Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 91 / Friday, May 11, 2007 / Proposed Rules 26771 

Management Area, including the SAP, 

given the costs associated with fishing 

far offshore. Because the proposed 

action would maintain access to the 

Eastern U.S./Canada Area throughout 

the fishing year, this action attempts to 

preserve the flexibility for vessels to 

operate in an efficient and cost-effective 

manner that would maximize the 

profitability of vessel operations. Since 

the SAP was closed to fishing for FY 

2006, there would be no change in 

profitability to individual vessels 

(compared to last year) resulting from 

the proposed zero allocation, thus, no 

economic impact to affected small 

harvesters. 

This proposed rule does not contain 

any new, nor revised existing reporting, 

recordkeeping, and other compliance 

requirements. 

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

Dated: May 7, 2007. 

William T. Hogarth, 

Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E7–9092 Filed 5–10–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 665 

[Docket No. 070427093–7093–01; I.D. 

041807A] 

RIN 0648–AV55 

Fisheries in the Western Pacific; 

Western Pacific Pelagic Fisheries; 

Control Date 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Advance notice of proposed 

rulemaking; notification of control date; 

request for comments. 

SUMMARY: NMFS announces that anyone 

who enters the Hawaii-based pelagic 

charter fishery after March 16, 2007 (the 

‘‘control date’’), is not guaranteed future 

participation in the fishery if the 

Western Pacific Fishery Management 

Council (Council) recommends, and 

NMFS approves, a program that limits 

entry into the fishery, or other fishery 

management measures. The Council is 

concerned about expansion of the 

Hawaii-based pelagic charter fishery 

and the potential resultant impacts on 

billfish and other pelagic fishes. 

DATES: Comments must be submitted in 

writing by July 10, 2007. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

on this action, identified by 0648–AV55, 

by any of the following methods: 

• E-mail: 

AV55ControlCharter@noaa.gov. Include 

‘‘AV55’’ in the subject line of the e-mail 

comment. Comments sent via e-mail, 

including all attachments, must not 

exceed a 10 megabyte file size. 

• Federal e-Rulemaking portal: 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Mail: William L. Robinson, 

Regional Administrator, NMFS Pacific 

Islands Region (PIR), 1601 Kapiolani 

Blvd., Suite 1110, Honolulu, HI 96814. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bob 

Harman, NMFS PIR, 808–944–2234. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: At its 

137th meeting held from March 13–16, 

2007, the Council adopted a control date 

of March 16, 2007, applicable to persons 

who are contemplating entering the 

Hawaii-based charter fishery for pelagic 

fishes. The purpose of the control date 

is to notify fishermen that after March 

16, 2007, they may not be guaranteed 

access to the fishery if the Council 

recommends, and NMFS approves, 

establishing a limited entry program or 

other measures to manage the fishery. 

The Council has not yet recommended 

limiting new entry or imposing any 

other management measures in this 

fishery. 

Establishment of a control date 

responds to the Council’s concern over 

any significant expansion of the Hawaiibased pelagic charter fishery, and its 

potential to impact billfish and other 

pelagic fishes. This concern is focused 

on the Kona coast of the island of 

Hawaii, where there is a planned 

expansion of the Honokohau Harbor. A 

larger harbor could provide more berths 

for charter fishing vessels, with a 

resulting increase in fishing effort for 

pelagic fishes, such as blue marlin 

(Makaira mazara). State of Hawaii 

fishery data indicate that blue marlin 

catch per unit effort from Kona-based 

pelagic charter fishing has declined 

significantly over the past 20 years. 

Similar trends are also apparent for 

pelagic charter fishing data from the 

other Hawaiian islands. 

Pelagic charter fishing, conducted 

from small vessels that primarily target 

billfishes and tunas and are chartered 

for a fee, is a notable component of 

tourism in Hawaii. Total generated 

revenues were estimated at $17 million 

in 1990, and $16.5 million in 1992. The 

industry attracted an estimated 77,000 

annual participants in 1994, and 

employed approximately 400 captains 

and crew members in 1997. Because at 

least a portion of the catch is typically 

sold, pelagic charter fishing in Hawaii is 

classified as a commercial fishery, 

requiring State of Hawaii commercial 

marine licenses and catch reporting. 

The State of Hawaii issued 121 

commercial marine licenses to vessels 

for pelagic charter fishing in 2005, and 

the reported catch from pelagic charter 

vessels in 2005 was 478,650 lb (217,112 

kg). In 2006, 119 licensed fishermen 

submitted fishing reports that reported a 

total of 9,535 charter trips, or an average 

of 80.1 trips per vessel. 

The March 16, 2007, control date 

adopted by the Council complements a 

control date of June 2, 2005, established 

for non-longline commercial pelagic 

fisheries in Hawaii (70 FR 47781, 

August 15, 2005) in response to 

concerns about overfishing of bigeye 

tuna Pacific-wide and yellowfin tuna in 

the central and western Pacific. 

Control dates are intended to 

discourage speculative entry into 

fisheries, as new participants entering 

the fisheries after the control date are 

put on notice that they are not 

guaranteed future participation in the 

fisheries. Establishment of this control 

date does not commit the Council or 

NMFS to any particular management 

regime or criteria for entry into the 

Hawaii-based pelagic charter fishery. 

Fishermen are not guaranteed future 

participation in the fishery, regardless of 

their level of participation before or 

after the control date. The Council may 

choose a different control date, or it may 

choose a management regime that does 

not involve a control date. Other 

criteria, such as documentation of 

landings or sales, may be used to 

determine eligibility for participation in 

a limited access fishery. The Council or 

NMFS also may choose to take no 

further action to control entry or access 

to the fishery, in which case the control 

date may be rescinded. 

Classification 

This advance notice of proposed 

rulemaking has been determined to be 

not significant for the purposes of 

Executive Order 12866. 

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

Dated: May 7, 2007. 

William T. Hogarth, 

Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E7–9090 Filed 5–10–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 


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