57746 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 187 / Tuesday, September 26, 2000 / Rules and Regulations

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Part 679

[Docket No. 000211040-0040-01; I.D.

091900A]

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic

Zone Off Alaska; Sharpchin and

Northern Rockfish in the Aleutian

Islands Subarea of the Bering Sea and

Aleutian Islands Management Area

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Closure.

SUMMARY: NMFS is prohibiting retention

of sharpchin and northern rockfish in

the Aleutian Islands subarea of the

Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands

management area (BSAI). NMFS is

requiring that catch of sharpchin and

northern rockfish in this area be treated

in the same manner as prohibited

species and discarded at sea with a

minimum of injury. This action is

necessary because the amount of the

2000 total allowable catch (TAC) of

sharpchin and northern rockfish in this

area has been achieved.

DATES: Effective 1200 hrs, Alaska local

time (A.l.t.), September 20, 2000, until

2400 hrs, A.l.t., December 31, 2000.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mary Furuness, 907-586-7228.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS

manages the groundfish fishery in the

BSAI according to the Fishery

Management Plan for the Groundfish

Fishery of the Bering Sea and Aleutian

Islands Area (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 2000 TAC of non-community

development quota sharpchin and

northern rockfish in the Aleutian

Islands subarea of the BSAI was

established as 4,764 metric tons in the

Final 2000 Harvest Specifications of

Groundfish for the BSAI (65 FR 8282,

February 18, 2000). See §

679.20(c)(3)(iii).

In accordance with § 679.20(d)(2), the

Administrator, Alaska Region, NMFS,

has determined that the amount of the

2000 TAC for sharpchin and northern

rockfish in the Aleutian Islands subarea

of the BSAI has been achieved.

Therefore, NMFS is requiring that

further catches of sharpchin and

northern rockfish in the Aleutian

Islands subarea of the BSAI be treated

as prohibited species in accordance

with § 679.21(b).

Classification

This action responds to the best

available information recently obtained

from the fishery. It must be

implemented immediately to prevent

exceeding the amount of the 2000 TAC

of sharpchin and northern rockfish in

the Aleutian Islands subarea of the

BSAI. A delay in the effective date is

contrary to the public interest. The fleet

has taken the amount of the 2000 TAC

of sharpchin and northern rockfish in

the Aleutian Islands subarea of the

BSAI. NMFS finds for good cause that

the implementation of this action

cannot be delayed for 30 days.

Accordingly, under 5 U.S.C. 553(d), a

delay in the effective date is hereby

waived.

This action is required by § 679.20

and is exempt from review under

Executive Order 12866.

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

Dated: September 20, 2000.

Bruce C. Morehead,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 00–24592 Filed 9–20–00; 4:44 pm]

BILLING CODE 3510-22-S

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Part 679

[Docket No. 000211040–0040–01; I.D.

091800J]

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic

Zone Off Alaska; Sharpchin and

Northern Rockfish in the Aleutian

Islands Subarea

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Fishery closure.

SUMMARY: NMFS closes directed fishing

for Atka mackerel in the Aleutian

Islands subarea of the Bering Sea and

Aleutian Islands management area

(BSAI) by vessels using trawl gear not

fishing for a Community Development

Quota (CDQ). This action is necessary to

prevent overfishing of the sharpchin/

northern rockfish species group.

DATES: Effective 1200 hrs, Alaska local

time (A.l.t.), September 20, 2000, until

2400 hrs, A.l.t., December 31, 2000.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Andrew N. Smoker, 907–586-7228.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS

manages the groundfish fishery in the

BSAI according to the Fishery

Management Plan for the Groundfish

Fishery of the Bering Sea and Aleutian

Islands Area (FMP) prepared by the

North Pacific Fishery Management

Council under authority of the

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery

Conservation and Management Act

(Magnuson-Stevens 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 Magnuson-Stevens Act requires

that conservation and management

measures prevent overfishing. The 2000

overfishing level for the sharpchin/

northern rockfish species group in the

Aleutian Islands subarea of the BSAI is

established by the Final 2000 Harvest

Specifications of Groundfish for the

BSAI (65 FR 8282, February 18, 2000) as

6,870 metric tons (mt), the acceptable

biological catch (ABC) is established as

5,150 mt and the non-CDQ total

allowable catch (TAC) as 4,764 mt. The

Administrator, Alaska Region,

(Administrator) NMFS, estimates that as

of September 20, 2000, the non-CDQ

TAC of sharpchin/northern rockfish will

be caught.

NMFS closed directed fishing for

sharpchin/northern rockfish in Closures

of Specified Groundfish Fisheries in the

Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (65 FR

8297, February 18, 2000). Substantial

trawl fishing effort will be directed at

remaining amounts of non-CDQ Atka

mackerel in the Aleutian Islands

subarea during 2000. This fishery has

significant incidental catch of

sharpchin/northern rockfish, averaging

about 95 mt per day during the week

ending September 16, 2000. Data from

the groundfish observer program

indicates that high incidental catch rates

of sharpchin/northern rockfish are

experienced in the Atka mackerel

fishery and range from 15 percent to 25

percent. These high rates of sharpchin/

northern rockfish are inherent in the

directed Atka mackerel fishery and will

not be reduced if the retention of

sharpchin/northern rockfish was

prohibited pursuant to § 679.20(d)(2). If

the trawl non-CDQ Atka mackerel

fishery were allowed to continue

beyond September 20, 2000, the ABC for

sharpchin/northern rockfish would be

exceeded significantly.

Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 187 / Tuesday, September 26, 2000 / Rules and Regulations 57747

The Regional Administrator, Alaska

Region, NMFS has determined, in

accordance with § 679.20(d)(3) that

closing the directed fishery for non-CDQ

Atka mackerel by vessels using trawl

gear is necessary to prevent overfishing

of the sharpchin/northern rockfish

species group, and is the least restrictive

measure to achieve that purpose.

Without this directed fishery closure,

significant incidental catch of

sharpchin/northern rockfish would

occur by trawl vessels targeting nonCDQ Atka mackerel.

Maximum retainable bycatch amounts

for Atka mackerel may be found in the

regulations at § 679.20(e) and (f).

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. section 553, the

Assistant Administrator for Fisheries,

NOAA, finds that this action is

necessary to prevent overfishing of

sharpchin/northern rockfish in the

Aleutian Islands subarea of the BSAI

and thus constitutes good cause to

waive the requirement to provide prior

notice and public comment because

such procedure is contrary to the public

interest. Similarly, the need to

implement these measure in a timely

fashion to prevent overfishing

constitutes good cause to waive the 30-

day delay in effectiveness.

Classification

This action is required by § 679.20

and is exempt from review under E.O.

12866.

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

Dated: September 20, 2000.

Bruce C. Morehead,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 00–24591 Filed 9–20–00; 4:44 pm]

BILLING CODE: 3510–22 –S