region, 

NMFS), phone: 206–526–6147, fax: 206–

526–6736 and e-mail 

gretchen.arentzen@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Electronic Access 

This final rule is accessible via the 

Internet at the Office of the Federal 

Register’s Website at http:// 

www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html. 

Background information and documents 

are available at the Pacific Fishery 

Management Council’s (Council’s) 

website at http://www.pcouncil.org/. 

Background 

The Pacific Coast Groundfish FMP 

and its implementing regulations at title 

50 in the Code of Federal Regulations 

(CFR), part 660, subpart G, regulate 

fishing for over 90 species of groundfish 

off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, 

and California. Groundfish 

specifications and management 

measures are developed by the Pacific 

Fishery Management Council (Council), 

and are implemented by NMFS. A 

proposed rule to implement the 2007–

2008 specifications and management 

measures for the Pacific Coast 

groundfish fishery and Amendment 16–

4 of the FMP was published on 

September 29, 2006 (71 FR 57764). The 

final rule to implement the 2007–2008 

specifications and management 

measures for the Pacific Coast 

Groundfish Fishery was published on 

December 29, 2006 (71 FR 78638). These 

specifications and management 

measures were codified in the CFR (50 

CFR part 660, subpart G). The final rule 

was subsequently amended on: March 

20, 2007 (71 FR 13043); and April 18, 

2007 (72 FR 19390). 

Changes to current groundfish 

management measures implemented by 

this action were recommended by the 

Council, in consultation with Pacific 

Coast Treaty Indian Tribes and the 

States of Washington, Oregon, and 

California, at its June 11–15, 2007, 

meeting in Foster City, California. At 

that meeting, the Pacific Council 

recommended adjusting current 

groundfish management measures to 

respond to updated fishery information 

and other inseason management needs. 

The Pacific Council recommended: (1) 

moving the seaward boundary of the 

Limited Entry Trawl Rockfish 

Conservation Area (RCA) between 

Cascade Head (45°03.83′ N. lat.) and the 

Columbia River (46°16′ N. lat.) from a 

line approximating the 150–fm (274–m) 

depth contour to a line approximating 

the 200–fm (366–m) depth contour; (2) 

increasing the 2–month cumulative 

limit in the limited entry trawl fishery 

for longspine thornyheads using large 

and small footrope gear north of 40°10′ 

N. lat.; (3) increasing the 2–month 

cumulative limit in the limited entry 

trawl fishery south of 40°10′ N. lat. for 

Dover sole; (4) increasing the monthly 

cumulative limit in the limited entry 

trawl fishery for chilipepper rockfish 

using small footrope gear south of 

40°10′ N. lat.; (5) increasing the 2–

month cumulative limit in the limited 

entry fixed gear fishery for shortspine 

thornyheads south of 34°27′ N. lat.; (6) 

combining the 2–month cumulative 

limits for shelf rockfish, widow rockfish 

and bocaccio, in the limited entry fixed 

gear fishery, between 40°10′ N. lat. and 

34°27′ N. lat. into a single 2–month 

cumulative limit starting September 1; 

(7) increasing the daily and weekly 

limits in the open access sablefish daily 

trip limit (DTL) fishery south of 36° N. 

lat.. Pacific Coast groundfish landings 

will be monitored throughout the year, 

and further adjustments to trip limits or 

management measures will be made as 

necessary to allow achievement of, or to 

avoid exceeding, optimum yields (OYs). 

Limited Entry Trawl Fishery 

Management Measures 

At its March 2007 meeting, the 

Council received a NMFS report 

indicating higher than anticipated 

canary rockfish bycatch rates by 

selective flatfish trawl gear vessels 

fishing shoreward of the trawl RCA in 

2005. The Council responded to this 

new information by restricting access to 

some shoreward fishing areas north of 

40°10’ N. lat. and by liberalizing fishing 

opportunities seaward of the RCA to 

encourage a shift of effort to offshore 

waters in the 2007 limited entry nonwhiting trawl fisheries (71 FR 19390, 

April 18, 2007). The Council expected 

these inseason adjustments to result in 

a decreased canary rockfish bycatch in 

the 2007 limited entry non-whiting 

trawl fisheries, but with a possible 

higher bycatch of darkblotched rockfish, 

a slope rockfish, with impacts for both 

species projected to stay within their 

respective OYs. 

At its June 2007 meeting, the Council 

considered the most recently available 

information on groundfish landings and 

on updated projections of groundfish 

species total catches, and concluded 

that the April inseason adjustments 

effectively reduced canary rockfish 

impacts in the 2007 limited entry nonwhiting trawl fishery. However, effort 

shifts by limited entry trawl vessels to 

areas seaward of the trawl RCA were 

greater than anticipated, resulting in a 

higher bycatch of darkblotched rockfish 

than projected in the area between 

Cascade Head (45°03.83′ N. lat.) and the 

Columbia River (46°16′ N. lat.). Under 

the previously adopted RCA schedule, 

the seaward boundary in this area was 

scheduled to shift from the line 

approximating the 150–fm (274–m) 

depth contour to the line approximating 

the 200–fm (366–m) depth contour 

beginning September 1; however, 

further reduction in the impacts of effort 

shifts to darkblotched rockfish is 

necessary. Therefore, the Council 

recommended and NMFS is 


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implementing an expansion of the 

limited entry non-whiting trawl RCA 

between Cascade Head and the 

Columbia River by adjusting the 

seaward boundary to the line 

approximating the 200–fm (366–m) 

depth contour beginning August 1. 

The Council also considered 

adjustments to trip limits in the limited 

entry non-whiting trawl fishery. 

Available catch limits of longspine 

thornyheads taken with large and small 

footrope trawl gear north of 40°10′ N. 

lat., Dover sole south of 40°10′ N. lat., 

and chilipepper rockfish taken with 

small footrope trawl gear south of 40°10′ 

N. lat. are being attained by 

participating vessels. The Council 

considered increases to trip limits for 

these species and the potential impacts 

on overall catch levels and overfished 

species. The most recently available 

information as of June 25, 2007, 

indicates that 19 percent (411 mt out of 

the 2,220 mt OY) of the longspine 

thornyhead OY north of 34°27′ N. lat. 

and 27 percent (4,555 mt out of the 

16,500 mt OY) of the coastwide Dover 

sole OY have been taken through June 

16, 2007. These projections are below 

the anticipated catch projections 

through June, and continuing the trawl 

fishery under these limits is projected to 

prevent the fishery from attaining the 

OYs for these species. Modest increases 

to longspine thornyhead and Dover sole 

cumulative limits are expected to 

increase overall catch levels, but those 

increases are predicted to be within the 

2007 OYs for these species and are not 

expected to result in greater than 

projected overfished species impacts. 

Therefore, the Council recommended 

and NMFS is implementing the 

following trip limit changes for the 

limited entry trawl fishery: (1) North of 

40°10’ N. lat., increase longspine 

thornyhead limits using large and small 

footrope gear from 22,000 lb (9,979 kg) 

per 2 months to 25,000 lb (11,340 kg) 

per 2 months beginning in period 4; and 

(2) south of 40°10’ N. lat., increase 

Dover sole limits from 70,000 lb (31,751 

kg) per 2 months to 80,000 lb (36,287 

kg) per 2 months beginning in period 4. 

Chilipepper rockfish are an abundant 

species taken in common with other 

rockfish in the southern shelf rockfish 

complex. Based on the most recently 

available West Coast Groundfish 

Observer Program (WCGOP) data, 

chilipepper rockfish are being regularly 

discarded under current trip limits for 

small footrope trawl gear south of 40°10’

N. lat. OYs for chilipepper rockfish have 

not come close to being achieved in 

recent years. For example, in the 2005 

limited entry trawl and fixed gear 

fishery, the chilipepper rockfish 

landings were 28 mt, less than 3 percent 

of the 1099 mt chilipepper rockfish OY. 

The Council considered increasing 

chilipepper rockfish limits to 

accommodate some of this discard 

while keeping limits low enough to 

prevent targeting. Targeting of 

chilipepper rockfish could increase 

impacts to bocaccio and widow 

rockfish, co-occurring overfished 

species. Current catch projections 

estimate that less than 80 percent of the 

2007 OYs will be obtained for either 

bocaccio or widow rockfish by the end 

of the year; therefore, if unexpected 

targeting of chilipepper rockfish were to 

occur, and higher than expected bycatch 

of bocaccio and widow rockfish occurs, 

bocaccio and widow rockfish total catch 

could be expected to remain within 

2007 OYs. Therefore, the Council 

recommended and NMFS is 

implementing the following trip limit 

changes for the limited entry trawl 

fishery: South of 40°10′ N. lat., increase 

chilipepper rockfish limits using small 

footrope trawl gear from 500 lb (227 kg) 

per month to 800 lb (363 kg) per month 

beginning August 1. 

Limited Entry Fixed Gear Trip Limits 

South of 40≥10′ N. Lat. 

As of May 31, 2007, the total 

shortspine thornyhead landings south of 

34°27′ N. lat. were estimated to be 60.6 

mt out of a 421 mt OY. The Council 

considered increases to the shortspine 

thornyhead cumulative limits south of 

34°27′ N. lat., and discussed concerns 

with possible effort shifts. Increases in 

effort in this area could result in higher 

sablefish catch and higher catches of 

other species. Estimates show that 

sablefish catches in this area are lower 

than they had been predicted to be at 

the beginning of the year. The Council 

recommended a short term increase in 

shortspine thornyhead cumulative 

limits to balance the potential impacts 

on sablefish from a possible effort shift 

and the large amount of shortspine 

thornyheads available for harvest. The 

Council will consider further 

adjustments to shortspine thornyhead 

cumulative limits upon receipt of 

additional fishery information later in 

the year. Shortspine thornyheads are a 

slope rockfish species and most of the 

overfished species south of 36° N. lat. 

are shelf species, so no increased 

impacts on overfished species are 

expected to occur as a result of 

increasing shortspine thornyhead trip 

limits. 

The Council also considered industry 

concerns regarding high discard rates of 

minor shelf, bocaccio, and widow 

rockfish in the fixed gear fishery 

between 40°10′ N. lat. and 37° N. lat. 

and a request to combine bocaccio, 

chilipepper, and widow rockfish into a 

single combined limit with minor shelf 

rockfish between 40°10′ N. lat. and 37° 

N. lat. The Council had concerns with 

the impacts to overfished species by 

combining chilipepper rockfish 

cumulative limits into a single 

cumulative limit with minor shelf, 

bocaccio and widow rockfish, since the 

high abundance of chilipepper rockfish 

would result in a combined limit too 

high to be supported by less abundant 

species in the complex. Leaving 

cumulative limits for chilipepper 

rockfish separate, while combining 

minor shelf, bocaccio and widow 

rockfish into a single cumulative limit, 

will allow the industry increased 

flexibility in retention opportunities and 

is expected to reduce discard without 

affecting overfished species catch levels. 

Therefore, the Council recommended, 

and NMFS is implementing the 

following changes for the limited entry 

fixed gear fishery: (1) South of 34°27′ N. 

lat., increase the shortspine thornyhead 

limits from 2,000 lb (907 kg) per 2 

months to 3,000 lb (1,361 kg) per 2 

months during period 4; (2) between 

40°10′ N. lat. and 37° N. lat., combine 

the trip limit for bocaccio of 300 lb (136 

kg) per 2 months and the trip limit for 

minor shelf rockfish, shortbelly 

rockfish, and widow rockfish of 300 lb 

(136 kg) per 2 months into a single 

cumulative trip limit of 500 lb (227 kg) 

per 2 months for: bocaccio, minor shelf 

rockfish, shortbelly, and widow rockfish 

beginning September 1. 

Open Access Sablefish Daily Trip 

Limits South of 36≥ N. Lat. 

The Council considered an industry 

request to increase limits in the open 

access sablefish DTL fishery south of 

36° N. lat. to allow available sablefish 

OY in this area to be harvested by 

providing fishing opportunities that 

would be equivalent to opportunities in 

recent years. In October 2006, NMFS 

increased the daily limits south of 36° 

N. lat. from 350 lb (159 kg) per day to 

500 lb (227 kg) per day (71 FR 58289, 

October 3, 2006), which resulted in a 

large shift in effort by vessels that had 

historically operated north of 36° N. lat., 

forcing reductions in the daily limit to 

300 lb (136 kg) per day and an 

introduction of a 2 month cumulative 

limit of 3,000 lb (1,361 kg) per month 

in December 2006 in order to stay 

within the 2006 sablefish OY in this 

area (71 FR 69076, November 29, 2006). 

The large increase in effort south of 36° 

N. lat. in 2006 was due, in part, to a 

highly restricted salmon fishing season 

and to the sablefish DTL fishery closure 

north of 36° N. lat. As a precautionary 


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approach, in the event that 2007 salmon 

fisheries were not improved from 2006, 

the Council recommended, and NMFS 

implemented decreases in the open 

access sablefish DTL fishery south of 

40°10′ N. lat. for 2007–2008 to keep 

sablefish within their 2007–2008 OYs 

(71 FR 78638, December 29, 2006). The 

2007 salmon fishery is improved from 

2006 and catch in the sablefish DTL 

fishery north of 36° N. lat. remains open 

and is not currently exceeding 2007 

catch projections; therefore, the 

magnitude of effort shifts seen in 2006 

are not likely to occur in 2007. This 

action would not increase estimated 

impacts on overfished species, because 

estimated mortality for overfished 

species for the year assume that this 

sector will achieve its allocation. 

Therefore, the Council recommended 

and NMFS is implementing an increase 

in the open access sablefish DTL fishery 

trip limits south of 36° N. lat. from ‘‘300 

lb (136 kg) per day, or 1 landing per 

week of up to 700 lb (318 kg)’’ to ‘‘350 

lb (159 kg) per day, or 1 landing per 

week of up to 1,050 lb (476 kg)’’, 

beginning August 1. 

Classification 

These actions are taken under the 

authority of 50 CFR 660.370(c) and are 

exempt from review under Executive 

Order 12866. 

These actions are authorized by the 

Pacific Coast groundfish FMP and its 

implementing regulations, and are based 

on the most recent data available. The 

aggregate data, upon which these 

actions are based, are available for 

public inspection at the Office of the 

Administrator, Northwest Region, 

NMFS, (see ADDRESSES) during business 

hours. 

For the following reasons, NMFS 

finds good cause to waive prior public 

notice and comment on the revisions to 

the 2007 groundfish management 

measures under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(3)(B) 

because notice and comment would be 

impracticable and contrary to the public 

interest. Also for the same reasons, 

NMFS finds good cause to waive part of 

the 30–day delay in effectiveness 

pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(1) and 5 

U.S.C. 553(d)(3). 

The data upon which these 

recommendations were based was 

provided to the Council and the Council 

made its recommendations at its June 

11–15, 2007, meeting in Foster City, CA. 

There was not sufficient time after that 

meeting to draft this notice and undergo 

proposed and final rulemaking before 

these actions need to be in effect. For 

the actions to be implemented in this 

notice, affording the time necessary for 

prior notice and opportunity for public 

comment would be impractical and 

contrary to the public interest because it 

would prevent the Agency from 

managing fisheries using the best 

available science to approach without 

exceeding the OYs for federally 

managed species. The adjustments to 

management measures in this document 

affect commercial groundfish fisheries 

off Washington, Oregon, and California. 

Changes to the limited entry trawl 

RCA must be implemented in a timely 

manner by August 1, 2007, to reduce the 

projected bycatch of darkblotched 

rockfish, a groundfish species that is 

currently subject to rebuilding 

requirements. Changes to the trawl RCA 

must be made to reduce the bycatch of 

darkblotched rockfish, so that the total 

catch of darkblotched rockfish stays 

within its 2007 OY, as defined in the 

rebuilding plan for this species. It 

would be contrary to the public interest 

to wait to implement this RCA revision 

until after public notice and comment, 

because failing to make this regulatory 

change by August 1 could result in 

higher than projected darkblotched 

rockfish catch, ultimately risking early 

closure of fisheries important to coastal 

communities. 

Changes to the cumulative limits in 

the non-whiting commercial fisheries 

must be implemented in a timely 

manner to relieve a restriction by 

allowing fishermen increased 

opportunities to harvest available 

healthy stocks. Changes to cumulative 

limits for the following stocks must be 

implemented in a timely manner by 

August 1, 2007: (1) Longspine 

thornyhead, Dover sole, and chilipepper 

rockfish cumulative limits in the limited 

entry trawl fishery; (2) shortspine 

thornyheads in the limited entry fixed 

gear fishery; and (3) cumulative limits 

in the open access sablefish DTL 

fishery. These changes allow fishermen 

an opportunity to harvest higher trip 

limits for stocks with catch tracking 

behind their projected 2007 catch levels. 

In the limited entry fixed gear fishery, 

changes that combine the limits for 

minor shelf rockfish, widow rockfish 

and bocaccio must be implemented in a 

timely manner by September 1, 2007, to 

provide fishermen an opportunity to 

harvest available healthy stocks by 

allowing increased flexibility in 

retention opportunities. All of these 

cumulative limit changes are within 

projected mortality for overfished 

species. All of these actions provide 

increased trip limits or regulatory 

flexibility. Therefore, it would be 

contrary to the public interest to fail to 

relieve the current restrictions in a 

timely manner. 

Delaying these changes would keep 

management measures in place that are 

not based on the best available data, 

which could risk fisheries exceeding 

their OY, or deny fishermen access to 

available harvest. Such delay would 

impair achievement of one of the Pacific 

Coast Groundfish FMP objectives of 

providing for year-round harvest 

opportunities or extending fishing 

opportunities as long as practicable 

during the fishing year. 

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 660 

Fisheries, and Fishing. 

Dated: June 29, 2007. 

James P. Burgess, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

■ For the reasons set out in the 

preamble, 50 CFR part 660 is amended 

as follows: 

PART 660—FISHERIES OFF WEST 

COAST STATES 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 660 

continues to read as follows: 

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

■ 2. Tables 3 (North), 3 (South), 4 

(South), and 5 (South) to part 660 

subpart G are revised to read as follows. 


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[FR Doc. 07–3262 Filed 7–3–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 


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