51814 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 192 / Friday, October 3, 1997 / Rules and Regulations

(5) If requested, NMFS may authorize

the use of pingers with specifications or

pinger configurations differing from

those set forth in paragraphs (c)(1) and

(c)(3) of this section for limited,

experimental purposes within a single

fishing season.

(d) Skipper education workshops.

After notification from NMFS, vessel

operators must attend a skipper

education workshop before commencing

fishing each fishing season. For the

1997/1998 fishing season, all vessel

operators must have attended one

skipper education workshop by October

30, 1997. NMFS may waive the

requirement to attend these workshops

by notice to all vessel operators.

[FR Doc. 97–26330 Filed 9–30–97; 4:50 pm]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[Docket No. 961227373–6373–01; I.D.

092597A]

Fisheries Off West Coast States and in

the Western Pacific; Pacific Coast

Groundfish Fishery; Trip Limit

Changes

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Fishing restrictions; request for

comments.

SUMMARY: NMFS announces further

adjustments to the Pacific Coast

groundfish limited entry fisheries for

the Sebastes complex and its

components canary and yellowtail

rockfish, the Dover sole-thornyheadtrawl sablefish (DTS) complex and its

components Dover sole and trawlcaught sablefish, and announces the

final 1997 cumulative trip limit period

for trawl vessels in the ‘‘B’’ platoon.

NMFS also announces an increase to the

monthly cumulative limit for the open

access nontrawl sablefish fishery north

of 36° N. lat. (A similar change for the

limited entry nontrawl sablefish fishery

north of 36° N. lat. is included in a

separate Federal Register action that

announces the duration and limit of the

limited entry sablefish mop-up fishery.)

These restrictions are intended to keep

landings as close as possible to the 1997

harvest guidelines and allocations for

these species, and to provide

management flexibility during the final

months of the year.

DATES: Effective at 0001 hours local time

(l.t.) October 1, 1997; except for the trip

limit for trawl vessels operating in the

B platoon, which will become effective

at 0001 hours l.t. October 16, 1997.

These changes remain in effect, unless

modified, superseded or rescinded,

until the effective date of the 1998

annual specifications and management

measures for the Pacific Coast

groundfish fishery, which will be

published in the Federal Register.

Comments will be accepted through

October 20, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Submit comments to

William Stelle, Jr., Administrator,

Northwest Region (Regional

Administrator), NMFS, 7600 Sand Point

Way NE., Seattle, WA 98115–0070; or

William Hogarth, Acting Administrator,

Southwest Region, NMFS, 501 West

Ocean Blvd., Suite 4200, Long Beach,

CA 90802–4213.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

William L. Robinson at 206–526–6140

or Rodney McInnis at 562–980–4040.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

following changes to current

management measures are based on the

best available information, and were

recommended by the Pacific Fishery

Management Council (Council), in

consultation with the states of

Washington, Oregon, and California, at

its September 9–12, 1997, meeting in

Portland, OR.

The Sebastes Complex. The Sebastes

complex consists of all rockfish

managed by the FMP except Pacific

ocean perch (POP), widow rockfish,

shortbelly rockfish, and thornyheads.

The limited entry fishery for the

Sebastes complex currently is managed

under a 2-month cumulative trip limit

of 30,000 lb (13,608 kg) north of Cape

Mendocino (40°30’ N. lat.) and 150,000

lb (68,039 kg) south of Cape Mendocino.

Within these 2-month cumulative limits

for the Sebastes complex, no more than

6,000 lb (2,722 kg) may be yellowtail

rockfish north of Cape Mendocino, no

more than 10,000 lb (4,534 kg) may be

bocaccio south of Cape Mendocino, and

no more than 14,000 lb (6,350 kg) may

be canary rockfish coastwide.

The best available information at the

September 1997 Council meeting

indicated that both yellowtail rockfish

and canary rockfish would be 18–19

percent below their respective harvest

guidelines at the end of the year.

Therefore, the Council recommended

increasing the trip limits for these

species, and converting those limits

from 2-month to 1-month limits on

October 1, 1997, so that the industry

could receive immediate benefit from

the higher limits. The new 1-month

cumulative trip limits for the Sebastes

complex are: 20,000 lb (9,072 kg) north

of Cape Mendocino and 75,000 lb

(33,975 kg) south of Cape Mendocino.

Within these 1-month cumulative limits

for the Sebastes complex, no more than

5,000 lb (2,268 kg) may be yellowtail

rockfish north of Cape Mendocino, no

more than 5,000 lb (2,268 kg) may be

bocaccio south of Cape Mendocino, and

no more than 10,000 lb (4,534 kg) may

be canary rockfish coastwide.

As these changes are implemented in

the middle of a 2-month cumulative trip

limit period (September-October 1997),

both the 2-month cumulative trip limits

and the 60 percent monthly limits for

the Sebastes complex and its

components become obsolete after

October 1. POP and widow rockfish are

the only two species that remain under

2-month cumulative limits. (The DTS

complex was converted to monthly

limits on September 1, 1997 (62 FR

36228, July 7, 1997).)

Dover Sole, Thornyheads, and TrawlCaught Sablefish (the DTS Complex).

The limited entry fishery for the DTS

complex and its components currently

is managed under a 1-month cumulative

trip limit of 28,500 lb (12,927 kg) north

of Cape Mendocino and 50,000 lb

(22,680 kg) south of Cape Mendocino.

Within these 1-month cumulative

limits, no more than 15,000 lb (6,804 kg)

may be Dover sole north of Cape

Mendocino, no more than 6,000 lb

(2,722 kg) may be sablefish coastwide,

and no more than 7,500 lb (3,402 kg)

may be thornyheads coastwide. No more

than 1,500 lb (680 kg) of the

thornyheads may be shortspine

thornyheads.

The best available information at the

September 1997 Council meeting

indicated that the harvest guidelines for

Dover sole would be reached before the

end of the year, and exceeded by 19

percent in the Columbia area and 7

percent coastwide if the rate of landings

is not slowed. Landings of trawl-caught

sablefish also were projected to exceed

the limited entry trawl allocation by 9

percent by the end of the year.

Landings of both species of

thornyheads are projected to be lower

than their respective harvest guidelines.

The two thornyhead species are often

caught together. Landings of longspine

thornyheads are projected to be 28

percent below its harvest guideline by

the end of the year; but, trip limits for

this species could not be increased

without increasing the catch of

shortspine thornyheads, which are

expected to be 7 percent below its

1,380–mt harvest guideline but well

above the 1,000–mt acceptable

biological catch for this species. Because
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 192 / Friday, October 3, 1997 / Rules and Regulations 51815

the harvest guideline for shortspine

thornyheads is close to its overfishing

level, the Council did not recommend

increasing the trip limits for either

species of thornyheads.

Earlier in the year, the Council and

NMFS notified the industry that the

DTS fishery could be closed for several

months in 1997. Some members of the

industry prefer higher initial trip limits

with closures, and others prefer reduced

limits and a longer fishery. Closing the

DTS fishery in November and December

was considered by the Council at its

September meeting. After hearing

considerable testimony opposing such

closures, the Council recommended

drastically reduced trip limits to be

effective on October 1, but

acknowledged the fishery still could

close in December, after the Council

considers new landings projections at

its November 1997 meeting. The new

trip limits, which take effect October 1,

are intended to curtail most target

fishing on sablefish coastwide and on

Dover sole in the Columbia area.

However, they also may result in

discards if the industry targets on these

species or is unable to avoid them while

fishing for Dover sole south of Cape

Mendocino or for thornyheads

coastwide. The Council also

recommended that a 30,000–lb (13,608–

kg) monthly cumulative limit be

established for Dover sole south of Cape

Mendocino. Previously, Dover sole

could comprise as much as 36,500 lb

(16,556 kg) of the DTS limit south of

Cape Mendocino, the amount left over

after subtracting the amounts of

sablefish and thornyheads that were

taken. The overall limits for the DTS

complex, which are the sum of the

limits of its components, are changed to

reflect the changes to Dover sole and

sablefish. These changes are intended to

keep landings of the DTS complex and

its components within the 1997 harvest

guidelines and allocations without

increasing discards.

The new limits for the DTS complex

are 11,000 lb (4,990 kg) north of Cape

Mendocino, and 39,500 lb (17,917 kg)

south of Cape Mendocino. Within these

limits, no more than 1,500 lb (680 kg)

may be Dover sole north of Cape

Mendocino and 30,000 lb (13,608 kg)

south of Cape Mendocino; no more than

2,000 lb (907 kg) coastwide may be

trawl-caught sablefish; and no more

than 7,500 lb (3,402 kg) coastwide may

be thornyheads. No more than 1,500 lb

(680 kg) of the thornyheads may be

shortspine thornyheads.

‘‘B’’ Platoon. NMFS also announces

the last cumulative trip limit period in

1997 for the ‘‘B’’ platoon, those limited

entry trawl vessels with a letter

authorizing them to take their

cumulative trip limits 2 weeks out of

phase with the rest of the fleet. For

vessels in the ‘‘B’’ platoon: the final 2-

month cumulative trip limits for POP

and widow rockfish apply to the 6-week

period from November 16, 1997 through

December 31, 1997 and there is no 60%

monthly limit for this period; and the

equivalent of two 1-month cumulative

trip limits for the Sebastes complex and

its components, and for the DTS

complex and its components, may be

landed during the 6-week period from

November 16, 1997 through December

31, 1997.

Open Access Sablefish. Both the open

access and limited entry sablefish

fisheries north of 36°00’ N. lat. are

currently subject to a 300–lb (136 kg)

daily trip limit, not to exceed 600 lb

(272 kg) cumulative per month. At its

September 1997 meeting, the Council

was advised that landings in the open

access sablefish fishery north of 36°00’

N. lat. were lower than expected and

could be increased. However, finding a

method for doing so without attracting

effort from the limited entry daily trip

limit fishery was problematic. To avoid

effort shifts, the Council recommended

increasing the monthly cumulative limit

for the open access fishery to 1,500 lb

(680 kg) on October 1, during the

limited entry mop-up fishery. For the

same reason, the Council also

recommended increasing the

cumulative monthly limit on the daily

trip limit portion of the limited entry

fishery to 1,500 lb (680 kg) after the end

of the mop-up season on October 15,

1997. (This change for the limited entry

fishery is being announced in a separate

Federal Register action, at the same

time that the dates and trip limit for the

limited entry mop-up fishery are

announced.) These changes are

intended to keep sablefish landings

from the open access and limited entry

daily trip limit fisheries within the

levels intended to be taken by these two

fisheries for the entire year.

NMFS Action

For the reasons stated above, NMFS

concurs with the Council’s

recommendations and makes the

following changes to the 1997 annual

management measures (62 FR 700,

January 6, 1997 as modified).

1. Paragraph A.(1)(c)(iii)(C) of section

IV. is revised to read as follows:

A. General Definitions and Provisions

* * * * *

(1) * * *

(c) * * *

(iii) * * *

(C) Special provisions will be made

for ‘‘B’’ platoon vessels later in the year

so that the amount of fish made

available in 1997 to both ‘‘A’’ and ‘‘B’’

vessels is the same. (For example, a

vessel in the ‘‘B’’ platoon will have the

same cumulative trip limit for the final

period as a vessel in the ‘‘A’’ platoon,

but the final period may be 2 weeks

shorter so that both fishing periods end

on the same date.) For trawl vessels in

the ‘‘B’’ platoon, the 6-week period from

November 16–December 31, 1997

replaces the last 2 months of the year.

Therefore, one 2-month cumulative trip

limit (POP, widow rockfish), and two 1-

month cumulative trip limits (the

Sebastes complex and its components,

the DTS complex and its components)

will apply to that 6-week period. Both

1-month cumulative trip limits for a

species (or species complex) may be

combined and landed at any time

during the 6-week period.

* * * * *

2. Effective October 1, 1997 (October

16, 1997 for the ‘‘B’’ platoon), for

yellowtail rockfish, canary rockfish, and

the Sebastes complex, paragraphs

C.(2)(a) and C.(3) of section IV. are

revised, to read as follows:

C. Sebastes Complex (including

Bocaccio, Yellowtail, and Canary

Rockfish)

* * * * *

(2) Limited entry fishery. (a)

Cumulative trip limits. (i) North of Cape

Mendocino. The cumulative trip limit

for the Sebastes complex taken and

retained north of Cape Mendocino is

20,000 lb (9,072 kg) per vessel per 1-

month period. Within this cumulative

trip limit for the Sebastes complex, no

more than 5,000 lb (2,268 kg) may be

yellowtail rockfish taken and retained

north of Cape Mendocino, and no more

than 10,000 lb (4,534 kg) may be canary

rockfish.

(ii) South of Cape Mendocino. The

cumulative trip limit for the Sebastes

complex taken and retained south of

Cape Mendocino is 75,000 lb (33,975 kg)

per vessel per 1-month period. Within

this cumulative trip limit for the

Sebastes complex, no more than 5,000

lb (2,268 kg) may be bocaccio taken and

retained south of Cape Mendocino, and

no more than 10,000 lb (4,534 kg) may

be canary rockfish.

(iii) Clarification. The cumulative

monthly trip limits for the Sebastes

complex and its components are the

maximum amount that may be taken

and retained, possessed, or landed

coastwide in a calendar month. A vessel

is not entitled to double the cumulative

trip limit if it operates both north and

south of Cape Mendocino in a calendar
51816 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 192 / Friday, October 3, 1997 / Rules and Regulations

month. [xx same as added for DTS

sept1]

* * * * *

(3) Open access fishery. See paragraph

IV.I.

* * * * *

3. Effective October 1, 1997 (October

16, 1997 for the ‘‘B’’ platoon), for the

DTS complex, paragraph E.(2)(b) (i) and

(ii) and E. (3) of section IV. are revised,

to read as follows:

E. Sablefish and the DTS Complex

(Dover Sole, Thornyheads, and TrawlCaught Sablefish)

* * * * *

(2) Limited entry fishery. * * *

(b) Limited entry trip and size limits

for the DTS complex.

(i) North of Cape Mendocino. The

cumulative trip limit for the DTS

complex taken and retained north of

Cape Mendocino is 11,000 lb (4,990 kg)

per vessel per 1-month period. Within

this cumulative trip limit, no more than

2,000 lb (907 kg) may be sablefish, no

more than 1,500 lb (680 kg) may be

Dover sole, and no more than 7,500 lb

(3,402 kg) may be thornyheads. No more

than 1,500 lb (680 kg) of the

thornyheads may be shortspine

thornyheads.

(ii) South of Cape Mendocino. The

cumulative trip limit for the DTS

complex taken and retained south of

Cape Mendocino is 39,500 lb (17,917 kg)

per vessel per 1-month period. Within

this cumulative trip limit, no more than

2,000 lb (907 kg) may be sablefish, no

more than 30,000 lb (13,608 kg) may be

Dover sole, and no more than 7,500 lb

(3,402 kg) may be thornyheads. No more

than 1,500 lb (680 kg) of the

thornyheads may be shortspine

thornyheads.

* * * * *

(3) Open access fishery. See paragraph

IV.I.

* * * * *

4. Effective October 1, 1997 for

sablefish in the open access fishery,

paragraph I.(2)(a) of section IV. is

revised, to read as follows:

I. Trip Limits in the Open Access

Fishery * * *

* * * * *

(2) Sablefish. (a) North of 36°00’ N.

lat. The cumulative trip limit for

sablefish taken and retained north of

36°00’ N. lat. is 1,500 lb (680 kg) per

month. The daily trip limit for sablefish

taken and retained north of 36°00’ N.

lat., which counts toward the

cumulative limit, is 300 lb (136 kg). The

1,500–lb (680–kg) cumulative monthly

limit does not apply to exempted trawl

gear (used to fish for shrimp, prawn, sea

cucumber, and California halibut) in the

open access fishery.

* * * * *

Classification

These actions are authorized by the

regulations implementing the Pacific

Coast Groundfish Fishery Management

Plan, which governs the groundfish

fishery off Washington, Oregon, and

California. The determination to take

these actions is based on the most recent

data available. The aggregate data upon

which the determinations are based are

available for public inspection at the

office of the Administrator, Northwest

Region, NMFS (see ADDRESSES) during

business hours. Because of the need for

immediate action to slow the rate of

harvest of the species discussed above,

and because the public had an

opportunity to comment on the action at

the September 1997 Council meeting,

NMFS has determined that good cause

exists for this document to be published

without affording a prior opportunity

for public comment or a 30-day delayed

effectiveness period. These actions are

taken under the authority of 50 CFR

660.323(b)(1), and are exempt from

review under E.O. 12866.

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

Dated: September 30, 1997.

Bruce C. Morehead,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 97–26331 Filed 9–30–97; 4:50 pm]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F